Stars are seemingly the top thing on London’s scientific mind at the moment and there is another chance this week to indulge this new-found astronomy interest with the Star Count Week 2012.

The British Astronomical Society has teamed up with the Campaign to Protect Rural England for this occasionally-annual event to count the stars in the night sky all over the UK to assess and highlight the problem of light pollution. Any day this week (20 – 27th January), the BAS and CPRE are asking people to go outside and count the number of stars inside the constellation of Orion visible to the naked eye. Orion is an easy constellation to spot, with its characteristic three star “belt” in the middle and the website explains exactly how to find it and then count the stars inside. When you have your results, you can upload them to the website and they will be added to the Star Map. You can have a look at the Star Maps from 2007 and 2011 to get an idea of what will ultimately be produced.

There is more information about all of this on both the BAS and the CPRE’s websites, including a video from University of Sussex astronomer Darren Baskill explaining the issue and a gallery of images to inspire you.

Star Count Week runs until Friday the 27th of January and can be participated in from anywhere in the UK, without specialist equipment.