Welcome to the website of the Derby & District Astronomical Society (DDAS). We were founded in 1974 and are open to all with an interest in astronomy. We currently number around 50 members from all walks of life and whose knowledge of astronomy ranges from complete beginner to advanced. The society holds regular meetings on the first Friday of each month (except July and August) at 7:30 pm at the Friend's Meeting House on St. Helen's Street in Derby. This period stone building is owned by the Quakers Religious Society Of Friends, and is next door to BBC Radio Derby. Please note that we are not affiliated with the Quakers Religious Society Of Friends, but rent the meeting space from them. This venue may be found on Google Maps. Meetings usually involve an outside speaker, but members also give talks, and the society holds a quiz in January. We also hold 'Introduction to Astronomy' evenings at the Friends Meeting House on the third Friday of the month, and these are designed to cover the basics of astronomy. See below for more information or check out our meetings programme. We are a friendly and, despite our subject, 'down to earth' society. Meetings are a great way for potential new members to see what we're about in an informal and relaxed atmosphere. The social aspect continues after most monthly meetings with a visit to, appropriately enough, The Seven Stars.
The society's Flamsteed Observatory houses a 10-inch Meade Schmidt-Cassegrain telescope and Altair ED-80 refractor on a computerised 'GOTO' mount. The observatory is named in honour of England's first Astronomer Royal, the Reverend John Flamsteed (1646-1719), who was born in Derbyshire and attended Derby School. Regular monthly observing sessions are held (weather permitting) at the facility and new people are always welcome. They are usually held on the second Saturday of the month and start times vary with the season. The observatory is located on North Lane, Ashbourne, DE6 1PL, about two miles north of the village of Brailsford, and may be found on Google Maps. The observatory is available for use by individual members at any time after some simple training. A barbecue is held at the observatory on the first Saturday in July instead of a meeting at The Friend's Meeting House that month. The society also takes part in a number of public events and observing evenings during the year, at which members share their enthusiasm for the night sky and bring along their telescopes. An annual trip provides the opportunity for members to visit a different site of astronomical or space interest within the UK each year. Several of our members photograph the night sky and our picture gallery is entirely comprised of DDAS member's work.
Despite the overcast skies and a touch of rain, our event at the Museum of Making on the 9th October this year still attracted many visitors. See our member's photos of the evening.
OUR NEXT OBSERVING SESSION will be held on Saturday 14th December 2024 from 7:30 pm onwards at the Society's Flamsteed Observatory. View the night sky through our 10-inch Meade telescope, and on screen via our video astronomy setup. Learn the constellations under our rural skies. Need advice on getting into astronomy, or on telescopes, binoculars or cameras? - just ask! For more details please email the DDAS Secretary . Our observatory may be found on Google Maps. Please note that anyone visiting our observatory and site, be they members or non-members, do so entirely at their own risk.
We are having an INFORMAL SOCIAL EVENING & REVIEW OF THE YEAR on Friday 20th December 2024 from 7:30 pm onwards at The Friends Meeting House, St. Helens Street, Derby, DE1 3GY (next door to Radio Derby). This replaces the Introduction to Astronomy evening that would normally be given that evening. For further details please email the DDAS Secretary . Find our meeting location on Google Maps.
Our NEXT MAIN MEETING will be the SOCIETY QUIZ to be held on Friday 3rd January 2025 from 7:30 pm at The Friends Meeting House, St. Helens Street, Derby, DE1 3GY. Our quizmaster for the evening will be DDAS member Dave Selfe. For further details please email the DDAS Secretary . Find our meeting location on Google Maps.
The much anticipated 50TH ANNIVERSARY EDITION OF THE DDAS JOURNAL ARIES is now available for download in PDF format here. Thanks go to Aries editor Anthony Southwell for putting together this 41 page bumper edition, and to all those members past and present who contributed to it! Many DDAS memories and recollections are contained therein, as well as accounts of the many events we have held in our 50th anniversary year. We hope you enjoy reading it. So settle down with a nice hot drink and dive into its pages!
DR COLIN STEELE GIVEN HONORARY DDAS MEMBERSHIP Dr Colin Steele, from the Mathematics Department at the University of Manchester, in recognition of the many talks he has given our Society over the years, was given honorary lifetime membership of the DDAS at our meeting on Friday 6th December 2024. More details....
A TALK DOWN MEMORY LANE... Our meeting on the 6th September 2024 saw DDAS stalwarts Arthur Tristram and Dave Maynard present a talk that looked back on 50 years of the DDAS. Anthony Southwell provides an article and pictures on the event.
DR ALLAN CHAPMAN KEEPS AUDIENCE SPELLBOUND AT MUSEUM TALK... On the afternoon of Saturday 18th May 2024, we were delighted to welcome Dr Allan Chapman from Wadham College, Oxford, to deliver a lecture at Derby Museum on John Flamsteed - Derby's Gift to Astronomy and Founder of the Royal Greenwich Observatory. Here is a selection of DDAS members photos of the event.
AURORA LIGHTS UP SKIES FOR DDAS 50TH ANNIVERSARY PARTY... On the evening of Friday 10th May 2024, a spectacular auroral display lit up the skies over the UK. Many DDAS members were quick to observe and photograph this marvel. This included a group of members who were the last to leave the DDAS 50th Anniversary Party at the Littleover Social Club in Derby that evening, who witnessed the spectacle from the club car park! What a fantastic coincidence that it occurred on that evening! Here is a selection of DDAS members photos of the spectacle. Five months later another auroral display on the 10th October 2024 graced our skies.
ASTEROID 69273 DERBYASTROThe Derby & District Astronomical Society is delighted to announce that we now have an asteroid named after us! Thanks to a suggestion made by DDAS member Mike Dumelow, and the work of DDAS member Anthony Southwell in conjunction with the International Astronomical Union (IAU) Working Group for Small Bodies Nomenclature (WGSBN), our 50th anniversary year is now marked by a solar system body with our name on it! Asteroid 69273 Derbyastro (1989 TN1) is a main belt asteroid discovered by English astronomer Brian G. W. Manning at Stakenbridge Observatory near Kidderminster in October 1989. It measures 4.6 km in diameter, has an absolute magnitude of 14.6, and takes 4.6 years to orbit the Sun, with an orbit lying between Mars and Jupiter that is inclined 11 degrees to the plane of the ecliptic. Our naming citation reads: 'The Derby and District Astronomical Society is based in Derby, England and was founded in 1974 by Jane Kirk. The society holds monthly meetings and engages in public and educational activities. It also operates the Flamsteed Observatory and runs monthly public viewing nights.'. View our entry in the WGSBN Bulletin. More details of our asteroid my be found at the JPL Small-Body Database Lookup.
STARGAZING ON CATHEDRAL GREEN A GREAT SUCCESS... On Wednesday 17th April 2024, DDAS members, in collaboration with Derby Museums and Derby Live, put on an evening of stargazing on Cathedral Green. A photo journal of the event can be seen here.
TOTAL SOLAR ECLIPSE 2024 DDAS member Mike Lancaster viewed and photographed the total solar eclipse of the 8th April 2024 from Teaxs, in the company of the Astro Trails tour group. See his photos of the eclipse here.
RECENT IMAGES BY MEMBERS Chris Callaway's latest mosaic of the Veil Nebula comprising data obtained in October and November 2023 and November 2024. The Sun taken on the 27th October 2024 by Pete Hill and the North America Nebula combining data sets taken in 2019 and 2024 by Chris Callaway. Comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS) photographed in October 2024 by Jim Sarsgard, Chris Callaway, Pete Hill and Mike Lancaster. The Sun taken by Peter Branson, and Jupiter taken by Mike Lancaster, both on the 12th October 2024. Member's photos of the aurora of the 10th October 2024. The Crescent Nebula captured in autumn 2024 by Chris Callaway. The Milky Way captured from the Brecon Beacons in late September 2024 by Chris Callaway. The constellation Lyra captured by Peter Branson on the 12th September 2024. A couple of pictures of lightning from the dramatic thunderstorm of the 21st September 2024, captured by Chris Callaway. An all sky image of the Milky Way, the North America and Pelican Nebulae, the Veil Nebula, and Barnard 174, all taken from Saint Pierre D'Albigny in France by Chris Callaway in September 2024. M33, the Bubble Nebula and the Pelican Nebula captured by John Hill in August 2024. The Little Dumbbell Nebula and the Phi Cassiopeiae Cluster captured by Mike Lancaster on the 29th and 28th August 2024 respectively. The Dumbell Nebula captured by John Hill over four nights in August 2024. An image of Saturn captured shortly before its occultation by the Moon during the early hours of the 21st August 2024 by Jim Sarsgard. The Sun taken on the 17th August 2024 by Chris Callaway. The close conjunction of Mars and Jupiter taken on the 15th August 2024 by Jim Sarsgard. Open clusters Caroline's Rose, M103, Caldwell 10, and the Double Cluster taken on the 6-7th August 2024 by Mike Lancaster. Barnard's E Nebula taken on the 28th July and 3rd August 2024 by Chris Callaway. The Crescent Nebula captured by John Hill in July 2024. The Moon captured by Jim Sarsgard on the 20th July 2024. The Sun taken in July 2024 by Ed Spooner. The Sun taken on the 18th, 19th and 28th July 2024 by Chris Callaway. The Sun taken on the 21st June 2024 by Chris Callaway and Jim Sarsgard. The 4 day old Moon taken by Jim Sarsgard on the 10th June 2024. A video of solar activity taken by Chris Callaway on the 19th May 2024 and an image of the 12 day old Moon taken by Jim Sarsgard on the 20th May 2024. Member's photos of the auroral display of the 10th May 2024. The total solar eclipse of the 8th April 2024 as viewed by Mike Lancaster from Texas. The Whirlpool Galaxy and the Sun captured by Chris Callaway in March and April 2024 respectively. Lower's Nebula captured by Mike Lancaster on the 3rd March 2024. Jupiter, the gibbous moon and the Trapezium Cluster captured by Peter Branson in January 2024. The Orion Nebula, the Horsehead and Flame Nebulae, the Pleiades and the Christmas Tree Cluster, Cone and Fox Fur Nebulae captured by Chris Callaway in January 2024. The Crab Nebula and M35 captured by Mike Lancaster on the 17th January 2024. The moon taken on the 17th January 2024 by Jim Sarsgard and Tony Wright. Orion captured by Peter Branson on the 15th January 2024.
Despite the overcast skies and a touch of rain, our event at the Museum of Making on the 9th October this year still attracted many visitors. See our member's photos of the evening.
