Going places
Astro-tourism’s reminder: ‘Hey, friends, there’s a big, wide world out there.’ We’re listening…
Booking a flight to Iceland or Norway to see the northern lights used to be the gold standard for astro-travel. But it turns out you don’t need your passport to see celestial magic. Some of the best spots for admiring the night sky are on our doorstep. Cairngorms National Park in Scotland, Ballycroy National Park in Ireland, Snowdonia in Wales and Exmoor in England are all International Dark Sky Places, meaning they offer an exceptional environment for stargazing. ‘At a Dark Sky site, many celestial objects come into view, such as open clusters, nebulae and the Milky Way,’ says Diana Hannikainen, observing editor at Sky & Telescope magazine. ‘The Milky Way fills everyone with wonder because you can see the gas, dust and stars that make up our home galaxy. It is an incredibly moving experience.’
Whether you’re travelling to a site or observing from your own garden, Anna Gammon-Ross, astronomer at the Royal Observatory Greenwich, reveals the dates to add to your calendar:
8 December Opposition of Mars
During this event, Mars will be on the opposite side of the earth to the sun – its closest point to us – meaning it will appear at its biggest and brightest. The planet will look like a bright red star in the sky, easily visible with the naked eye, even from light-polluted cities.
3-4 January Peak of the Quadrantids meteor shower
The Quadrantids are visible from 28 December to 12 January, but the best nights to see them will be 3 and 4 January, when 110 meteors per hour will be visible. For the best chances to spot them, find a dark area of clear sky and let your eyes adapt to the dark for 20 minutes. It’s also a good idea to lie down, as you may be looking up for a while.
20 February New moon
The moon will be on the same side of the earth as the sun, so we won’t be able to see it. The night will be very dark – excellent for stargazing. If you’re looking up any time from sunset until midnight, you’ll be able to catch the last of the winter constellations such as Orion the hunter, best known for the three bright stars that make up his belt, and Taurus the bull, with a bright red star called Aldebaran that represents the
