The night sky is full of wonders of many kinds. One of the most common and surprising are the groups of stars known as “asterisms.” These are distinctive stellar patterns lying within a constellation or, in some cases, one made up of those from two or more adjoining constellations. Some are so unusual and artificial-looking …
Two of the enduring misperceptions of astronomy are that the Moon doesn’t rotate since we see the same side of it all the time, and that the back side of the Moon is its dark side. But neither one is true! A simple demonstration in the one case and a bit of logic in the …
There are several annual major displays of “shooting stars” that skywatchers look forward to with eager anticipation, and we have previewed them in this column a number of times over the years. Unfortuntely, at least one or more are typically spoiled by clouds, bright Moonlight flooding the sky, or peaking during daylight hours or on …
Amateur astronomy is one of fastest growing hobbies today, as more and more people attempt to escape the stress and problems of our troubled society by looking skyward. It’s also one of the most exciting of all avocations, dealing as it does with the awesome wonders of the universe. And it’s one of the least …
A very rare celestial spectacle will occur on the late afternoon of Tuesday, June 5th, when the planet Venus will transit the face of the Sun—an event that can be seen even with the (protected) unaided eye! These transits happen in pairs separated by 8 years (the last one having been in 2004) and then …
On the late afternoon of May 20th, most of the United States and Canada will have an opportunity to watch an eclipse of the Sun. Nearly everywhere it will be a partial solar eclipse—but for those living in a narrow band across the southwestern part of this country, the event will be seen as an …
We just posted the April edition of Sky Talk: “Venus Kisses Pleiades Star Cluster!”. Sky Talk is our monthly star gazing column written by James Mullaney, former assistant editor at Sky & Telescope magazine and author of eight books on stargazing. Enjoy!
We just posted the March edition of Sky Talk: “Night Sky’s Six Brightest Objects at Once!”. Sky Talk is our monthly star gazing column written by James Mullaney, former assistant editor at Sky & Telescope magazine and author of eight books on stargazing. Enjoy!
We just posted the February edition of Sky Talk: “Crescent Moon Visits Venus & Jupiter”. Sky Talk is our monthly star gazing column written by James Mullaney, former assistant editor at Sky & Telescope magazine and author of eight books on stargazing. Enjoy!
We just posted the January edition of Sky Talk: “The Astronomy of 2012: Fact vs. Fiction”. Sky Talk is our monthly star gazing column written by James Mullaney, former assistant editor at Sky & Telescope magazine and author of eight books on stargazing. Enjoy!
