Festivals

September 3^rd, 4^th & 5^th
Main event days - 4^th & 5^th September

The annual Astronomy Festival is an extremely successful weekend and we are again proud to present another exciting weekend for 2010. Come and soak up the incredible atmosphere that surrounds Herstmonceux and its wonderful historic telescopes.  

Camp under the backdrop of the observatory domes:

• Friday, Saturday and Sunday
• £10 per night.
• Allows up to 4 people per site.
• There are a limited number of sites so BOOK EARLY!

Throughout the weekend there will be a comprehensive programme of events:

• Lectures
• Talks about the telescopes
• Planetarium shows
• Visits to the Space Geodesy Facility www.
• Visits to the Radio Shack
• Trade stalls
• Astronomy Societies hosting activities
• All the hands-on Science exhibits
• Family activity fun day on the Sunday
• Viewing through the historic telescopes (weather permitting)

There will also be the usual

• Raffles on both main event days with fabulous prizes* donated by the sponsors and trade stalls
• Beer tent
• Food and refreshments

*In 2009 Chris Morrison the International Business Manager of Meade very generously donated an ETX LS ‘Lightswitch' technology telescope worth £1,299! We would again like to take this opportunity to thank Chris for his tremendous support of the festival. Other generous prizes included telescopes, binoculars, books and magazines. The centre is in the grounds of Herstmonceux Castle which is well worth a visit during your stay (separate admission price).   

The proposed programme of events includes the following#  

Friday 3^rd September (6.30pm - 11pm) 

• Viewing
• Tours of the telescopes
• Visits to the Space Geodesy Facility (SGF). Please note that the SGF does not charge an admission fee for any visit

Saturday 4^th September 10am - 6pm

• 5 lectures throughout the day (extra cost of £2 per lecture)
• Talks about the telescopes
• Tours around the Space Geodesy Facility
• Raffle drawn at 5pm (be in it to win it!)
• Amateur Radio demonstrations throughout the day
• Planetarium shows

Saturday 5^th September6.30pm - 11pm

• Viewing
• Tours of the telescopes
• Visits to the Space Geodesy Facility

Sunday 6^th September (10am - 6pm)

• Family activity workshop
• Telescope tours
• Planetarium shows
• Raffle drawn at 4pm (be in it to win it!)

In 2009 we were joined by the Storm Troopers on the Sunday and we hope to welcome them back again this year.

We are again offering a fantastic deal if you are able to join us for the whole weekend, in fact there is no increase on the weekend registration price.

Normal admission price applies to EACH of the four sessions:
Friday 6.30pm-11pm
Saturday 10am-6pm
Saturday 6.30pm-11pm
Sunday 10am-6pm

£7.40 adult, £5.80 senior, £5.55 child  

ALTERNATIVELY you can book for the whole weekend:
Whole weekend registration:  £30.00 per adult, £23.00 per senior and £20.00 per child.

You will receive a souvenir, a ticket to visit the gardens and grounds of Herstmonceux Castle and a lanyard which permits entry into the centre from Friday afternoon until 6pm on Sunday.
THIS CAN BE BOOKED IN ADVANCE

Entry to the gardens and grounds of the castle: £6 adult, £4.95 senior, £3 child

# Subject to change, please check the website for the latest information.

This fantastic image of the Veil Nebula was taken in the camp site at the 2009 Astronomy Festival by Iain Melville (pictured here during the imaging process). Both the Friday and Saturday evenings were beautifully clear and this image was captured on Saturday 12th September in the early hours of the morning using a Starlight Xpress SXV-H9 mono CCD with Ha and OIII filters through a Williams Optics FLT-110, guided with a Williams Optics Megrez 90 with a Meade DSI Pro II. It is a 2 frame mosaic with approx 2 hours of data in each frame.