The IAA and the Astrophysics Research Centre at QUB are proud to announce a “Moon & Jupiter Watch” on Tuesday 7 January 2014 in association with BBC Stargazing Live 2014. Come along after dark to the front of the iconic Lanyon building at Queen's, and use one of the telescopes there to view our nearest neighbour, the moon, before we turn our attention to catch the largest planet in the solar system, Jupiter, as it rises later in the evening.

In the event of cloudy skies, a lecture on Aurorae will take place in the Larmor Theatre.

Yes, the astro-social event of the year is almost upon us again.

The Irish Astronomical Association, in conjunction with Mourne Heritage Trust, presents a free public astronomy evening, at the Ranger's Office, Silent Valley, Kilkeel, on Sunday 8 December, at 6:30pm.

This is a superb site with very little light pollution, and amazing views of the night sky.

The IAA will present another public astronomy evening at Lough Neagh Discovery Centre, Oxford Island, near Lurgan, on the evening of Saturday 7 December.

'Supper with the Stars':  Join the Irish Astronomical Association for a spectacular evening of night-skygazing and culinary delights at the Lough Neagh Discovery Centre. The event starts with an optional supper first at the Loughside cafe, at 6.30 p.m.

We all know the Milky Way as that band of light across the sky (when we can see it, away from all the light pollution), marking the millions of stars in the plane of the galaxy. But we can also study it in other wavelengths, from radio waves to the higher energy bands of extreme ultraviolet, X-Rays and Gamma Rays.

These reveal an amazing array of fantastic objects and structures, which will be the topic of this lecture.