About Me
I am a member of the astronomy faculty at the Research School of Astronomy and Astrophysics (RSAA) at the Australian National University (ANU). This means that I get to spend the majority of my time doing what I love: using novel instrumentation and techniques, including the world’s largest telescopes and optical interferometers, to search for planets around other stars, and to study the life cycle of stars. All my current projects relate in some way to the LIFE space mission concept. This includes the Pyxis project, which aims to prototype technology for space interferometry, in particular to include in the Japanese-led SEIRIOS mission. It also includes the Asgard instrument suite for VLTI, where I am one of the leaders. I lead an active research group, who largely meet as part of larger collaborations, such as the GASP (Galactic Archaeology, Stars and Planets) meetings on Thursdays, or online with our network of national and international collaborations. I enjoy participating in morning coffee and BBQs at Mt Stromlo, and encourage broad and open discussions and collaborations.
I was a senior lecturer in astrophotonics in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at Macquarie University from 2011 to Jan 2014, and had a joint position in the instrument science group at the Australian Astronomical Observatory (AAO). I still maintain strong links to both these groups, and am the co-Project Scientist on the Gemini High-Resolution Optical Spectrograph, led by AAO. Prior to my time at MQ/AAO, I was an ARC Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Sydney. I still maintain strong links to that department also, including collaborations related to the PAVO instrument I built for the CHARA array, and on mid-infrared photonics for future exoplanet instruments.
Please email me if you are interested in a student project! When I am organised enough, I'll put projects on my ANU researchers page. They are currently on the research school project page.
I currently teach ASTR4022 (Stars II and Exoplanets) which includes the theory of stellar atmospheres and spectroscopy. I am also the Associate Director Science Education for RSAA, and have taught many other courses and co-ordinated many educational programs in the past.
Office Phone: +61 2 612 50288
Address : Research School of Astronomy & Astrophysics, Mount Stromlo Observatory
Cotter Road, Weston Creek, ACT 2611, AUSTRALIA
Work Email: michael DOT ireland AT anu DOT edu DOT au
Personal Email: mirelandastro AT gmail DOT com
Curriculum Vita: PDF