Herstmonceux Astronomy Festival 2026
Friday 28th August 2026 from 14:00pm to Sunday 30th August 2026 12:00pm
The Observatory Science Centre
Herstmonceux, Hailsham, East Sussex, BN27 1RN
The annual Astronomy Festival held at Herstmonceux Observatory is a unique opportunity for members of the public to camp out under the dark skies next to the telescope domes.
The festival includes a full schedule of astronomical activities over the weekend, including talks and presentations, planetarium shows, solar observation, various stands and vendors, and observing through telescopes. This event is ideal for families.
Book quickly, as these events always sell out!
Event organiser
Observatory Science Centre is organising this event
Please contact Observatory Science Centre directly for more details regarding this event or, if appropriate, contact the event venue.
Email: [email protected]
Website: Observatory Science Centre
Twitter: @Observatory_Sci
Facebook: Observatory Science Centre
Event booking
For full details on how to attend this event, including how to book, please see the event's official website.
Visit event websiteEvent darkness
The below chart shows if and when the skies will be at their darkest during this event. Moonlight is shown in light yellow and the Sun's twilight in light blue. Midnight on the date shown is shown as a white line with sunset to the left and sunrise the next morning to the right. A black background with stars shows the best times for stargazing.
Fri 28th Aug
Sat 29th Aug
Sun 30th Aug
Local light pollution
The Observatory Science Centre is estimated to have light pollution levels similar to a semi-rural location based on the latest data from the VIIRS satellite. For more advanced light pollution data, view this location on DarkSkySites.
-
Urban
-
Suburban
-
Semi-rural
-
Rural
-
Dark site
The above demonstrates the estimated effect of light pollution - graphics created using Stellarium.
Forthcoming events
Below is a list of events at The Observatory Science Centre. View these events on our calendar, add them to your calendar or Google Calendar.