Dunsink Observatory

Dublin · Irland · Historic building

The first Royal Astronomer, John Brinkley, never left the observatory. He still stands in silence at his old meridian instrument under the dome.

The observatory on Dunsink Hill was built in 1785 as Trinity College's star house and had John Brinkley as its first director. He sat there for thirty-five years labouring to measure the parallax of the fixed stars with the great meridian instrument, until in 1826 he left the dome to become Bishop of Cloyne. His successor was William Rowan Hamilton, who lived on there until his death. The Dunsink legend, though, belongs to Brinkley: staff and visitors over the years have told of a silent gentleman in old-fashioned dress standing at the instrument or crossing the library without taking notice of anyone, and gone again when you look up. Hamilton's name belongs to the bridge where he cut the quaternions; Brinkley's to the house he never left.

FAQ

Hvor ligger Dunsink Observatory?

Dunsink Observatory ligger i Dublin, Irland.