Richard Francis, PhD Space Physicist and Astro-Photographer

Richard Francis, retired PhD Space Physicist from the University of Sheffield, UK resides in La Romieu where in 2013 he designed and built his own Le Bourdieu Observatory. He completed it in 2015 when it was made ready for “first light”.

Richard has worked for British Aerospace in Bristol, UK and for 30 years at the European Space Agency (ESA) in Noordwijk, The Netherlands. He has worked on a variety of missions, progressing from an Altimeter System Engineer through a Mission and System Engineer and finally the Project Manager for his final two missions at ESA. After retirement in 2015, he continues to participate in the development of ESA’s missions.

A true Astronomy Aficionado, Richard began as an amateur astronomer and photographer in his teens with a 6-inch reflector telescope Over the years he has changed telescopes, cameras and mounts, moving to a Meade 8-inch LX90 telescope in 2001 and a12-inch LX200GPS in 2002 and continually evolving his equipment. Currently he uses an Oficina Stellare Ultra Corrected RC360 v3 telescope with a Paramount MEII mount and a Moravian C5A-100M (43.9 mm x 32.9 mm) camera with an attached filter wheel containing 50 mm2  filters for his astrophotography.

Despite challenges with weather and light pollution, Richard and his wife Huguette Lacoste-Francis found the perfect location at Le Bourdieu in 2013, a wonderful farmhouse in La Romieu, with its high ground, perfect horizon and low light pollution.

The observatory is a perpetual project with Richard constantly making improvements. His latest endeavour is a replica observatory in his office, used as a test bed for electronic and software enhancements, ensuring the main observatory’s equipment remains safe.