X-Highlight – Astronomy Now

27 October 2021

Star birth and death in the Large Magellanic Cloud

28 September 2021 Astronomy Now

ESO’s Very Large Telescope captures NGC 2035 in the Large Magellanic Cloud where hot young stars are forming in a stellar nursery shaped like a dragon’s head. At the other extreme: the remnants of a supernova blast.

The mesmerizing outskirts of NGC 4603 – a key galaxy in Hubble’s ‘key project’

30 August 2021 Astronomy Now

The spiral arms of galaxy NGC 4603 are home to multiple Cepheid variable stars, “standard candles” that helped astronomers pin down the age of the universe in one of the Hubble Space Telescope’s first major projects.

A flawless spiral galaxy in Aries an oasis of light in a spiralling sea of stars

20 August 2021 Astronomy Now

A tilted spiral galaxy, showing off beautifully symmetric arms tightly wrapped around a brilliant core, provides a spectacular target for the Hubble Space Telescope.

A stunning vista from the Curiosity Mars rover captures changing environment

20 August 2021 Astronomy Now

NASA’s Curiosity rover beams back a stunning panorama from the slopes of Mount Sharp showing signs of transition between past and present environments.

Dominant Jupiter comes to opposition

17 August 2021 Mark Armstrong

Mighty Jupiter, the king of the planets and the most observer-friendly planet of all, comes to opposition on the night of 19/20 August (Thursday night/Friday morning).

Dinosaur-killing impactor likely came from outer asteroid belt

9 August 2021 Astronomy Now

Modelling suggests the impactor believed to have triggered the mass extinction that wiped out the dinosaurs likely originated in the outer asteroid belt.

Reviewed: OVNI-M FOM 2600 Night-vision eyepiece

29 July 2021 Gavin Orpin

Tired of straining your eyes trying to see faint fuzzies through the eyepiece, and looking for views reminiscent of astro-images? The OVNI-M night-vision eyepiece might be just right for you.

Another look at the densely packed stars of Omega Centauri

11 June 2021 Astronomy Now

The magnificent Omega Centauri globular cluster is a riveting sight in even small telescopes, but it takes the Hubble Space Telescope to provide the jaw-dropping vista seen here.

Jupiter’s moon Ganymede seen up close for first time in 21 years

9 June 2021 Graham Carr

NASA’s Juno spacecraft flew by Ganymede, Jupiter’s largest moon, Monday on the first close-up visit to the icy world since 2000. The first images from the flyby show Ganymede’s cratered, icy surface in “remarkable detail,” NASA said.

Hubble Space Telescope captures intriguing view of lopsided galaxy

4 June 2021 Astronomy Now

The Atlas of Peculiar Galaxies features more than 300 galaxies exhibiting an unusual appearance, including NGC 2276, seen here in a spectacular photo from the Hubble Space Telescope.e