Scotland’s Sky in September 2023
Nightly planetary procession ends with Venus at brightest before dawn
Scotland’s Sky in August 2023
Dark skies return for peak of Perseids meteor shower
Scotland’s Sky in July 2023
New space observatory, Euclid, to probe the cosmic dark side
Alan Pickup
I came to Edinburgh in 1968 to join the Satellite Tracking Section at the ROE, and I joined the ASE in the same year. I wrote my first newspaper notes on the night sky for both the Guardian and the Scotsman for the month of 1974 August, initially as (I thought) a temporary stand-in for Norman Matthew. Sadly, he never took the reins again and I continued with both papers, adding the Sunday Times in late 1979 (exactly 40 years ago). I still write those monthly notes for the Scotsman and weekly ones for the Sunday Times. My Guardian writing expanded over the years with more frequent notes on astronomy, space and satellite visibility, but I ended my Guardian career with a final Starwatch note published on 2018 January 1 in anticipation of its switch to a more restrictive tabloid format. You can still access quite a large number of my Guardian notes on their webpage.
As satellite tracking ended at the ROE in the 1970s, I got involved with the Observatory’s site testing, working for short periods in Spain, Italy and Tenerife at potential locations for what eventually became the UK’s observatory on La Palma. Having become involved, also, with software for the design and operation of the UK Infrared Telescope (UKIRT) and its instruments, I continued this in Hawaii between 1981 and 1987, where I was interviewed by Patrick Moore for the 25th anniversary programme of The Sky at Night. After returning to the ROE, I continued to work on software and instrument development, including several commissioning trips back to Hawaii, until I retired in 2005.
Obviously, I’m still involved with the ASE of which I am a past-President and the proud recipient of its Lorimer Medal in 2011. I think my first PowerPoint presentation of the monthly night sky for the ASE was in 2003 November, and I’ve done a fair proportion of them ever since. I now do a similar monthly presentation for Edinburgh’s University of the Third Age (U3A) Astronomy Group with which I am also active.

Sky Diary Archive
Scotland’s Sky in August 2021
Jupiter and Saturn shine brightly at opposition as the Tears fall
Scotland’s Sky in July 2021
Giant planets return to evenings as summer twilight subsides
Scotland’s Sky in June 2021
Scotland to enjoy a partial eclipse of the Sun on the 10th
Scotland’s Sky in May 2021
Night skies threatened by growing satellite interference
Scotland’s Sky in April 2021
Ingenuity helicopter readied for pioneering flight on Mars
Scotland’s Sky in March 2021
Mars and the Pleiades in closest rendezvous in 32 years
Scotland’s Sky in February 2021
Three international spacecraft converge on Mars
Scotland’s Sky in January 2021
Winter stars sparkle as the days start to lengthen
Scotland’s Sky in December 2020
Jupiter and Saturn in their closest meeting since 1623
Scotland’s Sky in November 2020
All planets visible, but the smallest steal the show
Scotland’s Sky in October 2020
Mars at its best alongside the Harvest Moon
Scotland’s Sky in September 2020
Mars grows in prominence as the Mars-fleet departs
Scotland’s Sky in August 2020
Perseids meteor shower peaks as summer comet recedes
Third time lucky with Comet NEOWISE
We should be able to spot Comet NEOWISE during July as it moves through a region of sky that is circumpolar for Edinburgh.
Scotland’s Sky in July 2020
Jupiter partners with Saturn in our southern night sky
Scotland’s Sky in June 2020
The Sun is at its highest as sunspots hit their 11-year low
Scotland’s Sky in May 2020
Venus ends its evening spell with a steep fall in the west
Scotland’s Sky in April 2020
Venus meets Pleiades as Comet ATLAS keeps us guessing
Scotland’s Sky in March 2020
Venus, Earth’s hellish twin, at its highest for eight years
Scotland’s Sky in February 2020
Mercury joins brilliant Venus in best evening sky of 2020
Scotland’s Sky in January 2020
Venus and Orion dominate our January evenings
Scotland’s Sky in December 2019
The Bronze Age bull that leads Orion across our night sky
Scotland’s Sky in November 2019
Mercury crosses Sun as bright planets converge in evening sky
Scotland’s Sky in October 2019
Amateur astronomer discovers first interstellar comet
Scotland’s Sky in September, 2019
Friendly Delphinus the Dolphin wins a place among the stars The maps [...]