Evidence for white dwarfs consuming Earth-like worlds

For the first time, astronomers have detected the vaporized remains of the crusts of long-dead Earth-like and Mars-like planets in the atmospheres of white dwarf stars. Source: https://earthsky.org/space/vaporized-earth-like-mars-like-crusts-white-dwarf-stars…

Can you see Canopus, the 2nd-brightest star?

Here’s how to spot Canopus, the 2nd-brightest star in the sky as seen from Earth, on February evenings. Source: https://earthsky.org/brightest-stars/few-know-the-second-brightest-star-canopus…

See Sirius, the brightest star in the night sky

Find out how to spot Sirius, the brightest star as seen from Earth. Learn the mythology behind this dazzling light and how it earned the nickname of the Dog Star. Source: https://earthsky.org/brightest-stars/sirius-the-brightest-star…

How to see Sirius B

Sirius is a binary star, with a small white dwarf called the Pup orbiting the large primary star. It’s not easy to observe, but it is possible. Here’s how. Source: https://earthsky.org/brightest-stars/how-to-observe-sirius-b…

Top 12 brightest objects in the solar system

Can you name the top 12 brightest objects in the solar system? How many have you seen without the aid of binoculars or a telescope? Source: https://earthsky.org/space/what-are-the-brightest-objects-in-our-solar-system…

Young moon and Mercury in mid-January 2021

These next several days – January 14, 15 and 16, 2021 – you can spot the waxing crescent moon and innermost planet Mercury, near the sunset point. Source: https://earthsky.org/tonight/young-moon-and-mercury-in-mid-january…

How to find the Winter Hexagon or Winter Circle

The brightest stars in the Northern Hemisphere’s winter sky form the shape of a large hexagon, or circle, that will help you locate 6 constellations. Source: https://earthsky.org/favorite-star-patterns/winter-circle-highlights-brightest-winter-stars…

Capture a glimpse of the Unicorn

Within a triangle of 3 bright stars – hidden in between the many bright and glittering stars visible at this time of year – you’ll find the constellation of Monoceros the Unicorn. Source: https://earthsky.org/tonight/find-monoceros-the-constellation-of-the-unicorn-within-winter-triangle…

Why are the stars so bright tonight?

In late December – and in January and February – our evening sky faces away from the Milky Way’s star-rich center. We look toward the depths of space beyond our galaxy’s boundaries and toward some close, bright stars in our local spiral arm. Source: https://earthsky.org/astronomy-essentials/star-seasonal-appearance-brightness…

The Large Magellanic Cloud, our galactic neighbor

The Large Magellanic Cloud is a petite galaxy visible with the unaided eye – all year round – for those in the Southern Hemisphere. This small neighboring galaxy to the Milky Way is somewhere between spiral and irregular in shape. Source: https://earthsky.org/clusters-nebulae-galaxies/the-large-magellanic-cloud…