ROSELAND Observatory takes a keen interest in all things Before Common Era (BCE), and Bodmin Moor is an excellent place to study Bronze Age stone circles. Craddock Circle has a full set of alignments, and on the winter solstice - the start of the solar year - we wanted to check if the sun rose above a cemetery on the shoulder of Caradon Hill when seen from Craddock.

We’ve had total cloud for 15 years, but science came to our aid in December in the form of a phone app which showed the track of the sun superimposed on the clouds. It did indeed rise above the cairns, perhaps reflecting the Bronze Age the belief in a life after death.

The New Year started with a bang. The Wolf Moon was especially bright, thanks to two key factors: the moon was very close to the Earth, and the Earth/moon system is very close to the sun at this time of year.

The Earth orbits the sun in an ellipse. When it is close to the sun in the winter, it moves more quickly, meaning a shorter cold season.

The brightest object in the evening sky is the planet Jupiter, just below Gemini.

If you have a telescope, use it to view the four big satellites and watch them change position night by night; the rings of Saturn, further west; and a rare sighting of Neptune, the remotest planet in the solar system seen as a pale blue dot which is currently close to Saturn so fairly easy to find.

The free night sky programme Stellarium will help you locate some of the dimmer or lesser-known objects ahead of a night's observation.

The moon covers the Pleiades on January 27; it’s a good opportunity to see the moon moving across the sky at a different speed to the stars.