Thanet Astronomy Group is run by Daniel Day, George Ward, Gill Palmer and several other hard working, dedicated and enthusiastic volunteers.
This group's main goal is to bring the amazing hobby of astronomy to the general public of all ages and abilities.
We are an astronomy group that is dedicated to helping people get the most out of this amazing hobby.
We meet at the West Bay Cafe Sea Road,Westgate-on-Sea, CT8 8QZ. By very kind permission of the owners Alan and Kate.
The cafe is on the promenade directly opposite the junction of Sea Road and Rowena Road and is not visible from the top of the cliff.
Cross the grass at the cliff top and use the zigzag steps down to the promenade and the cafe.
DISABLED ACCESS - Is via the main bay entrance at the junction of Sea Road and Cedric Road. The cafe has disabled access via Slopes.
See the Location Map page for more information.
All the dates and times of our meetings are on the Diary page, also see the What's On section of the home page.
We have a large number and variety of telescopes that we use with members and the public. Most of our public observation is done at the West Bay Cafe. This is a really good location because the cliff behind the cafe blocks out most of the artificial lighting and the clear horizon out to sea is a real bonus!
We hold a weekly outreach meeting every Saturday 1-4pm at the Cafe.
Anyone with an interest in star gazing or astronomy is welcome to come and meet us.
See the Meetings page for more information.
We hold a monthly members meeting the first Wednesday of the month at the West Bay Cafe.
See the Members pages for more information.
From time to time we run presentations on General and topical Astronomical subjects. These talks are entertaining and informative, they consist of narrated slides and pictures that support an open discussion on the subject.
These talks are open the members and the public.
See the Presentations page for more information.
We have a number of edcuational Courses that we are developing. The most popular is "The Beginner's Guide to Stargazing" this a 3 part course designed to help people with no knowledge get started in this amazing hobby.
See the Presentations page for more information.
We are investing in the future of Thanet and those that live here by supporting the local children in several ways. We are developing a program to provide guidance and support to schools. We have fully developed programs to support the Cub Scouts Astronomy Badge and Brownie's Stargazing Badge. We can provide what ever level of support is needed, from just answering a few questions to teaching the full set of requirements. To date we have worked with several cub/brownie packs and received excellent feedback.
See the Presentations page for more information.
We can be booked by local groups that would like to have a private group presentation for their members. We have a list of available topical presentations to chose from. Depending on group size and available time we can occasionally produce a custom presentation on an astronomical subject of your choice.
See the presentations page for more information.