Archive for the 'Beginner’s Corner' Category
May 11, 2011
Reader D.C. asks, “What is a goldilocks planet”? This is a timely question, because as more planets are discovered, especially by NASA’s Kepler telescope, more so-called goldilocks planets will be revealed. Simply put, a “goldilocks planet” is a planet that lies within the habitable zone of a star. The habitable zone is a thin shell around a star where the temperature on a planet’s surface may be “just right” for liquid water to exist, and perhaps life as well.
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April 25, 2011
Today a look at Virgo, the second largest constellation in the sky. The sixth constellation of the zodiac, Virgo contains a few interesting foreground stars along with a gaggle of galaxies nestled in her celestial arms. The constellation affords some pleasant stargazing this time of year, for both northern and southern observers…
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April 18, 2011
Many teachers scramble this time of year to teach a little about space and astronomy before the school year ends. And kids are keener to get outside in the warmer and drier air to look into the night sky. So here are a few easy but interesting sights for youngsters to see in the night sky with binoculars or a small telescope, or in some cases, with no optics at all. If you know a kid with a desire to see something extraordinary… or a teacher looking for some good celestial targets for a school project, please share this article with them….
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March 24, 2011
Last time, you discovered how to find the rough position of the south celestial pole. But that was just preamble to show you a curious celestial alignment this time of year that helps southern stargazers easily tell local time using the Southern Cross (Crux). It’s a neat trick, and with a little arithmetic, it can be used all year long to tell time with the stars.
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March 21, 2011
In the northern hemisphere, the bright and easy-to-find star Polaris marks the position of the north celestial pole. This makes it easy for stargazers and navigators to find north, and get oriented in the night sky.
But in the southern hemisphere, it is different.
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March 18, 2011
It is working its way westward as the season comes to an end, but the bright constellation Auriga still makes for pleasant viewing this time of year. With three fine open clusters and several bright stars, Auriga sits in a fine star field directly opposite the galactic centre in Sagittarius. And it holds the dazzling star Capella, the most northerly first-magnitude star in the skies.
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February 21, 2011
In the sky this month, you’ll see a fine hexagon of bright stars that includes Capella (in Auriga), Aldebaran (in Taurus), Rigel (in Orion), Sirius (in Canis Major), Procyon (in Canis Minor), and the pair of bright stars Castor and Pollux in the constellation Gemini. Today, let’s have a quick look at Gemini, a long graceful constellation representing celestial twins with their feet dipped in the icy stream of the winter Milky Way…
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January 25, 2011
The constellation Orion points the way to two other prominent constellations this month, Taurus and Canis Major. Today, let’s look at Taurus and its two stunning star clusters. Both are ideal targets for beginning observers, and are worth returning to frequently.
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January 13, 2011
Last week, we looked at the grand constellation Orion. Today, for Beginner’s Corner, let’s stay in the same part of the sky to find the long constellation Eridanus (“air-RID-in-us”), the River, which winds from the foot of Orion into the deep southern sky. The constellation contains the bright star Achernar, as well as a fainter star that’s home to a famous (and fictional) alien with a logical mind and pointed ears…
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January 6, 2011
Orion is perhaps the most famous of the 88 constellations in the night sky. It’s likely the easiest to find for stargazers all over the world. And unlike most constellations, Orion looks like its legendary namesake: a mighty hunter with a shield, a raised arm, and a sword hanging from his star-jeweled belt.
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