Late Night Shooting Star Special

Dust grains from space!!.... it's Lyrids Meteor Time It’s time for the peak of the Lyrid meteor shower! The annual Lyrid meteor shower is active each year from about April 16 to 25. The peak of this shower tends to come in a burst and usually lasts for less than a day so we're getting ready for that here at Kielder. The source of the meteor shower is particles of dust shed by the long-period Comet C/1861 G1 Thatcher.The April Lyrids are the strongest annual shower of meteors from debris of a long-period comet, mainly because as far as other intermediate long-period comets go (200 - 10,000 years), this one has a relatively short orbital period of about 415 years. The Lyrids have been observed for the past 2600 years. These meteors tend to be bright, so a great chance to witness these wanderers of the solar system as they slam in to Earth's atmosphere at 25,000 mph. We'll be out on the deck to watch them, and also, following our interactive talks you will all enjoy a tour of the observatory and an introduction on how to use the powerful telescopes. These instructions are given with special focus to all comers, no prior experience is necessary. By the end of the night you'll have a fantastic insight in to what real astronomy is all about as well as hopefully seeing lots of shooting stars.

Please note: A hot drink will be served at some point during the event and is included in the ticket price.