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.
DDAS member Mike Lancaster took this image of Orion rising over his garden on the 19th December 2024 using a hand-held Google Pixel 8 Pro phone.
Our NEXT MAIN MEETING will be held on Friday, 7th February 2024 from 7:30 pm onwards at The Friends Meeting House, St. Helens Street, Derby, DE1 3GY (next door to Radio Derby). We welcome back Professor Anne Green from the School of Physics & Astronomy at the University of Nottingham to give us a talk on The Search for Dark Matter. For further details please email the DDAS Secretary . Find our meeting location on Google Maps.
OUR NEXT OBSERVING SESSION will be held on Saturday 15th February 2025 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.
Our next INTRODUCTION TO ASTRONOMY evening will be held on Friday 21st February 2025 from 7:30 pm onwards at The Friends Meeting House, St. Helens Street, Derby, DE1 3GY (next door to Radio Derby). DDAS member Gary Lambert will be hosting a Telescope Workshop. So if you have any questions or need any help with choosing or using a telescope or binoculars, or indeed anything about observing or photographing the night sky, then this meeting is for you. New people are very welcome. Please feel free to bring along any items of equipment you might need help with. Please note that opportunities for actually using any telescopes etc. on the evening may be severely limited by the weather! 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....
CLOUDY SKIES FAIL TO HALT SUCCESS OF MUSEUM OF MAKING EVENT... Despite the overcast skies and a touch of rain, our event at the Museum of Making on the 9th October last year still attracted many visitors. See our member's photos of the evening.
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 Texas, in the company of the Astro Trails tour group. See his photos of the eclipse here.
RECENT IMAGES BY MEMBERS The Moon, Venus, Jupiter and Saturn, taken by Chris Callaway on the 15th January 2025. Saturn and Venus taken on the 15th January 2025 by Mike Lancaster. Jupiter taken by Tony Razzell on the 10th January 2025. Venus at maximum eastern elongation on the 10th January 2025 taken by Colin Blockwell and Tony Razzell. The Orion Nebula, the Moon and the Pleiades taken by Neil Garside in January 2025 using a Seestar S50. The Moon and Venus taken from St Helen's Street, Derby on the 3rd January 2025 by both Jim Sarsgard and Cathy Razzell. The crescent Moon and Venus taken by Malcolm Neal and Mike Lancaster on the 3rd January 2025. The crescent Moon taken by Malcolm Neal on the 2nd January 2025, and the Moon and Venus and Jupiter and the Hyades taken on the same evening by Jim Sarsgard. Mars, Jupiter and Saturn taken by Chris Callaway on the 2nd January 2025. The Christmas Tree Cluster, Fox Fur and Cone Nebulae processed by Chris Callaway in December 2024. A solar flare observation from a Sudden Ionospheric Disturbance (SID) detector by Tony Razzell on the 23rd December 2024. The Flame and Horsehead and Orion Nebulae taken by John Hill in November and December 2024 respectively. M38 taken by Mike Lancaster on the 19th December 2024. Polaris taken by Nick Cowling in December 2024. Jupiter captured by both Chris Callaway and Peter Branson on the 19th December 2024. Uranus captured by both Jim Sarsgard and Peter Branson on the 19th December 2024. Mars captured by Peter Branson on the 19th December 2024, and Orion captured by Mike Lancaster on the same date. The sunset on the 15th December 2024 taken by Jim Sarsgard and Dave Selfe. The 8 day old Moon and Jupiter, and reprocessed versions of the Soul Nebula and the Pleiades, all taken by Chris Callaway. Also, 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. The night sky captured through the open dome of the Flamsteed Observatory by Mike Lancaster on the 26th October 2024.
DDAS member Mike Lancaster took this image of Orion rising over his garden on the 19th December 2024 using a hand-held Google Pixel 8 Pro phone.
