Kevin Smith
Planetary Astronomer
Designated Observatory Owner
South African born Kevin Smith has a life-long love of astronomy instilled in him by his Mum as a child when she took him and his siblings out to the vastness of the South African dark skies to see Halley’s Comet in 1986.
Moving to Ireland just over 20 something years ago, Kevin has witnessed a lot of changes and increasing challenges in his pursuit of astronomy that have forced him to make some rather interesting choices as a result of the Urban Sprawl, weather and life getting in the way of his passion for the planets and cosmos in general, forcing him to consider whether or not he will continue with astronomy in Ireland.
"For me the real challenge in astronomy here in Ireland is the weather, so investing in smart tech going forward like the SeeStar is the right direction for me, but I will continue to focus on science with my C11 too."
Kevin Smith
Kevin Smith In Dome Obsy
Designated Observatory
Kevin went to the lengths of avoiding the Irish weather and light pollution by importing a fiberglass dome observatory that rotates manually.
His location with some southerly views blocked by many 3 story buildings all around him, he is now being forced to choose whether he will just focus on planetary astronomy, or if he can move more into science from home as a result of light pollution and Irish weather.
Skelligs Star Party Founder
Skelligs Star Party
Kevin's favourite site in Ireland to do astronomy is County Kerry just off the Skellig's coast.
Together with several others, Kevin setup the Skelligs Star Party which sees hundreds of astronomers from Ireland and the U.K. meetup and share their passion for observing the night sky.
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