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In the Autumn of 1998 we learned
of the death of Ian Downie, who was an ASTRA member from
1975 to 1985. He was an expert amateur astronomer and
photographer, and first made contact with us when he was
involved in the Ayrshire Astronomical Society, whom he asked
me to address on the Viking mission to Mars. He remained
with ASTRA during the problems of 1976 and once they were
resolved and ASTRA had become a Limited Company, he proposed
that the society take over the running of Airdrie
Observatory, which the previous curators had allowed to be
wrecked by a storm. The arrangement was that ASTRA members
would restore the telescope if the District Council would
install a new dome. The agreement was signed in 1977 and the
Observatory was reopened on Oct. 4th, 1978, by the
Astronomer Royal for Scotland, Prof. Vincent Reddish. The
bulk of the telescope restoration was by Ian Downie and Paul
Benson, with help from Oscar Schwiglhofer and John
Braithwaite. Ian and Paul subsequently became curators of
the Observatory, with an Honorarium from the District
Council.
In early 1979 Ian was helping
John, Gavin Roberts and myself with the Glasgow Parks
Astronomy Project, and in the spring he joined the project
staff expansion. He worked extensively with schools for the
rest of the year and created a modular photography
exhibition which appeared at many other venues, including
the Saltcoats Library and as a side-show at the High
Frontier exhibition in the Third Eye Centre, Glasgow. When
the main Astronomy Project ended Ian was selected by the
District Council to continue with a smaller Youth
Opportunities Programme, but it was not a
success.
In the 1980's Ian tried more than
once to organise similar projects centred on Airdrie
Observatory, and helped form the Astronomy Section of
ASTRA's Ayrshire branch. It was at Ian's suggestion that
Profs. Archie Roy and Terence Nonweiler became Honorary
Members of ASTRA. After his marriage Ian took no further
part in ASTRA, though he was involved again in the Ayrshire
Astronomical Society for a while. In National Astronomy Week
1990, Ian gave planetarium star shows for Renfrew &
District Astronomical Society at the Dome of Discovery in
Glasgow's year as European City of Culture, where ASTRA
provided the lecture programme including the backup Juno
astronauts Clive Smith & Gordon Brooks. We last saw Ian
at the Spaceguard lecture in the Central Hotel earlier this
year.
Ian is survived by his wife Agnes,
to whom the ASTRA Council extends its
sympathy.
-o0o-
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 RODDY
CHISHOLM
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LEN
CARTER
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