| Constellations |
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| When you look up at the sky at night from a dark location you can see what looks like thousands of stars. Those stars form patterns in the sky. Thousands of years ago when people looked up they saw those same patters. Their imaginations allowed them to select names for the figures they saw. Gods, godesses, and mythical creatures. They developed stories about the figures they saw. Many of those names exist today. Perseus, Cassiopea the princess, Orion the hunter, Cignus the swan and many more |
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| Amoung those stars are other objects like gas clouds called nebulae and clusters of stars. Beyond those are other galaxies. Many of these objects are visible in a telescope but first you need to find them. Constellations are the map that can help you with the hunt. For example there is a great globular cluster of thousands of start designated M13 that is founf in the constellation Hercules. Once you find Hercules you hop from star to star to find the cluster |
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| Since the earth moves around the sun over a period of a year the comstellations that are visible in the night sky change with the seasons. This means astronomy has seasons. There are different objects to look form in the winter then there are in the summer. I feel this adds something nice to the hobbie. |
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| Use the menu on the left to navigate to the constellations best visible in each season. |
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