The year 2020 has not been a wasted year for the York Astronomical Society (YAS) despite the COVID-19 lockdown restrictions for any physical observing events.

However, a number of YAS Members have worked hard to improve the observatory and its facilities, situated at Beetle Bank Farm (BBF). We now have an operational multi-function room, remote cameras on telescopes on the roof and observing deck and image feeds down into the warmth and comfort of that room.

The telescopes can be remotely controlled from below and there is also a facility for visitors to mount their own cameras “piggy-back” on one of the large telescopes and take automatically tracked time exposure pictures of Deep Sky Objects (DSO).

The short video on the homepage of this website compiled at short notice by Graham Moore (for the Derwenthorpe young families event) gives a brief overview of the YAS observatory and its facilities. Other astronomy videos can be found on the York Astro TV on Youtube.

Future plans include live screening from the observatory deck to the cafeteria hall as well as installing binocular supports on the deck (and possibly telescope pillars in the car park) for extra viewing points.

We have never had such cutting edge technology, so 2021 should be an amazing year for members and visitors alike.

If you have any queries regarding the YAS Observatory or wish to become a member, do not hesitate to email us via our website Contact Us form.