Icelandic Astronomy Website Facing Bankruptcy

Iceland’s astronomy website, Stjörnufræðivefurinn, is facing some hard times.

MBL reports that the website filed for bankruptcy at the end of last month. The site’s owner, Sævar Helgi Bragason, told reporters that Stjörnufræðivefurinn owed some 450,000 ISK in VAT, which had not been filed due to an internal misunderstanding. As such, he will have to pay the amount out of his own pocket.

Last year, Stjörnufræðivefurinn gave out 72,000 special eclipse-viewing glasses to view the solar eclipse. While they gave away some 54,000 glasses to primary school children, they attempted to sell the rest for 500 ISK each. The revenue generated fell short of being able to pay the site’s debt.

The matter has reached all the way to Reykjavík City Hall, with Independence Party councilperson Hildur Sverrisdóttir posting on Facebook that she believes this should be covered by the city’s Department of Education and Youth.

As it stands now, the future of Stjörnufræðivefurinn is uncertain.