Astronomy related news and current events of interest in the skies above our heads written by Matthew Hodgson
On the winter solstice on the 21st December, the closest great conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn will occur since 1623, with the planets separated by 6 arcmins. Click to read more
On the morning of Friday 19th June 2020, an occulation of Venus by the Moon will be visible from the UK. Click to read more
My review of the 152mm f/12.5 Bresser Messier MC-152 Makustov and EXOS-2 GoTo mount appears in the January 2019 issue of Astronomy Now. Click to read more
December 7th 2018 presents a wonderful opportunity to view two solar system worlds at high power in a single view when Mars and Neptune will be separated by only a few arcminutes. Click to read more
My review of Takahashi’s ideally suited travelling refractor, the FC-76DCU can be found in the June 2018 issue of Astronomy Now Magazine. Click to read more
The Vixen SG 6.5×32 Binoculars offer a 9 degree field of view for wide field observing. They are the follow up the SG 2.1x42s which hit the market in 2014. My review was published in the January 2018 issue of Astronomy Now. Click to read more
This Christmas Eve the International Space Station can masquerade as Santa, adding to the magic for you and your family. Details of times, where to look and what to look for with instructions to check where ever you live on Earth. Click to read more
How wonderful would the look on a young child’s face be when they see Santa flying over your house on Christmas Eve? A little bit of astronomy and the International Space Station can make it happen. And for slightly older children, why not inspire them with some science and technology facts about the permanently crewed, football pitch sized station? Click to read more
Launched in 1978, the International Sun-Earth Explorer-3 (ISSE-3) spacecraft was the first to study the constant flow of the solar wind and after a new mission was assigned to in 1984 to pass through a cometary tail, the craft headed deep into interplanetary space. Now 36 years old, the craft will make a close approach to the Earth in August 2014 and NASA has given permission to a group of citizen scientists to attempt to communicate with and possible control the craft. Click to read more
One significant feature that links Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune is the presence of ring system. Now a fifth solar system body can be added to this rarefied group, and it is a rather surprising addition. Observations at several sites in South America including ESO’s La Silla Observatory have discovered… Click to read more
