Mark’s ‘Mars over Carrowkeel’ in top 20 in exhibition of astrophotography
A PHOTO by a County Sligo photographer has been picked for an exhibition as part of a national astrophotography competition.
Mark Carthy from Collooney has been selected to feature in an exhibition of the judges’ 20 top-rated images, as part of the inaugural ‘Reach for the Stars’ competition run by the Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies. The exhibition is running online initially, on the DIAS website, www.dias.ie.
An outdoor exhibition at DIAS’s premises on Burlington Road is planned for the coming weeks, followed – later in the summer – by an exhibition at DIAS Dunsink Observatory.
Mark’s image ‘Mars over Carrowkeel’ captures the panet Mars above Cairn G passage tomb at Carrowkeel. Ritual astronomy played a role in the design and location of the cairns at Carrowkeel.
Above the entrance of Cairn G is an opening, which is considered to be an early version of a roofbox. The only other known example of a roofbox in Ireland is at Newgrange, which is aligned to the winter solstice sunrise.
Commenting on the images selected for the exhibition, Professor Peter Gallagher, head of astrophysics at DIAS and a member of the judging panel for ‘Reach for the Stars’, said: “The standard of entries to the competition was excellent, and the judging panel had a very difficult job making our final selection.
“The chosen images showcase a variety of striking and impressive astronomy scenes, and capture the talent of astrophotographers in Ireland.”