Skywatching

Conjunctions to Watch For in July

The planets are slowly returning into view this month, bashfully peeking out from behind the Sun in the dawn &…

11 years ago

Happy (or is it Merry?) Aphelion This Friday

This 4th of July weekend brings us one more reason to celebrate. On July 5th at approximately 11:00 AM EDT/15:00…

11 years ago

How Amateur Astronomers Can Help LADEE

You can help NASA’s upcoming lunar mission. NASA’s Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer (LADEE) is slated to lift off from…

11 years ago

Searching for Pluto: A Guide to the 2013 Opposition Season

So you’ve seen all of the classic naked eye planets. Maybe you’ve even seen fleet-footed Mercury as it reached greatest…

11 years ago

Will Comet ISON Dazzle our Skies? An Expert Weighs In

Comets are the big “question marks” of observational astronomy. Some, such as Comet Hyakutake and the Great Daylight Comet of…

11 years ago

Catch the Moon pairing with Mercury & Venus Tonight

If you've never seen Mercury, this week is a great time to try. Over the past few weeks, observers worldwide…

11 years ago

Getting Ready for “ISS All-Nighters” in June

Never seen the International Space Station before? Now is a good time to try, as we enter into a very…

11 years ago

How to Spot Near-Earth Asteroid 1998 QE2 This Week

A large asteroid visits our fair corner of the solar system this week, and with a little planning you may…

12 years ago

The Birth of a Saros – This Weekend’s Hidden Eclipse

As the first eclipse season of 2013 comes to an end this weekend, an extremely subtle lunar eclipse occurs on the night…

12 years ago

Seeing the Red of ‘La Superba,’ a Magnificent Springtime Carbon Star

The Universe can be a very gray place. But this week, we’ll look at a fine example of a class…

12 years ago