irishastronomy.org Irish astronomer of the year

Well after spending a few seconds counting the votes, I'm happy to announce <fanfare> that in the opinion of the members of this board, John Flannery is the Irish Amateur Astronomer of the Year.

John has done great work in getting the South Dublin Astronomical Society set up, editing Arcturus with David Bell, and his informative posts here and to those of us who found ourselves on the SDAS mailing list! No one mentioned Aurora slides when singing his praise though

Honourable mentions must also go to David Bell, "a lanky, pipe-smoking veteran with a tenacious flair for attracting good speakers"[1] to the Whirlpool Star Party. And to Bart Busschots for his work on this website and his more academic persuit of bringing access to professional telescopes to schoolchildren.

Unfortunately no one stepped forward to offer any awards for these dedicated individuals, but I'm sure they will accept a drink or two in the bar at Whirlpool!

Cheers,
~Al

[1] Kelly Beatty's words not mine! skyandtelescope.com/news/article_1067_1.asp

hi everyone,

I knew if I sent all those anonymous e-mails from the hundreds of eircom accounts I set up that the title would be mine :twisted:

seriously though, I really am honoured and very appreciative of the fact that people feel I have contributed in some way to the Irish amateur astronomy community.

Arcturus has become such a success in so short a space of time because of the authors of various articles since issue one and I'd like to thank them for the time and effort they have put into writing for the magazine. We are always on the look out though for material so don't be afraid to put digit to keyboard and drop us a line on any astronomical matters, trivia or observations of nature.

so too has the SDAS become a lively society through the quiet "behind the scenes" work by various people -- no matter how small an effort, it's all important such as preparing the meeting room. Gonzaga College in Ranelagh deserves a special mention in offering us free use of one of their classrooms for our meetings.

on a final note, I just wanted to say that everyone out there is "Astronomer of the Year" in their own right. Whether it's a word of encouragement to a beginner, taking the time to guide someone to a celestial object when out observing, or sharing the camaraderie of the hobby, then you have made a contribution to the Irish astronomical community.

all the best and many thanks once again,

John Flannery

Congratulations John, a well deserved winner. Not a bad acceptance speech either, although a few tears would have helped!

. . . thanks Shane! Talk to y'all soon . . . will try and post up some notes from Riverside, Lick , and Mt. Wilson while on the road.

John

... Mt. Wilson while on the road.

The rest of us can take the virtual tour: www.mtwilson.edu/vir/virtual.htm

Cheers,
~Albert