Embark on an unforgettable cosmic journey with Mike as he takes us from the familiar wonders of our own Solar System to the farthest reaches of the universe. Starting right at home, we’ll dive into the makeup of our Solar System and the epic story of how it came to be. We’ll explore the mysterious world of asteroids and reveal how you can photograph and track these space rocks, along with planets, galaxies, and more—using just off-the-shelf equipment in your very own backyard!

Ever wondered where meteors come from? You’ll discover the fascinating science behind meteors and learn about the Irish Meteor Monitoring Network. And here’s the coolest part—attendees will get to hold a real meteorite—a space rock that once resided in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, and is over 4 billion years old!

But we won’t stop there. After our Solar System, we’ll journey beyond, exploring distant star systems, binary stars, neutron stars, galaxies, black holes, and even the mysterious quasars—presented in a fun and easy-to-understand way for everyone. Whether you’re a beginner or a space enthusiast, you’ll leave with a new sense of wonder about the universe!

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Bio

Mike Foylan became interested in Astronomy at the age of 5, receiving his first telescope as a gift from his father at the age of ten. Since then he has become a keen amateur astronomer establishing in 2010, Cherryvalley Observatory based in the small village of Rathmolyon, Co. Meath. The observatory was awarded a recognized observatory code (I83) by the IAU (International Astronomical Union) and MPC (Minor Planet Centre) in 2011.

Its work primarily focuses on astrometry (position measuring) and photometry (light measurements) of minor planets (asteroids). He is also a member of the British Astronomical Association, Meath Astronomy Group, Boyne Valley Astronomical Society and has affiliations with Kingsland Observatory based near Boyle County Roscommon Ireland and Spain which carries out primarily solar system studies and developing instrumented technologies for SETV research (Search for Extraterrestrial Visitation). Cherryvalley observatory is also affiliated to NEMETODE (Network for Meteor Triangulation and Orbit Determination) which undertakes research into the nature of meteors using off-the-shelf equipment, a joint venture among amateur and professional astronomers across the UK and Ireland.

Cherryvalley observatory has a number of authored and co-authored peer reviewed papers published in the Minor Planet Bulletin, Journal of the British Astronomical Association and the WGN, the Journal of the International Meteor Organization (IMO) in collaboration with colleagues and friends from the UK, USA, Italy and Ireland. The Observatory’s main instrument is an 8-inch Schmidt-Cassegrain telescope (SCT) fitted with an SBIG-STL 1301E CCD Camera and Optec robotic focuser with photometric filters on a modified Celestron CGE EQ mount.

See the Cherryvalley Observatory Facebook page HERE

Booking required

Kilcock Library Phone: (01) 628 4403