THE International Space Station could be in the sights of a group of amateur astronomers after they received funding to buy a computerised telescope.

The £1,000 piece of equipment has been purchased by the Teesdale U3A Astronomy Group, based in Barnard Castle, County Durham, after they received grants from the Heart of Teesdale Landscape Partnership and the Teesdale Action Partnership.

The Celestron 8SE telescope will be used as part of the group’s community outreach project which involves getting more people involved in examining the dark skies above the dale.

Four meetings with guest speakers and observation sessions will be held throughout the coming months where everything from examining the moon to tracking the transit of Mercury across the Sun will be featured.

Convener, Robert Hartness, of Barnard Castle, said: “It is the first time we have put on anything like this with astronomy.”

Mr Hartness said a legacy element would also be included in the project with four display boards being created and an amateur astronomer photographic archive being set up.

The first meeting, which will feature Graham Relf talking about the Dark Skies of the North Pennines, will be held at The Hub, in Barnard Castle, on February 16, from 7pm until 9pm.

Tickets are £4, £3 for concessions and £2 for children aged 12 and over who are accompanied by a parent or teacher.

To find out more and to book a place visit astronomyinteesdale.com