The Observatory and Planetarium are in close proximity to one another (60m apart) on our host site of Wynyard Woodland Park. During the observing season, from September to April, you can see the wonders of the universe for yourself through the telescopes housed in both buildings. On cloudless nights regular observing events are held throughout this period with the assistance of amateur astronomers from the local astronomical societies.

In our own local region of space, the Solar System, can be seen the Moon, planets, occasional comets, shooting stars (or meteor showers) and our Sun. Depending upon the time of year and the Earth’s position in space, our nearest planetary neighbours of Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn make for an exciting site with your own eyes through a one of these telescopes. It is often possible to make out some of the larger moons of both Jupiter and Saturn as well as the glorious rings around Saturn itself; in much the same way as Galileo Galilei did for the first time in the 17th century.

Looking up on a clear night, the Moon, comets and meteor showers don’t need to be observed with anything other than your own eyes, or perhaps a pair of binoculars, in order to appreciate their beauty, whereas the Sun can be studied with a telescope using specialised safe filters (never look directly at the Sun for yourself either with your own eyes or any optical device as this can cause permanent blindness). Whenever there is something amazing to be observed in the night or daytime sky, be it an eclipse of the Moon or Sun, a striking comet or one of the regular meteor showers, there are always astronomers on hand to guide you.

Moving out into space through our own galaxy the stars (other distant Suns) that form the familiar constellations of the night sky can be seen, many of which are not one single star but two or more in the same region of space. Through a telescope you can make out these multiple stars and the fact that they have individual colours: orange, red, yellow, white or blue, depending upon how hot they are.

In amongst the stars of our own galaxy (the Milky Way) are other fantastic sights: nebulae (large clouds of gas) some of which are star nurseries, planetary nebulae (the death shrouds of sun-like stars), supernova remnants (the death shrouds of more massive stars) and star clusters (groups or balls of stars in the same region of space).

Finally, out beyond our own galaxy (giant star city) is the rest of the Universe, populated with many billions of other galaxies. Some of these are large, bright and close enough to us to be seen as small misty or cloudy patches in the night sky with your own eyes or binoculars, but through a telescope you can see many more weird and wonderful examples of these beautiful “island universes” in space.

If it is too cloudy to see these with a telescope then the Planetarium itself creates an artifical night sky in comfort and warmth where you can be guided through these many wonders and see the latest images, movies and information from and about space. The Planetarium offers star shows that can be booked by schools, colleges and community groups as well regular public shows throughout the year.