SHOP NOW FOR

SCIENCE &
ASTRONOMY
PRODUCTS
Huge selection!
Books • Magazines • Globes & Maps
Posters • Downloads • And more!

MyScience S ho p.co m
P29014
 SPACE CLOUDS: TAKE A 3D LOOK INSIDE NEBULAE p. 44
MAY 2020

The world’s best-selling astronomy magazine

Why the Big Bang

is still stumping
astronomers p. 20

EXPLORE
EDGE-ON
AND FACE-ON
GALAXIES p. 56

www.Astronomy.com

How V.M. Slipher BOB BERMAN PLUS BONUS

Vol. 48

discovered on backyard • CHARTING the ONLINE

CONTENT
•

the expanding astronomy p. 16 19th-century heavens p. 52

Issue 5

universe p. 30 • WE TEST Canon’s CODE p. 4

new astrocamera p. 62
 A Family of Quality Products,
From a Family Business,
For Your Family
to Enjoy!

With over forty years of design-

ing and building our vision for
eyepiece and refractor perfor-
mance, along with photo/visual
accessories to match, Tele Vue
continues its mission to make your
observing ”...even better than
you imagined.” Call for expert
and accurate technical advice.

Tele Vue ®
32 Elkay Dr., Chester, New York 10918 (845) 469-4551. televue.com
Vi s i o n a r y
 ASTRO-CAMERAS
For beginners and more advanced users: astro-cameras
for auto-guiding, deep-sky and planetary photography

Highly sensitive CMOS sensors: high quantum efficiency

and low readout noise – for cleaner astrophotos

Wide range: whether monochrome or colour, you will find

the perfect pixel and sensor size for your telescope

INDI and ASCOM compatible: control the camera using the

image capture software of your choice

Julian Zoller, veTEC 16000 C, 200/1200 Newton

159 299 899
Price from Price from Price from

$ Art. Nr. 61032

$ Art. Nr. 61037
$ Art. Nr. 61045

Art. Nr. 61031 – 61036 Art. Nr. 61037 – 61044 Art. Nr. 61045, 63068 - 63070
AR0130, IMX290 IMX178, IMX385, IMX224, IMX290, IMX287 MN34230, IMX432

Compact autoguider: the ideal Professional level planetary Large sensors: wide field of view for
Omegon is part of nimax GmbH. Price changes and errors excepted. All rights reserved

add-on for a deep-sky camera photography: USB3.0 and the breathtaking deep-sky images
innovative Region of Interest
function ensure a super-fast frame
rate – freeze the seeing!
Thermoelectric cooling: minimal
thermal noise and complete control
Uncomplicated auto-guiding without headaches: thanks to the ST4 port over the sensor temperature
and PHD2 compatibility
Neither condensation nor freezing:
Well-thought-out design: owing to the compact 1.25" eyepiece format, the
thanks to a dew heater and a
robust anodised aluminium body fits every telescope
rechargeable desiccant cartridge

You can connect various accessories: the adaptor included offers a CS- and USB hub: two USB ports for an
C-mount thread as well as a 1.25" filter thread. Astronomical filters, CCTV autoguider, filter wheel or focus
lenses or mini guide scopes – they all fit! motor. Astrophotography without
cable clutter!

Open Astronomy
Instrumentation

ASCOM & INDI compatible Recommended for PHD2 & N.I.N.A.

Order online at www.omegon.com

 Online Content Code: ASY2005
Enter this code at: www.astronomy.com/code
to gain access to web-exclusive content
MAY 2020
VOL. 48, NO. 5

ON THE COVER
Some 13.8 billion years ago, the
Big Bang commenced a process

CONTENTS
that filled the universe with

44
galaxies like M31. But we’re still
trying to determime how it all
happened. TONY HALLAS

COLUMNS
FEATURES Strange Universe 16
BOB BERMAN
20 38 56 For Your Consideration 18
Is the Big Bang in crisis? Star Dome and Target edge-on and JEFF HESTER
Stubborn problems with Paths of the Planets face-on galaxies
dark matter, dark energy, RICHARD TALCOTT; Hunting pins and needles in Observing Basics 64
and cosmic expansion have ILLUSTRATIONS BY ROEN KELLY the deep sky will give your GLENN CHAPLE
some astronomers rethinking observing some pizzazz. Binocular Universe 66
what we know about the early 44 STEPHEN JAMES O’MEARA PHIL HARRINGTON
universe. DAN HOOPER Cosmic clouds 3D
A glimpse behind the dusty 62
30 veil of nebulae reveals the We test Canon’s new 9
V.M. Slipher’s chemistry of the universe. astrocamera QUANTUM GRAVITY
expanding universe DAVID J. EICHER AND BRIAN MAY; With 30 megapixels of Everything you need to
The Lowell Observatory STEREO IMAGES BY resolution, a full-frame sensor, know about the universe
astronomer’s revolutionary J.-P. METSÄVAINIO and a mirrorless body, the EOS this month: an asteroid-
findings include the expansion Ra camera can help you reveal strike crater found, a
of the universe and the 52 the night sky in all its glory. second repeating FRB
discovery of the interstellar Charting the TONY HALLAS tracked, new astronauts
medium. DAVID J. EICHER 19th-century heavens introduced, and more.
Schools and colleges 68
36 throughout America regarded Ask Astro
Sky This Month The Geography of the Heavens Stellar collisions. IN EVERY ISSUE
Venus meets Mercury. as a valuable tool for teaching
From the Editor 6
MARTIN RATCLIFFE AND astronomy. MICHAEL E. BAKICH
Astro Letters 8
ALISTER LING
Advertiser Index 65
New Products 67
Reader Gallery 70
Breakthrough 74
ONLINE
FAVORITES Picture of Sky This My Science Trips and Astronomy (ISSN 0091-6358, USPS 531-350)
Go to www.Astronomy.com is published monthly by Kalmbach Media
the Day Week Shop Tours Co., 21027 Crossroads Circle, P. O. Box 1612,
for info on the biggest news and Gorgeous A daily digest Perfect gifts for Travel with Waukesha, WI 53187–1612. Periodicals postage
observing events, stunning photos, photos from of celestial your favorite the staff of paid at Waukesha, WI, and additional offices.
POSTMASTER: Send address changes to
informative videos, and more. our readers. events. science geeks. Astronomy. Astronomy, PO Box 8520, Big Sandy, TX 75755.
Canada Publication Mail Agreement #40010760.

4 ASTRONOMY • MAY 2020

 HOME-DOME AND PRO-DOME
OBSERVATORIES
Dedicated to
Craftsmanship!
Absolute Encoders
Mach2GTO Power & Go
Auto-Adjusting
Gear Mesh
12-24V DC
PROFESSIONAL DESIGN - AMATEUR PRICE

6, 10, & 15 ft. Diameter

Stand-alone or On Building
All Fiberglass
Easy Assembly
Manual/Computer Automated
Full Height/Handicap Access
Priced from $3,995

CloudWatcher
Low cost, accurate system to detect
FORXGFRYHUOLJKWOHYHOVDQG¿UVWWUDFHV
of rain. With DDW Interface.
www.clouddetection.com

Connectivity: GTOCP5

Phone: 407-601-1975
www.astro-physics.com www.homedome.com
Machesney Park, IL USA
Ph: 815-282-1513

W W W.ASTR ONOMY.COM 5
 FROM THE EDITOR

Editor David J. Eicher

Galaxies, the Big Bang, Design Director LuAnn Williams Belter

EDITORIAL
Senior Editor Richard Talcott
Production Editor Elisa R. Neckar

and existence
Senior Associate Editor Alison Klesman
Associate Editor Jake Parks
Copy Editor McLean Bennett
Editorial Assistant Hailey McLaughlin
ART
Contributing Design Director Elizabeth Weber
When I talked with my friend Dan Illustrator Roen Kelly
Hooper at Fermilab a few months ago, Production Specialist Jodi Jeranek
CONTRIBUTING EDITORS
we decided that it was high time to do Michael E. Bakich, Bob Berman, Adam Block,
a “state-of-the-art” story on where we stand with Glenn F. Chaple Jr., Martin George, Tony Hallas,
Phil Harrington, Korey Haynes, Jeff Hester, Alister Ling,
dark matter. When Dan started writing the story, Stephen James O’Meara, Martin Ratcliffe, Raymond Shubinski
however, he evolved it into a summary of a much SCIENCE GROUP
Executive Editor Becky Lang
bigger dilemma: “Holes” in the Big Bang theory Design Director Dan Bishop
of the origin of the universe are increasingly leav- EDITORIAL ADVISORY BOARD
ing some astronomers unsettled. So his story, “Is Buzz Aldrin, Marcia Bartusiak, Jim Bell, Timothy Ferris,
Alex Filippenko, Adam Frank, John S. Gallagher lll,
the Big Bang in crisis?” describes the problems Daniel W. E. Green, William K. Hartmann, Paul Hodge,
Edward Kolb, Stephen P. Maran, Brian May, S. Alan Stern,
astronomers must yet overcome. James Trefil
When the universe began to assemble matter,
it preferred to lump it into galaxies — huge clouds Kalmbach Media
Chief Executive Officer Dan Hickey
The blue light in this and wheels of stars, gas, and dust. As I was grow- Senior Vice President, Finance Christine Metcalf
image of MACS Senior Vice President, Consumer Marketing Nicole McGuire
J0717.5+3745 shows ing up — when we weren’t even sure that the Big Bang was the Vice President, Content Stephen C. George
the arrangement of correct model of the universe — one of my favorite books was Tim Vice President, Operations Brian J. Schmidt
dark matter in this Vice President, Human Resources Sarah A. Horner
Ferris’ classic Galaxies. Since its publication in 1980, what we know
galaxy cluster. Despite Senior Director, Advertising Sales and Events David T. Sherman
the ubiquity of dark about galaxies, the basic units of matter in the cosmos, has been Advertising Sales Director Scott Redmond
matter in the universe, completely revolutionized. I’ve written my own book, Galaxies: Circulation Director Liz Runyon
Director of Design & Production Michael Soliday
astronomers still have Inside the Universe’s Star Cities, to explain exactly what we know Managing Design Director Lisa A. Bergman
no good idea what it New Business Manager Cathy Daniels
is made of. NASA/ESA/ about these majestic structures now. You can order copies of this Retention Manager Kathy Steele
D. HARVEY (ÉCOLE POLYTECHNIQUE new book, just out, from MyScienceShop.com. Single Copy Specialist Kim Redmond
FÉDÉRALE DE LAUSANNE)/ ADVERTISING DEPARTMENT
R. MASSEY (DURHAM UNIVERSITY)/
This issue features stories on galaxies, too. Veteran observer Steve Phone (888) 558-1544
H. EBELING (UNIVERSITY OF O’Meara describes how you can observe face-on and edge-on galax- Ad Production [email protected]
HAWAII)/J.-P. KNEIB (LAM) Dina Johnston, [email protected]
ies, and lists challenging objects in each category to target. We have
a historical story I’ve done on the great astronomer V.M. Slipher, RETAIL TRADE ORDERS AND INQUIRIES
Selling Astronomy magazine or products in your store:
who discovered in 1912 that the universe is expanding. Phone (800) 558-1544
Outside U.S. and Canada (262) 796-8776, ext. 818
And we have an excerpt from another brand-new book, Cosmic Fax (262) 798-6592
Clouds 3-D: Where Stars Are Born, which I wrote along with Brian Email [email protected]
Website www.Retailers.Kalmbach.com
May, my book-writing partner and founding member and guitarist CUSTOMER SALES AND SERVICE
of the rock group Queen. This book features the incredible work Phone (877) 246-4835
Outside U.S. and Canada (903) 636-1125
of Finnish photographer J.-P. Metsävainio, who is a master at Customer Service [email protected]
analyzing the data of distant nebulae and creating realistic 3D CONTACT US
Ad Sales [email protected]
images showing the relative distances of stars and gas clouds Ask Astro [email protected]
surrounding them. You can also order this book from Books [email protected]
Letters [email protected]
MyScienceShop.com. Products [email protected]
On a staffing note, please join me in congratulating Alison Reader Gallery [email protected]
Editorial Phone (262) 796-8776
Klesman on her promotion to Senior Associate Editor. Since joining
the magazine in 2016, Alison has taken on an increasingly larger For reprints, licensing, and permissions:
PARS International at www.parsintl.com
and more varied workload and has produced very nice stories that
Copyright © 2020 Kalmbach Media Co., all rights reserved. This publication
I know you have enjoyed. You’ll treasure her work for a long time may not be reproduced in any form without permission. Printed in the U.S.A.
Allow 6 to 8 weeks for new subscriptions and address changes. Subscription
to come. rate: single copy: $5.99; U.S.: 1 year $42.95; 2 years $79.95; 3 years $114.95.
Canadian: Add $12.00 postage per year. Canadian price includes GST, payable
in U.S. funds. All other international subscriptions: Add $16.00 postage per
year, payable in U.S. funds, drawn on a U.S. bank. BN 12271 3209 RT. Not
Follow the Yours truly, responsible for unsolicited materials.

Dave’s Universe blog:

www.Astronomy.
com/davesuniverse FOLLOW ASTRONOMY
Follow Dave Eicher
on Twitter: David J. Eicher www.twitter.com/AstronomyMag
@deicherstar Editor www.facebook.com/AstronomyMagazine

6 ASTRONOMY • MAY 2020

 ScopeBuggy
• For use with most tripods, DOBs
and piers
• 10” Pneumatic tires for soft ride
• Load tested to 600+ pounds
• Assemble & disassemble in minutes
• Adjustable rear axle height (1½” to 7”)
• Ideal for scopes up to 36”
• One person can quickly
and easily move
any sized scope Still #1
$345.00*
Plus S&H
Approx. $60 Shipping
USA
*Subject to change

Inside the epic quest Patent Pending

to find life on the SCOPEBUGGY

water-rich moons at P.O. BOX 834
Elephant Butte, NM 915-443-9010
the outer reaches of 87935

the solar system

“A must-read for all who gaze www.ScopeBuggy.com
at the stars above and
ponder the abyss below.”
—James Cameron

“Hand takes readers from the

depths of Earth’s oceans to those The best $299
eyepiece you’ll
of the outer solar system. . . .
His explanations are full of

ever buy.
engaging analogies that will
help general readers understand
the science needed to think
rigorously about life as we know No computer required. Battery-
it—and as we do not yet know it.” powered 7” color monitor included.
—Jill Tarter, SETI Institute
Cloth $27.95

Follow us on M16 Eagle Nebula

8” Celestron Evolution
Facebook! Metropolitan Skies

REVOLUTION IMAGER
RevolutionImager.com
High Point Scientific
Agena AstroProducts
Oceanside Photo & Telescope
GO TO Woodland Hills Telescope
Skies Unlimited
www.Facebook.com/AstronomyMagazine Orange County Telescope

WWW. ASTRONOMY.COM 7
 ASTRO LET TERS

Remembering 2019 vapor has been identified on planet K2-18 b includes the
Your January issue was spectacular. information: “The researchers were able to tease out the
The “Top 10 space stories of 2019” undeniable fingerprint of water vapor in the atmo-
shows what was accomplished this sphere.” This line was an opportunity to inform your
ESA/HUBBLE/M. KORNMESSER

past year. The overload of informa- readers that the “teasing out” was done by the research-
tion is overwhelming, but the article ers’ use of spectroscopic analysis. Adding that informa-
on black holes took my breath away. tion to the article would certainly benefit your readers.
In his editor’s note, David Eicher — Frank Lock, Gainesville, GA
masterfully expresses the death and
K2-18 b is a super-Earth birth of stars as the grandest recy-
exoplanet, discovered
in 2015. cling program. Little did I know what lurks behind the A job well done
beautiful “like a diamond in the sky” stars at night. I appreciate Senior Associate Editor Alison Klesman. Not
But the most exhilarating story was in Quantum only were her answers in January’s Ask Astro clear and
Gravity. It covered the mighty super-Earth exoplanet, concise, I noticed she was the sole expert providing all of
We welcome
your comments K2-18 b, and its signs of habitability. I’m looking forward the answers. I hope Alison’s colleagues give her a well-
at Astronomy Letters, to another astronomical year! — Shobha Kaicker, deserved pat on the back. — Jim McLeod, Charlotte, NC
P.O. Box 1612, Mississauga, Ontario
Waukesha, WI 53187;
or email to letters@ Televised eclipse
astronomy.com .
Forever teaching Thank you for the fine article “Astronomy’s electronic
Please include your
Each month I look forward to receiving Astronomy. I had revolution” in the February issue. I can relate to it as
name, city, state, and
country. Letters may the wonderful experience of teaching high school astron- I used an RCA TK11 television camera, which had an
be edited for space omy for the final six years of my 35-year career. image orthicon as the pickup device, to televise a lunar
and clarity. The article in the January 2020 issue indicating water eclipse in 1960. — Bob Zuelsdorf, Grass Valley, CA

Deep Sky
Euphoria!
16-inch F/4.5
Truss Tube Dobsonian
• Transports in a Compact Car
• Easy One-Person Collimation
• Smooth Movements with Clutch
• 2-inch Two-Speed Rack & Pinion Focuser
Attend NEAF for a chance to
WIN THIS SCOPE!
April 4 & 5, 2020 explorescientific.com

For more, check out

Astronomy.com
8 ASTRONOMY • MAY 2020
 QUANTUM GRAVITY
QG EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE UNIVERSE THIS MONTH

SNAPSHOT

ANATOMY
OF A COSMIC
SWAN
NASA/SOFIA/LIM, DE BUIZER, & RADOMSKI ET AL., ESA/HERSCHEL, NASA/JPL-CALTECH. BOTTOM FROM LEFT: RUBIN OBSERVATORY/AURA/NSF; NASA’S GODDARD SPACE FLIGHT CENTER; NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION/LIGO/SONOMA STATE UNIVERSITY/A. SIMONNET

Infrared light reveals

a famous object’s
piecemeal past.
The Omega Nebula, also
called the Swan Nebula, is a
massive star-forming region
about 5,000 light-years away.
Hidden within its opaque,
dusty clouds are more than
100 newly formed stars as well
as clues to the region’s past,
including how the nebula itself
formed over time. Using the
Stratospheric Observatory
for Infrared Astronomy, or
SOFIA, astronomers have
peered deeper into the region
than ever before to discover
nine new massive protostars
— collapsing sections of gas
and dust that will soon ignite
into suns.
SOFIA’s observations also
show that different areas of
the nebula have different
ages. Rather than forming all
at once or sequentially from
top to bottom, the central
region of the nebula formed
first, followed by the northern
portion, while the southern
part of the nebula is youngest.
By studying the nebula
and how it is put together, HOT NEW NAME TWIN SUNS BIG SOLO
In April 2019, LIGO
astronomers hope to learn BYTES The Large Synoptic
Survey Telescope, under
On January 6,
researchers announced spotted the second-
more about the conditions construction on Cerro that NASA’s TESS ever gravitational wave
in which the galaxy’s most Pachón, Chile, is now planet-hunting signal generated by
massive stars are born. called the National spacecraft had spotted a binary neutron star
— ALISON KLESMAN Science Foundation Vera its first planet with merger. It is the first
C. Rubin Observatory two suns. The world, confirmed event seen
— the first national called TOI 1338 b, orbits with only one gravita-
U.S. observatory named its binary stars every tional wave detector,
for a woman. 93 to 95 days. LIGO Livingston.

WWW. ASTRONOMY.COM 9
QUANTUM GRAVITY

FOUND: CRATER FROM

790,000-YEAR-OLD ASTEROID STRIKE
The massive but elusive impact rained down ash over 10 percent
of Earth’s surface, leaving a mark far beyond the site of the hit.

INCOMING. Large asteroids rarely end up

on a collision course with Earth. But smaller
impactors, like the one seen in this artist’s
concept, can still wreak havoc around the
world. URIKYO33 (PIXABAY)

The blinding flash of light identifying the potential impact site via just seconds. The meteorite’s speed
came first, followed by a shock satellite imagery, researchers excavated and force would have been enough to
wave and massive earthquake. Only the area and found the lava dated to send pillow-sized boulders careening
later did the hailstorm of black, glassy around the same time as the impact, through the air at almost 1,500 feet
debris begin, a rocky rain that fell on while the surrounding sediments were (460 meters) per second — faster than
10 percent of Earth’s surface. older. This evidence was bolstered by the speed of sound. “It would not
That’s the scene that followed a mas- gravity measurements that hinted at have been a healthy thing to be on the
sive asteroid impact 790,000 years ago. a crater hiding below. receiving end of that,” Sieh says.
The rocky remains it scattered, called By finding the site of the asteroid Next, Sieh wants to focus on some
tektites, have been found from Asia to strike, researchers have been able to of the ashy material surrounding the
Antarctica. For decades, scientists have reconstruct some of the chaos that meteor’s debris. The impact would
searched for the elusive resting place ensued after the impact, says study have incinerated all plant and animal
of the impactor. And now, they think co-author Kerry Sieh, a geologist at life within 300 miles (480 km) of the
they’ve found it. Nanyang Technological University impact site, and Sieh is curious how
in Singapore. The finding could also that kind of settling dust would affect
ELUSIVE CRATER illustrate some of what we could expect all of us today, if such an event were to
A report published January 21 in the if a similarly large asteroid were to occur in modern times.
Proceedings of the National Academy strike Earth again. The odds of such an impact in our
of Sciences says that the meteorite lifetimes are extremely low, but the
likely struck in the Bolaven Plateau in ANATOMY OF AN APOCALYPSE prospect still fascinates Sieh. “I’ve never
southern Laos, carving a 10.5-by-8-mile Roughly 1.25 miles (2 km) wide, the worked on meteorites before,” he says,
(17 by 13 kilometers) crater that’s now impacting rock would have gouged “but I got sucked into this with my
covered by an ancient lava flow. After a hole larger than San Francisco in curiosity.” — LESLIE NEMO, JAKE PARKS

10 ASTRONOMY • MAY 2020

 QUICK
THE NEXT FAST FACT
The three smallest ground-based
TAKES
GENERATION scopes shown here were the
world’s best for nearly a century. HELLO, NEIGHBOR
OF TELESCOPES NASA’S planet-hunting TESS
telescope has discovered a habitable
Yerkes Earth-sized exoplanet candidate just
Kepler Hooker
Earth-trailing Observatory 100 light-years from Earth — close
Wisconsin California Hale Bolshoi Azimuthal
solar orbit (1917) California Telescope Subaru
enough that its atmosphere could
(2009) (1897)
(1949) Russia (1975) Telescope W.M. Keck be targeted by the upcoming
Hawaii Observatory James Webb Space Telescope.
Gaia (1999) Hawaii
spacecraft (1990/1996)
Earth-Sun L2 Large Binocular BLACK HOLE BULLIES
(2013) Telescope Tidal Disruption Events (TDEs) —
Arizona (2005) Gran Telescopio
Canarias which occur when a black hole
Hubble Space Canary Islands tears an unlucky star into a disk of
Telescope Gemini
(2007) North & South Magellan hot, glowing gas that is eventually
Low Earth orbit Telescopes
(1990) Hawaii/Chile Very Large consumed — may come in two
(1999/2000) Chile
(2000/2002) Telescope flavors: complete and partial. New
Chile (1998)

ASTRONOMY: RICK JOHNSON, AFTER CMGLEE/WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

research suggests the light curves
James Webb Simonyi of TDEs can help astronomers know
Space Telescope
Earth-Sun L2
Survey Telescope at which type they’re looking.
Chile
(planned 2021) (planned 2020)
Thirty Meter Telescope
EARLY BIRD SPECIAL
Hawaii A distant, giant galaxy seen as it
(planned 2027) existed 1.5 billion years after the Big
10m Bang appears to have finished
30ft
forming stars at its center. The find
Tennis court at same scale implies that other ancient and
0 Human massive galaxies might have also
Key: Giant Magellan European Extremely completed star formation in their
Northern Hemisphere (blue) Telescope Large Telescope
Southern Hemisphere (green) Chile
cores early in the universe’s history.
Chile
Space-based (orange) (planned 2029) (planned 2025)
SPACE TRIAGE
An unnamed astronaut discovered
OPTICAL EVOLUTION. Mount Wilson’s famous 100-inch (2.5 meters) Hooker Telescope they had a blood clot in their jugular
reigned as the world’s largest from 1917 until Palomar Observatory’s 200-inch (5 m) Hale vein while carrying out a vascular
Telescope was pressed into service in 1949. Although the primary mirrors of both Hooker study aboard the ISS. The clot was
successfully managed with a
and Hale were modern marvels during their times, the telescopes of a century ago will look treatment of blood thinners, and
like toys in comparison to the goliath observatories now being built. When the European though it was still present 24 hours
Extremely Large Telescope sees first light around 2025, its mirror will stretch a truly mind- after landing on Earth, it was
boggling 129 feet (39.3 m) from edge to edge. — ERIC BETZ, J.P. gone 10 days later.

REMIND ME LATER
Astronomers expect a pair of stars
known as V Sagittae, which are on a
spiraling collision course with one
another, to coalesce and go nova
around 2083 — give or take about
10 years. The event is expected to
briefly make V Sagittae the brightest
NASA/JPL-CALTECH

star in the night sky.

BAKER’S DOZEN
Thirteen supermassive black holes
were recently found within dwarf
Spitzer captures a stellar playground galaxies more than 100 times less
massive than the Milky Way. Half
The Perseus Molecular Cloud, seen here, abounds with young stars. Located about 1,000 were in the center, as expected. But
light-years from Earth, the expansive collection of dust and gas stretches some 500 light- half the black holes were located in
years across and is home to a number of intriguing targets — including the young star the outskirts of their host galaxies,
cluster IC 348 (the bright clump on the left) and the reflection nebula NGC 1333 (upper meaning researchers may need to
expand their hunt for supermassive
right). This image, taken about 10 years ago with NASA’s now-retired Spitzer Space
black holes in dwarf galaxies beyond
Telescope, captures the infrared radiation streaming from the cloud. — J.P. just their cores. — J.P.

WWW. ASTRONOMY.COM 11
QUANTUM GRAVITY

X-RAY: CHANDRA: NASA/CXC/SAO/E. O'SULLIVAN. XMM: ESA/XMM/E. O'SULLIVAN. OPTICAL: SDSS

Giant wave of star-forming
clouds lies near the Sun
DO THE WAVE. The
Radcliffe Wave is a
recently discovered
9,000-light-year-long
structure composed of
star-forming regions,
colored red in this
artist’s rendition, which
also shows the Milky
Way Galaxy and the Sun
(yellow). Although
SHOCKING
astronomers aren’t sure
what caused the ripple- SCENE
like structure, they do
know it has interacted Galaxies rarely live alone.
with the Sun in the past.
ALYSSA GOODMAN/HARVARD
Pulled together by gravity,
UNIVERSITY
they congregate into groups
Our local arm of the Milky Way In particular, the wave’s discovery that, over time, can merge
Galaxy is doing the wave. Harvard disproves the existence of a feature into larger clusters. That’s
University astronomers recently uncovered known as “Gould’s Belt,” which astrono- what’s happening in NGC
a strange, wave-shaped structure within mers believed was a ring-shaped structure 6338, where two galaxy
500 light-years of the Sun, made up of sev- of star-forming regions circling the Sun. groups are rushing toward
eral interconnected stellar nurseries. Taken Many of the regions previously thought to each other at about 4 million
as a whole, the wave is 400 light-years reside in parts of this belt are instead part
mph (6.4 million km/h).
wide and 9,000 light-years long, snaking of the Radcliffe Wave, the team found,
500 light-years above and below the plane while other regions associated with the
This composite image shows
of the galaxy. Findings regarding the wave belt now appear to be unrelated to either the scene of the impending
— dubbed the Radcliffe Wave in honor of the wave or any ring structure. “For a smashup in X-rays and
the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study long time, people have been trying to optical light. The hottest
at Harvard, where the discovery was made figure out if these molecular clouds actu- gas, with temperatures over
— were published January 7 in Nature. ally form a ring in 3D,” said lead author 36 million degrees Fahrenheit
Researchers found the Radcliffe Wave João Alves of the University of Vienna. (20 million degrees Celsius)
while analyzing data from the European “Instead, what we’ve observed is the
is colored red. Cooler gas in
Space Agency’s Gaia mission, which largest coherent gas structure we know
is tasked with charting the location of in the galaxy, organized not in a ring the cores of the two groups
and motion of stars within our galaxy. but in a massive, undulating filament. … appears blue, while stars and
Combining that information with other It’s been right in front of our eyes all the galaxies shining in optical
observations as well as simulations and time, but we couldn’t see it until now.” light are white. The thin strip
data visualization, they discovered the Now, thanks to the team’s efforts, we of hot gas between the cores,
undulating structure in the spiral arm of can see it, and the information will allow as well as the gas around
the Milky Way closest to our solar system. astronomers to better understand the them, has been heated by
According to the team, the wave looks properties of the star-forming clouds of
shocks generated during the
long and straight from above, but from gas and dust that are part of the wave.
the side, it appears to bob up and down That’s because calculating the size and collision, similar to the sonic
out of the plane of the galaxy. “The wave’s mass of such clouds relies on knowing booms made by supersonic
very existence is forcing us to rethink our their distance, which until now has been aircraft. Although this
understanding of the Milky Way’s 3D difficult to measure. Additionally, the pattern of shocked gas has
structure,” said study co-author Alyssa data combination techniques used by been predicted by simulations
Goodman, co-director of the Science the team can set the stage for even more, in the past, NGC 6338 is the
Program at the Radcliffe Institute for perhaps also surprising, findings about
first galaxy group merger that
Advanced Study, in a press release. the structure of the Milky Way. — A.K.
shows clearly this effect. — A.K.

12 ASTRONOMY • MAY 2020

 HOW THE PLANETS LINE UP
TILT-A-WHIRL. The planets orbit our Sun in a relatively flat plane. But the key word here is relatively —
some planets lie closer to this plane than others. The amount a planet’s orbit is tilted, or inclined, away
from the plane is called its inclination. As earthbound observers, we have defined the plane of the
solar system, called the ecliptic, as the orbit of Earth around the Sun. Therefore, Earth has
an inclination of 0.0°. Here’s how the other planets (and Pluto) stack up. — A.K.
Pluto
FAST FACT 17.2°
The planets orbit in a plane because
the solar system formed out of a
relatively flat disk of gas and dust
swirling around our infant Sun.

Jupiter
Mars 1.3° Uranus
Spin axis 1.9° 0.8°

Mercury Venus Saturn Neptune

7.0° Earth 2.5° 1.8°
3.4° 0.0°
ASTRONOMY: ROEN KELLY

Our nearby
gentle giant
The spiral galaxy UGC 2885,
also called Rubin’s Galaxy, is
something of a local legend. At
232 million light-years away, it
is the largest galaxy known in
our nearby universe, spanning
more than twice the width of
the Milky Way and containing
10 times as many stars. But
astronomers aren’t sure how it
got so large. Galaxies typically
grow by consuming or smash-
ing into other galaxies. But
UGC 2885 is alone in space,
apparently having undergone
neither process to gain its heft.
Instead, researchers believe
it may have grown by calmly
siphoning gas from intergalac-
NASA, ESA, AND B. HOLWERDA (UNIVERSITY OF LOUISVILLE)
tic space. One way to read the
galaxy’s past is to study the globular clusters of stars around
it. These clusters often survive collisions and assimilations,
revolving around the final result. Astronomers are now look-
ing to count up the globular clusters around UGC 2885 to
$58,000 The total, in USD, awarded
by the Planetary Society, in
varying amounts, to six amateur astronomers
see whether it has more than it should, which would hint
that it’s eaten other galaxies in the past. — A.K. focused on discovering and characterizing
near-Earth asteroids.

WWW. ASTRONOMY.COM 13
QUANTUM GRAVITY

UP IN ARMS.
FRB 180916 lies
in a Milky Way-
like spiral galaxy
500 million light-
years away. The
location of the
FRB (circled) in
one of the galaxy’s
star-forming spiral
arms challenges
astronomers’
ideas about the
origin of these
mysterious bursts.
GEMINI OBSERVATORY/NSF'S
NATIONAL OPTICAL-INFRARED
ASTRONOMY RESEARCH
LABORATORY/AURA

Second repeating fast radio burst

tracked, deepening mystery
Fast radio bursts (FRBs) are It is the closest FRB tracked to date the types of conditions that cause FRBs,
short, powerful blasts of energy and lies within an outer arm of its host repeating and nonrepeating.
that originate outside our galaxy. Only galaxy, where stars are rapidly forming. The current leading theory is that
a few repeat, while most pop off only The spiral host is similar to our own FRBs are produced by neutron stars, the
once. For more than a decade, astrono- Milky Way, however, making it unlike highly magnetized remnants of massive
mers have sought to understand these any other galaxy in which an FRB has stars. While this could be the case for
strange flashes and, in recent years, been found before. The only other some FRBs, it may not be the cause of
have begun to trace some FRBs back repeating FRB that astronomers have all of them. The more FRBs astrono-
to their origins. In a paper published tracked, FRB 121102, comes from a tiny, mers identify and track, the more
January 6 in Nature, researchers distant dwarf galaxy 3 billion light- diverse the population becomes. “It may
announced they have tracked yet years away — a dramatically different be that FRBs are produced in a large
another FRB to its host galaxy. It is the environment than a spiral galaxy near zoo of locations across the universe and
fifth time an FRB has been traced to our own. just require some specific conditions to
its origin, and only the second time a “This object’s location is radically be visible,” Nimmo said.
repeating FRB has been pinpointed. different from that of not only the previ- The team, along with many others,
Combining observations from eight ously located repeating FRB, but also all aims to track an increasing number of
separate telescopes, a team of astrono- previously studied FRBs,” said study co- FRBs to their hosts. They hope more
mers tracked the burst, which is called author Kenzie Nimmo of the University information on where FRBs originate
FRB 180916.J0158+65, to a spiral galaxy of Amsterdam in a press release. And will ultimately reveal what’s causing
nearly half a billion light-years away. that has implications, the team says, for these strange flashes of energy. — A.K.

14 ASTRONOMY • MAY 2020

NASA astronauts
graduate with eye
toward Artemis
The first class of NASA astronauts slated for the
Artemis program graduated January 10. And
after more than two years of basic training, the
11 NASA astronauts, in addition to two Canadian
Space Agency (CSA) astronauts, are now eligi-
ble for missions to the space station, the Moon,
and eventually Mars. Selected from a record-
setting pool of more than 18,000 applicants,
this cosmic class includes some of the best and
brightest our country has to offer. The next-gen
astronauts are (top row, left to right) Matthew
Dominick, Kayla Barron, Warren Hoburg, Joshua
Kutryk (CSA); (middle row) Bob Hines, Frank
Rubio, Jennifer Sidey-Gibbons (CSA), Jasmin
Moghbeli, Jessica Watkins; (bottom row) Raja
Chari, Jonny Kim, Zena Cardman, and Loral

NASA
O’Hara. Congratulations, graduates! — J.P.

7,800 The temperature, in degrees Fahrenheit (4,300 degrees Celsius),

on the surface of the hottest-known exoplanet, KELT-9 b.

FAST FACT
On February 1, asteroid 594 Mireille strayed
37° north of the ecliptic, the farthest
A ST in our sample.
L
EROI OW
TAU
ECLI
PTIC
D S O N T H E PR LEO THE REST
291
PSC
VIR
AQR OPH
CET

CAP LIB
A THOUSAND POINTS OF LIGHT. SGR
German astronomer Karl
Reinmuth hit a milestone when
he discovered the 1,000th aster- AQUARIUS SAGITTARIUS
oid on August 12, 1923. Most PISCES
109 CORNUS
CAPRI-
103 VIRGO
of the first 1,000 objects lie in a 85 84 LIBRA
OPHIUCHUS 67 77
ASTRONOMY: ROEN KELLY

belt between the orbits of Mars TAURUS CETUS 56 LEO

and Jupiter that aligns closely 45 40 43
with Earth’s orbital plane (the
ecliptic). As such, they rarely
stray far from the zodiacal
constellations where the major planets reside. The graph above shows the positions of these 1,000 asteroids on
February 1, 2020. More than 70 percent of them resided in just 10 constellations. — RICHARD TALCOTT

WWW. ASTRONOMY.COM 15
 STRANGE UNIVERSE

Observatory in the Albany, New York, metro area and Matt Francis’
Prescott Observatory south of that city in Arizona show,
an imperfect sky is no reason to forgo such a project.

odds and ends True, this eliminates most deep-space objects.

However, the endless realm of double stars, as well as
Moon and planet explorations, can keep you and your
Don’t give up on your backyard astronomy dreams. visitors enthralled forever. Those crowd-pleasers are
immune to light pollution.
Of course, when galaxies and nebulae are important,
you must have a dark site. If, like me, you already live far
out in the boonies, your home environment might be
perfect. Otherwise, if you can commute, buy some land
in the middle of nowhere, where real estate is inexpen-
sive. Solar panels and battery storage can preclude the
need to spend a fortune erecting poles to connect to the
grid. Don’t close until you’ve spent a night camping there.
If one sky-direction must be blocked, sacrifice the north.
Next decision: type and size. I built a big roll-off roof
observatory in the mid-’80s. No one helped me, and I
made major mistakes. I put the roof on swiveling casters.
Don’t do that. I had to jack it up and replace everything.
I also thought the roof’s wheels would roll on the wooden
wall tops. Wrong again. When parked, the heavily loaded
The author’s new casters created depressions and wouldn’t readily climb
observatory in
upstate New York, as In some alternate universes, astronomy is out of them. I jacked everything up again and topped the
seen from his kitchen free. But around here, perusing these pages walls with thin steel plates. It was harder than it sounds.
window. The rural filled with tempting gadgets and gleaming I also learned that everything needs to be periodically
landscape is free of
lights and houses. But telescopes, many of us have expensive dreams. greased. And that a reversible half-horsepower DC motor
there’s no cell service I’m familiar with the drooling-craving syndrome. was best for moving the enormous weight. And to use
or mail delivery, For me, it started with airplanes. During my three post- chains, not cables. Also, the 12-by-20-foot (3.7 by 6 meters)
either. BOB BERMAN
college years in Asia, some of my Peace Corps friends building was excessive. Do yourself a favor and go smaller.
discovered cheap lessons at government- Then, last year, having moved to even
run flight schools. Count me in! In 1985, darker skies and now significantly less
I finished my training in the U.S., but A private poor, I gladly paid Explora-Dome to install
what do you do after you’ve obtained a an 8-foot (2.4 m) motorized dome on their
pilot’s license? Everyone’s biggest aspira-
observatory may square building. Everything all together
tion is to own a plane. seem utterly — the dome, building, and labor — totaled
It seemed a pipe dream for this writer, unworkable for under $10K. Another few thousand cov-
married to a kindergarten teacher. But, it urbanites. ered the masonry foundation and pier, and
turned out, good used four-seaters are not Nonetheless, the end result was my big f/6 equatorial
crazy expensive, and the next three reflector in one observatory (the roll-off)
decades were peppered with fairy-tale
many stubbornly and apochromatic refractor in the dome.
aerial adventures. dream of Shuttling back and forth from a dome
The parallels to our astronomy passion owning one. to a roll-off provides a great A/B compari-
are obvious. A private observatory may son. Yes, a dome looks cool. But a roll-off
seem impossibly opulent and utterly exposes the entire sky, letting occupants
unworkable for urbanites. Nonetheless, many stub- stargaze or use binoculars while waiting their turn at the
bornly harbor the dream of owning one. scope. You can’t do that in a dome.
BY BOB BERMAN As someone who has traveled that road and managed The bottom line is: Don’t ever abandon your observa-
Join me and Pulse to make every possible mistake in the process, let me tory dream.
of the Planet’s share some hard-won lessons. I’ve skipped the part about how snakes like to nest
Jim Metzner
First is the issue of “where?” You might think a city in them.
in my podcast,
Astounding Universe, would be out of the question. But I watched a physician
at www.astounding in light-polluted Kingston, New York, construct a dome BROWSE THE “STRANGE UNIVERSE” ARCHIVE
universe.com on his Victorian rooftop. And, as Dudley Observatory AT www.Astronomy.com/Berman

16 ASTRONOMY • MAY 2020

 29TH ANNUAL
NORTHEAST ASTRONOMY
FORUM & SPACE EXPO
APRIL 4-5, 2020
WORLD’S LARGEST ASTRONOMY, TELESCOPE & SPACE EXPO!
OVER 120 VENDORS, PRO/AM & ASTRONOMY WORKSHOPS,
SOLAR OBSERVING & WORLD-CLASS SPEAKERS FEATURING:
JERRY ROSS NASA ASTRONAUT & SPACEWALKER
TOM MULDER BOEING STARLINER
SAMUEL D. HALE EXEC. DIR., MT. WILSON, GRANDSON OF GEORGE ELLERY HALE
DIANNA COLMAN PRES. YERKES FOUNDATION, SAVING YERKES Presented by
EDWARD GUINAN VILLANOVA UNIV., THE DIMMING OF BETELGEUSE
JANI RADEBAUGH PLANETARY SCIENTIST, DRAGONFLY MISSION
JPL MARS 2020 MISSION, PLUS ISS 20TH ANNIVERSARY
PLUS MUCH, MUCH MORE!
SHOW HOURS: SAT 9-6 PM, SUN 10-5 PM
Sponsored by
SUNY ROCKLAND COMMUNITY COLLEGE
SUFFERN, NY (ONLY 30 MINS FROM NYC)

NEAFEXPO.COM BUY TICKETS, GET INFO, HOTEL ROOMS

DON’T MISS THE NORTHEAST FEATURING IMAGING Andy Campbell Steve Mazlin Stephanie Anderson T J Connelly
ASTRO IMAGING CONFERENCE WORKSHOPS, LECTURES Alan Friedman Alex McConahay Jim Moronski John Hayes
APRIL 2-3 2020 AT NEAF & VENDOR EXHIBITS John O’Neill Dr. Ron Brecher Kerry-Ann Hepburn Rachel Freed

Have you ever looked

up in wonder at
the night sky?
Astronomy is your ultimate stargazing companion, offering
helpful observing tips, gorgeous images, and much more.
In every monthly issue you’ll find:
• Tips for locating stars, planets, and deep-sky objects.
• Monthly sky charts to help you locate observing targets.
• Stunning photos of the most beautiful celestial objects.
• Reviews of the latest telescopes and equipment.

Subscribe Today!
Astronomy.com
OR CALL 877-246-4835 Outside the United States and Canada, call 903-636-1125.
P36116

WWW. ASTRONOMY.COM 17
 F O R Y O U R C O N S I D E R AT I O N

Rekindling dreams engineers, Apollo didn’t go to the Moon to beat the

Soviets. Apollo went to the Moon for us.
I was saddened by the disaster of space shuttle
When will humankind leave the cradle? Columbia. I was livid when it became clear that space
shuttle Challenger exploded because someone thought
It is hard to say whether I political expediency was more important than physical
truly remember Mercury reality.
astronauts being bolted I never saw eye to eye with colleagues who bemoaned
into tiny capsules and blasted into dollars spent on human spaceflight. While robotic explo-
space, or whether I only remember ration of space is one of humanity’s grandest accomplish-
remembering. Regardless, those ments, for many, including myself, robots aren’t enough.
images are there in my mind. That is It matters that humans see, feel, experience, and push
where my lifelong love affair with limits. It always has, and it always will. Had you told me
science, engineering, and explora- at 12 years old that half a century would pass without a
tion took root. return to the Moon, much less a trip to Mars, I probably
Even as a young kid, I understood would have spit in your face. But here we are.
that spaceflight was about pushing Personally, I can’t really complain. As a kid (and, to be
the limits of human experience. honest, as an adult, too) I devoured books by the likes of
Maybe I became aware of the danger Ray Bradbury, Isaac Asimov, and Arthur C. Clarke.
when Gemini VIII tumbled out of Experiences like working in the Mission Operations
When Gene Cernan control after the first-ever docking Center as STS-61 astronauts installed WFPC2, the
snapped this photo of of two spacecraft in orbit. A quick-thinking Neil camera that saved Hubble, offered small tastes of what
Jack Schmitt on the
lunar surface, along Armstrong and David Scott narrowly averted tragedy that future might have been like.
with the Apollo 17 by using the reentry system to wrestle the capsule back But do dreams from childhood ever really die? Call
rover, no one yet under control. me a romantic, but apparently the answer is no.
appreciated how long
it would be until Or maybe it all became real with the Apollo 1 fire. When two reusable SpaceX Falcon Heavy boosters
humans returned Along with much of the world, I was landed side by side, I felt hope and longing as
to the Moon. NASA/JSC
glued to the TV waiting for Apollo 8 to much as I did excitement. And, face it: It takes
emerge from behind the Moon on Is all of the a certain je ne sais quoi to launch your cherry-
Christmas Eve 1968. As a 10-year-old, I red electric sports car into Mars-crossing
listened when Armstrong again demon-
recent talk solar orbit with a spacesuit-clad mannequin
strated his skill as a seat-of-the-pants pilot, about named Starman in the driver’s seat.
landing on the Moon with only 15 seconds sending Those were teases; September’s rollout of
of fuel to spare. humans to the shining, bullet-shaped Starship proto-
By all accounts, Apollo 13 should have
the Moon and type took my breath away. How could the
ended in tragedy. I recall shocked amaze- cover artists for all of those 1940s and ’50s
ment when I first saw a picture of the hole Mars a pipe science fiction magazines have known?
blasted in the side of the Service Module dream? Robert Heinlein’s The Man Who Sold the
when an oxygen tank exploded. Twenty-five Moon was pure fiction, but could Elon Musk
years later, I was visiting Fermilab when a become The Man Who Sold Mars? While
freshly minted particle physics graduate student scoffed SpaceX is careful not to say too much about schedules
at the “preposterous” plot of the newly released Tom publicly, there is talk on the street of the possibility of a
Hanks movie. I’m not sure that he believed me when I Mars landing within the next five years or so. One even
told him it was a true story. hears that a base could be up and running within the
I cried when I watched Apollo 17 lift off from the decade. If and when that happens, it seems clear that
Moon, knowing that the last three planned missions Musk has no intention of walking away.
had been canceled. I now understand why that decision This is a struggle. Is all of the recent talk about send-
was inevitable. To the people calling the shots, Apollo ing humans to the Moon and Mars a pipe dream? Can
was never really about exploration. We went to the Musk — or, for that matter, NASA or Blue Origin —
Moon to one-up the Soviets in the eyes of the world. make it so? After a lifetime of resignation, should I again
BY JEFF HESTER Having accomplished that end, each additional flight let myself dream of seeing humans on another world?
Jeff is a keynote
put that political victory at risk with little perceived Could I stop myself if I tried?
speaker, coach,
and astrophysicist. gain in status.
Follow his thoughts But for a generation of young people who watched BROWSE THE “FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION”
at jeff-hester.com that drama and went on to become scientists and ARCHIVE AT www.Astronomy.com/Hester

18 ASTRONOMY • MAY 2020

 Astronomy Magazine and TravelQuest International Present

Experience Totality in 2020

Don’t miss one of the biggest years in astronomy!

South Pacific Cruise

to Totality
Dec. 5–19, 2020
Enjoy 15 days aboard the M/S
Paul Gauguin discovering gems
like Fakarava, Bora Bora, and
Moorea.

Other Exciting Eclipse Tours...

Argentina and Brazil Wonders of Chile

Total Solar Eclipse Tour Total Solar Eclipse Tour
Dec. 6–18, 2020 Dec. 6–15, 2020
Luxuriate in three nights each in Enjoy gazing at the spectacular
Rio de Janeiro, Iguazu Falls, and southern deep-sky, see the
Buenos Aires. ALMA Observatory, and tour
Santiago.
P36879

For complete details and to book, go to: TravelQuestTours.com

Spiral galaxy M101 harbors
hundreds of Cepheid variables
that scientists use to measure
the universe’s expansion rate,
though the value differs from
that deduced from the cosmic
microwave background. M101
also harbors vast amounts of
mysterious dark matter.
Enigmas such as these have
cosmologists questioning their
ideas on cosmic evolution. This
composite image combines
visible light (yellow), infrared
radiation (red), and X-rays
(blue). NASA/ESA/CXC/SSC/STSCI

20 ASTRONOMY • MAY 2020

Stubborn problems
with dark matter, dark
energy, and cosmic
expansion have some
astronomers rethinking
what we know about
the early universe.
BY DAN HOOPER

WWW. ASTRONOMY.COM 21
With a diameter 2.5 times
that of the Milky Way and
containing 10 times as
many stars, UGC 2885
ranks among the largest
spiral galaxies in the local
universe. But there’s more
here than meets the eye:
Invisible dark matter
accounts for some 85
percent of UGC 2885’s
mass. Vera Rubin
discovered dark matter
in this galaxy during her
pioneering study of this
mysterious material.
NASA/ESA/B. HOLWERDA (UNIVERSITY
OF LOUISVILLE)

A
series of powerful abundances of various chemical elements, and neutrons could have survived the
observations has made and the distribution of galaxies and other aftereffects of the Big Bang. In fact,
it clear that our uni- large-scale structures — we find stunning everything we know about the laws of
verse has expanded for agreement. Each of these lines of evidence physics tells us that these particles should
billions of years, supports the conclusion that our universe have been destroyed by antimatter long
emerging from the expanded and evolved in just the way that ago. And in order to make sense of the
hot, dense state we call the Big Bang. the Big Bang theory predicts. From this universe as we observe it, cosmologists
Over the past several decades, new types perspective, our universe appears to be have been forced to conclude that space,
of precise measurements have allowed remarkably comprehensible. during its earliest moments, must have
scientists to scrutinize and refine this But cosmologists have struggled — undergone a brief and spectacular period
account, letting them reconstruct the his- if not outright failed — to understand of hyperfast expansion — an event
tory of our universe in ever greater detail. essential facets of the universe. We know known as cosmic inflation. Yet we know
When we compare the results from dif- almost nothing about dark matter and next to nothing about this key era of
ferent kinds of measurements — the dark energy, which together make up cosmic history.
expansion rate of the universe, the tem- more than 95 percent of the total energy It’s possible that these puzzles are little
perature patterns in the light released in existence today. We don’t understand more than loose ends, each of which will
when the first atoms formed, the how the universe’s protons, electrons, be resolved as cosmologists continue to

22 ASTRONOMY • MAY 2020

 TOP: This galaxy cluster, nicknamed El Gordo (Spanish for “The Fat One”), ranks as the largest known cluster
in the distant universe. Composed of two individual clusters colliding at more than 1 million mph (1.6 million
km/h), this structure holds a mass equivalent to 3 quadrillion Suns. ESA/HUBBLE & NASA/RELICS
investigate our universe. But so far, these
problems have proven to be remarkably ABOVE: The blue color added to this image maps the distribution of dark matter in the El Gordo galaxy
cluster. Astronomers traced the presence of this shadowy substance by looking at how it distorts the
stubborn and persistent. With the goal of appearance of more distant objects. NASA/ESA/J. JEE (UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, RIVERSIDE)
identifying the individual particles that
make up dark matter, scientists have
designed and built a series of impressive the force that seems to be accelerating What we’ve learned by not
experiments — yet no such particles the expansion of the cosmos. discovering dark matter
have appeared. Even powerful particle It is from this perspective that some Dark matter is likely the most celebrated
accelerators like the Large Hadron cosmologists have found themselves ask- problem facing modern cosmologists.
Collider have revealed nothing that ing whether these cosmic mysteries Astronomers have determined that most
moves us closer to resolving any of these might be symptoms of something more of the matter in our universe does not
cosmic mysteries. And despite having significant than a few loose threads. consist of atoms or any other known
measured the expansion history and Perhaps these puzzles are not as unre- substances, but of something else —
large-scale structure of the universe in lated as they might seem, but are instead something that does not appreciably
ever increasing detail, we have not collectively pointing us toward a very radiate, reflect, or absorb light.
gained any substantively greater under- different picture of our universe and its Despite not knowing much about the
standing of the nature of dark energy, earliest moments. nature of dark matter, cosmologists often

WWW. ASTRONOMY.COM 23
 The supercluster Abell 901/902 holds hundreds of
galaxies and massive amounts of dark matter. The
magenta-tinted clumps show the dark matter’s
distribution, derived from Hubble Space Telescope
The Coma Cluster packs thousands of galaxies into a sphere measuring more than 20 million light-years observations, overlaid on a ground-based image of
across. Fritz Zwicky discovered dark matter in this cluster in the 1930s when he deduced that the galaxies the supercluster. HUBBLE DATA: NASA/ESA/C. HEYMANS (UNIVERSITY OF
are moving too fast to stay together unless the cluster contains nearly 10 times as much matter as what BRITISH COLUMBIA) ET AL./THE STAGES COLLABORATION. GROUND-BASED IMAGE:
can be seen. NASA/ESA/THE HUBBLE HERITAGE TEAM (STSCI/AURA) ESO/C. WOLF (OXFORD UNIVERSITY) ET AL./THE COMBO-17 COLLABORATION

speculate about the kinds of particles scientists were optimistic that these Helen Quinn in 1977. Although
that might make up this substance. experiments would bear fruit. But dark scientists are searching for axions in
In particular, researchers have long matter has turned out to be very differ- experiments that use powerful magnetic
recognized that if dark matter particles ent, and far more elusive, than we had fields to convert them into photons,
interact through a force that is approxi- once imagined. these investigations have yet to place
mately as powerful as the weak nuclear Although it’s still possible that dark very strict constraints on the properties
force (which governs radioactive decay), matter could consist of some form of of these particles.
then the number of these particles that difficult-to-detect WIMPs, the lack of any Another possibility that could explain
should have emerged from the Big Bang signal from underground experiments has why dark matter has been so difficult to
would roughly match the measured led many physicists to shift their focus detect is that the first moments of the
abundance of dark matter found in toward other dark matter candidates. One universe may have played out much dif-
the universe today. With this in mind, such contender is a hypothetical ultralight ferently than cosmologists have long
weakly interacting massive particles — particle known as an axion. Axions are imagined. Take the case of the conven-
WIMPs — became the best guess for predicted according to a theory proposed tional WIMP. Calculations show that the
dark matter’s nature. by particle physicists Roberto Peccei and fledgling universe should have produced
One initially appealing aspect of vast quantities of these particles during
WIMPs was that scientists thought they the first millionth of a second or so after
knew how to detect the particles and the Big Bang, when they reached a state
study their properties. Motivated by this of equilibrium with the surrounding
goal, physicists engaged in an ambitious plasma of quarks, gluons, and other sub-
experimental program to identify these atomic particles. The number of WIMPs
WIMPs and learn how they were forged that could have survived these conditions
in the Big Bang. Over the past couple of — and ultimately contributed to the dark
decades, researchers have deployed a suc- matter found throughout today’s uni-
cession of increasingly sensitive dark verse — depends on how, and how often,
matter detectors in deep-underground they interacted. But when carrying out
laboratories that are capable of detecting calculations such as these, scientists
individual collisions between a dark mat- generally assume that space expanded
ter particle and the atoms that make up steadily during the first fraction of a sec-
the target. ond, without any unexpected events or
The blue light in this image of MACS J0416.1–2403
These sophisticated experiments per- shows the arrangement of dark matter in this galaxy transitions. It is entirely plausible that
formed beautifully — as well as or better cluster. Despite the ubiquity of dark matter in the this simply was not the case.
universe, astronomers still have no good idea what
than designed. Yet no such collisions it is made of. NASA/ESA/D. HARVEY (ÉCOLE POLYTECHNIQUE FÉDÉRALE DE Although cosmologists know a great
have been observed. A decade ago, many LAUSANNE)/R. MASSEY (DURHAM UNIVERSITY)/HST FRONTIER FIELDS deal about how our universe expanded

24 ASTRONOMY • MAY 2020

 Although dark matter in
galaxy clusters typically
traces the ordinary
matter that radiates light,
ZwCl 0024+1652 goes its
own way. This massive
cluster sports a dark
matter ring (in blue)
spanning 2.6 million light-
years that appears largely
divorced from the visible
galaxies and gas. NASA/ESA/
M.J. JEE (JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY)

and evolved over most of its history, they Our understanding of this period of illuminate. Matter likely interacted in
know relatively little about the first sec- cosmic history is, in many respects, little ways that it no longer does, and space
onds that followed the Big Bang — and more than an informed guess based on and time themselves may have behaved
next to nothing about the first trillionth inference and extrapolation. Look far differently than they do in the world
of a second. When it comes to how our enough back in time, and almost every- we know.
universe may have evolved, or to the thing we know about our universe could With this in mind, many cosmologists
events that may have taken place during have been different. Matter and energy have begun to consider the possibility
these earliest moments, we have essen- existed in different forms than they do that our failure to detect the particles
tially no direct observations on which to today, and they may have experienced that make up dark matter might be tell-
rely. This era is hidden from view, buried forces that have not yet been discovered. ing us not only about the nature of dark
beneath impenetrable layers of energy, Key events and transitions may have matter itself, but also about the era in
distance, and time. taken place that science has yet to which it was created. By studying dark

WWW. ASTRONOMY.COM 25
Earthbound experiments on the hunt for dark matter

COUNTERCLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: The The Large Underground Xenon experiment (LUX) The Axion Dark Matter Experiment looks for
IceCube Neutrino Observatory sits under South Pole attempted to detect interactions between weakly hypothetical axions when they decay into
ice, hunting for cosmic neutrinos. Some of these interacting massive particles and 816 pounds microwaves in the presence of a strong magnetic
subatomic particles could come from the decay (370 kg) of liquid xenon inside this tank. The field. Here, technicians install the superconducting
of weakly interacting massive particles — a prime experiment, which operated from 2013 to 2016 in magnet in a lab at the University of Washington.
candidate for dark matter — though none has been an old mine in the Black Hills of South Dakota, LAMESTLAMER/WIKIMEDIA COMMONS
detected yet. MARTIN WOLF (ICECUBE/NSF) turned up none of these dark matter particles.
A successor, the 7-ton LUX-ZEPLIN, should begin
taking data in 2020. CARLOS FAHAM/WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

matter, scientists are learning about the plagued with systematic errors that led One way to determine the Hubble
first moments after the Big Bang. him to overestimate the expansion rate constant is to directly measure how fast
by a factor of 7. As recently as the 1990s, objects are moving away from us, just as
How fast is space textbooks often quoted values ranging Hubble did in 1929. For his measurements,
expanding? from as low as 50 to as high as 100 kilo- Hubble used a special class of pulsating
In 1929, Edwin Hubble discovered that meters per second for every million stars known as Cepheid variables, whose
galaxies are moving away from us at parsecs separating two points in space intrinsic luminosities track nicely with the
speeds proportional to their distances. — usually written as 50 to 100 km/s/Mpc. periods over which they brighten and fade.
This provided the first clear evidence (One megaparsec [Mpc] equals 3.26 mil- Modern cosmologists continue to use
that our universe is expanding. Ever lion light-years.) Although the precision Cepheids for this purpose, but they also
since, the current rate of this expansion of these measurements has improved employ other classes of objects, including
— the Hubble constant — has been one considerably over the past two decades, type Ia supernovae — exploding white
of the key properties of our universe no consensus yet exists regarding the cor- dwarfs that all have the same approximate
that cosmologists study. rect value for this quantity. In fact, as luminosity. When researchers combine
It’s fair to say that the Hubble constant these measurements have improved, the the latest data, they find that the universe
has long been difficult to measure. results from different methods seem to is currently expanding at a rate of about
Hubble’s original determination was disagree with one another even more. 72 to 76 km/s/Mpc.

26 ASTRONOMY • MAY 2020

 GALAXIES IN MOTION
1,000
Velocity (km/s)

500

0 1 2
Distance (megaparsecs)
Edwin Hubble discovered the expanding
universe in 1929, when he first plotted the
velocities of individual galaxies relative to
their distances. (The line gives the best fit to
the data.) Although his estimated distances
were a factor of nearly 10 too small, he got
the basic relationship right. ASTRONOMY: ROEN KELLY,
AFTER EDWIN HUBBLE/PNAS (MARCH 15, 1929)

But that’s not the end of the story.

Cosmologists also can infer the value
of the Hubble constant by studying the
primordial light released when the first
atoms formed some 380,000 years after
the Big Bang. The detailed temperature
patterns of this light — known as the
cosmic microwave background — serve
as a map that shows how matter was
distributed throughout the universe
at that time.
When scrutinized, this map reveals
many details about our young universe,
including how much matter and other
The Antennae Galaxies (NGC 4038 and NGC 4039) are two interacting spirals located 65 million light-years
forms of energy were present, as well as from Earth. Host to many Cepheid variable stars as well as a type Ia supernova, the pair is one of a handful of
how fast space was expanding. It also systems that possess both types of standard candles and thus forge a link between the two. ESA/HUBBLE & NASA
tells us that the Hubble constant is about
67 km/s/Mpc — a significantly smaller
value than cosmologists have found
through more direct measurements.
What does this mismatch mean for
our universe? Assuming that these studies
have correctly accounted for all the sys-
tematic uncertainties inherent in the
observations, these two ways of determin-
ing the Hubble constant appear to be
incompatible — at least within the con-
text of the standard cosmological model.
To make these discrepant results mutually
consistent, astronomers would be forced
to change how we think the cosmos
expanded and evolved, or to reconsider
the forms of matter and energy in the Spiral galaxy NGC 3972 forms a key link in the cosmic Spiral galaxy MCG+01-38-005 (the lower member
universe during the first few hundred distance ladder. The galaxy contains dozens of of this galaxy pair) harbors a water megamaser —
Cepheid variables, which astronomers use to gauge amplified microwave emission from water molecules
thousand years following the Big Bang. distances to relatively nearby galaxies, and in 2011 — orbiting the supermassive black hole at its center.
According to Einstein’s general theory hosted a type Ia supernova, an exploding white dwarf The microwave emission provides an independent
that serves as a vital link to finding distances to more way to measure the galaxy’s distance and thus helps
of relativity, the rate at which space remote galaxies. Scientists need both markers to pin astronomers refine values for the Hubble constant.
expands depends on the density of down the Hubble constant. NASA/ESA/A. RIESS (STSCI/JHU) ESA/HUBBLE & NASA

WWW. ASTRONOMY.COM 27
 TENSION
CMB LOCAL UNIVERSE
IN THE
COSMOS
Planck
(2018) SH0ES (2018)

Carnegie (2018, H band)

Carnegie (2018, B band)

H0LiCOW (2020)

60 65 70 75 80
Hubble constant (km/s/Mpc)

A type Ia supernova exploded in the grand design spiral M100 in early Astronomers have been trying to determine the expansion rate of the
February 2006. (The supernova is the brighter of the two stars to the lower cosmos for nearly a century. Although measurements of this so-called
right of the galaxy’s center.) Supernovae of this type, which arise when a Hubble constant have grown more precise over the years, different
white dwarf accumulates too much mass from a binary companion, all methods yield different results. Direct observations of relatively nearby
have the same intrinsic brightness and thus make excellent distance galaxies give significantly higher values than those deduced from
indicators. ESO/IDA/DANISH 1.5 M/R. GENDLER, J.-E. OVALDSEN, C.C. THÖNE, AND C. FÉRON observations of the cosmic microwave background. ASTRONOMY: ROEN KELLY

matter and other forms of energy it con- matter remains unknown, and the prob- It is from this perspective that I some-
tains. When cosmologists infer the value lem of dark energy seems nearly intrac- times find myself considering whether
of the Hubble constant from the cosmic table. We do not know how the particles these mysteries might represent some-
microwave background, they have to that make up the atoms in our universe thing greater than a few open and unre-
make assumptions about the amounts managed to survive the first moments lated questions. Perhaps they are telling
of dark matter, neutrinos, and other of the Big Bang, and we still know us that the earliest moments of our uni-
substances that were present. little about cosmic inflation, how it verse were far different from what we
Perhaps the simplest way to explain played out, or how it came to an end — long imagined them to be. Perhaps these
the tension between the different mea- assuming that something like inflation problems represent the beginning of a
surements of the Hubble constant would happened at all. revolution for the science of cosmology.
be to hypothesize that the cosmos con- Sometimes I wonder whether we
tained more energy than expected during might be on a significant precipice of
the first hundred thousand years or so WHAT IS THE UNIVERSE scientific history, similar to what we
following the Big Bang. This energy experienced in 1904. At that time, phys-
might have taken the form of an exotic
MADE OF? ics had never before seemed to be on
Normal matter
species of light and feebly interacting Dark matter such solid footing. For more than two
particles, or of some kind of dark energy 26.8% 4.9% centuries, the principles of Newtonian
associated with the vacuum of space physics had been applied successfully to
itself that has long since disappeared problem after problem. And although
from the universe. Or perhaps there is physicists expanded their knowledge into
something else we don’t understand areas such as electricity, magnetism, and
about this era of cosmic history. We heat, these aspects of the world were
simply do not yet know how to resolve really not so different from those Newton
this intriguing mystery. had described hundreds of years earlier.
To the physicists of 1904, the world
Is a revolution coming? seemed well understood. There was little
Dark
As I said earlier, it’s possible that the energy reason to expect a revolution.
various puzzles cosmologists face today 68.3% Similar to the situation cosmologists
are little more than a few trivial threads confront today, however, the physicists of
that scientists will tie up nicely in the The atoms that make up stars, planets, and 1904 had not yet been able to address a
people add up to less than 5 percent of the
years ahead with the help of new experi- universe’s constituents. Invisible dark matter few challenges. The medium through
ments and observations. But lately, it contributes more than five times as much, which they believed light traveled —
while the dark energy that powers the
seems the more we study the universe, accelerating cosmos accounts for more the luminiferous ether — should have
the less we understand it. Despite than two-thirds of the total. ASTRONOMY: ROEN KELLY induced variations in the speed of light,
decades of effort, the nature of dark and yet light always moves through space

28 ASTRONOMY • MAY 2020

 The gravitationally lensed quasar
HE 0435–1223 offers an independent
method for determining cosmic
distances. The close-up view reveals
the foreground galaxy that creates the
four nearly identical images of a more
distant quasar. The galaxy lies about
4.8 billion light-years from Earth, while
the quasar resides twice as far away.
NASA/ESA/HUBBLE/S. SUYU (MPIA) ET AL.

at the same rate. Astronomers observed

the orbit of Mercury to be slightly differ-
ent from what Newtonian physics pre-
dicted, leading some to suggest that an
unknown planet, dubbed Vulcan, might
be perturbing Mercury’s trajectory.
Physicists in 1904 had no idea what
powered the Sun — no known chemical
or mechanical process could possibly
generate so much energy over such a long
time. Lastly, scientists knew various
chemical elements emitted and absorbed
light with specific patterns, none of
which physicists had the slightest idea
The European Space Agency’s Planck satellite has captured the best data on the cosmic microwave
how to explain. In other words, the inner background radiation. Combining these results with the standard model describing the universe produces
workings of the atom remained a total a Hubble constant that is slightly but unequivocally smaller than that gleaned from nearby galaxies.
and utter mystery. ESA/PLANCK COLLABORATION

Although few saw it coming, in hind-

sight, it’s clear that these problems were the inner workings of atoms. These new There is no question that we have
heralds of a revolution in physics. And theories even opened doors to new and made incredible progress in understand-
in 1905, the revolution arrived, ushered previously unimagined lines of inquiry, ing our universe, its history, and its ori-
in by a young Albert Einstein and his including that of cosmology itself. gin. But it is also undeniable that we are
new theory of relativity. We now know Scientific revolutions can profoundly profoundly puzzled, especially when it
that the luminiferous ether does not transform how we see and understand comes to the earliest moments of cosmic
exist and that there is no planet Vulcan. our world. But radical change is never history. I have no doubt that these
Instead, these fictions were symptoms easy to see coming. There is probably no moments hold incredible secrets, and
of the underlying failure of Newtonian way to tell whether the mysteries faced perhaps the keys to a new scientific revo-
physics. Relativity beautifully solved by cosmologists today are the signs of an lution. But our universe holds its secrets
and explained each of these mysteries imminent scientific revolution or merely closely. It is up to us to coax those secrets
without any need for new substances the last few loose ends of an incredibly from its grip, transforming them from
or planets. successful scientific endeavor. mystery into discovery.
Furthermore, when scientists
combined relativity with the new theory Dan Hooper is a senior scientist at the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory in Illinois
of quantum physics, it became possible and a professor of astronomy and astrophysics at the University of Chicago. He is author
to explain the Sun’s longevity, as well as of At the Edge of Time: Exploring the Mysteries of Our Universe’s First Seconds.

WWW. ASTRONOMY.COM 29
30 ASTRONOMY • MAY 2020
 V.M. Slipher’s
expanding universe
The Lowell Observatory astronomer’s
revolutionary findings include the expansion
of the universe and the discovery of the
interstellar medium. BY DAVID J. EICHER

EDWIN HUBBLE REVOLUTIONIZED ASTRONOMY IN 1923 Slipher’s interests toward the heavens and
when he discovered that the “Andromeda Nebula” was actually a distant island galaxy Cogshall who introduced him to the idea
full of stars, gas, and dust. That breakthrough helped set the cosmic distance scale of moving west to work at an observatory.
and the overall nature of the cosmos. But fewer astronomy enthusiasts know that a
decade before Hubble’s discovery, a little-known astronomer at Lowell Observatory Called to the West
in Flagstaff, Arizona, discovered the expanding universe. At the time, Lowell Observatory was a
fledgling institution less than a decade
Indiana youth those who were much younger. Slipher old, overseen by its founder, the wealthy
Vesto Melvin Slipher was born on a farm had a brother, eight years his junior, Earl Boston adventurer-scientist Percival
in Mulberry, Indiana, on November 11, C. Slipher, who would also grow up to Lowell.
1875. Invariably known as “V.M. Slipher,” be an astronomer and work at Lowell At first, Lowell was reluctant to seek
he had an unspectacular childhood in Observatory. Slipher’s help, but Cogshall persuaded
the American Midwest, with few details But during Slipher’s youth, this was all him to bring on the young astronomer.
of his youth ever recorded. Certainly a distant future dream. Slipher graduated The year was 1901, and as far as Lowell
growing up on a farm kept Slipher in from high school, taught briefly at a coun- was concerned, the association would be
robust shape. Many years later, astrono- try school, and then enrolled at Indiana temporary. In the end, however, Slipher
mers remarked on his ability to climb University in Bloomington. One of his would stay at the observatory for 53
mountain peaks, staying well ahead of professors was Wilbur Cogshall, who had years. In 1915, he became assistant direc-
worked as an astronomer at Lowell in tor, and when Lowell died the following
This iconic image of V.M. Slipher shows the 1896 and 1897. Another professor was year, Slipher became acting director and
astronomer with his famous spectrograph on the John Miller, an astronomer who later then director by 1926. He served as the
24-inch Clark telescope, with which he discovered
the expanding universe and the interstellar medium. became director of Sproul Observatory in observatory’s chief until retiring in 1954
ALL PHOTOS: LOWELL OBSERVATORY Pennsylvania. It was Miller who turned at age 79.

WWW. ASTRONOMY.COM 31
Revolutionary astronomer V.M. Slipher (third from
left) sits inside the 24-inch Clark refractor dome at
Lowell Observatory in 1905 with Harry Hussey, The Lowell staff poses
Wrexie Leonard, Percival Lowell, Carl Lampland, and on the steps of the
John Duncan. 24-inch Clark dome in
1905, with V.M. Slipher
in back, along with
Harry Hussey (back
Slipher’s astronomical studies went in left). In the middle are
John Duncan and
several simultaneous directions. Shortly Wrexie Leonard. Out
after his arrival in 1901, the observatory front are Percival Lowell
received a state-of-the-art spectrograph and Carl Lampland.

made for the 24-inch Clark refractor, the

institution’s main instrument. By 1902,
Slipher had worked out the bugs with this
tricky piece of equipment and made some
spectrograms of Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn
worthy of sharing with the astronomical
community. His own work focused on
radial velocities of stars and the discovery
of binary stars by measuring shifts in the
spectra of the visible component.
Slipher began to use this spectrograph
exhaustively. He studied planetary atmo-
spheres, such as that of Mars, and exam-
ined the rotation period of Venus. He
also studied the spectra of the giant outer
planets Uranus and Neptune. Attempting
to determine the rotation periods and
detection of various substances — such
as chlorophyll on Mars — took up much
of his research.

32 ASTRONOMY • MAY 2020

 The discovery of matter among the stars of the Pleiades was a big one.
This put Slipher on the map, with a legitimate claim to a major discovery in astrophysics.

During his time spent on planetary separated regions of space, producing that the dust near the star Merope in this
research, Slipher also managed to keep what he called “selective absorption of cluster was shining only by reflected light
investigating spectroscopic binary stars. light in space.” Some astronomers con- demonstrated the existence of stuff
His work here led to a major break- gratulated Slipher for this conclusion, but between the stars; that stuff came to be
through, hailed by astronomers as a many others ignored the findings for a called the interstellar medium.
milestone. He found that certain spectral long time. Observations in the 1920s
lines in the otherwise blurred spectra of would finally prove Slipher correct. The breakthrough
some stars were sharp and stationary, Moreover, in December 1912, Slipher The discovery of matter among the stars
and noted this phenomenon in a variety used the spectrograph to discover the of the Pleiades was a big one. This put
of stars in Scorpius, Perseus, and Orion. presence of dust — or “pulverulent mat- Slipher on the map, with a legitimate
From this he concluded in 1909 that ter,” as he termed it — between the stars claim to a major discovery in astrophys-
interstellar gas must exist in widely of the famous Pleiades Cluster. Proving ics. He then turned toward solving the
biggest mystery of the age, the nature of
so-called spiral nebulae. These numer-
ous, faint, diffuse objects had remained
mysterious for a century and a half. The
German natural philosopher Immanuel
Kant had suggested they were separate,
large “island universes” of matter as early
as 1755. But the evidence of their nature

LEFT: The Slipher and Lampland families roll out

in the Lowell Stevens-Duryea car, with Verna
Lampland, Emma Slipher, and Marcia Slipher in the
back seat, and V.M. Slipher (driving), David Slipher,
and Carl Lampland in the front seat.

BELOW: V.M. Slipher made this image of a solar

eclipse expedition at Syracuse, Kansas, in 1918.

WWW. ASTRONOMY.COM 33
 announce results for 15 spirals. Nearly all
were receding at high velocities. Three
years later, Dutch astronomer Willem de
Sitter theorized that the universe is
expanding. It was Slipher’s observations
of the so-called spiral nebulae that estab-
lished this fact.

Slipher’s varied work

In addition to discovering that the spiral
nebulae were receding at great velocities,
Slipher found that radial motions existed
within the spiral nebulae themselves.
That is, they were rotating. These first
discoveries again included what we now
know as the Andromeda and Sombrero
galaxies. This finding contradicted what
astronomer Adriaan van Maanen of
Mount Wilson Observatory had reported
earlier, that the spiral arms of these
objects were unwinding. This would
suggest they were close and not at great
distances, or such a detection would be
V.M. Slipher (bottom) accompanies Carl Lampland impossible.
at the business end of the 24-inch Clark refractor, in
an undated image.
on the nights of December 29, 30, and 31, As with many aspects of astronomy,
and into the predawn hours of New debates ensued, and most astronomers
Year’s Day 1913. He measured the plates took the side of van Maanen rather than
was slow in coming. Some thought they over the first half of January, finding that Slipher. Another decade passed before
were within the Milky Way, embryonic the nebula was moving three times faster the realization came that Slipher was
planetary systems in their early stages of than any previously known object in the right and van Maanen wrong. By the end
formation. universe. of World War I, other astronomers rein-
In 1909, Slipher began recording spec- Confusion ensued, and Slipher spent forced Slipher’s work on spiral nebulae
tra of spiral nebulae, urged on by Lowell, more time measuring the plates. On with their own observations, and the tide
who thought they might show spectral February 3, 1913, he wrote to Lowell that of belief began to turn. And then in 1923
similarities to our solar system. This task the Andromeda Nebula was approaching came Hubble’s discovery of the nature of
was difficult, however, because these Earth at the unheard-of velocity of galaxies. By 1929, Hubble derived his
objects were faint. Nonetheless, Slipher 186 miles per second (300 kilometers per crucial velocity-distance relationship for

Although Slipher was a cautious thinker, he adopted some of the more aggressive and
controversial ideas of his employer, Percival Lowell, throughout the early part of his career.

consulted with astronomers at other second), still an accurate value. “It looks galaxies, using, as Hubble wrote Slipher,
observatories and experimented with as if you had made a great discovery,” “your velocities and my distances.”
equipment, including faster lenses and wrote Lowell. “Try some other spiral Slipher and Hubble had together uncov-
observing techniques that might mini- nebulae for confirmation.” ered the expanding universe, the nature
mize the difficulty. Slipher next went after what we now of galaxies, and a way to measure extra-
In the fall of 1912, Slipher recorded a call the Sombrero Galaxy (M104) in galactic distances.
plate of the “Andromeda Nebula” that he Virgo. He found its spectral lines shifted Slipher also conducted critical work
felt was sufficiently good to obtain its far toward the red, indicating that it is on aurorae and on the phenomenon
radial velocity. No radial velocities of receding from Earth at 620 miles per sec- known as sky glow, the brightness of the
nebulae were known at that time. He ond (1,000 km per second). By the 1914 night sky. He turned to these areas in
recorded better plates in November and American Astronomical Society meeting part because he had mostly exhausted
December 1912, and still a better result in Evanston, Illinois, Slipher was able to the research capability of the 24-inch

34 ASTRONOMY • MAY 2020

ABOVE: In 1947, V.M. TOP RIGHT: In 1955, RIGHT: V.M. Slipher
Slipher (left) poses during the centennial (right) and Al Wilson
with Carl Lampland celebration of Percival pose in Lowell
in front of the Lowell Lowell’s birth, V.M. Observatory’s reading
Observatory Slipher (left) and Stanley room about 1955.
administration Sykes lay a wreath on
building. Lowell’s tomb.

Clark telescope for further studies of a new outer solar system planet, bringing he laid the foundation of the great struc-
nebulae. Before World War I was fin- on board Clyde Tombaugh, a young ture of the expanding universe. ... If cos-
ished, he studied spectral lines in aurorae Kansas farm boy, who would in 1930 mogonists today have to deal with a
and found a “permanent aurora.” By this, find Pluto. universe that is expanding in fact as well
he meant that the night sky was not Although Slipher was a cautious as in fancy, at a rate which offers them
absolutely dark. He discovered many thinker, he adopted some of the more special difficulties, a great part of the
new features in the spectrum of the sky, aggressive and controversial ideas of his blame must be borne by our medalist.”
revealing ionized elements in Earth’s employer, Percival Lowell, throughout When it comes to the expanding uni-
upper atmosphere. Later, in the mid-’30s, the early part of his career. He did not verse, the rotation of galaxies, the discov-
Slipher extended his analyses of the sky question the possibility of life on Mars, ery of the interstellar medium, important
to the zodiacal light, studying that glow and believed that the cosmos contained studies of aurorae and sky glow, and
from dust particles in the plane of the millions of planets that could support other areas, we should not forget the
solar system. some sort of life. name V.M. Slipher. Edwin Hubble helped
In addition, Slipher led two eclipse But Slipher will be remembered for us define galaxies. His associate Slipher
expeditions, in 1918 to Syracuse, Kansas, his discoveries relating to spiral nebulae gave us universal expansion, a concept
and in 1923, to Ensenada, Mexico. He and the expanding universe. When he that governs the mighty cosmos.
also made spectral studies of unusual received the Royal Astronomical
objects like the Crab Nebula, Hubble’s Society’s Gold Medal in 1933, the presi- David J. Eicher is editor of Astronomy
Variable Nebula, and the unusual nebula dent said: “In a series of studies of the and the author of 23 books on science and
NGC 6729. He supervised the search for radial velocities of these island galaxies history.

WWW. ASTRONOMY.COM 35
SKY THIS MONTH
Visible to the naked eye
Visible with binoculars
Visible with a telescope

THE SOLAR SYSTEM’S CHANGING LANDSCAPE AS IT APPEARS IN EARTH’S SKY.

BY MARTIN RATCLIFFE AND ALISTER LING

A brilliant Venus shines to the

right of an overexposed crescent
Moon during twilight at Lake
Wendouree in southern Australia.
A barely perceptible Mercury

MAY 2020
hovers below and slightly to the
right of Venus. BLACHSWAN/FLICKR

Venus
meets
Mercury
Whether you prefer 24-percent-lit crescent disk month presses on, Venus rapidly reaches conjunction with Venus
evening or morning spans 39" when viewed through descends deeper into twilight on May 21/22. Their closest
observing — or both — May a telescope. The world main- and its altitude falls as it nears approach occurs during the
has you covered. Venus and tains a reasonable altitude June’s inferior conjunction. early morning of May 22, so the
Mercury appear in the night through the middle of May However, there’s one more best time for U.S. observers to
sky this month, offering fine as its separation from the Sun event that observers may want target the pair is on the previ-
views during evening twilight. diminishes. And on May 16, it to catch: a conjunction with ous evening, May 21, when they
Meanwhile, the morning sky stands 11° high an hour after Mercury, which is moving on stand slightly more than 1°
holds the magnificent trio of sunset. By then, the disk of the far side of the Sun in the apart one hour after sunset.
Jupiter, Saturn, and Mars. All Venus has grown to 50" wide, opposite direction of Venus. At this point, Mercury shines
three planets are improving as but it’s even more slender, just Mercury passes through supe- at magnitude –0.6 and Venus
they approach their respective a 10-percent-lit crescent. As the rior conjunction May 4 and at magnitude –4.4.
oppositions later this year, Telescopic views of Mercury
which results in larger disks reveal a tiny 6"-wide disk that’s
The innermost planets share the evening sky
when viewed with a telescope. 69 percent lit. This vividly con-
But first, let’s begin with the trasts with the Venusian cres-
inner planets in the evening sky. cent, which spans 53" as a
Venus is the brilliant beacon 6-percent-lit crescent. Within
hanging in the western sky soon days, Venus descends out of
G E MIN I
after sunset. Shining at magni- Capella view. But at the same time,
tude –4.7, it dazzles near the AUR IGA Mercury climbs higher along
northern horn of Taurus the the ecliptic, making it relatively
Bull. During the first week of easy to spot the rest of the
May, the Hyades and Pleiades Venus month. Look to the west-
sit low near the horizon before Betelgeuse Mercury northwest in a clear sky May 31
disappearing in twilight. Look TAURUS PERSEUS to find the innermost planet
west an hour after sunset to ORION hovering 8° high an hour after
catch these open clusters before the Sun goes down, shining at
low altitude fades them. 10°
magnitude 0.1.
Venus sits 37° east of the Sun May 21, 30 minutes after sunset Jupiter rises close to 2 a.m.
Looking west-northwest
on May 1, and stands 23° above across mid-northern latitudes
the western horizon an hour The innermost planets stand only about 1° apart above the west-northwestern May 1, and by May 31, it is up
after sunset. Its beautiful, horizon shortly after sunset May 21. ALL ILLUSTRATIONS: ASTRONOMY: ROEN KELLY by midnight. Look for the gas

36 ASTRONOMY • MAY 2020

 RISING MOON I Cracks, craters, and domes
TODAY’S SEA OF TRANQUILLITY was once Crater Cauchy and its companions
quite untranquil. It began 4 billion years ago,
when a giant impact excavated a large basin.
Millions of years later, lava erupted through fis- Rima Cauchy
OBSERVING sures in the basin floor. The cracks tended to
Crater Cauchy
HIGHLIGHT be oriented along stress lines that were created
by other large impacts. During a second round
VENUS and MERCURY cross of upwelling lava, the terrain unevenly heaved
paths this month, and they
stand just 1° apart an hour from below, causing the formation of a scarp or Rupes
after sunset May 21. fracture. In other places, lava tubes collapsed into Cauchy
rilles. Nearby, some volcanoes made it to the sur- Omega Cauchy
Tau N
face, but the failed ones created domes. Mini-
Cauchy
asteroids that slammed into the surface mil-
lennia later added the final touch of texture. E
On May 26, roughly four days after New
Details abound in and around Cauchy
Moon, the Sun rises on the fascinating Crater, a 7.5-mile-wide impact site
giant rising above the southeast-
region of crater Cauchy, just north of the ter- located in eastern Mare Tranquillitatis.
ern horizon as Altair in the minator’s midpoint. The terminator is the line CONSOLIDATED LUNAR ATLAS/UA/LPL. INSET: NASA/GSFC/ASU
Summer Triangle reaches an that divides lunar day and night, but at such a
altitude of 20°. Saturn rises 20 young age, the dark face of our sister Luna might Cauchy, which lies parallel to the rille. Well
minutes later, standing less than be modestly lit by the gray glow of earthshine, known to lunar aficionados, the fault is second
5° from Jupiter. which is sunlight reflected from Earth’s dayside. only to the famous Straight Wall. When the Sun
Jupiter begins the month at Crater Cauchy itself is a modestly small, rises over the region, the scarp casts a sharp
magnitude –2.3 and brightens 7.5-mile-wide, simple impact feature with nice, shadow westward, but the dark line disappears
to –2.6 by May 31. Saturn glows sharp edges that reveal its relative youth. a couple of Earth evenings later.
at magnitude 0.6 in early May Immediately to Cauchy’s north is a prominent As an added bonus for this region, a pair of
rille named Rima Cauchy, where years of tiny lava domes sit at the edge of Mare Tranquillitatis.
before brightening by 0.2 mag-
impacts have softened its edges. Within a couple Look for the small, light-dark pairing caused by
nitude by May 31. Both planets of Earth days, the higher angle of the Sun shines these hills protruding up in the sunlight. The east-
slow their eastern track against light directly into the rille, wiping out the shad- ern dome, cataloged as Omega, is likely a shield
the background stars as the ows and making it all but invisible. South of volcano, while the western one, Tau, appears to
month goes on, with Saturn Cauchy is a prominent fault scarp called Rupes have been formed by uplifting from below.
reaching its stationary point
May 11 and Jupiter May 14.
The beautiful pair remain
less than 5° apart all month, METEOR WATCH I Comet Halley returns to Earth’s sky
straddling the border of
Sagittarius and Capricornus. Eta Aquariid meteor shower MAY’S MAIN METEOR SHOWER
Check out the field of view with is heavily affected by a nearly Full
binoculars — can you spot the Moon that remains visible most of
dim (magnitude 9.5) globular the night. The Eta Aquariids is one of
cluster M75 forming an isosce- two showers associated with Halley’s
les triangle with the planetary Comet, which has spent eons litter-
duo? It lies less than 2° south of Enif ing its path with debris that results
a line between the two planets. in the yearly shower (the Orionids in
A waning gibbous Moon stands October is the other).
PEGASU S The Aquariids sport a maximum
3° south of Jupiter on the morn- Radiant CAPRIC ORNUS observable rate of about 10 meteors
ing of May 12.
d Mars per hour under perfectly dark skies.
Thanks to Jupiter’s southerly
AQUAR IUS However, with a bright Moon present,
declination, it remains at a rela-
you’ll be lucky to spot five streaks per
tively low altitude for the rest of hour in most urban locations. The first
10°
the year. It reaches its highest few days of May after the Moon sets
elevation of about 30° above the May 5, 4 A.M.
Looking east (4 A.M. on May 2) is a good time to
southern horizon (depend- catch the few early shower members
ing on your latitude) dur-
ETA AQUARIID METEORS streaking through the sky. A New
ing morning twilight, Partly due to the low altitude of the Eta Moon on May 22 offers dark skies for
Active dates: April 19–May 28 Aquariids’ radiant when viewed from
when it’s located in eastern Peak: May 5 northern latitudes, the shower is not viewing sporadic meteors, as well as
Sagittarius. Jupiter is just Moon at peak: Waxing gibbous considered one of the year’s best. But with the occasional straggler of the Eta
two months away from Maximum rate at peak: Mars hovering in the nearby sky this year, Aquariid shower.
it’s worth taking the time to view it.
— Continued on page 42 10 meteors/hour

WWW. ASTRONOMY.COM 37
 N

STAR DOME `
P E IA
CASSIO
b

` LA
CE b
RT
A f
HOW TO USE THIS MAP c
LIS
This map portrays the sky as seen _

N
+ CEP DA R

E
HEU O PA
near 35° north latitude. Located S a ME
L
CA
inside the border are the cardinal _
directions and their intermediate `
points. To find stars, hold the map d

De
ne
overhead and orient it so one of Polaris _

b
¡
the labels matches the direction

a
NCP
you’re facing. The stars above b

CY
the map’s horizon now match MINOR

GN
what’s in the sky.

b
URSA

d
M82

US
r
D
The all-sky map shows RA
M2

1
CO c ` M8
7

how the sky looks at: a

a

¡
midnight May 1

i
`

d _

a
Ve
a
11 P.M. May 15

ga

`
VU
S

_
AGI

10 P.M. May 31 LY
M5 7
`
LPE

RA f `

RS JOR
T TA

Mizar
Planets are shown b
C

A
A
¡
UL

M
a
at midmonth c

I
HER

IC

U
A

T
/

s
c

NA
C

M1 3
ULE
M51

VE
+

`
`
AQUIL A

MAP SYMBOLS
S

S
a
c BOREALIS

NE
b

i
b

_
C O R O NA

CA
E

Open cluster E S

BO
A
O M NIC
Globular cluster C R E

ÖTE
_

_ BE

¡
_

P
Diffuse nebula

NG
S
_ 4
SE PUT

Planetary nebula d
`

M6
`
CA

`
g

Ar
RP

ctu _
SCU

Galaxy
d

ru
EN

la
OP

bo
ne
S
TUM

¡
HI

De
_

_
UC

STAR `
HU

M b
5 c
MAGNITUDES
i

a
b
S
M1 6

SE

VIRGO
¡
CA

Sirius
RP A

`
UD

0.0 3.0
EN
M17

4
M10
S

1.0 4.0 LI
a BR _ Spica US
d

V
2.0 5.0 A C OR
` _ b a
Path of the Sun (ecliptic)
An
ta
b
e

re a ¡
s `
STAR COLORS m
_ M
/ m _
4
o

A star’s color depends /

on its surface temperature. SC
O M83
RP
•• The hottest stars shine blue IU
SE

S
Slightly cooler stars appear white LU
e
f
• Intermediate stars (like the Sun) glow yellow
PU
S

• Lower-temperature stars appear orange

d a b
g d i
NGC 5128
• The coolest stars glow red ` + C E N TA
U RU S

• Fainter stars can’t excite our eyes’ color

receptors, so they appear white unless you
¡
_ c
use optical aid to gather more light

S
BEGINNERS: WATCH A VIDEO ABOUT HOW TO READ A STAR CHART AT
www.Astronomy.com/starchart.
 MAY 2020
SUN. MON. TUES. WED. THURS. FRI. SAT.
lla
pe
Ca
` _
1 2

W
A
` N
IG
e

R 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
U
A

10 11 12 13 14 15 16

X
N
¡

ILLUSTRATIONS BY ASTRONOMY: ROEN KELLY

k LY
17 18 19 20 21 22 23
r
sto

NI
Ca

MI
_

24 25 26 27 28 29 30
GE
f

llu x

b
Po
e

31
h

Note: Moon phases in the calendar vary in size due to the distance
CANIS MINOR
_

M44

from Earth and are shown at 0h Universal Time.

` +

`
CANCE
LEO R
O

Procyon
MIN

CALENDAR OF EVENTS
¡

_
`

4 Mercury is in superior conjunction, 6 P.M. EDT

c

_ Regulus

5 Eta Aquariid meteor shower peaks

d

¡
a
LEO
b

The Moon is at perigee (223,478 miles from Earth), 11:03 P.M. EDT
c
e

7 Full Moon occurs at 6:45 A.M. EDT

6
M6

11 Saturn is stationary, 5 A.M. EDT

65
M

Asteroid Pallas is stationary, 7 A.M. EDT

_

12 The Moon passes 2° south of Jupiter, 6 A.M. EDT

S
AN

The Moon passes 3° south of Saturn, 2 P.M. EDT

XT

13 Venus is stationary, 6 A.M. EDT

SE

14 Last Quarter Moon occurs at 10:03 A.M. EDT

ER b Jupiter is stationary, 2 P.M. EDT
AT
i

C R
The Moon passes 3° south of Mars, 10 P.M. EDT
16 The Moon passes 4° south of Neptune, 11 A.M. EDT
17 Mercury passes 7° north of Aldebaran, 5 A.M. EDT
D RA
HY 18 The Moon is at apogee (252,018 miles from Earth), 3:45 A.M. EDT
_ IA 20 The Moon passes 4° south of Uranus, noon EDT
TL
N
j A 22 Mercury passes 0.9° south of Venus, 4 A.M. EDT
SW

New Moon occurs at 1:39 P.M. EDT

23 The Moon passes 4° south of Venus, 11 P.M. EDT
24 The Moon passes 3° south of Mercury, 7 A.M. EDT
The Moon passes 0.6° north of asteroid Vesta, 11 A.M. EDT
27 Asteroid Juno is stationary, 10 A.M. EDT
29 First Quarter Moon occurs at 11:30 P.M. EDT

WWW. ASTRONOMY.COM 39
PATHS OF THE PLANETS
AND
LAC
LYR HER CVn
PER CYG
BOÖ
TRI
CrB
ARI PSC VUL
COM
Sun PEG
Pallas
Uranus SGE
EQU
SER
TAU PSC
Pat
ho AQL SER
f th OPH
eM Celestial equator
oon Neptune VIR
ER I AQR LIB
C ET Mar
s Herculina SCT
Ceres CAP CRV
Saturn
Iris
Jupiter
F OR SCL Pluto
SGR
The Moon passes 2° south
CrA
of Jupiter on May 12 LUP
SCO

Moon phases Dawn Midnight

23 22 21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5

To locate the Moon in the sky, draw a line from the phase shown for the day straight up to the curved blue line.

THE PLANETS Uranus

IN THEIR ORBITS
Arrows show the inner
planets’ monthly motions
Venus
and dots depict the
outer planets’ positions Jupiter Neptune
at midmonth from high Mercury
above their orbits. Saturn

Pluto
Mercury
Superior conjunction
is May 4

PLANETS MERCURY VENUS

Date May 31 May 15
Venus Magnitude 0.0 –4.6
Angular size 7.4" 48.5"
Mars
Earth Ceres Illumination 47% 12%
Distance (AU) from Earth 0.910 0.344
Distance (AU) from Sun 0.397 0.723
Right ascension (2000.0) 6h11.7m 5h21.9m
Jupiter Declination (2000.0) 25°28' 27°14'

40 ASTRONOMY • MAY 2020

 This map unfolds the entire night sky from sunset (at right) until sunrise (at left). Arrows
and colored dots show motions and locations of solar system objects during the month. MAY 2020
1

UMa
Callisto 2

LYN
PER 3 Io
LMi AUR
GEM Europa
Venus 4 Ganymede
Me r c u r
CNC y
c liptic) Io
un (e 5
LEO of the S Sun
Path
Mercury passes just south of
Venus the evening of May 21 TAU 6
Ganymede
7 Callisto
SEX
MON

CRT CMa
JUPITER’S 8 Jupiter
MOONS
9
LEP Dots display
HYA ERI positions of
F OR
ANT PYX Galilean satellites 10 Europa

C OL at 5 A .M. EDT on
PUP CAE
the date shown. 11
Early evening South is at the
top to match the 12
view through a
4 3 2 1 telescope. 13

14
31 30 29 28 27 26 25 24 23 22 21
15

16

S
THE PLANETS IN THE SKY 17
Jupiter These illustrations show the size, phase,
W E
and orientation of each planet and the two
brightest dwarf planets at 0h UT for the dates 18

N in the data table at bottom. South is at the top

to match the view through a telescope. 19

Saturn 20
10"

21

22
Mars
Ceres 23
Uranus Neptune Pluto

24

MARS CERES JUPITER SATURN URANUS NEPTUNE PLUTO 25

May 15 May 15 May 15 May 15 May 15 May 15 May 15

26
0.2 9.1 –2.4 0.5 5.9 7.9 14.7
8.3" 0.4" 42.5" 17.3" 3.4" 2.2" 0.1" 27

85% 97% 99% 100% 100% 100% 100%

28
1.127 2.992 4.635 9.586 20.766 30.359 33.527
29
1.425 2.970 5.178 10.019 19.802 29.931 34.039
22h14.9m 22h42.4m 19h56.1m 20h15.8m 2h20.7m 23h25.9m 19h46.9m 30
–12°57' –17°34' –20°56' –19°55' 13°33' –4°49' –22°04'
31
 WHEN TO
SKY THIS MONTH — Continued from page 37 VIEW THE
PLANETS
Morning planets the southern equatorial belt. As
Jupiter rises, Callisto’s shadow is EVENING SKY
Altair already on the jovian disk while Mercury (northwest)
Callisto itself lies to the east of Venus (northwest)
PEGASUS Enif AQUIL A the planet. Ganymede lies west MORNING SKY
of Jupiter, and during a couple Mars (southeast)
of hours, Callisto’s shadow Jupiter (south)
nears the western limb of Saturn (south)
Jupiter Jupiter while Ganymede Uranus (east)
Saturn
AQUAR IUS Neptune (east)
CAPRIC ORNUS approaches. Both events occur
SAG I T TA RI U S almost simultaneously at
Mars
4:49 a.m. CDT (in the eastern
time zone, it’s already twilight, trifecta of events occurs the
Fomalhaut
though the event is still observ- morning of May 21, when
able). Ganymede’s disappear- Ganymede itself and Europa’s
10°
Late May, 3:30 A.M. ance takes just seven minutes, shadow are both visible soon
Looking southeast while Callisto’s shadow ambles after 2 a.m. CDT before being
off the disk over the course of joined by a transiting Europa
A trio of planets — Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn — will grace the southeastern sky 20 minutes. This is because at 3:23 a.m. CDT.
a few hours before sunrise this month. Callisto is in a wider, slower- Before moving on to Saturn,
moving orbit — illustrating the it’s worth pointing out that
opposition, and a telescope will shadow onto Jupiter’s northern laws of planetary motion. Pluto sits just 2.1° west of
reveal its growing apparent temperate cloud tops as On May 6 and May 22, Io Jupiter throughout May. But at
size. During May, it expands Ganymede begins to disappear and its shadow traverse the magnitude 14.7, you’ll need a
from 41" to 45", just 5 percent behind the same limb, south of jovian disk. And a notable large scope and ideal viewing
shy of its opposition peak.
The dramatic display of
atmospheric belts and zones are
Jupiter’s main attraction. Most
COMET SEARCH I Peaking near a cigar
obviously, a pair of dark equa-
torial belts straddle Jupiter’s HIGHLIGHT OF THE YEAR: Comet PanSTARRS (C/2017 T2)
equator. Other features are Comet PanSTARRS (C/2017 T2)
shares a low-power field with the
more delicate, however, and the N
Cigar Galaxy (M82)! As ideal as
dazzle of the planet can drown
modest-telescope comets get,
them out for casual observers.
PanSTARRS hits a peak bright-
Let your eye become accus- May 1
ness of 8th or 9th magnitude
tomed to its brilliance for a while sailing high in the northern 6
minute before seeking out finer sky. The comet makes its closest DR AC O
details. The view of Jupiter is Path of 11
approach to the Sun, or reaches Comet
E
exquisite when our turbulent perihelion, May 4, at a distance PanSTARRS 21 16 U RS A
earthly atmosphere calms for a of 149 million miles. On the plus h M AJOR
second or two and enables a side, PanSTARRS crests near M82
beautiful spacelike view of the Polaris, making it accessible to 26 M81 l
solar system’s giant planet. northern observers all night. 2°
New Moon occurs May 22, 31
In addition to the appeal of
the cloud belts, Jupiter’s four which is perfect timing because
PanSTARRS lies only ¾° from _ o k
Galilean moons offer an ever- 23
M82 the following weekend.
varying display, including
PanSTARRS is just barely visible It takes roughly 15 minutes for light from the comet to reach us, but about
occultations, eclipses, and tran- 12 million years for light from the Cigar Galaxy to get here.
with binoculars; it will show up
sits. Individual events occur better in a 4-inch scope, and will
throughout May, and occasion- likely sport some green when viewed through a 12-inch scope.
ally dual events occur within From May 24 to May 26, make sure to look for a double-spike. The comet’s short, fan-shaped tail flat-
minutes of each other. One tens to edge-on when Earth passes through the orbital plane, so as long as our visitor from the Oort Cloud
such back-to-back display produces a decent amount of both gas and dust, we can expect to see a green or blue streak on the lead-
occurs the morning of May 3, ing edge and an “anti-tail” knife blade of white on the other. If you can, take a peek every other night to
when Callisto casts its large catch the whole transformation. For the rest of the apparition we get more and more of a top-side view.

42 ASTRONOMY • MAY 2020

 LOCATING ASTEROIDS I
Double feature
WHEN IT COMES TO ASTEROIDS, luck works both ways.
Jupiter’s moons Rather than one bright asteroid all by itself, May brings two fainter
ones almost side by side. During midevening from the Northern
Hemisphere, the blue-white luminary Spica shines in the south-
S
Io east. If you then look about 15° east (1 hour of right ascension),
Jupiter you’ll spot 4th-magnitude Iota (ι) Virginis — the anchor star for
Ganymede
this month’s pair of space rocks. Both 23 Thalia and 40 Harmonia
sport a diameter of about 67 miles and lie beyond the orbit of
W
30" Mars in the inner asteroid belt.
Correctly identifying both asteroids will take a bit more care
Europa
Callisto’s shadow and patience than usual, as they stand in front of many back-
May 3, 4:30 A.M. EDT Callisto ground stars glowing at 10th magnitude. Despite being far from
the Milky Way’s bulge, the lack of dust clouds here lets light from
many distant stars shine through. If you want to risk the weather,
On May 3, Callisto’s shadow traverses Jupiter’s northern cloud tops as
you can sketch the star field May 15 or 16 with 40 Harmonia on
Ganymede begins to disappear behind the gas giant.
the southern edge of the field, then return May 29 through 31 to
pinpoint the extra dot on the northern edge that is 23 Thalia.
conditions to spot it without and reaches the middle of this During the month, the two asteroids are never closer than
photographic equipment. range May 11 when it’s at infe- about 2°, but that is actually an easier shift than you might think.
Saturn sits just 5° east of rior conjunction (48" due south If your telescope uses a diagonal, take a picture of the chart and
Jupiter every evening in May. of Saturn). Iapetus is brightest flip it left to right to match the orientation in the eyepiece.
The planet’s disk spans 18" and at western elongations, like the
its expansive rings stretch 40" one it reaches May 31, when it 23 Thalia shares the sky with 40 Harmonia
wide by the end of May. Any shines at about magnitude 10.5
telescope will reveal Saturn’s and stands about 9' due west of N
rings. The minor axis of the the planet. 90
rings is just 14", narrower than Mars is best viewed in the p
the planet itself, so you’ll notice hour before dawn during May. Path of V IRGO
the northern pole of Saturn arcs On the 1st, it stands 15° above Thalia
May 1 6 11
above the far ring edge. the southeastern horizon by 16
21
It’s also worth observing 4:45 a.m. local daylight time, 26
31
Saturn’s moons, including its and it climbs to 26° high at the E 21 31
largest and brightest, Titan. same time May 31. Still far from 16 26
11
Path of
This intriguing world orbits its October opposition, Mars’ f May 1 6 Harmonia
Saturn once every 16 days, and apparent size continues to grow
stands due south of the planet during May, expanding from 8"
May 5 and 21, and due north to 9". This is still too tiny for
May 13 and 29. At magnitude small scopes to resolve much 1°
8.6, it will remain the brightest detail, but the better resolution
object near Saturn unless a of 10-inch scopes and larger will The two 10th-magnitude asteroids will take some effort to pick out from
rare field star joins in. Shining reveal fine details. This is a good a backdrop of similarly bright stars.
between magnitude 10 and 11, time to begin practicing video
the moons Tethys, Dione, and imaging, as it will enhance
Rhea orbit closer to Saturn and details not visible to the eye. the end of May, the planet Meanwhile, Uranus rises
with shorter periods. Their Mars continues to climb shines at magnitude 0.0 and with the onset of twilight and
relatively quickly changing to higher declinations as it is at a declination of –9°, put- remains difficult to spot
positions are easy to follow crosses into Aquarius. It ting it 2° south-southeast of throughout May. So your best
with modest telescopes. begins the month at 15° south Lambda (λ) Aquarii. bet is to hold off until next
May is also a great month in northeastern Capricornus, Neptune returns to the night month before trying to pick out
to spot Iapetus. This odd satur- which puts it 2.7° from 3rd- sky by late May. On May 31, it its blue-green glow from the
nian moon changes brilliance magnitude Deneb Algiedi. The sits 8.6° east-northeast of Mars starry background.
between eastern and western Red Planet then shines at mag- and 3° east of 4th-magnitude
elongations depending on nitude 0.4. It crosses into Phi (ϕ) Aquarii. To spot Neptune Martin Ratcliffe provides
whether its bright or dark hemi- Aquarius on May 9, passing with binoculars, use Mars as a planetarium development for
sphere faces us. Iapetus shifts less than a Moon’s-width from guide. Neptune shines at magni- Sky-Skan, Inc., from his home
between magnitude 10 and 12 Iota (ι) Aquarii May 11/12. By tude 7.9, but at just 15° high an in Wichita, Kansas. Alister
hour before twilight, its low alti- Ling, who lives in Edmonton,
GET DAILY UPDATES ON YOUR NIGHT SKY AT tude makes it more difficult to Alberta, has watched the skies
www.Astronomy.com/skythisweek. spot than later in the year. since 1975.

WWW. ASTRONOMY.COM 43
The most observed emission nebula
in the Northern Hemisphere is the
famed Orion Nebula (M42), lying
some 1,300 light-years away. Visible
to the naked eye as a misty spot of
stars, this cloud of gas is forming an
infant star cluster, the four brightest
of which are called the Trapezium.
This wide-field view shows the Orion
Nebula at left with bluish reflection
nebulae around it, the brightest of
which is NGC 1973–5–7, at right.
TONY HALLAS

44 ASTRONOMY • MAY 2020

A glimpse behind the
dusty veil of nebulae
reveals the chemistry
of the universe.
BY DAVID J. EICHER
AND BRIAN MAY;
STEREO IMAGES BY
J.-P. METSÄVAINIO

he universe is a
magical place. Many
people don’t know
this; they are born,
go through their lives,
and perish without
ever realizing it.
I’m not talking about magic the way
you might think. The universe is not a
supernatural place. It’s not full of tricks.
There are no violations of the natural
order of the cosmos, no validity in amu-
lets, curses, spells, miracles, or occultism.
Rather, the universe is a place domi-
nated by natural magic — by nature’s
own laws that make it an amazing won-
der in itself. The truth about the universe
is far stranger and more incredible than
the petty imaginary stories we concoct
every day on our little blue planet Earth.

The universe’s
building blocks
Consider the very stuff you’re made
from, for example. The average human
has 7 octillion atoms in their body. That’s
7 times 10 to the 27th power. Put another
way, it’s 7 billion billion billion atoms.
Suffice to say, it’s a lot. These very same
atoms were created in the early stages of
the universe or in the bellies of exploding

WWW. ASTRONOMY.COM 45
 The story of elements in
nature, of why we are
here, of our cosmic
roots, is strongly tied to
the story of stars in our
galaxy and universe.

philosopher Joseph Priestley and French

chemist Antoine Lavoisier also discovered
oxygen at about the same time.)
So, where did the elements that make
up our stars, our planets, and even us,
The Eagle Nebula (M16) in Serpens resembles the widespread wings of a majestic bird. It contains bright come from? The creation of the first
emission nebulosity, a young star cluster, and towering pillars of dust that gravity is compressing into stars.
The dust features in this nebula gave rise to the name “Pillars of Creation” in images made with the Hubble atomic nuclei took place immediately
Space Telescope. This big nebula lies some 7,000 light-years away. ADAM BLOCK following the Big Bang itself, the origin
of the universe some 13.8 billion years
ago. That process, called Big Bang
stars long ago. As the great astronomer The first known elements were met- nucleosynthesis, created mostly hydro-
Carl Sagan said, “The nitrogen in our als, dating back to the last part of the gen, deuterium (an isotope of hydrogen),
DNA, the calcium in our teeth, the iron Stone Age, when copper was discovered and helium, with trace amounts of other
in our blood, the carbon in our apple pies around 9000 b.c. in the Middle East. elements like lithium.
were made in the interiors of collapsing However, beads found in Çatalhöyük, Long after Big Bang nucleosynthesis,
stars. We are made of starstuff.” Anatolia, in what is modern Turkey, more complex elements formed through
Right now, you have at least traces suggest clear manufacturing of copper a variety of processes. Stars are nuclear
of 60 chemical elements within you. By goods dating to 6000 b.c. This is highly fusion reactors — engines that fuse
mass, oxygen is the most abundant; car- interesting, as Çatalhöyük is one of lighter elements together into heavier
bon follows second, and then hydrogen the first and most important proto-
and nitrogen. But you also have heavier city settlements on Earth. Clear evi-
elements such as calcium, phosphorus, dence of copper smelting dates to at least
potassium, sulfur, sodium, chlorine, and 5000 b.c., from Belovode in the Rudnik
magnesium. And, yes, you even have nat- Mountains of what is now Serbia.
urally occurring radioactive elements By 6000 b.c., humans were also smelt-
within you — again, all natural. ing and using lead and gold. Silver and
The elements, of course, are the basic iron came next, before 5000 b.c. By the
atomic building blocks of the cosmos, time of the Egyptians, alchemists had
from which all normal matter is com- discovered carbon. The smelting of tin by
posed. Consider, just for a moment, our 3500 b.c. led to the Bronze Age, combin-
discovery and understanding of them. ing tin with copper to fashion the hardy
Organized by their properties in the alloy that gave the epoch its name.
periodic table, the 118 known elements Important elements have been found
display a wide range of characteristics. in modern times, too. Hydrogen, the most
The Russian chemist Dmitri Mendeleev abundant element, was discovered by the The spectacular Helix Nebula (NGC 7293) in
created the first detailed periodic table English natural philosopher Henry Aquarius is one of the closest planetary nebulae,
in 1869 to understand and organize the Cavendish in 1766. The Swedish-German lying nearly 700 light-years away. The curling form
of the gas is reminiscent of the DNA double helix,
elements. The first 94 elements occur chemist Carl Wilhelm Scheele uncovered leading to its distinctive name. The central star that
naturally, and the last 24 have been syn- a variety of elements during the 1770s, gave rise to the nebula is plainly visible in backyard
telescopes, and astronomers believe the nebula
thesized in labs or nuclear reactors but including oxygen, chlorine, manganese, formed about 10,000 years ago. ADAM BLOCK/MOUNT LEMMON
are not yet observed in nature. and tungsten. (The English natural SKYCENTER/UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA

46 ASTRONOMY • MAY 2020

 A stereo view of the Crescent Nebula (NGC 6888) shows an oblate bubble of gas encapsulating its hot central star, with blebs of multicolored nebulosity
aligning here and there to form the three-dimensional cloud.

ones. The process of fusion itself creates number of elements are created, or at all know it, but we are part of the biggest
many more elements on the periodic least can be created, by exploding white recycling program that exists: the birth,
table, up to iron and nickel. Exploding dwarf stars, the final, decayed ultra- life, and death of stars.
stars — supernovae — are the dying car- dense remnants of stars like the Sun. Stars are born in great clouds of gas
casses of massive stars far heavier than the These include titanium, vanadium, chro- called nebulae. The word nebula comes
Sun. Their bombastic blasts create heavier mium, manganese, iron, and nickel. from Latin and means “cloud” or “fog.”
elements still, and the blasts send them far These are incredible facts to ponder These clouds exist between the stars and
out into the surrounding galaxy. These as you walk out under a starry sky on a consist of mostly hydrogen and helium,
processes, over vast amounts of time, have clear, moonless night. Look deep toward along with some other gases. They are
created and spread the variety of elements, the shimmering glow of the Milky Way, typically ionized, meaning they are
most far heavier than hydrogen and and you’ll see many twinkling stars and excited — energized — by hot stars
helium, that we know of today, including the unresolved light from millions more inside and nearby them, which causes
the stuff that makes up our bodies. that make up the hazy band running these clouds to glow. Thankfully, because
The cosmic origins of the elements, across our sky. That oldest of all human of this process, we can see nebulae from
then, are varied. About two dozen ele- questions — “Why am I here?” — very large distances, across our galaxy
ments originate from dying low-mass actually has an answer. You’re here and even in other nearby galaxies.
stars. These include carbon, nitrogen, because atoms created in the Big Bang Interstellar clouds also contain various
strontium, and tin. Another two dozen or and in the bellies of stars have recom- amounts of dust. Astronomers believe
so elements come mostly from superno- bined in a way to make you, billions of these veils of dust in the universe were
vae. These include oxygen, potassium, years after their creation — with a big formed in supernova explosions.
sodium, arsenic, and aluminum. Two thank you to your parents as well. Observations of the universe have
elements arise from cosmic ray fission shown that not only is the cosmos
— when energetic particles from space The story of the stars expanding, as we have known for more
impact Earth’s atmosphere and surface. The story of elements in nature, of why than a century, but that the universal
This process creates boron and beryllium. we are here, of our cosmic roots, is expansion also is accelerating over time.
About another two dozen elements strongly tied to the story of stars in our On large scales, everything is moving
are created largely from merging neutron galaxy and universe. And that means away from everything else, and the uni-
stars — the clashes of super-dense, dying exploring the lives of stars, how stars verse is getting bigger. But various forces
stellar remnants made mostly of packed come to be, what happens during their are at work in the universe. One of the
neutrons. These include iodine, xenon, lifetimes, and how they, too — like most important, the very force that keeps
cesium, platinum, and gold. And a small humans — eventually die. We may not us on Earth’s surface, is gravity. The

WWW. ASTRONOMY.COM 47
In stereo, a close-up view of the Elephant’s Trunk Nebula within IC 1396 The Bubble Nebula (NGC 7635) is an object seemingly custom-made for a
reveals a complex multilayering of the many regions of dust and gas within stereo view. An incredible curtain of nebulosity wisps throughout the entire field
this giant star-forming region. of view, as the bubble itself takes on an eerie, cocoonlike quality, the hot star
forming it nestled within. Foreground stars pepper the field.

attraction of gravity means that even vital to spread this knowledge for the composed of dusty, black grains, and
though the universe is expanding, things unborn billions to come. obstruct the light from stars beyond
that are near each other are drawn The majority of nebulae in our sky them. Thus, we see them in outline as
together because of their mass. Galaxies are stellar nurseries. But not all of them. ghostly clouds of darkness, floating in
close to each other can merge together as Some are simply blobs of gas that are not the immense void of space. And some
one. It also means that new stars can be energized and glowing of their own glowing nebulae are the remnants, the
born, as gravity causes the gas and dust accord, but are rather reflecting the torn-away insides, of massive stars that
in nebulae to condense into smaller vol- light from nearby bright stars toward have violently exploded as a cosmic
umes. As this process occurs, enough our line of sight. Others are truly dark, bomb. These leavings glow for a short
hydrogen, helium, and other elements cosmic time before dissipating into
are compressed so that a critical mass invisibility. Still other types of nebulae
is reached, and a new nuclear fusion are the endpoints of ordinary stars like
reactor — a star — is born. the Sun, shells of softly glowing gas that
So, the majority of nebulae we see cocoon outward, belched away by the
scattered across our sky, almost all dying remains of their progenitor stars
belonging to our Milky Way Galaxy, are within. Each of these types of nebulae
cauldrons that make possible the births offers numerous varieties and you can
of new stars. They are stellar nurseries, see many examples on these pages, in
and that’s why they are frequently inter- both stereo and mono imagery, for your
mingled with clusters of young stars. By visual pleasure.
observing nebulae, we are peering into Exploring the world of nebulae offers
the world of infant suns, seeing a process an eye-opening understanding of the
that for our own Sun took place some cosmos at large. We’re able to understand
4.6 billion years ago. a great deal about the universe because of
This is an important story to under- One of the sky’s best-known dark nebulae is
chemistry. Specifically, spectroscopy is a
stand and appreciate, because it truly the Horsehead Nebula (B33), so named for its vital and powerful tool for astrophysi-
allows us to see where we came from and distinctive equine shape. Dark nebulae are cists. By carefully analyzing the spectra,
composed of dust grains, making them visible only
why we’re here on a planet orbiting one when backlit by brighter objects. The Horsehead or patterns of light, from various objects,
rather ordinary star in the Milky Way. lies in the constellation Orion, at a distance of about astronomers can understand the chemis-
1,400 light-years, and is a difficult object to spot
To understand the universe is paramount visually in backyard telescopes. ADAM BLOCK/MOUNT LEMMON
try of the target they’re looking at.
for the billions alive now, but it’s also SKYCENTER/UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA Countless millions of spectral

48 ASTRONOMY • MAY 2020

 When one views the distinctive Dumbbell Nebula (M27) in stereo, the two-dimensional dumbbell shape transforms into the object’s true shape: a three-
dimensional bloated sphere. Such planetary nebulae form from low-velocity gas belched away from the parent star, which is followed by higher-velocity
ejections. The collision between the gas clouds helps to light them up, giving us such a majestic view.

observations of stars, planets, galaxies, to create a crystal. The more solution of what spectroscopy tells us. From that
and so on have demonstrated that chem- that’s available, the larger the crystal can technique, as stated, we know that
istry is uniform throughout the cosmos. grow. The same is true of the whole spec- chemistry and physics are consistent
That is, it works the same way in a galaxy trum of about 5,400 known minerals, throughout the universe. Temperatures,
10 billion light-years away as it does in including emeralds, diamonds, quartz, pressures, and many other local
your backyard. And that’s a crucially garnets, wulfenite, rhodochrosite, and conditions could be wildly variable, but
important fact that astronomers use to many others. countless other worlds throughout our
understand how the universe works. Holding a mineral specimen in your galaxy and the universe might contain
hand can be a special experience because minerals very much like the ones we
Chemistry all around us
Chemistry is everywhere in the cosmos.
All matter that exists in the universe is
made of chemicals. The only thing we HOW TO VIEW OUR 3D IMAGES
experience every day that’s not made of
There are two ways to view the images printed
chemicals is thought — but our thoughts in 3D. To free view the images with no mechan-
are themselves byproducts of chemical ical assistance, let your eyes relax as you view
interactions within the brain. the photos as though focusing on a point
Let’s step away from ourselves for a behind them. At first, you will see the two
images split into four; as your eyes focus at the
moment to consider how matter goes
correct distance, the middle two images will
together. Again, there’s no magic combine to create a single, crisp 3D image. The
involved in the way the universe assem- outer two images will remain on either side of
bles things. Consider some of the most the 3D image and become blurry.
abundant objects on our planet: rocks Alternatively, you can use a 3D viewer, such
as the Lite OWL viewer designed by Brian May
and minerals. There’s no randomness
and included with the Cosmic Clouds 3-D book,
here, nor any magical behind-the-scenes to view images in 3D. Only 5.3 by 2.5 inches (134
thought or preordained control. A simple by 64 millimeters) and 0.1 inch (3 mm) thick, the
pyrite crystal builds itself when iron and Lite OWL viewer is designed for easily viewing
sulfur atoms are in solution in the right 3D images in books, magazines, modern and vin-
tage stereocards, and even video or other VR content on your
abundances. The atoms are electrochem-
smartphone. You can purchase individual Lite OWL viewers
ically attracted to each other, and they separately at www.MyScienceShop.com
assemble in a lattice in just the right way

WWW. ASTRONOMY.COM 49
 Exploring the world of
nebulae offers an eye-
opening understanding
of the cosmos at large.

systems. Astrophysicists believe that stars

form as cosmic clouds — nebular stellar
nurseries — collapse and stars wink on
inside them. The leftover detritus from
the collapse, swirling slowly around the
infant suns, make a cadre of planets and
A stereo view of the Lagoon Nebula (M8) shows it as bright nebulosity buried within a cave that encloses smaller bodies surrounding the new star.
a shell of fainter gas and appliqués of dark nebulosity stretching into the foreground.
And we are only in the pioneering
days of being able to see farther out into
the galactic neighborhood that surrounds
have on Earth. So, mineral specimens Only in recent times have astrono- us. Understanding that stars are so
give us a window into faraway worlds mers had the power to discover planets numerous and that planetary systems are
that we will never see up close. orbiting stars other than the Sun. plentiful is exciting. After all, the most
That’s intriguing, because the more Technological advances in telescopes and basic driving question everyone would
we look around our area of the Milky observing methods brought the first like to answer is at the foundation of it
Way Galaxy, the more we have discov- confirmed discovery of an exoplanet — all: “Are we alone? Is there other life in
ered that many other planetary systems shorthand for extrasolar planet — in
exist around nearby stars. Our galaxy 1992. As of January 2020, we now know
consists of several major parts, but the of about 4,100 exoplanets in more than
most recognizable and distinctive is the 3,000 systems, and astronomers have
Milky Way’s disk — the brightest portion only reached out to relatively nearby
where most of the stars, gas, and dust space in our galaxy.
reside. The Milky Way contains some Because of the difficulty of detecting
400 billion stars spread across this flat- planets orbiting stars from enormous
tened disk, some 100,000 light-years distances, many of these planets are
across. Our Sun is just one of the roughly massive, so-called “hot Jupiters” that are
400 billion stars. relatively close to their suns. The most
We’ve known about our own plan- productive planet-hunting instrument
etary system since ancient times, of was the Kepler Space Telescope, which
course, when ancient skywatchers named trailed Earth in its orbit around the Sun
the naked-eye planets after gods because and cataloged exoplanets from 2009
they had the power to move night to through 2018. This magnificent tele-
night relative to the fixed stars. We’ve scope studied a relatively small area of
been all the way through the discovery sky and found more than 2,600 of the
of Pluto in 1930 and its demotion to roughly 4,100 known exoplanets. A
dwarf planet in 2006, and understand newer telescope, TESS, was launched in Rarely do cosmic clouds create letters suspended
the huge population of smaller bodies in 2018 and has begun another epoch of in the sky, but such is the case with a pair of dark
nebulae, B142 and B143 in Aquila, which seem to
our solar system: dwarf planets, Kuiper exoplanet detection. form a capital letter E. It is nicknamed Barnard’s E
Belt objects, comets, and asteroids. They As we look out into the galaxy because the nebulae were discovered by
astronomer E.E. Barnard. Set off by a particularly
are almost countless, and many thou- surrounding our solar system, it’s not rich Milky Way star field, this nebula can be
sands are cataloged and named. surprising to see lots of nearby planetary glimpsed in small telescopes on a dark night.
BERNHARD HUBL

50 ASTRONOMY • MAY 2020

 EXPLORE FROM HOME
Cosmic Clouds 3-D: Where Stars Are Born
by David J. Eicher, Creative Director Brian
May, and 3D images by J.-P. Metsävainio,
presents a new and unique story of the
life cycles of stars and nebular clouds,
where they are born, and how they die.
This visually amazing volume, with text
and 3D images, takes readers inside the
birthplaces of stars — the cosmic clouds
called nebulae. Seen in the night sky,
they glow, energized by the new stars
within and around them. Cosmic Clouds
3-D offers hundreds of magnificent
images of nebulae captured by ground-
based and space telescopes. Along with
the high-resolution views of nebulae are
unique stereo views that show the
nebulae in three dimensions.
The story of elements in nature, of why
we are here, and of our cosmic roots, is
strongly tied to the story of stars in our
galaxy and universe. And that means
exploring the lives of stars, how stars
come to be, what happens during their
lifetimes, and how they, too — like
humans — eventually die. We may not
all know it, but we are part of the biggest
recycling program that exists — the birth,
life, and death of stars.
This is a detailed story, and we aim
to share it with you in this unique book.
NGC 6960 is the westernmost portion of the great Veil Nebula in Cygnus, one of You’ll learn about many aspects of
the sky’s best supernova remnants. Appearing to slice right through the bright star the universe as you travel
52 Cygni, the nebula actually lies far behind the star. Sometimes called the Witch’s
Broom, this nebula sits some 1,470 light-years away and is expanding into the
through the tale of cosmic
surrounding medium, causing the ionized shock front that we see. DON GOLDMAN clouds. Our tale involves
detours of science, history,
and maybe even a bit of
philosophy.
the solar system? In the Milky Way? In astronomy has com- A 3D viewer, designed
other galaxies?” menced with Earth by astrophysicist (and lead
We just don’t yet know. The numbers being at the center of guitarist with the rock group
are staggering. By taking very deep expo- everything, the most Queen) Brian May, is included
with the book.
sures of small areas of sky with the special place there is,
Hubble Space Telescope, astronomers and finding out how
have estimated that something like 100 disastrously wrong COSMIC CLOUDS 3-D
billion galaxies must exist in the uni- that idea is. Now we IS AVAILABLE ONLINE AT
verse. And that’s in the visible universe, know that chemistry is uniform www.MyScienceShop.com
which may not represent the whole uni- throughout the cosmos, and that complex
verse that exists. But for simplicity’s sake, organics, the stuff of life, exist in all
let’s say that it does. Let’s say that an manner of places out in space.
average galaxy contains 100 billion stars, And yet we know, thus far, of just one Astronomy Editor David J. Eicher is the
as many dwarfs are smaller than our gal- planet in the cosmos that hosts life: ours. author of 25 books on science and history.
axy. Multiplying that out gives us the The story of nebulae, these cosmic clouds, Brian May is an astronomer and founding
approximate number of stars in the uni- can lead us on an exciting exploration of member and guitarist of the legendary rock
verse as something like 10,000 billion all these questions, of why we’re here on a band Queen.
billion. That’s an awful lot of stars. watery little world, how we got to be where
Is it possible that our little blue planet we are, and what the universe holds at This story is adapted from Cosmic Clouds
Earth is the only place in the entire uni- large. After all, the very atoms that make 3-D: Where Stars Are Born, by David J. Eicher,
verse with life? Or with a civilization? It up our bodies were born in the Big Bang Creative Director Brian May, and 3D images
would seem almost completely unbeliev- and in the explosions of massive stars. We by J.-P. Metsävainio, © 2020 by London
able. Our whole heritage of discovery in are indeed children of the cosmos. Stereoscopic Co. and MIT Press, Boston.

WWW. ASTRONOMY.COM 51
CHARTING
THE 19TH-CENTURY
HEAVENS
Schools and colleges throughout
America regarded The Geography of the
Heavens as a valuable tool for teaching
astronomy. BY MICHAEL E. BAKICH

The Geography of the Heavens,

along with the atlas designed for it, appeared in 1833 and
single-handedly changed the landscape of astronomy edu-
cation. Its author, Elijah Hinsdale Burritt, wrote in a more
understandable style than was common in the textbooks
of the day. More importantly, he stressed observation over
theory. Burritt created this combination textbook and set
of maps specifically to get students out under the stars.
ABOVE: The stars and
constellations of winter
(left, Map III) and fall
(Map II) are the first pair a
student would encounter
in Burritt’s Atlas. As in the
sky, Orion the Hunter
stands out on the winter
map. Note that some
regions of the figures,
which should share the
central borders of the
maps, are missing.
ALL IMAGES: LIBRARY OF CONGRESS

LEFT: The summer (far

left, Map V) and spring
(Map IV) star figures join
better than the previous
pair. The “shadow”
drawing of Libra the
Scales forms the main
connecting point.

52 ASTRONOMY • MAY 2020

 Despite being relatively easy
reads, the two publications
it the most popular star atlas
of the 19th century. In fact, it
he suffered an accident. That,
along with motivation from
Burritt
carried impressive titles:
The Geography of the Heavens,
wasn’t surpassed in sales until
the mid-20th century, after
his friends, caused him to
enroll in Williams College in
created this
or Familiar Instructions for numerous editions of Arthur Williamstown, Massachusetts, combination
Finding the Visible Stars and Philip Norton’s Star Atlas and where he studied astronomy, a
Constellations; Accompanied Reference Handbook, first pub- subject he’d read a lot about textbook and
by a Celestial Atlas, with a
View of the Solar System,
lished in 1910, had appeared. during his recovery.
After a year, his finances set of maps
Illustrated by Engravings and
Atlas Designed to Illustrate
Who was Burritt?
Elijah Hinsdale Burritt
forced him to take up a teach-
ing job in 1817 to earn money
specifically
Burritt’s Geography of the
Heavens. Each cost $1.25 in
(his middle name was his
mother’s maiden name) was
to continue his studies. He
then went back to college, but
to get
1833, a bit pricey for the text-
book, but a steal for the atlas.
born April 20, 1794, in New
Britain, Connecticut. He was
in 1819, he left to teach school
(among other pursuits,
students out
The set was a smash hit. In the first of 10 children. including editing a weekly under the
the 16th edition, published in When he was 18, Burritt newspaper) in Milledgeville,
1876, the preface stated that ventured to a nearby town to Georgia. He remained there stars.
more than 300,000 copies had study for two years to become for 10 years before moving
been sold. That number makes a blacksmith. Unfortunately, back to New Britain. While in

ASTRONOMY.COM 53
 Geography of the Heavens. He
wanted to call it Uranography,
but his publisher (probably
wisely) insisted on Geography.
Apparently buying into this
notion, Burritt writes in the
preface that he wants the book
to be to the heavens what geog-
raphy is to Earth.
Burritt devotes the main part
of the book to the constellations.
He describes each star figure,
recounts its mythology and his-
tory, and lists the brightest stars
it contains, giving their magni-
tudes and other facts.
The next section deals with
the solar system, followed by a
number of problems for readers
(mainly students) to solve, and
then an appendix with 13 astro-
nomical tables.
The Atlas contains seven
maps. Four of them show con-
stellations in the equatorial
regions by season, two illustrate
the star figures in the polar
regions, and one is an all-sky
chart that shows the Sun’s posi-
tion on the ecliptic throughout
the year. Burritt drew all the
maps and supervised their
engravings. But although he
drew them, he didn’t create
them — he copied all the con-
stellation figures from English
Map VI in the Atlas astronomer Francis Wollaston’s
displays the stars and
constellations around
Georgia, he married Ann He followed it with a section A portraiture of the heavens, as
the North Celestial Williams Watson, with whom on astronomy, and devoted the they appear to the naked eye:
Pole. Note the presence he had five children. final 40 pages to a table of loga- constructed for the use of stu-
of the defunct
constellation Quadrans Upon returning to rithms from 1 to 10,000, each dents in astronomy, which
Muralis (“Mural Connecticut, he converted some calculated to seven decimal appeared in 1811. Later editions
Quadrant” on the
map). In its boundaries
property he owned, called the places. Burritt also included a of the Atlas included an addi-
was the radiant of the Stone Store, into a school. As method for students to calculate tional spread showing the rela-
Quadrantid meteor part of the conversion, Burritt the logarithms of numbers up tive sizes and distances of the
shower (thus the
name). That point installed an observatory, to 10 million. Sun, Moon, and planets, along
now lies in Boötes. featuring a telescope he had In 1821, Burritt wrote a with many other solar system
Another now-defunct
constellation is also purchased, on the top floor. 28-page pamphlet: Astronomia, facts.
present: Gloria or directions for the ready find- Burritt also added material
Frederica. Geography ing of all the principal stars in to the second (1835) and third
Once back in Connecticut, the heavens which are named on (1836) editions of the textbook,
Burritt began writing The Carey’s Celestial Globe. He fol- but he died before further edi-
Geography of the Heavens. He lowed this work in 1830 with tions were printed. The next
had one major book under his another pamphlet that showed four editions (1841, 1844, 1846,
belt already, having authored how to compute interest, both and 1849) were reissues of the
Logarithmick Arithmetick in simple and compound. third edition. In 1852, American
1818. The first half of this work The book that made Burritt astronomer Hiram Mattison
was a textbook on arithmetic. famous, however, was The revised the Geography, and

54 ASTRONOMY • MAY 2020

added two pages containing 80
drawings of double stars, com-
ets, clusters, and nebulae to the
Atlas. Mattison produced nine
editions, the last one in 1876.

Gone too soon

Burritt died January 3, 1838,
in Galveston, Texas. Late in
the previous year, he had orga-
nized and led a group of 30
colonists, which included one
of his sisters and a brother, to
Houston, Texas, to settle there.
In 1836, Texas seceded from
Mexico and became an inde-
pendent republic. It wouldn’t
become part of the U.S. until
1845. Burritt was drawn to
Texas because the government
had passed laws that granted
colonists generous plots of
land.
Burritt’s group chartered a
ship and, after a 28-day voy-
age, landed at Galveston —
well, sort of. A storm caused
the ship to wreck on a sandbar,
which delayed the actual land-
ing by several days. The jour-
ney to Houston took just a few
more days, but once they
arrived, the party had to live
in tents because nobody was
expecting them. Within a
week, yellow fever broke out
and wiped out nearly the entire The final map (Map VII)
in the Atlas displays the
group, including Burritt, who the stars after purchasing a which he inherited from his stars and constellations
died in Houston just a few copy of Burritt’s Geography grandmother: “Her copy of around the South
weeks later. at an auction in 1862 in New Burritt’s Geography of the Celestial Pole. Several
defunct constellations
Orleans, where Burnham was Heavens is today the most are visible, including
Testimonials a shorthand reporter in Maj. prized volume in my library.” Robur Caroli and
Solarium.
I have owned a copy of the Gen. Benjamin Butler’s Union For the simplicity of the
original 1833 edition of The Army headquarters. After text, the beauty of the illustra-
Geography of the Heavens for studying the constellations tions, and the sheer number
many years, as well as a set shown in the Atlas, Burnham of sales, The Geography of the
of Burritt’s 1835 constellation began to identify them in the Heavens is rightly hailed as a
maps, which I had framed sky. He held positions at sev- terrific teaching tool. Likewise,
in the 1980s. When I began eral observatories and finished Elijah Hinsdale Burritt
collecting 19th-century first- his career as an astronomer at deserves his place as one of
edition astronomy books, this Yerkes Observatory. the great popularizers in the
set was one of the top 10 items Praise also came from out- history of astronomy.
I set out to acquire. But I wasn’t side the field of astronomy.
the only one who thought In a letter dated January 1, Michael E. Bakich is a
highly of Burritt’s work. 1915, to Maurice Winter Moe, contributing editor of Astronomy
The famous double-star American horror author H.P. whose library once contained
discoverer Sherburne Wesley Lovecraft cited his admiration 475 first-edition 19th-century
Burnham became interested in for Burritt’s work, a copy of astronomy books.

ASTRONOMY.COM 55
 EDGE-ON AND
FACE-ON GALAXIES
Hunting pins and needles in the deep sky
will give your observing some pizzazz.
BY STEPHEN JAMES O’MEARA

his month, we’ll visually thread our way

through the extragalactic haystack that’s
now prominent along the meridian. We’ll focus
no
on three types of spiral galaxies: grand-design
(those with striking spiral arms), flocculent
(th
(those that appear “fluffy”), and edge-on or
near-edge-on (those whose orientation doesn’t
allow us to see their disks). I call the first two types
“pins” and the third “needles.”
The galaxies in this hunt run the gamut from strik-
ing to elusive. To approach this galactic scavenger hunt
in a systematic way, I’ve divided the sky into four sec-
tions. In each section, we’ll follow a one-to-one extra-
galactic stitch pattern — first a needle, followed by a
pin — looping our way from one region of sky to the
next. (And in an effort to introduce you to some lesser-
known beauties, none of the objects discussed below is
on Messier’s famous list.) Let the needlework begin!

56 ASTRONOMY • MAY 2020

NGC 2683, also known as
the UFO Galaxy, is one of
the sky’s best “needles,”
running three times as long
as it is wide. It lies in Lynx.
ADAM BLOCK/MOUNT LEMMON SKYCENTER/
UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA
 NGC 3079
KEN CRAWFORD

NGC 3184 NGC 3310

DAN SMITH/ADAM BLOCK/NOAO/AURA/NSF ADAM BLOCK/MOUNT LEMMON SKYCENTER/UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA

SECTION 1

The first section of sky we’ll examine lies in the constellations Lynx and Ursa Major.

W
e begin with our first needle, NGC 2683, located Next, turn your attention 2° northeast of Phi (ϕ) UMa to the
within the borders of Lynx, but about 1° northwest spectacular edge-on gem NGC 3079. This galaxy tilts only 2°
of magnitude 5.4 Sigma2 (σ2) Cancri. This luscious from edge-on. It is one of the nearest and brightest Seyfert gal-
magnitude 9.7 spiral, which tilts just 11° from edge-on, car- axies, which have both glowing, active cores and clearly visible
ries the moniker “UFO Galaxy.” Through all instruments, disks. Visible in a 4-inch scope at 100x, this 8'-by-1.5' streak of
it appears as a silver needle (9' by 3') elongated northeast light looks like a phantom Frisbee (oriented roughly north to
to southwest. It also has a distinct sheen — like moonlight south) near a triangle of stars.
glinting off the blade of a sword. Heading northward, we encounter the peculiar grand-
Now thread your way to Tania Australis (Mu [μ] Ursae design spiral NGC 3310. We see this face-on, 10.8-magnitude
Majoris) and look only 45' west for the Little Pinwheel Galaxy starburst galaxy less than 3.5° southwest of 44 UMa. Through
(NGC 3184). Seen nearly face-on, this magnitude 9.5 circular a 4-inch telescope at 150x, it resembles a swollen planetary neb-
glow sports a 7'-wide disk hugging a stellar core. At a magnifi- ula 3.5' across. It is one of the bluest spirals known, and it’s also
cation of 100x, its disk breaks down into delicate waves of the brightest disturbed galaxy in the late Halton Arp’s Atlas of
impure light. Note that the northern flank is punctured by Peculiar Galaxies. To see its arms well, however, will require at
an 11th-magnitude field star. least a 12-inch instrument.

58 ASTRONOMY • MAY 2020

 NGC 3448
SLOAN DIGITAL SKY SURVEY

NGC 3631
ESA/HUBBLE/NASA/LUCA LIMATOLA

NGC 4026
SLOAN DIGITAL SKY SURVEY

SECTION 2
NGC 3893
BOB UMINSKI/CINDI KRISTOPEIT/ADAM BLOCK/NOAO/AURA/NSF

Our second section lies entirely within Ursa Major.

H
ere, we come to our dwarf 3.8' to the west. magnifications of 150x to Next, turn your gaze about
first challenge: mag- Also in this section, nearly reveal this hefty appendage. 1° north-northeast of Chi (χ)
nitude 11.5 NGC 5° west of Phecda (Gamma [γ] Visible in a 4-inch scope, UMa for the last target in this
3448. I call this object the UMa), we find the 10th- NGC 4026 is a high-surface- section: the magnitude 10.5
Cigarillo Galaxy because it’s magnitude grand-design spi- brightness magnitude 10.8 grand-design spiral NGC
an edge-on amorphous galaxy ral NGC 3631. While only edge-on lenticular galaxy in 3893. Through a 5-inch tele-
like the Cigar Galaxy (M82), 4.5' in extent, this nearly face- Ursa Major. Look for a star- scope, it’s an elegant sight. The
only smaller. This smooth, on galaxy sports a visual like core punctuating its 4'-by-2' spindle has a soft oval
5'-by-1.5' sheet of light hugs enigma — namely, one “heavy 4.5'-by-1' needle-thin disk core, as well as fainter arclike
44 UMa only 20' to the south- arm,” as Arp described it. (oriented north to south), extensions. Magnifications of
east. Among the galaxies with This peculiar feature origi- which swells with averted 100x and greater will reveal
the highest known rate of nates just north of the galaxy’s vision. You’ll find it about 3° a tiny nucleus and two high-
star formation per unit mass, nucleus and points east. south-southeast of Phecda. surface-brightness arms
NGC 3448 is interacting with Those viewing through 8-inch Larger scopes will also reveal wrapping tightly around
UGC 6016, a 14th-magnitude or larger apertures should use its faint elliptical halo. the galaxy’s core.

WWW. ASTRONOMY.COM 59
NGC 4111
ESA/HUBBLE/NASA/JUDY SCHMIDT

NGC 5033
BERNARD MILLER

NGC 4244 NGC 4414

JOE NAUGHTON/STEVE STAFFORD/ADAM BLOCK/NOAO/AURA/NSF HUBBLE HERITAGE TEAM (AURA/STSCI/NASA/ESA)

SECTION 3

Our third section lies in two small northern constellations, Canes Venatici and Coma Berenices.

T
he first target, NGC 4111, lies near 10x50 binoculars, this 10th-magnitude at 75x, is a compelling ghostly ellipse
the border between Canes Venatici marvel is the visual twin of NGC 5005, with an uncanny sharpness to the gal-
and Ursa Major. This small but which lies 0.5° to the northwest. This axy’s slender shape.
fascinating edge-on lenticular galaxy lies 5'-long lens-shaped object becomes Last but not least in this section, NGC
about 1° due east of 67 UMa. It cuts a fine increasingly more compressed toward its 4414 is another superb flocculent spiral
line against the night sky. A dark dust lane highly condensed core, a result of the about 3° north of Gamma Comae
runs perpendicular to the galaxy’s plane, galaxy swallowing a companion some- Berenices. The 10th-magnitude galaxy’s
causing a dramatic decrease in brightness time in the distant past. 4.5'-by-3' disk has a relatively high sur-
between the edge of the bulge and the Our third target in the third section is face brightness and makes a good target
beginning of the disk. Use at least 100x the Silver Needle Galaxy (NGC 4244), for small-telescope users, even under
to see its bright starlike core, eye-shaped which glows at magnitude 10.5 about 4½° suburban skies. A 5-inch instrument at
bulge, and hyperfine needlelike disk, ori- southwest of Chara (Beta [β] CVn). This a magnification of 100x will reveal the
ented west-northwest to east-southeast. galaxy’s exactly edge-on disk (15.5' by inner lens. This feature appears mottled
Next, thread your way about 1.5° 1.5') is devoid of a strong central bulge, along the major axis, and the outer lens
northeast of 14 Canum Venaticorum for but it does display a small central con- has hints of knotty enhancements along
the amazing flocculent galaxy NGC centration. The galaxy orients northeast what appears to be a spiral pattern,
5033. Visible with averted vision in to southwest and, through a 4-inch scope although nothing is connected.

60 ASTRONOMY • MAY 2020

 NGC 4631 NGC 4725
ADAM BLOCK/MOUNT LEMMON SKYCENTER/UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA BOB FERA

NGC 4565 NGC 4535 NGC 4762

R. JAY GABANY ADAM BLOCK/MOUNT LEMMON SKYCENTER/UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA ESA/NASA/HUBBLE

SECTION 4

Our final section encompasses parts of Canes Venatici, Coma Berenices, and Virgo.

F
or a whale of a view, slide about 3.5° east-northeast of The last object is the Lost Galaxy (NGC 4535). While rela-
NGC 4414 to NGC 4631. Popularly known as the Whale tively bright (magnitude 10.5), this barred spiral is of low sur-
Galaxy, this 9th-magnitude tapered monolith (oriented face brightness, so it’s a challenge to small-scope observers. The
roughly east to west) is replete with dark vapors in a delicate 7'-long glow lies 2¼° northwest of 31 Vir and, in a 4-inch scope,
embrace. Star clumps pepper the 15'-long disk like snowballs shines as a circular patch of ill-defined light. Views through
on the side of a house. For a triple treat, check out NGC 4627, 12-inch and larger scopes bring out the spiral’s main, S-shaped
a magnitude 12.5 dwarf elliptical galaxy 3' to the north, and its arms within what I describe as “extragalactic ectoplasm.”
equally slender partner, the Hockey Stick (NGC 4656/7), a
magnitude 10.5 edge-on barred spiral 30' to the southeast. BONUS: A FINISHING STITCH
Next is a different sort of pinwheel. NGC 4725 is a peculiar We’ll end our needlework with magnitude 10 NGC 4762, an
one-armed spiral — a transition system between a normal spi- edge-on system 2° west and slightly north of Vindemiatrix
ral and a barred spiral that forms one of the most complete (Epsilon [ε] Virginis). A 5-inch scope shows it as a 9'-by-2' wisp
rings of any galaxy known. To find this magnitude 9.5 gem, sporting a nuclear bead within an inner lens. Bright dots flank
look 2° south and slightly west of 31 Com, which lies near the the core, beyond which threads give way to hyperfine exten-
North Galactic Pole. Through a 4-inch scope, the galaxy’s inner sions. In larger scopes, the thin disk tapers to sharp points.
region displays a bar that connects a bright, broken inner ring And with that, our galactic stitchwork is done. But there’s an
surrounded by a fainter lens of light. entire universe at your disposal, and I encourage you to sew
To find our next treat, travel westward to a point 2° due east your own wonders together. As the late hand-knitting expert
of 17 Com. There, you’ll find the Needle Galaxy (NGC 4565). Elizabeth Zimmermann said, “Properly practiced, knitting
This magnitude 9.5 wafer of light has two 8'-long threads of soothes the troubled spirit, and it doesn’t hurt the untroubled
light extending from the galaxy’s slightly swollen belly — like spirit either.” Enjoy.
silk from a spider’s abdomen. A 4-inch telescope at high power
will resolve NGC 4565’s classic dark lane, which cleanly divides Stephen James O’Meara is a contributing editor and columnist
the galaxy’s bright hub into two distinct ovals. for Astronomy who enjoys frequent trips into the deep sky.

WWW. ASTRONOMY.COM 61
WE
TEST Canon’s new astro
With 30 megapixels of resolution, a full-frame sensor,
and a mirrorless body, the EOS Ra camera can
help you reveal the night sky in all its glory.
TEXT AND IMAGES BY TONY HALLAS

With all the noise about Sony and Nikon designed filter that lets the emission line good balance between resolution and
cameras over recent years, I was under of Hydrogen-alpha (Hα) at 656.3 nano- light sensitivity, as each of the Ra’s pixels
the impression that Canon had gone dor- meters really shine through. This leads absorbs more photons than the smaller
mant. I could not have been more wrong. to a roughly fourfold increase in the pixels found in many other camera sen-
Not only has Canon been quietly creating transmission sensitivity of Hα light — sors. The Ra’s electronics incorporate the
new innovations in camera lenses and enabling you to capture deeper, more latest DIGIC 8 image processor, which
design, but they also have been working vivid reds — for the Ra compared to pre- has powerful noise-suppression capabili-
to improve the overall quality of their vious models, yet the window is so pre- ties. Images taken in extremely low-light
products. This is clearly evident with the cise that the camera can still be used in situations and then stretched to look nor-
release of their new EOS Ra camera. daylight. Though Canon officials “do not mal show very low noise — on par with
The camera is based on the company’s recommend” using the Ra for daytime the best cameras currently available.
mirrorless R model, with two significant applications, after two months of day- The Ra is a thoroughly modern cam-
modifications. Instead of the usual 10x time use, I have yet to see a bad picture. era, with most of its main controls acces-
magnification, the latest Ra model can go The Canon Ra, like the R, has a full- sible via touch screen. This makes
to 30x, allowing you to obtain an frame, 30.3-megapixel CMOS sensor with adjustments at 2 a.m., when you are half-
extremely precise focus on stars, espe- an individual pixel size of 5.36 microns. asleep, a breeze. The rear screen also
cially when using a wide-angle lens. The large pixel size articulates into any position, unlike
Additionally, the Ra model sports a newly helps it strike a many other screens that have limited or
One of the most no movement. When you’re not using
striking features of the the camera, the screen can be folded
Canon Ra is its vari-angle so its glass face is on the inside, pro-
LCD screen, which makes it a
breeze to view your target no tecting it from damage. And,
matter where the camera unique to the Canon R series, when
points. In this case, the target
is the Orion Nebula seen the camera is turned off, the shutter
through a 200mm lens. closes, protecting the delicate sensor
inside from dust and other contami-
nants. This also means that changing
lenses while the camera is off does not
expose the sensor to the environment.
Canon optical engineers also enlarged
the Ra’s front opening to 52mm. The
larger opening facilitates lenses that are
sharper to the edge and have less vignett-
ing, helping keep images crisp all the way
to the periphery. Lenses that are dedi-
cated to the R series bear the “RF” desig-
nation; the RF 70–200mm f/2.8 is a
prime example. You can, however, still
use older EF lenses with a short adapter,
and you can order the adapter with a
built-in filter housing. Canon also offers
polarizing and variable neutral density
filters that you can insert into the adapter

62 ASTRONOMY • MAY 2020

 Canon’s EOS
Ra sports a DIGIC 8

camera
processor and a full-
frame CMOS chip. Its
shutter also closes when
the camera is off,
protecting the sensor.

— a really neat idea. You’ll likewise be

able to insert astronomy-related filters
as they become available.
As an added bonus, you can assign
custom functions to most of the Ra’s
buttons and its multi-function bar.
There’s also a ring with click stops for
the RF lenses and some EF adapters,
which allows you to make additional
adjustments. Being a nuts-and-bolts
kind of person, I chose to turn the multi- handle being five-minute exposures at an ISO of 800
function bar off. Because the ring can attached to a tripod to 1600 (depending on the target) and an
only be activated when another button is or mount, I would not recommend going f-ratio of f/3.5 to f/4. Shooting wide open
held down, this negates the chance of any on a hike with them. For daytime use, records the worst the lens can perform
accidental movement. my favorite lenses are the 24–70mm and usually leads to heavy vignetting
While I was at the Advanced Imaging f/4 EF with macro and the 70–200mm that must be dealt with after the fact.
Conference in 2019, I had the opportu- f/4 IS EF. Both of these are used with an I always shoot RAW images, taking
nity to see more of the latest RF lenses adapter to allow for internal filtering, as anywhere from five to nine exposures,
made specifically for Canon’s R-series mentioned earlier. dithering between each. I then convert
cameras. These lenses are wider than a The Ra does not come with a built-in them to Digital Negative Image (DNG)
normal lens. And if they are fast, they are intervalometer, so to automatically shoot files and import them into Adobe
also quite heavy. Although they can continuous images, you’ll need to buy an Camera Raw (ACR) for processing.
external one that plugs into the camera. Once I’ve processed the images in ACR,
But if you are shooting three-minute, I save them as 16-bit TIFF files and
PRODUCT INFORMATION dithered exposures (by slightly shifting import those into RegiStar, where the
the camera between exposures), the files are aligned and combined — or
Canon EOS Ra exposure time in bulb mode can be set stacked — to create a master TIFF file.
Type: Digital single-lens non-reflex all the way to 60 minutes. No external Finally, I import the master file into
Sensor: 30.3-megapixel CMOS timer needed. Photoshop for final adjustments and
Format: Full frame (36 by 24 millimeters) I should also say something about enhancements.
Resolution: 6,720 by 4,480 pixels how I prefer to image with the Ra. As
Processor: DIGIC 8 previously noted, the Ra has very little Better than a small step
ISO range: 100 to 40000 noise. This means you can get by shoot- The Canon EOS Ra is a giant leap for-
Shutter speed: 1/8,000 to 30 seconds ing just a single frame. But to get the ward in astronomical imaging. Its com-
Continuous shooting: 8 frames/second most detail out of the sky, nothing beats bination of high sensitivity, low noise,
Wi-Fi: Built in shooting multiple frames. Through and good resolution in a modern archi-
Display: 3.15-inch vari-angle touchscreen experimentation I’ve found that longer, tecture is a true winner. Plus, the touch-
LCD low-ISO exposures are better than screen menus alone are worth the price
Dimensions: 5.35 by 3.87 by 3.32 inches shorter, high-ISO shots. However, this of admission. All in all, the camera is a
(135.8 by 98.3 by 84.4 mm) means you’ll need some form of tracking real joy to work with.
Weight: 1.28 pounds (580 grams) with a small equatorial mount, for
Price: $2,499.00 (body only) instance, or a star tracker like the Vixen Tony Hallas is one of the world’s top
Polarie. I typically shoot three- to astroimagers.

WWW. ASTRONOMY.COM 63
 OBSERVING BASICS

Explore elliptical galaxy M87, whose giant black hole was

recently targeted by the Event Horizon Telescope. If we
continue the M58-to-M87 route another 1½°, we arrive

Markarian’s Chain at the side-by-side ellipticals M84 and M86. They mark
the western edge of Markarian’s Chain.
Once you have M84 (magnitude 9.2; 6.5' by 5.6') and
Tour a tightly packed group of gorgeous galaxies. M86 (magnitude 8.9; 8.9' by 5.8') centered in the eye-
piece field, gently nudge your scope slightly less than
½° eastward. Here you’ll find the close pair NGC 4435
(magnitude 10.8; 3.0' by 2.2') and NGC 4438 (magni-
¡ l tude 10.0; 8.5' by 3.0'). Because of their visual appear-
V IRGO ance, they’re nicknamed the Eyes Galaxies. Switch to a
NGC 4458 higher magnification if you have trouble seeing them.
C OMA NGC 4477 Less than ½° east and slightly north of the Eyes is a
BERENICES NGC 4435
NGC 4473 fainter galactic duo. It’s comprised of the elliptical galaxy
VI RG O NGC 4461
NGC 4438 NGC 4458 (magnitude 11.8; 1.6' by 1.5') and its lenticular
M86 M84 neighbor NGC 4461 (magnitude 11.1; 3.4' by 1.4').
M87
M59
M58 The final members of Markarian’s Chain, NGC 4473
(magnitude 10.2; 4.5' by 2.5') and NGC 4477 (magni-
¡ M60 tude 10.4; 3.7' by 3.3'), lie across the border in Coma
Berenices. The former is yet another elliptical galaxy,
Rho (l) while the latter is a barred lenticular galaxy.
Although M84 and M86 are visible in an ordinary
60mm refractor, spotting the rest of the chain will
2° require larger instruments. All can be glimpsed with
an 8-inch scope under dark-sky conditions, while an
Markarian’s Chain observer with a keen eye might be able to see them with
(yellow), located about To the passionate deep-sky observer, spring a 6-inch or smaller scope.
50 million to 55 million
light-years away, means one thing — galaxies! And nowhere is Markarian’s Chain is named after the Armenian
might not look that the number of galaxies greater than in the astrophysicist Benjamin Markarian (1913–1985).
impressive through a
backyard scope. But
Virgo Cluster. I featured this galactic swarm in my April However, he didn’t discover these galaxies. That honor
targeting this many 2013 column, but this month, we return to the goes to Charles Messier, who cataloged M84
galaxies contained Virgo Cluster to explore a remarkable group and M86 in 1781, and William Herschel,
in such a tiny section
of the sky is worth
of galaxies within it: Markarian’s Chain. A nearly who found the rest of the chain’s members a
the challenge. If your scope has go-to capability, you can straight row few years later. Markarian discovered their
ASTRONOMY: ROEN KELLY
arrive at the group by entering the coordi- common motion in the early 1960s.
nates R.A. 12h27m45.6s, Dec. 13°00'31". This
of bright Visually speaking, Markarian’s Chain is
will take you directly to NGC 4438, which Messier hardly a cosmic masterpiece. Its member
lies near the center of Markarian’s Chain. galaxies runs galaxies are too far away (an estimated
However, if you opt for this direct route, from just 50 million to 55 million light-years) to
you’ll miss some of the surrounding scenery. north of Rho appear as much more than fuzzy blobs in
I instead suggest you star-hop from the most backyard scopes. Still, it’s intriguing
nearby 5th-magnitude star Rho (ρ) Virginis.
Virginis all to see so many galaxies packed in such a
Rho serves as an ideal “base camp” because the way to small area of sky. The “wow” factor comes
it teams up with three surrounding field Markarian’s from the realization that the photons stimu-
stars to form a northwest-pointing arrow- Chain. lating your retinal cells as you gaze into the
head that quickly establishes field and size eyepiece started their journey during the
orientation. Use an eyepiece that yields a 1° early part of Earth’s Eocene Epoch, just
or 2° field of view for the scenic journey. 10 million years after the extinction of the dinosaurs.
BY GLENN CHAPLE A nearly straight row of bright Messier galaxies runs Questions, comments, or suggestions? Email me at
Glenn has been an
from just north of Rho all the way to Markarian’s Chain. [email protected]. Next month: We explore the
avid observer since
a friend showed From Rho, move 1½° northward to the elliptical galaxies “Fadeaway Star.” Clear skies!
him Saturn through M60 and M59. A slight shift westward will bring the
a small backyard barred spiral M58 into view. A sweep from M60 to M58 BROWSE THE “OBSERVING BASICS” ARCHIVE
scope in 1963. and extended an equal distance beyond takes us to the AT www.Astronomy.com/Chaple

64 ASTRONOMY • MAY 2020

 MARKETPLACE
INDEX of
ADVERTISERS
ADM Accessories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65

Astro Haven . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65

Astro-Physics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Deep-Sky Planner 7
Astronomy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 For visual and imaging observers! $
50
Exceptional Planning &
Bob Berman Tours . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Logging Software for
2013 Star Products Windows, Android & iOS
Bob's Knobs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
ADM ACCESSORIES
www.admaccessories.com
Buzz Aldrin Puzzle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67

Celestron. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76
Build Your Own
Custom Astronomical Adapter
Explore Scientific . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
www.preciseparts.com

Gleg Photography . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65 +1 305 253-5707

[email protected]

iOptron . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

Knightware. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65 Astronomy Observer’s Journal

• Plan Sessions
Northeast Astronomy Forum. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 • Record Observations
• Sketch Objects
Oberwerk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Available thru Amazon
See d
etails
at:
gleg.photography/p/journal
Omegon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

ScopeStuff
Optic Wave Laboratories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65 *HWUHZDUG E\SURYLQJWKHEHORZVWDWHG
QHZGLVFRYHUHGIDFWDVZURQJ
:KDWVXJJHVWVPHDQGHQVLWLHVRISODQHWV
Optical Structures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 0HUFXU\DQG9HQXV" Telescope Accessories & Hardware
 ,I 'LVFRYHUHU 5DPHVK 9DUPD ,QGLD KDG EHHQ DFDGHPLF TXDOL¿HG 3K' World’s largest inventory of telescope accessories,
VFLHQWLVWQRWFLWL]HQVFLHQWLVWGLVFRYHU\FODLPLQVWHDGRIEHLQJDQDGYHUWLVHPHQW
Precise Parts. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65 ZRXOGKDYHDSSHDUHGLQDOO6FLHQFH-RXUQDOVDVSXEOLFDWLRQUHVXOWLQJWRPDNHLWYLUDO adapters and hardware. Free shipping in the USA!
www.scopestuff.com
DPRQJWKHFRQFHUQHG0RGHRIQHZGLVFRYHU\LQIRUPDWLRQVHWE\WKH$FDGHPLF:RUOG
LVDFXUVHRQWKHPDQNLQG
 :RUOGFDPHWRNQRZDERXWVRODUZLQGDQGPDWHULDOLVWLFSURSHUWLHVRIWKHUD\V
Princeton University Press . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 FHQWXULHVODWHUWKDQFDOFXODWLQJPHDQGHQVLWLHVRIWKHSODQHWV+XPDQVQHYHUIRUJHW
ZKDWWKH\KDYHOHDUQHGHDUOLHU6RE\WKHPLQGVHWFRQFHUQHGDUHZLWKROGDFDGHPLF
NQRZOHGJHIURPFHQWXULHVRYHUWKHVDLGVXEMHFWZKLFKKDVEHHQSURYHGZURQJGXHWR
512-259-9778
QHZGLVFRYHULHVDVVWDWHGEHORZ
 0HDQGHQVLW\RIWKH(DUWKKDVEHHQSUDFWLFDOO\NQRZQWKDWLW
QHYCCD . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75 
LV  JPFP  EXW ZKHUHDV PHDQ GHQVLWLHV RI DOO RWKHU SODQHWV
KDYH EHHQ FDOFXODWHG E\ WKH NQRZQ SODQHWDU\ ODZV DQG NQRZQ

Rainbow Symphony . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
PHDQGHQVLW\RIWKH(DUWK
 6FLHQWLVWVXQGHUVWDQGWKDWDSODQHWLVDWGLVWDQFHIURPWKH
Keeping it “Beautifully” Simple
6XQE\WKHFHQWULIXJDOIRUFHGXHWRLWVRUELWDOPRWLRQWUXO\LWLVQRW Almost Zero Maintenance... Very little to go wrong
VR$SODQHWLVDWGLVWDQFHIURPWKH6XQE\WKUHHIDFWRUVL.QRZQ
IDFWRUE\WKHFHQWULIXJDOIRUFHLL)RUZDUGWKUXVWRYHUWKHSODQHW Almost Zero Operation Software... No Rotation
Revolution Imager. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 E\ WKH PDWHULDOLVWLF SDUWLFOHV FXUYHG UD\V RI WKH 6XQ DORQJ ZLWK
RWKHUVRODUHMHFWVRUVLPSO\E\WKHWKUXVWRIVRODUZLQGDQGLLL
5HSXOVLRQIDFWRUEHWZHHQWKHPDWHULDOLVWLFSDUWLFOHVFXUYHGUD\VRI
Rocky Mountain Star Stare. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65 WKH6XQDQGRIWKHSODQHWZKLFKLWJHQHUDWHVDQGUDGLDWHV
 )DFWRUV LL DQG LLL KDYH QRW EHHQ DFFRXQWHG IRU ZKLOH
FDOFXODWLQJPHDQGHQVLWLHVRIWKHSODQHWVGXHWRZKLFKFDOFXODWHG
PHDQ GHQVLWLHV RI RWKHU SODQHWV RWKHU WKDQ WKH (DUWK DUH QRW
Scope Buggy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 FRUUHFW3ODQHWV0HUFXU\DQG9HQXVDUHWKHEHVWVXLWHGSODQHWV
ZKLFKSURYHHDVLO\WKDWFDOFXODWHGPHDQGHQVLWLHVDUHZURQJ
 3ODQHW0HUFXU\3ODQHW0HUFXU\LVPXFKVPDOOHUWKDQWKH
(DUWKLWVGLDPHWHULV.0ZKHUHDVWKDWRIWKH(DUWKLV
ScopeStuff . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65 .00HUFXU\LVFORVHUWRWKH6XQWKDQWKH(DUWK&DOFXODWHGPHDQ
GHQVLW\ RI WKH 0HUFXU\ LV  JPFP ZKHUHDV FRUUHFW PHDQ

GHQVLW\RIWKH(DUWKLVJPFP 
Technical Innovations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5  $VPDOOHUSODQHWDQGRIOHVVHUPHDQGHQVLW\FDQQRWH[LVW
QHDUHUWRWKH6XQWKDQWKH(DUWKGXHWRKLJKEORZRIVRODUZLQG
&DOFXODWHG PHDQ GHQVLW\ VXJJHVWV WKDW 0HUFXU\ VKRXOG EH IDU
DZD\IURPWKH(DUWKEXWZKHUHDVLWLVFORVHUWRWKH6XQ6LWXDWLRQRI
Tele Vue Optics, Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 WKH0HUFXU\VXJJHVWVWKDWPHDQGHQVLW\RILWLVPXFKJUHDWHUWKDQ [email protected]
WKH(DUWK
 3ODQHW9HQXV'LDPHWHURIWKHSODQHW9HQXVLVVPDOOHUWKDQ 949.215.3777 www.astrohaven.com
WKH(DUWKDQGLWVPHDQGHQVLW\WRRKDVEHHQFDOFXODWHGOHVVHUWKDQ
TravelQuest International . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 WKH (DUWK 'XH WR WKH VDPH UHDVRQ DV VWDWHG IRU WKH SODQHW
0HUFXU\WUXHPHDQGHQVLW\RIWKH9HQXVLVJUHDWHUWKDQWKH(DUWK
EXWOHVVHUWKDQWKH0HUFXU\)XUWKHU9HQXVLVFORVHUWRWKH6XQ
True Astronomy and Sciences. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65 WKDQWKH(DUWKEXWLWKROGVPXFKJUHDWHUTXDQWXPRIDWPRVSKHUH
DJDLQVWKLJKEORZRIVRODUZLQGWKDQWKH(DUWK7KLVDOVRVXJJHVWV

Woodland Hills Cameras & Telescope. . . . . . . . . . 5

WKDWWUXHPHDQGHQVLW\RI9HQXVLVJUHDWHUWKDQWKH(DUWK
 &RQFOXVLRQ6FLHQWLVWVPXVWFRPHIRUZDUGWRH[SODLQWKDW
KRZ VPDOOHU SODQHWV 0HUFXU\ DQG 9HQXV DQG RI ORZHU PHDQ
YOUR AD HERE
GHQVLW\ DUH FORVHU WR WKH 6XQ WKDQ WKH (DUWK WR IDFH KLJKHU
The Advertiser Index is provided as a service to Astronomy EORZWKUXVW IURP WKH VRODU ZLQG" 2U WKH\ PXVW DFFHSW WKDW
magazine readers. The magazine is not responsible for
omissions or for typographical errors in names or
DFDGHPLFNQRZOHGJHRYHUZRUNLQJPHFKDQLVPRIVRODUV\VWHPLV
ZURQJDQGIDOVH
Call 1-888-558-1544, Ext. 523
page numbers. 5HDGLQGHWDLOWKHGLVFRYHU\FODLPµ0$7(5,$/,67,&81,9(56(¶
RQZHEVLWHZZZQHZWRQXJHDPFRP for advertising information
5HZDUG6HH7HUPVDQG&RQGLWLRQVRYHUZHEVLWH
 BINOCULAR UNIVERSE

Curve to Corvus and continuing southward for 3½°, you will come to
5th-magnitude HD 109799 in neighboring Hydra. Can
you also see a smudge of faint light just to its northeast?

and beyond That will be M68, a rogue globular cluster lying in the
Milky Way’s outer halo, about 33,600 light-years from
us. Owing to its southern position in the sky from
The region of the crow hides some pretty cool celestial stuff. midnorthern latitudes, M68’s gentle glow can be
quickly extinguished by horizon-hugging light pollu-
tion and haze. But if you wait for a moonless night, it
will reveal itself with just about any binocular. As you
strain to see M68, consider that that feeble glow is actu-
ally the combined effort of more than 100,000 stars that
have been in existence for an estimated 11 billion years.
The long-period variable star R Corvi lies within the
trapezoid, about 2½° southeast of Gienah (Gamma [γ]
Corvi). Like most long-period variables, R Corvi is a red
giant that varies dramatically from maximum to mini-
mum. At peak brightness, it reaches magnitude 6.7, while
at minimum it drops to magnitude 14.4. A full cycle,
from one max to the next, takes approximately 317 days.
The magnificent And, guess what? It’s on the rise. Max light is predicted
Sombrero Galaxy
(M104) is a great One of the first catchphrases we probably all to occur in mid-June, so now is a great time to check it
edge-on spiral, and heard when learning our way around the out. It forms a tiny right triangle with two faint stars that
makes a fine target spring sky was that from the handle of the Big it will easily outshine as it ascends. Use the customizable
for any pair of
binoculars. R. JAY GABANY Dipper, you “arc to Arcturus, then speed to Spica, and, Variable Star Plotter on the American Association of
finally, curve to Corvus.” Arcturus and Spica are bril- Variable Star Observers’ website, www.aavso.org, to
liant stellar beacons, far outshining the handle stars create your own finder chart.
that guide us their way. The four primary stars that Just north of Gamma Corvi, there is an arrow-shaped
make up the trapezoidal body of Corvus the Crow, asterism of eight 6th- and 7th-magnitude stars that
however, shine at an insipid 3rd magnitude. Despite points right at our next target, the Sombrero Galaxy
their modest numbers, those four stars stand out sur- (M104). What could be more convenient than that? The
prisingly well, even under the veil of subur- galaxy is just 2° northeast beyond the arrow’s
ban light pollution. tip, barely across the invisible boundary in
Let’s begin our exploration at Zeta (ζ) I always Virgo. Although M104 shines at only 9th
Corvi, a wide double star within the southern magnitude, my old 7x35s still reveal its oval
confines of the trapezoid. Shining at 5th enjoy disk. Increasing to my 10x50s, that disk
magnitude, Zeta shows a subtle hint of blue, hearing grows more prominent, surrounding a stellar
while its 6th-magnitude companion, of your core. It takes my 16x70s to reveal why M104
HD 107295, 6' to the west, is yellowish. binocular is nicknamed the Sombrero; they reveal a
Whether they form an actual binary star protruding core and broad, flattened disk
system or just a chance optical double is open
exploits and cleaved by a “brim” of opaque dust.
to debate. Zeta is projected to be 415 light- successes. Finally, look about halfway between the
years away, while HD 107295 is calculated at tip of the arrow and M104. Can you see a tiny
386 light-years distant. Some ambiguity in triangle of faint stars? If you are viewing
the data, however, may mean that they are actually through 14x or higher giant binoculars, you might
much closer to one another. notice that there are six stars here, forming a triangle
Corvus also holds a second widely spaced double within a triangle. Nicknamed the Stargate, this little
star about 2° south of the midway point between Beta object is one of my favorite springtime asterisms.
(β) and Epsilon (ε) Corvi. The brighter of the pair is I always enjoy hearing of your binocular exploits and
6th-magnitude 6 Corvi, while 5' to its west is successes. You can contact me through my website,
BY PHIL
HD 107756, one magnitude fainter. Both are orange philharrington.net. Until next time, remember that two
HARRINGTON
Phil is a longtime giant stars. Slightly defocus your binoculars to eyes are better than one.
contributor to enhance their delicate colors.
Astronomy and the By extending an imaginary line from Delta (δ) BROWSE THE “BINOCULAR UNIVERSE” ARCHIVE AT
author of many books. through Beta Corvi along the trapezoid’s western side, www.Astronomy.com/Harrington

66 ASTRONOMY • MAY 2020

 NEW PRODUCTS

Binocular Binocular viewer

scope Orion Telescopes
Nikon & Binoculars
Watsonville, California
Melville, New York
Nikon’s Binocular Orion’s Premium Linear
Telescope 20x120 IV BinoViewer for Telescopes uses a
provides a true field dielectric-coated beam-splitting
of view of 3° and mirror and works on any telescope.
20.8 millimeters of The interpupillary distance adjusts
eye relief. Each eyepiece from 58 to 74 mm. The BinoViewer Camera filters
focuses individually and has a weighs 9 ounces (255 grams) and Astronomik
comes with a waterproof case that Hamburg, Germany
rubber eyecup. The all-metal
body is waterproof and filled holds two eyepieces. Astronomik’s CLS Clip-Filter
with nitrogen to prevent $499.99 EOS R XL for mirrorless Canon
fogging. Nikon 800.447.1001 R and RP DSLRs can be installed
includes a www.telescope.com without tools and without modi-
yoke mount. fying the camera’s body. The filter
blocks the light of mercury- and
$8,999.95 sodium-vapor lamps and lets
Attention, 800.645.6687 most visible and Hydrogen-alpha
manufacturers: www.nikonsport radiation through.
To submit a product optics.com
for this page, 199 euros
email mbakich@ +49 (0)40/ 511 43 48
astronomy.com. www.astronomik.com

ASTRONOMY MAGAZINE EXCLUSIVE

HOUSTON, THE PUZZLE HAS LANDED.
Commemorate the Apollo 11 mission with one
of the most recognizable space exploration
photographs in American history! Assemble
this 500-piece jigsaw puzzle featuring the iconic
LPDJHRIOXQDUPRGXOHSLORWb%X]]$OGULQVWDQGLQJ
RQWKHOXQDUVXUIDFHLQWKHȴUVWPDQQHGPLVVLRQ

The puzzle’s 500 pieces are precision-cut from

sturdy cardboard for durability and a seamless
ȴW2QFHFRPSOHWHGWKLVSX]]OHPHDVXUHVȋ[
ȋDQGSHUIHFWIRUIUDPLQJ

#81376 • $19.99
Order Now at:
MyScienceShop.com/BuzzPuzzle
Sales tax where applicable.
P37789

WWW. ASTRONOMY.COM 67
 ASK ASTRO Astronomy’s experts from around the globe answer your cosmic questions.

WHEN STARS COLLIDE happen when a star runs into the cen-
tral black hole in our galaxy. The star
won’t survive, of course, but it goes
out in a blaze of glory called a tidal
disruption event. Some of the star’s
material gets thrown away, but the rest
High-speed stellar collision
falls into the black hole and forms a
Stellar collision hot disk of gas before it is consumed.
Star/black hole collision
Alison Sills
Professor, Department of Physics &
Astronomy, McMaster University,
Hamilton, Ontario
Blue straggler star Stellar material

Accretion disk (hot gas) QI

SINCE SURFACE
ATMOSPHERIC
PRESSURE ON MARS IS
ROUGHLY EQUIVALENT
TO WHAT EXISTS WELL
Hydrogen gas
INTO THE STRATOSPHERE
ON EARTH, HOW WOULD
Stars rarely collide, A HELICOPTER BE ABLE

Stellar
but when they do, the
result depends on TO GENERATE SUFFICIENT LIFT TO GET
factors like mass and OFF THE GROUND?
speed. When two John A. Ferko

collisions
stars merge slowly,
Colorado Springs, Colorado
they can create a new,
brighter star called a
blue straggler. If two
stars traveling at a
AI Flying a helicopter on Mars, such as the Mars
Helicopter that will be traveling to the Red

QI
fast pace hit, they’ll EVERY TIME I READ ABOUT THE
likely leave behind Planet with the Mars 2020 mission, is a bit of a trade-off.
only hydrogen gas. ANDROMEDA GALAXY COLLIDING The air pressure at the martian surface is equivalent to
Stars that collide with
a black hole are
WITH THE MILKY WAY, SOMEONE POINTS the air pressure at about 100,000 feet (30,500 meters)
ultimately consumed. OUT HOW UNLIKELY IT IS FOR TWO on Earth, but the current height record for helicopters
ASTRONOMY: ROEN KELLY
STARS TO COLLIDE BECAUSE OF IT. BUT on Earth is roughly 40,000 feet (12,200 m). According
WHAT WOULD HAPPEN IF TWO STARS to staff at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), the
softball-sized, 4-pound (1.8 kilograms) Mars Helicopter
DID COLLIDE?
Jeremy Strzynski will compensate for the lower atmospheric density on
Aurora, Indiana Mars by using more power and rotating its blades at a
higher speed than would be required to lift the craft

AI It’s rare, but stars do collide in the densest parts

of our galaxy: near the center and in massive
globular star clusters. The outcome of the collision
depends on how fast the stars are moving relative to
each other, rather like a car accident. In star clusters,
the stars are moving relatively slowly, and so the “fender
bender” results in the two stars merging into one new,
more massive star that we call a blue straggler. We can
identify these stars fairly easily, since they are hotter
and brighter than the other stars in the cluster.
The center of the galaxy is more like the interstate,
and the stars are moving very quickly. A collision there
is much more destructive, and often the aftermath is The Mars Helicopter’s small size and fast rotor rotation will allow
it to fly on Mars. This photo shows the helicopter’s flight model,
just “star bits” (that is, mostly hydrogen gas) spread out as well as the base, crossbeam, and side posts that will protect
all over interstellar space. The most exciting collisions its delicate legs and attach it to the Mars 2020 rover. NASA/JPL-CALTECH

68 ASTRONOMY • MAY 2020

off the ground on Earth. It will spin its two counter-
rotating blades at nearly 3,000 revolutions per minute,
or about 10 times as fast as a helicopter on Earth, to
stay aloft.
The trade-off, JPL says, is that Mars’ gravity is about
40 percent the strength of Earth’s gravity — so the Mars
Helicopter will require less lift to stay airborne. Over
the course of 30 days, mission engineers plan to fly the
helicopter up to five times, aiming for incrementally
longer distances and hoping to reach a distance of a few Sirius A (left) and B,
hundred yards with a maximum flight time of about separation, but still much smaller than the separation shown in this artist’s
concept, are
90 seconds. Its first flight, however, aims to have the between Sirius A and B. AGB stars blow away a lot of separated by about
helicopter rise about 10 feet (3 m) straight up and hover their mass — perhaps 75 percent — in the form of a 25 times the Earth-
for about 30 seconds. dusty, slow-moving wind, and this can be partially Sun distance and
circle each other
Although the Mars Helicopter project is an exciting captured by the white dwarf. once every 50 years.
one that engineers expect to succeed, there is still a In order to explode as a supernova, the white dwarf Although it is possible
the white dwarf
chance that some aspect of this project won’t go as must increase its mass to close to 1.4 times the mass of Sirius B might gather
planned. But because the helicopter is simply a proof- the Sun, known as the Chandrasekhar limit. It seems enough material
of-concept test for future helicopters on Mars, even if unlikely that it will be able to do this unless the wind from its companion
to explode as a
this helicopter fails, it will not impact the overall Mars from the AGB star is even slower than expected, espe- supernova, it is
2020 mission. cially as the orbit of the two stars will widen as mass not likely. NASA, ESA,
Alison Klesman escapes from the system as a whole. Even if the white AND G. BACON (STSCI)

Senior Associate Editor dwarf were to capture this much mass, it may not neces-
sarily stick! The hydrogen-rich material from the giant
star can periodically ignite on the white dwarf’s surface,

QI WHEN SIRIUS A EXPANDS INTO A

RED GIANT, COULD WHITE DWARF
SIRIUS B GO SUPERNOVA BY PULLING
causing a more modest explosion, called a nova, which
would blow the material back into space and might even
reduce the mass of the white dwarf.
GAS FROM SIRIUS A’S OUTER LAYERS So, in summary, in about 500 million years Sirius A
AND PRODUCE HEAVY ELEMENTS VIA will expand dramatically and lose nearly three-quarters
of its mass in the form of a slow, dusty wind. A fraction
THE R-PROCESS?
John Holmes of this will be captured by the white dwarf, but in order
McLean, Virginia to explode as a supernova, it must first accrete enough
mass to get close to the Chandrasekhar limit, and, sec-

AI The answer is perhaps, but unlikely. The key

uncertainties are the speed at which mass is lost
from the giant Sirius A, whether the material that lands
ond, must avoid explosively igniting the accreted mate-
rial prematurely. Based on our current understanding,
neither of those two conditions looks likely.
on the white dwarf explodes on contact, and whether The final part of your question asks about r-process
enough mass can be collected by the white dwarf to get elements. These are elements that are built up by a series
close to the Chandrasekhar limit. of “rapid” neutron captures followed by radioactive
Sirius A and B are quite widely separated, by about decay. Examples of these are precious metals like gold SEND US YOUR
25 times the distance between Earth and the Sun. The and platinum. There are two probable sites in the uni-
larger Sirius A is about twice the mass of the Sun and verse where r-process elements are made: colliding
QUESTIONS
Send your
its white dwarf companion is about the same mass as neutron stars and core-collapse supernovae of massive
astronomy questions
the Sun. As stellar winds blow material off the surface stars. The supernova caused by the detonation of a via email to askastro@
of Sirius A, some mass can be gravitationally captured white dwarf is quite different. It consists of the explosive astronomy.com, or
by the white dwarf. ignition of carbon and oxygen, and there is no rich write to Ask Astro,
The effectiveness of this capture is strongly related source of neutrons to make r-process elements. So, the P.O. Box 1612,
to the wind speed. As a main sequence star, Sirius A elements produced in a white dwarf supernova (known Waukesha, WI 53187.
currently loses little mass, which escapes at high speeds, as a type Ia supernova) are mostly the products of oxygen Be sure to tell us
your full name and
so Sirius B cannot easily capture it. However, when and carbon fusion, like silicon, sulfur, iron, and nickel. where you live.
Sirius A draws toward the end of its life, it will swell to Rob Jeffries Unfortunately, we
become an asymptotic giant branch (AGB) star. These Professor of Astrophysics and Head of Physics & Astrophysics, cannot answer all
huge red giants have radii as big as the Earth-Sun Keele University, Staffordshire, U.K. questions submitted.

WWW. ASTRONOMY.COM 69
 READER GALLERY

Cosmic portraits

1. NOT THE MILKY WAY

The gegenschein (German for
“counterglow”) is a faint, diffuse
patch of light sometimes seen
directly opposite the Sun. This view
is from Yaha Pass, some 14,800 feet
(4,500 meters) above sea level. The
mountains include Mount Gongga,
the highest peak in Sichuan
Province, China. Yellow and green
airglow is also visible in the image.
• Jeff Dai

2. NOT IDENTICAL TWINS

Open clusters M46 (left) and M47
lie in the constellation Puppis the
Stern. M47 is the brighter of the two,
but M46 offers a bonus — planetary
nebula NGC 2438 lies in the same
line of sight. The cluster’s stars are
5,400 light-years away, while NGC
2438 is a bit less than 3,000 light-
years distant. • Dean Salman
2

70 ASTRONOMY • MAY 2020

 3. KNIGHT SKY
The star trails in this image
were made by combining
106 exposures of 25 seconds
each. They circle above the
Castle of Noudar, a medieval
castle in Barrancos, Portugal.
The smallest trail, that of
Polaris, is to the upper right.
• Sérgio Conceição

4. FERRERO 6
This faint planetary nebula in
Cassiopeia wasn’t identified
until French amateur
astronomer Laurent Ferrero
found it in 2013. Its thin,
bright outer rim indicates
it is strongly interacting with
the interstellar medium.
• Peter Goodhew

3
5. DARK HORSE
The Seahorse Nebula
(Barnard 150) is a cloud
of dust and cold gas in the
constellation Cepheus the
King. We see it only because
of the dense star field behind
it. B150 stretches across 1°
in apparent length and lies
some 1,200 light-years away.
• Jeffrey Weiss

6. CHECKING IT TWICE
Sharpless 2–115 is an emission
nebula in Cygnus, here
imaged in the Hubble palette.
Abell 71 (Sh 2–116), the small
round object at lower right,
is an emission nebula.
• Chuck Ayoub

4 5

SEND YOUR IMAGES TO:

Astronomy Reader Gallery,
P.O. Box 1612, Waukesha,
WI 53187. Please include
the date and location of the
image and complete photo
data: telescope, camera,
filters, and exposures.
Submit images by email to
6 readergallery@
astronomy.com.

WWW. ASTRONOMY.COM 71
 READER GALLERY

7. JUST PASSING BY
Mars (the bright spot to the
left) passed through the
region of the Lagoon Nebula
(M8) and the Trifid Nebula
(M20), both of which are in
the constellation Sagittarius
the Archer, on February 21,
2020. • Damian Peach

8. CHILLED TO THE BONE

The Full Moon of December 11,
2019, shines through the
Whale Bone Arch in Barrow,
Alaska. Barrow is the
northernmost city in the
U.S. • Mark Morris

9. DON’T GET PINCHED

The Lobster Claw Nebula
(Sharpless 2–157) is an
emission nebula in the
constellation Cassiopeia the
Queen. The photographer
captured 668 two-minute
exposures through
Hydrogen-alpha and
Oxygen-III filters to produce
this image. The small open
cluster near the top is NGC
7510. • Douglas J. Struble

72 ASTRONOMY • MAY 2020

 9

WWW. ASTRONOMY.COM 73
 BREAKTHROUGH

DIVING DEEP INTO THE MILKY WAY’S HEART

On the next clear summer evening, gaze through binoculars toward the center of our galaxy. Under a dark sky, you’ll see
countless stars interspersed with dark dust lanes. But what would the scene look like without the obscuring dust? The
answer appears above. Astronomers at the European Southern Observatory (ESO) lifted the veil by viewing the Milky Way
at near-infrared wavelengths, which penetrate all but the thickest dust clouds. The researchers captured more than 3 million
stars in their survey of the galactic nucleus using the HAWK-I instrument on ESO’s Very Large Telescope. The image
achieves a resolution of 0.2 arcsecond, equivalent to seeing a quarter from 16 miles (25 kilometers) away! ESO/NOGUERAS-LARA ET AL.

74 ASTRONOMY • MAY 2020

B&H Photo – 800.947.9970 – bhphotovideo.com Astronomics – 800.422.7876 – astronomics.com Adorama – 800.223.2500 – adorama.com
High Point Scientific – 800.266.9590 – highpointscientific.com OPT Telescopes – 800.483.6287 – optcorp.com Focus Camera – 800.221.0828 – focuscamera.com
Optics Planet – 800.504.5897 – opticsplanet.com Woodland Hills – 888.427.8766 – telescopes.net Agena AstroProducts – 562.215.4473 – agenaastro.com
SOUTHERN SKY BY MARTIN GEORGE

July 2020
Jupiter and Saturn at their best
The solar system’s two nights in western Capricornus horizon. The brilliant planet share a border, but they do
largest planets make a before crossing into Sagittarius. rises before twilight starts and not. Tucked between the two
spectacular pair this month. Glowing at magnitude 0.1 at climbs high in the northeast as is the tiny constellation
Jupiter and Saturn appear low opposition, it pales in compari- the sky brightens. Venus shines Circinus the Compasses.
in the east soon after darkness son with Jupiter but easily out- at magnitude –4.7, its brightest Don’t confuse Circinus with
falls in early July. And not only shines the background stars in for this morning apparition, another constellation having a
do they climb higher hour by these constellations. against the backdrop of Taurus. similar common name: Pyxis
hour, they also rise earlier as Few sights can match the It spends the first two weeks of the Compass. The two repre-
the month progresses. beauty of Saturn through a July passing in front of the sent entirely different instru-
Jupiter shines at magnitude telescope. As with Jupiter, plan V-shaped Hyades star cluster. ments. The compass Circinus
–2.7 and stands out more than to wait until the ringed world It’s worth getting up early refers to is the type we all used
its neighbor. The giant planet climbs high in the sky. The to view Venus’ lovely crescent in school to draw circles. Pyxis,
reaches opposition and peak planet spans 18" while the stun- through a telescope. On July 1, on the other hand, represents a
visibility July 14, when it rises at ning ring system measures 42" the inner planet shows a mariner’s compass that seafar-
sunset and climbs highest in the across and tips 22° to our line 43"-diameter disk that is just ers use to tell directions.
north around midnight local of sight. This large tilt affords a 19 percent illuminated. By Circinus covers an area of
time. You can find it among the nice view of the dark Cassini month’s end, the world appears 93.35 square degrees, making it
background stars of eastern Division that separates the 28" across and 42 percent lit. the fourth-smallest constella-
Sagittarius, though truth be outer A ring from the brighter The second half of July also tion. (With an area of 68.45
told, it’s easier to locate the con- B ring. Saturn’s brightest features a brief appearance by square degrees, Crux the Cross
stellation using the planet as a moons, led by 8th-magnitude Mercury. For about a week on is the tiniest.)
guide than vice versa. Titan, are also a treat. either side of its July 22 greatest French astronomer Nicolas
July is the best time this By late evening, a third western elongation, the small Louis de Lacaille introduced
year to observe Jupiter through bright planet graces the sky. planet lies low in the east- Circinus in the 1750s. On his
a telescope. At opposition, its Mars rises in the east before northeast during morning twi- star chart, he clearly marked
disk spans 48" across the equa- midnight local time and climbs light. At its peak on the 22nd, the constellation as le Compas
tor and 45" through the poles, highest in the north shortly the magnitude 0.2 world lies and described the device as the
a difference that’s surprisingly before twilight starts to paint 6° high 45 minutes before one used in geometry class-
easy to see. Look for an alter- the sky. The Red Planet begins sunrise. A telescope reveals rooms. In the wonderful vol-
nating series of bright zones and ends July among the back- Mercury’s 8"-diameter disk ume Histoire de l’Académie
and darker belts that run paral- ground stars of Pisces the Fish, and 38-percent-lit phase. royale des sciences, Lacaille
lel to the giant planet’s equator, but it spends the middle of the described it as le Compas du
as well as fine details that show month in Cetus the Whale. The starry sky Géomètre, not to be confused
up during moments of good Mars continues to brighten Our view to the south early on with La Boussole ou le Compas
seeing. Also watch for Jupiter’s rapidly. As July begins, it shines these winter evenings features de mer, which was the mariner’s
four bright Galilean moons as at magnitude –0.5; it appears the spectacular Southern compass we know as Pyxis.
they dance around the planet. 75 percent brighter (magnitude Cross and two bright stars Circinus holds a few objects
The best views come when the –1.1) by month’s end. Mars’ nearby: Alpha (α) and Beta (β) worth observing through a tele-
planet lies high in the sky and telescopic appearance improves Centauri. Just southeast of scope, though most of them are
its light passes through less of noticeably as well. Its disk Alpha Cen, the night sky’s best viewed with large aper-
Earth’s atmosphere. swells from 11.5" to 14.5" third-brightest star, resides tures. One of the nicest subjects
Saturn follows Jupiter across across, big enough to show the distinctive constellation for small instruments is the
the sky, reaching opposition just some dusky surface markings. Triangulum Australe the double star Alpha Circini. Its
six days after its companion, As Jupiter and Saturn dip Southern Triangle. It seems at two stars glow at magnitudes
on July 20. The ringed planet low in the west before dawn, first glance that Triangulum 3.2 and 8.6 and are easy to split
spends the month’s first few Venus pokes above the eastern Australe and Centaurus must thanks to their 15" separation.
STAR DOME
S

LMC NGC 2
070

SMC
VO H Y DRU S
CA LA
HOW TO USE THIS MAP C 2 I NA
R NG NS MENSA
C 10 4
This map portrays the sky as seen 516 NG
near 30° south latitude. Located

SW
inside the border are the cardinal S
O C TA N
SCP
directions and their intermediate
points. To find stars, hold the map
overhead and orient it so one of
the labels matches the direction

V
EL
C HA M
you’re facing. The stars above

A
PY
AELE
ON
the map’s horizon now match O
X
IS 3 AV P
what’s in the sky. NG372
C AU S T R A L E
T R IA N G U LU M
CR _
The all-sky map shows NG

AN
UX C4
7 55
how the sky looks at:
T
b
LI

M
U
A
` a
9 P.M. July 1

PI
7 9
63

O
`
8 P.M. July 15
5 _
NG 139 C
CIRCINUS NG
7 P.M. July 31
C
Alphar

A MA

CE
Planets are shown AR NOR

NT
HYDR

NG
at midmonth

AU
d

C 5
R

NG231
1 28
US
A

S
C
6

PIU
US P

R
C O RV U S

LU
MAP SYMBOLS

CO
M8 3

M6
S E X TA N S

S
Antares
C R AT E R
W

Open cluster

_
M4
Globular cluster
Diffuse nebula
M104

Spi
ca

Planetary nebula
_

Galaxy
n (ecliptic) LIBRA
V

u
Path of the S
IR
G

H
O

C
STAR M5
IU
MAGNITUDES PH
O
M6
M6

Sirius
NS
5

De

SERPE
LE

ne

0.0 3.0 T
CAPU
`
O

bo

Arc
tur
la

1.0 4.0 us
M
2.0 5.0 64 _

C NG
BE OM
P
R A
STAR COLORS EN
IC
A star’s color depends ES C O R O NA
N

on its surface temperature. BO ÖTE BOREALIS

S
W

•• The hottest stars shine blue

Slightly cooler stars appear white CA
M1 3

• Intermediate stars (like the Sun) glow yellow VE NES

NA CUL
E
• Lower-temperature stars appear orange TI
CI HER

• The coolest stars glow red

M51

• Fainter stars can’t excite our eyes’ color

receptors, so they appear white unless you
use optical aid to gather more light

N
BEGINNERS: WATCH A VIDEO ABOUT HOW TO READ A STAR CHART AT
www.Astronomy.com/starchart.
 JULY 2020
SUN. MON. TUES. WED. THURS. FRI. SAT.

1 2 3 4
A
AN C
TU

SE
S
U 5 6 7 8 9 10 11
R
G

ILLUSTRATIONS BY ASTRONOMY: ROEN KELLY

12 13 14 15 16 17 18
S
U
D

UM
IN

19 20 21 22 23 24 25
I
OP C
OS R

26 27 28 29 30 31
IC
NA L I S

Note: Moon phases in the calendar vary in size due to the distance
RO RA
CO ST

US

from Earth and are shown at 0h Universal Time.

S

AU
E

RN
EL

RIU
T

CO
A

PRI
ITT

CALENDAR OF EVENTS
n
S a tu r

CA
S AG

1 Mercury is in inferior conjunction, 3h UT

M7

2 Asteroid Herculina is at opposition, 14h UT

4
Jupiter
M8

Earth is at aphelion (152.1 million kilometers from the Sun), 12h UT

E

5
M2 2

Full Moon occurs at 4h44m UT; penumbral lunar eclipse

UM
M20

Asteroid Vesta is in conjunction with the Sun, 6h UT

M17

SCUT

The Moon passes 1.9° south of Jupiter, 22h UT

ILA
M11
M16

6 The Moon passes 2° south of Saturn, 9h UT

AQU

10 The Moon passes 4° south of Neptune, 7h UT

S
INU

S
Venus is at greatest brilliancy (magnitude –4.7), 8h UT
U
UD NS

H 11 The Moon passes 2° south of Mars, 20h UT

PH
ir
_
CA RPE

Alta
A

DEL

12 Venus passes 1.0° north of Aldebaran, 7h UT

SE

A
TT

The Moon is at apogee (404,199 kilometers from Earth), 19h27m UT

GI

Last Quarter Moon occurs at 23h29m UT

SA

13 Dwarf planet Ceres is stationary, 2h UT

Asteroid Pallas is at opposition, 2h UT
14
LA

Jupiter is at opposition, 8h UT
U
EC

The Moon passes 4° south of Uranus, 12h UT

LP

15
U

Pluto is at opposition, 19h UT

V

17
E

RA
The Moon passes 3° north of Venus, 7h UT
N

LY
19 The Moon passes 4° north of Mercury, 4h UT
_
20 New Moon occurs at 17h33m UT
ga
ES Ve Saturn is at opposition, 22h UT
22 Mercury is at greatest western elongation (20°), 15h UT
25 The Moon is at perigee (368,361 kilometers from Earth), 5h02m UT
27 First Quarter Moon occurs at 12h33m UT
29 Southern Delta Aquariid meteor shower peaks