Sunderland Starlight

In anticipation of the opening of Sunderland's brand new Culture House facility, Kielder Observatory took up the mission to capture the night skies above the city in a series of images and to explore how the night sky enriches the lives of the people who live there.

As a first step, Dan Monk, our Director of Astrophotography, spent several nights through the winter capturing starlight in various locations around Sunderland (his hometown!), and produced a limited series of astrophotgraphy images of landmarks. We ran a drop-in session in the city centre for residents of Astral, Planet and Solar House to talk about astronomy, and our team of astronomers and inflatable planetarium were at City Hall in March for a astro-filled Saturday. We've been working with creator Sharon Race who has been in Sunderland Library capturing people's memories and personal experiences of stargazing.

We have lots of connections to the city and were delighted to be asked to take part in Culture House celebrations, the new building is slated to open in October at Riverside Sunderland. The imagery and words will be shared on the screen at Keel Square - watch this space!

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Do you live or work in Sunderland? Do you have a particular memory of a night you remember looking up at the cosmos above the city or nearby? 

Share your words here