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I'M IN LOVE. I don't often begin a review by saying that a product has wooed me, but the Celestron Origin Home Observatory has done just that. Not that I'm […]

Once again, we've scoured the astromarketplace to find the finest, most practical, and most innovative products for Astronomy magazine's Star Products, 2024 edition. This collection of 35 items, in no [...]

YOU AND I ARE LIVING through a revolution in amateur astronomy. Not long ago, I would have advised beginners to stay away from astroimaging, because getting good results is both [...]

Each year, we search the globe to bring you a wide variety of astronomical products. Whether you're new to the hobby and science or a seasoned veteran, there's something here [...]

SCHOLARS ACROSS THE GLOBE often refer to astronomy as the oldest science, dating back to the ancient Mesopotamians and Babylonians. While that may be true, modern-day amateur astronomy can trace [...]

WE HAVE SMARTPHONES, smart cars, smart appliances, and even smart lightbulbs. What about smart telescopes? You could say that smart scopes have been around since the first go-to models were [...]

MANY ASTRONOMY enthusiasts live under the veil of light pollution, either from local sources like poorly aimed lights on neighboring houses or the enormous light domes enveloping large cities. It [...]

MAYBE YOU HAVE HAD a casual interest in astronomy for years, looking up at the night sky every chance you get. Or maybe you've just recently become interested in the [...]

1 Centaurus A [left arrow] Centaurus A (NGC 5128) is a standout object for Southern Hemisphere observers. NGC 5128 is often called the Hamburger Galaxy because of the two regions [...]

Excitement is building for the total eclipse of April 8, 2024. Viewing such solar eclipses is great fun; however, looking at the Sun must be done cautiously. Many use special [...]

This year marks the 11th time we have examined the universe of astronomical products to find some of the best telescopes, binoculars, and accessories available. Whether you are a veteran [...]

This article from Astronomy magazine provides answers to various questions related to astrophotography, the expansion of the universe, and the size of Earth's orbit. The first question addresses how long-exposure astrophotos are taken over multiple nights, and explains that computerized telescope mounts and plate-solving software help photographers return to the exact same celestial location. The second question explores the concept of the universe expanding into something, and uses the analogy of a balloon to explain that the universe is a closed space-time system and does not expand into anything. The third question calculates the time it would take for an observer using binoculars to notice a change in lunar features, taking into account the speed of the lunar terminator and the resolving ability of binoculars. The final question estimates the size of Earth's elliptical orbit around the Sun, explaining that it is slightly elongated and has a perimeter of approximately 584 million miles. [Extracted from the article]

FOR MANY, ASTRONOMY IS A LATE-NIGHT PURSUIT. We anxiously wait for Sol to set and twilight to fade before we begin to enjoy the sky. But by doing so, we [...]

Welcome to o ur 10 th annual Star Products! Once again, we have combed the astro-marketplace to gather a mix of large and small, expensive and affordable, and simple and [...]

Most of us pay much less attention to the far northern night sky than we should because it lacks bright stars and Messier objects. However, that in attention causes us [...]

Scorpius is a treasure chest for stargazers. There's ruby red Antares, the soft glow of the Milky Way, and some amazing deep-sky objects. Their variety makes it possible to trace [...]

Perseus, the Greek mythological hero, is probably best known to amateur astronomers as the home of the beautiful Double Cluster, NGC 869 and NGC 884. The pair is striking through [...]

Phil received the Walter Scott Houston Award at Stellafane 2018 for his lifelong work promoting and teaching astronomy. * In his 1948 book, The Stars in Our Heaven, Peter Lum [...]

The premier issue of Astronomy featured a column called 'Constellation Close-up' written by Thomas C. Bretl. The first installment profiled the zodiacal constellation Capricornus. In honor of the magazine's anniversary, [...]

In his 1888 book Astronomy With an Opera-Glass, Garrett Serviss wrote: 'The Milky Way, streaming down out of the northeast, pours, in a luminous flood, through Sagittarius, inundating that whole [...]

* Today, we recognize that the sky is divided into 88 standard constellations with well-defined boundaries, as adopted by the International Astronomical Union. You might be surprised to learn, however, [...]

The Moon's terminator--the line that divides the dark part from the sunlit area--is a fascinating sight through all telescopes. Here, along the lunar sunrise/sunset line, lighting can transform familiar features [...]

Once again, it's time for Astronomy's annual Star Products. We've combed manufacturers' catalogs and surfed the web to come up with a selection of 35 products (roughly alphabetical) that are [...]

As winter fades into spring, our nighttime view of the universe slowly turns away from the plane of the Milky Way and out toward intergalactic space. There, we find thousands [...]

For many of us, light pollution has robbed our skies of once readily visible objects. That's why many residential observers have turned away from nebulae and galaxies to pursue other [...]

* Leo the Lion is one of the oldest constellations, with origins dating back to the Mesopotamians. It is also one of the most distinctive constellations in the night sky. [...]

And speaking of similarities to our star, a study of starspots on 20 of M67's stars by the Leibniz Institute for Astrophysics Potsdam and Johns Hopkins University conducted in 2016 showed that they (and probably the vast majority of the stars in the cluster) rotate at the same rate as the Sun. - M.E.B. FORNAX DWARF The Fornax Dwarf is a satellite galaxy of the Milky Way, and the second discovered. The star's rapid apparent motion is due to its proximity (12.8 light-years away) and its high velocity (150 miles per second [245 km/s]) toward our Sun. Kapteyn's Star is also the nearest star to our Sun that does not belong to the Milky Way's disk but to its halo, the spherical component of the galaxy made of older stars with fewer heavy elements. The seven galaxies that make up the Septet are magnitude 15.2 NGC 3745, magnitude 14.0 NGC 3746, magnitude 14.8 NGC 3748, magnitude 15.0 NGC 3750, magnitude 15.0 NGC 3751, magnitude 14.5 NGC 3753, and magnitude 14.3 NGC 3754. Seven of the galaxies in Abell 2151 are brighter than 14th magnitude: NGC 6047 (magnitude 13.5), NGC 6061 (13.6), IC 1194A (13.6), NGC 6055 (13.7), IC 1185 (13.9), NGC 6045 (13.9), and NGC 6056 (13.9). Astronomers classify the central star of the planetary nebula as a pre-degenerate star or a PG 1159 star. [Extracted from the article]

Winter is a season of rapidly changing weather conditions. With the passage of an arctic cold front, a cloudy day may suddenly give way to a spectacularly clear and transparent [...]

Without a question, Orion the Hunter tops the list when it comes to renowned constellations. The reason is simple: Orion demands our attention because it is visible around the globe [...]

This month, all eyes will be on Mars as it reaches opposition on Dec. 8 (see page 36 for how best to observe it) within everyone's favorite bull, Taurus. In [...]

Baseball may have ended last month with the World Series, but you can keep the season going into extra innings by gazing up at the Great Square of Pegasus throughout [...]

The autumn sky is not known for bright stars. True, we are still enjoying the brilliant leftovers from the summer early in the evening and the dazzling winter stars toward [...]

I have heard from several readers who, while they enjoy looking at showpiece targets, also like it when we go off the beaten path. So this month, let's turn our [...]

THOSE READERS FAMILIAR with my Binocular Universe column may recall my monthly sign-off line, 'Two eyes are better than one.' That's not just a cliche; that's my mantra. Ever since [...]

IF YOU HAVE EVER ATTENDED a club star party or an amateur astronomy convention, you have undoubtedly strolled through an observing field. Scattered throughout are silhouettes of telescopes and attendees, [...]

As most readers know, there are 88 constellations adorning the sky. These were codified in 1930 by the International Astronomical Union through international agreement. Before this, astronomers could create and [...]

Walter Scott Houston was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on May 30, 1912. He developed a love for physics, optics, and astronomy at an early age. By 12, he had observed [...]

With the holidays upon us, there's no better gift to give to a budding stargazer than a telescope or accessory. With it, they can soar above the stark surface of [...]

Manufacturers from around the world continue to introduce innovative products that enhance the amateur astronomer's quality of life. Here are 35 noteworthy astro-wares, arranged in alphabetical order by manufacturer, that [...]

CHOOSING A FIRST TELESCOPE is a difficult task for a fledgling amateur astronomer. Frequently, newcomers pick telescopes with computerized go-to controls, only to discover after a lot of frustration--and expense--that [...]

High in the northern sky this month, we find the best-known pattern of stars in the sky: the Big Dipper. Perhaps spotting it for the first time earned you a [...]

This time of the year, the brighter constellations--like Leo, Ursa Major, and Bootes--tend to capture our attention to the north. Meanwhile, the sky's longest constellation stretches along our southern horizon, [...]

Phil is a longtime contributor to Astronomy and the author of many books. As the harshness of the season slowly begins to give way to the promise of spring, let's [...]