Epilogue: Patrick’s Legacy

Abstract

How will history regard Patrick Moore? Surely, more than 55 years of presenting a regular monthly program on astronomy will never be beaten? However, astounding though that achievement is, his everlasting legacy will be his books. His output as an author was truly colossal, especially in the genre of popular science writing. Ironically, the causes he pursued most vigorously, namely drawing the Moon, believing its craters were volcanic and his belief in Transient Lunar Phenomena, were a total waste of time. His drawing work with Wilkins was totally superseded well before the Apollo lunar landings and the lunar craters are meteoritic. As for TLP, well, in most astronomers’ view they were almost certainly just figments of the Earth’s atmosphere or the product of vivid imaginations, a romantic legacy from the days when changes on the Moon and Martian canals were considered quite reasonable. But when Patrick turned to broadcasting and book writing he became a legend. He was also, surely, one of the most generous men to ever walk the surface of the Earth. He could have been wealthy but he gave all his talks for free or for charity, offered complete strangers a look through his telescopes (and as much food and alcohol as they could swallow) and never did advertising for commercial gain. His cars and telescopes were all old and second hand, like his typewriter!