Make a Solar System diorama

An easy, fun craft project to learn about our neighbouring planets

Star-hopping

Steve Tonkin explains an easy technique to navigate your way around the night sky

The rock hunter RETURNS

As OSIRIS-REx becomes the latest spacecraft to bring back samples from another world, Ezzy Pearson examines how these missions help reveal our Solar System's history

Lights in the darkness Photographing the aurora

Wilderness photographer Valtteri Hirvonen - who spends nearly half the year in darkness in his native Finland - reveals how he found new inspiration in the Northern Lights

Capturing a first: the Spin Nebula

Amateur astronomers work collaboratively to produce first high-resolution image of little-known nebula He 2-11

10 targets to get you started in astrophotography

From star trails to your first planets, Tom Kerss shares 10 inspiring projects to kick off your night photography journey

Highlights of the autumn skies

From returning favourites to unmissable one-off events, Katrin Raynor picks out the best night-sky sights coming up in the months ahead

Askar 130PHQ flatfield apo refractor

If you've got the budget, this hefty refractor's got fine views and a deluxe feel

Create your best image of Saturn

Great pictures of the ringed planet start as video, before stacking and processing

Image a fisheye Milky Way

Ultra-wide-angle lenses capture our Galaxy crossing the whole sky. Here's what to consider

Wild weather across the Solar System

Katrin Raynor looks at the extreme climates found on our neighbouring planets

The mystery of SOLAR MAXIMUM

The Sun has been increasingly active over the last few years, far more so than astronomers predicted. Ezzy Pearson investigates

10 locations to make you fall in love with the Moon again

Rekindle your passion for the Moon with Stuart Atkinson's pick of the best lesser-known lunar locations you'll love

THE BIG THREE

The top sights to observe or image this month

The great American eclipses

In a once-in-a-lifetime spectacle, two solar eclipses are about to cross over the USA. Jamie Carter has the details

Catch Saturn's ring before they disappear

Jane Clark explains the gear, software and techniques beginners need to capture Saturn on camera before its famous rings vanish from view

See the Perseids in their prime

With no bright moonlight to spoil things, 2023 could be a vintage year for summer's strongest meteor shower. Paul G Abel tells us how to make the most of the Perseids

What does space smell like?

From rum to rotten eggs, Jonathan Powell turns his nose to heaven's scents

INSIDE THE SKY AT NIGHT

In the latest episode of The Sky at Night, Arik Kershenbaum considers whether it's inevitable that intelligent alien civilisations are out there

It's time that space had a female face

Equality for women will make a stronger space sector, says Gabriella Goddard

INSIDE THE SKY AT NIGHT

The Sky at Night TV show, past, present and future | June's episode of The Sky at Night looked at the booming UK spaceflight industry, but Andrew Lawrence warned of some of the consequences

Looking at home from afar

Studying our cosmic neighbourhood from 'outside' is an eye-opener

Building Magrathea

Worlds that orbit two white dwarfs could be relatively common

Star swallows planet whole

Bloated star gives a dusty belch as it engulfs one of its orbiting planets

Q&A A WITH A GALAXY RESEARCHER

Quasars are hungry monsters at the heart of galaxies, but the origins of these powerful objects have long been a mystery

Boosting detail in nebula photos - a case study

ASTROPHOTOGRAPHY PROCESSING | Expert processing tips to enhance your astrophotos | Combine RGB and narrowband data to give deep, rich images

Catch the Sun

ASTROPHOTOGRAPHY CAPTURE | Take the perfect astrophoto with our step-by-step guide | How to safely capture the drama now that solar activity is picking up

Make a Sun, Moon and Earth model

DIY ASTRONOMY | Practical astronomy projects for every level of expertise | A simple, hands-on project to teach their surface features and orbits to beginners and youngsters

Nancy Grace Roman

Ezzy Pearson celebrates a scientist whose legacy can be felt across all astronomy

Euclid Shedding light on the dark Universe PRO

A new European space telescope launching this month will tackle the mysteries of dark matter and dark energy, reports Govert Schilling