Library News

Open Cambridge - Open Observatory Saturday 10 September 2011

Published on 04/07/2011

*EVENT NOW FULLY BOOKED*

The Library, Observatory building, and historic telescopes will be open to the public as part of the popular Open Cambridge programme. The Observatory will be open for two hour-long tours on Saturday 10th September 2011 at 2.30 and 3.30pm (booking required). Find out more at http://www.admin.cam.ac.uk/opencambridge/

New books display for June

Published on 01/06/2011

These new books will be on display in the Hoyle Building library area for the month of June. There is a clipboard underneath the display where you can reserve books.

Photos of our library by Rachel Marsh

Published on 12/05/2011

Rachel Marsh, of Cambridge University Library visited us on the 6th of May and took some excellent photographs which really give a flavour of the IoA Library. Enjoy a slideshow of them here.

New books for May

Published on 27/04/2011

The following new books will be on display through the month of May in the Hoyle Building library area. You can reserve them using the clipboard underneath the display.

Physics and astrophysics of neutron stars and black holes / R. Giacconi and R. Ruffini Second Edition. Cambridge Scientific Publishers, 2009 ISBN 9781904868712 (58/GIA)

Last chance to see Mystery Display

Published on 21/04/2011

We have just added an offprint by Frank Drake about Project OZMA (an attempt to find radio signals from extraterrestrial intelligences). But the display will end this afternoon at 4.00pm.

Mystery display: Update 3

Published on 20/04/2011

A German pamphlet from 1963 showing pictures of early space probes containing animal test subjects has been added today. Rather sad to see these poor dogs and monkeys who led the way into space for us, but inspiring too.

Mystery display: Update 2

Published on 19/04/2011

Today the display has been updated with a Press Release from the Carnegie Institution from 26 October 1964 entitled "Carnegie committee now has "image tubes" capable of tripling power of telescopes; production order placed for first twenty". What would they have thought of todays CCD detectors?

Update: mystery library display

Published on 18/04/2011

The Update

The display already contains a letter from Moscow dated 1964, a preprint by Fred Hoyle and co-authors from 1965 and a report from the British Royal Aircraft Establishment about visual tracking of space craft.

Mystery Library Display

Published on 15/04/2011

Society for the History of Astronomy: Spring Conference at the IoA (9 April 2011)

Published on 11/04/2011

The Society for the History of Astronomy (SHA) held their Spring Conference at the IoA on Saturday 9th April. The IoA Library mounted a display of items to illustrate some of the talks being given on the day. Items included a book by English instrument maker Jesse Ramsden of 1779 and an article on the nebulae by Sir William Herschel darting from 1784. There was also a tour of the Library and historical telescopes.