Cork Skeptics
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Tag Archives: astronomy
My First Friday talk – Hoaxes and Hysteria in Astronomy
I had the privilege of speaking at the First Friday’s at the Castle in CIT Blackrock Castle this weekend. My talk was “Hoaxes and Hysteria in Astronomy”, where I took a sceptical look at Astrology, UFO’s and the Moon Landing … Continue reading
Posted in skeptics
Tagged astrology, astronomy, Blackrock Castle, Cork, crop circles, debunking, hoaxes, Ireland, moon hoax, NASA, scepticism, skepticism, UFOs
8 Comments
Two Earth sized planets discovered
In 1584, the philosopher Giordano Bruno speculated that the Universe might be full of planets just like our own. For daring leaps of the imagination such as this, the Church duly branded him a heretic, rewarding him with imprisonment and … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
Tagged 20-e, 20-f, astronomy, discovery, earth, exoplanets, Kepler, planets, stars
2 Comments
Goodbye Space Shuttle
As people on Twitter might know, I have a thing about the Space Shuttle. I was my son’s age when the Shuttle first launched itself into space. I gasped with incomprehension when the Challenger exploded. Many times I rushed outside … Continue reading
A Radio Telescope? In Midleton?
It sounds like a tall tale thought up by a seven-year old Mr Gadget fanatic, but it’s true: the good folk in Cork Institute of Technology (CIT) have commissioned a large 32 metre transmitter just north of Midleton, Co. Cork … Continue reading
So you just saw a UFO? Think again.
So, you are out one night and you see an object in the sky that you can’t quite explain. You have never seen anything quite like it in your life before. Could it be an alien spacecraft? Have you … Continue reading
Psst! Want to find a planet?
Tonight I am performing cutting-edge science. I am searching for planets revolving around stars some quadrillions of kilometres from here. My equipment? A laptop and an Internet connection. The cost? Just a bit of my time. The possible benefit? Contributing … Continue reading
Posted in interests, science
Tagged astronomy, exoplanets, NASA, Planet Hunter, planethunter.org, stars, zooniverse
3 Comments
Five reasons why astronomy is cool
It’s beautiful If you go out on a dark moonless night, you will immediately know what I mean. The Milky Way, stretching its jagged course across the heavens, is quite a sight to behold. The constellations, particularly the winter constellations, … Continue reading
Posted in science
Tagged astronomy, discovery, future, planets, space, stars, universe, world history
139 Comments
The meteor craters of southern Germany
This blog entry was written to accompany my podcast for the September 5, 2010 broadcast of the 365 Days of Astronomy. The podcast can be listened to here. One of the high points of my stay in Germany recently was … Continue reading
Posted in photographs, science, tours and trips
Tagged 365 Days of Astronomy, asteroids, astronomy, bavaria, craters, Germany, impacts, IYA, meteors, miocene, Nordlingen, Ries, shoemaker, space, Steinheim
2 Comments
Announcement!
Next Sunday, September 5th, The 365 Days of Astronomy website will be broadcasting my second podcast. It’s all about two gigantic meteor craters in the heart of Europe. I talk about how they were created, what they look like today … Continue reading
Posted in stuff
Tagged 365 Days of Astronomy, asteroids, astronomy, craters, impacts, meteors, space
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Well now, that was fun
What a tremendous and wholly unexpected reaction to my “Five Reasons” post last Friday. To everyone who commented, “Liked” or shared my entry I would like to thank you all. The entry had been in the works over several weeks … Continue reading →