Vocation
Retired
2013 to present
VP, Technology, Alden State Bank 1999-2013
Senior Systems Engineer, CNE, Michigan Computer Consultants 1991-1999
Systems Engineer, NCR Corporation 1967-1991
US Air Force 1963-1967
Avocation
Amateur astronomy
Affiliated (Guest Lecturer) with the Roger B. Chaffee Planetarium of the Grand Rapids Public Museum: (1961-63, 1967-71)
Maintained a planetarium projector, and added 1st magnitude star projectors like John Wesley and I created and installed on Chaffee’s Goto projector at the Jefferson County Planetarium, Colorado while in tech school at Lowry AFB, while in the Air Force in 1964
Past president: Grand Rapids (MI) Amateur Astronomical Association (1969-1971) Member 1955 to 1982
Radio program production - Interlochen Public Radio:
Moler's Universe a weekly program (1974 - 1986)
Bob Moler's Ephemeris, a daily minute long program: (1975 to present.) Ephemeris Page has audio files of the week's programs while Bob's Ephemeris Blog has transcripts, images and extra information.
A founder with Dave Waltrip of the Lanphier Observatory Study Group (1976-1981)
Adjunct instructor of astronomy at Northwestern Michigan College (1980 - 1986)
A founder and past president: Grand Traverse Astronomical Society (GTAS) Traverse City, MI (1982 to present). Currently the newsletter editor.
Outreach events:
Public viewing opportunities July 1994 blemishes on Jupiter of Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9
Mars night 1988, hundreds
Public viewing Comet Hyukataki at its closest in 1996, hundreds came out to the NMC Observatory March 22, 1996, 3 days before its closest approach
Public viewing of Comet Hale Bopp 1997 one night had 1,400 visitors
Mars night 2003, hundreds
Transit of Venus 2012, TC Open Space ~500 attended
Partial eclipse of the Sun August 21, 2017, At Dechow farm, SBDNL, ~7,000 (I helped planning on this, but went to Fayette, MO) for totality
Astronomical computing (1975 to present) – LookingUp (MS-DOS), LookingUp for Windows, Ephemeris Helper.
Solar Eclipse chaser:
Total: July 20, 1963 – Quebec, Canada
Total: March 7, 1970 – Bladenboro, North Carolina
Total: July 10, 1972 – Uiig, Prince Edward Island, Canada
Total: February 26, 1979 – Bottineau, North Dakota
Broken Annular: May 30, 1984 – Piedmont Park, Atlanta, Georgia
Annular: May 10, 1994 – Genoa, Ohio
Total: August 21, 2017 – Fayette, Missouri, invited to speak by the University of Missouri Extension Service
Total: April 8, 2024 – Linton, Indiana
Total time in totality in 6 eclipses: 15 minutes, 1 second
Charter member of the Planetary Society 1980 - Present
Recipient 1996 'Friends of the Observatory' Award by Northwestern Michigan College and the Grand Traverse Astronomical Society
Participant in Astronomical Society of the Pacific's Project Astro and the Astro Polaris chapter based at Northwestern Michigan College 2001 to present
Was the astronomer on Traverse Tall Ship Co. Schooner Manitou Astronomy Cruise October 1-4, 2010
Coordinator and leader for star parties for the GTAS with the National Park Service at the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. 2010 to present.
Named a NASA/JPL Solar System Ambassador in January 2014 to present.
Other
Volunteer Instructor, Inland Seas Education Association teaching Seamanship, Water Quality and Plankton on the schooner Manitou, out of Traverse City, in the spring and schooner Inland Seas, out of Suttons Bay, in the fall - 2015 to 2019.
Email me at brelom@gmail.com
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