Reappointments to the Management Committee of Armagh Observatory and Planetarium (AOP)

1. Armagh Observatory and Planetarium is a statutory body as set out in the Armagh Observatory and Planetarium (NI) Order 1995.

2. The Management Committee was established under Schedule 1 of the Armagh Observatory and Planetarium (NI) Order 1995 and the letter of 5 December 1984 from the Department of Education which requires the AOP to set up a Management Committee. It was set up to strengthen and support professional astronomers, and to act as a focal point for astronomy within NI by contributing to public information and education in conjunction with the Planetarium.

3. Management Committee member positions are not remunerated but attract travel and subsistence allowance. Member posts require a commitment of up to four meetings per year.

4. The re-appointments have been made in accordance with the Commissioner for Public Appointments for NI (CPA NI) Code of Practice.

5. All appointments are made on merit and political activity plays no part in the selection process. However, CPA NI requires the political activity of appointees to be published.

6. Biographical details of appointees:

Mr Stan Brown

Mr Brown is the Chief Executive and Accounting Officer for Forensic Science NI, having previously been the Acting Chief Executive of Ordnance Survey NI.  His prior career was in Business Development with multinational providers of specialist technical services to the Food and Beverage manufacturing industry across Europe.  He holds a Degree in Chemistry and a Professional Diploma in Management and brings governance, strategy development and technical marketing skills and experience to the Committee. He was awarded a CBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours 2018 for services to Science & Justice. He holds no other public appointments and has not undertaken any political activity in the past five years.

Prof Louise Harra

Professor Harra is a solar physicist at University College London. She is Principal Investigator of the EUV imaging Spectrometer instrument on the Japanese Hinode space mission, and a co-Principal Investigator of the EUV Imagers on the Solar Orbiter mission to be launched next year. She brings experience and knowledge of astronomy and astrophysics to the Committee. She holds no other public appointments and has not undertaken any political activity in the past five years.                               

Mr Patrick McGurgan

Mr McGurgan was the Managing Director of a legal practice, having been qualified as a solicitor for 20 years. He was the Chairman of the Board of Governors of a Primary School in Armagh and the Chair of the NI Social Care Council Conduct and Registration Committees. He brings mediation and negotiation skills and experience to the Committee. He holds no other public appointments and has not undertaken any political activity in the past five years.

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