SUNSET: 
The Sacred Hour Before Dawn and an Evening Comet Surprise
Silence can sometimes be in short supply, but one sure place to find it is under a starry sky before the first blush of dawn. Comet 29P/Schwassmann-Wachmann erupts again!
Explore the Night with Bob King
Equuleus, the Constellation Nobody Knows
Often passed over in favor of showier sights, the constellation of the Little Horse has charms of its own. Let's saddle up and go for a ride.
Explore the Veil Nebula
The Veil Nebula, the tattered remains of an ancient supernova explosion, is one of the most spectacular objects in the night sky. Did you know it has two dozen parts visible in amateur telescopes?
Meet Pollux, the Red Giant with a Planet
Meet the stars: Pollux, one of the Twins in the sky, is a star that has swelled into its red giant phase while holding onto its Jupiter-like exoplanet, dubbed Thestias.
Explore the Night with Bob King
Comet 21P/Giacobini-Zinner Shines in September
Watch a binocular-bright comet leapfrog across Auriga in the next few weeks before a remarkable conjunction with the bright star cluster, M35.
Explore the Night with Bob King
See All Eight Planets in One Night
Four planets are great, but how about eight? You can see them all in a single night in the next couple weeks — if you play your cards right.
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.
Explore the Night with Bob King
R Coronae Borealis Awakes and Pluto Blocks a Star
Sometimes, it's just as exciting to watch a celestial object fade or disappear as it is to see it explode. We celebrate the "return" of a mysterious variable star and prepare for Pluto to occult a star.
Meet Regulus, Little King of the Ecliptic
Meet Regulus A, dubbed "Little King" and "Heart of the Lion," among the 25 brightest stars in the sky. The star belongs to a complex system, including a close white dwarf companion that makes its ultimate fate uncertain.
PanSTARRS Comet, Rocked by Outburst, Goes Green
Comet PanSTARRS (C/2017 S3) has erupted again! Now bright enough to see in binoculars, it might become a naked-eye object if it survives until perihelion.
Don't Miss Aldebaran's Last Occultation Till 2033
The last and one of the most picturesque occultations of Aldebaran by the Moon happens on Tuesday morning, July 10. Catch it or wait 15 years for the next!
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.
Explore the Night with Bob King
Quest for the Green Flash
If you like sunrises and sunsets, look for the green flash, a phenomenon that happens more often that you think.
Observe Changes on Mars
The nearby Red Planet displays remarkable changes every apparition. Whenever Mars approaches opposition, keep an eye out for some of these differences.
Explore the Night with Bob King
M13 with a Side of Galaxies, Please
The Great Hercules Cluster is on everyone's observing list this summer. But there's lots more to see within a stone's throw of this grand object — like 20 galaxies!
Meet Betelgeuse, the Red Giant of Orion
Betelgeuse, the brilliant red star at the right shoulder of Orion, is a supergiant whose girth extends out to the orbit of Jupiter.
Vesta Gets Close and Bright
Vesta, the brightest asteroid, puts on one of its best shows ever in June, when it shines enough to see without optical aid.
Spice Up Your Space Station Watching
The annual International Space Station marathon is underway with multiple passes visible each night. Here are some fun and unique ways to see and share it.
Observing Carbon Stars
Expand your observing plans by adding a few of these red-orange carbon stars.
Dwarf Nova V392 Persei Goes Big — It's Now Binocular Bright
In a rare move, a sleepy cataclysmic variable blows its top and suddenly becomes a nova.
