Last Updated on November 5, 2024
“For my part I know nothing with any certainty. But the sight of the stars makes me want to dream.” – Vincent Van Gogh
Have you ever been stargazing? I believe no sight is more awe inspiring than the night sky. Stars so close you feel like you can reach out and touch them. Not only have the stars been used for navigation, but humans are naturally drawn to stargazing for its calming effect and, perhaps, the assurance that we are not alone in our vast universe.
In 2024, the Northern Lights have put on a show in many destinations, and in Ireland, they have been easy to see thanks to the low levels of light pollution across the island outside of cities.
Moreover, the island has three International Dark Sky Parks – accredited sites where you can be sure of a certain level of darkness or sky quality – making it one of the best places in all of Europe to gaze at the stars.
Stargazers will delight that the OM Dark Sky Park and Observatory in County Tyrone offers a fabulous outdoor stargazing experience with an indoor interactive exhibition space featuring holographic installations and virtual reality headsets.
A guided tour of the facility explains the links between astronomy and the archaeological heritage of the surrounding, picturesque Davagh Sperrin mountains.
Special events take place throughout the year in the observatory which houses a state-of-the-art telescope. There is also a Stars and Stones experience featuring a guided tour of the nearby Neolithic Beaghmore Stone Circles, believed to be aligned with the stars, a look at the celestial bodies through the telescope, and a spectacular film experience projected on the outside of the observatory building.
The Mayo International Dark Sky Park encompassing Ballycroy National Park and the Wild Nephin Wilderness offers three impressive viewing areas for astronomers and novices to observe the stars under clear night skies.
The park also includes a visitors’ centre and exhibition space. The Mayo Dark Sky Festival presents talks, walks, exhibitions, musical performances, and family friendly events to celebrate the celestial wonders visible in the park along with a special exhibition of photographs of the aurora sightings of 2024.
Kerry International Dark Sky Reserve is the island’s third dark sky place covering most of the Iveragh Peninsula. Stargazing to the sound of the ocean under pristine dark skies is as good as it gets.
In the winter, the skies are so dark here that the Milky Way can be seen with the naked eye. Tours can be booked which provide an introduction to the night sky and sky maps are downloadable from the website to help people navigate the sky they are seeing above them.
Aside from the dark sky reserves there are plenty of places to star gaze or see the aurora borealis across the island of Ireland. In 2023, Lonely Planet named the Wild Atlantic Way as one of the top five stargazing places in the world and across the north-west headlands and northern coast of the island there are many popular stargazing sites.
With the sun now at solar maximum and giving rise to the magnetic storms that cause the aurora, there will be plenty more opportunities to view the Northern Lights over the next six months presenting another great reason to book an Ireland getaway.
