Dec 30, 2024 | Rick's Picks
Transient Events That Can Give Us a Good Enough Reason to Get Outside and Do a Little Observing All month: the solar system is primarily an evening show again this month. Mercury is one of the exceptions: its gibbous disk graces the morning sky for the first half of...
Dec 4, 2024 | Focal Plane
December brings a mix of emotions for amateur astronomers. The nights are longer, so there is more time available for viewing. In addition to longer nights, winter also holds some bright stars and constellations. But it comes at a price. The weather at night will be...
Dec 4, 2024 | Focal Plane
The history of planetariums can be traced back to ancient civilizations. In Greece, Archimedes created mechanical devices to illustrate celestial movement. In 1229, Emperor Frederick II used a tent with holes to represent stars, and rotated the tent to mimic the...
