UPCOMING EVENTS
Helios at Dyffryn Gardens
Cardiff Astronomical Society will be at Dyffryn Gardens, alongside the magnificent Helios art display, from 10am-4pm on the following dates:
Saturday 24th May
Sunday 25th May
Saturday 31st May
Sunday 1st June
The Helios sculpture will be displayed on the Croquet Lawn; with rippling lights, solar imagery and sounds of the sun recorded by NASA, this is a wonderful opportunity to see the audio-visual wonder on display outdoors.
CAS volunteers can be found nearby with our solar scopes for viewing, and sharing additional information about the sun.
Booking is not required but please note the admission fee applies to access the gardens (or free admission for National Trust members).
For more information please see the Dyffryn Gardens website
Astronomy Back to Basics
The British Astronomical Association (BAA), Cardiff Astronomical Society (CAS) and the Society for Popular Astronomy (SPA) have come together to bring you a fantastic opportunity to explore the basics of astronomy.
Join us for this all-day event on Saturday 7th June hosted by Cardiff University School of Physics and Astronomy in the Trevithick Building, The Parade, Cardiff, CF24 3AA.
Featuring a range of talks, astronomy stands and prizes, the event is perfect for anybody who wants to learn more about the night sky.
To purchase a ticket (with discounted rates available for CAS members!) please follow this link
Please note, prices include refreshments but not lunch.
NEXT TALK
22nd May 2025 "Three Short Talks" CAS Members
LATEST BAA Education and Outreach Section Newsletter
The Quarterly Newsletter of the Education and Outreach Section of the
British Astronomical Assocation
Please click here for the latest E&O Newsletter.
Fortnightly CAS Social (Tuesday Evening) via Zoom (Members Only)
Once a fortnight (same week as Thursday talk) on a Tuesday evening from 19:00 to around 21:00 we hold a social get together on zoom where we chat about both astronomical and non-astronomical subjects, have a quiz and have presentations by members. The presentations are usually on either member’s hobbies or their travels but can be on anything they think others will find interesting.
Why not come along one week to see what you think. You do not need to stay for the whole session and people often arrive late or leave early because of other commitments. It is very informal!
To register your interest complete the ContactUsForm. Please include your Membership Number and you will be sent a link to the next session.
Recent Public Events
To see older events and to look at our testimonials please click here
Partial Solar Eclipse/Dyffryn Gardens 29th March 2025
From a pessimistic start and a not too optimistic forecast, the weather cooperated, clouds cleared, and we saw almost all the eclipse from first contact till the last.
A steady stream of visitors to our viewing site resulted in many oohs and wows, and even those not aware that any special celestial event was in process, came along to see what we were doing and stayed to view through SAFE specialist scopes and filters.
We aimed at an approximate event time of 10:00 am till midday to coincide with the eclipse time but in the end that was extended to 2.30 pm as interested public still came to see the Sun safely regardless of the eclipse.
We received many thankful comments, handed out information booklets about the Sun to those particularly interested including a number of children. Some had come into the Gardens especially for the solar viewing after seeing the event advertised.
Many thanks to the staff at Dyffryn Gardens for hosting the event and for their welcome.
*The night sky this month* (Courtesy of BBC Sky at Night Magazine)
*Day-by-day guide to this month's night sky* - text and photos
PART 2: THE SOCIETY'S UPCOMING EVENTS
Next Star Party - Oct 3rd 2025
Next Observing Session
Please see our Observing Sessions page for dates
PART 3: THE CARDIFF ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY
Introduction to CAS
The Cardiff Astronomical Society (CAS) is a thriving society located in South East Wales. It has been in existence for over 45 years and is one of the largest amateur astronomical societies in the UK. CAS provides a range of facilities for both Society members and the public at large including a varied programme of talks on Thursday evenings (except in August) at the Physics and Astronomy Department of Cardiff University. In addition, regular night sky (and occasional solar) Observing Sessions are held at the Society's own Observatory at Dyffryn Gardens.
Our members come from all walks of life and their knowledge of astronomy ranges from complete beginner to advanced. You don't need any specialist knowledge to join us and neither do you need to own a telescope or binoculars. It's also possible to try us out before joining!
More details about the Society and what it does are available here
We are keen to get more Society members on board to assist with the running of CAS events - please see here how you can Help Us
JOIN OR SUPPORT CAS
Come and join some of the Society's members at one of our talks or observing events. We promise a warm and friendly welcome for all. Only £18/£3/£24 per annum for Adult/Junior/Family membership also means you can make use of our Library
Gift Aid
CAS is registered for Gift Aid. This means that, if you are a UK taxpayer, we can claim back the standard rate tax on subscriptions (and on any donations) giving an effective 25% boost to the amount the Society has received. However, in order to reclaim these monies from HMRC, we need all members who pay tax to complete and return a Charity Gift Aid Declaration form. Please note that if you have paid your subscriptions by PayPal, you will have already been asked if you would consent to those subscriptions being Gift Aided – but we still need a completed Charity Gift Aid Declaration form in order for us to reclaim the tax paid as Gift Aid.
If you are eligible, please take a form (using the button opposite) and then complete it and pass it to us at one of the fortnightly talks or send it to CAS by post or email (see the bottom of the form). Thank you for your help!
Support CAS when shopping online with easyfundraising
Cardiff Astronomical Society outreach for schools, colleges, businesses & organisations.
We welcome all invitations from schools, colleges, businesses, scouts, guides and other organisations in providing outreach. We can host events our our observatory in Dyffryn Gardens, Vale of Glamorgan. We can also discuss events with your organisation to include stargazing, talks and activities. We do not charge a fee for this but would kindly request that expenses are covered as we volunteer our time.
We have a wide range of expertise & can offer events to all ages and knowledge levels.
If you would like to discuss outreach with us please use our ContactusForm and someone will contact you.
It should be noted that CAS has a formal Policy on Child Protection and the Protection of Vulnerable Adults
