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Astronomy is for EVERYONE
Promoting Public Passion
When was the last time you took in our shared sky?
Astronomy is a fantastic way to bring people together to share in our collective heritage and cosmic origins. In an age where scientific literacy and critical thinking are dwindling, astronomy is an accessible and amazing way to promote those values and to help people foster their own personal appreciation for and connection to the wonders of the sky.
Home: Welcome
A Little About Me
My Story
I found my connection to astronomy through some amazing mentors and a local amateur astronomy group. I went on to take courses from high school through grad school in astronomy completing my bachelor's at San Francisco State University and my master's from Swinburne University.
My passion has taken me from my hometown to the Big City, from California to New York, from Alaska to Chile and from coastal California to 47,000 ft into the air!
I take pride in calling myself an astronomy communicator and a facilitator of that human connection to what exists beyond Earth's atmosphere.
I can find no greater joy than sharing what I love about astronomy and its affiliated sciences with those who have an interest in hearing it.
Home: About Me
Upcoming Events
Thu, May 04San FranciscoMay 04, 7:00 PM – May 05, 7:00 PMSan Francisco, 55 Music Concourse Dr, San Francisco, CA 94118, USA
Multiple DatesWed, Mar 29South San FranciscoMar 29, 7:00 PM – 8:00 PMSouth San Francisco, 1121 S San Francisco Dr, South San Francisco, CA 94080, USA
Sat, Mar 04San RafaelMar 04, 6:00 PM – 9:00 PMSan Rafael, 5800 Northgate Dr, San Rafael, CA 94903, USA
Home: Events
My Projects
Sharing Space
Cultural
Connections
A critical component of my work is establishing an individual's connection to the shared heritage of astronomy - and no one knows someone better than one knows oneself. It is critical to let the public build and share their experiences and understanding of the sky in a welcoming environment. This allows them to address long-held beliefs or understanding without the anxiousness that can all too often accompany it.
Program Production
My day job is facilitating public events for Sci-Comm, where I am privileged enough to get to work alongside scientists and communication experts, artists and storytellers, educators and researchers in a dazzling array of fields. I work hard to take what I have learned from them and distill what I can into engaging and scientifically accurate storytelling.
Approachable Astronomy
When the public imagines an astronomer, they are often in a lab coat looking through the back-end of a telescope. I want to help folks see astronomers as approachable - every person is just that - another person.
Through humor and openness, I aim to ensure that the public can see astronomers and all scientists not as unapproachable geniuses in an ivory tower, but as people living their passions who have been trained to carefully tease out accurate information in some pretty amazing ways.
Home: Research
Published Work
The Fruits of My Labor
Article : Best Telescopes for 2023
June 21, 2023
See the stars and more like you have never seen them before
Popular Mechanics: Best Telescopes of 2021
January 25, 2025
Astronomers for Planet Earth — Lessons from Venus and Mars
January 25, 2025
What lessons do our planetary neighbors -- Venus and Mars -- have for life here on Earth?
Written by Dr. Travis Rector and narrated by M. Josh Roberts
Produced, directed, and edited by Jessica Agnos and Steve Agnos of Steveagnosfilms
Learning from Light
Science and Environmental Media Lab, California Academy of Sciences
January 25, 2025
Spectroscopy explained in a video produced by my team
Southern Skies: Astronomy from Chile
Universe Update, Morrison Planetarium
January 25, 2025
When you see a picture of the high Atacama Desert, you can appreciate its harsh beauty. The red rock against a blue sky seems otherworldly, picturesque, yet there is no comparison to actually being there, boots on the sand—similar to martian dust. It is both figuratively—and literally—breath-taking. At nearly 5,000 meters (16,000 feet) elevation, there is only about 50 percent of the air pressure at sea level, and the thin air above takes on an ultramarine hue. Without the protective swaddling of our atmosphere, things begin behaving strangely. Thin air does not fill your lungs, even slight exertion makes your head swim, the Sun’s light burns your skin immediately, and snow and ice do not melt—they merely disappear—sublimating away without becoming a liquid.
The Great Repeller
Universe Update, Morrison Planetarium
January 25, 2025
In a paper released in Nature Astronomy on January 30, a group of cosmologists demonstrated that our galaxy is moving at 631 kilometers per second (that’s 1,411 miles per hour, imperialists) with respect to the Cosmic Microwave Background. And we’re carried along with the uncreatively named Local Group of 50-odd galaxies of varying size. What tremendous force could impel an entire group of galaxies to such great speed?
NISEnet presentation on creating interactive science presentations for teens and young adults.
National Informal Science Interpretation Network periodical
January 25, 2025
Audience led exploration of astronomical software combined with hands-on activities to bring the museum experience to often underserved audiences.
Paper: Student-Created Content in WorldWide Telescope
Volume: 483, Ensuring STEM Literacy: A National Conference on STEM Education and Public Outreach
Page: 223
Authors: Roberts, M. J.
January 25, 2025
Using WorldWide Telescope (WWT), the California Academy of Sciences used tour presentations created by Bay Area high school students. These students wrote, programmed, and presented their own fulldome shows utilizing WWT with the support of Academy staff. This allowed the students to create programs that were meaningful and interesting and to help determine the kinds of shows and content for future programs at the Academy. We present here our experiences and our goals for future programs.
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Recent Papers
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Tour of the Solar System (LIVE!) in the OpenSpace software
The Morrison Planetarium at the California Academy of Sciences (https://www.calacademy.org/) took us on a live tour of the Solar System in OpenSpace on May 27, 2020.
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