Evening visit

evening visit to the Sundial

Jones Hall in background, with moon

Richard Pirko Memorial Sundial, Ward-Beecher Planetarium, Youngstown State University, Youngstown Ohio

Maag Library in the background

the plaque at the sundial

Forever in the skies he loved

Asteroid named in honor of late YSU alumnus, planetarium producer, originally published at Tue, June 2, 2009, Vindicator, Youngstown, Ohio

By Harold Gwin

YOUNGSTOWN — Richard Pirko’s name will live on forever in the skies he loved.

An asteroid has been named in honor of the late Youngstown State University alumnus and former show producer and technician of YSU’s Ward Beecher Planetarium.
It’s somewhat of a rare honor, said Warren Young, recent interim chairman of the YSU Physics and Astronomy Department.
Asteroids are traditionally named after family members of the astronomers who find them, he explained, adding that he doesn’t know anyone else who’s had an asteroid named for him.
Asteroids are planet-like bodies measuring between a fraction of a mile and 500 miles in diameter.
The asteroid named for Pirko is in the main asteroid belt between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter and was discovered at the Lowell Observatory in Flagstaff, Ariz., in June 2000, as part of an ongoing survey, Young said. Formerly known as Asteroid 2000 LS36, the International Astronomical Union has officially named it Asteroid Pirko.
Young said Pirko had a friend, Rob Landis, who works at NASA who contacted astronomers at Lowell and asked that an asteroid be named for Pirko, and the observatory agreed. This particular asteroid is believed to be between one and two miles across.
“This is a fitting tribute to a very dedicated educator,” Young said. “He was an amazing person with a unique combination of talents. We feel his loss every day.”
Pirko’s passion for astronomy exposed thousands of people to the wonders of the universe, Young said.
Pirko worked at the planetarium for more than 30 years writing, producing and presenting planetarium shows to public school classes, college classes and the general public.
He died of an apparent heart attack Oct. 15 at the University Hospitals Geauga Medical Center in Chardon. He was 55.
“He was a very important person to the university and our department,” Young said.
The Astronomy and Physics Department is still planning to erect a sundial on campus as a tribute to Pirko.
Pirko liked sundials and did classes on them, incorporating them in the planetarium weekend programs.
The department announced in October that it was raising funds for the Rick Pirko Memorial Sundial, which it hopes to erect just outside the planetarium doors.
Young said the funds are now in place and the department is awaiting approval of its plans from the campus beautification committee to proceed.
Pirko was a licensed pilot and as a local organizer of the Experimental Aircraft Association’s Young Eagles program, provided hundreds of children with their first flight, according to a university spokesman.
He was also a counselor for the Astronomy and Aviation Merit Badges for the Boy Scouts of America, the spokesman said.

Contact Harold Gwin or gwin@vindy.com

More on the asteroid elsewhere on this blog:   There's an asteroid 22105 called "Rick" now

Read up more on skywatching in books

"Nope, we haven't heard anything here."

Tim Bole wrote this October 24:

"In memoriam: Rick Pirko

"To quantify the effect that Rick has had on my life is a difficult task, and putting it in words is even more so. Rick did not set out to change anyone, but spending significant quantities of time with Rick certainly meant some of his charm would rub off on you. Rick was a kindhearted,
fun-loving, eccentric, very intelligent and clever man. He delighted in passing to students his innumerable skills in electronics, lighting, photography and general problem solving. His genius truly lied in his ability to use whatever he had at hand for whatever purpose he intended. I don't so much think of Rick as the MacGuyver of the Planetarium, but rather of MacGuyver as the Rick Pirko of television.

"To me, Rick will always be bouncing around the hallways at Ward Beecher in his favorite sweater with at least one smoldering soldering iron on his work table and always thinking about the next major prank to pull. From what I understand, Rick was the brains behind every major prank pulled in Ward Beecher in the last 30 years. He was definitely the instigator of the major pranks while I was a student at YSU, everything from Brower Beach to the functioning (yes, you read correctly) telephone pole in Gregg Sturrus' office.

"Around the fall of 1999, YSU relocated a tasteful stone sign with the University seal on it, which had been at the corner of Lincoln and Wick, and replaced it with a garish electronic lighted sign with a Coke advertisement on it. Rick, of course, would not take this lightly and began to switch off the sign on his way out of work every night. This lasted for a short time, with the sign being turned on each morning. Eventually, someone put a pad lock on the sign to lock the switch in the 'on' position. At this point, Rick taught me how to pick locks using tools made from a portion of a bandsaw blade and an allen wrench. Each night, one of us would pick the pad lock open, turn the switch to the 'off' position, and lock it there. Eventually, we stopped turning the sign off.

"One evening, Kate and I were working with Rick in the shop and we asked Rick what would happen if we placed a polarized capacitor into a circuit backwards. “Oh, hang on, I have one here” was Rick's response. So, he plugged the capacitor into a power source and excused himself to hold the circuit breaker closed, which should have been our first clue that something was going to happen. A few seconds after Rick reached the breaker box, the capacitor exploded and sounded like gunfire. A few minutes after that, a YSU police officer showed up and asked us if we heard anything. 'Nope, we haven't heard anything here.' With Rick, there was never a dull moment. Work was important, but enjoying work and having fun while working were even more important to Rick. I think the most important lesson that I learned from Rick was learned just by watching him go about his daily business. His position at the Planetarium was a perfect fit for him, anyone could see that he genuinely enjoyed what he did. Recently, I have been thinking about the impact that my years spent working closely with Rick have had on my development as a person. Rick found his place and was happy, and taught us all something by living his life according to his own rules."
ed. Tim returned to campus the following June and observed: "I was on campus a few weeks back. The door to the planetarium office was open, but I didn't want to go in. :(     "

GLPA October 1995

"In recognition of professional achievement and outstanding contributions to our organization, the Great Lakes Planetarium Association hereby confers upon Richard G. Pirko the rank of Fellow Of GLPA conferred 27th day of October 1995:" (click to enlarge)
Read more about astronomy in real books 

Flight path

Two grateful young gentlemen sent this around June 6, 2008. (click to enlarge)

Read up more on learning to fly in real books