Blog Archives
May 2013 Stargazing Evening
Our next public stargazing evening takes place this Saturday 18th May, from 6pm until 9pm.
NEAS astronomers will be at the Great Notley Country Park in Braintree with a range of telescopes set up for you to look through.
As the sun now sets quite late, we may be able to some solar observing before turning out attention to the night sky and the first quarter Moon high in the southern sky.
As always our volunteers will try to answer any questions you might have, and give advice about how to start out with astronomy.
This is our last stargazing evening until the Autumn. Over the summer months, we will run midday solar observing sessions.
Everyone is welcome to come along and view through our telescopes. Attendance is free of charge. Please park in the site’s public car park (there may be a site car parking fee) which is just a short walk away and will remain open until 9pm. Details of how to find the site are on our Stargazing page here.
We will be set up behind the Discovery Centre building, so just following the walkway round to find us.
Please be aware that we are dependent on clear weather. If it is cloudy you obviously may not get to see anything! And if it’s really raining we will likely call off the event – so please use common sense before setting out. We will still have a couple of members on site in case you have any questions.
February 2013 Stargazing Night
On the evening of Saturday 16th February, NEAS astronomers will be at the Great Notley Country Park in Braintree for another night of astronomy from 6pm to 9pm.
If the skies are clear, there’ll be a range of telescopes set up for you to observe the night sky through.
On offer that night could be the planet Jupiter and its moons, a crescent Moon (showing details of the lunar craters) and the bright star Sirius in the southern sky next to the constellation of Orion. We’ll try to find some deep-sky objects, as well as pointing out the different constellations.
If you own a telescope and you need some assistance setting it up, please feel free to come along and we’ll try to help you get set up. We’ll also try to answer any astronomy questions you might have.
Everyone is welcome to come along and view through our telescopes. The night is free of charge, although there may be a site car parking fee (ignore the notices regarding the usual car park closing time). Details of how to find the site are on our Stargazing page here.
We will be set up behind the Discovery Centre building, so just following the pathway round to find us.
Please be aware that we are dependent on clear weather. If it is cloudy you obviously may not get to see anything! And if it’s really tipping it down with rain we will likely call off the event – so please use common sense before setting out. We will still have a couple of members on site in case you have any questions.
December 2012 Stargazing Night
This Saturday evening (15th December), we be at the Great Notley Country Park in Braintree for our final stargazing night of the year.
Our Society members will be there from 6pm to 9pm, with a range of telescopes set up for you to look through.
If the skies are clear you’ll be able to observe the planet Jupiter and its moons through our telescopes. There may also be the chance to see the crescent Moon, and we’ll try to find some deep-sky objects (like the Orion Nebula) as well as pointing out the different constellations.
We’ll also try to answer any astronomy questions you might have. And if you own a telescope and need some assistance setting it up, feel free to bring it along and we’ll try to help you.
Everyone is welcome to come along and view through our telescopes, and it’s suitable for all the family. The night is free of charge, although there may be a site car parking fee (please ignore the notices regarding the car park usual closing time). Details of how to find the site are on our Stargazing page here.
We will be set up behind the Discovery Centre building (seen in the below photo), so just follow the path round to find us.
Image by David Warrington
Please be aware that we are dependent on clear weather. If it is cloudy you obviously may not get to see anything! And if it’s raining we will likely call off the event – so please use common sense before setting out. We will still have a couple of members on site in case you have any questions.
November 2012 Stargazing Night
This Saturday evening (17th November), we will again be at the Great Notley Country Park in Braintree for a evening of stargazing from 6pm to 9pm, with a range of telescopes set up for you to look through.
If the skies are clear you’ll be able to observe the planet Jupiter and its moons through our telescopes. There may also be the chance to see the crescent Moon, and we’ll try to find some deep-sky objects as well as pointing out the different constellations.
If you own a telescope and you need some assistance setting it up, feel free to bring it along and we’ll try to help you. We’ll also try to answer any astronomy questions you might have.
Everyone is welcome to come along and view through our telescopes. The night is free of charge, although there may be a site car parking fee (ignore the notices regarding the car park closing time). Details of how to find the site are on our Stargazing page here.
We will be set up behind the Discovery Centre building in this photo, so just following the path round to find us.
Image by David Warrington
Please be aware that we are dependent on clear weather. If it is cloudy you obviously may not get to see anything! And if it’s really tipping it down with rain we will likely call off the event – so please use common sense before setting out. We will still have a couple of members on site in case you have any questions.
June Stargazing – Midday Solar Observing
In the summer, twilight extends far in the late hours of the evening and so night sky observing isn’t too practical. Therefore over the summer months at the Great Notley Discovery Centre & Country Park, we switch over to looking at the Sun at midday. The first of these solar observing events is on Saturday 23rd June.We’ll bring along a range of solar telescopes for you to look through and safety observe the Sun.
Out nearest star, the Sun is a dynamic and highly active object to observe through a telescope. If the skies are clear, you may be able to see not only the disc of the Sun but also features like sunspots, solar prominances and filaments.
Important – Never, ever look at the Sun directly, especially through any optical instrument. We’ll be using special equipment and filters that make it safe to view the Sun. Please don’t try it at home unless you know what you’re doing. (If in doubt, seek expert advice first!)
We’ll also be able to give advice about telescopes and answer your astronomy questions. Everyone is welcome to come along and view through the telescopes. The event is free of charge, although there is a site parking fee. Details of how to find the site are on our Stargazing page here.
Please be aware that we are dependent on clear weather. If it is cloudy you obviously may not get to see anything! We will still be on site in case you have any questions or just wish to see the telescopes. Bear in mind if it’s really tipping it down with rain we most likely won’t be there! (so please use some common sense before setting out if it is raining.)
May Stargazing Night
Our public stargazing night takes place this Saturday 26th May, held at the Great Notley Discovery Centre & Country Park in Braintree. We’ll be there from 6pm to 9:30pm with a range of telescopes for you to look through.
If the skies are clear we’ll try to show you the planets Venus, Mars and Saturn as well as the crescent Moon. We’ll also be able to point out some constellations to you and give advice about telescopes. Have an astronomy question lingering in your mind? We can hopefully help you out!
Everyone is welcome to come along and view through the telescopes. The night is free of charge, although there is a site parking fee. Details of how to find the site are on our Stargazing page here.
Please be aware that we are dependent on clear weather. If it is cloudy you obviously may not get to see anything! We will still be on site in case you have any questions or just wish to see the telescopes. Bear in mind if it’s really tipping it down with rain we most likely won’t be there! (so please use some common sense before setting out if it is raining.)
Stargazing in April
UPDATE 28/4/12: The current weather forecast is for several layers of cloud, further rain showers and strong winds. Therefore it is highly unlikely there will be any stargazing tonight. We’ll try again next month. (We’ll also be at Great Notley tomorrow with solar telescopes, so hopefully the weather will improve!)
This month’s Stargazing night is coming up on Saturday 28th April. It’s held at the Great Notley Discovery Centre & Country Park in Braintree. From 6pm to 9:30pm, we’ll have a range of telescopes set up for you to look through.
If the skies are clear you’ll be able to observe the first-quarter Moon and also the planets Venus, Mars and Saturn. There may also be the chance to see some deep-sky objects and we’ll also try to point out some constellations to you.
If you own a telescope and you need some assistance setting it up, feel free to bring it along and we’ll try to help you. We’ll also try to answer any astronomy questions you might have.
Everyone is welcome to come along and view through the telescopes. The night is free of charge, although there is a site parking fee.
Details of how to find the site are on our Stargazing page here.
Please be aware that we are dependent on clear weather. If it is cloudy you obviously may not get to see anything! We will still have a couple of members on site in case you have any questions. And if it’s really tipping it down with rain we will likely call off the event – so please use some common sense before setting out.
Note – We will also have a stand at the Essex Greyhound Walks Dog Show at Great Notley Discovery Centre on Sunday 29th April, with some solar telescopes to safely look at the Sun. So feel free to come along to that too.
Stargazing Night in March
UPDATE: 31/03/11 @6pm – The weather is currently very cloudy, please be aware that if you do come along there may no telescope observing.
This month’s Stargazing night is coming up on Saturday 31st March. We hold them at the Great Notley Discovery Centre & Country Park in Braintree. From about 6pm onwards, we’ll have a range of telescopes set up for you to look through.
If the skies are clear you’ll be able to observe the half Moon, the planets Jupiter, Mars and Venus, as well as more distant “deep sky” objects like the Orion Nebula.
If you own a telescope and you need some assistance setting it up, feel free to bring it along and we’ll try to help you.
Everyone is welcome, so please come along. The night is free of charge, although there may be a site parking fee. Details of how to find the site are on our Stargazing page here.
(Although, please be aware that we are dependent on clear weather – if it’s cloudy, we obviously won’t be able to see much! We will try to have one or two members on site in case you have any questions.)
For further how-to guides about the night sky, try visiting the BBC Stargazing page here:
Stargazing: This Saturday 25th February
This month’s Stargazing night is on this Saturday at the Great Notley Discovery Centre in Braintree.
From about 6pm onwards, the telescopes will be set up for everyone to look through. If the skies are clear you’ll be able to the cresent Moon, the planets Jupiter and Venus, as well as more distant objects like the Orion Nebula – a rich star-forming region over a thousand light-years away.
Also, if you have a telescope that you need assistance with, or are just looking for advice in getting started, we can help you out.
Everyone is welcome, so please come along. The night is free of charge, although there may be a site parking fee.
(Although, please be aware that we are dependent on clear weather – if it’s cloudy, we obviously won’t be able to see much!)
For further How-to guides about telescopes and night sky, try visiting the BBC Stargazing page here:
