AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF VARIABLE STAR OB Charity Report

Public IRS 990 nonprofit record

AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF VARIABLE STAR OB

EIN 04-2164402 · Science & Technology (U310)

What they do

THE AAVSO, THROUGH ITS MEMBERS and THE BROADER ASTRONOMICAL COMMUNITY, CONDUCTS ASTRONOMICAL RESEARCH, DOES DATA COLLECTION, MAINTAINS A DATABASE of KNOWN VARIABLE STARS, A DATABASE of INDIVIDUAL OBSERVATIONS MEASURING BRIGHT of STARS IN VARIOUS COLORS, A DATABASE of EXOPLANET OBSERVATIONS, A DATABASE of SUNSPOT COUNTS, and A DATABASE of SPECTROGRAPHS. THE AAVSO HAS ABOUT 1,400 MEMBERS, THE MAJORITY of WHICH CONTRIBUTE ASTRONOMICAL OBSERVATIONS. THE VARIABLE STAR DATABASE HAS 2 MILLION KNOWN VARIABLE STARS. THERE ARE ABOUT 65 MILLION BRIGHTNESS OBSERVATIONS, 8 THOUSAND EXO-PLANET TRANSITS, 15 THOUSAND SPECTRA, and 181 THOUSAND SOLAR OBSERVATIONS. THE AAVSO ORGANIZES OBSERVING CAMPAIGNS or PROVIDES A PLATFORM for PROFESSIONAL ASTRONOMERS to REQUEST MONITORING of STARS for SPACECRAFT MISSIONS. THE AAVSO HAS ABOUT 30 of THESE CAMPAIGNS EACH YEAR. THE OBSERVATIONS and DATABASES ARE CITED IN ABOUT 300 RESEARCH ARTICLES EACH YEAR.

Before you give

Should I give to this charity?

Easy charity check

Look at where the money went

Of every $100 spent, about $60.40 was reported for mission work. Use the spending picture below and ask what results that work produced.

Plain answer: A tax form cannot prove that a charity is doing good. It can show how the charity says it spent its money—and point out questions you should ask.

Basic facts we verified

IRS warning checkNo IRS revocation warning appears in this data.

Money report from 2024The charity has a recent tax report to read.

They explain their jobThe charity tells us what it is trying to do.

They name their leaders15 people are listed in the latest report.

You can reach themThey list contact information, so you can ask questions.

Money made simple

45.83%of revenue went to mission work60.4% of expenses · Program services

7.96%of revenue went to fundraising10.5% of expenses

$75.84spent for every $100 of revenueRevenue covered expenses this year.

22.06%of revenue went to management and office costs29.1% of expenses

$15.94in assets for every $1 spent this yearSome assets cannot be spent right away.

21.8%of its money came from giftsOther money may come from services or investments.

Ask these three easy questions

Who did you help? Ask for a recent story or report that shows real results.
What will my money do? Ask exactly what your gift will pay for.
Is this really the charity? Give only through its official website or confirmed phone number.

Pay context: The highest compensation shown in this filing is $211,904 for DR BRIAN KLOPPENBORG (EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR). Compare pay with organizations of similar size and complexity.

Bottom line: Do not decide from a name, mission statement, or tax status alone. Look at where the money went, then ask what changed, who was helped, and what your gift will do. YouCanGiveBack does not endorse or grade organizations.

Money

Financial picture

Tax year 2024

A plain-language look at the latest Form 990 figures available. These numbers help you ask better questions; they do not, by themselves, rate whether a charity is good or bad.

$100revenue

How each $100 of revenue was used

The large number compares each expense with revenue. The smaller number shows its share of total expenses.

Total reported revenue$1,682,737

Mission workProgram services$771,14645.83% of revenue60.4% of expenses

ManagementOffice and general costs$371,13922.06% of revenue29.1% of expenses

FundraisingAsking for donations$133,9327.96% of revenue10.5% of expenses

Revenue left after expensesReported annual surplus$406,52024.16% of revenueShown in gray on the chart

Total expenses$1,276,21775.84% of revenue

Gray means reported revenue left after expenses for this filing year. It does not necessarily mean cash sitting in a bank account.

Has the pattern changed?

Colored bars = expense mix: how each year’s expenses were divided. Total expenses vs. revenue shows whether the charity spent less or more than it received. The current filing is first.

YearExpense mixDetails

2024CurrentExpense mix: 60.4% mission · 29.1% management · 10.5% fundraisingTotal expenses: 75.84% of revenue

2023Expense mix: 61.1% mission · 33.6% management · 5.3% fundraisingTotal expenses: 113.17% of revenue

2022Expense mix: 55.7% mission · 39.4% management · 4.9% fundraisingTotal expenses: 172.76% of revenue

2021Expense mix: 69.6% mission · 25.4% management · 5.0% fundraisingTotal expenses: 39.27% of revenue

2020Expense mix: 67.5% mission · 27.9% management · 4.6% fundraisingTotal expenses: 94.66% of revenue

2019Expense mix: 71.0% mission · 25.0% management · 4.0% fundraisingTotal expenses: 470.23% of revenue

2018Expense mix: 63.7% mission · 33.7% management · 2.6% fundraisingTotal expenses: 896.59% of revenue

2017Expense mix: 59.6% mission · 38.2% management · 2.2% fundraisingTotal expenses: 54.23% of revenue

Money in and money out

Revenue$1,682,737

Expenses$1,276,217

Annual surplus $406,520 Revenue was higher than expenses for this filing year.

Reported spending amounts

Mission work means the Form 990 category called program services. These are reported accounting categories—not an independent measurement of results.

Mission work (program services)$771,146 · 60.4% of expenses

Management and office costs$371,139 · 29.1% of expenses

Fundraising$133,932 · 10.5% of expenses

See all reported dollar amounts

Revenue$1,682,737

Expenses$1,276,217

Assets$20,337,952

Income$7,181,278

Contributions$366,182

Mission work (program services)$771,146

Fundraising$133,932

Management and general$371,139

Stocks and bonds$18,996,986

Accounting fees$49,645

Investing fees$59,733

People

Leadership and board

Tax year 2024

Names, titles, time, and compensation below are reported by the organization on its Form 990.

People reported as paid

Person and titleCompensation

DR BRIAN KLOPPENBORGEXECUTIVE DIRECTOR · 38 hrs/week $211,904Base $190,972 · Other $20,932

Compensation alone does not tell whether pay is reasonable. Consider the charity’s size, work, location, and results.

See everyone listed on the board or leadership roster (15)

DR BRIAN KLOPPENBORGEXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

AARON SLISKIDIRECTOR

ARNE HENDONSECRETARY

BRUCE MCMATHDIRECTOR

DIOGO TEIXEIRADIRECTOR

DIPANKAR MAITRADIRECTOR

MARK HARDAKERDIRECTOR

MARK MUNKACYVP2

MATT CRAIGDIRECTOR

MOLLY WAKELINGDIRECTOR

PETER BEALODIRECTOR

RICHARD BERRYPRESIDENT

ROBERT STEPHENSTREASURER

THOMAS MACCARONEDIRECTOR

WALT COONEYVP1

About this charity

Recognized since: January 1954
Location: 1770 MASSACHUSETTS AVE 121, CAMBRIDGE, MA 02140
County: Middlesex
In care of: BRIAN KLOPPENBORG
Primary officer: BRIAN KLOPPENBORG, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

How to reach them

WebsiteVisit the charity’s website Emailaavso@aavso.org Phone(617) 354-0484

Filing and classification

Latest tax year: 2024
Tax period began: October 1, 2024
Return type: 990
Tax preparer: DOEREN MAYHEW
NTEE classification: Science & Technology (U310)