1. PUBLIC LECTURE Astronomy Ireland's April Public Lecture will take place in Dublin City University at 8pm on Monday April 10 Dr. Brian Espey (from Trinity College Dublin) will give the lecture: "Star Death: Cosmic Pollution and Cosmic Recycling" Dr Espey writes: Where did the Sun come from? What will happen when it dies? Where does most of the material in the interstellar medium come from? If you thought that supernovae were the answer to all of the above, then you're missing out on the detail. It is, in fact, the more humble stars with masses similar to that of our Sun that account for the bulk of the material in the interstellar medium and for the majority of the elements so essential to life (the carbon, nitrogen, oxygen etc.). I shall show that the different lifestyles pursued by stars are determined by their initial masses and illustrate, with examples, their different endpoints. I shall show that some forms of pollution are beneficial and lead to recycled material such as you and me! Further details (including maps, buses etc) are at: www.astronomy.ie/lecture0604.html As a service to those outside the Leinster area, a DVD of this talk will be made. Please order it at www.astronomy.ie/lectureDVD.html after the lecture takes place. 2. Eclipse Trip Our trip to Turkey to see the Total Eclipse of the Sun on March 29 was a huge success with clear skies giving amazing views of this incredible spectacle. Images of the eclipse, and the trip, are being regularly added to our website. There are dozens of images already online documenting the trip Please check www.astronomy.ie every day over the next few weeks. This is the BIGGEST EVENT that Astronomy Ireland has ever organised, and the eclipse did not disappoint. If you were on the trip, please send your images and comments to eclipse@astronomy.ie 3. STAR-B-Q Our next MAJOR EVENT is our annual barbecue under the stars with Ireland's most powerful telescopes in the dark skies of County Wicklow. Book your tickets now for Ireland's biggest annual telescope-get-together "Star-B-Q" at www.astronomy.ie/sbqapr06.html Astronomy Ireland www.astronomy.ie Call our Shop on (01) 847 0777 Monday to Saturday