Star attraction at the museum
VISITORS to Swansea's Waterfront Museum tomorrow will get starry-eyed, with lift-off on a series of space and astronomy-themed events.
Dear old Patrick Moore may have passed on, but enthusiasts and students of the skies still abound, and tomorrow Swansea Astronomical Society will be on hand to share their expertise and knowledge.
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Starting at 7pm visitors can learn how to use a telescope, take part in themed activities and hear talks by starry experts, while the much-trumpeted 3D documentary Space Station will be screened at 8pm.
That film is the first action movie to be filmed in space and, in 3D, it is likely to be the closest most mortals will get to experiencing the effects of outer space.
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The flick sees astronauts and cosmonauts from Florida's Kennedy Space Centre rendezvous with their new home in orbit 200 miles above Earth. Visitors should prepare to feel the force of a rocket launch, look into the depths of space, experience life in zero gravity and accompany astronauts on a space walk.
While we might not attach the same mystical, magical properties to the stars in the sky as did our earliest ancestors, the configuration of the stars and the goings-on in the skies still hold their fascination for us.
Brian Stokes, chairman of Swansea Astronomical Society, says the limitless nature of the subject makes it eternally gripping.
"I think the interest has been increased by the fact that space craft have been out there and by the quite remarkable photographic images that have been taken by Hubble.
"And there are still so many unknown questions to be answered about the stars and space."
Brian's own interest was piqued as a teenager, when he saw a flyer for the astronomical society in Swansea Library, tough he wasn't able to join up until the late 1980s, after seeing another ad for the group in the Evening Post.
And, like Richard Branson he professes a hankering for space travel.
"I would like to visit the moon.
"Though I think that might be a one-way trip," he laughs.
Miranda Berry, events officer at the museum, said: "We're really excited about this event which is going to be a brilliant way to launch our new 3D film screening technology.
"It will give visitors a great chance to experience the delights of the night sky right here in the middle of the city, as well as engage people with the wonders of the physical sciences."
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