Articles
- Focal Plane (26)
- One Good Target (32)
- Rick's Picks (33)
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At the Still Point of the Turning Sky
December 2024 · Polaris, a few of its neighbors, and the echo of a delightful asterism
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December ’24 – Rick’s Picks
All month: the solar system continues to favor evening observers this month, leaving only Mars and Mercury for the sunrise crowd. Mercury is hidden…
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Focal Plane November ’24 – Searching for Gravitational Waves from Supermassive Black Hole Mergers
The October 3, 2024 NASA Universe of Learning featured discussion on gravity. One of the topics covered was searching for gravitational waves from…
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Astronomy Fundamentals – Choosing a Telescope – Things to Consider
For many new comers to the hobby, the biggest question asked is what kind of telescope should I buy? Whether it is parents nurturing…
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November ’24 Focal Plane – Discovering the Stars
For millennia, humanity has looked up at countless tiny points of light in our night sky – and wondered. What are the stars, and…
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November’24 – Rick’s Picks
All month: After favoring the morning sky for much of the year, the planets’ transformation into evening targets is nearly complete as November opens,…
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Treasures in the House of Cepheus
October 2024 · A prototype short-period variable, a half-dozen colorful doubles, a couple asterisms, a very large star, a future pole star, a reptilian…
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October ’24 – Rick’s picks
All month: the solar system becomes a little more balanced this month, as Mars, Jupiter, and Uranus continue to light up the predawn sky…
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September ’24 – Rick’s picks
All month: the planets’ repopulation of the evening sky continues its slow advance this month, while the pre-dawn sky now begins to lose its…
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August 2024 Focal Plane Wormholes, Spacewarps, and Tunnels to Otherwheres
At one time, some of Einstein’s theories of space-time and general relativity have exotic subjects within the solutions of the equations, such as wormholes.…