Welcome to South West Herts Astronomical Society (SWHAS)

Our aim is to help everyone to enjoy Astronomy in whatever capacity they wish.

Our members have a wide variety of interests and skills. They include people just look up at the stars with wonder, some have binoculars, some have modest telescopes and some use large telescopes with sophisticated CCDs for serious astro-imaging. Then there are planet watchers, comet hunters, internet users and armchair enthusiasts who simply want to know more about the Universe and all things Astronomical.

The Society was founded in 1968 with the aim of promoting the science of Astronomy and encouraging anyone interested in the subject to learn more.

The Society’s main activities centre on the monthly meetings held at the Royal Masonic School, Rickmansworth, usually on the last Friday of the month (check swhas.org for details).

We have own private observatory at Flaunden in Hertfordshire, fitted with an 11” Celestron telescope on a go to mount. The observatory was designed, built and is maintained by our members.

We have a selection of telescopes and eyepieces which are available for loan to established members, offering them the opportunity to try out various types of telescope before investing in their own instrument.

We also have access to the Royal Masonic School’s Observatory and Planetarium facilities.

We publish a regular Newsletter and maintain a website at www.swhas.org  where you will find further information about our activities.
 

Join Us / Renew Membership

If you wish to join us or renew an existing membership, simply  decide on the type of membership which you would like to have, then click  the “Join Us/Renew” button in the right hand box and your application will be processed using our secure joining page.

We have a flexible range of options for payment, including credit and debit cards, which use PayPal's services. NOTE: You do not need to have a PayPal account to use this service.

Alternatively you can download a form using this link and apply by post.

Membership types :

• Individual Adult membership – £16 a year
• Family membership - £24 a year includes two adults and four children at the same address.

Membership runs for 12 months from the date of joining.

Online membership requires you to have an email address as newsletters and other communications are sent out by email. If you don’t have an email address, you can still join us by filling in this form and joining by post  SWHAS Application Form_2019.pdf. In which case, we can send you newsletters by post if requested to do so.