BBC’s Paul and Pete at society’s Starfest (From Gazette)

BBC’s Paul and Pete at society’s Starfest

5:30pm Tuesday 15th November 2011 in Leisure

THE North Essex Astronomical Society is holding its annual convention this weekend.

The society was originally founded in 1980 as the Braintree and District Astronomical Society, by a small gathering of astronomy enthusiasts. Later it became the Braintree Astronomical Society and changed to its present name in 2000.

It is aimed at all amateur astronomers with interests including observing, astrophotography, telescopes and astrophysics.

As well as holding public meetings once a month, with guest speakers, the society now runs a monthly public Stargazing event at Great Notley.

Early this year, one such stargazing event at the Essex County Council-run country park was included in BBC 2’s Stargazing Live series of programmes, presented by Professor Brian Cox and comedian Dara O’Briain.

Run on the back of Professor Cox’s hugely-popular television series, Wonders of the Solar System, the programmes ran over three nights, exploring and explaining one of the most exciting weeks in the astronomical calendar.

On the night, members from the North Essex Astronomical Society demonstrated the best way to look at the night sky and gave advice on which telescopes to use.

The society has less than a hundred members, but still has its own observatory near Wakes Colne, which houses a number of different telescopes.

This weekend the society hosts its annual convention, Starfest, in Braintree, with a number of high-profile speakers, including Paul Abel and Pete Lawrence, from BBC’s Sky At Night; science writer Dr Stuart Clark and Kelvin Long, from the British Interplanetary Society.

Starfest, Alec Hunter Humanities College, Stubbs Lane, Braintree. Saturday, from 9am. £12.

Available on-line at www.neas.me.uk