NATURE'S REAL-LIFE VAMPIRES

Count Dracula... Lestat de Lioncourt... Laszlo... all these vampires have got oodles of charisma, natty dress sense and an intriguing backstory. But the problem is, they're fictional. We reckon the animal kingdom can do a lot better. Suck on this...

Could we become cold, ruthless Cybermen?

We assess the likelihood of humanity turning into cyborgs, like Doctor Who's infamous foe

FUNGI: THE EXPLAINER

THIS DIVERSE KINGDOM INCLUDES YEASTS, MOULDS, MUSHROOMS AND TOADSTOOLS

DISCOVERIES

Perseverance has discovered the largest cache of organic material ever found on the Red Planet.

YOUR INNER CHILD: WHAT IS IT, WHAT'S UP WITH IT AND DOES IT NEED HEALING?

Recent online articles have listed the signs that reveal your inner child is wounded, or that your inner child needs healing. But is there any real psychology behind this?

THINKING POSITIVELY CAN BE GOOD FOR YOUR BODY, NOT JUST YOUR BRAIN

Looking for an upside in any given situation can improve everything from the immune system to heart health

THE LONELY HEARTS CLUB MAN

MEN ARE LOSING FRIENDS AND STRUGGLING TO MAKE NEW ONES- AND MISSING OUT ON POWERFUL HEALTH BENEFITS IN THE PROCESS. BUDDY, WHAT'S GOING ON?

BABY, YOU CAN DRIVE MY SELF-DRIVING CAR

Human drivers should not be held responsible for accidents caused by autonomous vehicles

SEWAGE: WHY IS RAW WASTE PUMPED INTO OUR SEAS AND CAN WE FIX IT?

The UK's ageing infrastructure is struggling to cope with increased rainfall and a growing population, and this means sewage is being discharged into our seas and rivers. Just when you thought it was safe to go back into the water...

GRIEF: WHY DO WE MOURN PUBLIC FIGURES?

Few people knew her personally, and yet many of us felt some sense of loss for the Queen

The five best camera gimbals

An essential bit of kit for smoother video and better selfies, says photographer James Abbott

HOW NASA DEFLECTED AN ASTEROID BY CRASHING A SPACECRAFT INTO IT

NASA'S DART spacecraft made impact with its asteroid target on 27 September. Dr Tim Gregory tells us about this first-of-its-kind mission

GETTING TO THE HEART OF THE (DARK) MATTER

We've mapped it, but the exact nature of dark matter remains elusive. And for most astronomers that's okay

Ideas we like...

Our pick of the month's smartest tech

FIRST CONTACT

WHAT HAPPENS IF WE EVER DETECT A SIGNAL FROM EXTRATERRESTRIAL INTELLIGENCE?

Practical astronomy projects for every level of expertise DIY ASTRONOMY

Create a 24-hour polar star trail photo

The fundamentals of astronomy for beginners EXPLAINER

Félicette, the cat that flew to space

Astronomy X Photographer of the Year

BBC Sky at Night Magazine is proud to reveal the 2022 winners of the world's biggest astrophotography contest.

Betelgeuse's spectacular blow-out

A mass ejection larger than the Moon caused the star's dimming in 2019

Artemis I takes aim at the Moon

Efforts to get the test mission off the ground hit last-minute snags

MARS SEASON HAS ARRIVED

With Mars at opposition this December - and a rare lunar occultation expected too - now's the time to start observing and tracking its changing features, writes Paul G Abel

THE CARTWHEEL IN SPACE

Another stunning image from the largest space telescope ever launched shows just what this new observatory can do

ARTEMIS BEGINS

As Artemis I takes the first step in NASA's plan to return humans to the Moon, Shaoni Bhattacharya talks to the people behind the wider series of missions

Expert processing tips to enhance your astrophotos ASTROPHOTOGRAPHY PROCESSING

Subtract stars to get more from deep-sky data

The Sky at Night TV show, past, present and future INSIDE THE SKY AT NIGHT

In September's episode of The Sky at Night, Jen Gupta looked at how ever more stunning astronomical photos have revolutionised our understanding of the cosmos

Our experts examine the hottest new research CUTTING EDGE

Tide lines show Moon's move

The amateur astronomer's forum FIELD OF VIEW

Cashing in on the cosmos

ASTROPHOTOGRAPHY GALLERY

A huge solar prominence

DE-EXTINCTION GENETICISTS AIM TO RESURRECT THE TASMANIAN TIGER

The marsupial, also known as a thylacine, could be brought back from extinction within the next decade

MYSTERIES OF THE UNIVERSE - WHY DO ASTRONAUTS EXPERIENCE MUSCLE LOSS?

Discover how sending worms into space is helping unlock ways for humans to spend longer beyond Earth