The inaugural meeting of the Astronomical Observatories of Ireland (AOI) Strategy Oversight Board took place on Monday 9 September at Armagh Observatory and Planetarium. It marks the end of an important first year since the signing of a formal Memorandum of Understanding between the partners in September 2023. The Astronomical Read more…
By Matthew McMahon- Museum Collections Officer If you visit the Armagh Observatory and Planetarium this summer you will see our newest temporary exhibition, focused on some of the treasures held in our historic collection of scientific instruments and archives. Cabinets of Curiosity has been curated and designed by students from Read more…
As a long-standing Arts & Humanities student, it’s typically assumed that we don’t have much of an interest in or know much about science (and attending the fascinating and complex student discussions here at the AOP certainly didn’t disprove the latter theory in my case!). However, when the opportunity cropped Read more…
Written by Collections Officer, Matthew McMahon Armagh Observatory is no stranger to the amateur astronomer, and its history has been shaped, and preserved by numerous amateurs over the years such as Rev. Ellison, Patrick Corvan and many others. Today we are commemorating another amateur astronomer, who passed away eighty years Read more…
By Matthew McMahon, Observatory Museum Assistant “History is essential to science as roots to a tree. Modern Astronomy may be likened to a great city built on foundations dating back so far as to almost as old as the human race.” Basil J. W. Brown The study of astronomy has Read more…
The second instalment on Ernst Öpik is here. Written by Alex Preston Öpik was regarded very highly in the United States. Newspapers acknowledged his work across the vast nation, ranging from New York and Washington, to name a few. Many highly regarded U.S newspapers, such as the San Francisco Examiner, Read more…
Written by Alex Preston Since Armagh Observatory’s establishment in 1790, many remarkable figures have paved the way in studying stellar astrophysics, the Sun, Solar System astronomy, and Earth’s climate. Of all these figures, however, perhaps the most extraordinary individual is Ernst Julius Öpik. Öpik was a brilliant Estonian astronomer and Read more…
Chances are, if you’re interested in astronomy, that you’ve heard of William Herschel. A bit of a polymath, he was an accomplished musician, composer and even philosopher, but is best known for his discovery of Uranus, the first planet to be discovered with a telescope (one he’d built himself). Someone you might not be as familiar with, however, Read more…
