Ian Ridpath
Origin:
Born 1947 May 1, Ilford, Essex.
Current location:
Brentford, west London.
Contact details:
ian @ ianridpath.com
Career:
I have been a full-time writer, editor, broadcaster, and lecturer on astronomy
and space since 1972. Previously I worked at the University of London
Observatory and in publishing. I am a Fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society
(Council member 2004–07), as well as a member of the Society of Authors and of the Association of
British Science Writers. I run my own desktop publishing system for producing
books and magazines.
Books:
Over 40 book titles as author or editor. These include a series of three sky
guides illustrated by Wil Tirion, the world’s foremost celestial map maker: the Collins Guide to Stars and Planets, a standard field guide for amateur astronomers (published in the US as the Princeton Field Guide to Stars and Planets); The Monthly Sky Guide, a month-by-month introduction to the stars, now in its ninth edition; and Gem Stars, a pocket guide to the constellations. All these have been continuously in
print for over 25 years.
I am editor of the Oxford Dictionary of Astronomy and of Norton’s Star Atlas. I was also General Editor of the Collins Encyclopedia of the Universe.
Three of my early books concerned extraterrestrial life and interstellar travel:
Worlds Beyond, Messages from the Stars, and Life off Earth.
My favourite books are Star Tales, about the mythology of the constellations; The Times Universe, a pictorial tour from the Earth to the farthest reaches of the cosmos; and Exploring Stars and Planets, for children.
Broadcasting:
Over the years I have appeared on numerous news and current affairs programmes
on radio and television, discussing developments in astronomy and space or
describing what can be seen in the sky. I was space correspondent for LBC Radio
and for the original BBC TV Breakfast Time programme. I subsequently moved to Sky News.
Journalism:
My writing has appeared in newspapers and magazines throughout the world. From
1986 to 1992 I was editor and then editor-in-chief of Popular Astronomy, a UK magazine for amateur astronomers. I am an occasional contributor to Astronomy Now and chair their annual AstroFest conference, the largest event of its kind in Europe. My star show Planet Earth ran at the London Planetarium for two years, from 1993 February to 1995
January. (It was the last show to use the original Zeiss optical projector,
which was subsequently replaced by a computerized Digistar.) For over 10 years
I wrote a monthly star spot for BBC Wildlife magazine. However, I regard myself primarily as an author and editor of books.
Lecturing:
I am a lecturer in the Cunard Insights programme, in conjunction with the Royal Astronomical Society. I also lecture
on northern lights tours, and to organizations around the UK. Click here for available lectures.
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Tall tales: Lecturing on my favourite subject –
myths and origins of the constellations
Hobbies:
In the case of astronomy, I have made a career out of my hobby. Apart from
astronomy my main interest since the 1980s has been road running. In 1985 I
combined the two interests by running the London Marathon dressed as Halley’s Comet. My eleventh (and last) marathon was the Midnight Sun Marathon in Tromsø, Norway, which seemed a suitably astronomical event on which to finish. For
three years I was Race Director of the Polytechnic Marathon, from Windsor to Chiswick, Britain’s oldest marathon race, now sadly deceased.
More recently, I have come to appreciate the merits of allowing four legs to do
the running for me – see photo below. I was part-owner of a racehorse called Hevelius (after the Polish astronomer), originally in training with Walter Swinburn which
subsequently pursued a jumps career in Ireland.
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Four-legged friend: Me and Betty, a sweet-natured 16-hander
at Ealing Riding School.
I am also an admirer of the contemporary British artists Peter Brown and David Tress. I collect postage stamps with an astronomical theme and am chairman of the Astro Space Stamp Society.
I am interested in the ways in which people misidentify objects in the sky and
am a UFO skeptic. I observe with naked eye, binoculars, and small telescope from my home in
Brentford, West London.
Awards:
The 2012 Klumpke-Roberts Award of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific for “outstanding contributions to the public understanding and appreciation of
astronomy”.
Highly Commended in the 1986 annual British Science Writers Awards for my
investigation and explanation of Britain’s most famous UFO case in Rendlesham Forest near Woodbridge US Air Force base in
Suffolk. I first investigated the case for BBC TV’s Breakfast Time and published a subsequent report in The Guardian newspaper. Further details of the case can be found here.
The Giant Book of Space, published by Hamlyn, was a category winner in the 1990 Science Book Prizes.
Work in progress and recent publications:
Recent and forthcoming engagements:
Lectures and demonstrations, Northern Lights astronomy voyage, 2013 March 3–14
Cambridge Science Festival, 2013 March 19
Telegraph Cruise Show, Olympia, 2013 March 24
Lectures and planetarium shows, Queen Mary 2, 2013 April 10–26
Lectures and planetarium shows, Queen Mary 2, 2013 June 8–24
Lectures and demonstrations, Northern Lights astronomy voyage, 2013 September 28–October 8
Last updated: 2013 March