Winter solstice skywatching tips—making the most of long dark nights

Right, so we're heading into the darkest stretch of the year, which is actually brilliant if you're into skywatching. The nights are long, the sky's dark for ages, and that means better visibility for spotting UAPs, strange lights, or just the regular constellations if you're into that too.

I've been doing this for about five years now, and I thought I'd share some tips for anyone wanting to get into winter monitoring. Basically: thermal imaging kit is your friend, get away from light pollution, and for the love of god, invest in a good torch with a red filter so you don't destroy your night vision.

What I'm using this year: a £200 thermal imaging monocular, a proper stargazing log, and a lot of patience. Anyone else out there doing regular monitoring? What's your setup?

Good timing on this - I've just ordered a thermal camera myself. £200 sounds reasonable for the budget option. Where did you get yours? Also, what's the red torch situation? I've got a head torch with a red filter from Decathlon (about £12) and it's brilliant for not ruining night vision.

I do winter monitoring from my garden in the Pennines. Honestly, the thermal imaging has picked up all sorts of stuff - mostly foxes and deer, but occasionally things that move in ways that don't quite fit. Not claiming UAPs, just saying thermal's way better for actually documenting what you're seeing compared to trying to photograph lights with a mobile. 100% recommend the investment.

get away from light pollution

This is the biggest thing. I drove out to Wensleydale last month specifically to get away from light pollution, and the difference is mental. You notice so much more. If anyone's in Yorkshire, the moors are perfect. Bring a mate, bring tea, settle in for a few hours. That's how you actually see stuff.

I'd add: keep a proper notebook. Not just sketches, but weather conditions, temperature, barometric pressure, lunar phase, everything. Over time you'll see patterns. I've noticed more unusual activity reports when there's a new moon and clear skies - could be coincidence, could be real. But only logging it reveals the pattern.

Thermal imaging is honestly the future of this stuff. So much better than relying on eyesight or trail cameras. Are you using the data to contribute to citizen science projects, or just personal logging?