Astronomy is a field concerned with matters very distant from Earth. Most phenomena, whether observed or theorized, transcend human spaces and timescales by orders of magnitude. Yet, many scientists have been interested not just in the events that have occurred millennia before Earth's inception, but also in their very own society here and now.

Since the first half of the twentieth century, an increasing number of them have pursued parallel careers as both academics and activists. Besides publishing peer-reviewed papers, they have promoted a great variety of underrepresented groups...

Astronomy is a field concerned with matters very distant from Earth. Most phenomena, whether observed or theorized, transcend human spaces and timescales by orders of magnitude. Yet, many scientists have been interested not just in the events that have occurred millennia before Earth's inception, but also in their very own society here and now.

Since the first half of the twentieth century, an increasing number of them have pursued parallel careers as both academics and activists. Besides publishing peer-reviewed papers, they have promoted a great variety of underrepresented groups...