Dark Skies at Merlin Farm
Merlin Farm offers Self Catering Holiday Cottages in a quiet and secluded dark sky area on the North Coast of Cornwall. Cornwall is one of the best places in Britain to sit back and look at the night's sky with miles of uninterrupted countryside and exposed coastlines offering none or very little light pollution.
We are fortunate enough to experience dark skies here at Merlin Farm - our location is circled on the dark skies map (6th photo in the above slide gallery).
Just up the road from Merlin Farm, Carnewas & Bedruthan Steps has officially been accredited with Dark Sky Discovery status and is now part of the Dark Sky Discovery network, an online map of all the fantastic places that more and more people have easy access to for a good view of the night sky. There are even a couple of stargazing beds for you to use (last photo in slide gallery).
Photography by Andy Draycott
Top Stargazing Tips
You don't need fancy equipment to enjoy the stars, here's some 'naked eye' astronomy tips
Check the weather. Pick a good clear night and when the moon is at its darkest. This website is good and even tells you when the International Space Station will be passing over: https://clearoutside.com/forecast/50.46/-5.03
Download a stargazing App so that you can hold your smartphone up to the sky to see where the stars and constellations are.
Layer up! Stargazing is not for the faint hearted, you could be sitting outside for long periods of time so make sure you are wearing plenty of layers and sat comfortably so that you won’t get a stiff neck from looking up while standing.
For optimal viewing it is best to get outside later in the night - the darker the sky, the better the star-gazing. Let your eyes adjust to the darkness for 5-10 minutes. As your eyes become used to the darkness, you will start to see more and more stars.
Watch for moving things in the night sky. Meteors (shooting stars) look like bright streaks of light. Satellites (like the International Space Station) look like a star that moves slowly and steadily across the night sky. Aeroplanes have flashing green and red lights.
Useful Links
The Cornwall Astronomy Society
Best Stargazing Spots in England - Interactive Map
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