CIT Blackrock Castle Observatory in Cork will be heading the celebrations of the 50thAnniversary of the Apollo 11 Moon landing. There will be a number of different activities throughout the weekend such as a “Moon Walk”, planetarium shows, workshops, and guest speakers like Leo Enright, Dr Niall Smith and Dr Niamh Shaw.

RTÉ are broadcasting a live show from the Cork observatory Saturday July 20, while the BCO observatory team will bring the space experience to the city by transforming Nano Nagle Place on Douglas St and St Peter’s on North Main Street  into ‘The Moon’ and ‘The Earth’ respectively for the weekend.  

A space exploration themed mural by award winning Irish street artist, and 2019 Artist in Residence for the European Space Agency Living Planet Symposium 2019, Shane Sutton, will also be installed. Funded through Cork City Council’s City Centre Placemaking Fund to “enhance, improve and enliven people’s experience of Cork city centre” the artwork “Loves Me, Loves Me Not” will appear at Cornmarket Centre.

In honour of the iconic anniversary, the observatory will host a new exhibit from July 22nd, all about the Apollo. They will also open up a new area that allows visitors to observe some of the research taking place in their labs.

Dr Niall Smith, Head of CIT Blackrock Castle Observatory said:  “These celebrations are an important reminder of humanity’s most daring and impressive achievement. I know that seeing this event live had a deeply profound impact on me, and here at the observatory, we’re hoping that these anniversary celebrations will serve to rekindle that inspirational spirit for a generation that wasn’t lucky enough to see this incredible moment first-hand”.

• Friday 19th July – “A Brief History of [Cork] Time“, with Dr Peter Hession (6.30 pm at Nano Nagle Place)
• Friday 19th July – “Cosmic Walk”, with Sr Emma (5 pm at Nano Nagle Place)
• Friday 19th July – “Interview with Space Artist, Shane Sutton”, Dr Niamh Shaw will interview artist Shane Sutton at his mural on Cornmarket St. (Time TBA). The mural was commissioned by BCO under Cork City Council’s Placemaking Fund. It is a collaboration between BCO, CCC and The Walls Project.
• Saturday 20th July – “Survivor on The Moon Workshop” for children, with Annalea Beattie (11 am – 1pm at Crawford Art Gallery) Book here.
• Friday 28 June – Monday 5 August – “A Visit to The Moon with Dowtcha Puppets” Crawford Art Gallery as part of the Seen and Heard Playspace Program.

To find out more click here