As I trudge up to Marlborough’s observatory, near the top of the playing fields, I’m transported back to my time as a pupil here. I studied astronomy for GCSE, which meant spending many evenings at the observatory, gazing at the night sky.
The Blackett Observatory, which houses a superb Cooke 10in refractor telescope, celebrates its 90th anniversary this month. I’ve been invited back by my tutor Jonathan Genton, former head of science and teacher of the GCSE astronomy course, and Gavin James, director of the observatory, who oversees the astronomy programme. ‘Everybody should study astronomy,’ says James. ‘It’s the original science.’
Some pupils would even stay the night in the observatory, ‘bringing pots of custard with them’
The reality, of course, is that the subject remains niche, with only a handful of schools across the country offering GCSE astronomy. These include Westminster School, Ripon Grammar School in North Yorkshire, Rossall School in Lancashire, Burgess Hill Girls in West Sussex, Truro High School for Girls in Cornwall and the Winston Churchill School in Surrey, the first state school in Britain with a permanent on-site planetarium. Eton College has an observatory but does not yet offer GCSE astronomy to its pupils. ‘They’ve got a Cooke instrument, but ours is significantly larger,’ says James.
Marlborough College’s pupils are fortunate to have, on the school’s grounds, a particularly fine telescope known as the Barclay Equatorial. Built in 1860 by Thomas Cooke & Sons of York, it was one of the largest refractors of its time. Originally housed in Leyton and then at the Radcliffe Observatory, Oxford, the telescope was relocated in 1935 to Marlborough, thanks in large part to the efforts of Sir Basil Blackett, a former pupil who led a fundraising campaign to house the telescope on the playing fields.
Jonathan Genton arrived at Marlborough in 1987. He set about encouraging the school to consider restoring the observatory and its telescope, which had by then fallen into disrepair. ‘There is some evidence to suggest a few pupils back then were diligent in doing real astronomy,’ says James. But by all accounts, the observatory was mainly used by pupils hoping to go unobserved. Some would even stay the night, ‘bringing pots of custard with them’. To put an end to this sort of behaviour, the observatory’s windows were filled in with beautiful brickwork showing the phases of the moon, marking the beginning of a new era.
‘We had an annus mirabilis in 1997, when comet Hale-Bopp appeared in the sky,’ Genton explains. ‘It was such an obvious attraction that I suddenly became popular. Everybody said, “I want to see this”. One of the visitors was the boss himself. I couldn’t help but say, “Isn’t the telescope good? But if only this thing was back at its best, it would be even more amazing.” “You’re on the list,” he replied – and the restoration project had been approved, at least in principle.’
Around the same time, Charles Barclay was appointed head of physics. ‘He knew a lot about telescopes and had a degree in astronomy, so he became the internal project manager. We contacted a guy called Norman Walker, who had done some work for Sir Patrick Moore on his Cooke telescope,’ says Genton. Marlborough’s telescope was not only restored but computerised, which has made the process of observing far easier. ‘As far as we know, this is the oldest computerised telescope on the planet.’
Much of the GCSE astronomy course involves aided and unaided observations, which is why the school’s telescope – the largest in active use at any British school – is such an asset. Pupils are allowed to visit the observatory in the evening, so long as they are back in their houses by 10 p.m. ‘If there’s an exceptional event, sometimes they are given special dispensation to stay out longer,’ says Genton. If the weather is clement, a Messier Marathon might be arranged – an attempt to spot all 110 Messier objects (star clusters, nebulae and galaxies) in a single night, as catalogued by the 18th-century French astronomer and comet hunter Charles Messier.
The GCSE course ‘has a reputation for being tough’, says James, and popularity waxes and wanes annually, with between ten and 30 pupils taking the exam. ‘The subject is certainly not for those who shy away from deep questions or large numbers,’ he adds. It brings together astrophysics, history, philosophy and observation techniques.
‘It’s a fascinating course,’ says James. ‘It’s not just “what’s the name of that star in that constellation”, but a much broader look at how we know what we know – from Stonehenge to the Greeks, to Johannes Kepler and the modern astronomers. We start on Earth, learning how to observe and how mapping and coordinate systems work. Philosophy then comes in when we begin looking further into the universe. We reach the moon, the solar system, the sun, the stars, the Milky Way, other galaxies, the universe and the Big Bang. “Where’s it all going to end?” we ask.’
The GCSE in astronomy is also a relatively popular choice for ‘post school’ pupils, as James puts it. Indeed, he sat the GCSE in 2019, and ‘thankfully scored a 9’ (the highest score). ‘I was lucky in being affiliated to Marlborough College, so sitting the exam at that centre was easy. There are various institutions that offer the course and exam to non-school pupils; Dark Sky Wales run a course, and you can sit the exam in Bristol. The Royal Astronomical Society promotes various courses and The Royal Observatory Greenwich offers all sorts of support for the course, but doesn’t run a specific one itself. The only word of advice for potential students is that the GCSE is not for the faint-hearted and is wonderfully challenging.’
A subject like astronomy is evolving rapidly and the curriculum often slightly lags. ‘There are times when I put an asterisk next to a particular part that I’m teaching and say, “This is what I must tell you. But current data is suggesting perhaps something different could be the case”,’ says James. ‘Cosmology – the study of the origin and development of the universe – is developing particularly fast, thanks in large part to the images being received from the James Webb Space Telescope.’
Perhaps the most memorable part of the entire course – and certainly the most time-consuming – is the moon map pupils must produce, a large, hand-drawn study of the moon’s topography. I remember it taking weeks to complete. In the observatory, there is one particularly beautiful example framed on the wall, drawn by a girl who later went on to read maths at Oxford. ‘It’s a very fine example,’ says Genton. ‘Indeed, it is so good that when Sir Patrick Moore turned up at the observatory, he was shown the map and exclaimed, “That’s better than mine.”’ This was quite the compliment, because, as Genton points out, Sir Patrick’s maps were used by Nasa in their preparations for the Apollo Moon landings.
No A-level in astronomy exists, but the GCSE provides a comprehensive grounding. Any pupils wishing to continue their study of the subject are encouraged to join the school’s Astronomy and Astrophysics Society, known as the Radcliffe Society. ‘It is for the pupils, so they drive it themselves,’ says Genton. ‘If they want to do something at the observatory, they have access through the Society.’ Recent astronomy projects have focused on planetary missions, space tourism and rocketry. One pupil even determined the mass of Jupiter by observing its moons.
Those wishing to study astronomy further at a more academic level may undertake an EPQ – Extended Project Qualification – which allows students to research a topic of their choice, earning Ucas points in the process.
One pupil pursued astrophotography for their EPQ and was particularly well supported, given that James is also a talented astrophotographer. Prior to joining the school, he ran a business as a horse-racing photographer and his website features an intriguing mix of subjects: crop circles in Wiltshire, Jeremy Clarkson at Newbury and the outer reaches of our galaxy. Astrophotography is now his primary focus, and he teaches students how to take photos through the telescope. ‘They get some pretty stunning shots on their iPhones,’ he says.
For students yearning to look beyond their screens, though, space offers that escape – a frontier that reminds us of something greater than ourselves. On the school’s astronomy website, there is a neat summation of what the subject offers: ‘We all share under one common sky. Cultural stories and interpretations are considered with an awareness of the negative impact of modern short-term views and our materialistic society.’ High-profile (and, one might argue, materialistic) figures such as Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk have nevertheless also captured young imaginations, with their ambitious plans to revolutionise space travel and colonise Mars. Musk’s work through SpaceX has made space exploration feel more tangible, though when I mention his name, both Genton and James look slightly perturbed. ‘His spaceship development is impressive,’ says Genton, but as both men point out, Musk’s satellites can be a hindrance for astronomers hoping for a clear picture of the night sky. ‘They can obscure the view of the universe,’ says James.
Some of Marlborough’s astronomy pupils have set their sights on careers related to space. One former pupil now works for OneWeb, a leading satellite company focused on space-based connectivity. ‘He came back and gave an excellent talk about satellites – the good, the bad and the ugly,’ says Genton. A current pupil studying astronomy would like to go one step further. ‘She’s desperate to become an astronaut,’ says James, ‘and she has a plan. We will do all we can to facilitate that.’
Nobody could say these astronomers aren’t being encouraged to aim high.
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