Welcome to Astronotes
Hello, I’m Colin, welcoming you to Astronotes, the Planetarium’s official blog. Here you will find the latest news and views from the fascinating worlds of astronomy and space exploration. We hope you will come here to learn what is hot and exciting, profound or even weird from worlds beyond ours . So that's the introduction out of the way, now on with the Universe!
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Stars Archive
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M55: A Glorious Globular!
Posted on May 9, 2012 | 1 CommentA globular cluster is made of hundreds of thousands or even millions of stars packed together in a pretty compact ball.The stars in globular clusters are old and there’s never... -
The Other Sirius Mystery: Red or White
Posted on April 27, 2012 | No CommentsToday Sirius, the brightest star in the night sky is an unmistakable blue-white in colour although it does twinkle a lot and can appear to change colour. However no one... -
The Largest Stars in the Universe
Posted on March 14, 2012 | No CommentsHow big is the largest known star? Compared to planets, stars will always be the overall group winners in terms of superior size. When you look at the night sky... -
6 Theories about the Star of Bethlehem
Posted on November 10, 2011 | 4 CommentsWhat was the Star of Bethlehem? Recorded only in the Gospel of Matthew, this mysterious celestial object is said to have heralded the Nativity. For millennia stargazers have wondered what... -
What are the stars?
Posted on October 14, 2011 | No CommentsA clear night sky is a thing of beauty and wonder. Thousands of scattered stars twinkle in the darkness. What are the stars? How do they live and die? Could... -
Looking Up from the South: The Amazing European Southern Observatory
Posted on September 29, 2011 | No CommentsThe European Southern Observatory (ESO) is an intergovernmental research organisation for astronomy which is supported by fifteen countries. Established in 1962 it operates some of the most technologically advanced telescopes... -
Will Betelgeuse bring doom in 2012?
Posted on January 27, 2011 | No CommentsThe giant star Betelgeuse will soon perish in a titanic explosion. Could this happen in the mythical “doomsday” year of 2012? Could dying Betelgeuse take us with it? “Beetlejuice! Beetlejuice!... -
Red dwarfs: The most important stars in the Universe
Posted on December 3, 2010 | 3 CommentsThe smallest stars in the galaxy are the red dwarfs. Recent research suggests they are more common than previously suspected. Tiny, cool and dim compared to the Sun, they may... -
Cepheids: Inconstant Stars which break the rules
Posted on November 26, 2010 | 2 CommentsCepheid variables are massive, pulsating stars, valued by astronomers for the precise link between their brightness and steady pulsation. Let’s look at the history of Cepheid variables and how recent... -
What is light?
Posted on October 1, 2010 | 1 CommentWhat is light? Here’s an easy introduction to the electromagnetic spectrum all the way from radio waves to gamma rays. Before the modern era of technological astronomy, to know anything...