The Cardiff Astronomical Society (CAS) is a thriving society located in South East Wales. It has been in existence for over 50 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 and star parties 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.
Next Talk:
27th November 2025: "The Original Orion" - Dr Nik Whitehead, University of Wales Trinity St Davids
Speaker bio:
Prof Nik Whitehead teaches data science at the University of Wales Trinity St. David’s, but her first academic love is astrophysics. She now gives talks on space science topics as it gives her an excuse to research them, and is currently ridiculously excited by the fact that she’s finally got a telescope she can actually focus in the shape of a Seestar S50.
Talk description:
Interplanetary travel requires thrust. Lots of thrust. In the 1950s and 1960s America that meant going nuclear. This talk will chart the rise and fall and rise of nuclear-powered thrust in the shape of the original Orion programme and its recent descendants.
Latest FAS Newsletter:
Please click here for the latest FAS Newsletter.
Previous FAS newsletters can be found on our web page here.
*The deadline for the next FAS Newsletter (December 2025) is fast approaching. If you have any content you would like to be published, please send to newsletter@fedastro.org.uk by Sunday 23 November. A few days later than normal as I have been rather unwell for a few weeks so I’m somewhat delayed!
Articles on Society activities such as outings or outreach events are welcome. As are astronomical Observations by Society members, either images, drawings, notes etc. Articles should be submitted in Microsoft Word format with accompanying images supplied in separate jpeg files. Full details of the Author and Society should be included. Images should include details of observer, location, equipment used and their Society name.*
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):
CAS Members' Zoom Socials will resume on Tuesday 2nd September 2025.
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.
CAS News:
We are sorry to hear of the passing of Norman Jenkins.
Norman joined CAS soon after it was founded and helped it to grow from a fledgling society to the size and standing it has today, for which current members should be thankful. He held senior Committee posts for most of its existence, regularly attending talks thereafter.
He had been our Treasurer, Director of Observations, helped maintain an equipment pool, contributed to many public events, met/greeted speakers, given talks and contributed articles to our Newsletters.
Norman and his wife Ann hosted Committee meetings in their home, they both supported many social occasions and our two trips abroad to view total solar eclipses.
And apart from his many contributions to CAS, he was a lovely gentleman who could always be relied upon to have the rest of us in fits of laughter.
The night sky this month
(Courtesy of BBC Sky at Night Magazine)
Day-by-day guide to this month's night sky
Upcoming Events:
Star Party at Dyffryn Observatory - FULLY BOOKED
7.30pm - 9.30pm, Dyffryn Gardens, St Nicholas
Join our brilliant team of volunteers for an evening of stargazing, talks, and a tour of the observatory. Use of the 11" telescope is possible if the weather is fair!
This Star Party is fully booked. For available dates, please check our Star Parties page.
To book a space, please email secretary@cardiff-astronomical-society.co.uk.
Recent Events:
Museum of Cardiff: CAS 50th Exhibition Private Party - 2nd October 2025
To mark its golden jubilee, CAS Social Secretary Tiffany collaborated with the Museum of Cardiff to present a bilingual exhibition honouring the society’s rich history.
Running from July to the end of October 2025, the exhibition showcases members’ astrophotography alongside displays celebrating the society’s 50-year history. Visitors can explore highlights from CAS’s public outreach, talks and events, society trips, contributions to the UK Meteor Network and the Global Meteor Network, and the story of its observatory at Dyffryn Gardens. The exhibition also features objects, including a historic telescope, from the former Penylan Observatory, Cardiff’s city observatory, which closed in 1979.
On 2nd October 2025, CAS members gathered for a private event at the Museum of Cardiff to socialise and celebrate their society. After meeting for dinner, they headed to the museum to enjoy an exclusive viewing of the exhibition, complete with a few fun surprises including a magnificent cake, a quiz, gift bags, and a free raffle!
Click here to view all the photos from this fantastic event.
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 easy fundraising:
CAS 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
