Navigate by starlight

Imagine an early human out on the savannah, stepping away from the evening fire, glancing up at the dark sky and being totally captivated by the tiny, twinkling sparks dotted everywhere. Eyes wide, he

Star and deep-sky catalogues are crucial resources for making sense of the night sky. There are a lot of them, though – so many, in fact, that you almost need a catalogue of catalogues to keep track o

◀ Tuesday 2 The Lunar X and V clair-obscur effects can be seen on this evening’s Moon. Your best view will be around 23:41 BST (22:41 UT). Thursday 4 This morning, Titan’s shadow transits Saturn’s glo

Our Solar System is home to hundreds of moons, but how many can you observe? Some – like our own and the brighter ones around Jupiter and Saturn – are relatively easy to see with the naked eye, binocu

1 Sep 00:00 AEST (31 Aug, 14:00 UT) 15 Sep 23:00 AEST (13:00 UT) 30 Sep 22:00 AEST (12:00 UT) The chart accurately matches the sky on the dates and times shown for Sydney, Australia. The sky is differ

1 NGC 697 Not to be unkind, but Aries isn’t generally regarded as a rich haven for amateur deep-sky jewels. However, we’re going to look hard and visit a light smattering of objects near the Aries–Pis