Northumberland is set to celebrate officially having 'the most pristine dark skies in England' with the return of the Northumberland Dark Skies Festival.
Following the success of last year's virtual festival, events and workshops will take place across Northumberland's five observatories, alongside an exhibition at The Sill: National Landscape Discovery Centre.
The festival takes place at Kielder, Stonehaugh, Battlesteads, Twice Brewed and Allenheads observatories between February 12 - 28, with a range of events including astronomy for beginners, and aurora hunting - which could be particularly useful after how many times the Northern Lights have been spotted over the North East in recent weeks and months.
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Since the opening of Kielder Observatory in 2008 and the designation of International Dark Sky Park in 2013, Northumberland is regarded as one of the world's most successful dark sky destinations in the world. In 2017, the value of astro-tourism to the region was calculated to be worth £25m to the local visitor economy, with many local businesses responding to public interest in stargazing and astronomy.
Roy Alexander, Director of Learning at Battlesteads Observatory said: “The festival will showcase the absolute best that Northumberland and the International Dark Sky Park has to offer. With speakers including astronomers and experts from observatories across Northumberland, during the Northumberland Dark Skies Festival we will be covering topics which will interest everyone from the stargazing newbies to the seasoned astronomers."
Duncan Wise, Visitor Development and Tourism Officer at Northumberland National Park, said: “Our dark skies are very special, contributing to the sense of tranquillity and our health and wellbeing, which is particularly important as we all cope with the impacts of the pandemic.
“We hope people will be inspired to gaze upon the wonder of the universe and not to take it for granted, as light pollution from over-lit urban areas and poorly installed flood lighting continues to impact on this natural quality.”
Helen Ratcliffe, of Allenheads Contemporary Arts (ACA), said: “ACA celebrates astronomy through curious and creative minds. From Galileo to our young generation, the wonders of the universe continue to inspire and feed our thirst for knowledge. We are delighted to be a part of this Festival, offering two exciting events and residential Astro stays for families.”
Wil Cheung from Twice Brewed Stargazing said: “We are extremely excited to be taking part in real world events; last year’s festival we had a reach of over 30,000 online, and it will be great to take part in physical stargazing events this year with our collection of 17 telescopes located inside the Dark Sky Park at Twice Brewed.”
Coinciding with the festival, the CPRE Star Count will take place between February 26 and March 6, which encourages people to count how many stars they can see from their own back garden, to help monitor the effect of light pollution on our dark skies.
For more information on the Northumberland Dark Skies Festival, check out the Northumberland National Park website.
