Tuesday was our first Druridge Bay Discover Stargazing session and six enthusiastic participants enjoyed views of the Milky Way, the Plough, Cassiopeia, Arcturus, Cygnus, plenty of satellites, and even naked-eye views of the Andromeda Galaxy – 2.5 million light years away, and heading towards us at more than 100 km/s, but light travels at 299792458 m/s so we don’t have to worry about it just yet 😉 Probably the most interesting observation was of a satellite crossing the sky from east to west, almost as bright as the ISS.
So, conclusions from our first Druridge Bay stargazing session;
Even close to the former industrial heartland of Northumberland, and close to the county’s population centre, you can still have a great dark sky experience 🙂
It can quickly turn bone-chillingly cold once it gets dark 😉