Bio and Research Interests________________________________________________

Hello and thanks for visiting my observatory web site. Hopefully you will find pictures and links of interest.

My name is Fred Calvert and I live in Cold Spring Kentucky which is located just south of Cincinnati, Ohio

My interest in astronomy dates back to about the time I was 7 years old, but not until the last 9 to 10 years - have I had the ability to afford having a real observatory, or a wife that would try to understand, me spending the amount that a car would cost to look for ET, as she tells me I'm doing in the middle of the night. Cold Spring Observatory has been a three plus year project that is still ongoing.

My other personal interests are flying (pilot and aircraft mechanic). Aircraft Mechanic is my real day job, building computers and doing fun science, photography (my first 18 year career) and of course my puppies Max and Sammie.

I was born in Dayton Ohio but grew-up in Cincinnati till high school and  lived with my cousins in Mt. Healthy, Ohio (a burb north of Cincinnati) till I entered the Air Force when I was 18.

After the Air Force I did Professional Photography, mainly wedding and school events till one day I said to myself this has been fun but no more. So back to college I went and earned a degree in Aviation Maintenance and got my aircraft mechanic certification. The flying and pilot part I had been doing about 16 years prior to getting my mechanic certification.

After getting out of school I went to work as a contractor for GE Corporate Air Transport and worked for a great guy named John Willman. After GE closed their flight department in Cincinnati John, and shortly after I, went to work for a company call Executive Jet Management located at Cincinnati's Lunken Field. John and I have been there for going ten years.

Research_________________________________________________________________

My main research interests are the formation of Planetary Nebulas that form after the death of a star that is about the size of our sun, give or take a few solar diameters.

Secondary projects are searching for Supernovae in NGC 6946 and NGC 2403. Both of these galaxies are very active in star formation and death.

Other research includes involvement with the Advanced Research Group at the Cincinnati Observatory Center, which was also the first Professional Observatory in the United States dedicated by John Quincy Adams in 1843.

Cold Spring Observatory is also a member of the AAVSO (American Association of Variable Star Observers) and the NASA / JPL / University of Maryland Small Telescope Science Program and helps supports projects being conducted by the professional astronomy community such as pre and post observing campaigns, and alert campaigns of current astronomical events.

          My wife Ann..........................Sammie and Max............................................and me