20th September Lecture: History of the Milky way

For this  September’s lecture and to kick-off our monthly lecture series with our very own Graham Darke to take us on a journey through ‘The history of the Milky Way’, and outline & discuss:

• The Scale of Time: We will travel back 13.6 billion years to discover how a simple cloud of gas evolved into the magnificent barred spiral galaxy we call home.
• Violent History: Graham will reveal that the Milky Way’s past is surprisingly chaotic, filled with galactic collisions, cosmic cannibalism, and the dramatic birth of our own Sun.
• The Final Destiny: We will also look ahead to the ultimate future of our galaxy, including its inevitable, spectacular merger with our neighbour, Andromeda.”

Talks in Person

This walk will be held at the Washington Wetlands Centre (Discovery Room).

The talk will also be broadcast via MS Teams (providing no technical and/or WIFI difficulties)

Please show you support to our speaker and the Society in person if you can be there on the lecture night.

Hopefully we see you all at the Wetlands Centre (Discovery Room) , Raffle & Refreshments as usual.

When Where Who

• Date:  Sunday 20th September 2026,
• Time: 7 pm.
• Speaker: Graham Darke (Honorary SAS member and on of our founding members, Recent President of SAS), 
• Venue:     At the Washington Wetlands Centre (discovery Room ) and Via Teams (Video Streaming Link).

Our speaker

Graham Darke as well as the recent President of the Sunderland Astronomical Society(SAS), is one of our founding SAS members, former Chair, and very active member of the SAS and ambassador of Astronomy outreach throughout the North East.

• Fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society.
• Active member and very keen supporter of Astronomy outreach through the North East with outreach/talk experience in secondary schools and colleges since early 1990’s.
• A keen amateur astronomer & astrophotographer.
• Former Chair of Sunderland Astronomical Society.
• Recent President of Sunderland Astronomical Society.