Astronomy
100 Hours of Astronomy Webcast
Happy International Year of Astronomy! And how's this for a celebration: A live 24-hour video Webcast called "Around the World in 80 Telescopes," a digital travel around (and off) the globe to find out what's happening at research observatories. The Webcast began last night and will continue throug...
April 03, 2009 |
By Joseph Caputo
Forensic Astronomer Solves Fine Arts Puzzles
Astrophysicist Don Olson breaks down the barriers between science and art by analyzing literature and paintings from the past
April 2009 |
By Jennifer Drapkin and Sarah Zielinski
Astronomer Explains Consequences of a More Massive Milky Way
The Milky Way galaxy, Earth's ride through space, is more mini-van than mini-Cooper, report scientists at the American Astronomical Society meeting this week. New technology allowing them to make high-precision measurements showed that not only is the Milky Way moving 100,000 miles per hour faster ...
January 07, 2009 |
By Joseph Caputo
Stardust Memories
Cosmic dust may reveal some of the uncovered secrets of our universe
December 2008 |
By Anika Gupta
Galileo, Reconsidered
The first biography of Galileo Galilei resurfaces and offers a new theory as to why the astronomer was put on trial
August 12, 2008 |
By Mike Price
Homing In On Black Holes
To gain insight into the most mysterious objects in the universe, astronomers shine a light at the chaotic core of our Milky Way
April 2008 |
By Robert Irion
Behold, the Geminids
One of the year's best meteor showers comes in December. Here's how to view the action
December 01, 2007 |
By Marian Holmes
Record-breaking Black Hole
A black hole that trumps all others in size was detected by two NASA satellites and announced by researchers, led by Andrea Prestwich at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics. The black hole is a hefty 24 to 33 times larger than the Sun (the previous best was 16 times larger).Sitting 1....
November 09, 2007 |
By Megan Gambino
Sputnik Spawned a Moonwatch Madness
J. Allen Hynek got the call at 6:30 p.m., October 4, 1957.The associate director of the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory, near Boston, hung up and told a colleague: "There's a Russian satellite up."Sputnik's launch shocked the public: scientists were surprised only that the Russians did it fi...
October 02, 2007 |
By Beth Py-Lieberman
Life Beyond Earth
An ocean on Mars. An Earth-like planet light years away. The evidence is mounting, but are astronomers ready to say we're not alone?
July 01, 2007 |
By Eric Jaffe
Return of the Sun Cult
In Peru, scientists discover the oldest solar observatory in the Americas
May 01, 2007 |
By Eric Jaffe
The Planet Hunters
Nevermind the demotion of Pluto to a dwarf planet. Astronomers have found about 200 planets orbiting other stars, and they say it's only a matter of time before they discover another Earth.
October 2006 |
By Robert Irion
35 Who Made a Difference: John Dobson
Come one, come all. Share the sky with the father of sidewalk astronomy
November 01, 2005 |
By Don Moser
Hubble's Last Hurrah
The orbiting space telescope has captured star births and deaths, galactic collisions and the accelerating expansion of the universe. A final tuneup should ensure a few more years of its unique vision
July 2004 |
By Laura Helmuth
To Touch the Heavens
Noreen Grice has given the visually impaired a feel for the universe
August 2003 |
By David L. Chandler
Astronomy's New Stars
Thanks to new technology, backyard stargazers have traveled light-years of late to join professionals in mapping the heavens
September 2002 |
By Timothy Ferris
A Stellar Imagemaker
Smithsonian and NASA's Chandra x-ray observatory sheds new light on the mysteries of the universe
November 2000 |
By Michael Kernan
A Celestial News Bureau
Three Smithsonian astronomers run a worldwide news service about what is happening overhead
May 2000 |
By Valerie Jablow
Scoping Out the Sky
For everyday folks and presidents, too, the Naval Observatory is a fascinating place to study the stars
September 1998 |
By Michael Kernan
