The Skies of Prehistory at Butser Ancient Farm
Saturday 17th February 2024 from 10:00am to 16:00pm
Butser Ancient Farm
Chalton Lane, Chalton, Hampshire, PO8 0BG
Visit Butser Ancient Farm to discover more about ancient astronomy and celestial navigation as part of the South Downs National Park Dark Skies Festival.
Journey through time and discover how ancient explorers were the first astronomers! Explore ancient voyages and the night sky on our brand-new family trail and navigate from Stone Age homes to Saxon halls via the Bronze Age, Iron Age and our Roman Villa as you follow the clues in the night sky!
In addition to the other activities on site (see below), our Roundhouse will become home to a pop-up planetarium for an immersive experience; ‘The Skies of Prehistory’ with skyscape archaeologist Dr Fabio Silva from Bournemouth University.
To celebrate the South Downs National Park Dark Skies Festival, we’re getting starry all week. Gather round our Standing Stone for talks on ancient astronomy, enjoy stories about the stars round the fire in our Great Roundhouse, and follow our all-new family trail on your adventures around the farm.
Discover astronomy from ancient star maps to modern solar scopes, plus metalworking demonstrations, hands-on activities, and more!
This event takes place as part of the South Downs Dark Skies Festival 2024.
Please note that this has already taken place on 17/02/2024
Event organiser
South Downs National Park is organising this event
Please contact South Downs National Park directly for more details regarding this event or, if appropriate, contact the event venue.
Email: [email protected]
Website: South Downs National Park
Twitter: @sdnpa
Facebook: South Downs National Park
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.
Sat 17th Feb
Local light pollution
Butser Ancient Farm is estimated to have light pollution levels similar to asemi-rural semi-rural location based on the latest data from the VIIRS satellite.
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Urban
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Suburban
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Semi-rural
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Rural
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Dark site
The above demonstrates the estimated effect of light pollution - graphics created using Stellarium.