An interest in astronomy was uncommon for a youngster in Turkey, but for Kerem Cubuk growing up in the capital, Ankara, it was all he ever wanted to do. “Since early high school, I had only one dream, to become an astronomer. There was never a second option.”
He did bachelor’s and master’s degrees in astronomy and space sciences. His middle-class background involved science – father a chemical engineer working for the state, mother a technician in an eye hospital – but no hint of space. His father worried he’d struggle to find an astronomy job and urged him towards the security of the civil service. “But astronomy is the only thing for me. I wanted to do science, to explore the universe.” And he did. Cubuk laughs, because “in the end, after years of education, I’m a civil servant now, in another country. But I’m very happy with my decision”.
He’s a Stem ambassador and dome theatre producer for Armagh Planetarium and Observatory, where he arrived aged 30 for a PhD in radio astronomy, without planning to settle. The planetarium attracts many international PhDs, and he made great friends among them, as well as locally. “It’s a very international organisation. We have gatherings, cooking our cultures’ cuisines. Everything was very, very easy with them.”
His PhD was on our galaxy’s molecular clouds, “where everything is coming from. All the stars form in molecular clouds”. A telescope in Australia, 20,000km away, sent him data to analyse, “and I was sitting at my desk, sipping my coffee!”, he laughs.
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His PhD position was “the perfect match, offering me the two things I love most: research and educational outreach, all in one place. I felt honoured and privileged. Over the years, that feeling has grown stronger as I’ve become part of this amazing organisation. I really love working here.”
He didn’t know much about Ireland beforehand, aside from his Turkish academic supervisor, who did research in Armagh in the mid-90s. “He saw the conflict [the Troubles] firsthand,” but “that year was one of his best years in his life. Coming from an Islamic background, he said he never had issues, he was always welcomed by anyone, was able to go to both sides’ pubs.”
Thirty years later, for Cubuk, Armagh and Northern Ireland are very different. He doesn’t feel he lives in a divided society. “When you come from another background, you don’t see the differences that much. Everyone looks the same to me, I don’t really see separate communities.” He notes that Armagh has two cathedrals, both named after St Patrick.
A small place, Armagh’s Turkish community is “basically just myself and the Turkish barber!”. But he’s met others at Turkish community gatherings in Dublin.
He sees cultural similarities. “Turkish people are known [for] their hospitality. When I moved here, I felt the same thing. People were very welcoming and hospitable, always helpful. I didn’t feel like a stranger at all actually. In Turkey we have a perception that Europeans are colder, more distant ... but in Ireland, I never felt the distance. I love everyone is asking you about how you are doing, on the street. That’s an amazing piece of culture, especially in smaller towns and cities.” In Armagh “everyone knows each other on the street, you greet every single person. You know almost everyone in the city. I love it so much. Everything is very, very calm, slow-paced and peaceful here. And green! In Ankara, wherever you look, there are people, cars, huge buildings, concrete. You don’t see much green. That was one of the biggest changes.”
He likes that local people are “extremely polite. Sometimes politer than they’re supposed to be. So apologetic. Like, you don’t need to apologise for these kinds of simple things. But they are always sorry, always treating one another very, very politely. Everyone is sociable and warm, approachable. I don’t feel, I cannot go to that person and talk. I really like that”.
But behaviour on public transport can be poor. “In Turkey, on public transport, you should be very quiet. You don’t make noises. You would never scream or shout or talk very loud. This is respect in our culture.” Here he was shocked. “Especially teenagers listening to music with high volume, and talking to one another from distant seats, laughing a lot. They are enjoying so much and that must be really good for them. But this is not a part of my culture, and I felt shocked and uncomfortable at first. Over time, I got used it. I don’t find it difficult anymore.”
He singles out healthcare as a downside. NHS waiting times in the North are long. It’s “a challenge. It seems you shouldn’t get sick, basically. Turkey is not good at many things, but Turkey is really good at healthcare”.
Tea is popular in Turkey. “We have one golden rule: never, ever put milk in it! At first, seeing people add milk to their tea was a shock. But after six and a half years … Let’s just say I hope my Turkish friends don’t read this. I now put milk in my tea, too!”
He’d planned to return after his PhD, “but the changes in my country made me rethink. I decided to stay. I’m not planning to go back. Now, Ireland is my home”. Under Erdogan, Turkey is “becoming a challenging country to live in. It was not like that only 10 years ago. Everything became more controlled. There is very little freedom of speech nowadays. Many people, the younger generation, the great minds of the country, are leaving. They don’t want to have a family in a country they cannot trust their future in”.
Armagh’s observatory and planetarium “is such a unique place. At the heart of this small city there’s an observatory, which was built in 1790. We have research and outreach, sharing our knowledge of astronomy and science with the public”. About 70,000 visit the “micro-education attraction” annually. “It’s a fun day with lots of new experiences, and at the same time you’re learning without noticing. The highlight is the planetarium.” The screen inside the huge dome surrounds the viewer. “It’s very immersive, an amazing space simulator, or spaceship if you like. We can fly anywhere in the universe. I can take you to the planets or to stars, to other galaxies. That’s my job, to create those shows and look after astronomy communication.”
It has big redevelopment plans. As part of Astronomical Observatories of Ireland, three historic observatories, Armagh, Dunsink and Birr, have applied for Unesco world heritage status. And Armagh is rebuilding its planetarium, doubling the size of the dome, with state-of-the-art technology and LED screens.
“Ireland is not the best place to do astronomy. It’s always cloudy.” But it has important astronomical history, going back to Birr’s Great Telescope of 1845. Cubuk marvels at the “amazing scientists who worked in those observatories” and how “the building is the same. This is such an amazing feeling, sharing the same office with well-known astronomers from history”.
And living in Armagh for the past six years, “we are all sharing the same sky. Skies are the same for everyone on this planet”. Those looking up in the southern hemisphere see it from a different direction, but “we’re looking at the same sky”.
