More than 600 Morpeth school children improved their understanding of the night sky when the Kielder Observatory mobile planetarium visited Chantry in mid-November 2019. Children from Chantry and several feeder first schools took part.

Each child took part in an interactive session in the planetarium dome, where they could view fascinating constellations in dark sky conditions. They also learnt how technology has evolved to allow deeper exploration of the universe. Kielder Observatory astronomers delivered an interactive walk-through of the Solar System using planet models and used digital microscope imagery to explain the structure of meteorites.

The week-long planetarium visit was funded by the North of Tyne Combined Authority.