Dr Stephen Smartt works as an astronomer at the ING telescopes on La Palma. His duties there are not only to do astrophysics research but also to look after the scientific instruments of the observatory, and support visiting astronomers who come to use the telescopes from Britain, Ireland, Spain and Holland. He was born in Belfast, Northern Ireland where he studied physics and mathematics at The Queen's University of Belfast, and afterwards took a PhD in Astronomy and Astrophysics at the same university. He is 28 years of age, and currently lives on La Palma with his wife Sarah and 9-month old son Danny.