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stdClass Object ( [id] => 450 [title] => What’s Up? June 2025 [alias] => what-s-up-june-2025 [introtext] =>

With May gone we have now lost the dark nights, but there’s still plenty to enjoy! In fact, this is a fantastic opportunity to brush up on your constellation knowledge as the brighter constellations will stand out more in the lighter skies.

[fulltext] =>

 

Constellations

With the winter constellations like Orion well and truly vanquished, and spring constellations like Leo and Virgo on their way down, we can turn our attention to the rising summer skies. Keep an eye to the east as the Sun sets and you’ll catch the summer triangle returning in its entirety. The summer triangle is the name typically used for the triangle created by the stars Vega, Deneb, and Altair, the brightest stars in Lyra, Cygnus, and Aquila respectively. It’s not a constellation, according to the IAU, but rather a more general asterism (star shape). As we move towards summer this triangle will get higher and higher.

 

Simulation of the sky on 15^th June 2025 at 2320 from Kielder Observatory, the red lines show the “summer triangle” asterism (Credit: Stellarium)

Lyra is a lovely little constellation shaped like an ancient Greek lyre. The story goes that this particular lyre once belonged to Orpheus, an ancient poet whose music could even charm rocks. Vega is a beautiful star and being the 5^th brightest in the sky it’s a nice easy target for telescopes, and it’s a fun one for fans of the film/book “Contact” by Carl Sagan!

L: Roman floor mosaic showing Orpheus charming animals, from Palermo. R: The constellation Lyra, the double double is circled (Credit: Stellarium)

Just to the left of Vega you should spot another fainter star which has a surprise for those with telescopes to get a closer look. A telescope will reveal this star as a double set of binaries, and we affectionately refer to it as the double double because of this. These 4 stars are around 162 light years away and all orbit around one another. A fifth star in this system was discovered in 1985, but you won’t be able to see that one.

 

Object of the Month – M57 The Ring Nebula

In Greek mythology, Orpheus was a prophet as well as a musician and poet, so it’s quite appropriate that hidden in his lyre we can catch a glimpse of our Sun’s future with the small but mighty M57, also known as the ring nebula because, well, it looks like a ring. To find it, you want to be looking roughly halfway between the two stars in the base of Lyra. As a general rule, if you can see those stars, it should be dark enough to see this nebula.

M57 in infra-red as seen using the JWST (Credit: ESA/Webb, NASA, CSA, M. Barlow (UCL), N. Cox (ACRI-ST), R. Wesson (Cardiff University)

Pictures from telescopes such as Hubble and JWST show M57 in stunning detail with a series of colourful rings centred on a small white dwarf star, visible as just a small dot. Viewed by human eyes through a telescope on Earth, those colours become grey, and the nebula resembles a smoke ring suspended in space. M57 is a fantastic example of a planetary nebula which is the end-state of a solar-mass star. Despite the name, planetary nebulas have nothing to do with planets, they just appear rather round like planets.

This type of object is formed as solar-mass stars age and start to swell. More massive stars will go supernova after this stage, generating a vast amount of energy and synthesising elements beyond iron, but not our little solar-mass stars. These stars continue to swell until the outer layers shed away and create our planetary nebulae.

Summer Solstice – 21^st June

The summer solstice falls on the 21^st of June, marking the shortest day of the year and the start of astronomical summer. The term “solstice” comes from the Latin “sol” (Sun) and “sistere” (to stand still). It doesn’t actually refer to a day so much as a specific moment in the day where the Suns motion (in declination) seems to stop before reversing. In other words, it is the moment the Sun is at its highest in the summer, or the lowest in winter.

Many cultures around the world have been known to mark the solstices with celebrations and festivals, and monuments have been built to be able to determine when the day arrives. In the UK we have Stonehenge which was built to mark the solstices and each year thousands of people gather on this day to watch the Sun rise in line with the Heel Stone at the entrance of the stone circle.

The Heel Stone as seen through Stonehenge, on the 21^st June the Sun will rise just to the left of here (Credit: English Heritage)

Planets

It’s a pretty quiet month for planets as even Mars starts to set in the evening sky, but early risers will be able to catch Saturn and Venus in the pre-dawn sky.

Moon

First Quarter: 3^rd June

Full Moon: 11^th June

Third Quarter: 18^th June

New Moon: 25^th June

 

 

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With May gone we have now lost the dark nights, but there’s still plenty to enjoy! In fact, this is a fantastic opportunity to brush up on your constellation knowledge as the brighter constellations will stand out more in the lighter skies.

)

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stdClass Object ( [id] => 449 [title] => What are stars made of? 100 year anniversary! [alias] => what-are-stars-made-of-100-year-anniversary [introtext] =>

In May 1925, a young woman published a paper that completely changed our view of the universe. In this article, astronomer Rosie dives into how the composition of stars was discovered! 

[fulltext] =>

 

Introduction

This month marks 100 years since we discovered what stars are made of.

If you’ve ever attended one of our events, you’ll probably know that stars are mostly made of hydrogen gas. But before 100 years ago, scientists believed stars were made of rock and metal, similar to the elements found on Earth. So, this revelation was groundbreaking at the time.

 

Even more remarkable is that it was made by a young woman who was only 25 years old and still a PhD student. Her name was Cecilia Payne, and she was a fantastic scientist!

Cecilia Payne at Harvard College Observatory

 

Who Was Cecilia Payne?

Cecilia Payne was born in England in the year 1900. Even as a young girl, she showed incredible intelligence and a strong interest in science. She worked very hard in school and earned a scholarship to Cambridge in 1919.

Although Cambridge didn’t offer degrees to women at the time, she was still able to study three subjects: botany, physics, and chemistry. During her first year, she attended a lecture by Arthur Eddington, who had just returned from an expedition to observe a total solar eclipse. During that expedition, he was able to prove Einstein’s theory of relativity.

This lecture deeply inspired Cecilia. From that moment, she promised herself she would go on to study physics and astronomy.

However, there weren’t many opportunities for women in the UK who wanted to pursue astronomy and physics. Fortunately, she met Harlow Shapley, who was the director of Harvard Observatory, who mentioned that a graduate program would be opening soon. With a glowing reference letter from Arthur Eddington, Cecilia applied and was accepted. In 1923, she sailed to America to begin her studies under Shapley’s guidance.

To understand how she made this discovery, we need to look at her PhD thesis in more detail. It’s split up into 3 parts

1.           The Physical Groundwork – An overview of the science at the time.

2.           Her Theory of Thermal Ionization – Where she applied her background in quantum physics.

3.           Additional Deductions – The section she’s most famous for- stars are made of Hydrogen!

 

Part 1: The Groundwork

Spectrum from the Sun. N.A.Sharp, NOAO/NSO/Kitt Peak FTS/AURA/NSF

 

By this point in time, scientists already knew quite a lot about light we get from stars. When you split up the light from a star with a prism, you get a rainbow - red all the way to violet. We call this the visible spectrum of light.

When you look at this spectrum more closely, you start to see dark lines. These dark bands appear where elements in the outer layers of the star absorb some of the light coming from its centre. This phenomenon had been known since the 1800s, when scientists discovered that each element has its own unique set of spectral lines—its own fingerprint.

The spectra of different elements. The Romance of Modern Chemistry, 1909. Science History Institute

 

By observing these lines in starlight, scientists could determine which elements were present in stars. And it turned out that stars contained the same elements found on Earth. However, scientists didn’t yet know the ratios of those elements. They assumed stars had a similar composition to Earth: mostly heavy elements like rock and metal, with just a sprinkling of lighter elements like oxygen and hydrogen.

When Cecilia Payne arrived at Harvard in 1923, she was assigned to analyse stellar spectra. She wasn’t the first woman to do this kind of work—Harvard had a long history of women contributing to astronomical research. These women were known as the Harvard Computers, and they analysed the vast amounts of data coming from the observatory.

Women were often preferred for this work because it was believed they were more patient, more attentive to detail—and, unfortunately, because they could be paid less.

One of the most famous Harvard Computers was Annie Jump Cannon, who is best known for organizing stars into groups based on their spectral lines. Not all stars had the same spectra—there were subtle differences in the lines. Annie Jump Cannon categorized stars into types like O-type and G-type, a system still used today.

Annie Jump-Cannon at Harvard Observatory, Smithsonian Institution Archives

 

However, Cannon didn’t investigate the physical reasons behind these spectral differences. Astronomers assumed it had something to do with the stars’ temperatures, but no one had proven it—until Cecilia Payne.

 

Part 2: Stellar Classes

Payne had an edge over other Harvard Computers: she was familiar with the emerging field of quantum mechanics. These lines we see on the spectrum arise from the behaviour of electrons inside atoms.

Atoms consist of a positive nucleus and negative electrons orbiting in specific energy levels. When an atom absorbs energy—say, from red light—an electron jumps to a higher level. This removes that wavelength from the spectrum, creating a dark line.

Payne’s key insight was that temperature determines which spectral lines appear.

An atom absorbing light. NASA

An atom absorbing light. NASA In hotter environments, electrons are already excited, so it takes more energetic light—like blue—to push them further. In extremely hot stars, electrons can gain enough energy to escape the atom entirely, ionizing it. Ionized atoms can’t absorb light in the same way, so no spectral lines appear.

Payne used an equation from Indian phycisist Meghnad Saha which allowed her to calculate the percentage of atoms ionized at a given temperature. She applied this to the spectra of many stars, combining Saha’s theory with Annie Jump Cannon’s stellar classification system. Two years later, she completed her groundbreaking PhD thesis.

Before Payne, stars were classified by the strength of their spectral lines, without understanding why they varied. Her work showed that temperature was the key factor, linking it directly to spectral class.

Harvard Spectral Classification. Pablo Carlos Budassi

 

Part 3: Stars Are Made of Hydrogen!

Now we come to Part Three of Cecilia Payne’s thesis: Additional Deductions from Ionization Theory. In the smallest and final chapter of her PhD, Payne made a revolutionary discovery: hydrogen is the most abundant element in stars.

At low temperatures, a large portion of the star will be made of neutral (non-ionized) atoms. This means the atoms can absorb light, resulting in visible spectral lines from Earth. In stars with a much higher temperature, there may be no neutral atoms left, no light can be absorbed, and no lines appear in the spectrum.

An ionized atom. ChemistryLearner.com

She then asked, what happens when an element is almost fully ionized, perhaps 70 or 80%? Only a small number of neutral atoms remain. These few atoms can still absorb some light, but the resulting spectral line would be very faint. In other words, faint lines in the spectrum indicate that only a small number of neutral atoms are present.

Cecilia then made a key assumption:

The number of neutral atoms needed to produce a faint spectral line is the same for each element.

From this assumption, she could calculate the relative amount between different elements. Cecilia applied this method to every element she could observe. What she found was astonishing: the quantity of hydrogen was far greater than anything else.

In fact, she concluded that hydrogen and helium were a million times more abundant than all the heavier elements.

Table 28 from her PhD, showing that hydrogen is a million times more abundant than other elements. Stellar Atmospheres, 1925, Cecilia Payne

After completing her PhD, Payne needed her work to be reviewed before it could be published. The task fell to Henry Norris Russell, a well-known and respected physicist. He was deeply impressed by her thesis—except for one part: the conclusion that stars are made mostly of hydrogen. He believed this was impossible and warned that if she published that claim, she might be ridiculed by the scientific community.

To protect her career, Payne reluctantly added a note to her thesis, stating that the results were likely not real and would need to be verified. Later in her career she expressed regret about not standing up for her work and giving into authority.

Four years later, Henry Norris Russell conducted his own research and came to the same conclusion: stars are indeed made mostly of hydrogen. Cecilia Payne had been right all along.

 

The Impact on Astronomy

Cecilia Payne’s discovery was nothing short of revolutionary. The idea that stars are made primarily of gas, rather than rock and metal like Earth, was completely different from what scientists believed at the time.

The Sun and other stars are made of hydrogen gas! NASA/SDO

It’s hard to overstate the impact of Cecilia Payne’s work. It completely transformed our understanding of stars and the universe. Without it, we wouldn’t know how stars generate energy through nuclear fusion, how they are born, how they die, or even how the Big Bang led to the formation of the elements.

In terms of its significance, her discovery stands alongside the work of Copernicus, who showed that the planets orbit the Sun rather than Earth. Like Copernicus, Payne challenged the accepted knowledge of her time—and like him, she wasn’t fully believed or given due credit. Her position as a young woman in science made it even harder for her work to be accepted.

 

Recognition At Last

Although Cecilia Payne’s groundbreaking discovery wasn’t fully appreciated at the time, other astronomers came to recognize the brilliance of her work in the years that followed. In 1960, renowned astronomer Otto Struve described her PhD as “the most brilliant thesis ever written in astronomy.”

After completing her PhD, Cecilia continued her research and built an extraordinary career. She became the first woman to be appointed a professor at Harvard University, and later, the first woman to chair the Department of Astronomy—a remarkable achievement in a field that had long excluded women from leadership roles.

We hope you enjoyed today’s article and learning all about Cecilia Payne and her incredible discovery!

Cecilia Payne-Gaposchkin. Science History Institute

 

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In May 1925, a young woman published a paper that completely changed our view of the universe. In this article, astronomer Rosie dives into how the composition of stars was discovered! 

)

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stdClass Object ( [id] => 448 [title] => Sunderland Starlight [alias] => sunderland-starlight [introtext] =>

Kielder Observatory travels to the City of Sunderland to capture the night sky and hear your experiences of the looking up at the stars.

[fulltext] =>

 

 

 

Sunderland Starlight

In anticipation of the opening of Sunderland's brand new Culture House facility, Kielder Observatory took up the mission to capture the night skies above the city in a series of images and to explore how the night sky enriches the lives of the people who live there.

 

As a first step, Dan Monk, our Director of Astrophotography, spent several nights through the winter capturing starlight in various locations around Sunderland (his hometown!), and produced a limited series of astrophotgraphy images of landmarks. We ran a drop-in session in the city centre for residents of Astral, Planet and Solar House to talk about astronomy, and our team of astronomers and inflatable planetarium were at City Hall in March for a astro-filled Saturday. We've been working with creator Sharon Race who has been in Sunderland Library capturing people's memories and personal experiences of stargazing.

 

We have lots of connections to the city and were delighted to be asked to take part in Culture House celebrations, the new building is slated to open in October at Riverside Sunderland. The imagery and words will be shared on the screen at Keel Square - watch this space!

 

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Do you live or work in Sunderland? Do you have a particular memory of a night you remember looking up at the cosmos above the city or nearby? 

Share your words here

 

 

 

 

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Kielder Observatory travels to the City of Sunderland to capture the night sky and hear your experiences of the looking up at the stars.

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stdClass Object ( [id] => 446 [title] => AAA: How do we know how far away stuff is? [alias] => aaa-how-do-we-now-how-far-away-stuff-is [introtext] =>

When you look up at the night sky, it's easy to wonder: how do we actually know how faraway the moon, the stars, and the galaxies are? After all, we can't stretch a tape measure across space! 

Astronomers have developed clever methods to unlock the vast scales of the universe, step by step - building whats known as the Cosmic Distance Ladder. 

From bouncing radar signals off nearby planets to measuring the ancient light of the universe itself, each 'step' of the ladder helps us reach further into the cosmos.

Read more to discover how we measure the unimaginable - and just how far our reach really goes.

[fulltext] =>

The Cosmological Distance Ladder

 

In astronomy we talk about things in are in our visible view like the moon andd galaxies at the edge of the known universe. But since we cant take a measuring stick and physically measure the ddistance to these objects, a very reasonable question is:

How do we measure distances in space?

There are a number of techniques astronomers use. Each one helps us reach a little farther, building on the pervious, which is why we imaginatively call the whole system the "cosmological distance ladder". We rarely measure distances directly - instead we work them out indirectly using observation planets, stars and galaxies that we can actually measure. 

Fig 1: A diagram of the Cosmological Distance Ladder

The Solar System

At the bottom of the ladder is our Solar System. Here, we can use radar: we send out a pulse of radio waves toward an object - like the Moon or Neptune - andd wait for the reflection to return. Because we know radio waves travel at the speedd of light, the time it takes tells us how far awayy the object is.

There's even a mirror left on the Moon by astronauts so that we can bounce lasers off it and measur ethe Moons distance with incredible precision. (Fun Fact: the Moon is moving away from us by about 4 inches every year!) We also track spacecraft as they travel through space, giving us extremely accurate measurements of the planets they pass or land on. 

Near Stars

For stars beyond our Solar System, we use a method called parallex. This is like holding your thumb out at arm's length and closing one eye, then the other - your thumb seems to move! Astronomers do the same thing with nearby stars, using Earth's orbit around the Sun to get two different viewing angles six months apart. The apparent shift tells us the distance. 

Because these stars are so far away, we measure their ddistance in light years - the distance light travels in one year, which is nearly 6 trillion miles! Even our nearest star is 24 trillion miles away, so we just say its 4 light years instead. This is much more digestable for our understanding. Parallex works well for stars upto a few thousand light years away.

Within The Milky Way 

To explore further into the Milky Way, we use standard candles - objects like Cepheid variable stars that pulse in a predictible way so we can identify them, and shine with a known brightness. It's like seeing a candle up close and another far away - you can tell which is further away just by how dim it looks. Because we've used parallex to measure the distances to nearby Cepheids, we can use them to estimate distances to far more distant ones - stretching across the Milky Way. 

Nearby Galaxies

Outside our galaxy, the Milky Way, it gets a bit harder. Our closest galaxy is over 2.5 million light years away. So we have to use a similar approach as standard candles but instead of using stars we need to use supernova - an exploding star. Specifically, a type 1a supernova which is a type of explosion that has a predictable brightness. Imagine you have a whole bag of the same size balloons. If you blow them up too much they will all explode at the same size. Type 1 supernovas do this, and when they do explode they can outshine all the other stars in their galaxy so we can see them and measure their brightness.

Faraway Galaxies

At the top of the ladder, we're peering deep into the universe. Light from distant galaxies stretches as the universe expands - a phenomenon called redshift. The more redshifted the light, the farther away the galaxy is. By comparing the amount of redshift to the known rate of expansion of the universe (called the Hubble constant) we can estimate how far the light has travelled. This method allows us to map the universe out to billions of light years, approaching the very edge of what we can observe. 

The actual eddge of the observable universe

The oldest light in the universe - the Cosmic Microwave Background - is the final step. This light comes from just 380,000 years after the Big Bang and has been travelling through space ever since. It's stretched so much by the expansion of the universe that we now detect it as microwaves, rather than visible light. 

This gives us a boundary: the edge of the observable universe, about 13.8 billion light years away (though the actual size of the universe may be far larger).

 

These techniques - from radar to redshift - make up the Cosmic Distance Ladder. Each rung buildd on the one below it, allowing us to map our universe step by step. Together, they form the backbone of mordern astronomy helping us understand the size, shape and age of the universe. And it all begins right here, in our own backyard.    

 

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When you look up at the night sky, it's easy to wonder: how do we actually know how faraway the moon, the stars, and the galaxies are? After all, we can't stretch a tape measure across space! 

Astronomers have developed clever methods to unlock the vast scales of the universe, step by step - building whats known as the Cosmic Distance Ladder. 

From bouncing radar signals off nearby planets to measuring the ancient light of the universe itself, each 'step' of the ladder helps us reach further into the cosmos.

Read more to discover how we measure the unimaginable - and just how far our reach really goes.

)

Read More

stdClass Object ( [id] => 445 [title] => What's Up? May 2025 [alias] => what-s-up-may-2025a [introtext] =>

As the summer nights grow shorter and lighter, May still has plenty to offer skywatchers. Explore, with our astronomer Ishbel, constellations like Leo, Virgo and Hercules, Discover deep-sky treasures including galaxy clusters, and catch the Eta Aquarids meteor shower at its peak. With bright stars forming the Spring Triangle and planets visible morning and night, there's something for every stargazer! 

[fulltext] =>

 

Hello skies of blue, goodbye skies of dark!

As we enter summer once again, the nights are getting shorter and lighter. On May 1st, the Sun sets at 8:24 PM and rises just 9 hours later at 5:33 AM. By the end of May, sunset shifts to 9:00 PM and sunrise to 4:51 AM.

With the hours after sunset and before sunrise still quite bright, we only get around three hours of true darkness before the sun begins to reclaim the sky. You'll have to stay up a little later to catch the stars - but May has plenty in store to temot you to turn your gaze upwards!

 

CONSTELLATIONS

Leo the Lion is high in the sky! This lovely, large constellation is easy to spot - its head is shaped like a backwards question mark, its body is formed by a rectangle and a triangle. 

Following Leo across the sky from east to west is Virgo, the Maiden. She's a bit trickier to find, as her shape isn't made up of easily recognisable patterns. She's meant to resemble a stick figure lying down and, as the second largest constellation in the sky, she stretches across a wide area. The easiest of her stars to spot are Spica, representing her hand closest to the ground, and Porrima, marking her heart.

Leo and Virgo are home to some beautiful galaxy clusters, making them excellent telescope targets! 

The Leo Cluster is located near the star Algieba (Gamma Leonis) and contains several bright galaxies, including M65, M66, and NGC 3628, collectively known as the Leo Triplet.

The Virgo Cluster can be found by locating the star Vindemiatix (Epsilon Virginis) and moving toward the centre of the constellation. This massive cluster contains over 1,300 galaxies, with notable members like M87, a giant elliptical galaxy.

Bootes is another loud and proud constellation, known as the Herdsman. You can find him arcing out of the panhandle of the Plough towards Arcturus. This bright star marks his waist. From there, you'll see a kite shape extending to the left and two "running legs" to the right. 

Spica is a beautiful, bright blue star. Along with Regulus - the star at the bottom of Leo's backwards question mark (his chest) - and Arcturus, the waist of Bootes, they form the Spring Triangle. 

Hercules is also prominet in the night sky. This constellation is home to the Great Hercules Cluster (M13), a globular cluster containing several hundered thousand stars. M13 is located between the stars Eta and Zeta Herculis, and is visible with binoculars or a small telescope.

 

 

CELESTIAL EVENTS

Eta Aquarids Metero Shower 

Peaking on the night of May 5-6th, this meteor shower is known for its fast moving meteors, which travel at about 41 miles per second. Although the Northern Hemisphere typically sees a modest rate of 10-30 meteors per hour, it can still be a delightful sight - especially in the predawn hours.

 

PLANETS

Venus - Visible in the east before sunrise

Mars - Visible in the east after sunset

Jupiter - Visible in the southwest after sunset

Saturn - Visible in the east before sunrise

 

MOON PHASES

May 1st - First Quarter Moon

May 11th - Full Moon

May 19th - Last Quarter Moon

May 26th - New Moon

 

Wishing you clear skies and happy stargazing! 

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As the summer nights grow shorter and lighter, May still has plenty to offer skywatchers. Explore, with our astronomer Ishbel, constellations like Leo, Virgo and Hercules, Discover deep-sky treasures including galaxy clusters, and catch the Eta Aquarids meteor shower at its peak. With bright stars forming the Spring Triangle and planets visible morning and night, there's something for every stargazer! 

)

Read More

stdClass Object ( [id] => 440 [title] => Are Aliens Real? [alias] => are-aliens-real [introtext] =>

Is anybody else out there? In this month's Ask An Astronomer, Science communicator and Astronomer James Claxton looks at one of the hottest space topics- are aliens real? Read on to fnd out... 

[fulltext] =>

Are Aliens Real? 

Image: Sci-Tech Daily

Is anybody else out there? Humanity has long speculated this subject, but the question remains unanswered. Surely with all that space it can’t just be us? In modern times we have catalogued around 6000 worlds orbiting distant stars, known as exoplanets, but we are still searching. Even with today’s modern technology and a healthy dose of determination we only have one data set for life, at least life as we know it, and it’s all here on Earth. What will it take to finally answer this awe-inspiring enquiry, and what would it be like to meet life with an origin far, far away. We are only just beginning to broaden our horizons, but perhaps we will find our cosmic cousins a little closer to home as we investigate previously hidden habitats upon and within the planets and moons of our Solar System.

 

Main article:

Where is everybody? In the summer of 1950 Italian-American physicist Enrico Fermi was casually chatting with colleagues regarding contemporary UFO reports and the possibility of faster than light travel, when he uttered these words leading to what we now call the Fermi Paradox – a distinct lack of conclusive evidence for extraterrestrial life and the apparently high likelihood of its existence. Utilising ever evolving methods are we coming close to an answer? Given that our Solar system is quite young compared to the rest of the universe and that interstellar travel could be fairly easy given enough time, Earth should have been visited by Aliens, at least that’s the idea. Let’s take a look at the history of this concept, and where our enquiries may lead us in future.

 

Some of the facts and hypotheses that together highlight the apparent contradiction:

• There are billions of stars in the Milky Way similar to the Sun.
• With high probability, some of these stars have Earth-like planets in a circumstellar habitable zone.
• Many of these stars, and hence their planets, are much older than the Sun. If Earth-like planets are typical, some may have developed intelligent life long ago.
• Some of these civilisations may have developed interstellar travel, a step that humans are investigating.
• Even at the slow pace of envisioned interstellar travel, the Milky Way galaxy could be completely traversed in a few million years.
• Since many of the Sun-like stars are billions of years older than the Sun, the Earth should have already been visited by extraterrestrial civilizations, or at least their probes.
• However, there is no convincing evidence that this has happened

 

Humans have gazed skyward for thousands of years. Even in pre-history as we wandered the Earth as scattered tribes, people must have looked up into the night sky and wondered what they were seeing and if anybody else was out there, supernatural or otherwise. Some researchers even suggest cave artwork painted thousands of years ago depict astronauts or flying craft suggestive of other worldly visitation. There is no verifiable evidence for this which could purely be down to artistic licence, but it does beg the question whether Earth has been visited in the deep past long before accurate records began. Modern humas have been present for approximately 200,000 years but we believe the Earth is around 4.5 billion years old. That’s a lot of time before we arrived and perhaps E.T has made an appearance once or many times, but we weren’t around to observe such events. This is one possible answer to the Fermi Paradox but there are many other suggestions that could resolve this conundrum. Some people even claim to have been abducted by aliens then returned dazed and confused. The standard response from most would be laughter and ridicule, but we do something similar on the plains of the African Serengeti – sedate an animal, carry out procedures often for research purposes then return them to the bush where they awake groggy and unsure of what just happened. Who knows if this is really happening to us but it’s wise to keep an open mind to aspects of reality we may not fully understand.

 

A few of the possible solutions to Fermi’s Paradox:

 

Zoo Hypothesis: Advanced life may be out there, but they are purposefully observing humanity without interference, akin to a zookeeper observing the animals. Modern humans also treat uncontacted tribes of people in the last great wildernesses on Earth in this manner.

The Great Filter: This theory suggests there is a natural ‘filter’ in the evolution of life, preventing civilisations reaching higher technological levels. This filter ranges from the difficulty of life emerging in the first place to the self-destruction of advanced civilisations.

The Dark Forest theory: Advanced civilisations deliberately avoid contact with others due to the potential danger of revealing their existence. The universe in this sense is a ‘dark forest’ where every civilisation is a hunter, and nobody wishes to become prey hence the great silence for fear of being detected.

The Rare Earth Hypothesis: A suggestion that the conditions for life, at least as we know it, are extremely rare in the universe and as a result a detection of other intelligence is unlikely. If this is true we would be some of the lucky few.

Distance of Extraterrestrial Life: If the rare earth hypothesis holds true, the sheer distances involved would make contact extremely difficult, if not impossible.

 

Perhaps the universe is indeed abundant with life, but it is populated with simple single celled organisms analogous to an amoeba. If this is the case, it would be very difficult to detect from our vantage point. We can from great distances analyse the atmospheres of exoplanets and although this could tell us if a planet is similar to Earth, we would be no further forward confirming life’s presence. If however, we detected something such as CFC gasses (once commonly used in refrigerants which caused ozone depletion in the Earth’s upper atmosphere) enveloping an alien world we would know for sure that intelligent life was present. These gasses do not occur naturally and need to be synthesised by industrial processes. This would be a confirmed detection of a technologically advanced civilisation which we would call a ‘technosignature’.

 

SETI:

The search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence, or SETI, is a scientific effort to detect evidence of technological life beyond Earth. This is done primarily by analysing radio waves and other sources of electromagnetic radiation from space as well as the study of optical signals – patterns within light that may have been sent with intent from an advanced life form. ‘Breakthrough Listen’ is a large-scale SETI project that uses powerful radio telescopes to search for signals from nearby stars.

Image: Sci-Tech Daily

The Wow signal was a very strong candidate detected on August 15, 1977, by the Big Ear Radio Telescope at Ohio State University. The astronomer wrote ‘wow’ on the printout of the data as nothing like that had been seen previously and was the kind of signal they were hoping to record. The signal lasted about 72 seconds and was picked up in the direction of the constellation Sagittarius. The source has never been definitively identified and despite numerous attempts the signal has not been detected since adding to the mystery if its origin.

To date there have been no confirmed detections of intelligent life beyond Earth, but the universe is vast, and we have barely begun the search. It may take a very long time to yield a positive result, or we may make a detection of life a little closer to home…

 

Many moons

There is a chance we may make our first detection of life beyond Earth on one of the many moons in our galactic back garden. We have approximately 290 moons in our solar system, many of which we now think have suitable conditions for life. Take Europa for instance which is one of Jupiter’s 4 primary moons. It is approximately the same size as our moon, but we now believe it has a global subsurface ocean of liquid water, with potentially twice as much water as all of Earth’s oceans combined. It is possible that lifeforms, most likely simple singled celled microorganisms, are swimming around down there. There could even be a whole ecosystem of life and a diverse range of flora and fauna, predators and prey, living in the cold dark depths. Much like the dark chilly depths of Earth’s oceans, Europa too could have life of some description perhaps using bioluminescence which is a chemical reaction creatures use here on Earth to shine light in the darkness.

We have 2 missions currently on route to this world to investigate further – Nasa’s Europa Clipper, and ESA’s JUICE mission. Upon arrival in approximately 5 years, they will perform orbital analysis to further refine the characteristics of Europa and some of the other moons nearby which we also suspect have similar conditions. One directive will be to help identify a suitable landing spot for a future mission which could get below the moons icy outer crust and reach the ocean below. Small robotic submarines dubbed ‘cryobots’ are being designed to swim in these alien waters and seek out anything living there. If Europa has hydrothermal vents on its ocean floor this would be exciting. We think life may have got started in these locations on Earth, warmed by the heat rising from Earth’s interior and in addition dissolving and releasing minerals and nutrients which helps life flourish. Although any life if present would most likely be simple it can’t be ruled out that something a little more substantial could swim across the camera’s field of view. That would surely be the most astounding wildlife documentary ever produced!

 

Image: Sci-Tech Daily

Another location that merits further exploration is one of Saturn’s moons – Enceladus. Much like Europa there is a subsurface ocean present. We have in fact flown probes directly through plumes of water erupting from this ocean between cracks in the ice and ‘tasted’ the water ejecting out into space. This is how we know Enceladus has a salty ocean with organic compounds present, much like Earth’s oceans. Enceladus and Europa are not the only moons with these environments. The term ocean moon is now being used to describe such places, and the number of these locations is quickly racking up with some of the moons of Uranus and Neptune showing similar characteristics. Less is known about these moons and further study is needed. Our Solar System could be far more interesting and life friendly than previously imagined, and what we could discover from future missions may re-write our understanding of our place in the cosmos. Who knows what we might find as we venture further into space. We have now discovered approximately 6000 worlds orbiting distant stars and the numbers will just keep going up as accompanying planets are a natural byproduct of star formation. Will we find Earth 2.0, or possibly environments and lifeforms beyond our wildest imaginations.

Image: Sci-Tech Daily

If we confirm that life has popped up multiple times with independent origins just within our solar system, this suggests life could be abundant in the universe at large. Soon we will explore these exotic locations in more detail and maybe answer the question once and for all. Looking ahead on this journey of discovery we will perhaps one day sail to the stars and see for ourselves what, and possibly who, is out there.

Image: Sci-Tech Daily

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Is anybody else out there? In this month's Ask An Astronomer, Science communicator and Astronomer James Claxton looks at one of the hottest space topics- are aliens real? Read on to fnd out... 

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stdClass Object ( [id] => 439 [title] => What's Up? April 2025 [alias] => what-s-up-april-2025 [introtext] =>

After a very astronomically eventful March, we move swiftly into April meaning Spring is well and truly underway bringing with it daffodils blooming and lighter nights. This doesn’t spoil the fantastic feast of constellations and objects observable this month in our skies! 

Spring means it’s galaxy season at Kielder, so we’ll be pointing out a few for you to try and observe.

[fulltext] =>

Constellations

With the magnificent winter constellation of Orion slipping down towards the western horizon relatively soon after sunset, taking with it the Seven Sisters and the brightest of stars, Sirius, we welcome the great constellations of Summer starting to appear in the east.

Appearing just below Boötes (easy to find because of its bright alpha star Arcturus) is the small but impressive constellation of Corona Borealis (Northern Crown) with bright diamond-like star "Alphecca" representing the central jewel. We also start to see Hercules rising higher into the sky offering the chance for us to observe the magnificent “Great Globular Cluster in Hercules” (or M13) which is a cluster of up to 300,000 stars visible through a small telescope. The cluster is 23,000 lightyears distant!

The great globular cluster in Hercules (M13)    Image credit: Wikipedia

 

The small constellation of Lyra rises alongside Hercules containing the brilliantly bright star Vega. Vega seems to twinkle and sparkle like a diamond on account of it’s very bright light refracting as it passes through the Earth’s atmosphere to meet your eye. High above your head near the Zenith (point directly above your position) will be the familiar constellation of Ursa Major (The Great Bear). Most people are familiar with the asterism of “The Plough” making up about a third of the constellation. Other names for it include “The Big Dipper” and “The Saucepan”.

Deep Sky Objects

As mentioned before, Spring means it’s galaxy season and 4 galaxies can be found in close proximity to “The Plough.” The red circles in the image below highlight the location of the galaxies. With Ursa Major being directly overhead, it is the ideal time of year for observing these galaxies.

Image Credit: Stellarium

M81 & M82

Bode’s Galaxy (M81) and the Cigar Galaxy (M82) can be seen using a small telescope and are found to the top of the Plough. They are both around 12 million lightyears distant with M81 being a face-on grand design spiral galaxy and M82 being a starburst galaxy. To find them, draw a line between the bottom left and top right star in the pan of the plough and then keep going for about the same distance in the same direction.

Using the plough to locate M81 & M82. Image credit: Stellarium

Bode’s galaxy (M81) with Cigar galaxy (M82) above it.

Image credit: ESA

 

M101

The pinwheel galaxy is regarded by many astronomers to be the most photogenic galaxy to image due to it being face-on and large regions of star-forming nebulas are sprinkled within its spiral arms. The galaxy lies around 21 million lightyears away. It can be found at the top of an imaginary triangle formed by using the first 2 stars of the plough handle (Alkaid & Mizar) as the base.

Draw an imaginary triangle to find M101

 Image credit: Stellarium

Image credit: ESA

 

M51

The whirlpool galaxy is the most distant of our selection at a staggering 31 million lightyears away! It was the first galaxy to be described as a spiral when observed by William Parsons, 3^rd Earl of Rosse through his 72-inch reflecting telescope at Birr Castle in Ireland in 1845. It can be found below the first star of the plough handle (Alkaid).

M51 is found under the handle of the plough

Image credit: Stellarium

Image credit: ESA

 

Meteor showers

The Lyrid meteor shower in 2025 will peak on April 22, but you may see some Lyrids between 16–25 April. The shower will be best viewed in the late evening of April 21 until dawn on April 22. Typically, the shower will produce around 18 meteors per hour in a clear sky and this year, no Moon will be present until after 4am, maximising the chances of seeing the meteors. The radiant, or point from which the meteors appear to come, will be between the constellations Lyra and Hercules and is marked on the image below. The Lyrid meteor shower is associated with Comet C/1861 G1 Thatcher and it is one of the oldest known meteor showers: they have been observed for 2,700 years. (The first recorded sighting of a Lyrid meteor shower goes back to 687 BC by the Chinese.) Don’t forget to make a wish if you see any!

Spring sky looking East showing popular spring constellations and radiant of Lyrid meteor shower.                                                                                                                 

Image credit: Stellarium

Planets

Both Mars and Jupiter will still be visible throughout most of April although Jupiter will be slipping further towards the western horizon nearer the end of the month.

The Moon

5^th April – First Quarter

13^th April – Full Moon

21^st April – Last Quarter

27th April – New Moon

 

Have a great Easter and wishing always for clear skies! 

 

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After a very astronomically eventful March, we move swiftly into April meaning Spring is well and truly underway bringing with it daffodils blooming and lighter nights. This doesn’t spoil the fantastic feast of constellations and objects observable this month in our skies! 

Spring means it’s galaxy season at Kielder, so we’ll be pointing out a few for you to try and observe.

)

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stdClass Object ( [id] => 436 [title] => What’s Up? March 2025 [alias] => what-s-up-march-2025 [introtext] =>

In this month's What’s Up, astronomer Rosie talks us through March’s highlights.
I don’t know about you, but I’m sure glad to see the first daffodils growing. It was a long winter! Spring and sunshine are creeping in and it turns out, March is jam packed with celestial and astronomical events! Let’s dive in.

[fulltext] =>

 

Spring Equinox

Thursday 20^th of March marks the first day of Spring in the Northern Hemisphere! It’s the time where the Sun sits right above the Earth’s equator meaning both hemispheres receive approximately the same amount day light. In the north, we call it the spring or vernal equinox, as the days are starting to get longer than the nights again.

Image: On the equinox, the Sun sits right above the equator. Credit: timeanddate.com

 

Constellations

Our beloved winter constellations such as Orion, Canis Major and Taurus are still nicely visible in the night sky in the early evening. But as the night gets late, we are seeing our spring favourites out: Cancer (though always a tricky one to see because it’s so faint), Leo, Virgo, and personally for me the constellation that means winter is over - Boötes.

Boötes contains the orange giant Arcturus, the fourth brightest star in the night sky. For many of us at the observatory, seeing Arcturus means spring is officially here.

Image: Boötes, the herdsman in Greek mythology. Arcturus is the brightest star in the constellation, and is an orange giant only 37 light years away (very close!) Credit: Stellarium

 

Planets

The planetary parade that graced our skies in February will be starting to dwindle. Saturn will be gone by the end of February, and Venus and Mercury will stick around for a few days at the beginning of March but then sadly leave. Jupiter and Mars however are stubborn and will still be visible for the whole month! Uranus as well to those with a telescope.

Mercury, the little rascal, is always the hardest of the naked-eye planets to see. It’s the closest to the Sun so there’s such a short window either before sunset or sunrise to capture it. However, leading up to the 8^th of March it will be at its greatest elongation east, meaning it will be the farthest east from the Sun from our perspective.

This is a fantastic chance to try and spot Mercury if you’ve never seen the planet before. If there’s a clear evening during the first week of March, go outside and find the lowest horizon possible towards the west. Start looking just after sunset at about 18:00 UTC. You will see Venus, shining like a diamond, but you want to look below Venus very close to the horizon. As the days go on Mercury will also become dimmer, so I’d recommend the 3^rd - 7^th of March if possible.

Image: The messenger god moves swiftly. Trying to spot Mercury is a tricky business because it moves so fast and stays close to the Sun. Simulation of the evening sky on the 4^th of March at 18:30 UTC. Credit: Stellarium

 

Another exciting thing happening in March, is that Saturn’s rings will disappear! Not literally, but on the 23^rd of March and a week either side, the rings will be at such an angle that we will barely see them from our point of view.

As Saturn orbits round the Sun every 29 years it tilts towards and away, meaning sometimes we see the planet edge on, and sometimes the rings open. The rings are only a few hundred meters thick and down to a few tens of meters in some places, which at 1.5 billion kilometres away is hardly anything at all.

When the rings vanish Saturn will be left looking like a pale yellow sphere through most telescopes. And only the most powerful telescopes will observe a subtle line through the planet’s middle.

And indeed, from most places on Earth it will be very difficult to get a good view of Saturn at all because it’s right next to the Sun. Hopefully our space telescopes will get a better view – having no atmosphere helps.

Image: Simulation of Saturn's rings and a few of its moons on the 23^rd of March. Credit: Stellarium

 

Special event: Eclipse Mania!

We have two eclipses for the price of one this month, how lucky!

The first on offer is a total lunar eclipse. On the 14^th of March the Sun, Earth and Moon will be perfectly lined up so that the Moon will be in the Earth’s shadow. Although most of the light from the Sun will be blocked, some light will pass through the Earth’s atmosphere and scatter, making the Moon appear very red. This is why a lunar eclipse is also called a “blood moon”.

The lunar eclipse will come at an inconvenient time for us folks in the UK, with the maximum happening at about 7am which 1) is very early, 2) will be quite light outside, but most importantly 3) will be below the horizon for us. For you early birds who still want to see some of it, I’d recommend getting up at about 5:30am on the 14^th to see the partial eclipse until it sets at about 6:30am.

It will still be quite light outside, and you’ll need to get a low westerly horizon, but hopefully you should still see some of it.

Image: Blood Moon. Credit: Kielder Observatory

 

The second is a partial Solar eclipse! This will be starting at about 10am UTC. It will only be partial but will be visible for 2 hours with the maximum partiality at 11am. When trying to look at it, please use solar filter glasses or a pin hole camera to project it onto the ground and DO NOT look at it with your naked eyes. 

Image: The partial solar eclipse on the 29th of March. Starting at 10:07 UTC, with the maximum at 11:05 UTC, finishing at 12:03 UTC. Credit: Pete Lawrence, The Sky at Night.

 

Phew! A lot of things to keep us all busy. That’s it for this month's What’s Up, happy stargazing!

 

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In this month's What’s Up, astronomer Rosie talks us through March’s highlights.
I don’t know about you, but I’m sure glad to see the first daffodils growing. It was a long winter! Spring and sunshine are creeping in and it turns out, March is jam packed with celestial and astronomical events! Let’s dive in.

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stdClass Object ( [id] => 434 [title] => AAA: What’s a Planetary Parade? [alias] => aaa-what-s-a-planetary-parade [introtext] =>

You’ve likely come across news articles or headlines about a planetary parade happening in the sky recently. In this article, astronomer Rosie Braunholtz explains what makes a planetary parade special and how you can catch a glimpse of it.

[fulltext] =>

 AAA: What’s a Planetary Parade?

Summary: A planetary parade refers to a rare event when several planets appear in the same region of the sky. While “planetary alignment” is often the word used to describe this phenomenon, it doesn’t mean the planets are all going to be in one straight line in space. This would be near impossible because of all the different orbital speeds and angles of the planets (seeing all the planets line up in the sky within 1 degree of each other would occur once every 13.4 trillion years). Instead, it means that the planets are aligned in the same half of the sky. This is very exciting because although it’s not extremely rare, the planets being on the same side of the Sun is a pretty special occasion. It means we can see multiple planets at the same time. The current event features four bright planets, with five being visible by the end of February—Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn— which hasn’t occurred since 2022 and won’t happen again until 2028. Neptune and Uranus are also visible, but only to those with a telescope.

On most nights, if the weather is clear, at least one bright planet is visible in the sky. It’s fairly common even to see two planets, but occasionally three or more can be seen with the naked eye. So while “planetary parades” aren't extremely rare, they don't occur every year, making them worth watching when they do happen.

Image: Picture of the planetary parade taken by Dan Monk in January 2025. This is a 12 shot panorama that spans roughly 180° side to side.

 

What is a planetary parade?

Parade, alignment, conjunction, super conjunction, opposition, syzygy!?? Do they mean the same thing??

You’ve probably been hearing many people and articles call this an alignment, which gives the impression that the planets will all be lined up in space as though we can stick a long rod straight through the middle of all of them. This isn’t the case however!

The planets are all orbiting the Sun in a roughly flat disk. And so, randomly in their orbits, you sometimes get a few that line up together which we can see from Earth. However all the planets are going at different speeds which makes this not very common, additionally the orbits are tilted to different degrees relative to the Sun’s equator, which makes a “perfect” straight line virtually impossible!

Even though we’ll never see all the planets line up perfectly in space, we do occasionally see a few planets and objects near each other in the sky from our perspective. When we get space objects appearing close together from our point of view we call it a conjunction. 

 

 

 

Image left: Diagram of a conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn. From our perspective, these two planets are very close together in the sky. In reality Saturn is much further away than Jupiter. Credit: The Planetary Society

 

 

 

 

 

 

Image right: Here’s a beautiful picture of the Moon (380 thousand kilometres away), Venus (170 million kilometres) and Jupiter (800 million kilometres) appearing close together in the sky. Taken by our astrophotographer Dan Monk

 

 

 

 

 

So... what’s happening right now?

What we have happening right now is a sort of conjunction of the planets, or alignment - depending on how generous you’re feeling. The planets aren’t exactly very close together in the sky from our perspective, or in a perfect alignment in space. BUT! they are in the same general region in the sky, which doesn’t happen too often.

Image: Our solar system on the 10th of February. You can see that the planets are pretty much all on one side of the Sun. Credit: ThePlanetsToday.com

 

As you can see from the picture above, the Sun’s children are gathered mostly to one side. Meaning we can see almost all our brothers and sisters at once! Because the solar system is a flat-ish disk, at sunset they all appear one after the other in a pretty line. That’s why “planetary parade” is a wonderful phrase, even though it’s not a scientific term in astronomy.

 

How rare are they?

 

Image: All 8 planets in a perfect line! This is not the ”alignment” we’re seeing now. The actual term for when space objects lineup is a syzygy. Which is a very fun word to say.  The chances of an event like this happening with all the planets is zero, due to all the different orbits and angles of the planets. Credit: StarWalk

 

Having the planets appear in one half of the sky is a special occasion. The last similar parade occurred in 2022, but this winter's event includes even more! At the end of February, we’ll have the chance to catch all 5 bright planets: Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn. Which doesn’t come around too often. The next one like this will occur in October 2028!

If we wanted to see the planets even closer together that would be a much rarer event. Even a loose grouping in one quadrant (90-degree sector) is rare, happening just seven times in the current millennium.

If we wanted to see all 7 other planets line up in the sky within 1 degree of each other, the probability would be about once every 13.4 trillion years. In comparison the Universe is 13.8 billion years old. So, we’d be waiting a good while. The movies make it seem like such a common occurrence, eh?

 

How can I see it?

When trying to find planets in the night sky, the best thing to do is look for the brightest stars in the sky that aren’t twinkling and seem to all be following each other in a line.

The planets move slowly around the Sun, so there’s usually a period of at least a few days if not a few weeks to see the parade. As for right now, Venus, Saturn, Jupiter and Mars have been visible since the end of December, and will continue to be visible for a couple weeks (unless you have a telescope, Uranus and Neptune won’t be visible).  

 

Specifically for this February there will be a small window to see all 5 bright planets at once! If you’d like to play planetary bingo with the big 5, here’s what you will have to do.

In the last week of February (from the 22nd – 25th) head outside shortly after sunset, towards the south-west you will see an extremely bright object (the brightest thing in the sky). That’s Venus! Absolutely gorgeous and the brightest planet. Use it as your beacon.

Below Venus, close to the horizon will be Saturn. It will look much dimmer compared to Venus and will be the trickiest planet to see. Saturn is the faintest visible planet, and as the month goes on it will get closer to the Sun and become hard to see against the brightening twilight sky.

 

Mercury is here to rescue us however! Mercury is a very bright planet and will be visible for about an hour after sunset during this time (look very close to the horizon near the Sun). On the 24^th of February, it will be in conjunction with Saturn! Giving you a nice bright target to find first, to then jump to the dimmer Saturn next to it – though you still may need some binoculars to find it.

 

Following the line that goes from Venus, continue up until you see Jupiter, high up and towards the south in the constellation of Taurus. It will be very bright. If you’re struggling to find it, find the constellation of Orion, and then follow the belt up to the right.

 

Then the last planet in the parade is Mars, it will be a bit beyond Orion’s left shoulder and be glowing a lovely yellow.

 

And BINGO! You have all the bright planets. I’d highly recommend downloading a stargazing app such as Stellarium to navigate the sky and see how the planets move each night.

Image: Five planets all at once! This is a visulisation of what the sky will look like on the 23rd of February at 18:30 UTC. Credit: Stellarium

 

Will more be happening in the future?

Other recent and near-future multi-planet viewing opportunities (not including Uranus and Neptune):

•            January 2016 – Four planets visible at once before sunrise

•            Late April to Late August 2022 – Four planets visible at once before sunrise

•            Mid-June to Early July 2022 – Five planets visible at once before sunrise

•            January to mid-February 2025 – Four planets visible at once after sunset

•            Late August 2025 – Four planets visible at once before sunrise

•            Late October 2028 – Five planets visible at once before sunrise

•            Late February 2034 – Five planets visible at once after sunset (Venus and Mercury challenging to observe)

 

References:

Have all 8 planets ever aligned? | Live Science
Planetary parade February 2025: When, where and how to see it | Space

 

 

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You’ve likely come across news articles or headlines about a planetary parade happening in the sky recently. In this article, astronomer Rosie Braunholtz explains what makes a planetary parade special and how you can catch a glimpse of it.

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stdClass Object ( [id] => 433 [title] => AAA- What is a constellation? [alias] => aaa-what-is-a-constellation [introtext] =>

Welcome to our “Ask An Astronomer” series where we answer the questions we regularly receive from members of the public during events and online. In this article our astronomer Ellie will be answering the question “What is a constellation?”.

[fulltext] =>

 

So, what is a constellation?

 

Quick Answer...

A constellation is an apparent pattern of stars seen in the night sky. Different cultures have been dividing the sky up for as long as we have written records, starting in ancient Mesopotamia. As a result, there is a rich diversity in cultural views of the night sky, from lunar to solar systems based around the ecliptic as favoured in Europe and Asia, to systems based entirely around the Milky Way with constellations made from cosmic dust as in Andean astronomy. Since 1930 the International Astronomy Union has recognised 88 constellations which divide the sky. As well as formal constellations there are informal asterisms such as the Plough and the summer and winter triangles. These are most often used by amateur astronomers to navigate around the sky and to indicate the seasons.

 

Long Answer...

It’s easy to feel small when you stargaze, simply imagine the thousands of stars in your sky in their proper homes trillions of miles away, distant neighbours sending you messages in the form of light, messages that take sometimes millennia to arrive. It’s easy to become overwhelmed too, we’ve all been there. When faced with something so immense, I think it is the most human thing in the world to make patterns to try and break it all up- this is what constellations do.

A constellation is an apparent pattern of stars in the sky. These patterns are created by joining together the stars like a cosmic dot-to-dot until they resemble some such thing as a dog, or a bear, or a tragic heroine chained to a rock and left as a sacrifice to some sea monster, or some hair. Some resemble themselves better than others.

The practise of creating constellations is an old one with the earliest star lists coming from Babylon around the 12^th Century BC. Some constellations still in use today can be traced back to these star lists, for example Taurus and Gemini. Initially, the purpose of these constellations may have been to act as a calendar, there exists examples of Babylonian planispheres showing the sky divided into 12 equal portions, each associated with a constellation. In time we know the sky acquired a more divine association as planets were named for important gods and goddesses, and stories began to appear to explain how the constellations came to be in the sky. The earliest example we have of star lore in this sense is the story of the Great Bull of the Heavens from the Epic of Gilgamesh.

 

Cuneiform planisphere and recreation

 

Babylonian astronomy spread to Egypt and from there it spread to Greece. In the 2^nd century AD Claudius Ptolemy, an astronomer and mathematician from Alexandria, wrote the Almagest, a mathematical treatise about the motions of stars and planets, and a summary of Greek astronomical knowledge. In this he listed 48 constellations and defined their figures for generations to come.

 

Ptolemy’s 48 constellations from the Almagest

Across the world, different constellation systems have been developed though. In China, for example, by the 13^th century their view of the sky had developed to include 283 constellations. Astronomers here divided the sky into 4 sections called Azure Dragon, Black Tortoise, White Tiger, and Vermilion Bird. Each of these sections was further divided into 7 mansions along the ecliptic to give 28 mansions in total, these correspond to the motion of the Moon through the lunar month. The sky was also divided into the Purple Forbidden enclosure, the Heavenly Market enclosure, and the Supreme Palace enclosure.

Whilst European and Asian systems were generally centred around the ecliptic, the plane of the solar system and therefore the path the sun, moon, and planets will take through the sky, when the Spanish arrived in America, they were surprised to find the Inca with a view of the sky that focussed on the Milky Way instead. Inca astronomers divided the sky into 4 quadrants based on the rotation of the Milky Way overhead over a 24-hour period. In this sky they had 2 kinds of constellation, one being the familiar dot-to-dot of stars, but the other being dark constellations made using the dark dusty regions in the plane of the Milky Way.

As the world became more interconnected, and astronomers more taken to collaborate across continents, these different systems came into conflict. To further complicate things, it became rather trendy amongst European Astronomers to “find” new constellations to dedicate them to some important patron. By the 19^th Century, the sky was getting just a bit crowded, and there were some disagreements over names and exact boundaries. To try and resolve some of these issues, the International Astronomical Union stepped in. In the first IAU general assembly, held in Rome in 1922, they set about to determining an internationally agreed upon set of constellations. The Commission on Notations and Units agreed on a list of 88 constellations across the whole sky, and they set about agreeing on the boundaries. By 1928 the boundaries as we know them today were approved, and in 1930 they were published to the wider world.

Northern and Southern celestial hemispheres with constellations. Image: Roberto Mura

 

The 88 constellations in the IAU list do have a significant bias towards the “Greco-Roman” tradition, you won’t find any Chinese or Inca constellations on the list for example, but I think that this can broadly be explained by the state of the IAU in 1922. As the first general assembly ended there were 19 member nations: Belgium, Canada, France, Great Britain, Greece, Japan, USA, Italy, Mexico, Australia, Brazil, Czechoslovakia, Denmark, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Romania, South Africa, and Spain. Within academic circles in these countries, it was likely that Greco-Roman constellations were already the established norm, the activity of formalising this was mostly about removing some of the more modern constellations.

With the existence of “formal” constellations, that does now open the sky up to informal constellations a.k.a. asterisms. Anyone can make an asterism; it is simply any pattern of any stars not recognised by the IAU. Some asterisms really take off too- look at the Plough/the Big Dipper! Consisting of just the back portion of the IAU accredited Ursa Major, the Plough is a handy asterism for finding the North Star. You simply start on the curved handle and follow the seven stars around, using the last two to create a line that you follow up across the sky until you hit Polaris, the North Star. Astronomers are also fond of using the summer and winter triangles as indicators of the observing season, harkening back to the ancient tradition of using the sky as a calendar.

So what is a constellation? Whatever you want it to be. The IAU might disagree with you, but as long as you call it an asterism, you’re covered.

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Welcome to our “Ask An Astronomer” series where we answer the questions we regularly receive from members of the public during events and online. In this article our astronomer Ellie will be answering the question “What is a constellation?”.

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stdClass Object ( [id] => 432 [title] => What’s Up? February 2025 [alias] => what-s-up-february-2025 [introtext] =>

It’s the shortest month of the year, but there’s still lots to see in the sky! From planetary parades to particularly bright stars, in this edition of What’s Up? we’ll be taking you through all the best things to see this month.

[fulltext] =>

 

Constellations

This month Orion will continue to loom large over the southern horizon, but he’s not alone there. This month, why not try to spot some of the smaller constellations like Canis Major and Lepus? To find Canis Major you would be best looking for its brightest star – Sirius (also our object of the month!). Sirius is the brightest star in the sky, so finding it should be fairly easy, but if you want to be 100% certain that you have it you can use Orion’s belt as a guide.

Orion’s belt consists of 3 stars – Mintaka, Alnilam, and Alnitak. To find Sirius you want to draw a line from Mintaka on the right to Alnitak on the left and then continue it down to the brightest star you can see. Canis Major is supposed to resemble a dog, and it certainly does that very well. There is a distinct head, body, legs, and tail. In fact, the elongated body makes it look very specifically like a dachshund! 

 

How to find Sirius and Canis Major using Orion. Credit: Stellarium

Finding Lepus, the rabbit, can be a bit trickier as there isn’t a particularly notable star to aim for, but it is directly below Orion and its two brightest stars, Arneb and Nihal, will look similar to Orion’s bottom left star Saiph.

Also returning to our skies this month is Leo the Lion! This large constellation will be rising out of the eastern horizon as it gets dark and to spot it you can look for the distinctive “backwards question mark” of the Lion’s mane. You’ll be hearing a lot more about Leo from us as it rises higher in the sky towards Spring.

 

Leo rising in the eastern sky. Credit: Stellarium

 

Object of the Month – Sirius

Usually we like to focus on objects like galaxies, clusters, and nebulas for this section, but this month I want to pay special attention to just one star. Or technically two I suppose.

As previously mentioned, Sirius is the brightest star in the sky and it can be easily located using Orion’s belt. We only have Sirius in our sky for a small portion of the year as it is part of the Southern Celestial Hemisphere. To the naked eye Sirius will appear to shimmer and twinkle in the night sky, an effect which is magnified when seen through a pair of binoculars or a telescope. This twinkling is caused by our atmosphere because as the starlight passes through it, it is distorted. Low down, there is more atmosphere for the light to pass through so the effect is greater than when a star is directly above you.

 

Sirius through a telescope appears to “flash” different colours as you watch it.

Sirius is approximately 8.6 light years away from us making it one of the closest stars you can see in the sky, and this is one reason why it is so bright. The other reason is simply that it is intrinsically bright being around 25 times more luminous than our Sun. Sirius is also a binary star with Sirius A being the brighter and Sirius B a smaller white dwarf star.

This is the one time we would recommend you look at an object out of focus. While beautiful to see normally, when you unfocus your view of Sirius it begins to look like a sparkler with different colours shooting off in all directions.

 

“Planetary Parade” 

In January we saw the start of the “planetary parade”, an alignment of the solar system planets that allowed us to see the big 4 (Venus, Saturn, Jupiter, and Mars) stretching across the sky at the same time, with Uranus and Neptune also joining in the fun for those with telescopes. There is still time to see the planets this month, and Mercury will be saying hello!

Mercury spent January on the other side of the Sun from the rest of the solar system, meaning it set before the Sun did. This month it is coming to the dark side and so you are in with a chance of seeing 5 planets with the naked eye stretching across the sky from east to west. For the best chance of seeing it, you will want to find somewhere with low horizons because as the Sun sets both Saturn and Mercury will be very low in the sky. Uranus and Neptune will continue to only be visible to those with telescopes and dark skies.

 

Mercury, Saturn, Venus, Jupiter, and Mars in alignment on the 23^rd February 2025. Credit: Stellarium

 

The Moon Phases

First Quarter: 5^th February

Full Moon: 12^th February

Third Quarter: 20^th February

New Moon: 28^th February

 

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It’s the shortest month of the year, but there’s still lots to see in the sky! From planetary parades to particularly bright stars, in this edition of What’s Up? we’ll be taking you through all the best things to see this month.

)

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stdClass Object ( [id] => 427 [title] => What's Up? January 2025 [alias] => what-s-up-january-2025 [introtext] =>

Happy New year to one and all! It’s 2025 and to kick things off, January is a fantastic time of year for observing our night skies. Remember to wrap up warm though, as well as being one of the darkest months, it’s also one of the coldest! Brrrrrrr.

[fulltext] =>

 

Constellations

The magnificent constellation of Orion continues to dominate the south facing sky this month. Although only the 26^th largest constellation (there are 88 of them visible from around the world), it is certainly one of the most recognizable due to the 3 bright stars in a line forming “Orion’s belt”. It’s amazing when you realize that the middle star of the “belt” (Alnilam) is more than twice as far away from us as the star on the left (Alnitak)! This is a very good example of how stars may look the same brightness but one may be so much brighter but much further away than the other! The famous Orion Nebulae (M42) can be seen below the belt as the middle “star” in Orion’s sword and is the closest star forming region to us located some 1500 light-years away. It can be seen with the naked eye but looks great through binoculars or a small telescope.

Image credit: Stellarium.org

 

Up to the top left of Orion is the zodiacal constellation of Gemini, which is the Latin word for twins. It looks like 2 “stick” people holding hands and represents the twins Castor and Pollux. In Greek mythology, the twins were the sons of Leda, but they had different fathers. Castor’s father was Tyndareus, king of Sparta. Pollux’s father was none other than Zeus. The legend goes Castor’s cousins killed him while Pollux was an immortal demigod. Zues offered Pollux the choice of becoming immortal like his brother, and the 2 were forever cast into the sky. The constellation is dominated by its 2 main stars, aptly named Castor and Pollux. Castor is the fainter of the 2 and is nearly twice as far away from us as Pollux.

Image credit: Stellarium.org

 

Object of the month: Mars

This January is a great month for observing the “red” planet as Mars lies in the opposite direction to the Sun in the sky on the 16^th, making it closer, brighter and larger than at other times. It is also optimally positioned to be observable for much of the night. Look for the copper colored (not red!) bright object in the sky within the constellation of Gemini which is mentioned above in the Constellations section. Of course, Mars is the only planet we currently know of in the Universe that is entirely inhabited by robots!

Image credit: in-the-sky.org

 

Meteor Shower

3/4 January: Quadrantid meteor shower peak

The only meteor shower in January is the Quadrantids which peaks on the 4^th in the very early hours. With no Moon in the sky at that time to spoil the view, there could be as many as 120 meteors per hour making it one of the best showers of the year. The meteors normally appear bluish or yellowish-white in colour with fine tails. Don’t forget to make a wish!

 

The Moon and Planets

4^th January: Evening lunar occultation of Saturn

6^th January: First Quarter

10^th January: Venus at greatest eastern elongation (47.2o from the Sun; evening)

13^th January: Full Moon

16^th January: Mars reaches opposition

18^th January: Venus 2.2° north of Saturn (evening)

21^st January: Last Quarter

29^th January: New Moon

 

 

Wishing you all a Happy New Year and clear skies!

 

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Happy New year to one and all! It’s 2025 and to kick things off, January is a fantastic time of year for observing our night skies. Remember to wrap up warm though, as well as being one of the darkest months, it’s also one of the coldest! Brrrrrrr.

)

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stdClass Object ( [id] => 410 [title] => National volunteer award for inspirational Hamish [alias] => national-volunteer-award-for-inspirational-hamish [introtext] =>

A volunteer who credits the charity where he works for saving his life and bringing him joy has been honoured with a national award.

[fulltext] =>

 

Hamish Newhouse, 44, was presented with a Volunteer Award from The Marsh Trust and ASDC (Association for Science and Discovery Centres) at a ceremony at The Royal Society in London in recognition of his work at Kielder Observatory.

The self-confessed ‘space geek’ began volunteering at the observatory three years ago after his wife gifted him a stargazing experience for his birthday. He loved it so much he continued making the 4.5-hour round trip from his home in Northallerton, North Yorkshire, to its base in the beautiful Kielder Forest, Northumberland, every month.

His volunteer work proved to be a lifesaver when his mental health took a dark turn after he was forced to close his 15-year-old veterinary supplies business a year ago, which had never fully recovered from the impact of the Covid lockdowns.

“It came to a point last Christmas when I’d had enough of life, and I made steps to end it,” he recalled. “I never thought when I started volunteering that literally three years later it would save me.

 

“The people at Kielder Observatory just wrapped their arms around me and gave me a huge opportunity to rediscover joy in my life. They would give me opportunities to try new things, such as talking to people at the West End Refugee Service about space and the universe. It was a humbling experience working.

“It takes well over two hours to drive up to Northumberland, but the drive in itself is beautiful, and the observatory is such a magical place to be. It has fast become my happy place. On a dark clear night, when our universe is visible, there isn’t a place like it. Add this to the passion, knowledge and friendliness of the staff and other volunteers, and it is a truly inspirational organisation.”

It was the team at Kielder who put Hamish forward for his award, which celebrates inspiring examples of volunteer contributions and impact within the science centre and museum sector.

Dan Monk, Director of Astrophotography at Kielder and Volunteer Lead, said: “Hamish is a fantastic volunteer whose enthusiasm is a real asset to our events. His passion for astronomy always comes through to our guests and the team love having him around. He is a positive influence on us all and has even mastered our secret hot chocolate recipe. His commitment to the observatory epitomises what we’re all about - making astronomy accessible to all.”

Leigh Venus, CEO of Kielder Observatory, said: “Hamish's story is a powerful reminder of the life-changing impact of volunteering and the unique sense of community we foster at Kielder Observatory. His courage in sharing his journey highlights the importance of supporting mental health and creating spaces where people can find purpose and joy. We are incredibly grateful for Hamish and all our volunteers, whose passion and dedication inspire others and make our mission possible.”

Shaaron Leverment, Chief Executive, Association for Science and Discovery Centres, said: “This is our third year running the volunteer awards supported by The Marsh Trust, and each year we’re privileged to shine a spotlight on the heart-warming stories of the volunteers who give their time and dedication to the UK’s science and discovery centres. On behalf of the ASDC team, I’d like to say thank you to Hamish for his honesty and bravery in sharing how his role as a volunteer at Kielder Observatory saved him, inspiring others to give it a go - and find a way forward through by doing what you love.”

 

Hamish, who now works as a contractor escort for the Ministry of Justice in Stockton, added: “Twelve months ago if you’d said I’d be getting an award, I wouldn’t have thought it was possible. It’s been such an honour. I’m so delighted.

“I would say to anyone thinking of volunteering, do it! If you love astronomy, space, late nights and coffee then definitely join our volunteer team. It is so rewarding.”

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A volunteer who credits the charity where he works for saving his life and bringing him joy has been honoured with a national award.

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stdClass Object ( [id] => 409 [title] => What's Up? December 2024 [alias] => what-s-up-december-2025 [introtext] =>

Ho Ho Ho! The festive season is already upon us! How has this happened again. Blink and the year is practically gone! In this edition of What’s Up, we’re going to be showing you all the interesting objects in the night sky you can look at during the month of December, taking you through to the New Year.

[fulltext] =>

Festive Constellations

 

During the holidays hopefully you’ll have more time to look outside and see our old favourites again.

At this time of year, the hunter Orion, is well and truly back in our skies!

Orion is one of the most recognizable constellations across the world. In Greek mythology, Orion is known as a hunter, holding a shield in one hand and a sword in the other. In the northern hemisphere, his appearance signals the arrival of colder weather.

If you take the belt of Orion (which are the three stars in the middle) and follow them towards the right, it leads you to a very bright amber star by the name of Aldebaran. It is known as the eye of the bull, as it’s situated within the constellation of Taurus. The star is a red giant, which causes it’s gorgeous golden colour. This means it’s running out of fuel in the core of our star, and therefore is much cooler and redder than our Sun.

To the right of Aldebaran, but still within Taurus, is another famous object in the night sky, the Pleiades. They are also known as the seven sisters, as you can count about 7 stars located together in a small cluster. This cluster looks like a little fuzzy patch, but go somewhere dark and let you eyes adjust, you should be able to count them all. Look though a pair of binoculars or telescope, and you can see many more stars within the cluster!

Image: Winter Sky at Kielder Observatory showing Orion, Aldebaran and the Pleiades

 

Object of the month: The Double Cluster in Perseus

 

Image: The Double Cluster in Perseus. Credit: Roth Ritter, Dark Atmospheres Astrophotography

 

The deep sky object in this month's What’s Up is one of our favourites here at the observatory. It is best seen with a pair of binoculars or a small telescope.

If you find the constellation of Cassiopeia, towards the bottom left of the “W” is Perseus, the hero who saved her daughter. Just in between these two constellations are a double cluster of stars creatively named “The Double Cluster in Perseus”. This is probably the best time of year to see the double Cluster in Perseus with the naked eye as it’s very high up. It will look like a faint fuzzy patch.

This fuzzy smudge in the sky has been seen for millennia on dark nights. The Greeks noted a “light” in Perseus in around 150 BCE. However, it wasn’t until the invention of the telescope that we discovered it’s actually two groups of stars that appear to be side by side. If you have a small telescope or binoculars at home, this is a great object to try and spot. Both clusters sit around 7500 light years away (about 400ly away from each other) and are only 13 million years old, which is very, very young for stars! The cluster is dominated by a few hundred baby stars shining a bright blue, however there are already one or two stars growing a few metaphorical grey hairs and turning orange.

Meteor Showers!

 

Image: Geminid Shower at Sycamore Gap. Credit: Dan Monk

 

The Geminid Meteor shower is back! This is one of the most active and beautiful meteor showers of the year. At its peak and can rain up to 100 shooting stars an hour! The whole shower will be active from the 5^th and 20^th of December, but the peak will be on the 13^th/14^th of December. Sadly, this year that falls right about when the full moon is here. The full moon provides a lot of light pollution so we might not see tons of shooting stars, but we should still see a few. They will be radiating from the constellation Gemini but you will see them across the whole sky.

We have one more meteor shower this month called the Ursid meteor shower! This is a relatively lower active meteor shower but we should hopefully still see some shooting stars. This year it also falls at a time when there’s less than a half moon and it won’t be rising until about 2am. The peak of the Ursids is on the 23^rd of December, so fingers crossed for clear skies!

 

Winter Solstice

The shortest day of the year (in the Northern Hemisphere) is on the 21^st of December. There will only be around 7 hours and 40 minutes of daylight in Northumberland! The reason it’s the shortest day is because the Earth’s North Pole is being tilted the farthest away from the Sun, and the Sun’s rays are shining on the Southern Hemisphere. 

Image: The tilted Earth orbiting the Sun causes solstices. Credit: timeanddate.com

 

The word “solstice” is named after the Latin words “sol” and “sister”, which mean “sun” and “to stand”. Referring to the way the Sun appears to stand still and then slowly return to either the north or south.

Around the world different cultures have many different ways they celebrate this time of year. The Pagan celebration of Yule dates back millennia. Many modern Christian traditions originate from Celtic and Druid customs for the winter solstice, such as decorating with evergreen plants like holly, ivy and mistletoe, burning yule logs and making wreaths.

In China, people celebrate with food which symbolises reunion and harmony - dumplings and rice flour balls. In Japan they celebrate by taking a hot citrus bath for healing and good luck!

Some Middle Eastern communities celebrate the winter solstice as “Yalda Night”. It involves families coming together to eat, recite poetry, and serve foods that symbolise abundance, such as pomegranates.

In the UK people still gather at the ancient Stonehenge for a druid and pagan ceremony. Some stay all night with food, blankets and instruments, playing music and telling stories. 

Image: Winter Solstice at Stonehenge. Credit: GettyImages

 

The Moon and Planets

Saturn, Jupiter and Mars are all visible by eye this month. Uranus and Neptune also if you have a telescope!

New Moon: 1 December

First Quarter: 8 December

Full Moon: 15 December

Last Quarter: 22 December

New Moon: 30 December

 

Happy Stargazing! See you all in the New Year!     

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Ho Ho Ho! The festive season is already upon us! How has this happened again. Blink and the year is practically gone! In this edition of What’s Up, we’re going to be showing you all the interesting objects in the night sky you can look at during the month of December, taking you through to the New Year.

)

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stdClass Object ( [id] => 407 [title] => The Secret Life of Nebula [alias] => the-secret-life-of-nebula [introtext] =>

Robert Williams, President of Huddersfield Astronomy Society, is exploiring nebula in this mini series. In part 1 he takes a closer look at Messier 42, the Great Nebula of Orion.

[fulltext] =>

 

The Orion Nebula, also known to Amateur Astronomers as Messier 42, is one of the best-known fuzzy blobs in the night sky. Its location, close to the celestial equator, means that it can be viewed, at some time of the years, from almost every inhabited location on Earth. Because of this, it is right of passage for any budding stargazer, to view, and then image this amazing structure, which is located in our, relatively close, starry neighbourhood.

 

Messier 42 – Imaged from Norfolk in 2021, during a photographic Aurora. Credit: Robert Williams

 

Messier 42 has been known about for longer than the telescope has been used and has been recorded by many civilisations in numerous ways. Most viewers of this misty patch in the sky, widely known as the middle of the Sword of Orion, see the 4 or 5 stars depending upon their location. From a very dark site, such as Kielder Forest and other registered Dark Sky Discovery Sites, it is possible to see that the 4 or more stars that make up the centre of the Nebula, more usually known as the Trapezium Cluster, are surrounded by a cloud of glowing gas (Messier 42) which itself is embedded within a much larger structure. This larger structure is the front-side edge of a huge dusty cloud - an enormous, but very cold bubble of dust and gas, known as the Orion Molecular Cloud.

The Orion Molecular Cloud stretches right across the entire constellation of Orion and is split up into individual structures, each of which were responsible for the construction of the Orion nebula alongside the  Flame Nebula and9 Horsehead Nebula near the star Zeta Orionis [Alnitak, LHS Star of Orion's Belt] and Messier 78 NE of Alnitak), as well as many of the less well known structures residing in Orion and neighbouring constellations.

 

 IC405 - The Flaming Star Nebula - imaged from Norfolk in 2023. Credit: Robert Williams

 

What is less-well known is that the Orion nebula is missing at least 2 stars.

In the constellation of Auriga, resides another Nebula – the Flaming Star Nebula. As its name suggests this nebula is being created by a star in the 'fast lane' - AE Aurigae. Scientists have discovered that around 5 million years ago, AE Aurigae was originally born within and, at the same time as the stars, of the Trapezium Cluster.

 

Star-chart showing the juxtaposition of Messier 42, IC 405 and Mu Columbae in the sky. Star-chart created in Carte du Ciel [SkyCharts]

 

Additionally, another star, Mu Columbae, in the constellation of Columbae the Dove (which is in the far south of the sky and not visible from Kielder), was also ejected from the Trapezium at around the same time.  Furthermore, another star in the constellation of Leo may also have been ejected, but the evidence for this is less certain. Both AE Aurigae and Mu Columbae have similar stellar properties (Mass, type, temperature, age) to the stars of the trapezium Cluster.

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Robert Williams, President of Huddersfield Astronomy Society, is exploiring nebula in this mini series. In part 1 he takes a closer look at Messier 42, the Great Nebula of Orion.

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stdClass Object ( [id] => 406 [title] => Sustainability in Space [alias] => sustainability-in-space [introtext] =>

Rosie Braunholtz follows her 'Why Space?' article with this dive into the world of space sustsainability.

[fulltext] =>

 

Introduction

Last month, space organizations from around the world gathered in Milan for the 2024 International Astronautical Congress (IAC)!

That is great timing as our previous article, “Why Space?,  recently covered the basics on the space industry. Today’s article delves into the pressing issue of Space Sustainability. What happens to the thousands of satellites we send up there once they’re no longer in use? And what about the silent, defunct rovers on Mars?

This year the IAC's theme is “Responsible Space for Sustainability,”, and these questions were at the forefront. Global leaders discussed how we can keep our goals for landing  humans on the Moon and Mars insight, while thinking about future generations and keeping our home, the Earth, safe.

The Congress brought together over 11,000 attendees, including space agency representatives, people in industry, scientists, and students, all focused on advancing sustainable exploration. Here we discuss some of the highlights of the whole week.

 

Orbital Debris and Low-Earth Orbit Sustainability

Image: Space Debris around Earth. Credit: ESA

 

One of the biggest concerns in space sustainability is space debris. Space debris is essentially human-made waste left in orbit around Earth. It includes defunct satellites, left over bits of rockets, fragments from collisions, and discarded tools or parts from human missions. The reason there is so much is due to people not having any plan for what to do with their leftover “junk” after the mission has been completed. Many satellites in the past being launched with no thought for what to do when they reach the end of their operational life. Leaving many dead satellites roaming around Earth’s orbit indefinitely. There are currently 3,356 inactive satellites orbiting Earth, representing 12.4% of all satellites in space. Occasionally collisions can happen in orbit due to the clutter (satellites orbit at very high speeds), and explosions can occur due to remaining fuel in dead satellites.

Obviously satellites are very important for climate change, global communications, weather, navigation and much more. But even the “alive” satellites orbits are getting a little bit crowded. Active satellites are having to perform an increasing number of collision avoidance maneuvers to dodge other satellites and debris and avoid being smashed into smithereens. All of this is becoming an increasing worry. If we continue in this way, it will soon start to become unsafe to launch astronaut missions, and certain orbits for satellites will be unusable, due to such limited (ironically) space.

 

 Image: The future number catastrophic collisions in Earth orbit, extrapolated based on a continuation of current behaviour and in the hypothetical event that there were no new launches as of 2024. Credit:ESA

 

To address this, several agencies are setting new standards: for example, recent FCC regulations in the United States propose that dead satellites must de-orbit after five years post-mission. At the IAC, ESA and NASA shared plans for even stricter rules, as congestion in low-Earth orbit (LEO) has a huge risk to both current and future missions for both these space agencies.

A standout initiative at the IAC was ESA’s Zero Debris Charter, which aims to slow down the creation of new debris and advance technology which removes old debris. Many countries signed the initiative, from New Zealand to Mexico, and the Charter is quickly gaining traction. Over 100 organizations and 15 countries have endorsed this ambitious plan, and it marks a significant step toward a safer, more sustainable space environment.

 

Image: Signing of the Zero Debris Charter

 

Emerging Industry Solutions for Space Debris Management

While governments and big space agencies like ESA are working at a policy level, private companies are also trying to find solutions for managing the debris. Companies like Astroscale, ClearSpace, Northrop Grumman, and ALE Co. are actively developing technology to capture and remove space junk. Astroscale has made leaps in making technology that removes old satellites from orbit, while ClearSpace is under contract with ESA to remove specific debris. Northrop Grumman’s has developed a satellite service that extends the lifespan of satellites, reducing the need for replacements. Together, these companies are helping to build an industry around orbital maintenance and sustainability.

 

Image: Astroscale’s Space Debris removal. Astroscale has several missions designed to either extend a satellite’s life or safely remove the defunct satellite from orbit, by capturing it and then lowering it down into Earth’s atmosphere where it will safely burn up on re-entry.

 

Innovations in Sustainable Space Exploration

As well as sustainability around Earth’s orbit, there were lots of discussions about further exploration in space. Humans are trying to go to the Moon again, and soon. But the question is, how to do it ethically and sustainably?

The Artemis Accords are a set of international agreements led by NASA and supported by a few nations committed to sustainable lunar exploration. They layout rules for using resources responsibly, peaceful cooperation, and transparency. In their own words they are “Principles for a Safe, Peaceful, and Prosperous Future in Space”.  Some key principles include assisting other nations in getting to space, responsibly managing debris, and sharing scientific data. The aim is to make sure humanity’s return to the Moon (and in the future, Mars) runs as smoothly as possible.

Both Japan and the UAE renewed their commitment at the 2024 IAC as well as others.  This is significant as the Japanese space agency JAXA and the UAE are both planning for future lunar and asteroid exploration. Presentations from NASA, ESA, and other agencies also highlighted upcoming missions, space station projects, and interplanetary endeavors, all oriented around long-term sustainability.

The Artemis Accords hope to ensure that as humanity establishes a presence on the moon, activities are transparent and cooperative.

 

Image: Representatives of the Artemis Accords signatories, including NASA leadership, met Oct. 14, 2024, for a principals meeting in Milan, during the International Astronautical Congress. With 42 of 45 signatories participating in the event, established and emerging spacefaring nations from every region of the world were represented. Credit: UAE Space Agency

 

Public Engagement and Education on Space Sustainability

There were also many exhibits at the congress in Milan, featuring the many different ways the space industry helps us with climate change, by using satellites for Earth observation. Earth observation is extremely important for tackling climate change as stated in our previous article “Why Space?”, and having the public understand and supporting this is essential to sustainable space efforts.

One of the travelling exhibitions attending the congress was Space for Our Planet. This fantastic exhibit showcased testimonials from global experts—including climate scientists, artists, doctors, and astronauts—and highlighted how space technology benefits life on Earth.

The testimonials include audio interviews, images and text.  In total 35 'agents of change' shared their experiences on how space is providing a solution to achieve the United Nations' 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Through these exhibits, the public learns about the way space science helps and informs environmental management on Earth.

 

Image: Algal Bloom swirls, Baltic Sea, Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission, Plankton has a major influence on the amount of carbon in the atmosphere and are sensitive to environmental changes. Satellites are able to monitor them for future climate change models. Credit ESA

 

Conclusion

The 2024 IAC successfully brought together people from all around the world to address one of the most important issues facing space exploration today: sustainability! They addressed many different topics from changing important space policy to advancing debris-removal technologies, and lastly the conference highlighted how important working together on shared commitments is to achieving our sustainable goals.

 

Author: Rosie Braunholtz

 

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Rosie Braunholtz follows her 'Why Space?' article with this dive into the world of space sustsainability.

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stdClass Object ( [id] => 403 [title] => What's Up? November 2024 [alias] => what-s-up-november-2024 [introtext] =>

 With the onset of Winter, the smell of fireworks in the air and with the clocks having gone back at the end of October, November offers us great dark skies. It is truly a brilliant time of year for stargazing.

[fulltext] =>

 

Constellations

As mentioned last month, Cassiopeia remains very close to the Zenith (the point directly above your head) but November sees the magnificent constellation of Orion viable in the east nearer the end of the month at around 9pm. This constellation is magnificent and a sure sign that Winter is on the way! There are many treasures to observe in or around Orion, one of which is the famous red super-giant star Beetlejuice (or Betelgeuse, and old Arabic word for “armpit”) which represents Orion’s left shoulder as seen from Earth.

Image: The constellation of Orion will be rising in the east in November with the bright orange star visible as Orion’s left shoulder (as we look at it)  

Credit: Wikipedia

 

Deep Sky Object

The Andromeda galaxy is very well positioned high in the sky during November. It is visible with the naked eye from a dark sky site and visible as a dim smudge. It’s the most distant object in the Universe that the unaided eye can see! It is approximately 2.5 billion light-years away (meaning the light you see has taken 2.5 billion years to get to your eye travelling at 186,000 miles per second!).

 

November is still a great time of year to see the Milky Way arching across the sky from roughly east to west. It’s amazing to see one of the spiral arms of our Galaxy with the unaided eye. It’s estimated that over half of the UK population have never seen the Milky Way so it’s definitely one to look out for!

Image: The andromeda galaxy (highlighted) can be found by using the constellation of Cassiopeia as a “signpost”

Credit: Stellarium software

 

 

Meteor Showers

November sees the return of 2 meteor showers.

The first of these is the Taurids which peak on the night of 12^th – 13^th November. These meteors originate from the Comet Encke and are not particularly frequent (around 5 an hour) but are known to move relatively slowly through the sky compared to other meteor showers.

The second shower is the Leonid meteor shower peaking on the night of the 18^th November. Comet 55P/Tempel-Tuttle is the origin producing these bright, fast meteors with an average of around 10 an hour.

 

Unfortunately, this year sees both peaks blighted by the brightness of the Moon which is full on the 15^th November. 

 

Our Solar System

If you ask most astronomers what their favourite objects are to observe, the planets of Saturn & Jupiter are very likely to near the top of the list!

Jupiter is the brightest object in the sky this month, with the exception of the Moon, and continues to rise in the East throughout the month. Even with a small telescope or strong binoculars (7 x 50 minimum) you may be able to make out the 4 Galilean moons of Io, Europa, Ganymede and Callisto named after the famous Italian astronomer, physicist and engineer Galileo Galilei, who discovered them by using a homemade telescope in January 1610!

Saturn continues to impress in the south with its rings almost edge on. Despite the planet being about 865 million miles away and the rings being no more than 100 meters thick, you can see them through a small telescope which is always a beautiful sight.

Mars can also be seen low in the East after around 9pm from mid-November.

New Moon: 1^st November

First Quarter: 9^th November

Full Moon: 15^th November

Last Quarter: 23^rd November

 

 

Happy Stargazing!

 

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 With the onset of Winter, the smell of fireworks in the air and with the clocks having gone back at the end of October, November offers us great dark skies. It is truly a brilliant time of year for stargazing.

)

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stdClass Object ( [id] => 401 [title] => Europa Clipper [alias] => europa-clipper [introtext] =>

NASA’s Europa Clipper is going through its final tests! The planned date of launch is the 10th of October this year. But what is the Europa Clipper? And what will it be doing?!

[fulltext] =>

 

Why Eurpoa?

The icy moon Europa sits 730 million km away orbiting the giant gas planet Jupiter. Jupiter is a planet of many moons (the current count is around 95), but Europa is of particular interest to scientists because it is believed to be one of the most likely candidates for extraterrestrial life in our Solar System. 

There are several lines of evidence that have led scientists to believe it has an ocean of water beneath the surface. It began in the 1970s when spectroscopic observations of the moon showed first that the surface was mostly made of frozen water or water ice. At the time it was theorised that underneath the surface there could possibly be liquid water.

The main piece of evidence didn’t come around until NASA’s Galileo spacecraft, which orbited Jupiter from 1995 to 2003, found that Europa has an induced magnetic field which suggests that under the surface there is a conductive layer. This is likely to be a salty liquid ocean. We think that due to Jupiter’s strong gravitational pull, the pushing and pulling between Jupiter and Europa – or tidal friction – causes the planet to heat up to allow an ocean to form beneath the icy crust.

 

On Earth, where we find water, we find life. And we think it will be the same for another place (at least life as we know it). Europa is possibly our biggest hope of finding somewhere in our Solar System with a habitable environment.

 

Credit: NASA

 

The Mission

Europa Clipper is an orbiter spacecraft meaning it will not be landing on the surface of Europa. Although that may seem like it won’t help an awful lot, it’s designed so it can still gather lots of information about this icy world. A future lander is still on the cards, and if Europa Clipper is successful in its mission we may well see it launched in the near future.

The main science goal is to determine whether there are places below the surface that could support life. To do this it is going to look closely at the nature of the ice shell, the ocean below and also the composition and geology.

How will they do this without even stepping on the moon I hear you ask? The spacecraft will be performing almost 50 flybys over the course of its 4-year science phase, each one over a different location so that NASA can get a good look at almost the entire moon.

 

The Spacecraft

It is the largest spacecraft NASA has ever sent for a planetary mission. Because Jupiter is so far away, a much smaller fraction of the Sun’s light reaches the planet, about 3-4% of what Earth gets to be more precise. To make enough energy, it needs huge solar arrays. The whole spacecraft has a diameter of 30.5 meters, and a whopping weight of 3,241 kg. With all that being said the arrays are still only producing roughly 700 watts of electricity when orbiting near Jupiter, which is just enough to operate a sandwich toaster.

Going near Jupiter is quite a dangerous place to be! Jupiter has a humongous magnetic field which traps charged particles from the Sun and other Jovian moons such as the very volcanic moon Io. The magnetic field speeds them up like a particle accelerator making them extremely dangerous. This means that a day’s worth of radiation on the Europan surface would be enough to kill a human! To keep the electronics and payload safe it will be enclosed in a thick protective vault made of titanium and aluminium. This should shield them from most of the high energy particles!

 

Credit: NASA

 

Europa Clipper will be taking several instruments with it to complete its scientific goals:

• Europa Imaging System (EIS) and Europa Thermal Emission Imaging System (E-THEMIS)- These will be used to map out the surface and look at the warmer regions for signs of liquid water or recent activity. 
• Europa Ultraviolet Spectrograph (Europa-UVS) and Mapping Imaging Spectrometer for Europa (MISE)- These will look at the composition of its atmospheric gases and the surface. 
• Europa Clipper Magnetometer (ECM) and Plasma Instrument for Magnetic Sounding (PIMS)- The ECM will look in depth at its induced magnetic field to confirm if the subsurface ocean exists, how deep it is and its salinity. It will also measure the thickness of the ice crust. PIMS will distinguish distortions caused by Jupiter in Europa’s induced magnetic field.
• MAss Spectrometer for Planetary EXploration (MASPEX) and SUrface Dust Analyser (SUDA)- MASPEX will analyse gases to study the chemistry of the subsurface ocean, as well as to understand how the ocean and surface exchange material, while SUDA will be analysing any dust that comes off the Europan surface.

 

Mapping Imaging Spectrometer for Europa (MISE) Credit: NASA

 

How long?

If all goes well the spacecraft will be arriving at Jupiter in 2030, so we will have to wait at least 6 years to find out if there could be possible life in the Solar System. On its way it will be doing flybys of the planet Mars and Earth. We wish Europa Clipper the best of luck in its journey. Bon Voyage!

 

 

Author: Rosie Braunholtz

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NASA’s Europa Clipper is going through its final tests! The planned date of launch is the 10th of October this year. But what is the Europa Clipper? And what will it be doing?!

)

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stdClass Object ( [id] => 391 [title] => What's Up? October 2024 [alias] => what-s-up-october-2024 [introtext] =>

Astronomer Rosie talks you through this month's highlights!

[fulltext] =>

 

The Autumn skies are truly here! Hear the sound of leaves crunching under your feet and the aroma of pumpkin spice and cinnamon everywhere. 

Cassiopeia

Cassiopeia in the Greek mythologies was the queen of Aethiopia (modern day Sudan). Vain and showing no regard for the gods, she landed her family in a bit of trouble which her daughter Andromeda ended up having to pay for. Luckily before Andromeda’s sacrifice, the Greek hero Perseus ended up saving the day as he had fortunately come back from a dangerous quest and just so happened to have the chopped-off head of Medusa in his sack.

  For her punishment of angering the god Poseidon, the queen was made a constellation to forever circulate the north star on her throne, spending half the year clinging to it for dear life so she doesn’t fall off. The constellation is very bright and one of the better well-known figures in the sky because it looks like a big “W”, made up of 5 bright stars.

 

Cassiopeia is one of the 88 modern-day constellations, originally stemming from Greek mythology, but of course because it’s such a bright and obvious pattern in the sky many cultures across the world have seen figures in this area. Ancient Chinese astronomers saw a chariot, Hindus see the princess Sharmishtha, and in some Arab atlases the constellation is meant to be a women’s hand dyed with henna.

Image: Queen Cassiopeia on her throne, Urania‘s Mirror, 1824. Sidney Hall.

 

 

 

Cassiopeia will be extremely high in the sky in October. It’s always towards the North no matter what time of year. However, in October it will be North-East, getting to straight up above at around 1am. 

Image: The “W” shape of Cassiopeia. AstroBackyard

 

 

Deep Sky Objects

 

Cassiopeia is host to a whole load of fantastic deep sky objects to observe. I want to mention a couple that we don't talk about too much at the observatory but are fantastic objects to capture if you have a telescope at home.  

The first is the Bubble Nebula! So called because it looks like, well, a bubble.  

 

Image: The Bubble Nebula within Cassieopeia, taken with the Hubble Space Telescope. NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center.

 

 

The reason it looks like a bubble is because inside there is an extremely hot, humongous, bright star about 7,100 light-years away. It produces powerful stellar winds travelling at four million miles per hour. These push gas and dust outwards forming a layer around it.

Big, hot stars burn very brightly, but only for a short time. Scientists reckon that in 10-20 million years the star will die in a supernova explosion, “popping” the bubble!

 

 

The second object to mention is another beautiful gas cloud, but one that looks like it’s munching its way across the galaxy, swallowing up each star along its path. That’s because it resembles the video-game character Pacman. Also known as NGC 281, the Pacman Nebula is located 9,500 light-years away. A very young star cluster lies within which ionizes the gas and makes it shine an array of bright colours. The “mouth” of Pacman is dust which is blocking the light from behind it.

 

 

Image: The Pacman Nebula within Cassiopeia. Steve Leonard

 

 

 

Meteor Showers

We have two meteor showers this month! The Draconids and the Orionids. Named after where the meteors or shooting stars appear to be radiating from, you’ll want to be looking near the constellation of Draco and Orion for these showers.  

The first to appear will be the Draconids on the 8th and 9th of October. The best time will be when Draco is highest in the sky, which is the early evening.  This is usually a quiet shower with only a few per hour appearing. However, there is no moon that night so fingers crossed we’ll see some shooting stars.

The second shower to appear is a little more active; the Orionids peaking on the 21st. Normally we’d recommend staying up a bit later for this shower, however the moon will be 79% illuminated and getting higher in the sky as the night goes on, so earlier in the evening will be your best chance. 

Both of these showers originate from comets. The Orionids are born from the famous Halley’s comet which goes round the Sun approximately once every 80 years. 

 

Our Solar System

 

New Moon: October 2

First Quarter: October 10

Full Moon (Super): October 17

Third Quarter: October 24

 

Saturn and Jupiter are in their prime this time of year! Get a good look at Saturn before the rings possibly disappear next year when the planet tilts perfectly edge on.  

Image: Comet Tsuchinchan-Atlas taken on July 9 from Rio Hurtado Valley, Chile. Taras Prystavski.

 

This autumn’s biggest anticipation will be comet C/2023 A3 Tsuchinshan–ATLAS. It was discovered in early 2023 and has peaked many people’s interests because it has potential to be a fantastic object to observe. However, we don’t want to get you too excited, comets have a long history of disappointing astronomers and not living up to expectations. But still, we live in hope!

For our lower latitude readers, the comet will be at its brightest and closest to Earth during the first half of October where it will be passing through constellations Virgo and Libra. From the UK it won’t be visible at this time, so we’ll need to wait until the end of October. Look towards the south-west from around 19:00 until 22:00, the comet will be somewhere within the constellation Ophiuchus.

 

Happy Stargazing!

 

Author: Rosie Braunholtz

 

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Astronomer Rosie talks you through this month's highlights!

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stdClass Object ( [id] => 390 [title] => Why Space? [alias] => why-space [introtext] =>

The International Astronautical Congress (IAC) is fast approaching in October! This is where space agencies, industry, academic researchers and students from all over the world come together in one place to network, share ideas and give updates on recent endeavours and future goals and challenges. We thought this would be a great chance to review what the space industry does, and why it is so important.

[fulltext] =>

 

Why Space?

In November last year our astronomer Rosie attended the 2023 UK Space Conference, where she learned a lot about the space industry and how important it is for modern society.  In this article she looks back on her time at the UK Space Conference and will cover why the space industry matters. Iin the next article we'll look more closely at the IAC’s motto this year which is "Responsible Space for Sustainability" and cover current ways and ideas on how to tackle this problem.

[Astronomer Rosie attending the UK Space Conference in 2023]

Introduction

Here at Kielder Observatory we aim to educate and inspire the public with knowledge about space and astronomy. Science communication isn’t perhaps the first thing you think of when you think “space industry”. What most people might think of are programmers behind computers writing code, mechanical engineers building rockets and business people in smart suits. However, even though we may be a small part of this sector mostly inundated with engineers, we are still an important piece. So, I went to the 2023 UK Space Conference in Belfast to give a voice to this part of the industry, and I wouldn’t be doing my job as a science communicator if I didn’t relay my findings!

This article will answer the “Why?” questions. While talking about missions to Mars, the Moon, or satellites going into space, a guest will challenge me about reasons to go to these places with a perplexed look. If you, reading this, have always been fascinated with space, you might think this a ridiculous question. “Why WOULDN’T we go to space” you may be thinking. The curiosity of humans has no end, our inquisitive minds want to know what’s out there. “Who wouldn’t!?” I hear you say. However, to the average person perhaps more down to earth (literally), this isn’t necessarily true. In my experience the public might not know the full scale or impact of the space industry, which is the fault of people like myself, not communicating the pros of the industry properly.

 

A lot of what’s on the news and on our Twitter feeds over the last few years tends to be the most shocking and eye-catching. Ie. Various billionaires having a contest seeing who can build their own rocket and get to space first. Or companies wanting to mine an asteroid entirely made of platinum. Looking at all the problems we have down here: cost of living, climate crisis, drought, famine, war… the list goes on, it can seem a ridiculous selfish use of resources, time and money to be spending on “adventures in space”. There are pros and cons to the space industry as with every industry, but you’ll be glad to hear that these captivating headlines only take up a very small part of the huge and extremely valuable industry we have today.

 

Satellites

[PHOTO – ESA climate poster]

On day two of the conference, I took part in outreach in which various schools and children came to learn about space. I watched as various educators and industry personnel engaged in activities with the kids. One of my favourites was called “Did I use space today?” The children were given examples of going to school, using a computer, texting a friend, doing homework, eating cereal etc. and then were asked if any of these things use space. To the shock of the kids and some of the adults, most of the daily activities we do rely on satellites to work.

Our modern world is entirely dependent on the space industry. From using the internet in a remote location, having gps to navigate your way to work, satellite TV to watch the football, looking up the weather to know if you need an umbrella today, and paying for your cappuccino by card. Even things that may not seem like they would need satellites use it, like eating a bowl of cereal in the morning. Farmers use satellite imaging to know when to harvest their crops at the right time, to maximise efficiency.

 

It’s something I don’t think the children (or in fact anyone in the vicinity) will forget as the end of each example was finished with a scream of “I USED SPACE TODAY” which echoed through the entire convention centre.

[Photo - satellite imaging, Sentinel-2. Credit: ESA/ATG medialab]

 

Ms. Aarti Holla-Maini, The Director of UNOOSA, spoke of many examples of how important satellites are to us currently and especially for tackling climate change.  Satellites were crucial in taking the first accurate measurements of the Earth’s temperature. Today’s satellites can measure sea and land surface temperatures to unprecedented accuracy.

Earth observation satellites continuously monitor our ice caps from above to understand where and how it is changing. Other examples she gave were; monitoring illegal fishing; illegal deforestation of the rainforest; preventing food loss in microfarming in the ever increasing temperatures; monitoring and catching wildfires early; SAT-comms systems for remote communities; internet reaching isolated groups (Starlink); the list goes on.

 

So it’s safe to say satellite imaging is extremely important. The society we live in is accustomed but also dependant on it.

 

When you hear the words “Space Industry” this is what makes up most of it. From the 2022 UK size and health report of the UK Space Industry, Satellite Communications, Satnav and Earth Observations make up over 80% of the income, and most of this is Direct-to-Home Broadcasting (ie watching the footie on Sky Sports). This is boosting the economy and bringing lots of employment to the UK.

Next, let’s talk about what we generally share at the observatory: Space Exploration and Science!  

 

Space Exploration/Telescopes

[Photo: Exploring our Solar System - why we do it and what do we learn?]

Space! Science! These are things like the ISS, rovers, and probes that we’re always talking about at Kielder Observatory and that make up a lot of our social media posts. This is the most (in my opinion) exciting part of the industry. Astronomy is one of the frontiers of science, there is so much we don’t know and so much to explore we’ve barely scratched the surface. The field tries to understand the fundamentals of the universe and pushes the boundaries of our knowledge by studying objects such as black holes and distant galaxies.

 

Science and Space Exploration requires a lot of government funding, as does the whole of the Space Sector -the UK government are planning to invest nearly £10 billion into the industry across the coming decade. And given that this is taxpayers money, you’d hope we’d be getting something out of it. At first glance it may seem interesting, but not particularly advantageous to life on Earth to know how old the solar system is, or how galaxies evolve, or when exactly the volcanoes on Mars were active. Humans are curious creatures. We want to know things! Where did we come from? Where are we going? Are we alone? And understanding the world around us gives benefit to society as a whole. Today engineers use Newton’s laws of gravity and knowledge of internal forces to build grand designs like bridges and tall buildings. Without knowing the sun is made of mostly hydrogen, we wouldn’t know that it creates energy with nuclear reactions, and thus that discovery led to the development of nuclear energy. The knowledge gained by astronomy and space science advances us and can be applied over many scientific fields.

And in the pursuit of science, great technologies are created along the way. “Space drives innovation.” Being at the frontier of science, astronomy drives the development of cutting-edge telescopes (like the James Webb) and detectors to space probes and computer simulations. Software algorithms used to sharpen images of the moon are now used by medical researchers for MRI scans; insulin pumps were invented to monitor astronauts vital signals; NASAs innovations in robotics and shock-absorption/comfort materials helps the private sector produce more advanced prosthetics for humans and animals. Currently astronauts on the ISS are looking into complex human health issues such as Alzheimer's.

[Me and astronaut John McFall]

 

One part of Space Exploration which I mentioned in the introduction is Space Tourism, ie civilians going into space. This is an extremely small part of the industry, making up only 0.04% of the UK Space Industry Income (about £6 million in 2020/2021).

 

Difficult Questions

 

Even after understanding how space exploration can improve life here on Earth, you still may be thinking that all these substantial resources being spent “out there” should be spent on more pressing matters (poverty, hunger etc). Shouldn’t such a large budget be spent on better things?

All these issues aren’t really to do with the space sector at all, and more to do with wider problems in society, requiring systemic changes and broader conversation. There are definitely some ethical concerns when it comes to space exploration. Such as commercialisation, extracting and exploitation of resources in our solar system, and the impact on other planets and moons and possibly other life out there. There should be a cautious and ethical approach to space exploration to avoid unintended consequences.

Conclusion

The UK government spends around 0.08% of its total spending on space. For context, it spends around 18% on healthcare and 1% on overseas aid (What does the government spend money on 2022/2023, National Space Strategy ) For being a small part of our spending, space plays a vital role in our lives. From the National Space Strategy: “The space sector is a large part of the UK’s economy, employing over 45,000 individuals and worth over £16.4 billion per year. It also presents many opportunities for the future and is projected to be worth £490 billion by 2030.”

 

Hopefully I’ve convinced you that the Space Sector is important. Stay tuned for the next article covering "Responsible Space for Sustainability", and current problems and solutions.

 

References

 

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/the-size-and-health-of-the-uk-space-industry-2022/size-health-of-the-uk-space-industry-2022#section4
https://www.discover.ukri.org/a-brief-history-of-climate-change-discoveries/index.html
https://www.rmg.co.uk/stories/topics/why-satellites-are-critical-fighting-climate-change
https://www.asc-csa.gc.ca/eng/satellites/everyday-lives/10-ways-that-satellites-helped.asp
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/the-size-and-health-of-the-uk-space-industry-2022/size-health-of-the-uk-space-industry-2022#section4
https://committees.parliament.uk/publications/34642/documents/190787/default/#:~:text=Over%20the%20spending%20review%20we,beginning%20financial%20year%2022%2F23.
https://www.nao.org.uk/work-in-progress/national-space-strategy-and-the-uk-space-agency/#:~:text=In%202023%2C%20government%20announced%20that,UK%20Space%20Agency%20(UKSA).
https://www.discovermagazine.com/the-sciences/much-of-your-daily-life-depends-on-discoveries-made-by-astronomers
https://www.nasa.gov/missions/station/space-station-leads-to-breakthroughs-in-human-health-on-earth/
https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/64afdb40c033c1001080623b/the_case_for_space.pdf
https://www.nao.org.uk/work-in-progress/national-space-strategy-and-the-uk-space-agency/
https://ifs.org.uk/taxlab/taxlab-key-questions/what-does-government-spend-money

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The International Astronautical Congress (IAC) is fast approaching in October! This is where space agencies, industry, academic researchers and students from all over the world come together in one place to network, share ideas and give updates on recent endeavours and future goals and challenges. We thought this would be a great chance to review what the space industry does, and why it is so important.

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stdClass Object ( [id] => 356 [title] => What’s Up September 2024 [alias] => what-s-up-september-2024 [introtext] =>

Hello! Welcome to another addition of What’s Up, and this month September!

[fulltext] =>

 

What's Up September 2024

September is possibly our favourite month for astronomers here at the Observatory. The nights are still warm (at least in comparison to winter, brrrr), most of the midge have died off, and we’re starting to get 8 hours of darkness, instead of the handful of hours we got in August. This means you can stargaze from 9pm and are still able to go to bed at a reasonable hour (if you want to!).

Milky Way

This time of year is the best time to see the oh so coveted sight: the Milky Way. This is our galaxy, and  due to how high it appears in the sky in the UK, is much brighter now than in say January. Our galaxy is actually at it’s highest point in May and June, where the galactic centre is more visible than normal, but because it barely gets dark during these summer months the Milky Way is hidden. But September, with it’s dark nights and the Milky Way still being at a high altitude, is a great time to view it.

It’s a sad fact that due to light pollution, there’s an estimation that over half the UK have never seen the Milky Way, and about a third of the world's population live somewhere where it isn’t visible! This is a drastic change that has happened in just a few generations (think if Van Gogh had tried to paint A Starry Night in today's light polluted world).

If you’ve never seen the Milky Way, you’re not alone. But this month is a great chance to try and spot it!

Here are my tips to see our galaxy:

 

Be somewhere dark! The Milky Way is very faint, you’re not going to see it if you’re near a city or big town. Get out of the populated areas and go somewhere remote, however you don’t need to come all the way to Kielder Forest! Here is a map of the UK showing the light pollution:

Light Pollution in the UK. Image Credit: http://www.cpre.org.uk/

You want to be somewhere where it’s dark blue. The more South you are, the trickier it will be as you can see if you’re in Northumberland, you’re very lucky as we have lots of options.

The moon is your enemy! We love the moon here at the observatory of course, but it can get in the way of seeing those fainter objects. You ideally want it to be New Moon (ie, no moon in the sky). You can use star gazing apps like Stellarium, or search the moon phases on the internet. This month, the very beginning or the very end of September is good. 

Look Up! The milky way is right overhead, going through the constellations of Cygnus and Cassiopeia, as pictured below. Give your eyes time to adjust to the darkness, it will take maybe 10 minutes for your eyes to adjust to night vision. It will look like a faint cloud is running all the way across the sky.

Milky Way Panorama with Cassiopeia and Cygnus highlighted. Dan Monk

 

Andromeda Galaxy

 

Speaking of galaxies, this month the Andromeda galaxy will be sitting around 70 degrees above the horizon at midnight. Objects are always better to view if they are high up as there is less atmosphere for the light to get through. So, if you’ve got a pair of binoculars or small telescope that’s sitting in the attic, this month is a great time to whip them out, go into your back garden and try and get a glimpse of our closest galaxy (which is still a hefty 2.5 million light years away). If you live in a place with very dark skies, you’ll be able to make out the small oval glow of the Andromeda Galaxy with your naked eye.

 

How to find Andromeda. Credit: EarthSky.org

Princess Andromeda is the constellation you need to find for this object, and she is the daughter of the much brighter and easier to spot Queen Cassiopeia, so we’ll start there. Queen Cassiopeia, doesn’t look much like a queen, but the letter ‘W’. Using the two stars on the right hand side of the ‘W’, we can line them up and follow it down until you hit the first bright star of Princess Andromeda. Hop to the next star to the right, and then a little bit above will be a faint smudge which is the Andromeda galaxy!

 

Unlike stars which are very sharp, galaxies will look like a faint diffuse cloud. In Andromeda’s case, a diffuse oval, with a bright spot in the centre.

 

Andromeda Galaxy through a telescope. Credit: Pete Lawrence

Planets

Mercury will be at its greatest western elongation on September 5th, this is one of the best times to get a good look at this planet all year! You should be able to see it low in the sky right before sunrise.

It’s a great time of year to see Saturn, it will be more visible earlier in the evening at around 9pm. On September 8th, Saturn will be in opposition, meaning it will be the closest it gets to Earth as it orbits the Sun. It will be rising in the Southeast and setting in the Southwest staying fairly low on the horizon. To the eye, you will see a pale-yellow dot, but with a small telescope the famous rings will appear.

 

Special Events

On September 17th there will be a partial lunar eclipse at night. This happens when the moon passes through the Earth’s shadow from the Sun and only part of the moon is lit up. The best time to view the eclipse will be about 4am on September the 18th, so you must be willing to stay up late!

 

The Autumn Equinox occurs on September 22nd. In the Northern Hemisphere, it’s the first day of Autumn, and in the Southern Hemisphere, it’s the first day of Spring. During the equinoxes we tend to get more appearances of Aurora – so keep your alerts and notifications ON! It’s also the best time of year to catch a view of the Zodiacal light – interplanetary dust from our solar system. It’s best to look to the East right before dawn.

Kielder Observatory Aurora 2022. Dan Monk 

Moon Phases

 

September 3rd: New moon
September 11th: First Quarter
September 17th: Partial Lunar Eclipse
September 18th: Full moon, supermoon
September 24th: Third Quarter

 

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Hello! Welcome to another addition of What’s Up, and this month September!

)

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stdClass Object ( [id] => 355 [title] => It's not over until it's a Nova! [alias] => it-s-not-over-until-it-s-a-nova [introtext] =>

A closer look at T Coronae Borealis

[fulltext] =>

 

Corona Borealis- the northern crown. A curve in the sky consisting of 7 stars, the brightest of which being Alphecca, this small constellation may be one which you have missed in the past, but it’s worth finding and keeping an eye on this year for the opportunity to see a once-in-lifetime astronomical event- a nova.

It is likely that you are more aware of supernovae, and if this is the case you may be asking why we care about an event that is less “super”. My instinct when I was first presented with these terms was that supernovae were the brighter and more spectacular events, and that a nova would just be the same but smaller, this isn’t quite right. Really, it’s more a matter of life and death. Literally. A supernova destroys its progenitor star, whereas with a nova the star will brighten for a period before returning to normality. With the star persisting this presents the opportunity for a repeat performance- a recurrence.

Such a recurrent nova is what we are waiting on with T Coronae Borealis, also known as the “Blaze Star”. This recurrent nova has a historically observed period of about 80 years, and it was last seen in 1946. Preceding the 1946 nova, astronomers observed a period of dimming that is comparable to what we are seeing at the moment. This seems to suggest that we may expect the star to blaze again soon, potentially even this month! 

Predicting astronomical phenomena is a tricky thing, nothing is ever certain. Indeed, for all our excitement, T Coronae Borealis may do nothing special at all. But if it does go nova, what you should expect to see is a new star in the position pictured below:

The first recorded observation of this star in a nova state was on the 12th May 1866 by John Birmingham, an Irish astronomer who wrote: “In size, it was at least equal to α Coronae and decidedly more brilliant…. In colour the star appeared nearly white with a bluish tinge”.

Following its appearance, we expect the star to return to normality over a few weeks. The light curve below shows how the magnitude diminished in 1946 and 1866

So what exactly causes these stars to flare up? A nova occurs in binary systems where you have a white dwarf star in proximity to a larger companion. If they orbit close enough then the white dwarf star can start to steal matter from its companion in a process known as accretion. In this way the white dwarf star gains an atmosphere, usually of hydrogen. As this gets denser and is heated by the star below, it will eventually reach a critical temperature causing the ignition of fusion. The energy output by this is what results in the star seeming to flare up as the atmosphere is expelled.

A recurrent nova star will then return to feeding on its companion to restore its lost atmosphere, until the whole thing happens again. Should the star be destroyed, we have what is referred to as type 1a supernova instead.

We hope that you will join those of us at the Observatory in watching Corona Borealis with bated breath in the next few months. If we see anything, you will be the first to know!

 

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A closer look at T Coronae Borealis

)

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stdClass Object ( [id] => 354 [title] => Perseids promise a powerful meteor display [alias] => perseids-promise-a-powerful-meteor-display [introtext] =>

It's one of our favourite events of the year- and here's how you can enjoy it too!

[fulltext] =>

 

STARGAZERS across the globe will be on the hunt for fireballs across dark skies as they prepare to capture the next astronomical phenomenon – the Perseids meteor shower.

The bright meteors are one of the most dramatic things to see for astronomy fans in the summer, with this year’s shower peaking between the night of August 12 and before dawn on the 13th.

Image: Persedis captures at Kielder Observatory, Michael Auton

The shower is caused by comets, which heat up then break apart as they get closer to the sun. The pieces can hit Earth’s atmosphere at speeds of between seven and 45 miles per second. Larger meteors can explode as fireballs and smaller ones vaporise, leaving behind a bright trail of light.

Dan Pye, director of astronomy at Kielder Observatory, set in beautiful Kielder Forest, in Northumberland, said: “It’s one of the most active meteor showers of the year, with up to 100 meteors per hour. The best place to see the Perseids is in a dark sky location, like Kielder Observatory, where they are highly visible to the naked eye.

“By 10pm on August 12, the moon will have set below the horizon and so any time after that until dawn will be a good time to look for it.

“They’re very fast moving and last only a couple of seconds. They can be short or a much longer streak and they’re thought to come from the constellation of Persius, hence the name, towards the North East part of the sky.”

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It's one of our favourite events of the year- and here's how you can enjoy it too!

)

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stdClass Object ( [id] => 352 [title] => What’s Up? August 2024 [alias] => what-s-up-august-2024 [introtext] =>

It's your monthly guide to What's Up? in the sky with Astronomer and Science Communicator, Ishbel Carlyle! 

[fulltext] =>

 

As of the first week in August “Night” is coming back! True darkness returns in August and by the end of the month we will be having up to 5 and half hours of darkness! That is plenty of star gazing time to get your eyes, binoculars, telescopes, or cameras to the sky, with plenty of treats to be found.

 

Milky way peeking out:

 

With darkness returning the Milky Way is now visible again. This is the view of our Galxay from the inside out. During the lighter nights the Sky is too bright, and it blocks out the milky way. When light pollution starts to take hold of the sky above you, the milky way is the first thing to go. It is called the milky way because it really does look a bit like milk spilt across the sky. There are so many stars in the plane of the milky way that we can not make out the individual stars and it just blurs into one glittery band. Use the summer tringle we discussed in the last few What’s ups as a good indicator of where it is. Cygnus the swan points right along it, flying across the sky.  

Figure 1 The milky way captured by Adam Shore at Kelder Observatory

 

Planets:

Figure 2: From the Sky watch app, August 28th 6am as seen from the northern hemisphere.

 

They are truly back! This month what I am most excited for is a glimpse of Saturn with its beautiful rings, Jupiter with its spot and Galilean moons, and Mars, which is much closer than it was last year so should be showing off the whole disk in all its red hues.

From the beginning of the month, they will be present by midnight * check, and get visible earlier and earlier as the month goes on. On the 28^th of August just before dawn (6am) we will get Saturn, Neptune, Uranus, Jupiter, Mars, and Mercury!

To spot a planet, look for the brightest objects in the sky. Focus your search along the ecliptic plane, which, for us in the UK, stretches from east to west near the southern horizon. This is because the ecliptic plane is where the planets of our solar system are located.

 

Planets are much closer to us than stars. Although they are smaller and do not produce their own light, they reflect sunlight more effectively, making them appear brighter and covering a larger area in the sky. Stars, on the other hand, appear only as pinpricks of light. The light from stars can be disrupted by our atmosphere, causing a twinkling effect due to changes in water vapor and temperature. Planets, being closer, can appear as disks through a telescope. While the light from planets can also be affected by atmospheric disturbances, their central area remains consistently illuminated, distinguishing them from the twinkling stars. 

 

Moon Phases: 

5th: New Moon

12th: Half Moon

20th: Full Moon

26th: Half Moon

The full moon this month is known as the Sturgeon Moon. This name comes from the native Americans from the season of plentiful sturgeon in the north American Great lakes.

Clears Skies and Happy Stargazing!

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It's your monthly guide to What's Up? in the sky with Astronomer and Science Communicator, Ishbel Carlyle! 

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stdClass Object ( [id] => 350 [title] => Volunteers give beloved observatory a new look [alias] => volunteers-give-beloved-observatory-a-new-look [introtext] =>

Kielder Observatory and Accenture team up once again!

[fulltext] =>

 A MUCH-loved observatory in the North East has received a significant facelift thanks to the dedicated efforts of volunteers following a recent funding boost.

Dozens of friends of Kielder Observatory, in Northumberland, gathered with cleaning equipment, gardening tools, and paintbrushes to give the building a makeover as part of its summer solstice maintenance week.

Many of the volunteers had come from Accenture, a global professional services company, which this week announced support for the observatory through a £10,000 sponsorship package. The generous contribution will bolster Kielder Observatory's mission to create opportunities for people of all backgrounds and abilities to experience moments of inspiration, revelation, wonder and hope through observing the cosmos.

The funds will be allocated to several key initiatives, including half-day workshop sessions at the observatory for 10 North East schools, support for 35 volunteers over a three-month period, and site improvements to enhance the visitor experience.

Work during the week was also supported by the observatory’s own team of volunteers, as well as Northumbrian Water, who delivered bulk water containers to the remote location to help with cleaning.

David Darlington, Associate Director at Accenture, said: “It’s been great to help such an awesome charity, ensuring that this amazing facility continues to inspire the next generation of astronomers and stargazers. We look forward to working with the team at Kielder Observatory more in the future.”

Leigh Venus, CEO of Kielder Observatory, said: “Our wooden buildings are exposed to the bracing elements of Kielder Forest, and need constant care. We took a week out during the summer solstice to reinvigorate our observatory and the Gillian Dickinson Astro-Imaging Academy, and we’re incredibly grateful to our volunteers and everyone who chipped in. Accenture has been a fantastic partner, bringing many volunteers during the week and committing to our work through their generous sponsorship. Same time next year!”

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Kielder Observatory and Accenture team up once again!

)

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stdClass Object ( [id] => 349 [title] => What’s up July 2024 [alias] => what-s-up-july-2024 [introtext] =>

 Summer is hopefully underway, and with good weather come clear skies. They might not be very dark or last very long but there is still plenty to explore across the summer night skies.

[fulltext] =>

 

Long nights

 

During summer the northern hemisphere is tilted towards the sun, such that as we rotate we are illuminated by the Sun more than we are shaded. This means that the days for July are roughly 17 and a half hours long to start with, and will be 16 hours by the end of the month as we rotate round the sun and our inclination changes again. We will never see true astronomical darkness as the Sun is never more than approximately 20 degrees below the horizon throughout the night.

 

Constellations

Figure 1: The Summer Triangle.

Last month we focused on the Summer triangle, Lets take a deep dive into the constellations that make up the Summer Triangle.

Cygnus (The Swan):

Cygnus, often called the Northern Cross due to its cross-shaped asterism, is a prominent constellation that graces the summer skies. Located along the plane of the Milky Way, the swan swims along the milky river of our galaxy, making it an excellent region for observing dense star fields and the intricate structure of our galaxy. The brightest star in Cygnus is Deneb, which forms one vertex of the Summer Triangle. Deneb is a supergiant star and one of the most luminous stars visible in the night sky, lying about 2,600 light-years from Earth. This constellation is often associated with the Greek story of Zeus transforming into a swan.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lyra (The Lyre):

Lyra is a small but mighty constellation, easily identified by its bright star Vega, which is one of the most luminous stars in the sky and a key component of the Summer Triangle. Vega is relatively close to Earth, at about 25 light-years away, and has been a cornerstone for many astronomical studies. Within Lyra, stargazers can also find the Ring Nebula (M57), a well-known planetary nebula that appears as a small, glowing blue ring through telescopes. Lyra represents the lyre of Orpheus in Greek mythology, a musical instrument said to have such enchanting melodies that it could charm all of creation, including inanimate objects and even the gods.

 

 

Aquila (The Eagle):

Aquila, known as the Eagle. It is characterized by the bright star Altair, one of the closest stars visible to the naked eye at only about 16.7 light-years from Earth, and its hammerhead /neck segment. Altair is also part of the Summer Triangle, alongside Vega and Deneb. Aquila is rich in mythological significance, often associated Zeus again, as the eagle that carried Zeus’s thunderbolts. This constellation also features several interesting deep-sky objects, including the open cluster NGC 6709. This is another bird that flies across the Milky way so again a good hunting zone for dense collections of stars.

 

 

 

 

 

Planets

Figure 2: image shows where Jupiter and Mars will be in relation to the Moon and stars thoughout the end of July in the East North East sky. credit :Skyatnight magazine

 

Mars, Jupiter and Saturn are your best catches this month. It won’t be easy as they are still in the pre-dawn sky, so you will have to stay up to 3am to catch them. Saturn is leading the planets across the sky, then Jupiter and Mars are close together. Wait till the end of the month and they will be appearing earlier in the night, in darker skies, so much easier to spot.

To spot a planet, look for the brightest objects in the sky. Focus your search along the ecliptic plane, which, for us in the UK, stretches from east to west near the southern horizon. This is because the ecliptic plane is where the planets of our solar system are located.

 

Planets are much closer to us than stars. Although they are smaller and do not produce their own light, they reflect sunlight more effectively, making them appear brighter and covering a larger area in the sky. Stars, on the other hand, appear only as pinpricks of light. The light from stars can be disrupted by our atmosphere, causing a twinkling effect due to changes in water vapor and temperature. Planets, being closer, can appear as disks through a telescope. While the light from planets can also be affected by atmospheric disturbances, their central area remains consistently illuminated, distinguishing them from the twinkling stars. 

Moon Phases

 5th; New Moon

13th: Half Moon

21st: Full Moon

28th: Half Moon

The full moon this month is known as the Buck Moon. This comes from male deer called bucks who shed and regrow their antlers annually. July is when all the antlers are coming back in full growth and bucks now look like bucks again.

Clears Skies and Happy Stargazing!

 

 

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 Summer is hopefully underway, and with good weather come clear skies. They might not be very dark or last very long but there is still plenty to explore across the summer night skies.

)

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stdClass Object ( [id] => 348 [title] => The Major Geomagnetic Storm of May 2024: A Spectacle for the Ages [alias] => the-major-geomagnetic-storm-of-may-2024-a-spectacle-for-the-ages [introtext] =>

Many of you may have witnessed the spectacular sight of the Northern Lights recently. Here, astronomer Ishbel Carlyle talks us through what happened, why and hears others' accounts of that night. 

[fulltext] =>

 

In the final hours of Friday, 10th May 2024, the night skies across the world were set ablaze by one of the most intense geomagnetic storms in recent history. This celestial display, triggered by powerful solar activity, painted the heavens with vivid hues of green, purple, blue and red, mesmerising onlookers from Norway to New York.

Astronomers had been anticipating the event for days, following reports of heightened solar activity. However, the aurora still exceeded all expectations. Guy Haveron, one of our astronomer and science communicators at Kielder was working at the observatory when it happened, summed up the experience succinctly: "It was truly awesome." His sentiment was echoed by all our wonderful guests who witnessed the spectacle firsthand.

But what does “increased solar activity” mean? The Sun is made up of plasma, the extreme high-energy fourth state of matter. As with most extremes in physics this means it has some weird properties. For example, the Sun is spotty. It has loops of the plasma coming out of the surface whose feet we can see as dark spots on the Sun. When we look at different types of light, such as ultraviolet, we can see these loops. They make the Sun look hairy. These loops are actually magnetic fields.

Figure 1a: Image Credit Solar Dynamics Orbiter NASA,  UV image.  Figure 1b: Region c3664, the incredibly active region that caused the May 10th storm, viewed through our 16 inch telescope at Kielder observatory with a solar filter. Taken by Guy Haveron.

 

Maybe think of the loops not as hairs, but as elastic bands. What happens when you stretch one of those too much? SNAP! Same thing happens with the Sun loops and all the plasma that was suspended in the loop is thrown out into space. Basically, the Sun burps, sometimes Earth gets a face full.

This material ejected from the Sun can interact with our very own magnetic field and is accelerated to where the magnetic field is strongest at the north and south, just like any bar magnet. This produces what is called the auroral oval, the circumference of the aurora around the world at the North and South poles. The more material blasted out from the Sun, the more the oval can be pushed towards the equator, and the brighter the aurora is, resulting in it being sighted even over London.

But what actually is the “light” of the Northern Lights. Is it the solar material itself? Sadly not, these are just charged particles, usually invisible to the human eye. These particles are being captured by our magnetic field and then smash into our atmosphere. This causes the atoms in the atmosphere to glow. This is how we get the colours: in the upper atmosphere the main elements present are Oxygen and Nitrogen. Oxygen glows green and red, and Nitrogen glows blue and purple. We see this beautiful layering effect due to the different densities of gases in our atmosphere and different energies of the incoming material cascading down through it.

Figure 2: Image credit  GoOpti (https://www.goopti.com/en/about/goopti_blog/aurora-borealis-where-to-see-the-northern-lights-in-2020)

Figure 3:Aurora off the observing deck looking south east at Kielder Observatory. Taken by Ishbel Carlyle.

Rosie Braunholtz, another of our astronomers at the observatory that night, shared her awe, stating, "I just couldn't believe it." Braunholtz, who had never seen the aurora before, was left speechless by the storm's magnitude and beauty. 

For many, this geomagnetic storm was a once-in-a-lifetime event. Dan Pye, the Director of Astronomy at Kielder Observatory, exclaimed, "It was everywhere! It's just never going to be better than that." Pye's declaration captures the essence of the universal astonishment and joy that the aurora has inspired.

Figure 4: Rosie, Guy and Dan at the observatory.

 

Adam Shore, another of our astronomer and science communicators was hosting a Scout event in Northumberland, expressed his amazement with a touch of humour, saying, "There's only so many times I can call it incredible." His struggle to find adequate words to describe the experience was a common theme among those who saw the aurora that night.

Liam Reid, also an astronomer in Northumberland, was able to sum up the event very concisely, calling the phenomenon "Mental." This was more concise than some. While many of our guests, friends and other colleagues shared all our enthusiasm, some of their reactions included words not suitable for print.

 

Figure 5: Aurora captured by Adam Shore.

 

Social media platforms were flooded with images and videos of the auroras, as people from all walks of life documented the event. Professional photographers and casual observers alike captured the sky's transformation, sharing their views and spreading the sense of wonder globally. Since the storm started at 11:30pm and went until the Sun rose, many folks woke up to pictures of neon lights dancing over their houses as they slept. Unfortunately, they might not get a second chance to see it like that again. A major event like has been compared to the Carrington event of 1859, over 150 years ago. However, we are coming up to the peak of the solar cycle activity so who knows? I for one was sceptical this storm was going to result in an aurora, having been overly optimistic once too many times before. When it hit off the charts and was right above us, I had to lie down. Literally! There is still so much we don’t know about the aurora, and our Sun. As technology advances and humanity’s curiosity persists I’m certain we will understand it all one day.  

Figure 6: Aurora right above at Kielder Observatory. Taken from the floor by Ishbel Carlyle.

The May 2024 geomagnetic storm will undoubtedly be remembered as one of the most extraordinary natural events of our time. It brought together communities under a shared sky, fostering a collective appreciation for the mysteries and beauty of our universe, and made us appreciate our dark skies here in Northumberland even more. This was definitely one of the best places in the country to have seen it.

 

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Many of you may have witnessed the spectacular sight of the Northern Lights recently. Here, astronomer Ishbel Carlyle talks us through what happened, why and hears others' accounts of that night. 

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