Welcome to Go Stargazing!
Thank you for visiting our website which we have created to help you find stargazing events and locations near you.
As a group of enthusiastic astronomers we enjoy sharing our hobby with members of the public and frequently help with stargazing events across the North of England. From experience we know how difficult it is to tell people about these events and how challenging it can be for event organisers to promote them — currently there is nowhere that people can go to find out about them — this lead us to the idea of creating “Go Stargazing”.
You will find that the vast majority of stargazing events on this website are run by Astronomical Societies, these offer fantastic opportunities to meet friendly, like minded people, to get help and advice or to try looking through a telescope for the very first time! They always welcome members of the public and often attending their meetings or observing sessions is free of charge or cost only a small donation.
There are also a number of observatories across the UK that open their doors to the public, again often for free or minimal fee. Children love looking through telescopes and it can be a great way of getting them outdoors!
Why not get out there and go stargazing yourself! Light pollution in the UK restricts our views of the skies however there are some great places to go and see the Milky Way… Dark Sky Discovery sites are dotted around the country and are official places where you can go to stargaze without fear of being moved on by the police! The UK is now home to a number of Dark Sky Parks & Reserves which are areas noted for their dark skies and given special protection from the advance of light pollution from towns and cities.
If you are heading to somewhere remote be sure to check our dark sky calendar to make sure the affects of natural light pollution from sunlight and moonlight don’t affect your views of the heavens.
Whatever you choose to do we hope you have a great time!
The Go Stargazing Team