Check out these online astronomy events taking place in 2025
To register for these fascinating talks please click on the links below.
We will regularly update this page as details of more events become available.
Members will also continue to receive email invitations to join our SWHAS monthly meetings.
February 2025
SWHAS MEMBERS MONTHLY MEETING
Friday 28 February 2025
20:00 – 22:00 GMT
Black Holes & Exploding Stars – The Cosmic Life Cycle by Dr Chris Crowe
Journey inside a black hole and through the centre of a star like our Sun. Discover how exploding stars provide the seeds for life on Earth.
Explore the most energetic phenomena in the Universe from exploding stars, to the immensely powerful black holes that power the centre of almost every galaxy. We are all made of stars.
Dr Chris Crowe is a professional astronomer, teacher, elected fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society, and received degrees in theoretical physics and mathematics from the universities of Nottingham and Cambridge. He is currently the Head of Astronomy and Director of The Rayleigh Observatory in London where he teaches astronomy. He works extensively in public outreach at science festivals across the UK and hosts public observing evenings. Previously part of a research team at the University of Cambridge studying the relic radiation from the big bang, he worked in the same department as the late Stephen Hawking while studying for his doctorate. Recently he has been part of a team designing a new state-of-the-art observatory in the Caribbean. His main research interests are cosmology and the early Universe, and was part of the international Planck collaboration, a European Space Agency project which uncovered light from the earliest moments of the primordial Universe.
The meeting will also include a news item of interest and a tour of the night sky.
We look forward to seeing you.
Revised RMS meeting protocols now in place
In order to keep everyone safe we still need to adhere to the school guidelines following the relaxation of rules regarding the COVID situation.
We ask you to respect social distancing where appropriate, as not everyone is comfortable in crowds.
Use good hygiene and the wearing of face coverings is a now a personal choice.
We will endeavour to keep the hall well ventilated at all times and this may mean some doors need to be left open from time to time.
1. We will ask you to collect your own chair from the back of the hall and take it to a place in the hall where you would like to sit. This can be either near friends/family or well away from everyone else – the choice is yours, but we encourage you to respect social distancing where appropriate. Be aware that some doors may be left open to aid better ventilation, so bear this in mind when you choose a seating location. It might be advisable to wear layers ! Sanitising wipes will be provided when you collect your chair for you to wipe down your seat.
2. In addition to the school cleaning regime, we will, prior to the meeting, wipe down all accessible surfaces including the handrails, door handles and toilets.
3. All beverages will be dispensed in paper cups and consumables (such as sugar, UHT milk and biscuits) will be supplied as individually sealed packs. After use, please dispose of these items in the rubbish bags provided.
4. After the talk is over, please return your chair to the back of the hall where it will be wiped down and stacked away.
5. For the time being, we will not be holding planetarium visits – because the space in there is too confined to safely ventilate it. Instead Richard will do a summary of the upcoming night sky in the hall.
Members will be advised of the RMS gate code nearer the date of the meeting.
Keep safe and we look forward to seeing you in person.
