SUNSET: 
Astronomy and Stargazing Projects
Useful Projects for a Lunar Eclipse
Here’s all you need to know to help us measure the size of Earth’s shadow during the second lunar eclipse of 2022.
Explore the Night with Bob King
Observing the Full Moon: Fringe Benefits
The upcoming Hunter's Moon reminds us of the many ways we can enjoy observing our humble satellite.
In Heaven with M7, a Portal Into the Deep
M7 in Scorpius is one of the brightest, most beautiful open clusters in the sky. It's also "home" to a half-dozen other delectable deep-sky sights.
Astronomy and Stargazing Projects
Take a Roller Coaster Ride with Algol, a Fast Eclipsing Binary
How would you like to see a star drop two magnitudes in the time it takes to eat dinner? Easy to do. Just check out one of these fast eclipsing binaries — they'll make your head spin.
Explore the Night with Bob King
Counting Stars in the Great Square
Test the limits of your vision — and the darkness of your sky — by taking a plunge into the Great Square of Pegasus.
Wallow a While in the Lagoon Nebula
We take a dip in one of summer's finest nebulae and explore everything from spooky Bok globules to the tornadic Hourglass Nebula. Don't forget your snorkel, er, telescope! Sometimes a single deep-sky object becomes your whole universe. So it was for me when I took several deep wades in the…
Hunting Bright Variable Stars in M5 and M13
Globular clusters are packed with variable stars, some of which are easy to see and follow in amateur telescopes. We explore M5 and M13, two of the season's finest.
Double Date with a Dragon
For your enjoyment, a diverse selection of double stars in Draco for small and medium telescopes.
Astronomy and Stargazing Projects
Shadow Play — Summertime Dark Nebulae for Binoculars
Using only binoculars, we explore a host of inky dust clouds, the dark nebulae that smudge the Milky Way on late summer nights.
Astronomy and Stargazing Projects
The Eyes Have it — Deep-Sky Observing Without Equipment
No telescope? No problem. Just use your eyeballs! On a dark summer night at least two dozen deep-sky objects can be seen without optical aid.
Astronomy and Stargazing Projects
What Southern Stargazers Long to See in Northern Skies
Southern Hemisphere objects like Omega Centauri and the Magellanic Clouds make Northern Hemisphere observers envious. Today, we turn the tables and find out what those living in negative latitudes would love to see up north.
Astronomy and Stargazing Projects
See an Ultrathin Venus Crescent
With Venus approaching inferior conjunction, don't miss the chance to see one of the thinnest Venus crescents of your life.
"Library Telescope" Program Takes Off
From humble beginnings in 2008, a simple idea — equipping libraries with loaner telescopes — has caught on across the United States.
Astronomy and Stargazing Projects
Hunting White Dwarfs, the Night's Stellar Peewees
Take a trip down the rabbit hole to the weird and weighty world of planet-sized white dwarf stars.
Astronomy and Stargazing Projects
Hunting Giant Planetary Nebulae
Mind your elders the next clear night and pay a visit to some of Spring's biggest and most ancient planetary nebulae.
Astronomy and Stargazing Projects
Celebrate Global Astronomy Month
Join the world’s largest celebration of astronomy — in person or via online webcasts of events — throughout April.
Help Keep Our Skies Dark — Join IDA Today
It's high time that we amateur astronomers got serious about protecting the night sky from light pollution.
Stargazer's Corner: Adventures Under the Night Sky
Managing Your Deep-Sky References
Amateur astronomer Phillip Kane gives some advice on organizing "your" observing experts to assist you at the eyepiece.
Explore the Night with Bob King
Rosetta's Comet Campaign Wants YOU!
Participate in a world-wide campaign to observe and photograph Comet 67P/C-G as it approaches and recedes from the Sun with Rosetta in tow. Your observations matter.
Stargazer's Corner: Adventures Under the Night Sky
Observing Report: The Herschel Sprint
Amateur astronomer Mark McCarthy shares his observing report for his own "Night of Discovery," when he recreated Herschel's legendary "sprint" of April 11, 1785.
