Your Place in Space

The 2025 North Carolina Science Festival will feature the Statewide Star Party as a signature initiative, thanks to support from the North Carolina Space Grant.

During the 13^th annual Statewide Star Party, 42 hosts will offer public skywatching events across North Carolina on Friday, April 4, and Saturday, April 5, 2025. Star Party hosts include astronomy clubs, state and local parks, colleges and universities, planetariums, science centers, nature centers, and libraries. About 4,000 visitors and 200 STEM professionals and volunteers are expected to participate.

This year's Star Party theme is "Your Place in Space." Hosts will lead hands-on activities from the Star Party kit on this theme.

2025 Statewide Star Party Locations

Click here to find a Statewide Star Party location near you.

County	City	Organization
Alamance	Graham	Three College Observatory
Alleghany	Sparta	Alleghany County 4-H
Bertie	Merry Hill	Salmon Creek State Natural Area
Bladen	Elizabethtown	Bladen County Public Libraries
Brunswick	Sunset Beach	Ingram Planetarium
Carteret	Atlantic Beach	Fort Macon State Park
Chatham	Pittsboro	Chatham County Public Libraries
Cumberland	Fayetteville	Fayetteville State University Planetarium
Cumberland	Hope Mills	Cumberland County Public Library
Dare	Nags Head	Jockey's Ridge State Park
Durham	Durham	City of Durham Outdoor Recreation and Education
Forsyth	Winston-Salem	Kaleideum
Greene	Snow Hill	Greene County Public Library
Guilford	Greensboro	Greensboro Science Center
Guilford	Jamestown	Cline Observatory and Guilford Technical Community College
Iredell	Mooresville	Town of Mooresville
Iredell	Statesville	Lake Norman State Park
Jackson	Cashiers	Western Carolina University
Lee	Sanford	Lee County Libraries
Mecklenburg	Charlotte	UNC Charlotte
Mecklenburg	Davidson	Davidson College
Nash	Nashville	Town of Nashville Parks, Recreation, and Cultural Resources
Nash	Rocky Mount	Imperial Center for the Arts and Sciences (April 4th)
		Imperial Center for the Arts and Sciences (April 5th)
New Hanover	Carolina Beach	Cape Fear Museum and Carolina Beach State Park
Onslow	Swansboro	Hammocks Beach State Park
Orange	Chapel Hill	Chapel Hill Public Library
Orange	Durham	Eno River State Park
Pasquotank	Elizabeth City	College of the Albemarle
Pitt	Grifton	NC Museum of Natural Sciences at Contentnea Creek
Randolph	Asheboro	Asheboro Public Library
Robeson	Lumberton	Robeson Planetarium and Science Center
Rowan	China Grove	Rowan Public Library
Surry	Dobson	Surry Community College
Wake	Apex	Wake County Parks, Recreation & Open Space
Wake	Creedmoor	Triangle Land Conservancy
Wake	Raleigh	Annie Louise Wilkerson, MD Nature Preserve Park
Warren	Manson	Kerr Lake State Recreation Area
Warren	Warrenton	Warren County Memorial Library
Wilkes	Purlear	Appalachian State Dark Sky Observatory
Wilson	Wilson	Imagination Station Science and History Museum
Yadkin	Yadkinville	Yadkin County Public Library
Yancey	Burnsville	Mayland Earth to Sky Park

For more information, please contact:
Amy Sayle
Coordinator, NC Statewide Star Party
Email: starparty@unc.edu

The Statewide Star Party is made possible with the support of NC Space Grant and the NC Science Festival.

Illustration credit: Tyler Nordgren