Mark Thompson (astronomer)
| Mark Thompson | |
|---|---|
| Born |
Mark Thompson 1973 (age 42–43) Norfolk, England |
| Occupation | Astronomer, television presenter, writer |
Mark Thompson (born 1973, Norfolk, England)[1] is a British astronomer, television presenter and writer best known for being one of the presenting team on the BBC show Stargazing Live and is a regular face on The Alan Titchmarsh Show. He has been called the "Peoples' Astronomer".[2]
Biography
Thompson has lived in Norfolk all his life and was first enthused about astronomy aged 10 when he saw the rings of Saturn through a telescope.[3] He has remained living in the county because the night skies are very dark and ideal for stargazing.[3]
Thompson had given up his ambition to present on TV and had retrained as a pilot when (in 2009) he was picked to become a presenter on the BBC's The One Show.[4]
Thompson was the first amateur astronomer to become a council member of the Royal Astronomical Society.[4] He is President of the Norwich Astronomical Society.[3] (In fact Mark was not the first amateur astronomer to become a council member of the RAS. Since it was founded in 1820 as the Astronomical Society of London (receiving its Royal Charter in 1830 from King William IV) it has had many amateurs on its council, including many of its founding members (of the original 12 founding members in 1820, 11 were amateurs, including the Sir John Herschel, the son of William). Nigel Calder and Anthony Kinder, both amateurs, were members of the council in 2001-2004.)
He is most well known for his role as one of the presenting team of the hit BBC science show Stargazing Live.
As of February 2015 Thompson had 76,200 followers on Twitter.[5]
TV/Radio Appearances
- Presenter of astronomy/science items for The One Show Jul 2009 to Oct 2011
- Presenter of Stargazing Live Jan 2011 to present[6]
- Specialist Presenter on the Alan Titchmarsh Show Jan 2012 to 2014[7]
- Guest on The Wright Stuff 12 Jan 2012
- Monthly Night Sky segment on Radio Five Live Jan 2012 to present
- Derren Brown's Apocalypse episode 1 in Oct 2012[8]
- Celebrity Mastermind Contestant 5 Jan 2013[9]
- Regular guest on This Morning (TV programme) March 2014 to present day.
Written Work
- Columnist for Discovery Space Jul 2010 to present[10]
- Writer for Space Exploration Network Jul 2011 to 2012 [11]
- 'A Down to Earth Guide to the Cosmos' ISBN 978-0593070369 [4]
- 'A Space Travellers Guide to the Solar System' ISBN 978-0593073339
- 'Philips Stargazing with Mark Thompson' ISBN 978-1849073134
- 'Philips Astrophotography with Mark Thompson' ISBN 978-1849073141
References
- ↑ Mark Thompson (28 December 2014). "Mark Thompson on Twitter". Retrieved 28 December 2014.
- ↑ Ross Clark, 'Hooked on Stargazing', The Sunday Telegraph, 11 April 2010, Lifestyles Section page 16
- 1 2 3 'Norfolk astronomer Mark Thompson ready for the return of BBC’s Stargazing Live', Norwich Evening News, 12 January 2012. Retrieved 25 February 2013.
- 1 2 3 Katherine MacAlister, 'Rising Star', Oxford Mail, 14 February 2013. Retrieved 25 February 2013.
- ↑ https://twitter.com/PeoplesAstro/status/549348968506073088
- ↑ Bill Gibb, 'Mark's starry-eyed with his new show', The Weekly News, 1 January 2011, page 8
- ↑ http://alantitchmarsh.wordpress.com/astronomy/
- ↑ http://whatculture.com/tv/derren-brown-apocalypse-part-one-review.php
- ↑ http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b008pc8h/celebrities
- ↑ http://news.discovery.com/contributors/mark-thompson/
- ↑ http://www.sen.com