Heinrick Wilhelm Mathias Olber. Have you ever heard of that guy? Don’t worry if you haven’t. Most people do not have a clue who he was. In 1823 he asked what should be a simple question: Why is the sky dark at night? Maybe because the Sun is not shining? Actually, that is not the […]
NAKED EYE
Naked Eye – Our concept of ‘universe’ just keeps expanding
The ancient Greeks had no telescopes or computers. However, they understood the motions of the Earth. They knew about the tilt of the Earth and its effects on the seasons. They had figured out the Precession of the Equinoxes, a subject very few people today understand. The ancient people had even measured the circumference of […]
Naked Eye – How to find the mysterious Zodiacal Light
It is a great time of year to view the elusive and seldom seen Zodiacal Light. Whenever I point out this strange glow to a group of stargazers, I always ask if anyone has seen it before. No one ever has. Then I ask if anyone has ever heard of it before. No one ever […]
Naked Eye – Mark March 13 for total lunar eclipse
In March the moon will pass through the shadow of the earth, treating us to a total eclipse of the moon. It is a great opportunity to see some of the movements in our solar system at work. It is the first lunar eclipse since November 2022. If you miss this one, you will have […]
Naked Eye – Take a tour of the planets with your telescope this month
The main thing going on up in the sky this month is the planets! Here is a quick rundown of what is happening. In the southwest evening sky, Venus is dazzlingly bright outshining everything other than the moon. Right now, she is pulling around the sun getting ready to make a pass between the earth […]
Naked Eye – Make Methow stargazing a Christmas gift to yourself
If you get a chance to go out under the night sky this Christmas, be sure to do so. The best star gazing of the year is happening now. In the southwest, brilliant Venus rules the night sky. She is the brightest object up there except for the sun and the moon. Named for the […]
Naked Eye – Jupiter’s not a star, but it is entertaining nonetheless
Standing outside just after it gets dark you will notice two bright objects opposite each other in the sky. In the west shines Venus, named for the beautiful goddess of love and beauty. In the east and not quite as bright is Jupiter, named for the King of the Gods. If you look closely you […]
Naked Eye – How visitors from space made an impact
A couple of weeks ago my wife and I were driving across an extremely remote area in central Nevada in the Basin and Range National Monument. We were not too far from Area 51, where some people believe UFOs regularly land and take off, adding to the almost foreboding aspect of the vacant landscape. I […]
Naked Eye – It’ll be boom or bust for October comet
A visitor is coming to say “Hello” from deep space this month. It has been traveling for tens of thousands of years, so the least we can do is wave as it goes by. Its name is quite a mouthful: C/2023A3, also known as Tsuchinshan ATLAS. It is a comet discovered by Chinese astronomers last […]
Naked Eye – An explosive event is coming to the skies near us
Have you ever seen a star explode? Many of the stars we see in the night sky will explode at the end of their lives. Some more than once. The lives of stars are on a different time schedule than our lives, so I am guessing you have never seen one. I have seen two […]
