Steven Kline is the director of UTC’s Clarence T. Jones Observatory. Photo by Angela Foster.
Steven Kline has experienced the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga from several different angles.
First, as an undergraduate student studying physics. Then, as a graduate student pursuing a master’s degree in education. After spending a few years teaching science classes at Soddy Daisy High School, Kline became an adjunct instructor of astronomy and an academic advisor at UTC.
Throughout all these experiences, Kline stayed looking toward the stars, remaining involved with UTC’s Clarence T. Jones Observatory, first as an assistant. Now—nearly 15 years later—he can call himself observatory “director.” Kline sat down to explain his role.
What is the Clarence T. Jones Observatory?
“Most folks in Chattanooga don’t actually know we have one, which is totally fair because until I was a UTC student, I didn’t either. It’s a small little building tucked away off Brainard Road. It’s an old building built in the ’30s, so it’sone of those historic pieces of Chattanooga. It’s got some of that good old art deco architecture, so it’s very pretty.
“It’s got a big telescope in it. It’s about 20 and a half inches at its base. When it was built in the ’30s, it wasn’t top-of-the-line—like a Hubble or a Webb. It was designed to be used by the public just to engage with astronomy education. So, we’ve followed through on that mission pretty well.”
=======================
The Clarence T. Jones Observatory is located 4.5 miles east of campus at 10 Tuxedo Ave., north of Brainerd Road and Belvoir Ave.
=======================
What does that mission look like today?
“We use it for public viewing and education. We do a lecture series called ‘Star Parties’ on Sunday nights during the semesters since we’re a UTC facility. We try to rotate those topics out, get people to come out and learn about different astronomy-adjacent things. It’s very casual. You don’t need to have a degree to understand. We have 5-year-olds to 80-year-olds, the whole gamut. We try to tailor it to just a very approachable experience.
“In 2023, we got a new planetarium projector. That has let us do a whole lot of cool interactive stuff in the planetarium. Even if the weather’s terrible that night, we can still look at the sky. It’s a cool projector that lets us set it to Chattanooga. It reflects where the stars would actually be at a given time, even if it’s cloudy outside. It’s a projection, not a real-life image, but it’s still cool.”
What else can visitors expect to see at Star Parties?
“We have the telescope. Folks can look through that. We’ve looked at Jupiter. We’ve looked at Saturn. You can see the bands. You can see the rings. We’ve looked at different nebulae and star clusters.
“There’s a local astronomy club in Chattanooga, the Bernard Astronomical Society, and they have volunteers that come out as well who bring telescopes. So even if the Jones telescope isn’t working, there’s still potential for viewing. It’sa bunch of astronomy nerds with telescopes and stuff.”
How can UTC students get involved beyond just attending a star party?
“We’ve taken first-year classes out there before. We’ve done Welcome Week events. We’re trying to do a few more of those events on and off.
“There is an astronomy club and we have student TAs. That’s usually a bit more limited just because there’s not as many spots available, but students could still just show up to volunteer if they wanted to. That’s what I did as a student. I got paid for a bit, and then when I graduated, I still helped out.”
=======================
All observatory events, including Star Parties, are free and open to the public. Click here for more information.
=======================
Why do you love the observatory so much?
“I kind of fell into physics because space is pretty and it’s cool. It’s very scary in some aspects. There’s just so much stuff and we’re so small. You can spiral really hard with it, but it’s fun.
“Being able to interact with the public is a big part of it. They have a lot of questions. There was this older lady who asked me what gravity is. I gave the nutshell explanation of what gravity is, and she was like, ‘No, no, but what is gravity?’ And I’m like, ‘OK, it’s a property of matter. I don’t know what else you want from me.’
“In undergrad, I had this little girl ask me how lasers work. I said, ‘You push the button, the light comes out.’ She said, ‘No, no, no, how does it work?’ She wanted the details of how a laser actually works. It’s fun. They ask all sorts of questions.
“Seeing people have that ‘aha’ moment is what drew me to teaching in the first place. Physics especially is very standoffish at times. Hopefully being able to bring people to some understanding of, ‘OK, that kind of at least makes some modicum of sense to me now.’ It’s very fun. And with the planetarium, especially now that we have the new projector, the oohs and ahs of the different cool videos. It feels good.”
What’s your favorite star?
“Sirius. It feels kind of basic. It’s the brightest. Maybe it’s a little bit of a boring favorite. Beetlejuice is a close second. It’s a red giant that could explode. It’s kind of nearing the end of its life cycle. It would be thousands of years from now, more than likely.”
Learn more
