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12 ASTRONOMY TUTORIALS TO MASTER
For the very best views of the night sky
Feather beds, cockfights and midnight flights to the moon
From seeing feathers as omens of death to saving soldiers with homing pigeons, our interactions with birds have always been contradictory. Roy and Lesley Adkins select five chapters from avian history to illuminate this complex relationship
Gods among men
JANE DRAYCOTT applauds an ambitious journey through the global history of emperors, from the most ancient civilisations to the 20th-century demise of world-spanning realms
EMPIRE OF THE GREATS
Not even a 2,000-year smear campaign, instigated by the Greeks, can obscure the staggering achievements of the ancient Persians. Lloyd Llewellyn-Jones tells the story of the Iranian dynasty that forged the greatest empire the world had ever known
Jesse Owens 1913-80
He was a bit of a showman and even raced against horses for money. When asked why, he said: You can't eat four gold medals'
Spinning stories
HELEN CARR assesses a magisterial overview of how people have represented the past, from medieval propaganda to historical fiction
The family behind the Tudors
The name Tudor has reverberated down the centuries, but another family lurked in the background, helping the dynasty to greatness - and sometimes seeking to tear it down. Joanne Paul chronicles the meteoric rise and deadly fall of the Dudleys
Voyage into the unknown
MARGARET SMALL commends a new biography of Ferdinand Magellan that looks beyond the Portuguese explorer's globe-circling achievements to reveal the man behind the myth
Victoria Drummond Engineering trailblazer
A century ago, the barriers facing any woman longing for a career in marine engineering seemed almost insurmountable - but not quite. JO STANLEY introduces a woman who had the talent, bravery and determination to make her mark in the male-dominated maritime world
This will be seen as a hybrid war, in which a key weapon is the deliberate misreading of history
In February, following months of escalating tensions, Russia invaded Ukraine. Are parallels with the past useful in making sense of the war, or is history being used for more sinister ends? Four experts have their say
A Cruel Renaissance
“Wicked, an abomination, and against all humanity.” These words, uttered in 1416, shine a light on a dark truth: that slavery thrived in Renaissance Europe. Hannah Skoda tells the stories of people living in bondage in a period when ideals of liberty and the nobility of human nature didn't apply to all
Black Communities Have Had to Pay for the Failures of Emancipation
Kris Manjapra speaks to Ellie Cawthorne about his new book, which explores how emancipations of enslaved people have left troubled legacies that still endure today
The Determined Will
Stephen Brewer’s couple are determined to argue about free will.
Diogenes the Cynic (c.404-323 BC)
Martin Jenkins recalls what we know for sure about the philosopher in the barrel.
Paradox Lost
Paul Tissier argues that Russell’s Paradox isn’t really a paradox.
The Goodness of Existence
Jarlath Cox says whether life brings pleasure or pain, the value of being born is the ability to experience at all.
The Lottery' & Locke's Politics
John P. Irish considers through an infamous lottery.
VERY LARGE TELESCOPE FINDS NEW SUPERMASSIVE BLACK HOLE
Scientists spotted the supermassive black hole hiding inside thick cosmic dust
THE MOON-LANDING HOAX
WHY DOES THE THEORY STILL LIVE ON? ALL ABOUT SPACE DEBUNKS A HOAX THAT RAGES AMONG CONSPIRACY THEORISTS EVER SINCE NEIL ARMSTRONG AND BUZZ ALDRIN LANDED ON THE LUNAR SURFACE
THIS MONTH'S PLANETS
A planetary parade featuring Jupiter, Venus, Mars and Saturn is something spectacular to look out for in the dawn sky
SECRETS OF BLACK HOLES
PLACES WHERE THE LAWS OF PHYSICS ARE PUSHED TO THE EXTREME
KILLER UNIVERSE
RELATIVELY SAFE IN OUR PROTECTIVE BUBBLE, SOME FORCES COULD END LIFE ON EARTH FOREVER. IS THE COSMOS OUT TO GET US?
HOW MANY STARS ARE THERE IN THE UNIVERSE?
WITH A FLEET OF: MISSIONS SCOURING THE COSMOS, WILL IT EVER BE POSSIBLE TO COME TO AN ESTIMATE?
PLANET PROFILE: URANUS
The ice giant that's shrouded in mystery has fascinated explorers for decades
HOW DID EARTH GET ITS WATER?
Moon rocks suggest that the water might have been here all along
FEDOR ŠIMKOVIC: BILLIONS OF THEM PASS-THROUGH US EVERY SECOND
The nuclear physicist and ESET Science Award laureate reveals what tantalising information neutrinos can tell us about the cosmos
GREATEST SPACE MYSTERIES
THE TRUTH IS OUT THERE, ACCORDING TO ASTROPHYSICISTS, PLANETARY SCIENTISTS AND ASTRONOMERS
DISTANT TARGET ANALYSIS
When it comes to protecting Earth from impacts, it's crucial to know what asteroids are made of. NASA is working on a device to find out
DID MARS' DEEP INTERIOR CAUSE A LOSS OF ITS ATMOSPHERE?
A new study gives insight into how the Red Planet's magnetic field faded away
CANON 10x42L IS WP BINOCULAR
An outstanding choice for super-steady stargazing thanks to fabulous image stabilisation, a waterproof design and large objective lenses