Special tip for the weekend! National Star Days in Arnhem

Do you like looking at the stars in the Arnhem sky? Then you can treat yourself during National Stargazing Days 2024! The event takes place on the weekend of March 15-17, and you can also use telescopes to take a look at what can be seen in the dark skies at the observatory in Arnhem.

The doors of the Preiskeaven Observatory in Arnhem will be open on March 15 and 16 on National Stargazing Days. Everyone is welcome from 7:30pm until approximately 10:00pm. Expert volunteers talk lovingly about the starry sky and you can also look through the telescopes yourself.

The program is in Arnhem

Presijven volunteers stand with their telescopes on the observatory's roof terrace. They invite you to “look deeper into the universe.” This gives you the opportunity to discover Jupiter and distinguishes between four unique moons called Callisto, Ganymede, Io and Europa. You will also see the Orion Nebula. That's the “star nursery.”

National Star Days

In clear weather, you can see a lot during National Stargazing Days. The organization notes: “In the early evening, around eight o’clock in the evening, you can see Jupiter above the western horizon. Through a telescope you may also be able to see some of its four moons. Not far away is the seventh constellation, a group of young stars. Galileo saw more than thirty stars here using his telescope. Nice to see that too.” In short: If you know what to look for, you'll see a lot this weekend!

Other activities

National Stargazing Days are organized by the Royal Netherlands Society for Weather and Astronomy (KNVWS). KNVWS staff give lectures and create educational materials about astronomy for teachers. KNVWS also organizes, among other things, Laylat al-Qadr.