Bob King
If Pigs Could Fly – A Quick Guide to Solar Halos and Other Curiosities
Call it a porcine occultation. It took nearly a year but I finally got help from the ornamental pig in…
Hubble Sees Jupiter’s Red Spot Shrink to Smallest Size Ever
Earlier this year we reported that amateur astronomers had observed and photographed the recent shrinking of Jupiter's iconic Great Red Spot. Now,…
Saturn Disappears Behind the Full Flower Moon May 14 – Watch it Live
Funny thing. Skywatchers are often just as excited to watch a celestial object disappear as we are to see it make an…
Observing Alert: See Mercury’s Best Evening Show of the Year
Don't let furtive Mercury slip through your fingers this spring. The next two and a half weeks will be the best…
Star Trail Photo Hints at Hidden Polestars
A week ago I made a 45-minute time exposure of the southern sky featuring the planet Mars. As the Earth…
Asteroid 2013 UQ4 Suddenly Becomes a Dark Comet with a Bright Future
On October 23, 2013, astronomers with the Catalina Sky Survey picked up a very faint asteroid with an unusual orbit more…
Most Powerful Solar Telescope on Earth Rises Atop Hawaiian Volcano
Rising 10,000 feet above the sunburned faces of 2.2 million tourists a year, the largest solar telescope on the planet…
“Tea, Earl Grey, Hot”… How Scientists Replicated a Mars Meteorite
Captain Picard orders tea "Tea, Earl Grey, hot." Who doesn't remember that famous command by Captain Picard's of TV's "Star…
Revisit Halley’s Comet – Stay Up Late for This Week’s Eta Aquarid Meteor Shower
UPDATE: Watch a live webcast of the meteor shower, below, from NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center during the night of…
Spectacular Aurora Sneaks in Quietly, Rages All Night
Expect the unexpected when it comes to northern lights. Last night beautifully illustrated nature's penchant for surprise. A change in…