Posts by 

Larry Sessions

Top 10 space objects to see during the day

Love astronomy, but don't like to stay up late? Here are the top 10 space objects you can see - under the right conditions - during the day.

Massive ruby red Antares is the Scorpion’s Heart

Red Antares, Heart of the Scorpion in the constellation Scorpius, is a mighty star, a red supergiant in the last stages of its life span.

It’s summer. What’s noon to you? Midday? High noon?

What do you mean by noon? Do you define it by your clock or wristwatch? Or the gnawing in your stomach? Here's how astronomers think about noontime.

Spica, the bright beacon of Virgo, is 2 stars

Spica is a very close, scorching-hot pair of stars, whirling around one another. One of them may go supernova someday. It's the brightest star in Virgo.

Meet Regulus, the Lion’s Heart

The bright star Regulus in Leo the Lion is prominent in the evening sky in May. It looks like a single point of light, but is really four stars.

Coma Berenices: How Leo the Lion lost his tail

Coma Berenices is the constellation of Queen Berenice's Hair. It used to be the tail of Leo the Lion before it became its own constellation.
Brightest Stars

Alpha Centauri, the star system closest to our sun

Our closest stellar neighbors are the 3 stars that are the Alpha Centauri system. They lie just over 4 light-years away (25 trillion miles or 38 trillion km).

The Coma Berenices galaxy cluster, best in April and May

Myriads of galaxies, visible only to those with telescopes, shine among the stars of the constellation Coma Berenices. This is the distant Coma Berenices galaxy cluster.

Acrux is the brightest star in the Southern Cross

You have to go far south on Earth's globe to see the Southern Cross constellation. Bluish Acrux, aka Alpha Crucis, is its brightest star.

Notice the colors of the stars

Winter is the perfect time for noticing the colors of the stars. Start with Capella, then move on to Taurus and Orion. Check out some colorful stars tonight!