Amateur Astronomy | Suite101.com

Great Andromeda Nebula
The "Great Andromeda Nebula", which is no nebula at all but a galaxy like our own Milky Way, drifts across November nights. It is the most distant object we can see with the naked eye; more than two million lights away.
great andromeda nebula • gregg m pasterick • amateur astronomy • m31 galaxy • 2

Amateur Astronomy Reduces Stress!
Too much to do, not enough time? Sounds like stress! Let the night sky and your imagination soar to a place where stress can't reach.
amateur astronomy reduces stress • space • imagination • stargaze • night sky

Basic Star Party Supplies for Amateur Astronomy
It doesn't take thousands of dollars of astronomy equipment to enjoy the night sky. For much less, any new telescope owner can have everything needed for the best night.
telescope accessories • star gazing accessories • astronomy books • observing tips • new telescope owners

Light Pollution Filters For Amateur Astronomy
Light pollution swamps out the light from deep sky objects, making it difficult to see them. But there are ways to make suburban astronomy more rewarding.
amateur astronomy • backyard astronomy • suburban astronomy • astronomy from suburbs • light pollution

Eerie Night Skies
The night sky can sometimes look very eerie. Join me as we explore the strange skies of the aurora.
aurora • northern lights • aurora borealis • aurora australis • southern lights

Lunar Eclipse
What is a lunar eclipse and how can I see one? Read this article to find the answers. Find out why it's a great time to look at the sky!
lunar eclipse • lunar • eclipse • moon • earth

Recap 2004 - Challenge Recap Article
This is an extra article written especially for the Recap Challenge. I hope you enjoy it. Check back next weekend for my "regularly scheduled" article when we resume our constellation hunt.
january • 2095 • sirius • angel food cake • get ready to find constellations

... Mars ...
Perihelion and opposition, these are two very important words this month. Mix in Mars and, well, we have a spectacle that is not only a once-in-a-lifetime event, it’s a sight that hasn’t been this good in more than 50,000 years!
... mars ... • gregg m. pasterick • amateur astronomy • mars • planets

A Gathering of Planets
The big deal of June night skies has to be the gathering of planets late in the month.
a gathering of planets • gregg m. pasterick • amateur astronomy • mercury • venus

A Good Year for the Perseids
We are coming up on the peak of the Perseid meteor shower, and it falls only 4 days prior to the New Moon.
a good year for the perseids • gregg m. pasterick • amateur astronomy • stars • planets

Bullying: What is it and How to Cope - A Course Review
I took this course, I read the books. I highly recommend Mary Alward's course - Bullying: What is it and How to Cope. Read my review here.
bullying • bully • children • lessons • age eight

Comet 2P Enke and Other October Sights
On the 28th, Comet 2P Enke is at opposition; this is the beginning of what might be a very nice visit with this very regular visitor. It will not, however, be a great ghostly moth like Hale-Bopp. It will be, at best, a fuzzy smear of light visible to the naked eye, but certainly no spectacle. Not to Joe Schmoe down the street anyway. To star gazers like you and me, it’ll be another starry sojourner to track among the constellations.
comet 2p enke and other october sights • gregg m. pasterick • amateur astronomy • stars • planets

Comet NEAT, a Lunar Eclipse, and the Endless Dance of the Planets
Comet C/2001 Q4 NEAT is nearest the Earth on the 6th, and at perihelion on the 15th, during a New Moon. Comets, of course, are always difficult to predict, no matter how much we think we know, (Anybody remember comet Kohoutek in 1973?) but comet NEAT just may be a decent naked eye object.
comet neat • a lunar eclipse • and the endless dance of the planets • gregg m. pasterick • amateur astronomy

December’s Hodge Podge
December’s another hodge podge of starry stuff. There are planets. There are meteor showers. There’s the moon and Comet 2P Enke and the winter solstice in the north, the summer solstice in the south. And there are the beautiful winter constellations; arrangements of stars so striking even Joe Average recognizes some of them.
december’s hodge podge • gregg m. pasterick • amateur astronomy • stars • planets

Folklore, Meteors and Planets
The end of autumn/beginning of winter edition of the night sky is always a bestseller. I mean, what night sky could offer us more in the way of folklore than this, the night sky of December?
folklore • meteors and planets • gregg m. pasterick • amateur astronomy • stars

Gegenschein and Zodiacal Light
Clear moonless nights during late February are the best times to look for Gegenschein and Zodiacal Light.
gegenschein and zodiacal light • gregg m. pasterick • amateur astronomy • stars • planets

Halley's Comet One Piece at a Time, and the Draconids (Maybe)
October's moon drops below the horizon in the middle of the night around the 20th of the month, thus affording us a good look at peak activity of the Orionid meteor shower during the predawn hours. You can warm up for the Orionids early in the month with the usually non-existent Draconid meteor shower.
halley's comet one piece at a time • and the draconids (maybe) • gregg m. pasterick • amateur astronomy • stars

How Amateurs Can Contribute to Astronomy
Amateur astronomer Anthony Wesley's discovery of an impact on Jupiter illustrates how amateurs can still make important contributions to the science of astronomy.
astronomy • science • ccd camera • astronomy telescopes • amateur astronomy

How to Become an Amateur Astronomer Hobbyist
Many people interested in astronomy pursue it as a hobby. Amateur astronomers become quite knowledgeable about the night sky from their hobby. Here's how to get started.
astronomy • amateur astronomy • telescope • binoculars • buy telescope

Me, June, and a Meteor Shower
A little about me and the late-in-the-month, little-observed June Bootid meteor shower, which has a predicted peak on June 27th. Because the moon is just two days shy of new, it is an excellent year to investigate this small shower, possibly making a contribution to what we know about it.
me • june and a meteor shower • gregg m. pasterick • amateur astronomy • stars

Minor Meteor Showers and Morning Planets
Serious students of meteor showers have a chance to hone their skills as data gatherers, and possibly contribute to our understanding of a couple of minor meteor showers this month; poets, dreamers and wide-eyed star-gazers get an early morning treat of bright planets with a sprinkle of waning crescent moon early in the month. And of course there is the Leonid meteor shower.
minor meteor showers and morning planets • gregg m. pasterick • amateur astronomy • constellations • stars

More of the Same: Planets
September begins where August left off: Jupiter and Venus steal a kiss at dusk, while Spica and the Moon are a couple of Peeping Toms, trying to crash the party.
more of the same: planets • gregg m. pasterick • amateur astronomy • jupier • venus

Planets and Perseids
This month's highlights are, as usual for August, planets and Perseids. The planets in question are Venus and Jupiter, which pick up the slack from the gathering of Venus, Mercury, and Saturn earlier in the summer. The Perseids are ... well, the Perseids.
planets and perseids • gregg m. pasterick • amateur astronomy • mercury • venus

Restless Nights in May
This month we have a meteor shower; we have an asteroid; we have the planets and the moon.
restless nights in may • gregg m. pasterick • amateur astronomy • expansion • moon

Shine On, Harvest Moon...
"Shine on, shine on harvest moon, up in the sky. I ain't had no lovin' since January ..." Oops. Sorry. I got harvest moons on the brain. We have a big one coming up on the 28th.
shine on • harvest moon... • gregg m. pasterick • amateur astronomy • stargazing

Some Eclipses
We have some eclipses going on in April: a total-annular eclipse of the sun on the 8th, which is visible across the Pacific Ocean, Panama, Colombia, and Venezuela, and a penumbral eclipse of the moon on the 24th visible from the western half of North America. What? Annular? Penumbral? What happened to good ol' total and partial eclipses?
some eclipses • gregg m. pasterick • amateur astronomy • stars • planets

Stargazing Destinations
These destinations feature dark skies at night, professional equipment and, often, knowledgeable guides or amateur astronomers to explain what's in the telescopes.
amateur astronomy • dark sky locations • where to see stars • guided stargazing • private observatories

You Can See Forever
Summer nights communing with stars and planets while the cool evening winds blow around your feet.
stars;planets;star watching;milky way;jupiter;satu

A Hole in the Sun, a Small Bite Out of the Moon, and Monitoring a Minor Meteor Shower
It's another eclipse month, with an annular eclipse of the Sun on the 3rd, and a partial eclipse of the Moon on the 17th. Also, there is the possibility, however slight, of unusual activity from a minor meteor shower.
a hole in the sun • a small bite out of the moon • and monitoring a minor meteor shower • gregg m. pasterick • amateur astronomy

April showers bring May websites
This article features a large variety of sites for kids. Visit the Earth and Moon Viewer, Secrets at Sea and more.
kids • fun • websites • websites for kids • kids korner

Dim Lynx and Bright Planets
March nights feature some pretty empty skies. Cancer, between the twins and the lion, is nothing to get excited about at all. Leo Minor? Canes Venatici? Forget about it. And then there's Lynx, another gathering of faint stars, stretched out between the Dig Dipper and Capella and Castor and Pollux.
dim lynx and bright planets • gregg m. pasterick • amateur astronomy • stars • constellations

Get Ready to Find Constellations
Finding constellations is fun! At least once a month, I will help you locate a constellation. Before we can begin, here are some tips to help you get off to a good start.
constellation • night skies • moon • sun • compass

Highlights of 2005 and a January Comet
Looking ahead, a few night-sky highlights elbow each other aside for attention. As for this, the first month of this new year, the highlight might be Comet C/2004 Q2 Macholz, one of two comets discovered last year by amateur astronomers.
highlights of 2005 and a january comet • gregg m. pasterick • amateur astronomy • stars • planets

How to Measure the Composition of Stars
Scientists and amateur astronomers measure the composition, luminosity, and velocity of stars, galaxies, and nebulae using a technique called spectroscopy.
measure composition stars • amateur astronomer • affordable spectroscope • amateur astronomy • absorption spectra

I Love Stargazing
How can the writer of Amateur Astronomy for Kids write an article for Valentine's Day and stay on topic? Very easily, because I Love Stargazing!
love • stargazing • sky • binoculars • birds

It's December
It's December. We've made it through another year full of ups and downs and in-betweens and hopefully many, many starry nights.
it's december • gregg m. pasterick • amateur astronomy • stars • planets

Leonids Past; a Little Self-Indulgence
I’m going to be a little self-indulgent this month pondering the Leonid meteor shower. Oh sure, there’s other stuff going on in the night sky during November, but I've got Leonids on my mind.
leonids past; a little self-indulgence • gregg m. pasterick • amateur astronomy • mercury • venus

Let's Find Orion, a Winter Constellation
Let's locate and explore Orion, an easy to find constellation in the winter sky.
orion • winter constellation • constellation • mythology • the hunter

Let's Find the Constellation Cassiopeia
We begin our search for constellations with Cassiopeia. According to Greek mythology, Cassiopeia is the Queen of Ethiopia sitting on a throne in the sky. To modern eyes, this consellation looks like the letter "W". Whatever it looks like, we intend to find Cassiopeia!
constellations • cassiopeia • easily recognizable shape • “w” • “m”

Let's Find the Constellations with a Planisphere
Wouldn't it be nice if there was a handy little star map that would not only show you what the constellations look like, but also tell you when and where to look for them? Well, there is such a device. It's called a planisphere or a star finder wheel! Join me as I explain what this is and how it works. Check out the graphics to see my well-used planisphere. Then, you can buy one or make your own.
let's find the constellations with a planisphere • suite101.com • kids korner • amateur astronomy for kids • tina_coruth

Of Falling Stars and Meteor Showers
Have you ever seen a falling star? Not really! Join me as we learn about meteors and meteor showers. Let's find out what meteors are where they come from.
meteor showers • streaks of light • falling stars • stars • meteors

Planets, Pleiades, and Some Lyrid Meteors
We get some otherworldly loveliness – that is more than the usual - during the first few days of the month when gloriously bright Venus sails within less than ½<SUP>0</sup> of the stunning Pleiades.
planets • pleiades • and some lyrid meteors • gregg m. pasterick • amateur astronomy

September Odds and Ends
During September two minor meteor showers are favored by relatively dark skies; the Harvest Moon rises on the 10th; Mercury pops into the morning sky, and is at greatest western elongation on the 26th; Mars is still a gaudy jewel.
september odds and ends • gregg m. pasterick • amateur astronomy • stars • star gazing

The Beginning of Meteor Season
During July, it is possible to see more meteors than during August, when the Perseids peak. But it takes a lot of hours out under clear, dark skies to pull it off. All these meteors are the result of a handful of meteor showers: the Piscis-Austrinids, the North and South Delta Aquarids, the South Iota Aquarids, the Alpha Capricornids, and, of course, the Perseids.
the beginning of meteor season • gregg m. pasterick • amateur astronomy • stars • planets

The Planet Neptune Discovered without a Telescope
Neptune was discovered without the use of a telescope. Read on to find out who did it and how they did it!
mathematics awareness month • mathematics and the cosmos • mathematics • universe • earth

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