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Astronomy magazine partners with LightBuckets for new image gallery

Posted 13 years ago by Michael Bakich

Astronomy magazine is teaming up with LightBuckets Online Telescopes to bring the best images from amateur astronomers around the world to Astronomy.com. LightBuckets, located under the dark and steady skies of Rodeo, New Mexico, features a 24-inch RC Optical Systems Ritchey-Chrétien telescope on an equatorial fork mount plus two other high-quality instruments users can control from any computer. All three scopes feature ultra-sensitive megapixel CCD cameras from Apogee, and each offers ...

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On the Road: Tunisia, in search of ancient meteorites, Day 3

Posted 13 years ago by David Eicher

On Tuesday, March 22, our intrepid tour group of 22 Astronomy magazine readers, accompanied by me, planetary scientist Chris McKay, and Melita Thorpe of MWT Associates, continued our journey through Tunisia. Having stayed overnight in Sfax, one of Tunisia’s largest cities, we paid a visit to the country’s greatest fish market and the medina where we found countless goods for sale — everything from sharks and octopi to exotic spices, to olives to clothes, shoes, and electronics....

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On the Road: Tunisia, in search of ancient meteorites, Days 1 and 2

Posted 13 years ago by David Eicher

Astronomy magazine’s trip to Tunisia with 22 of our readers, in partnership with Melita Thorpe of MWT Associates, started out fluidly as adventurers came to the African country from the United States and a few other regions on Saturday, March 19. By late Sunday, we were all in Tunis, the nation’s capital, having juggled a couple late arrivals due to flight connection difficulties and your editor’s suitcase, which arrived late from Paris. We spent the rest of Sunday looking at ...

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Focusing on astroimagers in 2011

Posted 13 years ago by Michael Bakich

The Bates College Museum of Art in Lewiston, Maine, is mounting the exhibition “Starstruck: The Fine Art of Astrophotography” in the latter half of 2012. The exhibition will include a juried section and is open to imagers from around the world.Jurors include Weston Naef, curator emeritus of photographs, J. Paul Getty Museum; Jerry T. Bonnell, one of the masterminds behind the popular “Astronomy Picture of the Day” website; and Dennis diCicco, senior editor of Sky & Te...

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Celebrating Pi Day perfectly

Posted 13 years ago by Bill Andrews

As we’ve let slip in the past, we here at Astronomy magazine are fans of eating. We’re also somewhat geeky, as you might expect given what we do. So as you can imagine, Pi Day is a pretty big deal around here.First begun in these offices some 6 years or so ago — or “nearly 2π years ago!” as Senior Editor Richard Talcott put it — Astronomy’s editors now always enjoy celebrating both pi and pie on March 14 (from the first digits of pi, 3.14). This year&...

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On the road: Tunisia, in search of ancient meteorites

Posted 13 years ago by David Eicher

On Saturday, March 19, I'll be leaving for Tunisia. Yes, that's leaving for Tunisia. For the most part, the political climate has calmed in that North African country, although the ongoing turmoil in neighboring Libya has flooded the region with refugees. Despite the conflict, I'll be accompanying more than 30 Astronomy readers on a Tunisian tour to see the Sahara Desert, the ruins of Carthage, and the famous area of Tataouine, where in 1931 an unusual meteorite fell. We'll be jo...

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Great images of Discovery’s final liftoff

Posted 13 years ago by Michael Bakich

Astronomy magazine contributor Allen Fredrickson has attended a lot of space shuttle launches. For several recent ones, he has acted as a press correspondent for Astronomy. He returned to Kennedy Space Center in Florida February 24 to witness space shuttle Discovery’s 39th and final launch. During that time, NASA’s oldest remaining space shuttle has logged 148 million miles (238 million kilometers) in space since its first launch in August 1984. Fredrickson set up ...

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The Telescopes from Afar Conference concludes

Posted 13 years ago by Michael Bakich

Guest blog from Stephen G. Cullen, president/CEO of LightBuckets online telescopes: The final day of the Telescopes from Afar Conference in Hawaii was as interesting as the first. The presentations included discussions about Mauna Kea weather forecasting, site selection for the new Thirty Meter Telescope, and an overview of the American Association of Variable Star Observers (AAVSO) by Director Arne Hendon. A good part of the day session was devoted to talks by representatives of the Las ...

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The Winter Star Party concludes

Posted 13 years ago by Mike Reynolds

As the saying goes: all good things must come to an end. And so, the 2011 Winter Star Party (WSP) in Marathon, Florida, is over. The awards ceremony and door prizes on Friday, March 4, recognized some of the fine astrophotography done at the WSP, as well as winners of the WSP’s 2011 Astronomy Outreach Astro Oscars. The Astro Oscars are presented each year to the true stars: those who deserve recognition for their outreach efforts. Previous awards have gone to individuals renowned for...

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The Telescopes from Afar Conference continues

Posted 13 years ago by Michael Bakich

Guest blog from Stephen G. Cullen, president/CEO of LightBuckets online telescopes: The first day of the inaugural Telescopes from Afar Conference in Hawaii proved to be a very fruitful event on many fronts. The speakers came prepared with excellent information on the progress they’ve made and the challenges they face automating observatories. The telescopes range from the 3.6-meter Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope down to the University of Utah’s 0.81-meter Willard L. Eccles Obs...

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The Winter Star Party continues

Posted 13 years ago by Mike Reynolds

I write this Thursday morning, March 3. Festivities are in their fourth day at the 2011 Winter Star Party (WSP) in Marathon, Florida. Monday night’s sky was terrific. Tuesday night it rained, and last night brought a mix of mostly clouds with some occasional clearing — and some wind. I carefully aligned my mount, an Orion Atlas EQ-G GPS, so I could image through the Officina Stellare 130mm APO telescope I’m testing for Astronomy magazine. Unfortunately, as soon as my careful mo...

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The first Telescopes from Afar Conference

Posted 13 years ago by Michael Bakich

Guest blog from Stephen G. Cullen: It’s a tough assignment, but someone has to do it, so here I am at the inaugural Telescopes from Afar Conference on the Big Island of Hawaii. The conference, sponsored by the good people at the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope (CFHT), has brought together an international group of professional astronomers to share information on remotely operated, automated, and robotic ground-based telescopes. Over the next 3 days, we’ll hear from experts on t...

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The Winter Star Party begins today

Posted 13 years ago by Mike Reynolds

After a 10-hour drive from north Florida to Marathon on Saturday, my wife Debbie and I arrived at our vacation rental house for this year’s Winter Star Party (WSP). I chose this particular abode because it sits on the ocean side of Vaca Key and provides me a direct view south with nothing but the Atlantic Ocean between us and the horizon. Literally, if I take two steps the wrong direction on the south deck of the vacation rental, I fall in the Atlantic Ocean! On Saturday, I spent some tim...

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Videos from the 2011 Tucson Gem and Mineral Show

Posted 13 years ago by Karri Ferron

The annual Tucson Gem and Mineral show is a huge event that draws more than 100,000 to the city each year to look at hundreds of thousands of minerals, gems, meteorites, beads, pieces of jewelry, and other items that rock and gem folks just love — and all of it’s for sale. The show is the biggest event within the meteorite world and brings together hundreds of dealers and collectors. This year, Editor David J. Eicher spent 5 days checking out the “satellite shows” and the...

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NASA’s first robot astronaut set to blast into space

Posted 13 years ago by Karri Ferron

Guest blog from Boston-based astronomers Imelda Joson and Edwin Aguirre about a firsthand experience with a member of the STS-133 Discovery crew: Imagine an astronaut that can work tirelessly 24 hours a day, 7 days a week — without needing food, drink, or oxygen. That’s the vision behind Robonaut 2, NASA’s first human-like robotic astronaut, which is set to launch into space aboard the space shuttle Discovery this Thursday, February 24, at 4:50 p.m. EST from Launch Pad 39A on...

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Behind the scenes — Cosmic Adventures, episode 2

Posted 13 years ago by Liz Kruesi

Last week, Astronomy magazine posted the second episode of Liz and Bill’s Cosmic Adventures. For this one, we focused on extrasolar planets — worlds orbiting stars other than the Sun. This is a hot topic in astronomy, so we wanted to make this one of our first episodes. Creating this video series has been a learning process. We know the first episode had a few sound issues, but we were able to (mostly) remedy this problem. We also went with a different approach in this video, opting...

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Searching out the fabled Moon trees

Posted 13 years ago by Bill Andrews

Most of us know, even if it takes a moment to do some quick math, that 12 human beings walked on the Moon’s surface and a few more came just short. It’s still an impressive feat, to be sure (and unlikely to be repeated anytime soon), but if we expand our scope somewhat, it turns out dozens of living beings remain among us that have visited our satellite without walking on it. I refer to the “Moon trees” — the living remains of hundreds of seeds Apollo 14 astronaut ...

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My own cosmic microwave background

Posted 13 years ago by Liz Kruesi

Last week, my fiancé sent me a gift at work — a weird little stuffed toy. But after I looked closer, I realized it’s a toy plushie version of the cosmic microwave background radiation. Yes, such a thing exists. The company that makes it, The Particle Zoo (www.particlezoo.net), is actually one artist who hand-creates plush versions of the universe’s subatomic particles — both those known and those hypothesized. She also creates plush toys of different cosmic epoch...

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Tucson Gem and Mineral Show: February 11, 2011

Posted 13 years ago by David Eicher

Here goes, the final report from the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show this year. Tomorrow I will head home with my Dad, John Eicher, who once again tagged along with me to the biggest show centered on meteorites and minerals in the world. Before I provide today’s report, however, I would ask you to think about a favorite saying: Earth is a planet, too. As astronomy enthusiasts, we often think about the cosmos that is “out there” and our 2-D world on the surface of our planet as...

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Tucson Gem and Mineral Show: February 10, 2011

Posted 13 years ago by David Eicher

Yesterday was a big day for the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show, the world’s biggest event for gem and mineral collectors, meteorite enthusiasts, jewelry buyers, and beaders. The so-called “main show,” held at the Hotel Tucson Convention Center and in its 57th incarnation, cranked up Thursday morning at 10. Long lines twisted around the entrances to the show, and with the opening bell, hundreds of attendees streamed into the show, encountering an enormous mass of dealers with thous...

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Astronomy senior editor celebrates silver milestone

Posted 13 years ago by Chris Raymond

Congratulations to Senior Editor Richard Talcott, who this week celebrated his 25th anniversary with Astronomy magazine! And Rich, on behalf of the staff, I sincerely apologize.That last comment needs an explanation. You see, I’d love to say that Rich’s co-workers and I eagerly circled the date in red on our calendars far in advance, surreptitiously planning a big ta-da behind his back. I’d love to say that, but if I did, my pants would catch on fire. Instead, I only discovered...

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Tucson Gem and Mineral Show: February 8–9, 2011

Posted 13 years ago by David Eicher

My father John and I bid farewell to the Granite Gap dedication and to dark-sky observing in New Mexico and, on Tuesday, February 8, 2011, drove northwest to Tucson, Arizona, for the annual Gem and Mineral Show. This huge event draws more than 100,000 to the city each year to look at hundreds of thousands of minerals, gems, meteorites, beads, pieces of jewelry, and other items that rock and gem folks just love — and all of it’s for sale. The show is the big event for the meteorite wo...

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Outreach award deadline approaches

Posted 13 years ago by Bill Andrews

Are you part of a nonprofit astronomy group that works to show the public the wonders of astronomy? Could your group use an extra $2,500? If so, have you applied yet for Astronomy magazine’s 2010 Out-of-this-world Award? The deadline for our annual outreach award is coming up quickly (all materials must be postmarked by February 18), and I’m certain there are groups out there that we haven’t heard from who do great work and would be eligible for the prize. All it takes is fil...

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Dedication day at Granite Gap

Posted 13 years ago by David Eicher

Some 50 amateur astronomers gathered at a new facility near Cotton City, New Mexico, on Saturday, February 5, 2011. The event was the dedication of Shoemaker Discovery Park at Granite Gap, Gene Turner’s ambitious project that is creating a dark-sky observing community for skygazers of all types. The park constitutes one portion of Granite Gap, and is named after astrogeologist Eugene M. Shoemaker, the pioneer of understanding impact cratering and patient educator who loved bringing togethe...

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Kids: Tell us what you love best about astronomy

Posted 13 years ago by Karri Ferron

Hurry! Time is running out for you to enter Astronomy magazine’s 2011 Youth Essay Contest. To enter, write a 300 to 500 word essay in the next 10 days telling us what you love best about astronomy, and you could win an all-expenses-paid trip to the 2011 Northeast Astronomy Forum (NEAF) April 16 and 17 in Suffern, New York. NEAF is the nation’s largest telescope event and meeting of amateur astronomers. Each year, NEAF features an A-list of exciting speakers, more than 100 vendors, an...

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2011 Tucson Gem and Mineral Show preview

Posted 13 years ago by David Eicher

Outside my office today, a lake-effect snowstorm is dropping flakes the size of small birds into the Kalmbach Publishing Co. parking lot west of Milwaukee. But if the giant storm that’s set to pound much of the United States tomorrow doesn’t derail my plans, I’ll be heading to the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show (TGMS) on Friday, February 4. The TGMS is the premier event for meteorite and mineral collectors (it’s actually a conglomeration of many shows spread throughout the c...

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Astronomy mobile adds daily observing events

Posted 13 years ago by Chris Raymond

Astronomy magazine’s mobile-friendly website just added another reason you should immediately bookmark http://m.astronomy.com in your smart phone’s browser. Already offering on-the-go access to the latest astronomy and space news, staff blogs, and our jaw-dropping Photo of the Day, Astronomy mobile now includes our popular “The Sky this Week” feature — for free. This daily digest of celestial events highlights the top reason(s) to “look up” every day. E...

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Space Rocks!

Posted 13 years ago by Mike Reynolds

Astronomy outreach continues to grow in the United States and elsewhere as professional and amateur astronomers discover the pleasures of sharing their passion with others. In the United States, one major avenue of support for astronomy clubs and societies is the Astronomical Society of the Pacific’s Night Sky Network. This resource is a nationwide coalition of astronomy clubs that brings the science and inspiration of NASA’s missions to the public. Begun in 2004, Night Sky Network ...

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Featured: "Why Gen X and Y should care about astronomy"

Posted 13 years ago by Karri Ferron

Any visitor to a star party likely would notice that there aren’t a lot of young people attending. A constant flurry of technology seems to put stargazing on the backburner for the younger generations. As the great astronomy popularizer Carl Sagan once said, most people on this planet live their lives without ever knowing their place in the universe. So how can those of us who truly appreciate the wonder of the night sky rectify this problem? It’s a question the staff at Astronomy s...

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Horoscope horror

Posted 13 years ago by Bill Andrews

By now you probably have heard the story that you might not have the astrological sign you thought you did because of Earth’s gradual precession (or wobble), changing where constellations appear in the sky over time. Disappointed and sometimes hostile Internet comments along the lines of “I really liked that I was a Libra and was well balanced” and “I’m no Libra, I shall and will always remain a Scorpio!” are common. Confusion is also rampant, as different sto...

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