<p>British astronomer Patrick Moore, renowned for his work mapping the Moon's surface, died today at the age of 89, his friends and staff announced.<br /><br /></p>.<p>The eccentric astronomer "passed away peacefully at 12:25 pm (1225 GMT)", at his home in Selsey on the southern English coast, they said in a statement.<br /><br />"After a short spell in hospital last week, it was determined that no further treatment would benefit him, and it was his wish to spend his last days in his own home."<br /><br />Moore fronted the monthly BBC programme "The Sky At Night" since 1957, making him the world's longest-running presenter of the same television show.<br /><br />He believed he was the only person to have met Orville Wright, the first man to fly; Yuri Gagarin, the first man in space; and Neil Armstrong, the first man on the Moon.<br />Queen Elizabeth II knighted him in 2001 for "services to the popularisation of science and to broadcasting".</p>
<p>British astronomer Patrick Moore, renowned for his work mapping the Moon's surface, died today at the age of 89, his friends and staff announced.<br /><br /></p>.<p>The eccentric astronomer "passed away peacefully at 12:25 pm (1225 GMT)", at his home in Selsey on the southern English coast, they said in a statement.<br /><br />"After a short spell in hospital last week, it was determined that no further treatment would benefit him, and it was his wish to spend his last days in his own home."<br /><br />Moore fronted the monthly BBC programme "The Sky At Night" since 1957, making him the world's longest-running presenter of the same television show.<br /><br />He believed he was the only person to have met Orville Wright, the first man to fly; Yuri Gagarin, the first man in space; and Neil Armstrong, the first man on the Moon.<br />Queen Elizabeth II knighted him in 2001 for "services to the popularisation of science and to broadcasting".</p>