Embedded Files
Beginners Magazine
Steve Harris has published a special June edition of the Magazine early this month, to coincide with the Beginners Meeting on the 21st May, with plenty of hints and tips for astronomical activities over the summer months. You can get it here:
Forthcoming Meetings
Forthcoming Meetings
The last Beginners Meeting of the 2024-2025 season will follow a different format, depending on the weather. Given this time of year it's light until late, if it's clear (or there are broken clouds, so we have the chance to see something), we'll be starting the meeting at Stockcross Recreation Ground, where we will do some practical solar observing before the sun sets, including hints and tips on Observing the Sun safely. As many will know, the Sun is particularly active as we approach Solar Maximum in the coming months so there's plenty to see that changes on an hour by hour (or even sooner) basis, but it's vitally important to exercise caution when wanting to observe it as a moment's error can lead to a lifetime's blindness - it's an incredibly bright object! We'll then adjourn to Stockcross Village Hall for the obligatory tea, coffee and doughnuts before having our customary What's Up from Nicky Fleet that will look ahead to all manner of objects and phenomena to view over the summer, and then we'll finish with a session on how to get a good view of the International Space Station as it makes one of its periodic passes over the UK.
If the weather is NOT clear (or worse, is raining), we will NOT be meeting at Stockcross Recreation Ground but will instead go straight to the Village Hall, and will likely start with the What's Up at its usual time. Either way, this Beginners Meeting will still start at its normal time of 7pm
Many of you will know Stockcross Recreation Ground from observing evenings held there earlier this year, but for those who do not and are unsure how to get there, head to the Observing Evenings page for more details and directions
For the last speaker meeting of the 2024-2025 season, we will be welcoming Simon Banton who will be speaking about The Astronomy of Stonehenge. Simon's expertise in this area has led to appearances on Countryfile, The Sky at Night and Stargazing Live, and it should be a terrific talk. After the break with the obligatory doughnuts, we will be holding Newbury Astro's 44th AGM where the committee for the forthcoming year will be elected. If any members are interested in putting themselves forward for the committee - it's always great to have fresh help - then there's still time to do so. If you are interested, do reach out to any committee member for more details.
Speaker meetings start at 7.30pm and are held at The Fair Close Centre, Newtown Road, Newbury: RG14 7BH. (click here for a map and further details of the session's meetings).
If you wish to be a member of the society for this season and haven't completed your membership form yet, please complete a copy and bring it with you to the meeting.
We also offer an ICS Calendar file of all the meetings (main & beginners) of the session to add to your phone or email client:
Road Closures in Newbury
Road Closures in Newbury
NAS do not normally publicise road closures on the website, but a significant closure taking place on the A4 Bath Road in Newbury from 28/4 to 8/6 could impact members attending meetings over the period. The short closed section shown in red on the image here will nonetheless mean that significant diversions will be required to travel between west of Newbury and the centre of Newbury - potentially via the A343 to the south, or via the A34/M4 junction to the North. As a result, members from the centre or east of Newbury attending Beginners meetings out in Stockcross, or members from the west of Newbury travelling in to the speaker meeting at the Fair Close centre, should expect delays and allow more time for their journeys.
For more details and the two diversionary routes, please see southbound and northbound diversions on the attached maps and on one.network.
Recent meetings:
For slides and other details from recent meetings, head to the Meeting Presentations menu. The latest addition is Steve Harris' excellent presentation on "Where on Earth are we?" from the last Beginners Meeting - quite a journey!
Headlines.....
Headlines.....
Dark Skies Event - 10th May
Dark Skies Event - 10th May
By all accounts, the Dark Sky event held on Saturday 10th May was a great success. Superby organised by Newbury Astro’s Light Pollution lead Val Russell, it ran all day and into the evening, featuring talks, demonstrations and a huge lineup of solar scopes taking advantage of some excellent weather. Our thanks to everyone who volunteered to help out.
Val is always on the lookout for help in spreading the word about the issues created by Light Pollution and the value of Dark Skies to human health, ecosystems and the climate (as well as our view of the splendours of the heavens) so if you are interested, please do get in touch with her on valrussell@newburyastro.org.uk and she’ll be thrilled to hear from you. Otherwise, for more information on light pollution and why it is such an issue, do check out https://www.darkskiesmatter.org.uk/ and https://www.cpre.org.uk/what-we-care-about/nature-and-landscapes/dark-skies/
Some of the society members who helped out at last year's RAL Open Week
Outreach - call for volunteers
Outreach - call for volunteers
NAS has a thriving outreach programme as anyone who looks at the Outreach page on the website will know. For much of the year, a major focus is presentations to the likes of Scout, Cub, Brownie and Guide groups, Y3A, Air Cadets and The Parkinson's Society, enthusiastically led by George Sallit, Steve Harris and others. However, with the summer coming the focus is turning to bigger, public events like the Tadley Treacle Fair, Thatcham Fun Day and more. These events can bring hundreds of visitors to the NAS area, and can have a massive and positive impact, spreading the joy of the night (and day) sky to thousands of people. However, they can also be a significant undertaking to ensure that the many people eager to see the Sun through a telescope for the first time (for example) can be catered for whilst allowing members time to have a break, get something to eat etc. As a result, we're always on the lookout for more volunteers to help. Many hands make light work, and you don't need loads of astronomical knowledge to make a real difference. If you can spare any time for any events on the schedule, or are just interested in how you could help, please do let George know at Outreach@newburyastro.org.uk
2025 EU Conference on Amateur Radio Astronomy (EUCARA)
2025 EU Conference on Amateur Radio Astronomy (EUCARA)
This is advance notice that the BAA Radio Astronomy Section and RAL Space are hosting EUCARA on 5th – 7th September 2025 at RAL's Harwell campus in South Oxfordshire. This biannual conference has been running since 2014 but it's the first time it will have happened in the UK, and this is a great opportunity for the UK Amateur Radio Astronomy community to meet each other and our EU friends. The conference will include presentations from academic researchers, local amateurs, and students, and the key note speaker will be Professor Jocelyn Bell Burnell of the University of Oxford.
If you are interested in registering (some society members have already signed up), please head to https://eucara.org/
Images: Gareth Jarrett, Alan Dowdell
Society visit to the Cody Observatory
Society visit to the Cody Observatory
On Tuesday 18th March more than a dozen of Newbury Astro's finest headed off to Cody Observatory in Farnborough, as guests of Cody Astronomical Society. The observatory was built by the Royal Aircraft Establishment in Farnborough in 1966 as part of rocketry projects involving stellar navigation, and houses an unusual 6" (15cm) Carl Zeiss Coudé refractor telescope. It was a great evening, with clear skies allowing the use of the refractor that afforded fine views of Jupiter, but also of other scopes set up outside by members of the Cody society.
There is a full report in the latest (April) edition of Pegasus, and our thanks go both to Cody Astronomical Society for such a warm and friendly welcome but particularly to Val and Simon for organising such a great trip.
Observatory Science Centre Campaign Update
Observatory Science Centre Campaign Update
As members may be aware, the Observatory Science Centre (once the home of the Royal Greenwich Observatory, when it fled the lights and smoke of London for the relative darkness of Sussex) is under threat of closure. The Canadian landlords, Queen’s University, who also own Herstmonceux Castle, are not renewing the Science Centre’s lease, so come the end of the 2026 season the Science Centre will be homeless.
Over the years the science centre have worked tirelessly to fund and restore the site and the telescopes back to their former glory. The centre is a major venue for exhibitions, lectures and educational programmes. The renovated telescopes provide a unique setting for the general public, schools, colleges, and brownie and scout groups to learn about science, space and the world around them.
A number of society members have already signed the petition to try and save the place - if you would like to lend your signature to the campaign, which has already passed 12,000 signatures, you can do so here: https://www.change.org/p/save-the-observatory-science-centre-herstmonceux
Observing Evenings
Observing Evenings
Often the nicest way to enjoy astronomy under a dark sky is with the company of like-minded friends. They can provide reassurance in an unfamiliar dark environment, give you the encouragement to keep going if you are tiring, help you if your kit misbehaves or you are struggling to find an object, or rib you mercilessly if you turn up and forgot your eyepieces (before potentially lending you one of theirs for the evening).
One key finding of the survey NAS conducted in 2023 was that members wanted more opportunities to observe like this as a group, so as a result, NAS are now holding observing nights either coinciding with meteor showers, or on the first clear night roughly around the time of First Quarter moon. Obviously this is the UK, and so we have to contend with the ever-present risk of clouds. As a result, we are using both email and the society WhatsApp group to co-ordinate these events. If you're a NAS member and are interested, but not yet on the WhatsApp group, please reach out to Victoria at secretary@newburyastro.org.uk and we'll get you enrolled.
We have also now added a dedicated page on the website so for more information on when and where these sessions may be held, and what to do, head over to click here
Society telescopes for loan
Society telescopes for loan
The society has a number of telescopes now available for loan to members. An 8" Dobsonian reflector, similar to the one shown on the illustration here, a smaller 6" model, and a 5" refractor, plus the associated eyepieces, star maps etc needed to get it up and running. Our chairman Paul will be talking more about this at the February Speaker meeting, after which members can formally request loan of a telescope. Key points to note:
All users must be paid-up society members
All equipment loaned out must be signed for
Loans will be for a period of 3 or 6 months, with a pre-agreed return date
Loans will take place after a short instruction session at a beginners or observing evening
Hopefully this will prove a great opportunity for members to try their hand with a telescope, helping them better learn the sky and make a more informed decision about their own telescope purchases.
If you can't make the next meeting and would like more information, please contact Paul at chairman@newburyastro.org.uk
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