Sir Patrick Moore, astronomer and broadcaster, dies aged 89 (BBC)
British astronomer and broadcaster Sir Patrick Moore has died, aged 89, his friends and colleagues have said.
He "passed away peacefully at 12:25 this afternoon" at his home in Selsey, West Sussex, they said in a statement.
Sir Patrick presented the BBC programme The Sky At Night for over 50 years, making him the longest-running host of the same television show ever.
He wrote dozens of books on astronomy and his research was used by the US and the Russians in their space programmes.
Described by one of his close friends as "fearlessly eccentric", Sir Patrick was notable for his habit of wearing a monocle on screen and his idiosyncratic style.
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more: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-20657939
I had more than a passing interest in astronomy when I was younger ... several of the astronomy books in our public library were by Sir Patrick, and they were all aimed at the amateur astronomer. He may have done more than anybody to encourage young people to take an intertest in astronomy.
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