One Month Retrospective on New Zealand

24/3/2019 One Month Retrospective of New Zealand Experience

Today is the 24^th of March 2019. Today marks the 1-month Anniversary that I have made landfall in Aotearoa. For the 3^rd time in my life I am separated from the nation of my Birth for the duration of at least one Month. The first time being during my childhood in America, the 2^nd during my trip to Europe in 2013, and now I begin a 2-year journey on what I hope is the first step towards becoming a Professional Astronomer by completing a two-year Master’s degree under the Institute of Radio Astronomy and Space Research at Auckland University of Technology in New Zealand.

Welcome to Auckland

For the longest time since the heydays of my youth I have been captivated by the stars (I enjoyed Science Fiction immeasurably and I loved watching Science Documentaries especially on space and the Universe) and although it took a few further steps of activation (and a considerable amount of patience in between) before I realized that a life involved in the astrophysical Sciences would be a workable noble goal totally within my reach I have now finally gotten around to applying myself to that cause of becoming a Radio Astronomer. It truly is the most awesome job in the Universe.

'The Institute', playing a vital role in southern sky observations

Since I am now one month (to the day) into that journey to understand the stars, I figure it would be a good time to write a retrospective of some of my experiences.

First of All; Astronomy is everything that I dreamed of and more. It feels so right when we get down to it. It is a wonderful are of study full of incredible phenomenon that defy conventional human understanding of what nature can be. I love it. To study Astronomy is to study nature at its most extreme, its most violent, its most raw. And to put your mind in those places is to open your mind to incredible forces and circumstances that humble your being. What new wonders may we discover further down this path? What new phenomena undreamt of in our age may we blaze the trail for future generations of Astronomers to unlock?

Well that’s why we’re here isn’t it?

We now operate under the tutelage of Dr. Willem van Straten of ‘The Institute’. Dr. Willem’s work revolves around Pulsar Astronomy and Pulsar Timing Arrays for the application of Gravitational Wave Detection (the results of which are still inconclusive but has played an effective role in Galaxy Mapping). Our present mission is to investigate the dispersive effect of the Interstellar Media (ISM) in the propagation of Electromagnetic Radiation (light) through space. The technique we are looking to apply to investigate the ISM is Cyclic Spectroscopy. It is variation of Spectroscopy that when applied to periodic signals can rid of as the DM noise. I can’t complain really, it’s a place to start.

I begin my journey by studying Pulsar Astronomy.

The rest of my studies involve courses in currently involve courses in signal processing, machine learning and computational mathematics and statistics. These are also powerful fields of knowledge that are valuable to the progress of humanity, however they are not Astronomy. They are not my undying passion. So, some of those old sentiments persist. “Why do we need to study this if it’s not going to be directly involved with Astronomy?”

Well, I guess we have to be patient and take the best of whatever comes our way.

All in all, Auckland is a small city such that I have already grown tired of its main thoroughfare called Queen Street. Albert Park was such a disappointment, so I alternate between a few of the city parks. Auckland is not the capital of New Zealand, but it is the most populated city. The Capital is Wellington which I hope to visit soon. As of writing this I have visited Hamilton and Raglan. Hamilton is a small city that lies two hours south by bus from Auckland and is home to the University of Waikato, that is where they developed WEKA, a framework for machine learning and data analysis.

 

 

I was told that New Zealand is host to incredible natural landscapes. All of which must be sought after outside of Auckland. I am bounded so far by the North Island. I must break free and see more.

 

Within 3 weeks of my stay here there was a terrorist attack on a mosque. 50 people died. That was not cool. I guess this is the world we live in now. The great challenge during Carl Sagan's time was nuclear weapons. Now it is the looming shadow of terrorism and ethnic suspicion. It's funny because the night before the attack the motion at the debate club was 'THW suppress the name, race, gender and religion of the perpetrator of a terrorist attack'. Oh the irony. 

Within the first month I have, hiked, played airsoft, visited the local GW, camped, and danced at a festival (hats off to Boom Shangkar). It’s been a great first month. The things that I hope to do during my stay here would be to climb ever higher mountains (Mt. Cook is somewhere on that list), walk through some deep forests, and if I am lucky, learn how to ride a motorbike, and if I am even luckier get a chance to own one (Café racers come to mind). I was told by a wise doctor that I should look to what things may come. Don't look back and don't be held back.

 

On top of all of that, the craft continues. I wish to learn to write better, be more composed in my thoughts, and learn to be a better speaker, all of which are traits that will help me in Science Communication (my chosen stagecraft). To do that I must read more (science fiction and the great books), practice debate, and be persistent in learning skills that will involve experiences that may be bitter and humbling at the same time. But that is the reality of it. Coming up on the 11^th of April will be our first fight. We ride for PATW where we will deliver a 10-minute presentation on Cyclic Spectroscopy and its applications for mankind. The YouTube stories will keep coming out. There are many more stories left to tell.

This is just the beginning.

Sincerely,
Afiq Abdul Hamid