The Pope's Astronomer - Sixty Symbols
Why Hacker News recommends it
HN links it as an approachable interview with a working astronomer who is also a Jesuit, whenever the Vatican Observatory or science and religion comes up.
What it is
Brady Haran interviews Brother Guy Consolmagno, director of the Vatican Observatory, for Sixty Symbols. It is part of a three-video set along with the observatory's telescopes and its meteorite collection.
Recommended by 1 HN commenters across 1 different months, 2020 to 2025.
What Hacker News said
Recommends throw0101a · 2022-04 · on “Ask HN: What's on your learning list?”
> I recommend "Can a Scientist Believe in Miracles?" by Ian Hutchinson […] Books by (Brother) Guy Consolmagno, the Director of the Vatican Observatory, are also worth checking out: * [LINK] Perhaps specifically God's Mechanics: How Scientists and Engineers Make Sense of Religion . Interview: * [this video]
Cites martinbalsam · 2020-02 · on “Galileo was right, but so were his critics (2015)”
what a coincidence, edu-Youtuber Brady Haran just uploaded three videos about the Vatican Observatory, a long interview with brother Guy and the their collection of space rocks: The Pope's Space Rocks [LINK] The Pope's Telescopes - Deep Sky Videos [LINK] The Pope's Astronomer - Sixty Symbols [this video]
Cites throw0101a · 2020-09 · on “A California wildfire nearly destroyed the historic Lick observatory”
To think that the night sky around LA was dark enough at some point to make celestial observations. See also Castel Gandolfo outside of Rome, the office of the Vatican Observatory: * [LINK] * [this video] Certainly there are bigger problems in the world, but it'd be nice if light pollution could be taken into account when making policy decisions (like which street lamps a municipality will buy): * [LINK] * [LINK] I think a lot of people would enjoy seeing the natural night sky without having to travel great distances: * [LINK]
Cites throw0101a · 2021-10 · on “A seventeenth century Jesuit who constructed his own monument”
> others are brothers One of the more well-known ones is Guy Consolmagno, director of the Vatican Observatory ("the Pope's astronomer"): * [LINK] Interview: * [this video]
Cites erk__ · 2025-05 · on “Vatican Observatory”
Brady Haran of Numberphile and a whole bunch of other channels visited the observatory some years back and made some videos and interviews. The Pope's Astronomer - Interview with Brother Guy: [this video] The Pope's Telescopes - A tour of the observatory: [LINK] The Pope's Space Rocks - A look at their collection: [LINK]