Spotted on Mars

I didn’t plan to write a sequel to the previous post about Beagle 2. But recently, while visiting the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge, we came across a small, but very interesting exhibit. It was all about Damien Hirst’s Beagle 2 spot painting. In fact, it wasn’t really an artwork as such, but a calibration target…

The Cruel Planet

Last Friday I went to the Science Museum in South Kensington with my nine-year-old son. We were on a mission! It had all started a few weeks earlier when we had gone to see the new Transformers movie being filmed in Oxford. Watching a movie in the making is a lot of fun and we…

A Transient Perspective

Last Monday, the Open University astronomers set up their telescopes on the Mulberry Lawn to observe the transit of Mercury. The forecasters had predicted a nice sunny spell in the afternoon and, as usual, they were absolutely spot on. Of course, you can watch this sort of event live on the web, or look at…

Festive Fun

It was a bit of a shock last week to find that the Open University had decided to go all festive. Christmas already! Oh no! Not yet, surely? But yes! In the Berrill Cafe the staff are now wearing pixie hats, Santa is in his grotto and the air is filled with the sound of…