IF children at Bishop Henderson Primary School in Taunton had any post-summer holiday blues at the start of the September term, a trip into outer space blew them away.

Year five pupils enjoyed a visit from the Space Odyssey mobile planetarium, and were thrilled to become the first children inside its new Voyager 2 space dome, which set up for a morning inside their school hall.

The children spent most of the morning in the dome, exploring the moons and planets of the solar system and the stars of the galaxy beyond.

They learned why we see the many phases of the moon and even learned what life is like in zero gravity for the astronauts of the International Space Station, currently orbiting 250 miles above the Earth.

Space Odyssey’s founder and presenter, Hemyock-based astronomer Simon Ould, said afterwards: “It was brilliant to begin the new school year with another visit to this thriving Taunton school.

“I’ve been coming here every year for a long time now so it was particularly nice that it was children from Bishop Henderson who got to Christen my new dome”.