January
January Night Sky 2020
This is the first Night Sky blog article of the new decade and hopefully I’ll be able to point out some interesting things for you all to see in the night sky this month.
Planets
The March Night Sky 2019
How is it March already? 2019 has just flown in! Although we have had a mild winter, we can start to wave goodbye to the dark evenings and say hello to Spring as the date that I have been longing for ever since the evenings got shorter – the Spring Equinox on the 20th March fast approaches.
Human Exploration
The January Night Sky 2019
Article written by: Helen McLoughlin, Education Officer Let’s face it, New Year’s Resolutions like ‘I’m going to the gym three times a week’ or ‘I’m going on a diet’ are all well and good but fizzle out after a week or two. Why not take up stargazing once a month Read more…
Solar System
The December Night Sky 2017
Hello again Planetarichums! It’s Stephen here, ready to do my very best to explain some of the upcoming wonders in our night sky as we head into winter and the Christmas holidays. So, first things first, we’ll talk a little about our celestial neighbour, the Moon. On December 3rd our Read more…
March
The March Night Sky 2017
Goodbye February, the shortest month of the year, and hello March! The desperate chill of winter is starting to lift and at the end of this month we will have the March Equinox. On the 20th March the Sun will shine directly on the equator and there will be nearly Read more…
January
The January 2016 Night Sky
Happy New Year! Welcome to January 2016, and if you haven’t made a New Year’s resolution yet (or you have made one but want to sneakily change it,) why not challenge yourself to star gaze this year. Star gazing is a brilliant past time and is a wonderful activity that Read more…
January
Stargazing in January
January is the marmite of every year, individuals either love it or hate it as it brings the beginning of a New Year and new opportunities yet marks the end of the festive Christmas season and a previous year filled with memories. Whilst most people make New Year’s resolutions to Read more…
March
Wonders of the March Night Sky
Since March means “Mars’ month” in Latin, we should find it a minor coincidence that Earth’s red terrestrial neighbour plays a more major role in the sky over the next few weeks. With continued astronomical twilight, an exploration of the centre ground astrology and astronomy share, and great opportunities to Read more…
February
February Night Sky Wonders
While the winter sky may be the ‘Aladdin’s cave’ for skywatchers, and we may already have plundered deeply one of its greatest celestial treasures, the constellation of Orion, we forge ahead undeterred as February reveals yet another vault of celestial wonders awaiting exploration… No northern stargazer would wish to run Read more…
January
Sky Wonders for January 2013
January sees the beginning of a New Year with everyone’s New Year’s resolutions to be healthier, to be happier and many people deciding to take up or return to a fun hobby from the past! With that I guarantee many are toying with the thought of lifting up those binoculars Read more…
Stars
The Other Sirius Mystery: Red or White
Today Sirius, the brightest star in the night sky is an unmistakable blue-white in colour although it does twinkle a lot and can appear to change colour. However no one would think of describing it as red.It is thus a source of confusion that many ancient writers describe the star Read more…
![Star types from left to right: a red dwarf, our Sun, a blue dwarf, and R136a1 (hypergiant). Where star sizes are measured by radius, from centre to surface, and where 1 solar radius is equal to that of our Sun (km) - R136a1’s radius is 35.4 times greater than the Sun [approximately 24.8 million km]. Credit: Author: ESO/M. Kornmesser](https://armaghplanet.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/image-of-star-types.jpg)
Stars
The Largest Stars in the Universe
How big is the largest known star? Compared to planets, stars will always be the overall group winners in terms of superior size. When you look at the night sky on a clear night and away from city lights, you will see that there are stars of varying sizes and Read more…
March
Wonders of the March Night Sky
At the beginning of March look west just after sunset to see three of the ‘wandering stars’. Mercury will be close to the horizon, with Venus and Jupiter shining brightly above it. Mercury will quickly set below the horizon and by the middle of the month will have disappeared from Read more…
February
Wonders of the February Night Sky
If you look towards the west just after sunset this February you will see a very bright star in the darkening sky. Known as the Evening Star, brilliant Venus steals the celestial show. After the Moon, Venus is the next brightest object in the sky. Higher in the heavens and Read more…
Monthly Sky Notes
Sirius: a Winter Sky Wonder
Which is the brightest star in the sky (apart from the Sun)? Many non-astronomers believe that the Pole star (Polaris) is the brightest star but there are at least forty brighter stars. The correct answer is Sirius, a wonder of the winter sky. Finding Sirius in the winter sky Read more…