Here’s what you’ll find in the April 2020 issue of Australian Sky & Telescope magazine — on sale now at your local newsagent, or you can subscribe to the print or digital edition.

FEATURES:

  • Happy birthday Hubble! — The world’s most famous telescope will have racked up three decades of continuous service in orbit this April. We showcase some of its most memorable images.
  • Constellation close-up: Argo Navis — This ancient southern stellar grouping was split up to produce some of every stargazer’s favourite constellations.
  • Binary worlds — The discovery of a wide variety of binary objects in the Solar System
    not only surprised astronomers but is now also helping us understand the birth of planetary systems.
  • Captain Cook’s astronomy — The celebrated explorer was also a remarkably proficient and prolific astronomer.
  • Kepler’s dream, today’s reality — The great astronomer Johannes Kepler played a central role in the eventual evolution of spaceflight.
  • Eclipse imaging — Learn this innovative technique to pull out stunning detail in the solar corona.
  • Astrophotography — We show you how to capture amazing photos of deep sky objects with foreground landscapes in a single exposure.

OBSERVING & EXPLORING:

  • Binocular highlight — Collinder 121 — is it one star cluster or two?
  • Under the stars — Remembering the Great Comet of 1970.
  • Planets — The planetary action is mostly in the morning this month.
  • Meteors — How moonlight affects meteor shower observing.
  • Comets — How the Queensland town called ‘Comet’ got its name.
  • Variable stars — It’s red alert for Betelgeuse.
  • The Moon — Will lunar helium one day power the Earth?
  • Deep sky — Dive into the Coma galaxy cluster.
  • Celestial calendar — It’s Venus versus the Pleiades.

REGULAR FEATURES:

  • Test report — We check out Sky-Watcher’s Esprit 150-mm APO refractor.
  • Astronomer’s workbench — How to build a fibreglass telescope.
  • Night life — Events and activities for astronomy enthusiasts

…and much more.

Click here to subscribe to the print edition, or here to subscribe to the digital edition.