I arrived on Blackheath to find a layer of persistent high haze, but it was thin enough that Saturn was already shining clearly in the south. That was encouraging. The atmosphere felt damp from the outset, though, and when Alec arrived by bike with his Vespera in a backpack, our first conversation was about how well - or otherwise - we’d manage the inevitable dew. More volunteers soon followed. Richard arrived with his Seestars, Yvonne with her Seestar, Les with a Dwarf III,

As the year 2025 comes rapidly to a close, the Flamsteed Astronomy Society held its last ‘main talk’ of the year at the National Maritime Museum auditorium. Attendees gathered for the evening and began with an offering of ‘tea and biscuits’, appropriately presented with colourful Christmas lights, and welcomes from Poly Philippou, Clive Inglis and Richard Summerfield. This was also a chance to catch up with familiar faces and be introduced to new members attending. Suitably r

On arrival at the gates of the world-famous Royal Greenwich Observatory, a minibus awaited us to take us uphill on the winding slope to the observatory complex. With some of us arriving a little early, we took in the fabulous sights of the London city nightscape from the Meridian courtyard, but as we did so, we realised we were bathed in the ethereal moonlight of a full moon hovering and smiling high above us... oh alright, it was probably city light pollution, but come on, l

The evening opened with a short members’ talk (full disclosure, dear reader: it was me!) describing a summer project to build a home observatory. This semi-remote-controlled imaging observatory had been many years in the planning, and finally came together over the spring and summer. In this short overview I discussed the rationale, design, and build of the observatory - watch this space for a potential follow-up workshop for anyone interested in the technical details. Simon,

After last week’s abandoned attempt, it was a relief to arrive on Blackheath and see the sky behaving exactly as promised. Clear from horizon to zenith, and staying that way until around 10pm, it set the scene for one of the most relaxed sessions we’ve had in quite some time. Compare and contrast - the sky over Blackheath on Sunday 16th November, compared to Sunday 23rd November! Pictures by Phil Benson and Eddie Cantello It wasn’t a busy night in terms of public turnout – ar

It was the night before Halloween, and we had booked the evening at the 350-year-old Royal Observatory in Greenwich for our first exclusive access evening - what could possibly go wrong? Well, the weather for one. The only thing you could see was thick cloud with a spooky glow where the Moon just couldn’t get through. Did that matter? Hell no! We plan for this - we’re in England, after all 😊. I arrived at 6:30pm and proceeded to the staff entrance by the Shepherd Clock, whic

On the 27th of October , a group of Flamsteed members gathered at Mycenae House to listen to a talk on “The Sun: An Introduction to Viewing and Imaging”  given by Flamsteed member Tim Rickard . Tim is an experienced solar observer and a regular volunteer at the society’s solar observing outreach sessions at the Royal Observatory. Tim Rickard, at the start of his talk to the Flamsteed. Picture by Mike Meynell. Tim started his talk by covering the health and safety consideratio

Our 2025/26 season of main lectures continued with its second fascinating instalment. The evening got off to a great start with a private viewing of the Astronomy Photographer of the Year exhibition for our members, provoking friendly discussions and debates over personal favourites. Then everyone moved into the lecture theatre for the sold-out talk. As well as our usual members’ photos - this time focusing on the Sun and the Moon - we were also treated to a wonderful review

Our latest outreach event took place on Saturday 4 October, as part of the global International Observe the Moon Night  celebrations. We...

It was one of those nights that will linger in the memory for a long time – not for flawless skies or perfect observing conditions, but...

The evening began with the Flamsteed Astronomy Society’s 26th Annual General Meeting, where Chair Bobby Manoo presented a positive review...

After the huge crowds for last week’s lunar eclipse event, our latest Blackheath observing session on Saturday 13 September was a much...

Our first Blackheath observing session of the new season promised to be a memorable one, with a total lunar eclipse coinciding with...

One of the big highlights of our solar viewing season has been the incredible quality of our volunteers and the fact that we’ve been able...