The Armagh Observatory
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Archbishop Richard
Robinson (1709-1794), leader of the Church of Ireland, created
the Georgian town of Armagh, including the Observatory. A rich and influential
man, he embodied the spirit of the age – what became known as the enlightenment,
which was marked by a steady increase in the study of the sciences. He
was influenced to found an observatory by the Reverend J.A. Hamilton of
Cookstown, County Tyrone, who was a noted amateur astronomer, and was to
become its first director.
The building was designed by Francis Johnston, the architect
responsible for many fine buildings in Dublin, most notably the GPO in
O'Connell Street and the Chapel Royal. Construction was completed in 1793,
and along with Dunsink Observatory in Dublin, built in 1785, it was one
of the first observatories where what mattered was how good it was for
observing – not how pleasing it looked to the eye. Nevertheless, it is
an imposing example of the elegance of Georgian architecture.
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J.A. Hamilton, the first director, embarked on a comprehensive
program of accurately measuring the positions of the stars, but was hindered
by the death of Archbishop Robinson in 1794. Robinson’s successors took
little interest in science, which resulted in the loss of a number of instruments
originally ordered for the Observatory. However, Hamilton struggled on
with his astronomy, and also initiated a series of weather readings which
are still carried out today, at the meteorological station to the
south of the main buildings.
In 1823, a young and gifted astronomer called Thomas
Romney Robinson (no relation to Archbishop Robinson!) was
appointed director, a post he held for a remarkable 59 years. He was fortunate
in that before he took up his post, a new Archbishop was created – John
George Beresford – who was an enthusiastic supporter of the Observatory,
and, fortunately for the Observatory, rich. With this combination of ability
and financial backing the Observatory flourished during the mid-19th century,
acquiring the long-needed collection of good quality instruments – such
as can be found in the telescope domes at the back of the building. It
was during this period that Armagh became established as a scientific institution
of national and international importance.
John Louis
Emil Dreyer, a Dane, took over as director upon Robinson’s death in
1882. While at Armagh he compiled the NGC catalogue, or more properly the
"New General Catalogue of Nebulae and Clusters of Stars". Over a century
later it is still the principle catalogue of nebulae and galaxies used
by the astronomical community, and is probably the single most important
contribution to science to have come from Armagh Observatory.
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Ernst Julius
Opik was a famous astrophysicist who worked at Armagh from 1948
until 1981. His most notable achievements include the discovery of white
dwarfs – stars that have run out of fuel. He was the first to calculate
evolutionary models of stars with variable compositions, he proved
that the great
spiral nebula in Andromeda was another galaxy, and was among the
first to seriously suggest that the Ice Ages were caused by variations
in the amount of energy given off by the Sun. His work on
asteroid iMpacts
and craters on Mars hit the headlines. |
For more information, visit the Observatory's
web-site.