What we do
North Pennines Stargazing Festival 2021
2021 sees the return of in person events for the North Pennines Stargazing Festival. We’re working on the final details of the programme right now but if you would like to sign up for the stargazing e-newsletter, you can be one of the first to receive details.
You can still view some of the dark skies features and stories from last year’s online event below.
North Pennines Stargazing Week 2020
Stargazing Week comes to an end
A round-up of #NorthPennStarWeek20
Things that go screech in the night
Dr Martin Kitching looks at creatures of the night in the North Pennines
Daily star tips
What to see each night during #NorthPennStarWeek20
Encountering wildlife under the stars
Guy Broome shares clips of wildlife observed at night
Keeping dark places dark
Why light pollution matters and how we protect our dark skies
A star society
An interview with Duane Cox, Chairman and Founder of Bishop Auckland Astronomical Society
How to take a photo in the dark
Gary Lintern shares some of the secrets of astrophotography
An unexpected evening with the Northern Lights
Richard Darn tells us what keeps him coming back to the North Pennines
Camping under the stars
An interview with Alison Lamb of Doe Park Caravan Site
Focusing on the stars
An interview with North Pennines astrophotographer ,Gary Lintern
Dark skies on our smallholding
Night life on a smallholding
Journeys in astronomy
Astronomer and science educator Andrew Gray shares his astronomy journey
Creative writing challenge
A dark skies creative writing activity for children and families
Chasing the Northern Lights
Dr Martin Kitching tells us about the Aurora Borealis
Night Creatures World Cup
A lighthearted 'World Cup' of night-time wildlife
Wild Wednesday
Fun activities to do at Bowlees or at home
Star Art 2020
Launching the North Pennines Star Art competition
Exploring Andromeda
Andromeda is the furthest object visible to the naked eye
How dark is it?
How dark is the darkest mainland AONB?
Moon trail at Bowlees
Self-guided family trail at Bowlees Visitor Centre
What can you see in the night sky?
A guide to the night sky with highlights of the coming months
Top ten stargazing spots
Where to see the stars in the North Pennines AONB and UNESCO Global Geopark
North Pennines at Night virtual exhibition
Night photography from the North Pennines AONB
North Pennines Stargazing Week 2020
Celebrating the darkest mainland AONB
Stargazing Week goes online
In 2020 it has not been business as usual, and the continuing impact of COVID-19 means that we are running a very different stargazing experience for 2020. Instead of the usual festival, we are launching ‘North Pennines Stargazing Week’ running throughout the October half-term holiday, from Friday 23 October to Sunday 1 November. There will be a star-studded programme of virtual events, how-to guides and online content to immerse you in the glorious dark skies of the North Pennines AONB.
Visit this page for more information – we’ll be using it as our event hub for the week. Look out for:
- virtual events exploring the dark skies of the North Pennines AONB
- children’s activities
- interviews with experts
- guides to stargazing – where to go and how to do it
- online exhibition
- daily stargazing tips
We’ll be on social media using the hashtags #NorthPennStarWeek20 and #NPennDarkSkies. Why not share your own dark skies images and use the hashtag too? Our daily stargazing tips and how to guides will use the hashtag #backyardstargazing and we’d love you to share your own stargazing adventures with us.
Live stargazing
Since 2017 we have always run lots of stargazing events across the North Pennines during October half term – part of the North Pennines Stargazing Festival. This year we have decided to do things a bit differently due to COVID-19. The pandemic has obviously had an impact on our ability to run live stargazing events. Currently there are events happening during the week at Grassholme Observatory in Teesdale – find out more here: www.grassholmeobservatory.com. There are also events scheduled to happen at Twice Brewed Stargazing – just to the north of the AONB on Hadrian’s Wall: www.twicebrewedinn.co.uk/stargazing. It’s also worth keeping an eye on the events that Gary Lintern leads under the banner of Stargazing Nights: https://stargazingnights.co.uk. Further afield in Northumberland you’ll find Kielder Observatory – https://kielderobservatory.org and Battlesteads Dark Sky Observatory – www.battlesteads.com/observatory. Lastly if you’re not based in the North Pennines (and even if you are) Go Stargazing (https://gostargazing.co.uk) is a fantastic resource on all things dark skies and stargazing.
