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My interest in Astronomy began during the Apollo Moon missions back in the late sixties.

My father and I used to watch the coverage on the BBC with James Burke and Patrick Moore for hours on end and I can still remember the first step on the Moon. Having seen the clip again recently I was surprised at the low quality of the video. At the time it seemed clear but I guess that’s old eyes looking back across the decades ....

My father bought me a telescope for Christmas in 1969 when I was eleven. It was a Tasco three inch refractor on an Equatorial Mount with a selection of eyepieces, Barlow lens and Moon and Sun filters. It wasn’t motorized and I remember trying to make a motor for it in the Physics lab at school but it never really worked.

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I’ve always had a healthy or some say unhealthy interest in Astronomy and in recent times I’ve had more disposable income so I returned to the hobby and in particular Astrophotography. My job involves selling real time software www.adroit-europe.com and I’ve always been interested in Mathematics. Whilst my class mates were playing games on their BBC Micros I was writing programmes to display molecular orbitals on a portable TV! I was at the time half way through my Chemistry degree ..... Astrophotography allows me to combine my love of Maths, Science and real time software into one!

Oh and yes I’m a bit of an engineer having restored several vintage engines and lawnmowers.

I’m a Cat lover too and there is always some moggy around the place . . . the current incumbent is Poppy a rescue cat who is currently playing with a pen on the desk as I write this.