Category: Fundamentals

Here’s something most people never think too deeply about: the sky doesn’t go from “day” to “night” with just a single twilight in between. It eases into darkness — slowly, in stages, like a dimmer switch being turned down over the course of an hour or more. In fact, we’ve recognized three different types of…

Learning the night sky doesn’t have to feel overwhelming. The key is breaking it into chunks. Learn a few foundational concepts that, once they click, start making everything else make sense. The ecliptic is one of those concepts. And once you get it, you’ll wonder how you ever tried to navigate the sky without it.…

If you’ve done some stargazing you probably know the feeling. You’re out in the backyard, it’s dark, it’s quiet, and you’ve just spotted a target overhead. So you tilt your head back. Then a little further back. Then further still, until you’re basically staring straight up at the sky with your mouth hanging open. Three…

As you begin your astronomical adventure, there are a number of terms and phrases you’ll frequently hear – and the words “transparency” and “seeing” are just two of them. Both transparency and seeing refer to the condition of the atmosphere, which, in turn, affect the quality of the image through your telescope. The two terms…

Astronomy has a lot of technical terms you need to learn. Of course, you can always simply step outside on a clear night and look up at the stars, but it always helps to have a deeper understanding of your hobby. Understanding the more technical aspects won’t detract from your enjoyment of the night sky,…