My favourite deep space image is that of the M42 Nebula in Orion. Purely for aesthetic reasons, as this cloud of gas where new stars are being born, has formed itself into the shape of a horses head! M42 is probably one of the most photographed regions of space, not only because of the Horses Head, but the whole cloud of stellar gas is illuminated in beautiful red and purple colours.

One good thing about winter approaching in the UK, is that Orion becomes dominant in the night sky. Finding it is easy – you don’t need to know where it is! Just gaze up on a clear night and look for 3 bright stars slanted in a row. There aren’t any other stars in the sky that resemble this feature.

The three stars are the belt of Orion the Hunter. Framing the belt are two bright stars above; Betelgeuse and Bellatrix, while below the belt are another two bright stars; Saiph and Rigel. Take a look at the pictures above and below. You will have seen this shape in the sky before, now you know that  it’s Orion. 

Copy of an email doing the rounds:

” This is the sunset at the North Pole with the moon at its closest point last week……a scene you will probably never get to see in person, so take a moment and enjoy God at work at the North Pole.

And, you also see the sun below the moon,an amazing photo and not one easily duplicated. You may want to pass it on to others so they can enjoy it. The Chinese have a saying that goes something like this: ‘When someone shares with you something of value, you have an obligation to share it with others!’  I just did. Your turn.”

I have been impressing a new girlfriend with my knowledge of the night sky. “Why is the Sky Blue?” she asked. Halfway through my explanation Margaret stopped me; “You’re making it up!” rang her accusation. Caught red-handed, and red faced I confessed, but promised to find out;

Blue Skies
Light from the Sun contains all the colours of the rainbow. However to reach us on earth it has to go through our atmosphere. The shorter blue wavelengths of light are the perfect size to interact with the main components of air – oxygen and nitrogen.

Just look up at the night sky and you will see 3,000 stars – except you can’t can you?  You don’t need a telescope or binoculars just your naked eyes, but you still can’t see 3,000 stars can you?

Unfortunately that’s because of one of the lesser known recent pollutants on this planet; Light Pollution.

If you are unlucky enough to live in a city, you probably can’t see many stars at all. Five of the twelve main constellations have become entirely invisible to you, and the remaining seven have stars ‘missing’ – too dim to see through the orange light smog.

To understand this, have a look at the diagram below, the orange circles are exactly the same size. If you don’t believe me get a ruler and measure them! This is the Ebbinghaus Illusion.

When large blue circles surround the orange circle it appears smaller, and when small blue circles are surrounding it the orange circle seems bigger. The orange circle remains exactly the same size but it looks bigger and smaller depending upon its relationship to nearby objects.

I am a keen sky-watcher but sometimes I just have to gaze in awe at the moon – it looks absolutely massive!  This usually happens when it is low on the horizon. Obviously the moon hasn’t suddenly changed size, it’s still 3,476km in diameter. So perhaps it has moved nearer to Earth?

The moon’s orbit around Earth is elliptical and at it’s closest point (the perigee) it’s 363,104km away. At the moons furthest point (the apogee) it’s 405,696km away – a difference of 42,592km distance. Not surprisingly this does lead to a difference in observable apparent size.

Yesterday the Space Shuttle Atlantis successfully took off on a mission to repair the Hubble telescope, in orbit 380 miles above Earth. This is the fifth repair and upgrade mission NASA has undertaken since Hubble’s launch in 1990.

Hubble has cost £7 billion so far and NASA hopes that this final mission will enable it to be fully operational for another 5 years when a replacement should be in orbit.

The Hubble telescope has not only expanded our knowledge of the universe, it has produced some of the most beautiful and awe inspiring images ever witnessed by mankind.

This applies to anyone living in the Northern Hemisphere. You can easily find the North Star by using the Plough constellation (or ‘Big Dipper’ as it’s sometimes called) as a guide.

The Plough is one of the easiest constellations to see in the night sky. You will have seen it before, but here is a reminder of its shape:

Look at the two stars on the bottom right hand side. They are known as the ‘Pointer Stars’.  Look above the Pointer Stars at the angle and direction they are pointing to.