I have temporary Internet access, so I thought I’d post a note. We didn’t have much access through Bolivia, as those of you reading my tweets and Facebook status updates might have noticed (sorry to bunch up all the updates like that). I think our access...

Chris Eicher visits Astronomy magazine’s observatory, which stands at Rancho Hidalgo, near Granite Gap, Animas, New Mexico. Clyde Tombaugh’s telescope appears in the background. David J. Eicher photo As amateur astronomers, we spend most of our lives...

I captured this image of the partial phase of the total solar eclipse less than a minute before second contact. Mike Reynolds photo To me, it was a surreal scene for the July 11 total solar eclipse on Easter Island, my 17th total solar eclipse. Although...

The Prairie Astronomy Club: Fifty Years of Amateur Astronomy documents this Midwest astronomy club's past and will probably trigger many great memories of readers' own relationships with the night sky. Chris Raymond photo I just received an incredible...

July 11, 2010, total solar eclipse from Easter Island. Jeff Houpt photo One of the members of Senior Editor Michael E. Bakich's 2010 solar eclipse tour group was nice enough to send in some pictures from July 11's total solar eclipse over Easter...

Venus sketched by Daniel L. Graham using a 6-inch refractor at 166x, February 25, 1988, at 17:15 UT. To learn more about astronomical sketching, Astronomy magazine subscribers can access my Astronomy.com video " Sketching from the telescope "...

Those in the know are already getting ready for the start of Comic-Con, the 40-year-old annual San Diego convention that began as a comic book gathering but has transformed into a showcase for anything even slightly nerdy. (“Nerdy” has recently included...

Comet Halley sketched by Dave Eicher using 20x80 binoculars, March 20, 1986, from Harrington Beach State Park, Wisconsin. David J. Eicher library To learn more about astronomical sketching, Astronomy magazine subscribers can access my Astronomy...

Comet Halley sketched by Astronomy Contributing Editor David H. Levy with a 16-inch reflector, March 25, 1986, at 12:30 UT. David J. Eicher library To learn more about astronomical sketching, Astronomy magazine subscribers can access my Astronomy...

Every day at Astronomy , our editors, page designers, and writers work diligently to produce content that our readers find beneficial. The positive feedback we get for each issue makes our jobs worthwhile, and it’s an especially nice treat when we also...

Epsilon Lyrae, the famous star consisting of two double stars and called the “Double-Double,” sketched by Astronomy Contributing Editor Glenn Chaple using a 3-inch f/10 reflector at 120x. David J. Eicher library To learn more about astronomical...

Saturn sketched by Philip W. Budine with a 4-inch refractor at 250x, September 6, 1964, from 1h05m to 1h30m UT. David J. Eicher library To learn more about astronomical sketching, Astronomy magazine subscribers can access my Astronomy.com video...

The Double Cluster (NGC 869 and NGC 884) in Perseus sketched by Larry McHenry with 11x80 binoculars, October 13, 1987. David J. Eicher library To learn more about astronomical sketching, Astronomy magazine subscribers can access my Astronomy.com...

Astronomy magazine Senior Editor Michael Bakich records weekly podcast #100 in Kalmbach Publishing Company’s video/sound studio, July 22, 2010. Chris Raymond photo Astronomy magazine achieved a milestone Thursday, July 22, when its weekly observing podcast...

Planetary nebula Abell 2 sketched by Pierre Schwaar using a 20-inch f/5.1 reflector at 140x with a Lumicon Deep-Sky filter from Buckeye Hills Park, Arizona, February 1, 1987. David J. Eicher library To learn more about astronomical sketching, Astronomy...

Galaxies M87, NGC 4476, and NGC 4478 sketched by Christopher Heil using an 8-inch f/10 SCT at 120x from Silver Spring, Maryland. David J. Eicher library To learn more about astronomical sketching, Astronomy magazine subscribers can access my Astronomy...

The Moon sketched by Joe Caruso. David J. Eicher library To learn more about astronomical sketching, Astronomy magazine subscribers can access my Astronomy.com video " Sketching from the telescope " and read Glenn Chaple's Observing...

Update: Check out two blogs with pictures of the eclipse from my tour group! 2010 eclipse pictures from Easter Island and On the Road: Easter Island and the Moai I woke up yesterday (July 11) to rain, then a bit of blue sky, then more rain. Our meteorologist...

Comet Halley sketched by Gary T. Nowak of the Vermont Astronomical Society using a 16-inch f/4.5 reflector at 75x, August 10, 1985, from West Oak Hill, Williston, Vermont. David J. Eicher library To learn more about astronomical sketching, Astronomy...

Interacting galaxies NGC 4485 and NGC 4490 sketched by Alan Goldstein using a 10-inch f/5 reflector at 40x. To learn more about astronomical sketching, Astronomy magazine subscribers can access my Astronomy.com video " Sketching from the telescope...

Fellow traveler Heather Mellows caught a beautiful wide-field image of the total solar eclipse July 11, 2010. Heather Mellows photo Monday, July 12, may have been the most relaxing day of my life. Why? Because the day before, our eclipse expedition group...

To most people (including my wife), this is what Puerto Rico is all about. Liz Andrews photo Apart from visiting the world-famous Arecibo Observatory on our recent vacation to Puerto Rico, my wife and I made sure to hit the more typical vacation spots...

Planetary nebula NGC 6751 in Aquila sketched by Dave Eicher using a 17.5-inch f/4.5 reflector at 71x. To learn more about astronomical sketching, Astronomy magazine subscribers can access my Astronomy.com video " Sketching from the telescope "...

Tuesday, July 13, was an unusual winter day on Easter Island — it didn’t rain on us. Because the weather was favorable, we got to see some sites we missed the first day we were here. First was the volcanic crater at the southwestern edge of the island...

President Barack Obama looks through a telescope during the Astronomy Night event on the South Lawn of the White House, October 7, 2009. "Astronomy Night on the National Mall" will take place just blocks from where the White House star party...