Measuring Skyglow with Digital Cameras
Digital cameras are great for measuring skyglow, but more work needs to be done to automate the process.
Tour February's Sky! | January 28th, 2011
February brings into view Orion and his faithful hunting dogs, a set of constellations that sparkle with bright, colorful stars.
Sun Worship in Cambridge
On a few days each year, sunlight shines all the way down an 825-foot-long corridor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, a phenomenon that has been dubbed MIThenge.
A Sign of the Times
What's with the sudden realization that the zodiac has 13 constellations and that Sun signs have shifted due to precession? S&T devotees — and astrologers — have known this all along.
Great Photos from a Celestial Double-Header
January 4th featured a robust meteor shower and a partial solar eclipse in quick succession. Here's the story of how two lucky astrophotographers captured the moment.
Daydreaming About January 4th's Solar Eclipse
Lucky skywatchers in Europe, northern Africa, and western Asia will get to see a deep partial eclipse of the Sun on Tuesday.
Eclipses in 2011
It will be a busy year for eclipse-watchers in the Eastern Hemisphere, but North Americans will have to wait until mid-December to see the Moon covered by Earth's shadow.
Tour January's Sky! | December 30th, 2010
The New Year opens with a partial solar eclipse, a great meteor shower, and a canopy of bright stars and planets overhead.
Saturn's New Bright Storm
A massive new storm in the ringed planet's northern hemisphere is bright enough to see in small telescopes.
Meteor Showers in 2011
Sky & Telescope predicts that 2011's best meteor showers should be the Quadrantids in January and — maybe — an unusual outburst by the normally meek Draconids in October.
Quadrantid Meteors: Fire over Ice
Early January brings frigid northern weather — and one of the year's very best meteor showers.
Bright Prospects for Comet Elenin?
A newfound visitor from the solar system's icy fringe could brighten a millionfold by mid-September 2011 and become a pretty sight in the predawn sky.
Solstice Eclipse
Winter in the Northern Hemisphere was heralded by a glorious total lunar eclipse.
A Sky-High Lunar Eclipse
For all of North America, the full Moon has a total eclipse high overhead late on the night of December 20-21.
It's Geminid Time!
What many skywatchers consider the year's richest and most reliable meteor shower peaks this year on the morning of December 14th.
Revival on Jupiter Continues
The King of Planets was missing one of its signature dark belts last February, but it's gradually returning to view.
Tour December's Sky! | November 30th, 2010
One of the grand tales of celestial mythology is playing out overhead during December evenings. Host: S&T's Kelly Beatty. (6.5MB MP3 download: running time: 7m 00s)
Jupiter's Lost Belt Reviving?
A sudden bright storm has erupted in the latitude of Jupiter's South Equatorial Belt. It's expected to be the first of a series of rapid changes in the days ahead, leading to a reappearance of the missing dark belt.
Encounters with Comet Hartley 2
Comet Hartley 2 comes back into moonless view around the morning of November 1st — in time for the spacecraft encounter on November 4th!
How Dark Are Your Skies?
Take part in this year's Great World Wide Star Count, and you'll be joining thousands of other "citizen scientists" in raising dark-sky awareness around the globe.