Aurora Night

The event will begin with a personal welcome from our astronomer, Gary Fildes. Gary is a very experienced science communicator and astronomer, and founder of the Kielder Observatory, where he was Director and CEO for over 11 years.

After the welcome, Gary and the team will escort you into our new state-of-the-art classroom, which has a cosy feel, and a high definition (HD) projection system. Gary will take you on a whistle-stop tour of the Universe. Following this, we will split into groups and, weather depending, start observing the sky, with our array of telescopes and cameras.

A fun-filled night, with stunning graphics handouts, experiments, and stargazing, with our advanced array of instruments. Expert tuition from Gary and his team of astronomers, as we take you on a journey of the heart and soul.

On certain nights throughout the year, we may even see the Aurora Borealis from Grassholme. It’s visible in these skies, but the conditions have to be right to see them and those conditions can be very rare indeed. Whilst we cannot guarantee you will see them, and to be honest, you probably won’t, we can guarantee that you will leave well equipped on how you can spot them in future, and what exactly they are.

On summer evening, from June to early August onwards, we may even glimpse other atmospheric phenomena, such as noctilucent or night shining clouds. During this time of year, our northerly latitude prohibits the true dark skies, as a twilight gives the sky a beautiful hue.

Terms and conditions of booking

1. Safety is our first priority – you must adhere to all instructions of the team leading the astronomy session and You must not do anything to compromise the health and safety of yourself or others and must report any concerns or risks to the onsite team immediately. Should you put yourself or others at risk this may mean that you are politely asked to leave the site.
2. Your booking is non-refundable. Should we cancel the event for any reason we will however make a full refund or give the option of a transfer to another date. If you are unable to undertake dark sky observing because of cloud cover then we will offer you a 20% discount on a future booking made and taken within 8 weeks of the event.
3. You should bring appropriate clothing to keep you warm.
4. You should arrive at Grassholme no later than 15 minutes before the start of your session.
5. Grassholme is set within the quiet upper Tees Valley and we ask that you drive safely and do not disturb residents with loud music, or other disturbance late at night.
6. You should not do anything to disturb or destroy the visitor experience for other attendees and failure to do so may mean that you are politely asked to leave the site.

By booking this event you are signing up to these terms and conditions.