Local Group - Astronomy Magazine - Interactive Star Charts, Planets, Meteors, Comets, Telescopes

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DVD highlights work of Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope staff astronomer Jean-Charles Cuillandre

Posted 15 years ago by Michael Bakich

A new video crossed my desk recently: Hawaiian Starlight — Exploring the Universe from Mauna Kea highlights the work of the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope (CFHT) and its staff astronomer, Jean-Charles Cuillandre. Those of you familiar with Cuillandre’s work at the CFHT are probably already salivating. And you should.The astronomical images in this video are stunning, but there’s more: Cuillandre has a love for creating terrestrial time-lapse sequences. So, in addition to the Crab Nebula, the Her...

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Sorting through the wreckage in the Andromeda Galaxy, an in-depth interview with an Andromeda expert

Posted 15 years ago by Daniel Pendick

Thanks to painstaking observations and computer modeling, astronomers have discovered that the Milky Way Galaxy is littered with the debris of stellar cannibalism. Small galaxies unlucky enough to be captured by our powerful gravity get torn to shreds and consumed. It’s sometimes hard to sort out our galaxy’s complex history because we are buried in the midst of it — an astronomical “can’t see the forest through the trees” dilemma. So astronomers have turned to our closest neighbor in the Local...

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July 2009 web extras for Astronomy magazine subscribers

Posted 15 years ago by Karri Ferron

Now that your July 2009 issue of Astronomy is in the mail or already in-hand, we’ve updated Astronomy.com with our newest web extras to give subscribers exclusive complementary information to the magazine.Take a sneak peek inside the July 2009 Astronomy magazine.If you subscribe to Astronomy, make sure you’re registered with Astronomy.com so you can access these great extras. And if you're not a subscriber, why wait? Subscribe today!Here are this month's highlights:Senior Editor Richard ...

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May 29-June 5, 2009: Star known as La Superba, globular cluster M80, and Abell 1656

Posted 15 years ago by Michael Bakich

Loyal podcast listeners,Starting June 4, Michael Bakich's weekly observing podcast will be available to registered members of Astronomy.com. The podcast remains free, so please register with the site to make sure you don't miss an episode! We now return to our regularly scheduled program...--- Here is the transcript for my podcast about how to see the star known as La Superba, globular cluster M80, and Abell 1656 this week. Check out the Astronomy.com's interactive star chart — S...

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Local library gets an observatory

Posted 15 years ago by Matt Quandt

Amateur astronomer Ted Schaar, from nearby Brookfield, Wisconsin — not far from Astronomy headquarters — sent us a letter about an observatory that's part of a public library in Pewaukee, a village just a few miles west of Brookfield. We're thankful to Ted for letting us share this great story with all of you:Like similar repositories, the new public library in Pewaukee connects people to the cosmos through its collections. Perhaps uniquely, it also does so with its own observatory. Pewa...

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May 22-29, 2009: Star V Hydrae, globular cluster NGC 5634, and the Ursa Minor Dwarf

Posted 15 years ago by Michael Bakich

Loyal podcast listeners,Starting June 4, Michael Bakich's weekly observing podcast will be available to registered members of Astronomy.com. The podcast remains free, so please register with the site to make sure you don't miss an episode! We now return to our regularly scheduled program...--- Here is the transcript for my podcast about how to see the star V Hydrae, globular cluster NGC 5634, and the Ursa Minor Dwarf this week. Check out the Astronomy.com's interactive star chart —...

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Updated: Historical telescopes at the Adler Planetarium

Posted 15 years ago by Daniel Pendick

***Images updated.***Next week, you can check out the rich collection of astronomical instruments at the Adler Planetarium in Chicago. In celebration of the 400th anniversary of the telescope, the planetarium opens its a new exhibition, “Telescopes: Through the Looking Glass,” on May 22. The show spotlights technology used to gather information about our universe since Galileo’s day and includes hands-on interactive exhibits. The trumpet-shaped telescope is a rare type with few surviving ...

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Seth Shostak on Colbert Report tonight!

Posted 15 years ago by David Eicher

SETI Institute astronomer, intrepid alien hunter, and Astronomy magazine author Seth Shostak will appear as the primary guest tonight on Comedy Central’s Colbert Report, starring Stephen Colbert. Check your local listings and be sure to tune in to see Seth battle it out with Colbert, who will no doubt have some crazy things to say about SETI and the existence of life in the cosmos. More SETI news from Astronomy.com: SETI's "Earth Speaks" lets you suggest a message to a...

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SETI's "Earth Speaks" lets you suggest a message to alien civilizations

Posted 15 years ago by Daniel Pendick

On May 15, the SETI Institute — the planet’s leading extraterrestrial searchers — launched “Earth Speaks.” The project invites the public to submit proposed messages to alien civilizations. According to Thomas Pierson, CEO of the SETI Institute in Mountain View, California, “By submitting text messages, pictures, and sounds from across the globe, people from all walks of life will contribute to a dialogue about what humanity might say to intelligent beings on other worlds.” For...

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Apollo 10 celebrates 40 years

Posted 15 years ago by Karri Ferron

Today NASA celebrates the Apollo program on the 40th anniversary of Apollo 10, the fourth manned mission of the program. An interactive feature on NASA’s web site includes photos, video, and even animated comics from the manned lunar missions of the late 1960s and early 1970s.On May 18, 1969, Gene Cernan, John Young, and Thomas Stafford (left to right in picture) launched from Earth to become the second crew to orbit the Moon. While Young stayed in the command module, Stafford and Cernan took th...

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A wider WorldWide Telescope

Posted 15 years ago by Michael Bakich

Those of you who are fans of Microsoft Corporation’s WorldWide Telescope (WWT) software will soon have some new friends. At the fifth annual Latin American Faculty Summit in Buenos Aires May 13, Microsoft announced the global availability of WWT’s Spanish user interface release. WorldWide Telescope is a virtual observatory that allows you to explore the universe from your computer. You can study celestial objects in multiple wavelengths, thanks to the many observatories that have made their ima...

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May 15-22, 2009: The partial constellation Serpens Caput, M40, and lenticular galaxy M85

Posted 15 years ago by Michael Bakich

Here is the transcript for my podcast about how to see the partial constellation Serpens Caput, M40, and lenticular galaxy M85 this week. Check out the Astronomy.com's interactive star chart — StarDome — to see an accurate map of your sky. It'll help you locate some of this week's key targets. Astronomy magazine subscribers have access to a slew of cool functions with StarDome PLUS. Each week, I highlight three different night-sky targets for you to see: One object you can...

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What’s in a name?

Posted 15 years ago by Michael Bakich

The only woman ever to have named a planet passed away April 30 at the age of 90. Venetia Katherine Douglas Phair (née Burney) suggested the name “Pluto” to her grandfather March 14, 1930, when she was 11 years old. Astronomer Clyde W. Tombaugh, working at Lowell Observatory in Flagstaff, Arizona, found the planet February 18 of that year, but the observatory waited until March 13 to announce the discovery. Venetia’s suggestion impressed her grandfather, the former librarian of Oxford Universi...

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Here come the Meteorite Men

Posted 15 years ago by David Eicher

If you’re looking for a fun 1-hour special to watch on TV these days, check your local listings for Meteorite Men on the Science Channel. It’s already run once or twice and will again be broadcast on Memorial Day, May 25 (and, we can hope, repeated lots of other times). Last February, Senior Editor Michael E. Bakich and I ran into the Meteorite Men themselves — noted hunters and dealers Steve Arnold and Geoffrey Notkin — at the Tucson Gem and Mineral Show. Their TV program feature...

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STS-125 launches

Posted 15 years ago by Karri Ferron

Astronomy Contributing Editor Martin Ratcliffe shares his report of the space shuttle Atlantis STS-125 launch: In a picture perfect, flawless launch, space shuttle Atlantis is on its way to a rendezvous with the Hubble Space Telescope. After years of planning, there were no delays, no major technical issues, and no weather problems. Seven astronauts enjoyed the 8.5-minute ride to orbit watched by thousands of spectators and the world's press.Clouds of water vapor bellowed around the launch...

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The STS-125 astronauts' "walkout"

Posted 15 years ago by Karri Ferron

A report from NASA's Kennedy Space Center by Astronomy Contributing Editor Martin Ratcliffe: The astronauts of the STS-125 mission to service the Hubble Space Telescope are now on board Atlantis. They left the astronaut building shortly after 10:15 a.m. EDT to cheers and waves from the press and staff. Astronomy magazine is here recording launch day. Commander Scott Altman was first out and waved, flanked by Mission Specialist Drew Feustel. Normally shuttle crews climb aboa...

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Bike through the solar system in Madison, Wisconsin

Posted 15 years ago by Liz Kruesi

During the International Year of Astronomy (IYA), there’s no shortage of events and activities revolving around astronomy. Another opened in south-central Wisconsin on Monday, May 4. The Planet Trek Dane County (PTDC) scale-model solar system begins in Madison and extends some 23.5 miles along hiking and biking trails. For those of you in the area who want to get outdoors and appreciate the scale of the solar system, this is a good way to do it.When solar system models try to fit the scale withi...

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The biggest model rocket in history

Posted 15 years ago by Daniel Pendick

On April 25, Steve Eves of Ohio launched the largest model rocket in history: a 1,700-pound, 36-foot-high replica of the legendary Saturn V booster that took the first astronauts to the Moon. It rose to about 4,400 feet, deployed chutes, and settled to the ground — upright. Check out this YouTube video. Listen to that thing roar!Model rocketeer and Fresno, California, lawyer Mark Canepa provided the photos. Check out his outstanding pre-launch profile of the project in Rockets magazine, “One man...

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May 8-15, 2009: Lozenge, globular cluster NGC 5694, and spiral galaxy NGC 3521

Posted 15 years ago by Michael Bakich

Here is the transcript for my podcast about how to see the Lozenge, globular cluster NGC 5694, and spiral galaxy NGC 3521 this week. Check out the Astronomy.com's interactive star chart — StarDome — to see an accurate map of your sky. It'll help you locate some of this week's key targets. Astronomy magazine subscribers have access to a slew of cool functions with StarDome PLUS. Each week, I highlight three different night-sky targets for you to see: One object you can fin...

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A longtime fan's take on the new Star Trek movie

Posted 15 years ago by Michael Bakich

Tuesday night, most of the editorial staff of Astronomy, along with several from our art staff, attended a special showing of the new Star Trek movie, in theaters May 8, 2009. The week before, Paramount Pictures had contacted our editor, Dave Eicher, about doing some cross-promotion. They also invited the staff to the Milwaukee-area premiere. It wasn’t likely we were going to pass up that opportunity!As people filed in, we passed out lots of Astronomy magazines and booklets. Dave welcomed the au...

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An outsider’s opinion of the new Star Trek movie

Posted 15 years ago by Karri Ferron

When Astronomy Editor Dave Eicher announced that Paramount Pictures had invited the staff to see a preview of the new Star Trek movie, in theaters May 8, 2009, I admit I was more excited about going to Milwaukee’s beloved Oriental Theater than anything else. I’ve never been a loyal Star Trek fan, but I was familiar with the different TV series that have been on air since the 1960s (never seen any movies). Still, the previews intrigued me. I’ve always loved a good action blockbuster and am a fan ...

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June 2009 web extras for subscribers

Posted 15 years ago by Karri Ferron

Now that your June 2009 issue of Astronomy has reached your doorstep, we’ve updated Astronomy.com with our newest web extras to give subscribers exclusive complementary information to the magazine.Take a sneak peek inside the June 2009 Astronomy magazine.If you subscribe to Astronomy, make sure you’re registered with Astronomy.com so you can access these great extras and additional online benefits.Here are the highlights:Ashley Yeager, author of “New technique closes in on dark energy” in our Ju...

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May IYA2009 events

Posted 15 years ago by Karri Ferron

May starts out with a bang and continues with two much-anticipated space exploration launches. In addition, more and more local events are being added to the United States’ International Year of Astronomy calendar, so be sure to keep checking in for activities in your city. Here’s what’s in store for you internationally:May 2009NASA Theme: Our Sun (this month Galileo first wrote up his observations on sunspots in 1612)Featured object in the sky: The Sun and sunspotsMay 2: Celebrate Astronomy Day...

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May 1-8, 2009: Zubeneschamali, globular cluster M5, and elliptical galaxy NGC 4697

Posted 15 years ago by Michael Bakich

Here is the transcript for my podcast about how to see the Zubeneschamali, globular cluster M5, and elliptical galaxy NGC 4697 this week. Check out the Astronomy.com's interactive star chart — StarDome — to see an accurate map of your sky. It'll help you locate some of this week's key targets. Astronomy magazine subscribers have access to a slew of cool functions with StarDome PLUS. Each week, I highlight three different night-sky targets for you to see: One object you ca...

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All the pretty mergers

Posted 15 years ago by Daniel Pendick

Here is what the future of computer-simulated galaxy mergers may look like. This image to the right — unusual for its vivid color and detail — shows five stages of a collision between two virtual galaxies, cooked up by computer programs that simulate the processes at work. View a bigger version of this image. The image is part of an ongoing project to visualize simulated mergers in a more realistic manner — to produce something more like what you would see through a telescope. T.J. Cox, an astro...

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Tracing space back to you

Posted 15 years ago by Karri Ferron

NASA has recently launched an expanded version of NASA Home and City, an interactive online program that allows users to discover some of the many NASA technologies that affect their everyday lives. The site takes visitors on an illustrated tour of the commercial products and advanced technologies that have origins in NASA space and aeronautics research and development. Using a colorful map complete with sound effects, users can scroll through more than 100 technologies grouped by themes such as...

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Comet Lulin in motion

Posted 15 years ago by Michael Bakich

Here’s another great example of material I receive as Photo Editor of Astronomy. Astroimager Robert Lockwood from San Diego created an animation he did of Comet C/2007 N3 (Lulin).For the final animation, Robert combined 75 exposures — 25 each through red, green, and blue filters. Each exposure lasted 45 seconds. He also allowed an additional 30 seconds to elapse between sets of three.The telescope Robert used was a 7.2-inch Takahashi Epsilon-180 hyperbolic astrograph at f/2.8. His camera was a S...

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April 24-May 1, 2009: The Kite, globular cluster M53, and the Hockey Stick Galaxy

Posted 15 years ago by Michael Bakich

Here is the transcript for my podcast about how to see the Kite, globular cluster M53, and the Hockey Stick Galaxy this week. Check out the Astronomy.com's interactive star chart — StarDome — to see an accurate map of your sky. It'll help you locate some of this week's key targets. Astronomy magazine subscribers have access to a slew of cool functions with StarDome PLUS. Each week, I highlight three different night-sky targets for you to see: One object you can find with ...

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Low-mass extrasolar planets aplenty

Posted 15 years ago by Daniel Pendick

Tuesday at the European Week of Astronomy and Space Science meeting in Hatfield, England, astronomers announced a new milestone: an extrasolar planet with the lowest confirmed mass of any yet discovered around a normal star. “Confirmed” . . . “normal star” . . . seems like a lot of caveats, doesn’t it? Let me explain. The planet is called Gliese 581 e, and the research says it contains 1.9 times Earth’s mass. Earth-mass planets are the holy grails of extrasolar studies right now. That’s ...

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Northeast Astro-Imaging Conference 2009 draws record attendance

Posted 15 years ago by Rich Talcott

Special post from Imelda B. Joson and Edwin L. Aguirre In the years since its inception, the Northeast Astro-Imaging Conference (NEAIC) has evolved into the largest gathering of its kind on the East Coast. Astrophotography aficionados from North America, Europe, and Asia have attended or spoken at the 2-day conference, held each year at Rockland Community College in Suffern, New York. “This year’s NEAIC was a resounding success,” said Jim Burnell, who, together with Bob Moore, Mike People...

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