Craig MacDougal

Born and raised in Jacksonville, Florida, Craig MacDougal has been a resident of Tampa since 1978. Mr. MacDougal earned a B. A. in Music Education from the University of South Florida, with alto saxophone being his principle instrument. After graduation he spent 10 years as a full-time musician, working primarily with a 40s style Big Band.

In 1991 he went to work at the Museum Of Science & Industry in Tampa and essentially turned his life-long hobby of astronomy into a vocation. For 12 years he ran the Saunders Planetarium at MOSI, sharing the wonders of the universe with school children from all over west-central Florida as well as tourists and local visitors. Part of his duties included being the local expert on space and astronomy happenings for Bay Area news outlets, appearing in live and recorded interviews whenever something interesting was happening in the sky.

Mr. MacDougal has been a member of the Association of Lunar & Planetary Observers since 1984, and is currently an Assistant Coordinator to the Jupiter Section of the ALPO. In 1986 he custom-built a telescope, optimized for high-quality views of the planet Jupiter. That telescope is still used regularly.