Planetary Exploration

Viking Lander on Mars 1976

We humans have come a long way, evolving into a technologically advanced species. Over the past 60 years we have mastered the ability to send robotic spacecraft throughout the Solar System, getting a close up look at all of the worlds, even landing on some of them. As a young person in Los Angeles in the 1970s, I would regularly ride my bicycle to the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) and pick up the latest pictures from the Solar System, from the first landing on Mars in 1976, throughout the entire Voyager missions and fly-bys in the late 70s through the end of the 80s. I am personally moved to watch and learn as we (NASA, ESA, other space agencies) push the frontier and travel farther and wider in our own home solar system. 

I recently recorded a podcast for the Translunar series talking about Planetary Exploration. You can listen here. And for those of you in and around Munich, Germany, I will be delivering talks in English and in German at the Volkssternwarte München on the same topic in November 2024. 

NASA and the Planetary Society have amazing stories, reports and photos from these missions. If you like learning about our Solar System, you will be happy to find endless resources on their websites. 

Image courtesy of NASA. 

Spooky Astronomy

The Face on Mars (1976)

It's that time of year when pumpkins begin appearing everywhere and darkness arrives earlier in the evening. We humans generally enjoy being spooked a bit, to be scared of things we do not fully understand or cannot fully explain. And looking up into the night sky, imaginations can run wild.  In 1976 the Viking landers took this iconic picture of the Martian landscape and many people saw a face in the picture. Since then, much better resolution images have come from Mars landers and orbiters and we now know that this is an optical illusion, a unique view that was fortuitous timing and also due to the fairly rudimentary camera that were on that early Mars mission. This is but one of many things people see in the sky, including UFOs and aliens, asteroids and comets, that strike fear into those seeing these objects. 

Several years ago I prepared a Halloween lecture called Spooky Astronomy that I have presented at the Munich Public Observatory (Volkssternwarte München). In this lecture, I share many more such examples of optical illusions, of real and less-real things we see in the sky, and talk about the science behind them. I have updated the talk and will present it again this week, in costume. It's fun, it's playful, it's a bit serious too, and bottom line, it's about learning. I have created a podcast version of this for the Observatory's podcast series, Translunar. You can hear it here. 

Image courtesy of NASA. 

Space Weather

Between the Earth and the Sun are 93 Million Miles (150 Million Kilometers) of empty space. Or is it really empty? Actually, there is a lot going on in that vast expanse and we call that Space Weather. We live, astronomically speaking, quite close to a fairly ordinary star and thank goodness, because a 4 billion year old star that rarely changes its output has allowed life to emerge and thrive on Earth. But the Sun still has its moments and causes surprisingly regular phenomenon on Earth, much more than just warming the atmosphere.

I have recorded a podcast, in which I explain in detail what kind of space weather the Sun creates for us, and how you can learn more about these phenomena, including sunspots, northern lights, and solar flares. 

The website Spaceweather.com is an excellent resource for tracking the outbursts and phenomenon that are driven by the cycles and episodes of our own home star.

Image credit: SDO/HMI

Perseid Meteor Shower 2024

The Perseids in 2024 promise a favorable viewing on the nights of August 11th and 12th. This meteor shower is quite reliable in providing a dazzling display of beautiful meteors, but you need to stay up late if you want the full effect. And you will want to find a dark location with little to no ambient light or city lights, if possible. Finally, you will want to dress well, because even on a warm day the evening can cool down quickly and make viewing unpleasant. 

I have just published a podcast that outlines in detail the origin of the Perseids, the best way to view them, and other tips about this annual meteor shower. It is just a little over 20 minutes long and I think you will enjoy it. You can read more about the Perseids in this excellent article from Sky and Telescope. There are many online resources for more information, but you don't need to overcomplicate viewing of the meteor shower. The most important factors are a dark location, comfortable clothing, a place to sit or lie, a few good friends, and patience. You will see them, I can assure you. 

Give a listen to my Translunar Podcast here for more tips and inspiration. Wishing you clear skies and happy viewing. 

Image courtesy Sky & Telescope. 

Tour the Summer Sky

You are invited to dress reasonably warm, go outside in the evening, and listen to this podcast on your earbuds or headphones. I will guide you on a tour of the night sky where you will discover many constellations, from scorpions to swans. Summer is not only the time of the summer triangle, it also has a very diverse collection of different constellations to offer and invites with its mild nighttime temperatures to stargaze until dawn!

"Tour the Summer Sky with Paul" from the Translunar Podcast series. 

Read more: this writeup from the Celestron Telescope Company is an excellent summary of what you can see in the summer night sky. 

Image courtesy of Panos Zoulakis / Wikimedia Commons

The Marvels of Polaris, the North Star

Polaris, our North Star, is one of the most well-known stars in the night sky. But why is it so well known? What are its special characteristics that make it so special? It is far from being the brightest star in the night sky (it’s the 48th brightest), yet it has an amazing reputation. I've recorded a podcast to talk about the special place that Polaris inhabits right now, and how this will change over the very long-term. 

"Guiding Light: The Marvels of Polaris, the North Star" on the Translunar Podcast. 

Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

Observing Tips for the Moon

Our lovely Moon is a steadfast companion, a glowing orb that faithfully accompanies us in our journey around the Sun every year. The Moon presents us many facets in its 29-day journey around the Earth and is a wonderful object to look at with visual aid such as binoculars or a telescope. I recorded a podcast to share some insights about our Moon and some tips how you can really savor the view. The podcast is part of the Translunar series recorded for the Bavarian Public Observatory nearby where I live in Munich, Germany. 

"Observing Tips for the Moon" on the Translunar Podcast.

Image courtesy of NASA 

Seeing the International Space Station (ISS)

Looking up into the night sky, we can see many satellites gently gliding across the heavens on any clear night. Some are faint, others brighter. But nothing rivals the International Space Station when it makes a pass overhead. The largest artificial satellite in orbit around the Earth, the ISS circles the globe every 90 minutes and is usually visible for 1-2 weeks at at time in any given location. I recorded this podcast to provide some guidance on the how, why and where of the ISS.

"Seeing the ISS" on the Translunar Podcast. 

Image courtesy NASA. 

A Podcast on Astronomy: Translunar

Please try out a very fine astronomy podcast called Translunar (Apple, Spotify). It is a production of the Munich Public Observatory (Volkssternwarte München, where I am a member) and there are bi-weekly episodes in English and German now available. My latest podcast features a tour of the late winter / early spring night sky and you can join for the tour by simply putting on your earbuds and walking outside to take a tour with me. We tour the "Winter Hexagon," a very brilliant part of the late winter / early spring night sky. 

Total Solar Eclipses and the Great American Eclipse on April 8, 2024

A total solar eclipse is one of the most amazing visual and sensory experiences you can find in nature, a combination of astronomical alignments and local phenomena that combine to dazzle us humans when we witness this spectacle. I caught the 'solar eclipse bug' decades ago and have traveled far and wide over the past years to be in the shadow of the moon many times. I find it to be a profoundly moving experience, and I am heading to the next one in April 2024 that will be visible across a large swath of North America. During a total solar eclipse, there are three broad categories of the experience. 

In no particular order: 

The Heavens Above: an eclipse happens when the moon, sun and earth are perfectly aligned and the penumbral (dark) shadow of the moon traverses the earth's surface. During the partial phases, a little more than an hour long, the sky dims very gradually, but in the last 10 minutes before totality the change in the sky is dramatic, going from daytime blue to sunset blue. Planets are suddenly visible and a few bright stars as well. And then, when the moon fully covers the sun's disk, the image in the sky is stunning. For a few brief minutes you can view the eclipse without eye protection and see the outer atmosphere of the sun, the solar corona. If you have a telescope or binoculars, you can see the solar prominences, beautiful red flares that flow out from the solar surface. The images here were taken by amateur astronomers near my viewing site in Australia. 

The Earth Below: as the partial phases progress, the nature of the light changes as the light source, the sun, changes from a round ball to a crescent to an ever-diminishing point of light. The shadows on the ground develop sharp edges and the light of the sun filtering through trees takes on a crescent shape. The air cools noticeably, and the wildlife starts to react. I have been in many an eclipse where flocks of birds set flight just before or after totality. The rapid cooling of the air often leads to a light breeze. And the horizon become brighter than the sky above you as the shadow of the moon envelops you and everything around you. 

The Humans Around You: I enjoy going to eclipses where there are other people around me. Sometimes I lead a group, or other times I take part in a tour. Either way, I find it remarkable how the eclipse affects us as human beings, whether someone has seen many eclipses or is witnessing this for the first time. The buildup is so gradual and slow that you could barely notice unless you have a telescope with a solar filter (which I always have with me). But as the final minutes tick down to totality, there is a noticeable buzz in the people around you and at the last moment as the diamond ring effect takes place, there is an outcry from those around you ... a kind of group exhale combined with a primal scream ... because this incredible visual image appears magically in the sky. I enjoy the energy of this shared experience. 

There are so many aspects of eclipses to learn about, I cannot cover all of this in one blog post. So here are some helpful links for the curious reader.  

Third party posts: 

NASA Eclipse Website with focus on April 2024.

Great American Eclipse website with lots of resources and maps for April 2024. 

My own posts: 

Solar Eclipses and the Saros Cycle - a previous blog post focused on the celestial dynamics that underlie eclipses. 

2006 Eclipse in Turkey - a short blog post about my experience in Turkey in 2006.

2023 Eclipse in Australia - a short blog post about my experience in Australia in 2023.

Images courtesy of Aditya Madhavan.