May/June 2010
Volume 6. Number 4. Issue 45
COVER STORY
Hanging in the Balance
Will the orbits of the planets ever go haywire? Mr. Newton, meet chaos theory.
By Greg Laughlin
NEWS & FEATURES
News Notes
- 50 Years of Aussie-US Space Relations
- The First Asteroid Collision?
- Faces of Pluto
and more...
Cosmic Relief
The Dream is Coming Back
By David Grinspoon
Discoveries
Measuring The Earth
By David Ellyard
Spotlight On ... The Small Magellanic Cloud
New infrared images from the Spitzer Space Telescope are helping us better study the unique properties of our near galactic neighbour.
By Greg Bryant
Shedding Light on Dark Stars
Bizarre stars powered by dark matter may have been the first to form after the Big Bang.
By Ker Than
Next Gen Radio Astronomy
Western Australia will soon be host to an incredible new radio telescope array.
By Greg Bryant
PRODUCTS & REVIEWS
New Product Spotlight
- Renaissance Genius (Sterling Publishing)
- iOptron's Mini Tower Pro
- Orion's Monster Dobsonians
AS&T Test Report
Explore Scientific's 14-mm 100-degree Eyepiece
A newcomer to the market quickly delivers with a very wide-field-of-view eyepiece.
By Dennis di Cicco
OBSERVING & EXPLORING
Binocular Highlight
Messier 4
By Les Dalrymple
Tonight's Sky
Field Of Dreams
By Greg Bryant
Sun, Moon, and Planets
Conjunctions and a Lunar Eclipse
By Greg Bryant
Celestial Calendar
An Evening Partial Lunar Eclipse
By Greg Bryant
Celestial Calendar
Two Asteroid Occultations
By Steve Kerr
Celestial Calendar
A Challenging Comet McNaught
By David Seargent
Exploring the Moon
Lessons in Basinology
By Charles A. Wood
Going Deep
Probing NGC 5746
By Ken Hewitt-White
Deep Sky Delights
Winter's Hickson Galaxy Groups
By Les Dalrymple
Double Star Notes
Beneath the Cross
By Ross Gould
GETTING STARTED IN ASTRONOMY
Getting Started Is a Piece of Cake
There has never been an easier time to try your hand at photographing the heavens.
By Dennis di Cicco
Point & Shoot the Sky
Just because you don't own a high-end camera doesn't mean you can't take great astrophotos.
By Sean Walker
Capturing the Solar System
Recording impressive portraits of the Sun, Moon, and planets is surprisingly simple.
By Sean Walker
Deep-Sky Astrophotography Primer
On clear nights, backyard observers turn out images of the cosmos that let our imaginations soar. Here's what it takes to join them.
By Dennis di Cicco
ACTIVITIES & PEOPLE
Gallery
Telescope Workshop
Apartment ATMing
By Gary Seronik
ALSO IN THIS ISSUE
Spectrum
Re-inventing NASA
By Greg Bryant
Observatory & Telescope Competition
Subscribe and be eligible to enter this incredible competition!
Manufacturer & Dealer Directory
Index to Advertisers
Focal Point
Reasons for not Choosing Astronomy
By Mark Stephenson