California · Nonprofit
ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY OF THE PACIFIC
ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY OF THE PACIFIC (California) receives grants from 12 organizations whose IRS filings report $1,195,862 to it, the largest being SETI INSTITUTE ($591,788). 8 of them have funded it in more than one year.
- Revenue FY2025
- $1.4M
- Funders on record
- 12
- Grants received
- $1.2M
- Net assets
- $2.4M
What Astronomical Society of the Pacific does
Mission
Improving science literacy through education and public outreach programs advancing the public understanding in the science and study of astronomy since 1889; collecting and publishing information concerning the science of astronomy.
As stated on its FY2025 Form 990.
Program
Night sky network - as part of society's work with the amateur astronomy community, the society administrates the nasa night sky network, a nationwide coalition of astronomy clubs bringing the science and inspiration of nasa's missions to the public. In the 20th year of this program, the asp provides nasa speakers and outreach materials for amateur astronomy clubs, as well as a forum for those involved in community outreach to exchange ideas and learn from each other. The program was developed and is operated for nasa by the society and is currently supported by nasa's science activation program under the science mission directorate. Eclipse ambassadors - to extend the reach of the eclipse ambassadors off the path program whose volunteers reached more than 200,000 people with engaging eclipse science and safety information in 2023 and 2024, selected students participated in an intensive winter field school experience in fairbanks, ak. These students learned about the aurora first hand and trained with heliophysicists on the latest scientific instruments to make a real contribution to science. In addition, they returned to their communities to share the information with school…
$1,713,530 spent$347,655 earned by the program100% of program spending
The program described on its FY2024 Form 990. Program spending in total: $1,713,530.
The organization over time
Each line starts at 100 in 2017, so what you read is the shape rather than the size: 150 means half as much again as 2017, 50 means half. The number beside each label in the key is where it ended. The shaded band is where the middle 50% of its peers' revenue would sit, given their growth.
Balance sheet
Total assets and total liabilities at each year end, in dollars. The largest one-year move in total assets was 2018 to 2019, from $2.6M to $4.2M (+62%).
How it's funded, over time
Each bar is one year's revenue split into where it came from, and every bar is the same height — these are shares, not amounts, so a year that raised twice as much looks the same size. Hover a bar for the split.
Government-grant reliance: 2017 61% · 2018 60% · 2019 39% · 2020 43% · 2021 52% · 2022 63% · 2023 54% · 2024 75% · 2025 47%. Grants only. Government contracts and fees sit inside program revenue.
53% of ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY OF THE PACIFIC’s revenue is contributions — about as donation-reliant as the typical peer (67% for the typical peer).
Surplus & reserves
Operating surplus or deficit each year, and months of liquidity in hand. 4 of the last 9 reported years ran a deficit.
reserve
Leadership and staff
The officers, directors, trustees and key employees listed on each return. Joined and no longer listed compare each filing with the year before, matching people by surname and first initial; a year after a gap, or a roster under three people, has no comparison.
Who funds it, year by year
2017 → 2023: the base narrowed from 6 funders to 5 funders, grant income fell $571k → $23k.
4 of 12 of your funders are donor-advised or pass-through sponsors (tagged DAF) — 17% of grant dollars received. That money is really individual donors directing a sponsor; the institutions to cultivate are the non-DAF funders.
From the IRS filings of ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY OF THE PACIFIC’s funders (the co-funder graph). Association, not causation. Trends are read to FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving. FY2024–FY2026 are still being filed and are shown unshaded; they do not move any figure on this page.
How concentrated its funding is
ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY OF THE PACIFIC leans on a few funders — its largest provides 49% of grant income and the top three 88%; half comes from just 2 funders.
the vertical line marks half of all grant income — 2 funders to its left
67% of the income these shares are computed over arrives through pass-through sponsors or from payers whose filings do not say what kind of payment it is. Concentration is still measured over all of it, because the money is real; what it does not support is a claim about how many institutions have chosen to fund ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY OF THE PACIFIC.
Largest funder’s share by year: 2017 52% · 2018 53% · 2019 48% · 2020 79% · 2021 94% · 2022 72% · 2023 77% — growing more concentrated.
“Effective funders” = inverse Herfindahl index (1 / Σ shareᵢ²) — the number of equal-sized funders that would give the same concentration. Trends are read to FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving. FY2024–FY2026 are still being filed and are shown unshaded; they do not move any figure on this page.
How long its funders stay
50% of ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY OF THE PACIFIC's funders are still giving 3 years after their first grant; 67% give in more than one year at all.
Share of funders still giving k years after their first recorded grant, pooled across every acquisition cohort. A funder counts as retained in a year only if it made a grant that year. Measured to FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving — a funder cannot be counted as lapsed in a year most filers have not reached.
Where its funders are
96% of ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY OF THE PACIFIC's grant income comes from California funders.
In-state vs out-of-state, by year
Funder states come from each funder’s own filing. $198k arriving through sponsors registered in 4 states is excluded from the map and the split above: a sponsor holds money on a donor’s behalf, so its registered address would place those dollars somewhere no donor need ever have been. Trends are read to FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving. FY2024–FY2026 are still being filed and are shown unshaded; they do not move any figure on this page.
Against its field
ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY OF THE PACIFIC's revenue fell 51% between 2017 and 2025.
this organization peer median middle 50% of peers· 210 science & tech nonprofits $1M–$10M, FY2025
Government funding ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY OF THE PACIFIC receives
Grants and contracts to this organization from federal (USASpending) and state checkbooks, reconciled to its EIN. $7.5M on record.
- National Science Foundation$3.9M
- National Aeronautics and Space Administration$3.6M
Federal grants vs contracts are distinguished; state line items keep their reported category. Matched by name + geography (the BMF), so coverage is partial and precision-first.
Organizations like ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY OF THE PACIFIC
Organizations whose mission and program text most resemble this one, by semantic similarity over every organization in the US filings — the closest peers, and often the clearest route to shared or prospective funders.
In California
Nationally
Read directly from this organization’s own Form 990, as neutral context.
Where the money goes
61% of spending goes to programs.
Governance
Public support
83%
Share of support from the public (Schedule A) — the basis for its public-charity status.
Footprint & structure
Files a return copy in 1 state
Screen this organization
A dated, signed PDF of the compliance screen for ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY OF THE PACIFIC: IRS status (Business Master File, Publication 78, auto-revocation), the OFAC sanctions lists, the Internal Revenue Bulletin, and California registration, with the Rev. Proc. 2018-32 §8.01 reliance elements stated element by element. Generated from the current files at the moment you download it.
Screens are triage, not determinations; a source that cannot be read reports not screened, never clear. Screen this nonprofit · How the screen works · on the API as GET /api/screening/{ein}?format=pdf
Questions and answers
- Who funds ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY OF THE PACIFIC?
- ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY OF THE PACIFIC (California) receives grants from 12 organizations whose IRS filings report $1,195,862 to it, the largest being SETI INSTITUTE ($591,788). 8 of them have funded it in more than one year.
- How many funders does ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY OF THE PACIFIC have?
- IRS filings report 12 organizations giving $1,195,862 in grants to ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY OF THE PACIFIC, 8 of which have funded it in more than one year.
- Who is the largest funder of ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY OF THE PACIFIC?
- SETI INSTITUTE is the largest funder on record, with $591,788 in grants. The full list of funders is on this page.
- How can an organization like ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY OF THE PACIFIC find more funders?
- Start with the funders already giving here, then look at the foundations that back similar organizations in California. The funding by cause and by state pages list the largest funders for a given area and how to approach them.
Play a game about who funds Astronomical Society of the Pacific →
These figures are read directly from IRS Form 990 / 990-PF e-file XML: this organization’s own return for FY2025 (financials across 2017–2025), and the filings of 12 funders that report grants to it. “On record” means captured in the filings we have parsed — a funder that does not e-file, or whose grant detail is not itemized, will not appear. Filings run roughly 12–24 months behind. Trends on this page end at FY2023, the last fiscal year that has finished arriving; later years are shown and marked, and move no figure. Data on this page was exported October 14, 2026. What this page cannot tell you · view filing