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FOCUS ON - WORK BEGINS ON NASA'S ASTEROID-HUNTING TELESCOPE
The infrared space telescope will search for potentially threatening near-Earth objects
TEN NASA INVENTIONS IN YOUR HOME
Bound by its motto – ‘for the benefit of all’ – since its formation NASA has had an obligation to foster and transfer its technological and scientific breakthroughs to the public and commercial spheres
100 WONDERS of the UNIVERSE
OUR COSMOS IS FULL OF AMAZING SIGHTS, FROM EXOTIC EXOPLANETS TO STUNNING GALAXIES
Astronomy Photographer of the Year
Supported by Liberty Specialty Markets, The world-class competition returns in 2023, seeking the best astronomy image of the past year
Fra Mauro
Fra Mauro is a quintessential example of a walled plain. Measuring 96km in diameter and 800m in depth, its ancient form can be located east of 300km Mare Cognitum, the sea that has become known’.
Jupiter
Jupiter is rapidly losing ground to the evening twilight, appearing 29° above the southwest horizon under deep twilight conditions at the start of the month, but reaching only 12° above the western horizon by the time we reach the end of the month.
Build a zero-magnification finder
Make an illuminated aiming device you can use on any telescope
OBSERVING VARIABLE STARS
Pete Lawrence is your guide to viewing variable stars so you can record their changes in brightness
COMETS AND ASTEROIDS
Fingers crossed for comet C/2022 E3 ZTF reaching naked-eye visibility this month
STAR OF THE MONTH
Muscida, the nose of the Great Bear, Ursa Major
Chelyabinsk 10 years on
In 2013 Ezzy Pearson visited the site of a massive meteor explosion. A decade later she looks back at what we learned from the event
Venusian encounters
BEST TIME TO SEE: From 15 February, after sunset
Comet C/2022 E3 ZTF
BEST TIME TO SEE: 8-23 February
Previously unknown minerals identified in meteorite
The discovery could help geologists to uncover conditions deep inside growing planets
Concern grows over bright satellites
Astronomers have called for more protections of our night sky
Favourable southwest lunar libration
BEST TIME TO SEE: 9-16 February
O&A WITH A PLANETARY SCIENTIST
The materials that form the building blocks of life on Earth have been found in distant planet-forming discs that are the same size as the Solar System
Looking back: The Sky at Night
18 February 1976,
First date with a DSLR
Taking nightscapes and Star trails with a DSLR camera Is a great way to get started In astrophotography. Stuart Atkinson gives his best tips for beginners
Does the Universe expand faster than light?
Govert Schilling continues to explain cosmology's confusing concepts In part 2 of our series
DEEP-SKY TOUR
We'll start in Orion's Sword where M42, the Orion Nebula, takes pride of place. Magnificent through any instrument, smaller scopes give a lovely overview of this fourth-magnitude nebula, easily revealing the bright kidney-shaped 'core' within which the tightly packed stars of the Trapezium Cluster are embedded.
Early galaxies lack cold hydrogen glow
A missing radio signal narrows down theories about infant galaxies
Expansion leads to increased tension
JWST observations seem to confirm cosmology's biggest conundrum
Japan heads to the Moon
Hakuto-R, a commercial lunar lander from Japanese company iSpace, launched on 11 December and entered lunar orbit three days later.
THE SKY GUIDE CHALLENGE
Can you beat Sirius's glare to identify its faint companion the Pup Star?
The man who put the Sun at the CENTRE OF THE UNIVERSE
This month marks 550 years since the birth of Nicolaus Copernicus. Emily Winterburn explores his life and legacy
The Columbia Space Shuttle disaster
Twenty years on, Amy Arthur looks back at fateful flight STS-107
Bring out the colours of stars
From reds to yellows to blues, here's how to reveal the subtle tones of stars in your images
ASTROPHOTOGRAPHY PROCESSING
Reduce star trailing in your astro images, An easy processing tip to remedy stretched and unsharp stars
Are extended cycles shaping sunspots?
Twin 17-year solar cycles could be controlling the Sun's activity