Essential information
| Type |
Courses
|
|---|---|
| Location | |
| Date and times | Six-week courses held on Tuesday evenings - see page for dates |
| Prices | £106 |
An astronomy course for absolute beginners, led by an engaging tutor from the Royal Observatory Greenwich.
This six-week course is for people with no prior knowledge of astronomy. It offers a basic introduction to the subject from historical, scientific and practical perspectives.
Introduction to Astronomy is an excellent standalone course, but can also provide a stepping stone to other introductory courses run by the Royal Observatory, such as Amateur Astronomy for Beginners and Introduction to Astrophysics.
Everyone taking a course is also entitled to a 10% discount on books purchased from Royal Museums Greenwich - please check with your course tutor for more details!
Please note there is an online version of this course available.
Age: 18+
With the exciting renovation project occurring at the Royal Observatory, our on-site courses have relocated down the hill to the National Maritime Museum. Our expert tutors will run their sessions in a unique environment with access to a range of resources provided by the galleries and exhibitions of the Museum.
When do courses run?
Courses take place on Tuesday evenings from 7-9pm and run for six weeks in total.
The dates for the 2026/27 academic year are below; when making your booking, simply select the start date of the course you'd like to join in the calendar:
- 8 September - 20 October 2026 (No session on 22 September)
- 3 November - 8 December 2026
- 5 January – 9 February 2027
- 23 February – 30 March 2027
- 20 April – 25 May 2027 (please note the 27 April session will run on Monday 26 April)
Each course is intended to be run on-site at the National Maritime Museum, although occasional online sessions may become necessary in rare circumstances.
Please only book if you are certain you will be able to attend an on-site course.
This was one of the best things I’ve done. Greg is a brilliant teacher and at the beginning I honestly thought I may have bitten off more than I could chew as I hardly knew anything about astronomy, but as we progressed, he was able to explain everything in a really easy-to-understand way. His enthusiasm really shines through, and he delivered the course with the right amount of humour and made space (pardon the pun) for people to ask questions and to feel accepted at whatever level their knowledge was at. I wish I’d had teachers like him at school as I definitely would’ve paid more attention.
Course taker
Find other courses you may be interested in
We offer a wide range of adult courses related to astronomy, from short six-week introductory sessions through one-year intermediate courses, to modular two-year advanced courses.
Introduction to Astronomy Online
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Introduction to Astrophotography Online
Learn how to take images of the night sky with the Royal Observatory's online introductory astrophotography course
Introduction to Astrophysics
Explore topics at the cutting edge of scientific research and the limits of human knowledge
Check out the full public astronomy programme
Learn about our programme of events, including daytime observing sessions, talks, astronomy courses and more
Main image courtesy of GSFC / NASA