Astronomy and Stargazing - North Pennines Stargazing Festival

About

​​​​​​Have you ever looked up at the night-time sky and wondered why you can’t see anything other than stars? Have you ever looked up at the night sky and wondered how far it is to the stars that you can see? Do you want to know what a star is, how a telescope works, or even where it all came from?

If your answered yes to any of these questions, then you have come to the right place – Grassholme Observatory’s introduction evenings will cover all things astronomy.

There are four chances to book onto this event during the North Pennines Stargazing Festival: Wednesday 29 and Friday 31 October; and Saturday 1 and Sunday 2 November – all 8pm to 11pm.

The evening will begin with a welcome from the lead astronomer at Grassholme Observatory, Gary Fildes. Gary is a very experienced science communicator and astronomer, and founder of the Kielder Observatory, where he was Director and CEO for over 11 years.

After the welcome Gary will take you on a whistle stop tour of the Universe. Following this, you will split into groups and, weather depending, start observing the sky, with telescopes and cameras.

After the observing ends, it is back inside for a hot drink and questions and answers.

Bring warm clothes – it can get chilly when you are outside. The observatory, classroom and toilets are accessible. This is a pet free event.