Barth D. Star Mentor. Hands-On Projects and Lessons - Astronomy For Beginners 2022

Daniel E.
Barth
Star
Mentor
Hands-On Projects
and Lessons in Observational
Astronomy for Beginners
The Patrick Moore

The Patrick Moore Practical Astronomy Series
Series Editor
Gerald R. Hubbell
Mark Slade Remote Observatory, Locust Grove, VA, USA
More information about this series at https://link.springer.com/bookseries/3192

Star Mentor: Hands-On
Projects and Lessons
in Observational
Astronomy for Beginners
Daniel E. Barth
Daniel E. Barth
University of Arkansas
Elkins, AR, USA
ISSN 1431-9756 ISSN 2197-6562 (electronic)

The Patrick Moore Practical Astronomy Series
ISBN 978-3-030-98770-1 ISBN 978-3-030-98771-8 (eBook)
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-98771-8
© The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature
Switzerland AG 2022
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In memory of my first Star Mentor
Rev. Theadore A. Bessette
(1920–2013)
I asked for the Moon, he gave me the stars.
Denique Coelum
Acknowledgements
The author wishes to thank fellow astronomer Thomas A. Mangelsdorf,

who generously gave his time to review and discuss the activities presented
in this book, as well as the thousands of astronomy students who have
attended my classes and participated in these activities with me.
Introduction
Astronomy is transformative. The first view through a telescope or binocu-

lar has the ability to change a person’s perspective on, well, literally every-
thing. From that point onward, your life can change, perhaps forever, in
unexpected ways.
One of the most powerful changes happens on the day you decide to
become a telescope owner, because on that day, you become a teacher, too.
The first time I joined an astronomy club, I was welcomed with open
arms. I remember one member pointing to his 8-inch Schmidt Cassegrain
telescope and calling it a ‘party in a box’, for as soon as he takes it out, he
finds himself suddenly surrounded by new friends attracted to the hobby.
Wow! Is that a real telescope? How does it work? Can we see the Moon?
Can you change the magnification? Is it true that Jupiter has more moons
than Earth does? Can you show me the Great Red Spot? How far away is
the Moon? Can you see the flag the Apollo astronauts left there? Some
people say the Earth and Moon are flat – can you prove that they aren’t?
The questions just keep coming. Everyone assumes you not only know the
answers, but also know what you are doing – after all, you’re the one with
the telescope! While I know a few people who refuse to set up their scopes
anywhere that people can get at them, most of us enjoy the view and the
conversation with eager people who want to meet us, talk to us, and share
with us their passion for the stars. More than a ‘party in a box’, your tele-
scope immediately establishes a classroom, with you as the master
instructor.
x Introduction
How This Book is Organized
I’ve broken down the activities into various subject, keeping similar topics
grouped together and proceeding from the most elementary to more
advanced ideas and activities. That being said, there is no need for the
reader to start at the beginning and work all the way through in the order
I’ve chosen. Consider this more like a buffet of ideas and activities that you
can sample as you fancy.
I have written this book with two distinct audiences in mind. First is the
intermediate to advanced amateur astronomer – someone who owns a tele-
scope (maybe more than one!). You are likely to be a member of a local
astronomy club, you probably participate in outreach events from time to
time, and you would like to know how to better help those you meet who
want to know more about astronomy.
The second group is the lone amateur – someone who has recently
bought their first telescope or may be contemplating taking the plunge. You
may not know anyone else in the hobby and may not have a local club avail-
able to you for guidance. My hope is that this book will be your guide to
learning more about astronomy and how to operate your own telescope.
New vocabulary terms are marked in bold face and definitions are offered
as needed. A glossary of terms is included at the back of the book. Please
note that I capitalize words like Moon and Sun when they refer to a proper
place name, whereas the term ‘moon’ (uncapitalized) refers to a satellite of
a planet. Likewise, while a person on Mars might be referred to as a
Martian, when the word is used as an adjective, such as in ‘martian sum-
mer’, the words are uncapitalized.
For those of you who may be regular STEM educators, I have more pro-
fessional development resources to help you. I run a program for teachers
at the University of Arkansas called Astronomy For Educators; there is a
text by that name, and I also have a Facebook page and a YouTube channel
identically titled. You can easily find these resources with any search
engine; they are designed with the professional educator in mind and focus
more on pedagogy, therefore they will be of some use to you in the STEM
classroom!
Follow-up activities and ideas for further investigation are given after
each activity. Most of these will be interesting projects that the reader can
pursue with their own equipment. One of the great joys of being a Star
Mentor is to see your one-time student grow into a colleague who no longer
needs your guidance. People often ask me how they will know if they are
being an effective Star Mentor. I always tell them that if the student is
Introduction xi
a sking what they can do next, it is a sure sign of success. The follow-on
activities given here are offered as a way to feed that hunger.
Necessary equipment and materials are given for every activity. I have
worked to ensure that no exceptional equipment is required. A small tele-
scope, a binocular, and a star chart are all that are needed for most outdoor
activities. Indoor activities are all managed with simple materials that you
likely have around the house. If you have children who do projects and
crafts for school, you probably already have everything you need.
Contents
1 Becoming a Star Mentor�� 1

Teaching to Learn�� 4
Activities Indoors and Out�� 5
2 The Earth and Moon�� 7
Activity 1: What Shape Is the Moon?�� 8
Facts You Need to Know�� 8
Building the Lunar Model (Fig. 2.1)�� 9
Observation Time!�� 12
Healthy Skepticism�� 13
What Have We Learned?�� 14
Following Up�� 15
Activity 2: Sketching the Moon Using the Clock Method�� 15
Activity 3: Modeling the Lunar Surface in Clay�� 21
Building the Model�� 23
Exploring the Model�� 27
Activity 4: Exploring the Lunar Maria�� 32
The Maria�� 34
xiv Contents

Activity 5: Making Craters in Flour�� 41
Activity 6: Exploring Craters in Plaster�� 46
Observation Time�� 50
3 Exploring Size, Distance, and Motion�� 55
Activity 7: How Big Is the Moon’s Orbit?�� 56
Mini-Activity: Sketching the Moon’s Orbit to Scale�� 61
Mini-Activity: Apparent Size of the Moon�� 62
Mini-Activity: Traveling to the Moon�� 63
Activity 8: Exploring Earth’s Rotation�� 64
Conducting the Activity�� 65
Activity 9: Building and Exploring the Quadrant�� 69
Building the Quadrant�� 70
Exploring the Quadrant�� 72
Activity 10: Tracking the Moon’s Orbital Motion�� 78
Notes�� 78
Activity 11: The 1,000-meter Solar System�� 82
Contents xv

Activity 12: Million–Billion–Trillion�� 88
4 Teaching the Visual Sky�� 95
Activity 13: Using the Planisphere and Dividing the Sky�� 96
Activity 14: Sketching a Single Constellation�� 103
Activity 15: Measuring and Mapping a Single Constellation�� 109
Using the Pantograph�� 112
Activity 16: The Circumpolar Constellations�� 115
5 The Bowl of Night – Spring and Summer�� 123
Activity 17: Spring – Mr. Orion’s Neighborhood�� 124
Facts you Need to Know�� 124
Activity 18: Spring – Exploring the Northern Milky Way
with Binoculars�� 127
Following up�� 133
Activity 19: Summer – Scorpio’s Neighborhood�� 133
xvi Contents

Activity 20: Telescope Pointing and Star Hopping in Scorpio�� 137
Activity 21: Exploring the Southern Milky Way with Binoculars�� 141
6 The Bowl of Night – Autumn and Winter�� 145
Activity 22: Autumn – Counting the Stars in the Sky�� 147
Building the Model (Fig. 6.2)�� 148
Exploring the Data�� 152
Activity 23: Autumn - Sketching the Zenith�� 155
Activity 24: Autumn - Zenithal Wonders�� 159
Activity 25: Winter – Leonid Meteor Shower�� 164
Activity 26: Winter – Cancer and Gemini�� 169
Instructions�� 169
Activity 27: Winter – Sketching Zenith Constellations�� 172
Contents xvii

7 Introducing the Inner Planets�� 177
Activity 28: Confirming Your Location on the Earth�� 178
Activity 29: Classical Planets and the Ecliptic�� 182
Mini-Activity: Planets in Conjunction�� 185
Mini-Activity: Retrograde Motion�� 186
Activity 30: Planet Mercury – Observing Near the Sun�� 188
Activity 31: Observing the Phases of Venus�� 192
Mini Activity: Exploring the Heliocentric Model of the
Phases of Venus�� 197
Mini Activity: Exploring the Geocentric Model of the Phases of Venus 199
Exploring the Superior Planets�� 200
Exploring the Evidence�� 201
8 Welcome to Mars�� 207
Activity 32: Sketching Mars using the Clock Method�� 212
Activity 33: Tracking Mars in Retrograde Motion�� 216
Activity 34: Observing Surface Changes on Mars�� 219
xviii Contents

9 Discovering the Outer Planets�� 223
Activity 35: Jupiter – Cloud Bands and Storm Systems�� 225
Activity 36: Jupiter – The Galilean Moons�� 230
The Little Solar System�� 231
Activity 37: Jupiter – Moons in Transit and Occultation�� 235
Activity 38: Planetary Rings and the Roche Limit�� 238
Activity 39: Saturn – Rings and Gaps�� 250
Activity 40: Saturn – Inner and Outer Moons�� 255
10 Star Clusters and Nebulae�� 263
Activity 41: Globular Star Clusters�� 264
Activity 42: Globular Clusters in Sagittarius and Scorpio�� 268
Contents xix

Activity 43: Comparing Open Star Clusters�� 270
Activity 44: Star-Forming Nebulae�� 274
Activity 45: Reflection Nebulae�� 278
Activity 46: Emission and Planetary Nebulae�� 283
11 Galaxies�� 291
Activity 47: Galactic Neighbors – Andromeda and Triangulum�� 293
Activity 48: Galaxies in Thrall�� 297
Activity 49: Galaxy Groups�� 301
12 Telescope Equipment for Beginners�� 307
Activity 50: Visiting an Astronomy Club�� 308
Beginner’s Equipment: The Planisphere�� 309
Understanding the Telescope�� 309
xx Contents
Understanding the Eye�� 311

Aperture and Focal Ratio�� 313
Refractor Telescopes�� 315
Reflector Telescopes�� 316
Catadioptric Telescopes�� 318
Telescope Mounts�� 319
The Dobsonian Mount�� 320
Equatorial Mount�� 321
GoTo Mount�� 323
The Best Telescope�� 324
13 Binoculars for the Beginner�� 327
Why Two Eyes Are Better than One�� 328
Anatomy of Binoculars�� 329
Magnification and Field of View�� 330
Optical Coatings and Efficiency�� 334
Strengths and Weaknesses�� 336
Glossary��339
Bibliography��349
Index��351
Chapter 1
Becoming a Star
Mentor
What is a Star Mentor, anyway?

First ask yourself, how does our hobby grow? During the global COVID
pandemic, telescope and binocular sales at many companies jumped 400%
over previous years; people stuck at home wanted something to do with
their time. If I can’t be out with others, what outdoor activity can I do on
my own? Observational astronomy was the answer for millions around the
globe. Great eclipses, like the solar eclipse that crossed North America in
2017, and major comets, like Hale-Bopp in the spring of 1997, have also
stimulated interest in astronomy. Events like these bring many new people
into our hobby very quickly, but the real question is whether or not these
people will stay involved.
Every time there is a great influx of people into astronomy, there is a
great hunger for knowledge and advice. If you were a member of an astron-
omy group on social media during the latest surge, you certainly saw a lot
of posts like this: “Hi! Thanks for adding me to the group! I just purchased
a WonderSky 2000 telescope, can anyone tell me…” There is always a
photo, sometimes of a set of cardboard boxes from the WonderSky com-
pany, sometimes the (often badly) assembled telescope on the living room
floor. The questions vary, but they follow a few themes. How do I set up my
telescope? How do I point this thing? How do I know what I’m seeing?
What accessories do I need? How can I take a photo of the Moon? The list
goes on.
D. E. Barth, Star Mentor: Hands-On Projects and Lessons in Observational 1

Astronomy for Beginners, The Patrick Moore Practical Astronomy Series,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-98771-8_1,
© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2022
2 1 Becoming a Star Mentor
Astronomy is one of those deceptive hobbies. Rather like golf, those who
are deeply involved in it make it look easy! If you got involved in astronomy
by attending a public star party or by being invited out with a friend who
was a proficient astronomer, I think you know what I mean.
First, there is a sense of wonder. The telescope is bigger than you thought
it would be, shiny and impressive. What are all the knobs for? Where does
the light go in? Where do I look? Can I focus it myself? Then the sky dark-
ens fully, the telescope is pointed at the Moon, and you get your first crack
at the eyepiece – Wow! Then the questions start. If you were fortunate
enough to spend your first night out observing with a real Star Mentor, the
answers – and the views – came quickly and easily. There was nothing in
the treasure box of the sky that seemed out of reach. You never realized that
your new friend, the telescope owner, was such a fount of knowledge!
To put it briefly, a Star Mentor is someone who stirs your interest in
astronomy and makes you long for more. A Star Mentor doesn’t show off
what they know, they inspire you with what you can see for yourself. A Star
Mentor convinces you that you can do this astronomy thing, too! Astronomy
is fun, easy, and rewarding; these mentors will show you just that and whet
your appetite for more.
Becoming a Star Mentor is no mystery, really. You have become someone
who is passionate about learning new things. Like a bad cough or being in
love, a passion for learning is something that cannot be hidden away. People
spot you almost immediately. Some avoid you, but more often, people begin
to seek you out. Even if it hasn’t happened to you in your daily life yet, this
is an easy hypothesis to test. Just take your telescope to a public park some
clear night – even a street corner or parking lot will do. Set your scope up
and point it at the Moon; it won’t take you long to draw a crowd.
With astronomy, the longing to learn overtakes us with unexpected force,
like a tsunami rising from a calm sea – and the wave of questions comes
flooding out of the people drawn to your telescope in the dark. For the pro-
fessional educator, this sort of thing is a dream come true! Respect!
Admiration! An audience with a thirst for knowledge! For the telescope
owner who is new to the hobby, it can be rather intimidating. Where do all
the questions come from? Why are they asking me? Certainly, there was
nothing in the telescope manual about this! In this case, people see someone
who wants to know things and they naturally assume that you do know
things.
If I have made this whole Star Mentor thing seem scary or difficult, let
me assure you that this is not the case. If you are under the impression that
you need to upgrade your equipment, well, you can try that argument on
your spouse if you want, but it really isn’t true. We forget sometimes how
1 Becoming a Star Mentor 3
much was actually discovered with telescopes of 150-mm (6-inch) aperture

or less. Galileo mapped the Moon, discovered the moons of Jupiter, and
proved that the Earth was not the center of the Solar System with telescopes
of less than 30-mm aperture – you can do it too.
None of the activities in this book require anything more than a modest
telescope. A 6-inch Dobsonian reflector or an 80-mm refractor will do
everything needed here. A pair of 10 × 50 binoculars is a nice addition, but
not truly essential. Many of the projects we’ll try can be done on a tabletop
on a cloudy night. The models we will make cost just pennies and use mate-
rials you would readily find around the house or in the classroom. Keep in
mind that a star Mentor is someone who welcomes the newcomer, making
the basic concepts seem accessible. There are astronomy professors and
expert amateurs who delve into the arcana of astronomy and mathematics,
but that isn’t who we are. In fact, it is rather uncommon to find someone
deeply fluent in the intricacies of any subject who is also welcoming and
accessible to the beginner. There are plenty of experts, but mentors are far
rarer.
The fundamentals of being a good Star Mentor are rather
straightforward:
• Keep it simple. Avoid jargon and stick to one topic at a time. Break
complex tasks down into simpler parts.
• Experience first. Show rather than tell. Bring vocabulary and math in
later as needed and if needed!
• Observations follow ideas. Once you introduce a topic, be prepared to
link this to an observation you can do right away.
• Let them try. Be generous with telescope time and let the new person
try. Be patient with mistakes.
We all know what a poor mentor looks like – someone who wants to
impress us with what they know and what they can accomplish. Good men-
tors focus these opportunities on what the newcomer can do and see. A good
mentor helps a new enthusiast accomplish things for themselves, then rec-
ognizes and praises that accomplishment. When we were new to astronomy,
many of us went out with someone who wanted to do everything for us, then
grudgingly let us peer through the eyepiece. Good mentors know that skill
with equipment is only gained through experience. You cannot learn to play
the piano by reading about it. You cannot learn to ride a bicycle if your men-
tor never lets go.
Teaching to Learn
There is an old adage in teaching: If you want to learn, take a class. If you
want to master a subject, teach a class. It is much the same with astronomy.
There are many hobbyists who are extremely knowledgeable, and yet they
cannot explain what they know or what they do with any facility. These
demi-experts can talk and share easily, as long as they meet someone who
is on approximately the same level as they are. Every astronomy club has a
few of these folks; often they lack the patience to share what they know with
people who do not have the requisite vocabulary and foundational knowl-
edge. This is an easy trap to fall into and I urge you to avoid it.
I became an astronomy teacher by accident. I was hired to teach physics
at a school that had an 8-inch Schmidt Cassegrain telescope tucked away in
a dusty closet. I had been a telescope owner for more than a decade, but had
never had access to such a grand instrument. In a burst of enthusiasm, I
asked my boss to let me teach an astronomy class.
“There isn’t any curriculum for that.” I promised to create this myself.
“There are no textbooks available for high school-level astronomy.” I
assured my boss that I could write one.
“No one has ever taught that in our school, who would take such a
course?” I insisted that if they offered the program, I would fill the classes
with my enthusiasm alone. It’s astronomy! Everyone will love it!
My boundless enthusiasm was almost laughable in retrospect, but my
Dean relented and allowed me to start an astronomy club. He promised that
if I could make a go of the club, he would support my request to teach a
class the following year.
It was indeed a very rocky start. Trying to teach clever high school stu-
dents quickly exposed all the holes in my own knowledge. Unlike in phys-
ics, where I had quite a bit of formal training, I had no formal training in
astronomy at all and was entirely self-taught. I had to very quickly get over
the embarrassment of handling a question where I had absolutely no idea of
the answer. “Let’s find out!” was frequently on my lips – usually because it
sounded less ignorant than “I don’t know.” The club went on for a year and
a half before the first official astronomy class began. I put posters up,
invited everyone – students, parents, and administrators – and although I
cannot remember a single instance of an administrator ever showing up
voluntarily to an astronomy event, the parent and student response was
amazing. Through these experiences, I learned a great deal about being a
Star Mentor.
Activities Indoors and Out 5
Given that I was a physics teacher, virtually everyone who showed up to

my classes was relatively fluent in math, the scientific method, and more.
My students all had a grounding in the subject, even if they didn’t necessar-
ily have a passion for it. Becoming a Star Mentor was exactly the opposite
of being a physics teacher; my audience had a great deal of passion and
interest, but almost no training at all. The concepts and vocabulary were
completely new to almost everyone. I had to think long and hard about what
things were fundamental and where to start. Whenever I made an assump-
tion about ‘common knowledge’, I was almost always wrong.
My classes and labs became rather laissez-faire. I would ask students
what they wanted to learn next, offering suggestions but often refusing to
set a hard-and-fast program of instruction. Labs became a matter of ‘here’s
what’s in the sky this week…’, but students were expected to make deci-
sions about what they wanted to investigate. This really disturbed the stu-
dents who wanted a strict syllabus to guide them. The kids who were there
for an easy A were often angry and frustrated, whereas the students who
wanted to be self-directed learners flourished. Slowly, my classes grew and
sections multiplied. What do you want to learn tonight? was a lesson I never
forgot. Capitalizing on the learner’s interest is a cornerstone of being a good
Star Mentor.
Activities Indoors and Out
While some of the activities in this book are indoor activities, meant for
daytime or cloudy nights when the telescope isn’t available, others are
designed to be done at the telescope or with a pair of binoculars in hand.
Whatever we learn at the tabletop or on paper is always intended to improve
our skills at the eyepiece.
It is rather a paradox, but also fundamental to all astronomy, that the
more knowledge we bring to the eyepiece, the more value we take away
from it. Those who are new to astronomy often believe that the telescope is
a doorway to a land of wonder and discovery, and so it is, but just putting
your eye to the eyepiece is insufficient. Beginners often look into the tele-
scope and ask: “Okay, what am I seeing here?” Do you just see a star field?
Do you see color in any of those pinpoint stars? Do you relate color with
temperature? Mass? Stellar evolution? The Main Sequence? If you bring no
knowledge to the eyepiece, the image you see lacks subtlety. It is pretty, but
as uninformative as a page of hieroglyphics.
As Star Mentors, we will confront this problem regularly. The solution to

the problem is to help the new observer participate in activities that inform
our observation time. When we begin to learn what to expect from the tele-
scope, our viewing becomes less random. Many things now confirm what
we have learned, and other things stand out as new and worthy of further
study. For most of us in the hobby today, this learning is a bumpy process.
We stumble along, painfully encountering our areas of ignorance, hardly
aware of what questions we should be asking and where to find the informa-
tion that we need. As mentors, we can smooth that process out and make
astronomy more accessible to others. Ask yourself how many telescopes
gather dust in attics and garages or even end up in the trash. Now ask your-
self why this happens. It is principally because someone started on their
journey of discovery alone and without a helping hand. Those telescopes sit
unused because the new observer lacked a Star Mentor.
Learning by doing is a fundamental skill for the effective mentor. We
have all had our share of bad teachers, and excellent teachers are often few
and far between. Sadly, when we try our hand at teaching someone else for
the first time, we often fall back on the most familiar examples – and too
often these are actually bad examples. You already know the sort of teacher
I’m talking about. Someone who talks at you instead of to you. Someone
who decides what is important, but never bothers to explain why this is so.
Someone who yells at you for asking “When am I going to use this junk?”
To become a mentor is considerably different from becoming a teacher.
Mentors have no tests, grades, or evaluations of any kind. Everyone evalu-
ates their own progress by deciding how satisfied they are with what they
know and how useful their skills are. Mentoring is a more intimate and more
casual occupation than teaching: teachers are assigned, mentors are
chosen.
Speaking of learning by doing, it’s past time that we stop discussing this
whole Star Mentor thing and begin participating in it. Each of the following
activities focuses on some aspect of astronomy that is fundamental to the
beginner. Let’s get started!
Chapter 2
The Earth and Moon
The Moon is the easiest place to begin. To clarify, when Moon is capital-
ized, it refers to Earth’s principal satellite. When uncapitalized, moon refers
to any satellite confined to the gravitational field of a planet. See the glos-
sary for a more precise definition. The Moon is certainly the most familiar
object in the night sky and probably the first thing a new observer turns to.
The first view of the Moon is stunning: bright, full of detail, and strangely
monochromatic, the Moon is the very image of a weird and alien landscape.
The Moon also makes a great place to begin to learn good telescope skills
like pointing your scope, changing magnification, focusing, tracking, and
more.
Part of our task as mentors is to make the oh-so-familiar Moon appear
fresh and new again. Many times I have had someone come up to a tele-
scope focused on the Moon, only to have them glance once and say, “Yeah,
it’s the Moon – I’ve seen it.” We can make the Moon new again, but only by
carefully guiding the newcomer’s experiences as they are observing. It is an
old adage that “we see, but do not observe.” As Star Mentors, we need to
ask our students to look again with fresh eyes, to observe and notice, and to
share what they see!

https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-98771-8_2,
8 2 The Earth and Moon
Activity 1: What Shape Is the Moon?
“You’re kidding right? It’s round.”

“Oh, like a coin?”
“No! The Moon is round like a ball!”
“Okay… but how do you know?”
This activity may seem a bit odd at first, and you may get some strange
looks when you ask people. But how indeed do you know? It is what I like
to call a clock-stopper question. You will usually get answers like
“Everybody knows that,” or “I read it somewhere,” or even “My teacher told
me.” I like to point out that these answers amount to “I don’t really know, I
was told and I believed it.”What we are really doing here is confronting
assumptions. We can sum up the way most classes these days are taught with
just three words: Learn, Believe, Repeat. Learn what I tell you. Believe it
because it is in the book, on the video, on the internet, etc. Finally, repeat
what you’ve been told. Great emphasis is placed today on test-taking skills –
pick the right bubble and you get a good grade. You’re smart now, right?
But everything comes crashing down when someone challenges you and
asks: but how do you know? Science is not a subject to be memorized; sci-
ence is a verb. Learning to take a test successfully about piano or the game
of soccer will not make you a musician or a soccer player. Sciences like
astronomy are activities that require active participation to understand.
So, how do you know the Moon is round? Our activity will help you
discover this for yourself!
Facts You Need to Know
1. Every planetary (and lunar) surface has been reshaped by impactors,

pieces of metal and stone crashing into the surface at orbital veloci-
ties (15–75,000 kph)
2. Almost all impacts form circular craters; we will seek to prove this
through observations of our Moon. It takes a very low angle impact
(less than 5 degrees) to form an elongated crater.
3. Impactors strike planetary and lunar surfaces randomly. Every loca-
tion from pole to pole is equally subject to impacts. All planetary
surfaces collect evidence of impacts through their entire history,
although geologically active planets like the Earth continue to erase
evidence of impacts due to weathering, volcanism, and plate
tectonics.
Activity 1: What Shape Is the Moon? 9
Building the Lunar Model (Fig. 2.1)
Materials
1. One meter of nylon web strapping (I cut mine from an automotive

cinch strap)
2. Seven 25-mm coins or similar (I used quarters; poker chips, washers,
etc. can also be used.) The coins will represent impact craters in our
model
3. One 30-cm ball (an inflatable vinyl ball, soccer ball, basketball, etc.
can be used). This will represent the Moon in our activity
4. One 15-cm circle cut from paper or cardboard (I used a circle cut
from a paper plate)
Instructions
1. Find the center of your nylon strap. Mark this point with a marker.
2. Wrap your strap around your ball; note the position of the mark you
made in Step 1. Mark your strap 90 degrees to the right and left of
the center mark with your permanent marker (Fig. 2.2).
3. Lay the strap flat on a table and use superglue to attach a coin on
each of the three marked places. Allow to dry completely (10–
Fig. 2.1 Materials used for ‘What Shape is the Moon?’ activity. (Credit: Author)
Fig. 2.2 Gluing coins to the nylon strap. (Credit: Author)
Fig. 2.3 Attaching the strap (with coins) to a 30-cm ball. (Credit: Author)
15 min). Note: you may wish to rub the coins lightly with sandpa-
per – a rough surface holds the glue better (Fig. 2.3)!
4. Evenly space and glue two coins to the right and left of the center
coin. You should now have seven coins glued to the strap, all evenly
spaced. These coins will stretch across the entire hemisphere of your
ball.
5. Optional: You can attach some Velcro strips to your Nylon strap once
the coins are attached so that the strap and its coins can be quickly
attached to your ball. Alternatively, you can use a large binder clip to
hold the strap in place while you are working with this model.
Exploring the Model
Hold the model at arm’s length with the center coin facing you. As you
examine the shape of the quarters that you see, you will notice that the coin
directly facing you appears perfectly circular, while the coins that are far-
ther from the center appear elliptical.
This apparent change in shape is not caused by the coins being deformed
in any way, it is simply that we are now viewing them from an angle instead
of face-on (Fig. 2.4).
Move the ball from side to side to see how the appearance of the coins
change as the ball moves. Each time a coin rotates with the ball and moves
away from the center, it appears more elliptical. Each time a coin moves
toward the center, it becomes more circular in appearance.
Let’s try one more thing! Rotate the ball so that the strap crosses at a dif-
ferent angle. Notice that it doesn’t matter how you hold the ball – every coin
appears more elliptical as it moves from the center position out toward the
Fig. 2.4 Simulated ‘Moon’ with coins as craters, showing how the appearance of
craters changes with their location on the Moon’s disk, appearing more elliptical as
they move away from the center and toward the Moon’s limb. (Credit: Author)
limb of the ball. In other words, in every orientation, the coins appear more
elliptical as they move farther from the center of the ball.
The Moon actually tilts a bit on its axis in the same way, and generally,
we see only one side of the Moon from Earth. Yet our satellite companion
actually wobbles a bit – we call this lunar libration – allowing us to see
about 59% of the nearside surface rather than just the 50% you would
expect if the Moon remained perfectly still.
What does our model tell us about the Moon? If, as research suggests, all
craters are basically circular, then our model tells us to expect to see craters
with progressively more elliptical shapes as we move away from the center
of the Moon’s disk toward the limb.
Observation Time!
Now that you have tested an idea with your model, it is time to spend some
time looking at the real Moon. Incidentally, even the most modest ‘toy’
telescope can accomplish this activity; if you have a nice refractor or a mod-
est Dobsonian, so much the better! If you are a member of a local astronomy
club in your area, this makes an excellent outreach event for club star
parties.
You need to observe the Moon at 50–100×. Higher power will get you a
better view of craters, but it can also make it more challenging to keep the
Moon in view with your telescope if you do not have an equatorial mount
that facilitates tracking.
When you are conducting this activity, I always recommend that you
begin with the lowest magnification available to you – probably 25–50×.
To get a good view of lunar craters, you will probably need to increase
toward 100× magnification. Note that the best view of lunar craters is to be
had along the terminator, the line of shadow that separates the lighted por-
tion of the Moon from the darkened portion. The terminator represents the
sunrise line during the waxing period from new Moon to full Moon. During
the waning moon (from full to new), the terminator represents the sunset
line. Here, the long, dramatic shadows make it easier to see crater shapes
and other landscape features.
Once you have the Moon in view, change eyepieces to the next smaller
number. This will get you a closer view, but increasing magnification like
this will make keeping the Moon centered in your view more challenging.
Practice a bit until you feel comfortable. If you lose the Moon? Not to
worry, just switch back to the lower power eyepiece and start again. This
careful control of the telescope’s position and motion is referred to as
tracking, and it is one of the most fundamental skills a new astronomer

needs to learn.
If you do not have a tracking telescope, it may work best to get the Moon
in view, then let go of the telescope and watch it slowly pass through the
eyepiece as the Earth rotates. Look for craters and see how their apparent
shape changes as you move from the center of the Moon out toward the
edge in any direction. You should notice that craters become distinctly ellip-
tical in appearance as you move closer to the edge or limb of the Moon. You
will find that this is true for large craters as well as smaller ones, and the
elliptical shape appears regardless of where along the limb of the Moon you
look. The Moon’s appearance does indeed confirm our hypothesis that the
Moon is a spherical object.
This moment of discovery is an exciting experience. For anyone new to
our hobby, the idea that they can make a simple model and then test the
model against observations with a small telescope is heady stuff indeed. It
is important not to allow your friend to diminish the value of the experience.
I have seen many students say, “But I knew the Moon was round anyway!”
Be quick to remind them that in fact they did not know. The discovery of an
observable fact gives the discoverer possession of a new idea.
Healthy Skepticism
But what about random elliptical craters? Could these be fooling us? This
is a fine and legitimate question. Reasonable skepticism is the hallmark of
every good scientist, whether professional or amateur.
NASA scientists and independent physicists have found that it takes a
very low angle of impact (under 10 degrees) to make an elliptical crater. In
fact, NASA, JAXA, ESA, RosCosmos, and other space agencies have found
only a handful of true elliptical craters on the Moon. We believe most cra-
ters are circular because when an impactor strikes, most of the energy goes
into the interior of a planetary surface, then explodes outward in a circle, as
you would expect with any explosion. In fact, elliptical craters are virtually
impossible on Earth, as any impactor striking at such a low angle would
either burn up or bounce off our atmosphere. Search YouTube for “Russian
Meteor” or “Chelyabinsk Meteor” to see videos of a large, low-angle
impactor that exploded above a Russian city in 2013.
Impactors striking a lunar or planetary surface from space are essentially
random. Where the impactor lands; the direction from which it strikes – all
these things are quite unpredictable. If there were enough random elliptical
impacts to fool us into thinking the Moon is a sphere, these elliptical craters
would appear all over the lunar surface. The first test then is to see if you
Fig. 2.5 This drawing shows that although craters appear more elliptical as they get
farther from the center of the Moon’s disk, the long axis of every ellipse must remain
perpendicular to a radius line running through the center of the crater. (Credit:
Author)
can find a true elliptical crater anywhere across the center third of the lunar
surface. Go ahead and check; we’ll wait!
The second test is to look at the long axis of the elliptical craters on the
Moon. If these are just apparent ellipses caused by the curved surface of the
lunar sphere, the ellipses will all be concentrically oriented. You can see
from Fig. 2.5 that if the change in crater shape is really just how circular
craters appear based on their location, then each crater’s long axis will be
perpendicular to the radius of the Moon. In other words, all the long axes
will be concentric.
Congratulations! You have now discovered – and proved – that the Moon
is a spherical body!
What Have We Learned?

This activity should teach everyone about the value of models in science. A
model is just a hypothesis created out of solid materials instead of being
written on paper. A good model puts what we know in a physical form that
we can play with and explore. Models are excellent at showing relation-
ships, such as the relationship between a crater’s apparent shape and its
position on the Moon’s surface.
Activity 2: Sketching the Moon Using the Clock Method 15
This activity’s observations should help students learn the basics of tele-
scope pointing and tracking, as well as focusing and changing eyepieces
and magnification. The Moon is the best target for students to start out with
when learning to operate a telescope because it is extremely bright and there
is no doubt at all once you have it in view. These fundamental operating
skills will be useful throughout this book.
Following Up
No theory can be successfully demonstrated with just one small set of

observations! It would therefore be worthwhile to conduct a series of obser-
vations of the lunar surface over a period of time. Keep this idea in mind
each time you observe the Moon – you will have the opportunity to explore
along the terminator as it crosses the entire lunar surface while the Moon
moves through its monthly phases. Mentors should encourage every student
to keep a log of their observations and thoughts. A simple school notebook
is all that is needed. I usually have a few of these inexpensive notebooks to
give out to new students who show interest and aptitude.
Activity 2: Sketching the Moon Using the Clock Method
The first known scientific map of the lunar surface was made by Galileo in
1609. Galileo named the dark regions on the lunar surface maria (Latin for
‘seas’), because he originally believed them to be bodies of water. Although
Galileo quickly realized his mistake (he saw no clouds or storms over these
‘seas’), the name stuck. Scientists later discovered that these maria were
actually seas of frozen lava left behind from huge asteroid impacts that hap-
pened billions of years ago. Mapping the maria is the first step to mapping
the Moon properly.
As a Star Mentor, I am committed to sketching activities as a powerful
teaching and learning tool. Sketching gives the student an intimate connec-
tion with objects and patterns in the sky in a way that photography can’t. It
forces us to pay attention, to study details of angles, distances, brightness,
and more. Certainly photography, particularly cellphone photography, has
its push-button appeal, particularly with more modern phones, where the
computer inside does all the thinking about exposure, brightness, white bal-
ance, and more, without any thought by the user. And that’s the point – it is
data collection without thought. Sketching takes time and effort. The stu-
dent can easily compare sketches done in the past and recognize their own
progress. Sketching brings out all the virtues of true observational astrono-
mers: patience, attention to detail, and a personal connection with the sky.
We will be using a sketching method I developed in my own astronomy
classes, called the clock method. This method is designed to help the new
observer organize detail and to prevent them from being overwhelmed by
what they see. Effective mentors always try to break complex tasks down into
simpler, more achievable tasks; but mentors also seek to make their students
independent, and to this end, the clock method teaches the new observer how
to break down complex tasks for themselves. This ability to self-organize is
perhaps the greatest benefit of this activity for the new observer.
1. Observing the Moon with the naked eye or binoculars limits us to the
largest surface features, primarily maria and highland areas, and
occasionally the largest crater ray systems.
2. Visually, most maria when viewed with the naked eye or binoculars
are roughly circular in appearance.
3. Remember that our sketches are data, not art. Students often demure
when asked to sketch, claiming a ‘lack of artistic talent’ – such talent
is not needed for a good sketch!
Observation Time!
Materials
1. Prepared sketch paper, clipboard, pencil

2. A low-power binocular (optional)
Instructions
Most students want to begin observing the Moon at high magnification with
a telescope, or at least with a binocular – I strongly oppose this idea. If you
want to impress someone for a few minutes, a high-power view of craters
along the terminator is sure to have the wow factor that you are looking for.
However, if you are trying to help someone become a lifelong astronomer,
a more systematic approach will be more successful. The successful mentor
does not seek to provide instant gratification. Rather, a good mentor seeks
Fig. 2.6 The basic diagram for clock method sketching. This can be used for any
sketching task at the telescope eyepiece. (Credit: Author)
to provide regular challenges that instill knowledge and a sense of accom-

plishment for the learner. This measured process is not as quick, but it does
develop independent observers who are not afraid to tackle new tasks with
significant learning curves (Fig. 2.6).
1. Begin with a prepared sketching sheet that consists of a circle

divided into 12 parts, exactly as a clock is divided into hours. To do
this, first draw a circle using a CD, dish, or any suitable object. Then
quarter the circle, establishing the 12, 3, 6, and 9 o’clock positions;
after that, one simply divides each quarter into three parts. I usually
encourage my students to place a dot on the circle where they think
the hour positions should be, and then measure the distance between
each dot with a ruler, adjusting the positions of the dots until the
distance between each one is equal. Keep in mind that you only need
to do points 1, 2, 4, and 5; drawing a line from each point through
the center will divide the circle into 12 equal parts (Fig. 2.7).
2. You can begin your sketching activity on any night, but you may find
it useful to have students sketch the Moon in various phases. If you
wish to do this, begin when the Moon is 3–4 days old and showing a
thin crescent in the western sky. Begin at sunset and start your draw-
Fig. 2.7 Using the clock method to accurately illustrate the Moon’s terminator.
(Credit: Author)
ing by sketching in the terminator, the line that separates the light and
dark portions of the lunar disk. Place the tips of the terminator at 12
and 6 o’clock respectively. Although the Moon’s face appears to
rotate as it moves across the sky, the lunar axis is tilted only 1.5
degrees; this means that the tips of the terminator always coincide
with the lunar north and south poles. By drawing this way, north is
always at the top of your drawing and the location of surface features
will be more consistent (Fig. 2.8).
3. With the terminator sketched in, it is time to start locating the maria
that you can see. It is in locating features correctly on the map that
the clock method begins to show its worth. Choose the largest feature
that you can see and find its center. Imagine the Moon’s face being
divided into 12 regions just as your sketching paper is; in what region
does the center of your feature lie? Once we know what region or
‘hour’ your feature is located in, the second question is, how far out
from the center of the Moon’s disk does the center of your feature
lie? When sketching with the naked eye, estimating 25, 50, or 75%
of the way from the center is usually the best that can be done. If you
are sketching with a binocular or a telescope at higher magnification,
you may be able to estimate locations to the nearest 10% or even
better. Once you have the center of the feature located, sketch it in as
a simple circle or ellipse and shade it lightly, as this is a maria feature
and darker than the surrounding area (Fig. 2.9).
Fig. 2.8 Using the radius of the Moon as a measuring tool to properly place an
observed feature on the Moon’s disk. (Credit: Author)
Fig. 2.9 Sketching lunar maria on the crescent Moon with key. The correct place-
ment of features is more important here than artistic accuracy. (Credit: Author)
4. Continue to sketch in the features that you can see with the naked
eye. Use a binocular when needed to confirm what you see, but avoid
magnification here, as it will reveal a frustrating wealth of detail that
can discourage the beginner! Staying with dark maria features that
are visible to the eye without aid simplifies the task considerably. On
a crescent Moon 3–4 days after new, you should be able to spot 4–5
maria features. Depending on the exact age of the Moon, some of
these may look as if they blend together or overlap. That is perfectly
alright; encourage your student to stick with simple circles and ovals
in recording what they see.
5. Once your students are done with their sketches, it is time to verify
their sketch data with a lunar atlas. There are a variety of quality
printed atlases of the Moon, and there are plenty of resources avail-
able on the web if you do not have a print version. Keep in mind that
print and internet versions of a lunar atlas may offer views that are
“corrected” for reflector or refractor telescopes. A refractor and a
Schmidt-Cassegrain telescope have an odd number of mirrors, giving
an image that is reversed (left/right) while a Newtonian design has an
even number of mirrors, resulting in an image that is correct in left/
right orientation. The angle of the secondary mirror in a reflector
telescope can also cause image rotation. An observer must take care
to orient themselves correctly to the image in the eyepiece.
There are many atlases that present both types of views without identifying
them, which can be confusing for the new astronomer. Your student will
have to look at patterns of features and determine how the drawing best
matches the atlas before deducing the correct names for the recorded fea-
tures on the map. Patience will be needed here, as there is often a good deal
of frustration the first time someone tries to match their sketch with a map.

The most fundamental lesson this activity teaches is confidence in one’s own
abilities. The majority of my students began this exercise by protesting their
lack of artistic talent. I cannot draw artistically either, and I remind everyone
that we are not drawing; instead, we are just recording data at the eyepiece.
No doubt everyone improves with practice, but the anxiety people feel
when submitting their finished work is quite real. As mentors, we must be
encouraging. If you must point out mistakes, select just one thing for the
student to work on next time and then finish your evaluation with praise!
Following Up
The best time to try this activity is just a few days after the new Moon. The
crescent Moon is only available for observation for a short time, and it
Activity 3: Modeling the Lunar Surface in Clay 21
offers a limited area for sketching. Both of these limits reduce the complex-
ity of the clock sketching task. If weather and time permit, have your stu-
dent try sketching the Moon every 2–3 days for the entire 2-week waxing
cycle. Ideally, each sketch will show everything the previous sketch did, and
add more detail from the newly revealed area near the terminator. Further,
this repeated exposure to the surface of the Moon will build up a familiarity
with the lunar surface. Checking these sketches against an atlas will also
make the student more comfortable with lunar geography.
Activity 3: Modeling the Lunar Surface in Clay
One of the great problems with teaching visual astronomy is simply the
great number of images that we are exposed to each day. Some scientists
estimate that a young person under 25 spends over 12 hours exposed to
media each day1 and sees upward of 10,000 images; some 6,000 of these
may be advertisements.2 With this bombardment of images, a view through
the telescope becomes just one more fleeting sight in a deluge of imagery.
The key to bringing some wonder back to the telescope lies in how much
knowledge we bring to the eyepiece! This activity will help do just that
(Fig. 2.10).
Fig. 2.10 A lunar surface feature model. Medium: modeling clay. (Credit: Author)
1
From: How much time do people spend on social media? https://review42.com/
resources/how-much-time-do-people-spend-on-social-media/#:~:text=US%20
adults%20use%20media%20for%20an%20average%20of,for%20around%202%20
hours%20and%206%20minutes%20daily
2
From: New research sheds light on daily ad exposures https://sjinsights.net/2014/09/29/
new-research-sheds-light-on-daily-ad-exposures/
Modeling the lunar surface in clay seems like a very tall order for some
people. I’ve often had some of my students, experienced teachers, and fel-
low astronomers scoff at this activity, claiming that such an art project is
much too hard for the beginning astronomer. They couldn’t be more wrong.
When making a scientific model, it is important to remember that we are
not striving to create great art, or even mediocre art! Instead, we are striving
to create an understandable representation – something that helps show
what we know about a particular part of Nature, in this case, the lunar
surface.
As Star Mentors, we help beginners achieve this understanding by guid-
ing them step by step toward creating their own models. The idea is to get
the beginning astronomer to put into physical form something they have
learned about the lunar surface, such as the large mountains that exist at the
center of large craters. I have found that people of all ages seem to thor-
oughly enjoy this activity once they get started – and it makes a perfect
activity for cloudy nights when the telescope is unavailable.
1. The Moon has no atmosphere and no water cycle. It also has had no
significant volcanism or plate tectonic activity for over 3 billion
years. This airless world preserves the record of the accretion3 pro-
cess perfectly, because the only source of erosion is rocks falling
from space.
2. The smaller, free orbiting pieces that haven’t become planets or
moons yet are called meteoroids and asteroids. Meteoroids are any-
where from the size of a grain of dust up to the size of a large car or
truck. Asteroids range from the size of a small building to hundreds
of miles wide; these meteoroids and asteroids are the building blocks
from which planets are assembled, and the building process still
continues today.
3. When a small piece of material such as an asteroid collides with a
planet or a moon, it is referred to as an impactor. These impactors
strike at tens of thousands of miles per hour and can hit the surface
with tremendous energy, enough to reshape the very surface (and
interiors!) of worlds as large as the Earth.
3
All planets build up through accretion. Electrostatic forces cause small particle to stick
together, and when the object becomes large enough, gravity takes over and attracts
more material, making all bodies larger over time. This process continues in every solar
system until the supply of dust and free material is exhausted.
Building the Model
Materials
1. A large block of light-colored modeling clay (about 500 grams),

enough to make a slab that is 15 cm (6 in) square and 1 cm thick
2. A smaller block of dark-colored modeling clay (50 grams). (The
exact colors will not matter, as long as the colors contrast well)
3. A piece of aluminum foil large enough for your slab of clay. Oil-
based, non-drying clays can stain tabletops, clothing, or papers with
oily residue in a matter of minutes if left in place
4. Note: If you have plasticized desktops or work tables, you may want
your students to work directly on the desktop for convenience’s sake.
A bit of window cleaner and paper towel will easily clean any residue
left behind after this activity
5. Variously sized marbles and beads
6. A large nail or a golf tee for marking in the clay
7. A ruler
8. A 30 cm (12 in) piece of string for marking latitude and longitude
lines; dental floss works well for this, as does a kitchen pizza cutter
Instructions
1. Begin by flattening out the large block of clay into an even layer
about 15 cm (6 in) on each side and 1.5 cm (3/4 in) thick. If you have
wooden desks, you may wish to have students work their clay in a
paper plate, on a baking pan, or on a sheet of aluminum foil
(Fig. 2.11).
Note: School clay is typically oil-based, so leaving it on a wooden, paper,
cloth, or leather surface for any period of time is likely to leave an oily stain!
2. Work the clay, flattening it with your hands and shaping it into a
15 × 15 × 1.5 cm square (exact shape is not critical). When the layer
is relatively flat, turn the square over. When turned upside down, the
surface of the clay should be relatively flat. The surface may settle a
bit and will not be perfectly flat – don’t worry, that won’t affect our
model at all (Fig. 2.12).
3. Now take the largest ball you have (a large marble or ping-pong ball
works well) and press it firmly into down into the surface. You may
even want to rock it back and forth just a bit. When you take it away,
you should have a nice depression, perhaps with the edges raised just
Fig. 2.11 Starting materials for the clay Moon model project. (Credit: Author)
Fig. 2.12 Using a marble to roll out a maria basin on the clay Moon model. (Credit:
Author)
a bit. Roll this depression out until it is 5–8 cm (2–3 in) wide. This
will be a maria – but we aren’t done with it yet!
4. Move to the next size smaller balls and make one or two more large
craters. Be sure you press them firmly into the surface so that they
are deep enough. You may notice that these depressions even overlap
a bit – don’t worry, craters tend to do that (Fig. 2.13)!
Fig. 2.13 Flattening a thin layer of dark clay into the maria basin to represent dark,
metal-rich lava. Note that some lava has overflowed the rim of the basin here! (Credit:
Author)
5. Now it is time to fill in your maria. Take the dark-colored clay and
roll out a 5 cm (2 in) ball, then flatten it out to make it nice and thin.
Make sure the piece you have is pressed out large enough to cover
one of your large depressions all the way to the edges; if you don’t
have enough clay, start again with a larger ball!
6. Lay this thin piece of dark clay into the depression and press it in
place. If it goes beyond the edges at some point, you can either trim
the extra away with a kitchen butter knife or smooth it onto the sur-
face. Lava flows from maria do sometimes overflow their crater and
flow out onto the lunar surface.
7. Lunar mountains are actually huge pieces of stone that have been
blasted out of a maria basin. Pinch off small pieces of dark clay about
2–3 mm wide (half the size of a pea) and place them in a curved line
around a maria basin. The arc of mountains usually extends no more
than 1/10th the circumference of the maria basin.
8. Now you can start with marbles and beads, pressing small craters
into the surface as you like, remember to start with the larger marbles
and work your way down to the smaller sizes. Make lots of medium
and small craters, and don’t worry about creating them in any order –
just have fun with this part. Remind everyone that it is perfectly
alright for craters to overlap! Do your students notice that new cra-
ters sometimes wipe out older ones? While you are making craters,
remind the students not to ignore the dark maria surface! Maria have
Fig. 2.14 Using a nail or golf tee to scratch in ejecta features and rays on the craters
in the clay Moon model. Note that some craters have central mountains in them.
(Credit: Author)
ancient surfaces with almost as many craters covering them as the

rest of the Moon does (Fig. 2.14).
9. Choose a few scattered craters to be “new” (no more than 100 mil-
lion years old). Use a nail or golf tee to lightly scratch ‘splatter
marks’ – lines leading directly out from the edge of the crater like a
sunburst. These lines are called rays and are actually made of pow-
dered material blasted out of the crater when it was made (Fig. 2.15).
10. Some larger craters have central mounts, essentially mountains
centered in the crater. Take a pinch of light clay and form mountains
to place in one or two of your larger craters.
11. Now you can create an ejecta blanket around some of your larger
craters. Ejecta are the rock and dust ejected when a crater is made.
You can model ejecta by scratching around a crater with a nail or golf
tee. Your scratches shouldn’t be too deep, and make sure all of them
radiate outward from the crater’s rim like the spokes on a wheel. The
ejecta blanket is typically 2–3 times wider than the crater itself. Only
the newer craters show evidence of ejecta, as this thin layer is erased
gradually over millions of years by subsequent impacts.
12. Finally, you can add one or two rilles. Rilles are dry river basins
formed from flowing lava (the Moon has never had liquid water on
its surface!). Rilles typically appear on maria and wind their way
across the surface. Scratch them in lightly with a nail or golf tee.
Fig. 2.15 A completed clay Moon landscape complete with maria, mountains, ejecta
features, ray systems, and rilles. (Credit: Author)
Exploring the Model
1. Now it is time to use our string or a kitchen pizza cutter to mark lines
of latitude and longitude on the model. Use a pencil to mark off every
2 cm across the top edge and one side of your clay model. Stretch the
string horizontally across the model using the marks you just made
for reference, and draw it gently back and forth in a sawing motion
across the surface. (You can also make these lines with the edge of a
metal ruler or a pizza cutter.) Now make an identical series of lines
running vertically. When finished, you should have a grid of latitude
and longitude lines on your lunar landscape (Fig. 2.16).
Use construction paper and markers to make a map of the landscape you
have made. Start with a series of latitude and longitude lines drawn in pencil
with a ruler, then use the lines on the lunar landscape to map out the craters
and maria you have made in colorful markers.
If you wish, you can name the larger craters on your map. Our own
Moon’s features are named after famous scientists and mathematicians, but
you can choose your own theme: U.S. Presidents, rock bands, favorite
movie characters – anything at all will do. Have fun with this (Fig. 2.17)!
Crater diameter is a good rough indicator of impact energy.
2.
Generally speaking, as a crater doubles in size, the impact energy
needed to create it is ten times as great. So, if you have craters 1 cm,
Fig. 2.16 Using the edge of a ruler to inscribe latitude and longitude lines on our clay
Moon model; a pizza cutter also works for this purpose. (Credit: Author)
Fig. 2.17 A map made by using the inscribed longitude and latitude lines on the clay
Moon model. (Credit: Author)
2 cm, and 4 cm in size; the 2 cm crater required 10 times the energy

of the 1 cm crater, while the 4 cm crater needed 100 times the energy
of the smallest crater! Rank your craters by size and make a bar
graph of the impact energy needed to create them.
3. Another good analog for impact energy is crater volume, because the
impact had to be energetic enough to excavate the entire crater vol-
ume – usually in just seconds. You can use an eyedropper and fill the
craters gradually with water. Do this one drop at a time and record
how much water is needed to fill each crater. You can graph volume
vs. crater diameter if you wish.
4. The crater we see is usually ten times larger than the asteroid that
created it. Choose the largest maria on your model and create a
model asteroid that would be large enough to make such an impact.
Display this giant impactor with your model (Fig. 2.18).
5. Dim the room lights, then try using your cellphone flashlight to illu-
minate your model. Shine the light from the side and have a partner
take a photo of your clay model this way. Can you see shadows fill-
ing craters? Are there long shadows from mountains reaching across
the surface? Compare your model to a photo of the Moon taken near
the terminator. You will see many similarities between the photo of
Fig. 2.18 Lunar crater Gassendi with complex central mount. (Credit: NASA)
your model and the real Moon. This process of comparing their own
models to what we find in nature is how scientists evaluate all scien-
tific models. Teaching your students to go beyond creating a model
by engaging in this process is important.
6. It is also fun to work with a partner to make a video that shows the
changing shadows as the Sun moves across the lunar sky. For this,
one partner holds the cellphone flashlight horizontally and right at
tabletop level. Slowly move the phone in an arc from east to west –
think of the phone light as the Sun rising from one horizon and trav-
eling across the sky until it sets in the west. A 15- to 30-second video
shows an amazing transformation in your lunar landscape that mim-
ics what we see during an entire 29-day lunar phase cycle.
7. Now, it is time to set the scale of your model. Decide how far apart
these horizontal and vertical lines are. While you can choose any
scale you wish, it is typical for this type of model to set your scale so
that lines are 100 km apart.
8. If you wish to take a more technical approach, you may set your lines
as being 5 degrees apart. Use the radius of the Moon (1740 km) to
work out the Moon’s circumference and the size of your model in km
(Fig. 2.19).
9. Once you have a scale, be sure to reproduce these longitude (vertical)
and latitude (horizontal) lines on your map. If your lines are 100 km
apart, calculate the scale by dividing 100 km by the distance in mm
separating your map lines. This is the scale in km/mm. If you are
Fig. 2.19 Students working on clay Moon maps. (Credit: Author)

using 5-degree lines, the calculations work out the same way, the
scale = km/mm for each 5-degree line. Measure any distance and
multiply it by your scale to get the true distance on your map or
model.
10. Using the Distance (mm) × Scale formula, you can also measure
crater diameters, ejecta blankets, rays, and other features. Have stu-
dents explore their model with math and get a true feeling for the size
of various features. You can take your rectangular area of your model
and sketch it onto a map of your state or country to get a feeling for
the size of these features in real life!
11. You can measure the perimeter of a crater or maria by pressing string
into the surface. Once you have pressed the string all the way around
a feature, measure the string in mm and multiply by your scale to get
the true circumference of a feature. You can also estimate the area of
a feature in a number of ways – think about this and document your
solutions!
Observation Time!
Whether you are looking at high-resolution photos from NASA or through

the eyepiece of a telescope, you can see a lot of detail on the lunar surface.
Can you find a maria region? These areas are distinctly darker than the sur-
rounding highland regions of the Moon, and their smooth surfaces show off
later craters with great effect.
Can you see an area where lava has broken out of a crater and spilled
across the lunar surface? If the telescope or photo is good enough, you can
sometimes even see waves and ripples in the maria surface, frozen in place
as the lava solidified billions of years ago. Small craters on the surface of
the maria are also good candidates for showing off rays. The best way to
find these features is to look at the lunar surface with low power (40–60×)
and try to spot a bright ‘splash mark’. Zoom in on one of these ‘splash’
features at 80–150× and you will see a crater surrounded by rays of pow-
dery and bright lunar dust blasted out of the crater by the enormous energy
of the asteroid impact.
Another thing to look for is overlapping features. Can you see craters on
top of a lava flow? Which came first? Can you see small craters inside larger
ones? This takes a good eye and some patience, but you can begin to see a
timeline of events, carved out of the lunar surface by giant rocks falling
from space. The Moon is an otherworldly landscape that can continue to
fascinate even the most experienced observer!
This activity is a fascinating example of how expectations affect outcomes.

Students can learn not only what lunar features look like, but how they were
formed. In many cases, I like to have students look at the Moon in the days
before we do this activity together and write down what they have seen. I
do not try to coach them too much on this, but simply tell them to use what
they already know to help them make their notes.
After conducting this clay Moon activity, we go back to the telescope; the
difference in what the student now sees compared to what they had seen just
a few days before is astounding. Crater structure, ray systems, maria, lunar
mountains, and more seem to leap out at them! I have more than once been
accused of substituting a different telescope – only to remind my students
that the change is in them, not the equipment!
Following Up
Once you begin learning about lunar features and geology, observing and
tracking down various features become something of a habit! If you are a
fan of lunar observing, a good lunar atlas becomes an attractive purchase.
You may also want to start observing in the pre-dawn hours during the wan-
ing Moon cycle so that you can see familiar features along the terminator
illuminated from the west (sunset) rather than the east (sunrise), as we do
during the waxing moon cycle after new Moon passes and the new lunation
begins.
Activity 4: Exploring the Lunar Maria
It is said that familiarity breeds contempt.4 Certainly this is true of the

Moon. Many astronomers despise the Moon as a bright lamp that obscures
the stars and constellations. I choose to delight in it when it is available and
explore the many things that its surface can teach us. The following activity
is really a two-week observing agenda. The sky is indeed our laboratory and
playground, but we do not control it! Patience – and good weather – are
required for all observing projects. Very few people live where they can
4
This is often attributed to St. Augustine’s Confessions, but Augustine cites this as a
“common proverb.” The oldest reference I could find for this quote is Pubilius Syrus
(85–43 BC).
Activity 4: Exploring the Lunar Maria 33
expect continuously clear weather for weeks at a time. This will likely be a
project that you will come back to occasionally as conditions allow.
1. Maria are tremendous impact basins. The impacts that created them
were large enough to punch through the lunar crust, allowing lava from
the mantle to flow in and fill the basins over time.
2. Maria impacts are from 3–3.8 billion years old. The lunar mantle has
completely solidified now, and it is impossible to create more maria no
matter how large the impact.
3. Maria appear darker because the lava that filled them is iron-rich. The
rest of the lunar surface is rich in aluminum and magnesium but poor
in iron, creating lighter colored surface rock (Fig. 2.20).
Unlike the Earth with its rampant recycling of the crust through plate tecton-
ics and active volcanism, or like Mars with its howling winds and ancient
periods of wet and dry climate, the Moon has always been an absolute desert,
Fig. 2.20 Gibbous Moon. (Credit: Author, using 127-mm refractor, Canon 5D-III
camera)
and the crust is effectively waterless.5 Not only this, but it has never had a
long period of volcanism. The Moon is far too small to hold enough heat to
have a molten mantle, and its last period of active volcanism is thought to
have ended more than 3 billion years ago.6 Because of this dry, unchanging
crust, the Moon offers us a continuous record of impacts stretching back
some 3.9 billion years. A good amateur telescope (6–8-inch reflector or 4–5-
inch refractor) can resolve craters down to about 1 km, and sometimes
smaller. There are over 1 million such craters visible to you, and they all have
a story to tell. We will examine them from the largest down to the smallest.
The Maria
The word ‘maria’ (mahr – ee – ah) is Latin for ‘sea’; these features were
christened by none other than Galileo, who drew the first map of the Moon
in 1609. While Galileo is not the first to have drawn a sketch of the Moon
(Englishman Thomas Harriot preceded Galileo by several months), Galileo
is the first to have made a systematic study of the Moon and to have pro-
duced a map of the Moon with named features. Galileo published this
research in his book Sidereus Nuncius (The Starry Messenger) in 1610.
Maria are the great dark features that are easily visible on the lunar near-
side. They are the only lunar features readily visible with the naked eye. The
circular structure and apparent darkness compared to surrounding terrain
suggested to Galileo a large lake or sea as viewed from a mountainside here
on Earth. These ‘watery’ features have names that sort them by size:
• Oceanus (Ocean) – the largest feature, over 2,000 km in diameter
• Mare (Sea) – large impact basins from 150 to 1,200 km
• Lacus (Lake) – small basins, sometimes lava fields without a discernable
basin, from 50 to 400 km
• Sinus (Bay) – lava basins that are incompletely surrounded; often craters
that have been overwhelmed and filled by later nearby volcanic activity,
from 50 to 300 km
• Palus (Marsh) – indistinct lava fields with no associated basin, from 50
to 150 km
5
We know today that there is water in deep, sunless craters near the lunar poles, but not
in liquid form. Typically, liquid water and a hydrological cycle cause erosion and speed
tectonic recycling of planetary crust.
6
NASA and ESA both indicate evidence for some volcanic activity as recently as 100
million years ago, however this is very minor, and the Moon has been geologically dead
for at least 2 billion years.
Our goal for this activity is to familiarize new astronomers with lunar geog-
raphy so that the surface becomes as familiar as a map of your own country
or state. Anyone can easily explore the Moon’s maria with a pair of binocu-
lars or a small telescope. A pair of 10 × 50 binoculars will show you most
of the maria as well as some of the larger ray systems. A small telescope –
even the humble 60 mm refractor – will show you the Moon in far greater
detail and glory.
Just as with galaxies, nebulae, clusters, and planets, different magnifica-
tions will show you different things. Do not spurn the low power! The lower
magnification, wide-angle views are stunningly bright and sharp, revealing
a clarity of detail that high magnification cannot match.
Let’s start with the waxing Moon. Waxing Moon occurs for the two
weeks when the Moon appears to be growing larger each night. You can see
the waxing Moon just at sunset for about 14 days after the new Moon.
There are many calendars that will show you the next new Moon and the
start of the waxing cycle (Fig. 2.21).
Fig. 2.21 Diagram of the lunar phase cycle. (Credit: Author)

You can see from the drawing that the waxing Moon begins with a thin
crescent Moon, which is visible just above the western horizon at sunset.
The first day or two of the waxing Moon, very little of the surface is illumi-
nated, and you may have trouble picking the thin crescent Moon out of the
glare of the western sky at sunset. But by the third day of the lunar cycle,
you will be able to easily spot the Moon.
These first days of the waxing Moon, your viewing time will be quite
short, because the Moon will quickly follow the Sun and set below the
western horizon – you will need to be set up for viewing well before sunset
to take advantage! Each day after new Moon, the Moon will stay in the sky
for an additional 52 minutes. We will explore this change in moonrise and
moonset in another activity. By the 4th day of the waxing cycle, you should
no longer have to worry; you will have several hours for observing before
the Moon sets (Fig. 2.22).
The first maria to be revealed by the waxing Moon are Fecunditatus
(Sea of Fertility) and Crisium (Sea of Crisis). Take a look at Fig. 2.23:
Mare Crisium is the smooth, dark, almost circular spot very near the Moon’s
edge or limb.
The floor of this maria is about 556 km wide (345 miles) – just a bit big-
ger than Arkansas! The outer rim of the basin spans almost 740 km. NASA
dates the basin to approximately 3.9 billion years old; life on Earth is
thought to have just been emerging at this time.
Fig. 2.22 Crescent Moon. (Credit: Author, using 127-mm refractor, Canon 5D-III
camera)
Fig. 2.23 First quarter Moon. (Credit: Author, using 127 mm refractor, Canon 5D-III
camera)
Mare Fecunditatus is larger and oddly shaped. It has a maximum diam-

eter of 840 km (520 miles). This basin is believed to be a bit younger than
Crisium; Apollo 17 astronauts collected basalt (lava) samples from the
Taurus-Littrow valley that were later dated to 3.7 billion years old. Well
done – you’ve bagged your first two maria!
As the waxing Moon gets a bit older, you will see the illuminated area
get larger each night. As the Sun rises across the surface of the Moon, the
terminator travels from east to west across the face of the Moon. The termi-
nator of the waxing Moon shows where sunrise is occurring on the Moon
any time you look at it. The Moon takes over 700 hours (28 Earth days) to
spin just once on its axis, so sunrise is a very slow process!
Our next stop is first quarter Moon! The Moon is now 50% illuminated,
and it has proceeded one quarter around its orbit about the Earth. This
occurs about 7 days after new Moon. The first quarter Moon is high in the
southern sky at sunset and offers several hours of pleasant viewing before
setting around midnight.
Looking at the first quarter Moon, we see a lot more of the lunar surface.
For our first stop, check in with Mare Crisium and Mare Fecunditatus again
to orient yourself. Looking southwest of Crisium, you can see Mare
Nectaris, just 340 km (210 miles) wide.
Looking diagonally up and to the left (northwest) we see Mare
Tranquilitatus (Sea of Tranquility), where the first lunar landing took
place. Mare Tranquilitatus is noticeably darker than our first two maria
because there is a higher percentage of iron in the lava that filled the basin.
This large basin is about 870 km wide (540 miles) and estimated at 3.8 bil-
lion years old.
Continuing diagonally upward, we find Mare Serenitatus (Sea of
Serenity), some 740 km wide (460 miles). Looking at the southeastern side
of this basin, you can see where some of the darker lava from Tranquilitatus
flowed over into this slightly older basin (3.7 billion years old).
Southwest of Serenitatus, you can see Mare Vaporum (Sea of Vapors).
Like Tranquilitatus, Vaporum is a darker basin richer in iron than many
other maria. At 240 km wide (150 miles), it is bounded on the northwest by
a chain of mountains, Montes Apennius, one of the more distinct mountain
chains on the Moon (Fig. 2.24).
By the time the waxing Moon is 9–10 days old, we are now in the waxing
gibbous phase where the Moon is finally more than half lit.
Fig. 2.24 Gibbous Moon. (Credit: Author, using 127-mm refractor, Canon 5D-III
camera)
Mare Imbrium (Sea of Rains) is now mostly visible in the upper portion
of the Moon. Sometimes called Imbrium Basin, this feature is the largest we
have seen so far at 1150 km (713 miles).
The northern border of Imbrium features the lava-filled crater Plato.
Plato separates Imbrium from the most northerly maria, Mare Frigorum
(Sea of Cold). This long and narrow basin may be a series of connected
impact basins, or a low-lying region that filled with lava after the
Procellarum impact.
Imbrium is separated in the south from Mare Nubium (Sea of Clouds,
690 km/428 mi) by the giant crater Copernicus, which shows off a promi-
nent ejecta and ray system. Nubium is an irregular maria that is further
obscured by ejecta from Crater Copernicus and others.
Finally, two weeks after the first view of the waxing Moon, we see the
full Moon in all its glory. The full Moon reveals two more maria. The one
far in the southwest quadrant is Mare Humorum (Sea of Moisture).
Humorum is smaller than Crisium at just 440 km (275 miles). It is believed
to be 3.9 billion years old (Fig. 2.25).
Humorum is bordered on the north by Crater Gassendi, which is itself
110 km (68 miles) wide. Gassendi’s southern rim has been eroded, and lava
from the Humorum basin has flowed in and filled it.
Fig. 2.25 Full Moon mosaic from the Lunar Reconnaissance Rover. (Photo: NASA)
Our last maria is also the greatest: Oceanus Procellarum (Ocean of

Storms). This great maria takes up much of the western limb of the Moon
and is more than 2,500 km wide, making it one of the largest impact basins
in the Solar System. This single impact basin covers more than 10% of the
Moon’s surface area! It is thought to be 3.9 billion years old, but may have
taken more than a billion years to completely fill with lava. There is still a
question today whether this basin is a single impact or a merging of several
large impacts.
Lunar atlases and digital maps of the Moon are available online and in
print form. See the reference section at the end of this book for more
information.
Lunar geography is a necessary skill if you want to observe the Moon in any
serious way. The maria on the nearside of the Moon form the most convenient
frame of reference for a visual observer. While it is true that quality lunar
atlases often give latitude and longitude coordinates for particular features,
very few if any visual observers locate things this way. Rather like the con-
stellation system in the sky, the large maria on the Moon form an easy visual
reference for the observer. And like the constellations, we must learn to rec-
ognize the patterns there if we wish to improve our lunar exploration skills.
Following Up
The major maria are only the first step in learning lunar geography. There
are also smaller features called sinus (bay), lacus (lakes), and palus (marsh).
Tracking down these smaller and subtler features can be an interesting chal-
lenge. In addition to this, looking at the maria when they are adjacent to the
terminator can be very revealing. The low angle of the sunlight near the
terminator can reveal ripples and waves in the flow of lava across the maria.
Careful observers will also be able to distinguish changes in color and tex-
ture, which indicate changes in the composition of lunar lavas.
Activity 5: Making Craters in Flour 41
Activity 5: Making Craters in Flour
This activity is both a classic and a favorite. Although I regularly come in

contact with people who have done this activity before, everyone is excited
about trying it again! The crater-making process is a geological wonder – an
event of catastrophic and instantaneous violence that reshapes the very sur-
face of all terrestrial planets. The crater formation process represents a form
of planetary surface evolution called punctuated equilibrium, the idea that
things stay the same for many millennia until – wham! – an impactor strikes
and the surface of the planet is dramatically changed (Fig. 2.26).
It took centuries for scientists to accept that objects from space could
strike the surface of a planet and create a large crater. The idea that craters
on the Earth and Moon were created by such impactors became widely
accepted only with the Apollo missions. The first confirmed impact crater
on Earth was the Barringer Crater near Winslow, Arizona. Entrepreneur
Daniel Barringer had purchased the crater and surrounding land in 1903
with the intention of mining the iron he believed was beneath the Earth –
fragments of the large iron meteor that created the crater. Barringer and his
Fig. 2.26 Photo of Barringer Crater. (Photo: Public Domain)

partner published papers claiming to have proved the meteoric origin of the
crater, but his ideas were dismissed and not taken seriously in his lifetime.
It was geologist Gene Shoemaker who proved the crater’s origins in the
mid-1960’s with his discovery of shocked quartz grains and folded rock
formations in the area.
Our activity will create a crater similar to those seen on the Moon and
Earth using simple materials. There are two methods for performing this
crater simulation, one using ordinary kitchen flour and the other using plas-
ter. Suitable preparation needs to be taken with both methods, whether the
activity is conducted indoors or out.
1. Craters change the landscape in a matter of seconds. The Barringer

Crater near Winslow, Arizona has as much volume at 400 profes-
sional football stadiums; even so, it was formed in under 5 seconds.
2. Craters average between 10-20 times as large as the asteroid that cre-
ated them. Crater Tycho on the Moon is over 90 kilometers wide; it
took a 6- to 10-km-wide rock to create it. This mountain-sized
impactor is about the same size at the Chicxulub impactor that led to
the widespread death of the dinosaurs.
3. Craters are typically a bowl-shaped depression with a raised rim
around them. They also sometimes feature a raised central mount in
their centers. Central mount features are common in lunar craters,
but difficult to recreate in an activity of our scale.
4. Ejecta, which we have discussed before, include all the material
blasted out of the crater at impact time. There is an ejecta blanket, a
bright layer of material that surrounds the crater, often extending 2-3
crater diameters away. As we have also seen, another common fea-
ture with craters in airless environments are rays – streaks of material
radiating away from the center of the crater. Rays can be very long,
often more than ten crater diameters.
Building the Model
By dropping weights into a prepared quantity of flour or plaster, we will be

able to see crater basins, slumping, crater rims, ejecta, and more.
The first crater-simulating method we will explore involves household
flour. Flour makes a good analog for the solid surface rock of a planetary
surface, because under the violence of a cosmic impact, some of the surface
rock is effectively vaporized and the explosive impact pulverizes a great
deal more rock into dust and fragments of various sizes. Flour has a small
grain size and light weight that simulates this process accurately and safely
without resorting to high speed impacts or huge impact energies. Flour also
does a good job simulating ray formation because the lightweight grains fly
away in neat lines that extend across the floor and are easily visible. The
flour method also has the advantage of repeatability. A bit more flour, a
quick resurfacing with the edge of a ruler, and you can reset the experiment
in seconds.
In the next activity, we will use plaster of Paris and builder’s sand, pre-
pared and poured into a cardboard box. Rocks will then be thrown into the
plaster material while it is still wet to create the craters. Plaster has the
advantage over flour because it creates a permanent model; plaster also has
the advantage of allowing overlapping impacts, with smaller craters sur-
rounding and even on top of larger ones. In a flour model, a second impact
often destroys the first. The last advantage of a plaster model is that we can
simulate the formation of maria, those lava-filled impact basins that create
the dark features we see on the Moon’s surface.
Materials
1. 5-kg (10-lb) bag of flour

2. A deep dish pie or cake pan
3. A box of cocoa powder or dry chocolate cake mix
4. A large 4-meter (12-ft) square tarp or plastic sheet. Check the paint
department of your local home improvement store for this; it is
sometimes sold as a ‘plastic drop cloth’ for protecting floors and
furniture while you paint
5. A roll of masking tape to hold the plastic sheeting securely down on
your floor and prevent tripping
6. An assortment of small pebbles, marbles, etc. as impactors. Nothing
larger than 2.5-cm (1-inch) diameter. Modeling clay also makes
excellent impactors that can be easily shaped and adjusted in size.
Flour also washes off the clay, making it reusable
Instructions
1. Lay the plastic drop cloth or tarp out on your floor and tape the edges
down with masking tape to prevent tripping. I recommend a tarp at
least 4 meters (12 ft) wide; even with hard floors, flour is quite messy
and gets into small cracks easily (Fig. 2.27).
2. Iprefer a deep dish cake pan of at least 30 × 5 cm (12 × 2 inches); a
deeper pan works better if you can find one, and I have sometimes
used a deep skillet instead of a cake pan. Place the pan on a large
sheet of parchment paper or aluminum foil and fill the pan with
flour (do not compact!) and run the edge of a ruler across the pan to
create a perfectly level surface.
3. Put some cocoa powder or chocolate cake mix into a wire sieve or
sifter and sprinkle it over the flour until the entire surface is covered
with an even layer. The darker powder simulates the rock of the lunar
surface darkened by solar radiation. The flour is now the lighter col-
ored interior rock.
4. Place the prepared pan of powder in the center of the tarp. Have the
student choose a smaller impactor, then measure and record its diam-
eter. Now hold it at least 1 meter above the surface and let go. Do not
throw the impactor into the flour! (Fig. 2.28).
5. You can measure and record the diameter of the crater, the height of
the rim (if any), and the diameter of the ejecta blanket and the length
of the rays (if any). Note that the ejecta blanket is a continuous cover-
ing of material blasted out of and surrounding the crater, whereas
rays are long, thin streaks of material radiating away from the crater
that often reach well beyond the edge of the pan.
6. With care, you can get 3-4 impacts in a single pan of flour before you
have to refill. Remember to scrape off the top and recover the new
Fig. 2.27 Leveling off a pan of flour for cratering experiments. (Credit: Author)
Fig. 2.28 A pan of flour with several craters. All impactors here are balls of clay; the
large crater shows an impressive ray system. (Credit: Author)
flour surface with fresh cocoa powder. It is often fun and helpful to
take your phone and make a photo of each crater from directly above.
Crater-forming impacts are incredibly violent events that reshape planetary

surfaces, sculpting tremendous impact basins. On geologically active plan-
ets like the Earth and Venus, such scars are erased relatively quickly over a
period of a few tens of millions of years. Geologically dead worlds like
Mars, Mercury, and the Moon have a relatively permanent record of these
impact catastrophes. Airless, waterless worlds like the Moon and Mercury
do not have wind or weather to erase craters; in places like these, only over-
lapping impacts or lava flows erase features that are already present, and
large impact features such as the maria are visible billions of years after
they were first created. Impact features on Mars have been destroyed by the
action of water (in the ancient past) and wind over the passing millennia,
but these processes are very slow compared with tectonic forces associated
with moving plates and subduction such as occurs on Earth.
Only the most recent craters on the Moon show ejecta features and rays.
Ejecta materials are bright for only a few million years before radiation
darkening obscures them. Ejecta blankets and rays are also very thin, just a
few meters deep for ejecta blankets, and rays are composed of layers of
reflective dust just millimeters thick.
Following Up
Observing ejecta and ray patterns must be done on or near the full Moon.
This is because these features have no elevation to speak of, so they throw
no shadows like larger impact features do. Rays and ejecta materials are
essentially invisible near the terminator. A full Moon night means that we
are viewing the lunar surface with the Sun at the zenith (it is noon on the
Moon). The high solar angle allows light to reflect easily from the rays and
ejecta systems, making them more easily visible. By contrast, viewing cra-
ters, mountains, and elevation features during the full Moon is almost
impossible because there are no shadows cast to help give things definition.
On a full Moon night when the brilliant moonlight washes out constella-
tions and almost all deep-sky features, looking for ejecta patterns and ray
systems can be an excellent activity.
Activity 6: Exploring Craters in Plaster
This is a fascinating (and messy!) activity that always seems to delight

people of all ages. This activity will take a bit more preparation and practice
than anything else we have done before, but the effort is worth it, particu-
larly if you are doing this for a club, group, or class, because it creates a
permanent model that can be used and enjoyed for years. The practice for
this activity involves timing, because wet plaster hardens quickly. If you
start tossing pebbles too soon, the impacting rocks will simply disappear as
though you’ve tossed them into a bucket of water – but wait too long and
the pebbles will just bounce off the hardened surface without affecting any-
thing! You will need to try this on a small scale by yourself before you do
the larger activity with others.
1. Working with Plaster of Paris takes practice. Plaster can be a messy

medium and your best choice will be working outdoors. Likewise,
plaster can damage clothing and shoes – everyone involved will need
to wear old clothes and shoes if possible.
2. It is good to have help with this project. You will be mixing and pour-
ing heavy materials, and safety needs to be your first concern. If you
are working in a school building, chances are that your custodial
team has more experience working with mortar than you do.
Activity 6: Exploring Craters in Plaster 47
3. A permanent model offers many advantages over a temporary clay or

flour model. Permanent models can be touched, painted, measured,
photographed, and displayed for years to come. There are also many
follow-up experiments that can be done with a model like this one.
Building the Model
Materials
1. 10-kg (25-lb) bag of plaster of Paris (see your local home improve-
ment store – the paint department usually has it)
2. 10–20-kg (25–50-lb) bag of ‘play sand’. Play sand is finer than
builder’s sand and does a better job in this project.
3. A very large dish pan and a large metal spoon or garden trowel to
mix the plaster. A wheelbarrow can also be used if you have one
4. Can of flat black spray paint (any dark color will do)
5. A cardboard box approximately 30 × 60 cm; the top from a case of
copy paper is perfect for this
6. A roll of duct tape
7. A quantity of black water-based paint (about ½ cup.) Black food
coloring can also be used if available
8. Large trash bag or aluminum foil for lining the box top
9. Assorted rocks and pebbles from fingernail size up to egg size. Use
only one of the largest sized (5 cm) rocks, 5–7 of the 2–3-cm rocks,
and few dozen of various smaller sizes.
10. Large tarp or drop cloth, at least 4 meters square (12 × 12 ft)
Instructions
1. Everyone wears old clothes for this. The plaster may splatter about a
bit, and it will not really come out of clothing or off of shoes. The
tarp will help, but just be aware of this issue.
2. Reinforce all the corners and seams of the box with strips of duct
tape. Be sure you use enough tape, as the plaster mixture will be
heavy and if it bursts out of your box, the activity will be ruined!
3. Lay out the tarp and the cardboard box, then line the box with a large
trash bag or a generous layer of aluminum foil. Have all your materi-
als at hand, pre-shake the can of spray paint, and make sure everyone
has a rock to throw.
4. In your large dish pan (even a wheelbarrow works well!) mix two
parts dry plaster to one part dry sand. It is fine if you have extra sand,
but too little will not do, so be sure to have enough! Make enough of
the plaster mixture to fill your cardboard box at least 10–12 cm
deep – the craters will be more realistic if the plaster is deep enough
to swallow all the rocks completely. If you end up with more wet
plaster than you need, the extra can be dumped onto a plastic trash
bag to set and then thrown away when hardened.
Follow the directions on the bag, but mix the plaster wet, adding just a bit
more water than strictly needed. The mixture will be like cake batter when
mixed properly. Make sure you use the spoon to dig into the bottom and
corners of the pan so that all the plaster is mixed in. If you feel you’ve made
it a bit too runny, you can add another cup of plaster in – don’t worry, it will
thicken up and harden later on!
Safety Note: Plaster is exothermic as it hardens, meaning it generates a

substantial amount of heat. Never immerse fingers or hands in hardening
plaster. Do not allow significant amounts of plaster to harden in contact with
the skin. If someone gets plaster on their skin, rinse off with plenty of water
immediately.
5. When mixed, pour the plaster into your cardboard box mold, filling
it to the top. Immediately spray paint the top of the plaster. This is an
excellent time to have a volunteer rinse out your dish pan thoroughly
with a garden hose.
If you have some extra plaster, pour it into a paper cup as a tester. Poke into
this mixture with a stick – if the plaster is no longer runny and the stick
leaves any sort of permanent mark, you are ready to begin. This won’t take
long, perhaps not even a minute.
6. Have your students each hold the edge of the tarp and lift it up in
front of themselves as an apron or splash guard. (Don’t lift up the box
of wet plaster and spill it!) Begin with the student holding the largest
rock, letting them toss it vigorously into the middle of the box. After
this, the students with mid-sized rocks can toss them in one at a time.
Don’t drop them – you must throw the rocks down into the plaster to
make a large enough impression. Finish up by tossing in all the
smaller rocks one at a time.
7. Ideally, you should end up with at least 20–30 impact craters, and
you will have an excellent landscape. Be aware that you need to get
all the rocks thrown in within 1–2 minutes. You should have at least
five people, all with plenty of rocks in their hands so that all the cra-
ters get made quickly. Everyone should throw the largest rocks first
and add smaller rocks afterward. Obviously, if little rocks start
bouncing off the surface, everyone should stop throwing.
8. Allow the plaster to harden for at least an hour before you move it,
then carry it inside. It will be heavy, so get some help with this! Be
sure you display it on a sturdy table where it will not fall. In some
cases where groups or clubs meet regularly, we have made this plas-
ter crater model in one meeting and then saved exploring it for the
next meeting.
9. Now it’s time to fill in the maria. You may wish to take a photo of the
landscape before and after you make the maria for comparison. Put
a couple of cups of plaster (no sand this time) in a large mixing bowl,
then add ½ cup black paint or squirt a whole bottle of dark blue or
black food coloring into the required water. Mix the plaster and make
sure it is thin and runny. Pour this plaster carefully into the largest
crater in your landscape – your maria is filling with lava! If some of
the dark plaster-lava overflows the maria and runs out onto the sur-
face, that is excellent – this is just like it happened on the Moon bil-
lions of years ago.
10. You will notice that some of the craters are filled in and obliterated
by the lava flow. Point this out to the students as it happens. For extra
realism, you may wish to toss in some very small rocks (2–3 mm) at
this time to simulate small craters on the maria floor.
11. [Optional] You can use a chalk snap-line to mark lines of longitude
and latitude on your model. If you do not have a snap line, you can
use colored builder’s twine (available at any home improvement
store). Leave your model in the cardboard box and cut notches every
3 cm along the edges of the box. Thread the twine back and forth
through the notches, first lengthwise, then crosswise. The twine will
mark out lines of longitude and latitude that will help your students
draw and map the landscape they have made.
Exploring the Model
1. If each latitude and longitude line on your model represents 5 degrees,
you can sketch a map of your plaster model. It is even possible to use
a little math to calculate the size of the squares and to calculate the
size, area, and perimeter of various features as well as the distance
between them. I will leave this as an exercise for you; note you can
peek at the end of this activity to see the solution if needed.
2. Your craters should show clear rims, and the larger craters will likely
show subsidence as the plaster sank into the interior and flattened the
crater bottom. Look for these features.
3. Because we painted the surface black before throwing rocks, it should
be easy to see the ejecta blanket surrounding each crater. How big is
the ejecta blanket compared to the crater diameter? Can you find a
relationship between crater diameter and ejecta blanket diameter? It
is unlikely that you will find any rays. The plaster material is too mas-
sive and the impact energy too small to create these features.
4. Crater volume is a reasonable measure of impact energy in all but the
largest craters. We can easily measure crater volume by filling the
crater with water. One way to do this is by using a graduated cylinder –
start with 100 ml of water, pour into the crater until full, and measure
how much you have left. Another way is with an electronic scale.
Weigh a plastic bottle of water, fill the crater, and weigh again. Every
gram of water it took to fill the crater is equal to 1 ml. Plot your data
on a graph. Is crater volume a consistent function of crater diameter?
Observation Time
Now, it is time for your students to take what they have learned to the eye-
piece. Point out to your students that the plaster model is a hypothesis – an
idea set in stone as it were (Fig. 2.29).
As with all hypotheses, this one must be tested; the idea is to spend some
significant time at the eyepiece and see if you can find features on the Moon
that confirm what your model predicts (Fig. 2.30).
The follow-up observation for this activity is best done during the first
10 days after the full Moon phase, when you will have the Moon in the sky
immediately at sunset and available to you for a substantial length of time.
When observing lunar features, be sure your students concentrate on the
terminator, the line between light and darkness on the Moon. This area
reveals the intricate structure of the Moon’s surface, allowing you to see
subtle details such as crater rims, faulting and rockslides in the interior of
craters, etc. Ejecta blankets and rays are better revealed during the full
Moon phase because these are reflective rather than elevated features.
Can you confirm the various structures that you observed in your model?
In what way does your model fall short and fail to predict things that you
see on the lunar surface? You can try sketching the lunar surface if you like;
this is fun to do particularly if you have a tracking mount available. It is also
possible to record what you see on the Moon by holding your cellphone up
Fig. 2.29 Image of Craters Ptolemaeus, Alphonsus, and Arzachel with green filter.
The mountain Alphonsus-α is 1.5 km tall and throws a prominent shadow in this
sunrise image. (Credit: Author. Image captured with 120-mm refractor and cellphone
camera)
Fig. 2.30 This image, centered on the Crater Orontius, shows overlapping major
craters. Crater Maginus (upper right) shows three mountain peaks protruding into
sunlight as points of light. (Credit: Author. Image captured with 120-mm refractor
and cellphone camera)
to the eyepiece and snapping a photo of the surface. The photos shown here
were taken with my own phone through a 9-mm eyepiece (107×) on a 120-
mm refractor. Taking good photos through the eyepiece with a cellphone
takes some time and practice, but it costs nothing and is an easy skill to
master with a target as bright as the Moon.
Unlike our flour crater model, which is temporary and delicate, the plaster
model is robust and can last for years. This larger permanent model can be
painted, studied, and explored for a long time. It is also relatively easy to
use the cardboard box the model is cast into to create a latitude/longitude
grid, which can facilitate a more mathematical study of the model. This
plaster model is good at showing ejecta blanket features, but unlike the flour
model it does not show ray features at all (Fig. 2.31).
Following Up
If you have created your plaster model in a cardboard box as suggested, it

is a simple matter to cut notches in the edge of the box every 3 cm on all
sides (be sure the horizontal and vertical notches are lined up!). As dis-
cussed in the model-building, you can use colored builder’s twine and run
the string across all the notches first horizontally, then vertically to create a
Fig. 2.31 Map of a plaster landscape. (Credit: Author)

Fig. 2.32 Calculating distance between points on a landscape map. (Credit: Author)
grid pattern of longitude and latitude lines. The grid can serve as coordi-
nates that allow the student to calculate the distance between points using
the Pythagorean theorem (or the ‘distance formula’ as you may have called
it in algebra class) (Fig. 2.32).
For those seeking more accuracy in terms of distances, areas, and perim-
eters, you can calculate the size of a 1-degree separation on the lunar sur-
face. The Moon’s radius is 1,737 km, so using Circumference = 2 π R, we
find the lunar circumference to be 10,908 km. Dividing this value by 360,
we find each degree of latitude or longitude covers 30.3 km. In this way we
can calculate more realistic distances between points, circumferences of
craters, and areas for the maria. The distance between the two points A and
B shown here is approximately 560 km on this scale – I will leave it to the
reader to confirm this calculation.
Finding the Size of Modeled Lunar Features
• If the lines on the model represent 5° × 5°, we can easily find the size of
each square.
• The size of 1° will be the Moon’s circumference divided by 360.
• Circumference = 2 π R or: 2 × 3.14 × 1737 km = 10,908 km, so 1
degree = 30.3 km
• Our 5 × 5 degree squares are 151.5 km on each side.

• Measure the side of a square in cm to obtain the scale of your model. If
the lines are 3 cm apart as the instructions say, then your scale is: 151.5 /
3 = 50.5 km/cm. We can round this to a scale of 50 km per cm without
loss of accuracy for all measuring purposes.
• At 50 km/cm, each milliliter of crater volume becomes 2,500 km3 of
excavated rock!
Chapter 3
Exploring Size,
Distance, and Motion
Everything we see in the Solar System, and most things that we see beyond
it, participate in angular motion, that is to say, motion around a central
point or axis. The most important angular motions that we need to under-
stand are rotation and revolution. Rotation occurs when an object spins
around an internal axis; revolution happens when an object moves around
a point external to itself. When we are speaking about the Earth-Moon sys-
tem, we must remember that the Earth rotates on its axis, while the Moon
revolves around the Earth in its own orbit.
When we look into the skies and seek out constellations, planets, nebu-
lae, clusters, galaxies, and more, we see the Earth’s rotation imposing itself
upon our view in the grandest way – everything rises in the east and sets in
the west at an orderly rate of 15 degrees per hour.
Altitude measures the distance above the horizon while azimuth gives us
a compass bearing – both are measured in degrees.
Now we begin to realize the true limitations of the coordinate system
known as altitude-azimuth (alt-az). Altitude and azimuth measurements
are among the oldest set of coordinates used by humans – it is essentially
pointing to something and saying “Look over there!” The alt-az coordinate
system is anchored to your own personal position – in effect, where you are
standing is considered the center of the universe, the point from which all
Electronic Supplementary Material: The online version contains supplementary material avail-
able at [https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-98771-8_3].

https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-98771-8_3,
56 3 Exploring Size, Distance, and Motion
things are measured. This is not unlike the early geocentric theory that
Aristotle and many others subscribed to; in this system, the Earth was the
center of the cosmos and all things revolved around us.
The problem with the alt-az system is anchored in the very thing that
makes it so easy to use: it is personal to each observer. Because we see
things rise and set in the sky, the coordinates of any star or planet changes
continuously all night long. If we have two observers located more than a
few tens of kilometers from each other, they will get different measurements
for an object’s position even if these measurements are taken at the same
precise time. The curvature of the Earth’s surface means that both altitude
and azimuth coordinates are dependent upon the precise longitude and lati-
tude of the observer’s location. As a side note, the difference in alt-az coor-
dinates observed between two distant astronomers observing the same
object at the same time is quite sufficient to show that the so-called ‘Flat
Earth’ theory is bunk!
The solution to this problem was to impose a set of universal coordinates
upon the dome of the sky. By having a set of coordinates that stayed fixed
to the celestial sphere, the coordinates for a star or galaxy would be identi-
cal for all observers regardless of where they stood upon the Earth or when
they took their measurements. All astronomers could communicate the posi-
tion of a new comet, asteroid, or supernova without worrying about how
others would translate their measurements. The new coordinates would be
the same for everyone and for all time.
The new coordinate system copied the idea of latitude and longitude
measurements that were used to find locations upon the Earth’s surface. The
lines that measured east-west position were called right ascension and the
lines that measured north-south position were called declination. The new
coordinate system is referred to as RA/Dec. We shall see in this chapter how
changing coordinate systems from alt-az to RA/Dec helps us make sense of
rotational motion and create a logical map of the constellations.
Activity 7: How Big Is the Moon’s Orbit?
How big is the Moon compared to the Earth? How far away is it? Sure, you
can tell someone that the Moon’s diameter is 3,474 km and that it is
385,000 km away, but what do those numbers mean to the average person?
Numbers like these are scalars – they measure quantity, or in this case dis-
tance. If you ask someone how much $3,500 is, they won’t have much
problem – they will probably think about what they could buy with such a
sum. However, if you ask someone to name a city that is 3,500 miles away
Activity 7: How Big Is the Moon’s Orbit? 57
from their home, or how large a box they would need to store 3,500 ping-
pong balls, the task is probably beyond easy imagining. This is why physi-
cal models are part of the regular stock and trade of the experienced Star
Mentor.
It is difficult to stress enough that space is big and planets are small
specks lost in the vastness, tethered only by gravity. In the case of most
space models, the scale of distances is compromised. For instance, a poster
showing the Earth-Moon system with a diagram of Earth 10 cm wide and a
Moon just 2.5 cm wide must be at least 3 meters diagonally to fit the Earth
and Moon. On a webpage for a typical laptop (13-inch/33-cm screen), the
Earth would be just 1 cm in diameter up in one corner and the Moon would
be a tiny 2.5-mm dot in the other corner – ridiculous! So, typically, dia-
grams in a textbook or on the web have been compressed to fit on a single
page. Physical models of the Earth-Moon system that you may have seen in
a classroom have been made to be compact enough to fit on a desk top.
Your first reaction might be: “Those models lie!” In fact, almost every
scientific model makes many compromises and simplifications. Some of
these compromises are deliberate, others are made out of ignorance.
Scientists and astronomers often make these compromises in order to
explore and visualize their ideas more thoroughly in physical form. That is
fine as far as it goes, but the problem comes when we take these models out
of the laboratory and plop them in a classroom in front of a teacher and
children, who often know nothing about those compromises and why they
were made in the first place.
Still, it should be noted that there is a great benefit in constructing a true-
scale model of our Earth-Moon system: it allows anyone easy visual access
to the relative size and scale of our local region in space. Such a model also
quickly dispels the misconceptions one may have learned by looking at
wildly out of scale diagrams in textbooks, on web videos, or in science post-
ers decorating one’s classroom. The photo shown here represents an excel-
lent model for the Earth, the Moon, and Mars. Earth is a cue ball (55-mm
diameter), the small white marble represents the Moon (13-mm diameter),
and the larger orange marble represents Mars (25-mm diameter). These
three are small enough to fit in a small cloth bag; I often take them along
when I am setting up my telescope simply because these questions come up
so often that I wanted to have a ready answer (Fig. 3.1).
In short, you can quote all the numbers you like, but that won’t be very
helpful to the people asking you a question. I have learned that unless you
work with numbers mathematically and regularly, they won’t mean much to
you, nor do they impress anyone unless they are very large. How big is the
Moon compared to the Earth? Hand them a cue ball and a marble.
Fig. 3.1 Modeling the Earth, the Moon, and Mars with a billiard ball and marbles.
(Credit: Author)
1. The Earth is four times the diameter of the Moon and has 16 times the
surface area. Fun Fact: The Moon’s surface area is about the size of the
African continent.
2. The Moon’s mass is just over 1% the mass of the Earth; its density is
lower too, just about 60% of the Earth’s density.
3. The Moon orbits at a distance of 385,000 km, or about 30 Earth
diameters.
Building the Model
I will present you with two versions of this model. One is a more modest
form that can fit in most any living room or classroom, and the other is an
outdoor-only version that is quite a bit larger and more impressive.
Materials
1. Classroom paints and brushes, or permanent markers

2. Sidewalk chalk
3. One 30-cm (12-inch) vinyl playball (blue is highly preferred)
4. One light-colored, 7.5-cm (4-inch) rubber ball (I used a rubber “T-ball”
baseball)
5. 15 meters (50 ft) of stout, non-stretchable cord (a paracord, clothesline,

or pull-cord for blinds works well)
6. Duct tape (blue is preferred)
For the smaller model, substitute a cue ball (or blue #2 ball) for the Earth
and a standard 12.5-mm glass marble for the Moon. The cord now needs to
be just 1.7 meters long, making the entire model far more portable.
Instructions
Note: The larger model is intended to be a dedicated model. The balls can
be painted to show continents and oceans on the Earth and maria and major
craters for the Moon. This is suitable for a classroom or an outreach model
for an astronomy club to take to star party nights. The smaller model can fit
in a small cloth sack and easily be carried with you if you take your tele-
scope to public places where someone may be asking questions. It is a bit
small for true classroom use or if the group around your telescope is more
than a few people (Fig. 3.2).
Fig. 3.2 Materials for a scale model of the Moon’s orbit. (Credit: Author)
1. The larger vinyl play ball will be our Earth. The T-ball (children’s rub-
ber baseball) will be our Moon. Note that the 4:1 size ratio between
these balls reflects the true scale of the size of the Earth and Moon in
space.
2. Tie a knot in one end of the cord and use an ‘X’ of tape to secure it to
the vinyl playball. Alternatively, you can use a suction cup such as
those used to hold a soap dish to the shower wall. These vinyl balls
usually have a dimple where they are inflated; you will want to keep
this clear so the ball can be reinflated if needed. Tape your line to the
opposite side of the ball (Fig. 3.3).
3. Measure out 9 meters (30 feet) of cord, plus an extra 20 cm or so. Cut
the cord and save the remainder.
4. From the remainder of the cord, tie two knots 2 meters (6.56 feet) apart
and secure the knots with a few drops of white glue, then allow to dry
completely. Trim off any extra cord and discard. This cord-measure
will show us how far the Moon moves each day as it orbits the Earth.
For the smaller version of this model, the short cord should have knots
38 cm apart to measure the daily motion of the Earth on this smaller
scale.
5. Put a knot in the end of the large cord. (Optional: secure the knot with
a drop of white glue and allow to dry completely before proceeding.)
6. Secure the knot to the rubber T-ball Moon. The best way to do this is
to take a sharp knife (a hobby knife works well) and cut two deep
1.5-cm-wide slots in the T-ball in a X-pattern. Force the knot into the
slot with a screwdriver, seal the slot shut with a few drops of superglue,
and pinch shut. Hot glue also works well.
Now that the model is built, it can be decorated to show the larger features
of the Earth and Moon if you wish; I simply used a blue vinyl ball and spray
Fig. 3.3 Permanently attaching paracord to a T-ball for a model of the Moon’s orbit.
(Credit: Author)
painted the T-ball a light grey. When you are using a large model like this,
keep in mind that it occupies a circle some 20 meters in diameter. Remind
any observers that the Earth and Moon models are tied together and to be
careful of pulling or tripping. The smaller version of our model (pool ball
and glass marble) occupies a circle a bit more than 3 meters in diameter and
is often more manageable.
Exploring the Model
There are several activities you can explore with your Earth-Moon model.
It would be a bit overwhelming to try out all of these, so choose carefully.
Remember that a good Star Mentor seeks to engage and excite their audi-
ence – not intimidate them! Let the questions drive your choices; remember
that there will be plenty of starry nights for you and your friends to explore
the Moon.
Mini-Activity: Sketching the Moon’s Orbit to Scale
Take your Earth-Moon model outside to the playground or parking lot with
some sidewalk chalk. Use the model as a giant string-compass and draw the
lunar orbit out in chalk. Use chalk to draw in the Earth and Moon in their
correct sizes on your diagram. Draw the student’s attention to the sheer size
of the Earth-Moon system compared to the relatively small sizes of the
Earth and Moon themselves (Fig. 3.4).
Now is the time for your smaller 2-meter cord. This cord represents how
far the Moon moves each day. You can mark out the daily motions; people
will be quick to see that seven days takes the Moon one quarter around its
orbit – that’s why we refer to first and last quarter Moon phases. You can
also point out that the Moon takes 28 days to orbit Earth just once. Sketch
the phases of the Moon around the circle.
How about the Sun in our model? To be in scale, our Sun would need to
be a 30-meter (100-ft) ball, as large as a ten-story building. Then, we would
have to place this giant Sun model 3.4 km (2.1 miles) away. From that dis-
tance, it would appear to be almost exactly the size of our T-ball Moon!
Fig. 3.4 Diagram of the lunar phases. (Credit: Author)
Mini-Activity: Apparent Size of the Moon
One interesting thing to point out with regard to either of these models is
the apparent size of the Moon. Our Moon is 30 Earth-diameters away, or
120 lunar-diameters away. Because of the magic of trigonometry, any
sphere viewed from 120 diameters away occupies an apparent diameter of
just ½ degree. In other words, if you stand at the place of the Earth model
and look at your Moon model, it will appear the same size as the real Moon
in the night sky.
This makes an interesting challenge if you decorate your Moon with
accurate maria and craters – can your observer see them with the naked eye?
With a binocular? How about with a telescope! If you have a properly deco-
rated Moon model with maria, craters, and rays, ask the students to try
drawing their model Moon while standing in the Earth’s position. If they
cannot make out these features, this is an excellent time to offer them a
chance to try out a pair of binoculars if you have one. Students will quickly
see that binoculars do bring things into focus, but holding them steady and
drawing what is seen through the eyepiece will prove quite challenging!
Mini-Activity: Traveling to the Moon
Try for a moonshot! Use marbles or ping-pong balls as ‘spacecraft’ and try
to roll your craft all the way from the Earth to the Moon. Alternatively, have
everyone make a paper airplane and try ‘flying’ to the Moon as someone
walks slowly around the lunar orbit, representing orbital motion. Getting
from the Earth to the Moon is hard!
Most students do not realize that the Moon is a relatively tiny object
moving through a great immensity of space; this little activity drives that
idea home. This activity is also great fun if you have a group of children,
although adults seem to love it too and will take to making and flying paper
airplanes with little encouragement.
I usually use a basketball or soccer ball for Earth and put a baseball for
the Moon located 10 meters (33 ft) away. Making a paper airplane fly and
strike a target this small is surprisingly challenging, and many will want to
try again and again. It is interesting to note that while paper airplanes are
reusable and recyclable, none of the rocket technology used by NASA dur-
ing the Apollo era was reused. Since the development of the Space Shuttle,
reusable space vehicles and booster rockets have become more common.
The Moon is often described as our ‘nearest celestial neighbor’, and we

easily spot the celestial object in the sky, but our clear view of the lunar disk
gives little perspective for the distance between the Earth and Moon. This
activity allows us to visualize the relative size of the Earth and Moon and
the vast distance between them. Many students tell me that this activity
surprises them more than almost anything we do in my astronomy classes.
The clear presentation of the Earth and Moon in scale contradicts almost
everything students have “learned” from wildly out of proportion
representations.
Following Up
The apparent size of the Moon is accurately portrayed in this model, and the
distance between the Earth and Moon is done at the correct scale. Basic
trigonometry tells us that any set of objects will appear the same size as long
they subtend the same angle. For the Moon, which is 120 diameters distant,
Fig. 3.5 Diagram showing equivalent apparent diameters for objects of differing
sizes. (Credit: Author)
the apparent diameter is about ½ degree. The Sun is some 400 times larger
but also 400 times farther away, and so the two appear to be the same angu-
lar size in the sky (Fig. 3.5).
This cosmic coincidence, which leads to the phenomenon of the total
solar eclipse, is beautiful, but it is a temporary situation. The Moon is
slowly moving away from Earth due to tidal interactions. This migration of
the Moon into an ever larger orbit has been going on since the formation of
the Moon over 4 billion years ago. Early in the Earth’s history when the
Moon was closer, total solar eclipses were both more common and longer
in duration. In the far future when the Moon is significantly farther away,
total solar eclipses will no longer be possible and every eclipse will be an
annular (ring of fire) type eclipse!
Activity 8: Exploring Earth’s Rotation
We will be measuring the Moon’s position in altitude and azimuth (alt-az).

You may have noted that we aren’t using a fancy inclinometer to measure
altitude; instead, we are using a simple ruler measured in centimeters. At
one time, I had my students construct a quadrant by attaching a flexible
ruler to a dowel rod exactly 57.2 cm long. Trigonometry tells us that when
the radius is 57.2 units long, one unit on the circle’s circumference mea-
sures exactly one degree.1
By an interesting coincidence of anatomy, the reach of most adults is just
about 57 cm. For most people, if you stretch a string from your cheek out
as far as you can reach, you will be pretty close to this magic number. That
means that when we hold a ruler at arm’s length, we find that 1 cm is
approximately 1 degree of arc. In any case, your arm’s reach doesn’t change
much, so your measurements will be consistent enough (and within the
1
This works out because of a unit of angular measure called a radian. If you measure
a distance along a circle equal to the length of its radius, you get one radian. One
radian = 57.2 degrees.
Activity 8: Exploring Earth’s Rotation 65
same limits of error as your smartphone compass app), even if they are not
precise. For those who are interested in a more precise measurement, I will
put instructions for building your own quadrant at the end of this activity.
The idea that the Earth rotates on its axis and the Moon revolves around
the Earth is something ‘everyone knows.’ However, as we have seen before,
very few people can tell you for certain how they know this is true. So my
challenge falls to you, Star Mentor: can you help someone gather evidence
that the Earth actually spins and the Moon revolves around us? Yes, you
can! Let’s see how we do it!
1. The Moon’s nightly path across the sky is apparent motion. This
movement is actually an illusion caused by the rotation of the Earth.
2. We see moonrise and moonset primarily because the Earth spins on its
axis once every 24 hours.
3. When we measure the Moon’s nightly motion, we are actually measur-
ing the rotational motion of the Earth.
Conducting the Activity
Materials
1. A ruler marked in centimeters. A yardstick, tape measure, or a ruler

marked in inches will work equally well – the measurements just need
to be converted before plotting them on a graph
2. A compass for measuring direction
3. If there is no traditional compass available, a compass app on a cell-
phone will suffice. Most smartphones already have a compass app on
them – if not, there are many free apps of this type readily available. Be
sure your compass app reads out directions in precise degrees.
Instructions
1. Begin at sunset by measuring the altitude of the Moon with a ruler –

this is the Moon’s apparent distance above the horizon. Hold the ruler
at arm’s length and measure the distance from the horizon to the center
of the Moon’s disk. Measure the distance in centimeters (degrees). If

the Moon is too high off the horizon to measure with a simple ruler, try
stretching a piece of string from the horizon to the Moon’s altitude,
tying a knot to mark the length, and then measuring the string later.
If your ruler does not show centimeters, that’s okay – Just take the
altitude in inches and multiply by 2.5 to get centimeters and degrees!
Example: The string measures 18 inches. 18 × 2.5 = 45 cm = 45
degrees altitude
2. Measure the azimuth of the Moon with a compass. The easiest way to
do this is with a compass app on a smartphone. Point the smartphone
at the Moon and read the azimuth angle off the display. If you use a
conventional compass, keep the needle aligned with north, then look in
the direction of the Moon and find the azimuth bearing. Use the instruc-
tions that come with the compass to help you.
3. Repeat the exercise, measuring the altitude and azimuth position 4–5
times. Measurements should be taken at least 45 minutes apart to insure
that the Moon has moved measurably. Record your measurements for
time, altitude, and azimuth neatly each time so you can graph them
later.
4. The next day, plot out your Moon position data on a graph as shown
below. You can use color-dot stickers to plot the Moon’s position and
color in the phase if you like (Fig. 3.6).
Observation Time!
There is a misconception that doing ‘real’ astronomy is something that only
highly trained and generously funded people can do. Yet, measuring the
Moon’s orbital path through the sky is simple enough that a seven-year-old
can do it in their own backyard with just a little parental help.
This activity is simple enough in concept and can be conducted any night
the Moon is visible for several hours in the sky. Practically speaking, this
works best in the week between first quarter Moon and full Moon. Students
will be taking an altitude and azimuth measurement of the Moon every half
hour for 3 hours. At least four separate measurements are needed for best
results. The Moon’s diurnal motion will be plotted on a simple graph after
the measurements are taken.
You can use Table 3.1 to help you; note that it contains sample data to
guide your studies. A blank, printable version can be downloaded from the
Springer website: Data 3.1.
Activity 8: Exploring Earth’s Rotation 67
Fig. 3.6 Graph of the Moon’s alt-az position over the course of an evening. (Credit:
Author)
For this table, filling in the time of the observation, altitude, and azimuth
are self-explanatory: we measure and record them. The term delta (Δ)
means ‘change’. We measure Δt by computing the minutes between our last
two observations and then dividing by 60 to get a value in hours. If our first
measurement is at 6:45 pm and the second is at 7:18 pm, then 33 minutes
have elapsed, and 33/60 = 0.55 hours. ΔAlt and ΔAz are calculated in the
same way; just subtract the previous measurement from the current value.
Since altitude and azimuth are just like the y and x axis on a graph, two
successive points make a right triangle like in Fig. 3.7.
The graph, taken from data gathered by the author, shows the position of
the Moon over several hours in altitude and azimuth. If we want to know the
angular distance that the Moon moved in a period of time, we need to use
the data recorded. In this case, the Moon moved from 40° Alt, 178° Az at
7:23 pm to 37° Alt, 187° Az at 8:12 pm. This motion took 49 minutes or
0.82 hours.
If you look at the graph and data above, you can see that our ΔAlt is 3°
and our ΔAz is 11°. Since these are the sides of a right triangle, the
Pythagorean theorem gives us a distance for the Moon’s travel of
11.4°/0.82 hours or 13.9 degrees per hour.
Table 3.1 Data table for measuring the Moon’s position over the course of an
evening
Time Altitude Azimuth Δt (hours) ΔAlt (deg) ΔAz (deg) Rate (deg/hr)
12:00 3 82.3 – – – –
12:30 8.7 86.5 0.5 4.2 5.7 14.2
1:00 14.5 90 0.5 4.5 5.8 14.7
1:30 20.4 95.2 0.5 4.2 5.9 14.5
2:00 26.3 100 0.5 4.8 5.9 15.2
2:30 32 105 0.5 5.0 5.7 15.1
Credit: Author. Data taken by the Author, 12/10/2021
Fig. 3.7 Calculating the true change in the Moon’s position using alt-az data. (Credit:
Author)
The Moon’s rate of motion comes out pretty close to the 15 degrees per
hour that we expect from a planet that travels 360 degrees every 24 hours.2
And yet we note that the measured values do not precisely agree. However,
the careful observer will note that the rate of rotation calculated in this way
is always smaller than the expected 15 degrees per hour – what is going on?
2
360 deg/24 hr = 15 deg/hr.
Activity 9: Building and Exploring the Quadrant 69
Does the Earth really take almost 26 hours to rotate on its axis? One of the
next activities will help us find the answer!
We are all taught from childhood that the Earth spins on its axis, and many
of us are taught about the older theory of the fixed Earth in a rather sneering
way (how foolish the ancient people were!). Even so, almost no one has
measured and observed the rotation of the Earth for themselves. For the new
astronomer, the appearance of objects drifting across the field of view in the
eyepiece is the first visual evidence of the Earth’s rotation. We see the Sun
rise and set along with the Moon, but the slow and stately 15-degree-per-
hour movement is so slow that we cannot perceive these object moving in
the sky. This activity gives the student the chance to discover for themselves
a fundamental fact of nature.
Activity 9: Building and Exploring the Quadrant
The quadrant is one of the oldest instruments ever invented to measure the
sky. The ancient version is basically a large scale for measuring angles, very
similar to today’s student protractor. The ancient quadrant was mounted
vertically and oriented in a north-south direction so that star and planet
positions could be measured as they passed the meridian each night. These
devices were sometimes extremely large, and some were even built into the
structure of the observatory buildings that held them.
Our modern quadrant is a somewhat more complex device than that
ancient angular scale, definitely more portable, and able to accomplish
many more tasks. The modern quadrant consists of several parts: a flexible
ruler that is bent like a bow serves as the angular scale and also allows us to
measure altitude off the horizon in degrees; a protractor and a plumb weight
serve to measure angles relative to the horizon; and a magnetic compass
allows the student to measure azimuth angles. Using this device, it is pos-
sible to measure alt-az positions of any object in the sky and to make vector
maps of constellations or other objects in the sky. By working regularly with
a quadrant, it is possible for you to get a much better feel for the relative
angular sizes and distances between objects in the sky. This is extremely
important because while most of us have a fairly good appreciation of linear
distance such as inches, meters, or miles, very few people have any appre-
ciation of angular distance at all.
1. Building the quadrant is a fairly simple exercise that can be accom-

plished in just a couple of hours at a total cost of about $6. Properly
constructed, it is easy to disassemble for travel and can furnish mea-
surements accurate to a tenth of a degree.
2. Using a quadrant requires both patience and practice. It is often best to
have a partner to help by holding a red LED light so you can read the
measurements off; your partner can also help by recording your data
for you.
Building the Quadrant
Materials
1. One wooden dowel rod, 1/4 × 36 inch

2. One plastic ruler with centimeter scale
3. One plastic 15 cm (6 in) diameter protractor
4. One magnetic compass accurate to ±2°
5. One dozen 1/4 inch washers
6. Strong monofilament fishing line, about 2 meters
7. Super glue or epoxy (although it is somewhat messier, I prefer epoxy
for this project)
8. Electric drill with 1/4 inch bit
Instructions
1. Begin by cutting a 60-cm length of dowel rod and marking two points
at 55 and 57.2 cm from one end. Save the extra piece of dowel; we’ll
use it later (Fig. 3.8).
Fig. 3.8 Measuring the dowel rod for the quadrant. (Credit: Author)
2. Drill a 1/4 inch hole at the center point of your protractor so that it can
slide easily over the dowel rod.
3. Slide the protractor onto the dowel and position it at the 55 cm mark.
Sandwich it between two washers and epoxy it firmly into place. Be
sure that the protractor is perpendicular to the dowel rod! (Fig. 3.9).
4. Glue two washers into place just behind the 57.2 cm mark. Try to make
sure that the washers are perpendicular to the dowel (Fig. 3.10).
5. Use a file to make a small notch in the center (exactly over the 15 cm
mark) and at each end of the ruler as shown, then drill out the center
hole so that it fits snugly over the end of the dowel rod.
6. Cut a piece of monofilament line about 1.5 meters long. Mark it at the
center and again 57.2 cm away from the center in each direction.
7. Superglue the monofilament line in place so that the outlying marks on
the line fall exactly on the notches in the end of the ruler. Trim any
excess line (Fig. 3.11).
8. Tie a 15–20 cm piece of monofilament line loosely around the dowel
rod between the protractor and the most forward washers. Tie 5–6
washers to the other end of this short line to serve as a plumb bob. Your
plumb line should rotate freely around the dowel.
9. Put a notch in the end of the dowel farthest from the protractor. The
notch must be parallel to the flat edge of the protractor.
Fig. 3.9 Attaching the protractor to the quadrant’s dowel rod. (Credit: Author)
Fig. 3.10 Attaching washers to the quadrant’s dowel rod. (Credit: Author)
notch notch here notch

as shown as shown
here here
mark 57.2 cm mark 57.2 cm mark

end points center end points
Fig. 3.11 Preparing ruler and string for the quadrant. (Credit: Author)
Fig. 3.12 The finished quadrant. (Credit: Author)
10. Cut the extra piece of dowel in half and glue one piece on each side of
the dowel about 15 cm from the notched end (exact location is not
important). This will form a platform for your compass.
11. The compass can be glued in place or attached with a piece of Velcro
with the “North” mark pointed towards the protractor.
12. Fit the ruler over the end of the dowel rod near the protractor. The curve
of the protractor should point downward and the centimeter scale of the
ruler should face upward. Stretch the monofilament line into the notch
at the other end of the dowel so that the center mark rests in the notch.
Your quadrant is now ready to use (Fig. 3.12).
Exploring the Quadrant
Now that you have successfully built your quadrant, you can use it to do
many interesting activities. But first you must become familiar enough with
its operation that it will be second nature to you. We’re going to start off
easy by just locating and identifying a planet in the sky and the three bright-
est stars around it.
First, choose your planet! You can simply type “What planets are visible
tonight” into any search engine and you will get an immediate answer.
Venus, Jupiter, Mars, Saturn, and Mercury are the five classical planets from
brightest to dimmest in order, known since prehistoric times and visible to
the naked eye. Not all the planets are visible on any given night; this is yet
another example of how the sky is our laboratory and playground, but we
do not control it! I recommend that you skip Mercury, as it is particularly
difficult to locate in the best of conditions, and often impossible to find if
you are near a city or other light-polluted area.
Using the quadrant means tracking three different measurements while
keeping the instrument pointed steadily at the object you are measuring.
You will improve with practice! The instructions take you through these
steps one at a time. You may find it particularly helpful to work with a part-
ner, as putting the quadrant down and taking your eye off the target to
record your measurements make it more difficult to measure accurately. If
you don’t have a partner, consider speaking into a digital voice recorder.
Bring along a red LED flashlight – you may find a red light app for your
smartphone useful here.
Above all, have some fun measuring the sky!
1. Full dark is essential! Sight along the shaft of the quadrant to your
planet while keeping the bow parallel to the ground, then have your
partner read the compass to determine the azimuth reading. If by your-
self, lower the quadrant carefully without changing direction to read
the azimuth (Fig. 3.13).
2. Turn the bow of the quadrant so it is vertical; the lower string must be
kept parallel to the ground. Read the altitude angle directly from the
bow scale. If you are with a partner, have them run a toothpick along
the bow until it matches the height of the planet, then read the scale
(Fig. 3.14).
3. Using the planet as a fixed point to measure from, you must now mea-
sure the angular separation vector between the planet and the three
brightest nearby stars. By nearby, we mean within 30 degrees or one
bowscale’s distance. This will actually cover quite a large portion of the
sky, so look carefully before selecting your three brightest stars
(Fig. 3.15).
4. Place the quadrant so that your planet is at the zero point on the bow
scale, and the bright star lies somewhere along the scale as well.
Measure the angular separation distance between planet and star. If you
Fig. 3.13 Taking an azimuth reading (compass bearing) using the quadrant. (Credit:
Author)
Fig. 3.14 Taking an altitude bearing using the quadrant. (Credit: Author)
Star
Zero
Point
Planet
Fig. 3.15 Measuring angular separation between stars using the quadrant. (Credit:
Author)
have a partner, use the toothpick trick from step #2 to improve your
accuracy.
5. Now, with the quadrant still pointed exactly as it is in step #4, have
your partner read the reference angle φ (phi) from the protractor. If
working solo, reach out carefully while holding the quadrant in one
hand and pinch the plumb line against the protractor, then read the
angle from this (Fig. 3.16).
6. Considering the fixed point (the planet) to be at the origin of a graph
with its x-axis parallel to the ground, record what quadrant the mea-
sured star is in (Fig. 3.17).
7. Repeat steps #4, #5, and #6 for the next two brightest nearby stars.
8. Calculate vector angle theta by using these formulas:
Quadrant I : Theta Phi

Quadrant II : Theta 180 Phi 180
Quadrant III : Theta 180 Phi 180
Quadrant IV : Theta 360 Phi 360
9. Record your data in a table like Table 3.2. A blank, printable version
can be downloaded from the Springer website: Data 3.2.
Questions
1. Which constellation was your planet in?
Fig. 3.16 Finding angle φ (phi) using the quadrant. (Credit: Author)
Fig. 3.17 Locating a star in the first quadrant. (Credit: Author)
Table 3.2 Quadrant data table

Planet: Jupiter Azimuth: 160 deg Altitude: 37 deg
Sep Angle 1: 23 deg Phi 1: 52 deg Theta 1: 236 deg
(Fomalhaut) (Quadrant 3)
(β-Cap) (Quadrant 1)
(α-Aqr) (Quadrant 4)
2. Use a good star map or planetarium software3 to locate and identify the
three bright stars near your planet:
Star #1: _______________________
Star #2: _______________________
Star #3: _______________________
3. Make a copy of the constellation and your planet on a piece of paper.
Note the constellation name and identify the three stars you have
chosen.
4. The Reference Angle 0° is considered to run parallel to the horizon and
points to the right of the fixed point (the planet) from your vantage
point. Use a planisphere to assist you and identify this direction on your
3
Stellarium planetarium software is my favorite – it is open source and available free
at Stellarium.org
star chart. Use a ruler to draw an arrow in this direction on your copy
of the chart.
5. Now use negative vectors to backtrack to your planet’s position on the
star chart by following these steps:
(a) A negative vector has the same angular separation but its theta
angle is 180° different. Write your negative vectors down for each
star.
(b) Use the grid lines on the star map to determine how long each
vector arrow should be. Measure the lines on the map to deter-
mine the length. Hint: each hour of right ascension is 15°.
(c) Use the reference angle 0° to plot the negative vectors from each
star back to your planet’s position.
(d) Plot your planet’s position at the intersection of the three vectors
and draw an error circle around the position.
6. How wide is the circle in degrees?
7. How far is the planet’s actual position from your plotted position in
degrees?
Quadrants and other such instruments used before the invention of the tele-
scope (1609) and before Fraunhofer invented the equatorial telescope
mount with setting circles (1824) were complex and relatively difficult to
use. Often, instruments like the quadrant were designed to be mounted on
the wall of a building running in a north-south direction. In this way, the
entire sky would pass across the quadrant and each object could be mea-
sured – but only for the few moments when they crossed the meridian! This
exercise should increase the student’s appreciation for the mathematical
precision with which astronomers like Kepler and Tycho were able to mea-
sure the sky.
Following Up
If you have a telescope mount with setting circles, it is instructive to align

these circles to their correct positions for both right ascension and declina-
tion. You can then take readings from your telescope for the positions of
known stars and planets and check their accuracy with published results.
You can also try your hand at using setting circles rather than a spotting
scope to find targets in the sky.
Activity 10: Tracking the Moon’s Orbital Motion
In Activity 7, we measured the Moon’s progress in altitude and azimuth

over the course of a few hours. We were able to plot the Moon’s position on
a graph and calculate its rate of motion, which we attributed to the Earth.
You also may have noticed that the rate of rotation you measured tended to
be less than the 15 degrees per hour that we expected; the answer to this
riddle of course is that the Moon is moving in orbit while we make our
measurements. Had we measured the angular travel of more distant objects
like bright stars, we would indeed have measured a more consistent 15
degrees per hour.
With this activity, we return once again to the theme of personal discov-
ery and individual investigation.
1. The Moon’s orbit around the Earth takes approximately 28 days, or

four weeks.
2. It takes about two weeks for the Moon to move from new Moon (on the
western horizon) to full Moon (on the eastern horizon).
3. You will see that the Moon’s orbital motion moves west to east – this
is in the opposite direction from its apparent east-to-west nightly
motion.
Notes
This activity is quite similar to Activity 5. The process of measuring the

Moon’s position in the sky (altitude and azimuth) is identical; the recording
of the data will be made on an identical graph.
There are differences in the two activities however, and these need to be
emphasized. Activity 5 is a one-night event; all the data needed is gathered
on one night, preferably just a night or two after the first quarter Moon. For
this activity, we instead observe the Moon at one particular time over
Activity 10: Tracking the Moon’s Orbital Motion 79
several nights. It is important to recognize that this activity requires us to

observe the Moon by making a single observation at the same time each
evening over a period of days.
This sort of activity requires patience and persistence. There is no way to
speed up the process, and neglecting the observations will spoil the data.
Each observation takes only a few minutes, but the requirement for the obser-
vation to be taken at the same time means that proper diligence is needed!
You may find that weather complicates your task and that the sky is not clear
at the proper time. In this case, you simply skip that day and try again the
next. Let me stress again that the fixed time aspect of this activity is crucial.
Materials
1. A ruler marked in centimeters. A yardstick, tape measure, or a ruler

marked in inches will work equally well – the measurements just need
to be converted before plotting them on a graph
2. A compass for measuring direction. If there is no traditional compass
available, a compass app on a cellphone will suffice. Most smartphones
already have a compass app on them – if not, there are many free apps
of this type readily available. Be sure your app reads out directions in
precise degrees
Instructions
1. Begin by choosing your observation time. Be sure that you can be

available to take your observations several days in a row. At your obser-
vations at this same time several days in a row, measure the altitude of
the Moon with a ruler – this is the Moon’s apparent distance above the
horizon. Hold the ruler at arm’s length and measure the distance from
the horizon to the center of the Moon’s disk in centimeters (degrees).
As before, if the Moon is too high off the horizon to measure with a
simple ruler, try stretching a piece of string from the horizon to the
Moon’s altitude, tying a knot to mark the length, and then measuring
the string later.
2. Measure the azimuth of the Moon with a compass or smartphone app.
Try to measure accurately to within one degree.
3. Repeat the exercise nightly for 5–7 days if you can, measuring the alti-
tude and azimuth position each night at your chosen observation time.
Fig. 3.18 Graphing the alt-az position of the Moon over several days. (Credit:
Author)
Record your measurements, time, altitude, and azimuth, neatly each

time so you can graph them later.
4. When you have collected several days of data, plot out your Moon posi-
tion data on a graph, as shown in Fig. 3.18. Some people like to keep
the chart updated and add the data points nightly as they go. Be sure to
put the date of your observation in your data table and on your graph.
You will immediately notice that the Moon is moving west to east as it
orbits the Earth. We are so used to the apparent motion of objects in the sky
from east to west that we forget that this is caused by the Earth’s own west-
to-east rotation on its axis. These activities should convince you that the
Earth is actually spinning, carrying you eastward rather than westward.
The Law of Conservation of Momentum is a foundational idea in phys-
ics. Most people are familiar with the idea that energy cannot be created or
destroyed; much the same is true of momentum, which is essentially a
product of mass and velocity. You may be more familiar with this idea as
Newton’s First Law of Motion: “An object in motion tends to stay in
motion unless disturbed by an outside force.” This idea applies to angular
momentum as well: a rotating object tends to continue rotating unless it is
disturbed. This is why spinning tops, coins, and gyroscopes are so
fascinating!
Planets and their moons mostly form from disks of gas and dust that sur-
round young stars. This cloud of dust is rotating because all of its particles
Activity 10: Tracking the Moon’s Orbital Motion 81
are orbiting (revolving) around the star. The spinning motion of the cloud
contains tremendous amounts of rotational energy, and that energy and
momentum is shared by every object that is created from it. Unless some-
thing goes disastrously wrong, every planet in a solar system orbits in the
same plane and direction – it is the same direction in which the central star
turns on its axis, and we refer to this as prograde rotation. The planets and
moons that form from this dusty disk also spin in a prograde direction on
their own axes, and moons co-formed with the planets orbit in a prograde
direction as well. For our Sun, our planet, and our Moon, the prograde
direction runs from what we call west, to east.
This activity is not just excellent basic astronomy, but also a brilliant
piece of physics research – and you, Star Mentor, have helped your students
discover it for themselves!
As in Activity #7 where we observed the Earth’s motion, this is a case of

something everyone has been told, but few people have observed for them-
selves. The orbital motion of the Moon around the Earth is quite evident if
you take the time to observe the motion of the Moon across the background
stars for several days at a time. Few people today spend much time actually
observing the sky; we take a quick glance, perhaps admire the Moon for a
few moments, and then turn back to our phones. A structured activity
designed to help the student focus on the sky in an organized manner is a
wonderful way to raise awareness about the natural world around us.
Following Up
Documenting the position of the Moon along the ecliptic as it passes

through constellations is challenging, particularly as the Moon becomes
fuller and its light washes out fainter stars in the sky. This is a worthwhile
challenge, but the mentor needs to remind the student that as the Moon gets
brighter, they may have to document the Moon’s position using a few bright
stars rather than fainter objects. Binoculars, which gather more light than
the eye and allow the observer to see fainter stars even in Moon-washed
skies, may be of use here.
Activity 11: The 1,000-meter Solar System
My first exposure to models of the Solar System was a poster in my third

grade classroom, which showed a portion of the Sun and then artistic repre-
sentations of all the planets. Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars were all the
same size, while Jupiter and Saturn were almost twice as large as the Earth,
and Uranus and Neptune were a bit smaller than Saturn. All the planets out
to Pluto were shown in a neat line with a little paragraph beneath each one
telling us something about it. You may remember something similar from
your school days; you may even have such a poster in your room now.
Imagine my shock when I learned that almost everything this poster had
shown me was wrong. Some of the material was just inaccurate out of igno-
rance, while other things were so badly off that it would be charitable to
classify them as anything other than outright lies. You probably learned in
school that Earth is 1 AU or approximately 100 million miles from the Sun,
Saturn is a billion miles away, and Pluto is four billion miles out. But what
do those numbers mean? After this activity, you will likely have a better
idea what the scale of the Solar System is really like.
Scientists make models all the time. Sometimes these are physical models,
like the stick-and-ball model of DNA made famous by Crick and Watson.
Some of these are graphs or illustrations, while other models are mathemati-
cal equations. As explained in Activity 7, every one of these models contains
simplifications, omissions, and distortions. Typically, a model is intended to
show one detail or aspect of a very complex system. Watson and Crick were
trying to figure out the shape of the DNA molecule, so the stick-and-ball
creation focused on bond lengths and angles and little else. The now-familiar
double-helix shape emerged, and the race to describe the structure of the
molecule responsible for genetic inheritance was won (the interested reader
may wish to read The Double Helix by James Watson to learn more).
As Star Mentors, we often present models to convey ideas because every-
thing in the cosmos is as untouchable for us as a strand of DNA, completely
out of scale and beyond our ability to grasp without some concrete
assistance.
1. Because of the difficulty in presenting (and understanding) big num-

bers, virtually all models and posters of the Solar System contain inac-
curacies and simplifications
Activity 11: The 1,000-meter Solar System 83
2. We can make an accurate model of the Solar System, but it takes out-
door space and some effort. With the Sun the size of a basketball, our
Solar System is 2 kilometers wide (almost a mile and a half)
3. We will save space by lining up all of the planets in a row (in reality,
this happens only once every few centuries). We will also not try to
show the planets’ circular orbits – just their distances from the Sun and
relative sizes in a consistent scale.
4. There is a great difference between the compact inner Solar System
(Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars) compared to the widely spaced
outer Solar System (Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune, plus almost
a dozen known dwarf planets).
Building the Model
We will make a scale-model of the Solar System you can use on your neigh-
borhood street or at a star party. Unless you have a large amount of land,
this model is likely much too large to fit in your back garden. Our model
will do the things that the posters you remember from school failed to do –
it will show the various planets and Sun in their respective sizes in scale to
one another, and it will place the planets at the correct distances away from
the Sun on the same scale as the size of the planets. There will still be some
distortions in our model, but we will at least be up front about them.
Consider relative scale. Here are two facts: The Sun is about 100 times
wider than the Earth. The Earth is 100 times farther away than the Sun is
wide. Our model will remain true to both of these facts. One scale kilometer
on our model is always the same whether we are measuring the size of a
planet or its distance from the Sun. You and your students will quickly real-
ize that the Solar System is a very big place, and even the largest planets are
relatively tiny specks lost in the vastness of deep space. So get your walking
shoes on and let’s get started!
Materials
1. A package of golf tees

2. A package of craft beads from very small (2 mm) to medium size
(5 mm)
3. A package of glass marbles (mix of large and small)
4. One standard (40-mm) ping-pong ball
5. One tube of silicone glue. Note: Silicone glue cures slowly – give it a
full 24 hours to dry before you or your students do anything with the
models
6. An emery board or small piece of fine sand paper (See Activity 16)
7. One basketball, volleyball, or dodge ball (Any 30-cm (12-inch) ball
will do. Larger is better, but exact size and color aren’t crucial here as
long as it is 25–35 cm in size.)
8. White glue, construction paper, permanent markers
9. Some modeling clay or salt dough to use as stands for a few of our
models
10. Pedometer (many free smartphone apps work well)
11. A binocular or small telescope (optional)
12. Volunteer helpers (the more the merrier!)
Instructions
1. Let’s begin by making a construction paper sign for each of our planets.
Once you create the sign, your class can look up some things about the
planet and write them on the sign, too. You will need signs for all of the
planets (Yes, we will be including Pluto, the ‘dwarf’ planet, as real
planet). Let’s include a sign for the Sun as well, just to be complete.
Make sure you have signs for all ten of these: Sun, Mercury, Venus,
Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune, Pluto-Charon.
2. Now it’s time to make our planets. For the largest planet, Jupiter, we
will use a ping-pong ball. Take a look at some photos of Jupiter with its
colorful cloud bands and beautiful Great Red Spot. Use markers or
paints to decorate your ping-pong ball to look like Jupiter. Once you’ve
decorated it, use some silicone glue to attach the ping-pong ball to a
golf tee, then stick the tee in a 1-inch ball of clay that you have flat-
tened a bit to make a good stand. Allow the Jupiter model to dry
overnight.
Note: White glue and superglue do not work well on ping-pong balls.
From many experiments, I have found that silicone glue or construction
adhesive works best (Fig. 3.19).
3. Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune are made from marbles and placed on
golf-tee stands exactly the same way as we did in the last step. Uranus
should be a green marble (12 mm), Neptune is blue (12 mm), and use
a larger 25-mm marble for Saturn (a yellow marble is best if you have
one). Use your emery board to roughen the surface of the marble before
you glue it to the golf tee with silicone glue and stand it in its ball of
clay to dry.
Fig. 3.19 Making planet models for the 1,000-meter Solar System. (Credit: Author)
4. For Saturn, you also need rings! I made mine out of an index card,
using a compass to draw a first circle the same size as the marble, and
a second circle three times as wide (it will look a bit like a target). Cut
the rings out with scissors and decorate them if you wish. Use a tooth-
pick to put a ring of silicone glue around your marble, then slip the
rings on and let them dry. In real life, the rings of Saturn are tipped a
bit, so you can glue them at a jaunty angle if you like.
5. Now it is time to make our larger terrestrial planets, Earth and Venus.
Use a 5-mm bead for these – blue for the Earth and yellow for Venus.
I simply turn the golf tee upside down and glue the beads to the pointy
tip. If you put a blob of silicone glue on an index card, then dip the tip
of the golf tee in the glue, the beads will stick perfectly.
6. For all the smaller planets, we will use the tiny 2-mm beads. Use a red
bead for Mars and dark blue or grey beads for everything else. These
2-mm beads are actually the right size for Mars and Mercury in our
model, but quite a bit too big for dwarf planets like Pluto-Charon. The
correct size for these planets in our model would be a single grain of
salt – but this is far too small to work with and cannot be seen easily.
This is one of those deliberate distortions that we spoke of earlier – be

open about this when you build this model with students!
Exploring the Model
1. The pieces of our model are complete, but the model hasn’t yet been
assembled properly. To do this, we will need to go outside – and we
will need some room to walk! This activity works best if you have a
group of people.
2. If you just want to show the inner Solar System, out as far as Jupiter,
you can do that on an athletic field. A soccer or football field works
well. Begin with the basketball Sun in one corner of the soccer field.
Have one of your volunteers stand there and hold the Sun up for every-
one to see.
3. Now activate the pedometer app on your smartphone and begin walking
diagonally across the field. This model is calibrated in meters, but if
your app will show yards, that works just as well for our purposes.
Don’t have a pedometer? Make big steps and just count them off!
4. Mercury is placed 10 m (or 10 large steps) away from the Sun. Once
you get this far, have a volunteer stand at this point and hold the model
up. Another student can hold the sign that names and tells about planet
Mercury.
5. We’re going to keep walking to get to the positions of the other planets.
We placed Mercury 10 meters (or steps) away from the Sun – now keep
walking and counting your steps. Venus is 19 meters away, about twice
as far from the Sun as Mercury. Have two more students stand here
with the model and its sign.
6. Earth is 26 m out from the Sun. Keep walking! Mars is 39 m from the
Sun. If you are walking diagonally across a football or soccer field, you
should now be about 1/3 of the way across. These four planets together
form the inner Solar System.
7. Jupiter is 134 m away in our model. If you are on a football field, you
are now all the way across the field diagonally from where you started.
From here, you can see the entire inner Solar System tucked in close to
our Sun. The signs will help you tell the planets apart – but you are
probably too far away to read them.
8. If you want to use your telescope or binoculars, this is a good place to
do so. Place your telescope near the Earth and look at your model of
Jupiter through the eyepiece. How much detail can you see? This is
why astronomers use enormous telescopes – to see tiny and faint

objects far out in the vastness of space.
9. If you wish to make a more complete model of the Solar System than
this, you will probably need to walk down a local street instead of
across a field. Start as you did before, placing a pair of volunteers with
each planet and its sign along the street. If you have a large enough
group, have everyone else walk with you.
10. The next planet is Saturn. This goes 247 meters away from your Sun,
almost three football fields away. Uranus is 497 m away and Neptune
is 777 meters out!
11. Last of all is Pluto-Charon, a small double planet system located
1014 m out from the Sun. Look how far away and tiny the Sun looks
from here – you probably cannot spot the basketball without a binocu-
lar or a telescope. Pluto-Charon and the other dwarf planets, comets,
and asteroids at this distance are sometimes called Kuiper Belt
Objects after Dutch-American astronomer Gerard Kuiper, who pre-
dicted their existence half a century before most of these outer bodies
were ever seen.
Few people have any conception of the vast distances involved when we
discuss the arrangements of the planets in a Solar System. We tend to think
of light as something that travels at infinite speed; we may be intellectually
aware of something called the speed of light, but every experience we have
with light shining from here to there is virtually instantaneous. These inter-
planetary distances are so large that the travel of light and radio signals now
takes significant time, so much so that real-time conversations by radio are
not possible. This is why no vehicle on Mars can be driven by direct control
from Earth, as the 40-minute gap between sending a command and seeing
a result is far too great for direct control.
Through this activity, the distance of the planets from our Sun can be
more easily appreciated. As with our activities modeling the size of the
lunar orbit, we have established a single scale for all sizes and distances. In
this model, 1 cm represents approximately 50,000 km.
Following Up
There are a great number of things that are not included in our model
because of size and space limitations. First are the minor planets like Vesta,
Ceres, Haumea, Chiron, Pholus, and many others. Some of these objects are
so far away and dim that it is difficult to determine if they qualify as a type
of planet. Are they spherical? Or are they asteroids, too small to become
spherical under their own gravity? We also have not included the asteroid
belt, which lies between Mars and Jupiter, nor the Kuiper belt beyond
Neptune, which would stretch several kilometers out on our model scale.
We have also not shown the actual orbits of the planets, just their dis-
tances from the Sun. The size and scale really hit home when you go from
a radius to a full circle, but in this activity, that is not a realistic option. I
have seen one video online where some people went out to the Mojave
Desert and measured out the orbits, put lights on cars and drove around at
the appropriate speeds to show a model Solar System not only to scale, but
in motion as well.
The stars are not featured here of course. One question many students ask
is: “How far away is the nearest star in this model?” On this scale, the clos-
est star (Proxima Centauri, 4.3 light years away) would be 6,500,000 m
away – over 4,000 miles from your school. For us in the Midwest, this is
about the distance to La Paz, Bolivia! Get a globe and see if you can find
this South American city. The stars are so far away that a sphere the size of
the orbit of the Moon would only hold about 50 of the nearest ones – each
the size of a basketball in our model. In this scale, our real-life Solar System
would not be large enough to hold a model of our galaxy!
Activity 12: Million–Billion–Trillion
This activity is a wonderful exercise for a cloudy day. As we have seen,

astronomy deals regularly with big numbers; in fact, we call truly large
numbers astronomical. Thanks to the computers in our lives, we deal with
the idea of million, billion, and trillion quite regularly – megabytes for
downloads, gigabytes for computer memory, and terabytes for storage sys-
tems. But how big are they really? The reality is much the same for the
astronomer measuring the distance to the stars or the relative sizes of aster-
oids, planets, and stars. We therefore need to become better acquainted with
big numbers.
Misconceptions about large numbers are persistent and troublesome. Not
just children, but a large fraction of adults in our society lack a good under-
Activity 12: Million–Billion–Trillion 89
standing of what large numbers are, how much larger a billion is than a
million, and much more. Almost no one has a good visual concept of what
a million of anything looks like. You can imagine a dozen donuts and how
large a box you need to put them in – but how about a million doughnuts?4
When we reach the domain of millions, billions, trillions, and beyond,
the names for our numbers now reflect powers of 1,000. Psychologists and
anthropologists tell us that humans have the ability to mentally conceptual-
ize groups of up to five or so, and with a bit of practice (and the help of our
fingers) we can get pretty good at conceptualizing groups of ten. In this
way, visualizing 100 as ten groups of ten is well within almost anyone’s
grasp. In comparison to this, groups of 1,000 are beyond anyone’s immedi-
ate cognitive grasp. Yes, we handle numbers like these mathematically and
numerically, but conceptually, we get lost. This activity will finally put the
ideas of million, billion, and trillion on a solid physical and visual
foundation.
1. We normally think of counting, multiplying in powers of 10 – One’s

place, Ten’s place, Hundred’s place, etc.
2. Large numbers – Thousand, Million, Billion, Trillion – are powers of
1,000, meaning each one of these numbers is one thousand times larger
than its predecessor.
3. It is this change from powers of 10 for everyday numbers to powers of
1,000 for large numbers that confuses people.
Building the Model
Materials
1. Got a trillion dollars? No? Okay: let’s use a package of index cards or
several manila file folders that we can cut up and color to represent
money
4
After I wrote this, I had to do the research and work it out. At my local donut shop,
round cake donuts are about 7 × 7 × 3 cm. One million donuts work out to a stack of 15
× 15 × 6.4 meters, roughly the size of a four-flat apartment building two stories high!
2. Several LEGO® figurines or similar 5-cm (2-inch) toy action figures.

If you do not have toy figurines, you can cut out a 5-cm paper doll and
use this for scale
3. Crayons or markers (green, of course!). Highlighters work for this as
well
4. Glue sticks or hot glue
Instructions
1. Mark your index cards horizontally along the lines printed for writing
on; these will be about 5–6 mm wide. Now mark the cards vertically in
1.5-cm (3/4-inch) columns. Mark each square with ‘$10,000’ in ink;
you are going to need 100 of these. You should be able to get 100 mini-
bucks out of a single index card. Before you cut up your ‘mini-bucks’,
color your index card green on one side and a contrasting color on the
other side; I prefer to use crayons for this, but markers or highlighters
work well too.
2. Take five pieces and hot glue them together so that they are fanned out
like a hand of cards. Hot glue this fanned stack of cash into the hand of
one of your small action figures to represent $50,000 – be sure to paint
a smile on the little fellow’s face! Remind your students that it takes
one hundred $100 bills to make a stack of $10,000 dollars, which we
represent with a single piece.
3. Make a little cafeteria tray out of a piece of cardboard or plastic from
a milk container. Glue this into the second action figure’s hands and
stack the $1,000,000 dollars on it. You’ll have to stack neatly; it makes
quite a tidy pile of cash, doesn’t it? This is a pretty good model for the
physical size of one million dollars in $100 bills (Fig. 3.20).
4. Now, it’s time to make a billion dollars! No, we aren’t going to need a
lot more index cards; a single manila folder and some white glue and
markers will do just fine. One billion dollars is a stack of $100 bills one
thousand times larger than our million-dollar stack. This is a neatly
stacked cube that would be 2.4 meters (8 ft) on each side. Assuming
your 5-cm-tall action figure is 180 cm (6 ft) tall, let’s plan on a pile of
play money that is a 6.5-cm (2½-inch) cube. Take your manila folder
and cut out 6.5-cm cube as shown in Fig. 3.21. Glue it together and
decorate it.
To give you some idea, our billion-dollar pile contains ten million $100
bills. This is like having a solid cube of dense wood 2.4 meters on a
side; it would weigh ten tonnes (10,000 kg) and only the largest indus-
3 Exploring Size, Distance, and Motion 91
Fig. 3.20 Students in Dr. Barth’s class working on the Million–Billion–Trillion

activity. (Credit: Author)
Fig. 3.21 Diagram for making your ‘Cube of Cash’. (Credit: Author)
trial forklifts could move it. If you broke up your pile of cash, it would
still take 20 fully loaded half-ton pickup trucks to haul it away.
5. What about one trillion dollars? Well, let’s consider the standard school
soccer field. If we take an American school soccer field of 100 yards x
60 yards, we get an area of 6,000 square yards. If we have one thousand
cubes of one billion dollars, that makes 6,250 yards. That means our
stack of ten billion $100 bills would more than cover an entire soccer
field, arranged in neatly stacked piles of $100 bills 2.4 meters deep.
6. To keep in scale, we will need an area of 130 × 325 cm (10' 4.5" ×
4' 2"). I like to mark this area out on a floor with string. Put your little
figurines inside with one of the billion-dollar cubes of money. This area
will hold 1,000 such cubes, each weighing in at 10 metric tonnes. The
entire field would mass about 10,000 metric tonnes – the displacement
of a sizable naval vessel.
Observation Time!
What do million, billion, and trillion mean to an astronomer? Let’s consider

the size and scale of the Solar System to get an idea. One of the most impor-
tant measurements that astronomers make is distance – how far away in
space are planets, moons, and stars from one another?
One thousand kilometers

(Prefix: Kilo) This is a good scale to measure moons circling planets. Few
moons are larger than 1,000 kilometers wide; most are between 100 and
1,000 kilometers in diameter. Our own Moon is about 3,500 kilometers
wide and is one of the largest satellites in our Solar System.
One million kilometers

(Prefix: Mega) This is a good scale to measure the orbits of moons circling
around planets. If you look at all the moons in our Solar System (there are
hundreds of them), almost all are within 1,000,000 km of the planet they
orbit. Our own Moon circles the Earth at an average distance of about
385,000 km – about one third of a million kilometers away.
One billion kilometers

(Prefix: Giga) This is a good scale to measure the distance from a star out
to its planets. Our own Solar System’s outermost major planets are about
three billion kilometers from the Sun. The Sun’s influence extends only
Activity 12: Million–Billion–Trillion 93
about 20 billion kilometers. Farther away than this, the Sun’s gravity and
magnetic field have little to no influence at all. Astronomers call this inter-
stellar space. Only the two Voyager spacecraft have made it this far away
from Earth. They were launched 40 years ago in 1977; both probes are now
about 20 billion km from Earth and moving away from us at about 60,000
kph. At this rate, they will reach the one trillion kilometer mark in about two
thousand years.
One trillion kilometers

(Prefix: Tera) This is a good scale to measure the distances between stars. It
takes a beam of light one year to travel six trillion kilometers. This is called
a light year. The nearest star to us is just over four light years away, or
about 25 trillion kilometers.
Many people who do this activity are physically confronted with the fact
that they did not understand large numbers very well. The other thing we
begin to realize is how much our astronomical knowledge is dependent
upon scientific notation, because the range of sizes and distances boggles
the imagination and our everyday vocabulary. There are several wonderful
videos on the web that compare stars of different sizes. Our Sun is a giant
compared to small red dwarf stars, but it is just a pinhead in comparison to
some of the red and blue giant stars, many of which would fill the orbit of
Mars and beyond. Planets – even the Jovian giants – are far too small to be
included in this comparison.
Following Up
It is worth your while to investigate some of the deep space missions such
as the Voyager spacecraft, New Horizons, Osiris-REX, and others. These
missions travel billions of kilometers to reach distant targets, and some-
times fly home again. Many take years to get to their targets. NASA
famously asked parents to bring infants in to see the launch of New
Horizons spacecraft in 2005, and then brought the 10-year-old children
back again when the New Horizons probe reached Pluto. Space is truly vast,
and our minds and imaginations much stretch mightily when we decide to
study the stars!
Chapter 4
Teaching the Visual

Sky
Standing out in the dark can be disorienting enough for many people, and
confronting them with overwhelming detail and a profusion of stars doesn’t
help matters.
“See!? It’s the Big Dipper!” I have said this often enough and generally
found that people do not see it at all. It takes skill and practice to see pat-
terns – to impose order on the chaos of the skies. These activities will help
familiarize people with the night sky.
I always prefer to begin with visual observation of the night sky rather
than diving in with telescopic observations. People who are drawn to you
and your telescope can be somewhat impatient – they want to know, they
want to look through the telescope, they want to discover the universe! In
part, this is why I started this book with the Moon; it is big, bright, easy to
see and find with a telescope, and its study yields almost instant results that
are gratifying to the new astronomer.
The time will come, however, when the budding astronomer needs to
branch out. There are many treasures in the sky, but to find them, we must
have a good map. So, we must begin to study the constellations. The con-
stellations are not big, bright, and obvious like the Moon. Their names are
unfamiliar to western audiences for the most part, and the star names fall
awkwardly from the tongue.1 Is it the Big Dipper? Or is it Ursa Major? The
1
Astronomy nomenclature borrows heavily from the Arabic and Greek languages. See
the reference section for resources in this area.

https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-98771-8_4,
96 4 Teaching the Visual Sky
activities in this chapter will help the Star Mentor gently introduce the land-
scape of the sky in an organized and accessible manner.
Activity 13: Using the Planisphere and Dividing the Sky
We have already spoken about the altitude-azimuth system, which is cen-

tered on the observer and identifies an object’s location by its compass
direction and height above the horizon. We have also discussed the right
ascension/declination system, which is not unlike the latitude/longitude
system that we use on the Earth.
1. Astronomy is an ancient science. Many of the ways that we measure,

describe, and divide the sky are part of a legacy from hundreds, even
thousands of years ago.
2. Our understanding of how the sky is divided and measured has evolved
considerably over the centuries – even if some of our terminology has
not.
3. As always, the best way to understand how we divide and describe the
sky and the location of things in it is to immerse yourself in observation
and practice.
Building the Model
The model that we will construct this time is an intellectual one that exists
primarily in our heads. There are physical models of the celestial sphere, but
they are cumbersome to build and not of great value to the new astronomer.
Actual practice in visualizing the lines as you observe in the night sky is
more effective, and it simply takes persistence and remembering to orient
oneself when observing. This orientation is something that experienced
astronomers do almost without thought.
Astronomers long ago visualized the cosmos as a celestial sphere sur-
rounding the Earth. You can picture the dome of the heavens, or bowl of
night as it is sometimes called, as a perfect hemisphere arching over you and
centered on your location as you look up into the sky. The horizon is the
lower edge of the bowl stretching 360 degrees around us. If you have ever
Activity 13: Using the Planisphere and Dividing the Sky 97
Fig. 4.1 An armillary sphere showing the meridian, ecliptic, and the celestial equa-
tor. (Credit: Author)
been to a truly barren desert or out on the ocean beyond sight of land, this
illusion is very compelling.
We impose three lines onto this celestial sphere. The first line is the
meridian. As you can see in Fig. 4.1, the meridian runs from north to south
and divides the sky into Eastern (rising) and western (setting) hemispheres.
Noon was traditionally defined as the exact time when the Sun crossed the
meridian line before time and clocks were standardized. The meridian also
gives us the terms AM and PM for time – Ante Meridian for the time before
the Sun crosses the meridian line and Post Meridian for the afternoon hours
after the Sun crosses the meridian line.
The second line is the celestial equator, which divides the sky into the
northern and southern hemispheres. The equator has a declination of 0°.
Any object in the northern sky has a positive declination and objects in the
southern sky have a negative declination.
The third line is the ecliptic – essentially the plane of the Solar System.
The ecliptic was first recognized by ancient astronomers as a line marking
the path taken by the Sun, Moon, and planets as they crossed the sky. The
constellations of the Zodiac were first thought to be important because the
Moon, Sun, and planets traveled through them across the sky. For much of
the Northern Hemisphere, the celestial equator is below the ecliptic for most
of the year and the zodiacal constellations are seen high in the sky, but from
mid-May to mid-September the ecliptic is seen below the equator and the
zodiacal constellations are seen closer to the southern horizon. These two
lines are separated by some 23.5 degrees; the difference is caused by the tilt
of the Earth’s own axis.
Observation Time!
This activity does not so much represent a discrete activity, but rather an
active practice that the beginner should engage in each time they go observ-
ing. It is very useful before each observing session to consult a planetarium
program such as Stellarium or take a planisphere with you when you go
out. A planisphere is a circular map that can be adjusted to show the sky at
any time of night for any day of the year; it allows the observer to see what
constellations are on each horizon, locate objects in the sky, and see where
the meridian, celestial equator, and ecliptic are located in the sky. A plani-
sphere is often very helpful for the beginner in order to orient themselves to
the sky. It is also helpful in locating constellations, making it far easier to
see how constellations are oriented with respect to each other. Note that
some planisphere models are printed specifically for certain latitudes, such
as a model printed for 20–40 degrees north, which fits well for most of
North America and Europe. Other models, such as the one shown in
Fig. 4.2, are more flexible – this planisphere covers 0 to 60 degrees north
latitude.
Instructions
Take your printed star map or planisphere out with you. The planisphere is
made of two layers of paper or plastic connected by a rivet or grommet at
the center around which the whole chart rotates. This grommet is located at
the north celestial pole so that the map of the sky can rotate around the pole
just like the real sky does. The lower layer of the planisphere is the star map,
which shows all the constellations as they appear in the sky. The map also
shows markings for right ascension and declination (RA/Dec) to help you
identify the location of any object in the sky. The upper layer of the plani-
sphere is the mask. The mask has a cut out or transparent area so that the
user can tell what stars or constellations are visible above the local horizon.
Fig. 4.2 A planisphere star map. (Photo courtesy of Explore Scientific)
The mask is cut out differently depending on the latitude that it is designed
for; this is why you will see different models of planispheres designated for
10°–20°, 20°–30°, etc. When purchasing a planisphere for yourself, you
should be certain to get the model designed to work in your latitude.
The outer edge of the planisphere is printed with two marked rings: the
date ring, which is printed on the star map itself, and the time ring, which
is printed on the mask lying in front of the star map. Operating the plani-
sphere is simple: just rotate the two rings so that today’s date lines up with
the time of night when you are observing. This is called using the plani-
sphere in real-time mode. When you set the planisphere to show you the sky
at a future or past time, this is called projected time mode.
Using a planisphere is similar to using a road map, but with an interesting
twist. Most maps you have probably seen have been drawn as an aerial
view – that is, the map of the city, state, or country you are interested in is
drawn as it would appear from the air with the observer looking down. A
planisphere is different: it is a map of the sky drawn from the ground view.
This map will show you the part of the sky you are interested in as it appears
from the ground while looking up. As a result of this, you cannot hold the
planisphere and look down upon it and get an accurate picture of the sky.
You must hold the planisphere above your head and look up at it from
underneath.
Orienting the planisphere is also different from orienting a standard street
map. With an ordinary map, there is a compass rose, a small sunburst shape
that shows the directions of North, South, East, and West. This means that
no matter what direction you are facing at the moment, the land map always
has a preferred orientation relative to the ground. In other words, if you hold
the map with north and south reversed, you will probably never reach your
destination!
A planisphere map of the sky is different in several ways. The edge of the
elliptical mask that partially covers the planisphere map represents the hori-
zon of the Earth. Printed along the horizon line are designations for North,
East, and West – South is notably absent on most planispheres designed for
use in the Northern Hemisphere. In planispheres designed for use in the
Southern Hemisphere, the North direction is missing. Most modern plani-
spheres show a special chart on the back of the planisphere to help the
observer when facing south.
To use the planisphere, first align the date and time rings for your current
date and time (real-time mode), then hold the planisphere so that the direc-
tion you are facing matches the direction printed at the bottom of the map.
Keep in mind that the map represents the entire hemisphere of the sky you
can see from your location, and that the center of the map corresponds
roughly to the zenith position of the sky. The zenith is the point directly
above you in the sky, and by contrast, the nadir is the point directly below
you. On most planispheres, the relative size of the dot on the map shows the
brightness of the star (Fig. 4.2).
Brighter stars are indicated by larger dots, and many of them will be
named as well; fainter stars are represented by smaller dots. Many models
of planisphere also show the outlines of the Milky Way through the sky, as
well as prominent star clusters, galaxies, and nebulae.
Begin to orient yourself by identifying the bright stars indicated on your
planisphere map and then try to locate them in the sky. Keep in mind that,
E
Date Ring
W E N
N
Time Ring
W
Horizon Line
Viewing the Northern Sky Viewing the Western Sky
Fig. 4.3 Using a planisphere when looking in different directions. (Credit: Author)
if you are in an area with streetlights or other light pollution, you may not
see much more than the brightest stars. The relative positions of the bright
stars in the sky and on your map will also help you get a feeling for the rela-
tive sizes of the patterns and constellations that you are looking for. Many
people who are out with a planisphere for the first time are surprised to find
out that the constellations are actually much larger than they thought!
Knowing the relative scale of the sky and your map will be a big help in
identifying constellations and locating other deep-sky objects (things that
lie beyond our own Solar System).
You can also use your planisphere to help plan your observations through
projected time mode. Plan your observation session by setting the plani-
sphere to reflect the sky at twilight (about one hour after sunset) for the day
you wish to be out observing. Use the planisphere to see what constellations
are favorable for viewing that evening by rotating the planisphere to the
west (advance the time of night). Keep in mind that constellations and
objects within 15°–20° of the horizon are often obscured by light and air
pollution, trees and buildings, and by the simple turbulence of the atmo-
sphere. A planisphere can also tell you what day or time of night a constel-
lation or object is visible. By rotating the planisphere until you see the
constellation you are interested in appear over the Eastern horizon, you can
check what time of year a constellation will first appear in the evening sky.
Gemini, for instance, is fully visible over the eastern horizon in the eve-
ning sky by mid-December. I am able to determine this because with con-
stellation Gemini showing just above the part of the Horizon labeled ‘East’,
the time ring at 7:00 PM is lined up with December 15th on the date ring.
This represents the first day when Gemini is visible at sunset. It also means
that by 7:00 PM on December 15th, Gemini will be fully visible just above
the Eastern horizon and will remain in the sky until dawn.
With the planisphere in this position – Gemini just rising over the Eastern
horizon – the planisphere instantly displays the rising time for Gemini on
any day. Simply reading the date and time ring with the planisphere set this
way tells us that Gemini is rising at 9 PM on November 15th, at Midnight
on October 1st, at 2 AM on August 30th, and at dawn (about 5:30) AM on
June 25th. Keep in mind that your planisphere will not correct for daylight
savings time, you must do that for yourself!
By rotating the planisphere forward in time until Gemini touches the
Western horizon, we can check the setting time for this constellation on that
particular day. In effect, this works just like checking the rising times of a
constellation. The date and time ring now display the setting times for our
constellation, beginning with about 8 PM on June 25th to 6 AM on January
10th. While a planisphere will not give you exact rise and set times for any
particular object (this instrument is not accurate enough for that), the plani-
sphere will allow you to accurately predict what will be visible in the sky
on any particular night and to plan your observing easily and quickly. If you
should need exact times for rising and setting for some reason, you should
consult an ephemeris, or timetable of astronomical events. Such tables are
published monthly by a number of magazines devoted to amateur astron-
omy, and annual tables are available through the US Naval Observatory, on
the internet, and are included in many software packages available
commercially.
Make the planisphere a regular part of your observer’s kit and use it regu-
larly to help orient yourself to the sky. In time you will be aware of the
meridian, equator, ecliptic, and constellations and will no longer need this
aid, but it is handy and easy to take with you on any night.
To study the cosmos, we must first map it, learning where things are in rela-
tion to our observation post here on the Earth. It takes a good deal of prac-
tice to get used to a map projected outward onto a transparent ‘sphere’ that
rotates all the time. Studying the maps helps, but nothing works better than
spending time in the dark with a planisphere and looking up from your own
back garden. The ability to look up and ‘see’ the ecliptic, the celestial equa-
tor, the poles, and the constellations is a wonderful skill, and like riding a
bicycle, once learned, it is never forgotten.
Activity 14: Sketching a Single Constellation 103
Following Up
The most important part of learning the sky is to get out and observe.
Practice those practical skills by regularly engaging in observations and
tracking down targets; even just taking out a pair of binoculars and explor-
ing is valuable.
Activity 14: Sketching a Single Constellation
We will start small in order to build up the observational skills every astron-
omer needs, and then proceed to introduce the sky in a measured and orga-
nized manner. Fortunately for us, the sky reveals itself in a slow and
dignified manner, allowing us to break down our study and focus on con-
stellations easily seen just after sunset.
1. Constellations are ancient patterns of stars that suggest people, ani-

mals, and other familiar things to help us recognize and remember
them.
2. Many of the constellation patterns we are familiar with are very
ancient; some drawings and illustrations of them are more than
10,000 years old.
3. Although the constellations recognized by modern astronomical sci-
ence come primarily from Mediterranean and European traditions,
every culture throughout history and around the globe has had their
own constellations and mythology.
4. There are 88 officially recognized constellations; these form a celestial
sphere, which surrounds the Earth and is divided into northern and
southern hemispheres. A person at the poles can see only half the con-
stellations (one hemisphere or the other). As we move toward the equa-
tor we can see more of the sky until we reach the equator, where people
can see all of the constellations in both hemispheres.
There are two essential methods for mapping constellations, and today we
shall examine both of them in turn.
The first method is the more ancient of the two, and it involves sketching
what we see in the sky. As with Activity 2, people often demure when I ask
them to consider sketching. My reply is a simple one: how much talent does
it take to draw a dot and a line?
The trick is to split the process of sketching into manageable parts. Stars
after all are represented on maps as simple dots. We simply need to break
down our constellation into small groups of two or three that can be easily
represented as a line or a triangle that anybody can draw. The idea is to pay
attention to just three things: size, scale, and orientation.
Size first: for our activity, we will be drawing each constellation so that
it fills a blank sheet of printer paper. This is easier to do than you may think!
Begin by gazing up and looking at the constellation you are interested in – I
recommend starting with either Ursa Major or Cassiopeia. These two con-
stellations are relatively large, bright, and very well known; chances are that
people you meet who want to know about astronomy will be familiar with
one or both of these constellations.
For our activity, we will start with Cassiopeia, as it is large, bright, and
visible at sunset and through most of the night in the summer and autumn.
For our activity, we will plan to map Cassiopeia onto a single sheet of draw-
ing or printer paper. This will give us a map of the constellation that will be
large enough to be useful later; a full-page sized map also makes something
interesting for the student to take home and show to others (Fig. 4.4).
In order to get the proper size for this constellation on paper, we will start
by locating the two stars that represent the outermost corners of the aster-
ism. For Cassiopeia, this will be the stars at the top and bottom of the ‘W’
shape. Notice that we haven’t put these stars in the very corners of the
paper; allow some room around the constellation, as we will use this space
later (Fig. 4.5).
From this point, we notice that the W shape of Cassiopeia is composed
of two triangles. Getting these triangles correct begins with placing the
central star that connects them precisely. Looking at the sky, we notice that
the central star (Navi) lies almost on a line between the upper star (Caph)
and the lowest star (Serin). We also notice that this star does not divide the
distance equally; it lies closer to Caph, and so we must plot it carefully.
Now we can shape the two triangles that make up the W-shape of
Cassiopeia correctly. Again, a few moments of careful study show us that
the two triangles are distinctive; both are nearly isosceles triangles, but the
Fig. 4.4 Beginning your constellation sketch. (Credit: Author)
lower one is much less acute that the upper. Placing the star Shedar com-
pletes the upper triangle, while placing Ruchbah completes the lower tri-
angle. Our completed outline of Cassiopeia looks like Fig. 4.6. At this point,
we can also use a ruler and add in the traditional connecting lines between
the main stars that make up the constellation pattern.
There is still some work to do! First, we must pay attention to magni-
tude – the relative brightness of the stars in our constellation. The Greek
astronomer Hipparchus determined a magnitude system for classifying the
brightness of stars. Hipparchus classified stars into six magnitudes, with
Mag-1 being the brightest and Mag-6 being the faintest the eye could see. I
suspect that old Hipparchus had better seeing conditions in ancient Greece
than most of us suffering with light pollution do today (Fig. 4.7).
When discussing the brightness of stars, I have found people have great
difficulty separating out six magnitudes. I always have my students choose
just three: Bright, Medium, and Dim. This also simplifies map-making. We
mark the brightest stars with the largest dots, while medium and dim stars
get smaller dots. The bright and medium stars usually make up the tradi-
Fig. 4.5 Placing stars in our sketch of Cassiopeia. (Credit: Author)
tional constellation outlines, while some medium and mostly dim stars are
found in the surrounding areas (Fig. 4.8).
Let’s mark the bright and medium stars in our map first. You will notice
rather quickly that the three upper stars, Caph, Shedar, and Navi, are far
brighter than the rest. Mark these three stars with the largest dots. I usually
have everyone put a large, medium, and small dot on their map somewhere
to help them remember how big they want the dots to be and to help make
our maps more consistent.
The last part of our constellation mapping takes some time and contem-
plation: we need to fill in some of the fainter stars that make up the constel-
lation. Some people prefer to use a binocular for this. If you do decide to
use a binocular, I recommend that you choose something with as low a
power as possible. Higher magnification binoculars will let you see a tre-
mendous amount of detail and may show you hundreds of additional stars!
We don’t want anyone to become lost or frustrated with trying to record too
much detail, so the first few times you try this exercise, I recommend that
you stick to what you can see with your naked eye. Even so, the longer you
look and the more you focus your attention, the more detail you will see!
Fig. 4.6 Completing the ‘W’ in the Cassiopeia sketch. (Credit: Author)
I recommend that you begin with the brightest stars first and look for
smaller, dimmer stars in the space around them. For our map of Cassiopeia,
begin with the star Caph; look for patterns of just a few stars, again focusing
on lines and triangles. Pay attention to the relative size, shape, and place-
ment of these small groups of a few stars each. Have your student place
these small groups of fainter stars one at a time, always comparing the size
and orientation of the small triangles and curves with the larger triangles
that make up Cassiopeia.
Work your way down the constellation, placing smaller stars around each
of the major stars as you go. I recommend working in pencil here, as many
people find that they need to make corrections along the way. Try not to get
bogged down in too much detail, and do not worry about making a perfect
map. Finish one and move on to another constellation; your skill at sketch-
ing in correct scale and proportion will improve quickly, and you will find
that recognizing the patterns of the constellations becomes second nature to
you, to the point where you can quickly and easily make a precise and com-
plete star map yourself!
Fig. 4.7 Preparing to add visual magnitudes to the stars in our sketch. (Credit:
Author)
Sketching is quite underrated as an astronomy activity today. It requires no

fancy or expensive equipment, but rather patience and concentration – skills
that will pay great dividends for the novice astronomer. There are few
activities available that bring such great returns with such little investment
to the new observer.
Following Up
Keeping a log book of your activities and putting your sketches there is
essential. No, you don’t have to show your work to anyone, but physically
recording what you do and see is a valuable thing. In a short time, you will
be amazed at how much you have done outdoors in the dark. Your accom-
plishments will spark memories years later that you will enjoy and be able
Activity 15: Measuring and Mapping a Single Constellation 109
Fig. 4.8 The completed sketch of Cassiopeia. (Credit: Author)
to share. Many times you will find that you are experiencing a unique event,
a close conjunction of planets, a special libration of the Moon, or another
night of exceptional seeing at the eyepiece. All of these experiences are
worth recording. For the mentor, these student-made recordings are a valu-
able thing too, as the mentor can point to the progress made.
Activity 15: Measuring and Mapping a Single Constellation
One of the most fundamental activities of science – and exploration – is to

record what we see. Mapmaking is perhaps the oldest expression of this
human need to record what we know and share it with others; it long pre-
dates other scientific activities and even written language. But how to make
a map of a place so far away we can never possibly go there? How do we
make a map of the stars? Fortunately, this is not as hard as it sounds. Once
again, science extends our reach and allows our minds to go where our bod-
ies cannot follow.
The device that we will build is called a pantograph. It is based upon an

old-fashioned drawing tool that allowed the user to copy down drawings
and make them different sizes without distortions. We will use our panto-
graph to accurately copy the constellation patterns that we see in the sky. All
we need to do is measure distances between points with a ruler and copy
down angles!
While younger students may have difficulty with the manual dexterity
needed for this activity, anyone age 12 and up should be able to handle this
activity easily. I have found that no matter the age of your students, having
a partner for this activity is quite helpful when recording the results on
paper. Once again, we see that simple methods can produce beautiful and
accurate results. This activity will also underscore the fact that observing
and recording what you see is a worthwhile skill that gets better with
practice!
1. Seeing patterns of stars (constellations) and naming them is an ancient

activity. Clay tablets over 15,000 years old show evidence of docu-
menting and naming star patterns. Almost every ancient and modern
culture has done this.
2. The sky has 88 modern constellations that cover the entire visible sky
in same the way that states or countries cover a map – there is no space
between them.
3. From the continental United States and most of Europe, we can see
about 65 of the 88 constellations in the sky, but the constellations sur-
rounding the southern pole are impossible for us to see unless we travel
south of the equator. Exactly which constellations and how many you
can see depend upon your precise location on the globe.
Building the Model
Materials
1. Two flat wooden classroom rulers for each student, marked in

centimeters
2. One 3/16 × ½ bolt and a lock washer and wingnut to match each pan-
tograph device (your local home improvement center can easily help
you with this)
3. Electric drill with a 3/16- to ¼-inch drill bit (this is optional; if you can
find rulers with holes near one end, you will not need this)
4. Six pieces of large construction or craft paper, pencils, markers
Instructions
1. On the construction paper, draw six constellations, and label them. This
works well if you use well-known and recognizable constellations such
as Ursa Major, Orion, Gemini, etc. Draw in the brightest stars as large
dots – 2 mm or better – and connect them with clear lines drawn in with
a heavy marker. Place these constellation diagrams around the room,
well up on the walls where they can be easily seen. If you haven’t much
wall space, these often work well when posted in hallways or even
outside on a building wall (Fig. 4.9).
2. Now you must attach two rulers together using the bolt and wingnut.
Some rulers come with holes near one end; if yours do not have this,
you will have to drill the holes. Rubber band the two rulers together and
drill a hole about ¾ inch from one end – be sure you have a block of
wood behind the rulers as you drill to keep from marring your table! If
you are really on a budget, try using cheap yardsticks from the paint
department at the home improvement store; each one can be cut into
three inexpensive 30-cm rulers.
3. With the hole drilled, slip the bolt through the hole and secure the rulers
together using the wingnut. This needn’t be overtight; students must be
Fig. 4.9 The assembled pantograph device. (Credit: Author)

able to slide the rulers apart to form an angle. If the rulers slide too
easily, try putting a piece of stick-on felt between the rulers for added
friction.
These two rulers form a simple pantograph, a device for copying shapes and
angles precisely.
Using the Pantograph
1. To copy and map a constellation, we need only look at three stars at a
time. Any three stars will form an angle, with the center star at the
vertex of the angle. Let’s take the Big Dipper as an example (Fig. 4.10).
Have your student stand 1–2 meters back from your Big Dipper poster
and hold their pantograph at arm’s length. If the line between stars #1
and #2 appears to be 4–6 cm long, they are at the right distance
(Fig. 4.11).
2. Now adjust the two rulers so that star #2 is at the vertex where the rul-
ers meet. Then, adjust the angle so that all three stars lie along the
inside edges of the pantograph. Measure the distances and transfer
these marks directly to your sketching paper. This will give you the first
three star positions for your constellation map. Now, without adjusting
the angle between the rulers, transfer the measurements to a piece of
construction paper (Fig. 4.12).
From this point on, you will reposition your ruler to find the location of the
remaining stars one at a time. Your first measurement was for stars 1, 2, and
3; so your second measurement will be for stars 2, 3, and 4 – however, you
only need to record the distance for the fourth star and then transfer it to your
constellation map. Continuing in this way, you will be able to record each
additional star one at a time until your map is complete (Figs. 4.13 and 4.14).
Fig. 4.10 A practice constellation diagram of Ursa Major. (Credit: Author)

Fig. 4.11 Students in Dr. Barth’s class practicing star mapping with their pantograph
devices. (Credit: Author)
Fig. 4.12 Starting to map a constellation with the pantograph. (Credit: Author)
The pantograph that we made with a pair of rulers and some simple hard-
ware is an amazing device. This gives everyone, no matter their level of
skill, a legitimate way to make an accurate map of a constellation. Unlike
using a quadrant, the change in position of the constellation as it moves
slowly across the sky does not affect the outcome. We measure stars relative
to each other, and the distances between then and the angles that they make
Fig. 4.13 Continuing to measure and place each star on our drawing using the pan-
tograph. (Credit: Author)
Fig. 4.14 Students completing their constellation maps using their pantographs.
(Credit: Author)
do not change. It does not matter that we are using a scale that is not precise
in terms of angular measure; the distance from the end of our arm’s reach
and our eye will not change, and so the map is still in correct proportion.
Many students are surprised when they produce an accurate star map that is
easily recognizable. “I did it!” is frequently heard. This exercise is a real
confidence builder for the new astronomer.
Activity 16: The Circumpolar Constellations 115
Following Up
If you enjoy star mapping, it can be worth your time to get some large-
format paper and try mapping a group of constellation such as the circum-
polar constellations, Orion’s neighborhood, or others. These large maps can
be added to later by locating Messier objects, globular and open clusters,
galaxies, and more. My classroom was often decorated with maps like
these, made on large-format butcher’s paper (some schools call it kraft
paper). Parents and students alike were always pleased to see these maps in
my room.
Activity 16: The Circumpolar Constellations
This activity involves sketching what you can see in the sky with the naked
eye using just pencil and paper. It is best done under dark skies well away
from city lights and their consequent skyglow. I do realize that not everyone
has easy access to clear, dark skies; in that case, this activity can be done
using Stellarium or other planetarium software. If you do resort to trying
this activity on the computer, keep in mind that the computer screen is no
substitute for the real sky. Our ultimate goal here as Star Mentors is to begin
helping budding astronomers learn the sky and become familiar with the
constellations so that they can successfully operate a telescope and find
their way around with binoculars. If you try this activity on the computer
today, remember to try again under the live sky at your earliest opportunity!
(Fig. 4.15).
1. The five major circumpolar constellations in our exercise cover a huge

area. They stretch a full 90 degrees wide (¼ of the visible sky) and 60
degrees high. It is hard to imagine their scope and spectacle until you
see them for yourself.
2. Any good star map shows not just position, but the magnitude or
brightness of a star. Generally, the larger the dot on the map, the
brighter the star.
3. You will need dark skies to see all the stars in this exercise with the
naked eye. Binoculars may help in more light-polluted skies, but use
the lowest power you can to preserve a wide field of view.
Fig. 4.15 Sketch of the circumpolar constellations. (Credit: Author)
Materials
All that is needed here is a sheet of 8.5 × 11 paper and a pencil and a clip-
board for drawing on. You may wish to have a red LED light for drawing;
red light does not affect your night vision. There are red LED’s that are
designed to clip onto a cap bill or clipboard, I prefer the headlamp style that
has an elastic cloth band because these lamps naturally point where I am
looking.
When working with beginners, I find it very helpful to have a green laser
pointer to show people exactly what pattern I am talking about. This being
said, if you do choose to use a laser pointer, you must observe some funda-
mental safety guidelines:
• Always be aware of local laws concerning laser pointers in your area
• Never allow someone else to use your laser – your laser, your
responsibility!
• Never point the device at anyone; eye damage can be instantaneous and
permanent
• Point your laser up, never along the ground
• Always be aware of reflective surfaces
• Always be aware of aircraft – if there is an aircraft anywhere in your

viewing area, turn off the laser and wait for them to pass out of your area
of interest.
Observation Time!
While circumpolar constellations can be seen any time of year, I prefer to

show students the complete group with Ursa Major in the west stretching
across the celestial pole to Cassiopeia in the east. This activity is best con-
ducted from early summer to early fall, with mid-June through mid-August
having the most convenient views. Prior to June, you must stay up rather
late to get a nice view, after mid-August you will find that the Dipper is
tilting below the western horizon by the time the skies get completely dark.
For reference, the view of the circumpolar constellations I will be using
occurs at 10 pm on the 15th of July – you can use a planisphere or planetar-
ium software to show you when the circumpolar constellations will be eas-
ily visible, or just orient yourself and draw what you see.
In my astronomy classes, we would practice this sketching activity by
putting Stellarium up on a classroom projector and showing the view on the
screen. Students would practice sketching several times before we went out
for an evening’s observation. Even so, no one was ever prepared for the
grand sweep of circumpolar constellations under the night sky. Without the
benefit of practice sketching in the classroom using Stellarium, students
frequently had trouble condensing what they saw onto a single sheet of
drawing paper.
It helps to take this exercise step by step. I start with Ursa Minor because
it is smaller than the rest of the constellations and centrally located. Here is
where a green laser pointer comes in handy. I have found that briefly blink-
ing the laser to show the stars of a constellation in sequence works best,
especially with dimmer constellations like Ursa Minor. When you sweep
across the sky with the bright green beam, most beginners focus on the
beam rather than what it is pointing to, making it hard for them to see the
fainter stars. Begin with Polaris and point out each of the seven stars in the
constellation. You will probably have to do this more than once for people
to really pick up the pattern.
For this activity, it will be useful to divide your paper into four parts. You
can do this easily by folding the paper twice and then smoothing it out. Hold
your paper horizontally and mark the star Polaris with a dot halfway across
the paper and about ¼ of the way up from the bottom. Remember that our
paper will be covering 90 degrees of sky in the horizontal direction and
Fig. 4.16 Beginning the circumpolar constellation sketch with Ursa Minor. (Credit:
Author)
more than 60 degrees vertically, with the bottom edge of the paper repre-
senting our horizon.
Ursa Minor will stretch most of the way across the left-center quadrant
of the paper, as shown in Fig. 4.16. Note the relatively even spacing and
smooth curve formed by the ‘handle’ of the Little Dipper. As we mentioned
earlier, use small, medium, and large dots to represent dim, medium, and
bright stars respectively (Fig. 4.17).
Next, we will continue westward and sketch in Ursa Major, or the Big
Dipper. The front lip of the dipper serves as a pointer that can help us find
Polaris, the North Star. In our case we will use this line to help us with our
constellations. You will note that the pointer star Dubhe at the tip of the Big
Dipper is a bit farther away from Polaris than the entire length of the Little
Dipper. Keeping things in proportion is important. One way we do this is to
continue to compare distances and angles as we see them in the sky. Keep
in mind, however, that the sky continues to rotate 15 degrees per hour; if
your sketch takes more than a few minutes, you may have to start tilting
your paper to keep everything aligned properly! (Fig. 4.18).
Moving east, we will draw Cepheus next. Note that the shoulder of
Cepheus falls on the same line as that from the Big Dipper to Polaris, and
Fig. 4.17 Aligning the pointer stars in Ursa Major with Polaris. (Credit: Author)
Fig. 4.18 Adding Cepheus to our sketch. (Credit: Author)

Fig. 4.19 Cassiopeia takes its place on the sketch of circumpolar constellations.
(Credit: Author)
that this star lies just over the line into the easternmost quadrant of our
paper. Cepheus is just a bit longer than the Little Dipper. The shape is a
simple one; I have had students describe it alternately as a doghouse or an
ice cream cone. In any case, it is easy to draw (Fig. 4.19).
Continuing eastward, we will draw Cassiopeia. Like Ursa Major,
Cassiopeia also has pointer stars. From the uppermost part of the W-shape,
the last two stars, Caph and Shedar, point toward Alderamin, the brightest
star in Cepheus. The upper part of the W-shape (Caph, Shedar, and Navi)
form a regular, almost equilateral triangle, while the lower part of the W
(Navi, Ruchbah, and Segin) form a more flattened isosceles triangle. As
with Cepheus, the simple shape of Cassiopeia makes it easy to recognize
and to draw.
Finally, we are ready to finish our drawing by putting in Draco. Draco
has quite a few faint stars along its winding length, and it is the most diffi-
cult to pick out under more light-polluted skies. If you have trouble seeing
Draco, you might try low-power binoculars; a pair of 7 × 50 binoculars
work relatively well here. The difficulty with binoculars is that a larger
aperture and more magnification will allow you to see not just a few more
Fig. 4.20 Adding Draco completes the sketch; note how pointer stars are used
throughout. (Credit: Author)
stars, but a great many more. If you are not familiar with the constellations,
it is easy to get lost in the magnificent starfield that a binocular offers. For
this activity, I recommend sticking to the naked-eye view (Fig. 4.20).
Once again, we will make use of pointer stars. The top two stars in
Cepheus will point us generally in the direction of the head of Draco; this
is where we will find Eltanin, the brightest star in the constellation Draco.
Note that the Dragon wraps itself about 180 degrees around Ursa Minor;
this also helps us find the stars of the constellation in less than perfect skies.
Trace the arc of Draco around the Little Bear in your drawing. Be sure to
note that the two stars in the head of the Dragon are brighter than the rest.
You can now add in the names of the constellations, and star names too if
you wish. And of course, remind your students that we are astronomers
gathering data; we do not have to be artists to do this well. Be sure to add
in the date, time, and location on your drawing and save it in your astron-
omy log. You can try again later and improve your sketching skills.
Not just drawing, but finding new constellations by ‘star hopping’ from one
known star to another is a useful skill. The pointer stars that lead across the
lip of the Big Dipper asterism out to the pole star are perhaps some of the
best known pointers in the sky – but they are far from the only ones!
Studying star maps before you go out observing, you can often find pointers
that will lead you to your next discovery. This method also teaches planning
and forethought, which are valuable skills for the new astronomer.
Following Up
There are quite a variety of constellation groups. Most astronomers have

their favorites based upon their own experiences and activities. What things
you enjoy viewing will dictate to some extent how you view and group the
constellations. There is no wrong answer here, and I encourage all my
students and mentors alike to sketch what they see as a way of documenting
their progress.
Chapter 5
The Bowl of Night –

Spring and Summer
The starry sky has often been referred to as the bowl of night. Think of the
sky as a hemispherical bowl whose edges touch the horizon all around you.
This bowl arches to a peak at the zenith above your head; the meridian line
stretches from due south to north and splits the bowl into eastern (rising)
and western (setting) halves. The Earth’s equator is mirrored in the celestial
equator, which divides the sky into northern and southern hemispheres.
People are attracted to the mysteries of the bowl of night. The desire to
know, navigate, and explore the night sky is something that few can resist
or ignore completely. On a long winter’s night, you can see more than 75%
of the entire sky if you have the perseverance for braving the long hours of
cold. But most of us confine our observing time to a few hours after sunset
on any given day. Thus, you will need an entire year to explore the entire
sky. I have broken the activities in this chapter into Spring and Summer;
Autumn and Winter skies are covered in Chap. 6. The activities here are not
exhaustive –they are simply meant to help you explore in an organized way.
Your imagination and interests will direct you much farther than I will as
your Star Mentor. I am here simply to get you started on your journey.

https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-98771-8_5,
124 5 The Bowl of Night – Spring and Summer
Activity 17: Spring – Mr. Orion’s Neighborhood
Learning constellations in the sky is easily done if you can spot a few very
bright and obvious constellations and use them as guide markers to identify
the smaller and dimmer constellations that are harder to spot. The constel-
lation Orion is a favorite and known to almost everyone. Along with Ursa
Major, it is one of the most recognizable constellations in the sky and an
excellent one to start with.
Facts you Need to Know
1. Orion is a very bright constellation high in the south at sunset around

March 10th. Orion is suitably positioned for our observation activity
from late January through the end of March.
2. Orion is anchored by the red supergiant Betelgeuse (upper left) and the
blue giant Rigel (lower right). These two bright stars are easy to spot
early in twilight and will help you find the constellation. The upper
right star Bellatrix and lower left star Saph will appear as the twilight
deepens into full night.
3. Orion’s famous trio of belt stars are easy to spot, and the asterism The
Sword hangs down from the left side of the belt. This group of stars
also contains the Orion Nebula, a star-forming region some 1350 light
years away.
Observation Time!
Begin by spotting Orion which is high in the south at sunset from around
late January through the end of March. Use your planisphere to help you
with this task. We will be using the stars in the constellation Orion as point-
ers to help us locate other constellations. In addition, you will be using your
sketching skills to make a drawing of this region, much as we did with the
circumpolar constellations.
Orient your paper horizontally and draw Orion in the center. Be sure that
you don’t make Orion too large, or all the constellations will not fit on your
paper. Look at the height of your horizontal drawing paper and make Orion
about ¼ of this size. If you are using a typical 12-inch (30-cm) planisphere,
draw Orion just a bit bigger than it appears on your planisphere and you
should be fine (Fig. 5.1).
Activity 17: Spring – Mr. Orion’s Neighborhood 125
Fig. 5.1 A sketch of the constellation Orion. (Credit: Author)
Be sure to show each constellation in correct proportion to Orion. You

can do this by using various features of Orion as a measuring stick. How far
away is a certain star when compared to the size of Orion’s belt, or the dis-
tance between Rigel and Betelgeuse? Try to choose a dark site and to be
patient. Careful observation will reveal much! Do not worry about a perfect
result on paper; we are trying to build a map in your head so that you can
recognize and pick out the constellations in Orion’s neighborhood no matter
how the great hunter is oriented in the skies. You can always draw your map
again tomorrow, and you are certain to see more detail as you continue to
observe.
1. Once you have drawn Orion’s primary stars (Betelgeuse, Bellatrix,

Rigel, and Saiph) and added the belt and the sword, see if you can spot
some of the fainter stars in Orion. Look for the club reaching high
above the left shoulder and the shield straight out from the right shoul-
der. You should find a fair amount of detail within the boundaries of
Orion’s body as well.
2. Start at Rigel and move toward Betelgeuse; keep going in the same
direction and you will come to the bright pair Castor and Pollux in the con-
stellation Gemini. Castor and Pollux are the names of the two twin boys in
Gemini, and these stars form the heads of the pair as well. The bodies, legs,
and feet of these stickman shapes point down toward the red star Betelgeuse
on Orion’s left shoulder. Sketch Gemini into your drawing now; be sure to
make it the same size as the body of Orion.
3. Now cross the body of Orion in the other direction. Start at Saiph in the
lower right and move toward Bellatrix. Continue until you come to the
bright star Capella in the constellation Auriga. Auriga forms a neat penta-
gon of bright stars near the zenith of the sky. Sketch the pentagon of Auriga
into your drawing.
4. Follow the belt stars of Orion westward (to Orion’s right) until you
come to the red giant star Aldebaran in the constellation Taurus. Continue
on the same heading past Taurus for the same distance and you will come
to the open star cluster known as the Pleiades. The Pleiades shows itself as
a group of dim stars if you look at it directly, but if you use averted vision
by focusing just a bit to any side, you will see a ghostly grey glow surround-
ing the group. This glow is too faint to be seen by the cone cells in the center
of your retina but shows up easily in the rod cells (black-and-white vision)
that surround the center of your retina. Sketch Taurus and the Pleiades into
your drawing.
5. Now follow the belt stars of Orion again, but this time eastward (to
Orion’s left) and you will come to the blue giant star Sirius. Sirius is the
brightest star seen from anywhere on Earth, and it is part of the constellation
Canis Major. Sketch Canis Major into your drawing.
6. Finally, directly beneath Orion between Saiph and Rigel, you should
find the constellation Lepus. Once you add Lepus to your sketch, your
drawing of Mr. Orion’s Neighborhood is complete (Fig. 5.2)!
Orion is one of the brightest and most recognized constellations in the sky.
The hunter equipped with sword, club, and shield and accompanied by his
hunting dogs as he pursues the hare and the bull is iconic. This bright con-
stellation also helps point us to nearby fainter constellations that hold many
magnificent sights. Learning constellation groups is a stairway to becoming
familiar with the entire sky.
Activity 18: Spring – Exploring the Northern Milky Way with Binoculars 127
Fig. 5.2 Completed sketch of Mr. Orion’s Neighborhood. (Credit: Author)
ctivity 18: Spring – Exploring the Northern Milky Way

A
with Binoculars
I always enjoy introducing a new astronomer to the night sky using binocu-
lars. Their bright, crisp images, high contrast, and wide-angle views are
very captivating. The other primary advantage of the binocular is its ortho-
scopic view – everything you see is right side up and correct left to right.
Compared to a telescope, which can offer you a mirror-reversed image that
can be inverted or even rotated to a random angle, binoculars are a marvel
of clarity; they are by far the best instrument for learning to find and navi-
gate across the constellations and track down clusters and other deep-sky
objects.
There is an entire chapter on binoculars at the end of this book, but nev-
ertheless, we will go over some basics of binocular design and operation in
our activities here. Amateur astronomers use a variety of equipment depend-
ing upon the job we want to do. It is incumbent upon us to remember that
the new astronomer’s knowledge is likely to be limited. And more, the
casual person who approaches you and asks for a turn at the eyepiece may
Bridge
Eye Cup
Eyepiece Diopter
Prism
Body
System
Hinge
Objective Focuser
Lens Cell Knob
Objective
Optical Lens
Path
The anatomy of a binocular
Fig. 5.3 Working diagram of a porro prism binocular. (Credit: Author)
have profound misconceptions about how binoculars and telescopes work,

and what these instruments can and cannot do.
It is necessary for the Star Mentor to be patient and explain as you
observe, as it is far better for us to review something someone already
knows than to skip over essentials. When I hear: “Yeah, I knew that!” I
almost always reply, “Excellent! Tell me some more about what you know
about binoculars, telescopes, etc.” This gives me an opportunity to gauge
how much someone knows about astronomy and adjust my teaching accord-
ingly. More importantly, it gives the student an opportunity to share and to
be praised for what they know (Fig. 5.3)!
1. Modern binoculars use prisms to correct the visual image so that it is

correct in vertical (not inverted) and horizontal (not mirror-reversed)
orientation. Prisms and lenses of quality binoculars have special coat-
ings that make them more efficient at transmitting light.
2. Modern binoculars have enough focus travel to correct for most myopia
(nearsighted) and hyperopia (farsighted) conditions so that the observer
can use the binocular comfortably without glasses. Binoculars cannot

correct for astigmatism, however.
3. Everyone’s eyes are different – even your left eye is different from your
right! Modern binoculars have a diopter adjustment, usually on the
right, that allows the right and left side to focus slightly differently.
With proper adjustment, anyone can have perfect focus for both eyes;
this reduces eye strain and increases the enjoyment in astronomical
viewing.
Observation Time!
1. Orient yourself and your student with the circumpolar stars. The dia-
gram here shows the circumpolar constellations as they appear in mid-
March. If you are familiar with the view of the circumpolar constellations
in summer and autumn, you will soon notice that the head of Draco is
now too low in the north for us to see the entire constellation. If your
student is not familiar with these constellations, a green laser pointer
may be useful (be sure to read the laser safety tips in Activity 16,
Conducting the Activity!).
2. Prepare for binocular observation by setting up a lawn chair or other
comfortable seating for yourself and your student. If you are using
binoculars mounted on tripods, be sure that the binocular is at eye level;
crouching or standing tip-toe at the eyepiece will discourage patient
observing. I generally prefer for the beginner to observe without a tri-
pod because moving and adjusting the binocular is far more natural this
way.
3. Now it is time to adjust the focus and diopter. Because every person’s
eyesight is different, it is most helpful if you and your student each
have your own pair of binoculars. Begin by putting a lens cap over the
right lens only; experienced binocular observers usually just close the
right eye, but we want to make things as simple as possible for our
beginners! Look through the binoculars and adjust the main focus so
that the star field is clear and sharp.
4. Have everyone switch the lens cap from the right to the left side so that
we can adjust the diopter. We must not touch the main focus until we
have done so! The diopter adjustment is typically made either by rotat-
ing the right eyepiece or by rotating a ring located just forward of the
eyepiece. Look at the same star field and rotate the diopter until the
right side is sharp and clear.
Fig. 5.4 The circumpolar constellations in late winter. (Credit: Author)
Once the right side is clear, remove the lens cap for good, blink your
eyes as you look through the binocular and give the main focus a quick
final adjustment if needed. Because everything in the sky is effectively
at an infinite distance, there will be no need to adjust the focus for the
rest of the observing session. This is a particular advantage for the new
observer, as it allows them to sweep the heavens easily and keep their
attention on the sky rather than worrying about the instrument. Keeping
hands off the main focus can be difficult for the beginner, particularly
if they are used to taking binoculars hunting, camping, or to a ball game
where frequent focus adjustments are required (Fig. 5.4).
5. Now that we have adjusted our binocular for viewing, it is time to
acquaint ourselves with the circumpolar stars. In Activity 12, we intro-
duced the circumpolar constellations as they are seen in late summer
and autumn; in early spring you will find the entire star field you had
become familiar with has been rotated 180 degrees. Cassiopeia is now
in the west, Ursa Major is in the east, and Ursa Minor dangles down
and eastward from Polaris. If you have a green laser pointer, this is an
excellent way to orient the beginner to the circumpolar stars. Once
everyone is familiar with the basic constellation shapes, take the bin-
ocular and begin star hopping. I recommend starting with Ursa Major
and Cassiopeia because they are simple linear shapes that are easily
traced in the binocular. If need be, you can blink your green laser at a
star until the student can find it in the binocular and move on from
there.
6. Moving now to Cassiopeia, we will start at the far northern end of the
constellation closer to the horizon. We are starting with the most north-
western portion of the Milky Way because this is the section that will
be setting first as the evening progresses. Start your binocular on the
star Caph at the lowest point of Cassiopeia and sweep down toward the
horizon. The Rose Cluster (NGC 7789) is a small globular cluster of
more than 100 stars. Globular clusters are tight groups of up to 100,000
stars or more, all packed in the space of a few light years (see Chap.
10). At mag 6.7, the Rose Cluster should be easily visible and appear
as a somewhat fuzzy star in the binocular (Fig. 5.5).
7. Continue due west from the Rose Cluster about the same distance as
Cassiopeia is long, and you will come to the Andromeda Galaxy. Much
has been written about this spiral galaxy, which is thought to be a vir-
tual twin of our own Milky Way. At 2.5 million light years, it is one of
the most distant objects visible to the naked eye. An easy catch in bin-
oculars, its long oval shape runs almost vertically from north to south
at this time of year; if you wish to see it with the naked eye, clear, dark
skies well away from city lights are required.
Fig. 5.5 Sketch of Cassiopeia in the northern Milky Way. (Credit: Author)
The Andromeda Galaxy is on a collision course with our own galaxy;

the crash is due to happen some 4–5 billion years from now. Both gal-
axies will lose their distinct spiral character and merge into a larger
elliptical galaxy, although local star systems away from the galactic
cores are very unlikely to suffer collisions or disruptions. Looking at
the galaxy in Andromeda is rather like standing on a railroad track with
binoculars and watching a very distant freight train bearing down on
your position from many miles away (Fig. 5.6)!
8. Go back to Cassiopeia and move toward its northern end. Sweep your
binocular around the area between the stars Ruchbah and Navi and you
will find a group of seven beautiful star clusters. The clusters all have
fanciful names such as Lawnmower, Fuzzy Butterfly, Yin-Yang, and
Dragonfly cluster, but for simplicity I will refer to them by their NGC
catalog numbers. These clusters are all bright enough to be seen with a
binocular and are well worth pursuing. A 150-mm (6-inch) telescope
will reveal more deep-sky objects (and more detail) for this area, but
the b inoculars make a great way to familiarize your student with the
northern Milky Way.
Fig. 5.6 Detail sketch of Cassiopeia showing a number of open clusters. (Credit:
Author)
Activity 19: Summer – Scorpio’s Neighborhood 133
The Milky Way is the most densely populated portion of the sky; while it
provides a multitude of targets for the observer, the crowded nature of this
area of the sky can make navigation with a telescope difficult for the begin-
ner. Using binoculars to survey regions of the Milky Way can be a boon for
the new observer because the lack of magnification coupled with the wider
field of view can make navigation easier.
The Milky Way is also home to many extended nebulae and star clusters
that are more easily captured in the low power, wide field view of a binocu-
lar than they are in a telescope. The binocular’s orthographic view and the
natural way we point and focus it make tracking an object and star hopping
from one target to the next far less frustrating. Once the beginner has a more
complete grasp of this region of the sky through binocular viewing, transi-
tioning to a telescope becomes both easier and more productive. The great
preponderance of targets for observation found in the Milky Way makes it
a ‘garden of delights’ that an observer can return to again and again. As the
student transitions from beginner to more experienced observer, the Milky
Way will continue to offer new challenges – enough for a lifetime of
observing.
Following up
The disk of the Milky Way that we see edge-on must be a relatively com-
mon sight on planets not only across our own galaxy, but in almost every
spiral galaxy across the universe. The starry road full of nebulae, clusters,
nebulae, and star-forming regions is a spectacular sight on any night when
it is visible. Always a grand delight with binoculars or telescope, it is wor-
thy of further study.
Activity 19: Summer – Scorpio’s Neighborhood
When we look toward the southern horizon in the summer, we are looking
toward the heart of the Milky Way Galaxy. This area is densely populated
with various nebulae and star clusters, but before we get to them, we are
going to look at three zodiacal constellations: Sagittarius, Scorpius, and
Libra. Sagittarius and Scorpius are both bright and quite easy to spot, and
their unique shapes help the beginner trace them easily in the night sky.
Libra is less populated with bright stars and is a bit more difficult to see, but
following pointer stars in Scorpius will help. All of these constellations lie
near the southern horizon. If you live north of 40° latitude, you may have
some difficulty spotting all the stars in the southernmost parts of Scorpius –
a dark sky and a clear view of the southern horizon will be helpful here.
1. The ecliptic dips toward the southern horizon in summer, limiting our
view of the zodiacal constellations.
2. The Milky Way stretches almost due north on summer nights just after
sunset. The density of stars, clusters, nebulae, and other deep-sky
objects can be a distraction in the telescope and binoculars. Starting to
sketch the constellations with the naked eye will be helpful.
3. The name of the red giant star Antares means ‘Rival of Mars’. Its red
color makes it obvious, and it is a good place to start our sketching of
the southern constellations.
Observation Time!
4. With your paper held horizontally, begin with Antares. This red giant is
the brightest star in the southern skies in mid-summer and anchors the
constellation Scorpius. Place it just to the right and below the center of
your paper. Go eastward, pick up the three stars of the scorpion’s claws,
and record them. If you are using large, medium, and small dots to
record star brightness, the claws of Scorpius are medium and Antares
gets a large dot here.
5. Move south from Antares and record the body of the scorpion and the
graceful sweep of the tail. There are nine stars here, ending with Shaula
on the tip of the stinger!
6. Due east from Shaula and the scorpion’s tail is the bright star Kaus
Australis. I see a lovely teapot shape when I look at Sagittarius, but the
three stars that form the right side and peak of the ‘teapot’ are supposed
to form the archer’s bow. All three stars are named Kaus: Kaus Borealis
(northern Kaus), Kaus Meridionalis (middle Kaus), and Kaus Australis
(southern Kaus).
7. When you plot the star that forms the tip of the teapot’s spout, you may
notice a faint glow-like steam from the spout. If you cannot see this
with the naked eye at your site, examine the area with binoculars – this
Activity 19: Summer – Scorpio’s Neighborhood 135
‘steam’ is the glow from the Milky Way Galaxy. The supermassive
black hole at the center of our galaxy, Sag A*, lies in this
constellation.
8. Finish Sagittarius with the ‘handle’ of the teapot, which lies on the
eastern side of the constellation. The eastern side of Sagittarius is
anchored by the bright Nunki, a blue giant star at the northeastern cor-
ner of the handle.
9. Return again to Scorpius and find Antares. Antares and the lower of the
three claw stars point to the southernmost point of Libra. If you follow
a line between the upper two claw stars, you will find the upper two
corners of the rectangular shape of Libra.
10. Finish plotting the stars of Libra and enhance your drawing with some
of the smaller stars that you can see. Try not to get lost in the detail
here; this is one of the richest star fields in the entire sky (Fig. 5.7)!
Summer evenings are wonderful for stargazing. Warm weather and a slow
twilight reveal wonderful vistas in the southern skies. The Milky Way spans
the skies from Cassiopeia in the north to Sagittarius in the south. If you
enjoy using binoculars, the southern Milky Way rivals anything you can see
in the sky; open and globular star clusters, emission and reflection nebulae,
dark nebulae and more delights lie among the constellations of the south in
summer. As before, we will sketch the prominent constellations and then go
on to a treasure hunt for deep-sky objects and double stars in the southern
skies. We will be venturing much closer to the southern horizon than we did
Fig. 5.7 Sketch of Scorpio and surrounding constellations. (Credit: Author)

for our spring stargazing activity; a good view of the south and dark skies
will be helpful particularly when looking for deep-sky objects.
Exploring the southern Milky Way will introduce the student to many
types of deep-sky objects, but it will also require new skills in using the
telescope. There are two schools of thought on this. The first is rather a ‘sink
or swim’ mentality in which the Star Mentor takes a hands-off approach and
lets the student work out manipulating the telescope themselves. This pres-
ents a rather steep learning curve for the beginner.
I favor a more structured approach to teaching telescope skills. In part,
this needs to be carefully tailored to the type of telescope that you have
available. Although I own a number of refractors on equatorial mounts,
I favor a simple Dobsonian telescope for the beginner. As an astronomy
teacher, the venerable 6-inch Dobsonian was my workhorse telescope for
many years; setting up takes just seconds and the operation of a Dobsonian
is very intuitive. These simple telescopes are also quite durable; I had
many that lasted more than 20 years in the classroom where they were
primarily used by teenagers who did not own them – you cannot get
sturdier than that!
When you introduce your student to operating a telescope, you should
break this down into two distinct processes. First, your student needs to
learn how to point and focus the telescope, and then track the object as they
observe. The Dobsonian design makes the initial pointing of the telescope
very easy, as the up-down, left-right alt-az mount is quite intuitive to use.
Whichever telescope your student begins on, it is best to start in daylight
rather than in darkness. While binoculars always present an orthoscopic
view, where everything is oriented exactly the way we see with our eyes,
telescopes are quite different. Telescopes use lenses and mirrors to focus
light, but few telescope designs concern themselves with the orientation of
the image. A refractor telescope with a star diagonal generally presents an
inverted image that is correct from left to right. A Newtonian-style reflector
presents an image that is both inverted and reversed. Both types of tele-
scopes will present a rotated image if the eyepiece is not pointed straight up.
All of this sounds rather confusing, but practice will make it very manage-
able over time. If you do not have one, I recommend equipping the tele-
scope your students will use with a red-dot or reflex sight. The
zero-magnification, orthographic view makes pointing and guiding the
Dobsonian telescope far easier for the beginning observer than a more tra-
ditional telescopic finder scope with an unilluminated crosshair reticle.
Activity 20: Telescope Pointing and Star Hopping in Scorpio 137
Like Orion’s neighborhood in the winter sky, Scorpio’s neighborhood

anchors a large swath of the summer sky and helps point us to fainter and
lesser known constellations. Scorpio and Sagittarius are full of sights to
enjoy, but in this context, they teach us the map of the skies and serve as
bases from which we begin many a summer night’s explorations.
Following up
I have found the ‘neighborhood’ method of learning the sky to be quite

effective. Each time, I select a bright constellation that my students can eas-
ily spot and recognize, and then we explore the neighborhood around it.
This sort of “follow the arc of the dipper’s handle to get to Arcturus in the
constellation Boötes” seems cumbersome at first, but students do seem to
profit from it. Much of education lies in making connections between seem-
ingly isolated facts to build a web of knowledge that leads to useful analyti-
cal and problem-solving skills. It is much the same in astronomy, and I
encourage you to use this technique with your own students or when explor-
ing the night sky on your own.
Activity 20: Telescope Pointing and Star Hopping in Scorpio
The fundamental skills of telescope operation can never be overemphasized.

For the new observer, the mentor must furnish every opportunity to practice
these basic skills, which includes accurately aiming the telescope and
maneuvering the instrument while looking through the eyepiece. This
activity provides yet another opportunity to learn how to operate the equip-
ment at your disposal.
1. Pointing a telescope at a target relies upon translating between what

you see with your eyes and what you see in the eyepiece. Daytime
practice as you learn to point the telescope is essential.
2. Sticking with one type of telescope, and preferably one instrument, is
the best path for the beginner. Be sure to be encouraging as your stu-
dent struggles to learn the physical skills needed to operate the

equipment.
3. Always be aware of where you are pointing your telescope during the
day. Never point a telescope or binocular anywhere near the Sun!
Immediate and permanent eye damage will result if you look at the Sun
without a proper solar filter.
Observation Time!
1. Set your telescope up and familiarize your student with the essentials
of pointing and maneuvering a telescope. Be certain that your finder
scope is correctly and accurately aligned.
(a) For a Dobsonian, show the student how to move the telescope by
grasping the top of the tube and gently pushing or pulling the
telescope in the needed direction.
(b) For an equatorial telescope, begin with movement around the
polar axis by releasing the axis lock and rotating the telescope
east and west. Then try the same thing rotating the telescope north
to south around the declination axis.
(c) If the equatorial telescope has slow motion controls, show the
student where they are located. Note that the slow motion controls
will not operate unless the axis lock is firmly set.
2. Point the telescope at an object at least 500 meters (1/4 mile) away. A
building with some windows or other distinguishing features works
quite well for this.
3. Have the student adjust the focus of the telescope and then practice
moving horizontally and vertically across the object in view. Once the
student has the movement of the telescope under control, direct them to
move to different objects.
4. With the student at the eyepiece, describe another building to the left of
the first and then ask the student to point the telescope at it without
looking up. Chances are, the student may become confused at first:
“You said look at the green house to the left, but when I move the tele-
scope left it looks like I’m going to the right!”
5. Once your student has mastered moving the telescope in daylight, it is
time to try pointing the telescope at night. A good finderscope that is
correctly aligned will be essential here. If you have a green astronomy
laser, this will be a handy tool. Begin with the red giant star Antares; it
is bright and quite unmistakable in the eyepiece. Ask your student to
Activity 20: Telescope Pointing and Star Hopping in Scorpio 139
start with the lowest power eyepiece and get Antares centered in the
field of view.
6. Now it is time to move northwest to the star Acrab, the most northerly
star in the scorpion’s claws. With your student at the eyepiece, use your
green laser to sweep back and forth between Antares and Acrab. Have
your student practice until they can move the telescope along the same
line. Once you center Acrab in the field of view, increase the magnifi-
cation to see if you can split this close double star into a yellow-green
pair. As the magnification gets higher, tracking becomes a bit more
difficult, as the field of view continues to diminish as magnification
increases.
7. After you split the double star Acrab, move south to the next two stars
in the scorpion’s claws. These stars, Dschubba and Fang, are also
doubles, but too close together for amateur telescopes to split them.
They are quite close to a north-south orientation in mid-summer, and
tracking from one to another is excellent practice.
8. There is one bright star on a line between Dschubba (the center star of
the claws) and Antares; this is Alniyat, a fine double and easily split at
moderate magnification.
9. Continue past Antares, navigating along the back of the scorpion, stop-
ping at each of the bright stars you charted. Paikauhale, then the red-
dish Larawag, and down to Xamidimura. Increase the magnification
and you will find a beautiful cluster of stars packed closely together.
10. Continue south until the tail of the scorpion curls eastward and you will
find a beautiful cluster called the Jewel Box, as well as several double
and multiple stars. This corner of Scorpius is one of the most stunning
regions in all the sky for double star hunters. Across the base of the tail
is Sargas – a most challenging double to split cleanly because it is
tightly spaced and close to the southern horizon.
11. Continue up the tail, stopping at Girtab, Mula, Shaula, and Lesath – the
stinger of the scorpion. All are either doubles or closely spaced multi-
ples and very beautiful to look at.
If your student can maneuver through the entire constellation of Scorpius,
they will be well on their way to becoming proficient at using their tele-
scope. As a mentor, it is important to have patience, but equally important
to allow the student to struggle and master the telescope’s operation on their
own. No one ever learned to ride a bicycle by keeping the training wheels
on – it is much the same with the telescope. Maneuvering and focusing,
changing eyepieces to lower power to find a target and then a higher power
to observe a star or planet are essential skills that can only be acquired
through practice.
I often find myself standing back and only helping when I am asked; it
is quite difficult resisting the urge to step in and point the telescope for
someone. When I hear: “I can’t find this star, can you find it for me?” My
response is often to steer the telescope back to the last star in the observing
program and then tell my student to try the hop again from scratch. In the
end, this practice does pay dividends and helps the student gain confidence
in their own abilities. We must remember the ultimate goal of every mentor
is to ensure that our students no longer need us. A Star Mentor’s best
accomplishment is turning students into colleagues and fellow
astronomers.
As the new observer becomes a more serious hobbyist, the physical skills
involved in operating a telescope become more important. Yes, there are
GoTo systems to do all these things for you, but I am not a great fan of these
for the beginning astronomer. It requires a surprising amount of knowledge
to set up a GoTo system correctly; one small bump and you are back to
square one. Every new observer ought to learn to set up, point, and operate
a telescope on their own; I find this skill critical in making the transition
from a one-night dabbler to an ongoing hobbyist who directs their own
exploration of the skies.
Following up
As with playing a violin or golf, operating a telescope is a set of physical
skills that anyone can learn with diligence and practice. Pursuing new
objects of study each observing night will reinforce and improve telescope
operating skills. Observing the skies also becomes less tiring and more
enjoyable for both parties when the student is proficient at the basics of
telescope operation.
Activity 21: Exploring the Southern Milky Way with Binoculars 141
ctivity 21: Exploring the Southern Milky Way

A
with Binoculars
The southern Milky Way is a treasure chest full of double stars and tightly
packed globular clusters. Open star clusters range from young and closely
packed stars with wisps of nebulosity giving evidence of their recent forma-
tion, to looser, clearly shining clusters full of more mature stars. We will be
using binoculars for our first tour of the southern Milky Way. The wide field
and bright, high-contrast images we will see are excellent for hunting down
faint deep-sky objects.
Emission nebulae like the Lagoon Nebula (M8) are illuminated by the
stars inside them; high energy radiation causes the gas in the star-forming
region to fluoresce, often in the red light of the hydrogen spectrum. By
contrast, reflection nebulae such as the Trifid Nebula (M20) shine because
they reflect light from stars in front of them. Reflection nebulae that are
bright enough to be seen are generally illuminated by blue giant stars. The
reflection nebulae therefore appear blue in photographs, while emission
nebulae often appear red from the H-α region of the spectrum. However, the
eye sees all these nebulae as grey-white, because amateur telescopes do not
deliver enough light to activate the cone cells that are responsible for color
vision. It takes a telescope of more than 0.7-meter aperture (almost 30
inches) to activate color vision in most observers. Such a telescope is a mas-
sive and expensive instrument and unlikely to be available to any beginner.
For this activity, we will use common names as well as catalog designa-
tions. One of the oldest catalogs of deep-sky objects is that of Charles
Messier, a French astronomer and comet hunter who did most of his work
in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Messier originally compiled a list
of 110 nebulae and star clusters that could confuse the comet hunter and
mislead one to make a false comet report. He intended that astronomers
become aware of these objects – and avoid them! Astronomers today use
Messier’s list as an excellent catalog of deep-sky objects for the beginner
and experienced astronomer alike. We will also see other designations for
deep-sky objects; one of the more common is NGC (New General Catalog),
which contains more than 7800 objects.
1. The Milky Way is a barred spiral galaxy. Essentially a flat disk, it

appears as a belt of stars stretching across the entire sky. The Sun is
located about 2/3 out from the center.
2. In northern summer, the ecliptic (the plane of our Solar System) lies far
south, keeping zodiacal constellations close to the southern horizon.
3. Nebulae (glowing clouds of gas and dust) and star clusters (tightly
packed groups of up to 100,000 stars) are more common in the Milky
Way than in the rest of the sky. A dark sky and good seeing are needed
to spot these faint objects because of their low surface brightness com-
pared to the stars around them.
4. Binoculars are the preferred instrument for exploring this region of the
Milky Way. Easy to maneuver and focus, binoculars offer bright, high-
contrast images and a field of view that no telescope can match. While
there are giant binoculars of 70 to 100 mm aperture and more, we will
stick to the basic 7 × 50 and 10 × 50 models that are far easier to hold
and operate. Observing from a reclining lawn chair or relaxing on a
blanket are favorites for binocular observers – and don’t forget a ther-
mos of coffee to share!
Observation Time!
1. Begin with a pair of 7 × 50 or 10 × 50 binoculars for yourself and your

student, and a green laser pointer to ensure everyone is looking in the
same place. It is often helpful with the new astronomer to point the
laser at a star and have the beginner follow the beam with the binocular
until they are at the correct point. You may wish to blink the beam off
and on rather than shining steadily to help preserve night vision.
Note: You must observe basic safety precautions when using any
laser pointer. Be sure to read the laser safety tips in Activity 16,
Conducting the Activity before proceeding.
2. Familiarize yourself with Sagittarius and Scorpius; point these constel-
lations out with a laser pointer as needed. We will begin with the area
between the base of the teapot in Sagittarius and the scorpion’s tail.
Sweep along the line of the base of the teapot and continue 2/3 of the
way to the stinger in Scorpius to find NGC 6441, the Silver Nugget
Cluster. This is a compact group of stars in a globular cluster more than
38,000 LY (light years) from Earth; it will appear as a blurry star in 10x
binoculars.
Activity 21: Exploring the Southern Milky Way with Binoculars 143
3. Sweep upward toward the tip of the teapot’s spout to find M7,
Ptolemy’s Cluster, an open cluster of stars about 1000 LY from Earth.
This bright group of blue-white stars is brilliant and beautiful. Little or
no gas or nebulosity are visible in this cluster, indicating that it is fully
mature and no new star formation is occurring in this region today.
4. For our next stop, sweep up and westward, moving in a path parallel to
the spout of the teapot to find M6, the Butterfly Cluster, sometimes
called the Splendor of the Heavens. This beautiful open cluster contains
newer blue-white stars as well as older red and yellow stars, making a
wonderful contrast. At 1600 LY distant, it appears more compact than
some other open clusters but does not have the well-defined spherical
shape typical of a globular cluster. See Chap. 10 for more on open and
globular clusters.
5. Next we will move to the region above the teapot’s spout in Sagittarius.
The glow from the Milky Way appears to some as steam issuing from
this spout. Moving north from the spout a bit higher off the horizon
than the top of the teapot, we will find a series of beautiful objects. The
first is NGC 6530, the Lagoon Nebula about 4100 LY away. This is an
emission nebula and glows with the red light of fluorescing hydrogen
atoms. Much like a neon light, the gas in the nebula is stimulated by
high-energy gamma and x-ray emissions from newly formed stars
within the gas cloud. These excited hydrogen atoms then release the
energy they absorbed as red light. The image in the binocular is far too
dim to excite our color vision, so we see this area as a blue-grey cloud
of dim light. The Lagoon also has a small open cluster of stars in front
of it, which enhances the enjoyment of this region and helps distinguish
it from the nearby Trifid Nebula.
6. Continue northward from the Lagoon and you will find M20, the Trifid
Nebula. More compact than the Lagoon Nebula, M20 is a reflection
nebula illuminated by reflecting light from a blue giant star that lies just
in front of the gas cloud from our point of view. The Trifid is fainter
than the Lagoon Nebula, but just as beautiful.
7. Bordering the Trifid Nebula on the northeast is M21, an open cluster
sometimes called Webb’s Cross. This is a compact star group that will
require more magnification from a telescope to reveal all of its beauty,
but the view through binoculars is still worthwhile.
8. Continuing northeast, hovering over the peak of the teapot, you will
find M24, the Small Sagittarius Star Cloud. This formation has an open
cluster in the foreground and a dense cloud of stars in the background.
This is a spectacular sight; binoculars will likely show the background
star cloud as a glowing region rather than individual stars.
We will stop at this point, but you don’t have to! Messier and NGC objects
abound, and it is easy to spend hours simply slewing the telescope around
from one object to the next. You can start with the southern tip of the Milky
Way as the Sun sets and work your way northward through Scutum, Aquila,
Sagitta, Delphinus, Vulpecula, Cygnus, Lyra, and so on.
There is more variety in the southern Milky Way than in any other part of
the sky. It offers observational targets that are so piled one upon another that
it makes other regions of the sky seem barren by comparison. Thus, explor-
ing this region teaches us to be careful and precise in our identifications.
With targets heaped so close upon one another, careful aiming and tracking
with the telescope or binoculars are quickly rewarded, and map-reading
skills are also greatly strengthened by exploring this area of the sky.
Following up
Returning to the southern (or central) Milky Way is always a valuable expe-
rience. This region of the sky is so packed with wonders that it could fill and
entire book of its own and keep you occupied for a lifetime. It is a great
library where there is always a new volume tucked away in a dusty corner,
waiting to be explored and treasured. If you have one chance as a Star
Mentor to get someone hooked on astronomy, a mid-summer night explor-
ing the southern Milky Way would be a sure way to set hearts afire!
Chapter 6
The Bowl of Night –

Autumn and Winter
Autumn and winter represent wonderful times for stargazing. With sunset
coming earlier in the evening and with heat (and bugs!) being less of a
problem, fall and winter skies beckon to everyone. Cooler weather gener-
ally means clearer skies and better seeing. Yet cold weather can also be a
concern for winter observing, particularly for more northerly observers.
Remember to dress for more cold than you expect; astronomy is a more
sedentary activity, and stationary observers tend to feel the cold more than
those participating in active winter sports. It is also a reasonable idea to
limit observing time to an hour or so in cold weather, particularly if your
students are children, older, or unused to the cold weather. A good mentor
keeps an eye on their students to ensure that everyone is enjoying them-
selves and keeping warm. I have found it better to call an early halt to
observing while everyone is still enjoying themselves than to press on after
everyone is feeling cold and miserable. Remember that our goal is to build
excitement among our new observers, not to test their endurance!
When your students ask about what you call good seeing, this is a good
time to explain the difference between stability, transparency, and light pol-
lution in the atmosphere. The term seeing generally refers to the stability
of the atmosphere. The air above us is separated into layers defined by
density and altitude; it is also disturbed by turbulence caused by c onvection,

https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-98771-8_6,
146 6 The Bowl of Night – Autumn and Winter
the phenomenon of heated air rising and cold air sinking through interven-
ing layers. Most people have seen convection operating first hand; we notice
the shimmering effect we see over a burning expanse of asphalt parking lot
in summer, or the shimmer in the air over a grill. In the telescope eyepiece,
poor seeing plagues us more as we increase magnification, since our tele-
scopes magnify everything – even problems in our own atmosphere. Try to
look at the lunar surface or a planet such as Jupiter or Saturn at high mag-
nification and you will see this effect clearly. Rather than a clear, razor-
sharp image, the image seems to swim and writhe like a painting at the
bottom of a swimming pool.
We can improve seeing in several ways. The first way is to choose targets
farther from the horizon. The higher the altitude, the less air we look
through as we observe. As we see in Fig. 6.1, the lower we look on the
horizon, the more air we must penetrate. The light gets distorted as it moves
through all that air, bending slightly this way and that as it passes through
pockets of air that vary in density. The different air masses act like lenses
and actually refract the light. This causes the twinkling that we see in the
stars. Stars that show a great deal of twinkling may be romantic and beauti-
ful, but these skies make for poor observations, especially at higher
magnification.
The second way that we can improve our chances of good seeing is to
wait an hour or two after sunset to begin our observations. Waiting allows
the ground surfaces to cool; hot air rising from the Earth as well as buildings
and roadways contributes substantially to air turbulence. Skies also con-
tinue to get darker for 60–90 minutes after sunset, improving our ability to
see faint targets washed out by skyglow.
Fig. 6.1 Illustrating how viewing at a low angle corrupts the seeing conditions.
(Credit: Author)
Activity 22: Autumn – Counting the Stars in the Sky 147
Air transparency is another issue that affects good observing. As I write

this, air transparency across most of North America is being affected by
smoke and aerosols released from many wildfires across the United States
and Canada. City dwellers who deal with air quality issues year-round know
too well that particulates in the air can affect seeing even in the daylight
hours. Of course, we may be advocates for change by supporting local and
national regulations for clean air, purchasing an electric vehicle, etc., but we
cannot as individual observers control what happens on a regional or national
level. As astronomers, we recognize that we do not control the skies. There
are apps available that advise us on air quality, cloud cover, and more; we
must watch patiently and take advantage of clear skies when they occur.
The third issue for the observer is light pollution. Obviously, we see no
stars across the sky during the day, even though we know that the stars are
always present in our skies; the skyglow from the Sun obscures the stars
during daylight hours. Light reflecting or directly pointing up causes light
pollution. If you go observing regularly, you have probably noticed skyglow
in one direction or another from nearby cities, roadways, or population
centers. Often, we can stand in our observing sites and point out the direc-
tion to cities, airports, and major highways quite accurately simply by iden-
tifying the skyglow associated with them. Our first activity in this chapter
will address this issue.
Activity 22: Autumn – Counting the Stars in the Sky
How many stars are there in the sky? The traditional answer for naked-eye
viewing is about 6000 stars. This represents the number of stars (mag 6 and
brighter) that you can see over the course of an entire year when viewing
from an equatorial site. In reality, very few people around the globe have
access to a night sky uncluttered by buildings, aerosol pollutants, or light
pollution. Even so, we can map the light pollution in our local skies and
determine the best parts of the sky for us to observe in. For those of us in
the Northern Hemisphere, the southern skies are particularly important as
the ecliptic passes through there, as do the planets and the Moon.
Is it even possible for us to count the stars in the sky? Yes! And you don’t
have to count each star individually, either. We will count the stars using a
method called statistical sampling. By counting the stars in a small con-
tained area, and then repeating that counting in many directions in a system-
atic way, we can determine the average number of stars in the sky. Our
counting will serve another purpose as well: assuming that the number of
bright stars visible to our naked eye is roughly the same in every direction,
areas of the sky that reveal more stars indicate areas with less light and
aerosol pollution. These areas will generally be better for observing, par-
ticularly for deep-sky objects. Deep-sky targets such as nebulae and galax-
ies have low surface brightness; such objects are easily blotted out by light
pollution and require the darkest skies and higher contrast to be seen.
1. The local darkness of the sky is defined by the Bortle scale, which runs
from 1–9 and indicates the night sky’s brightness for any location. John
E. Bortle developed this measurement for sky brightness, or light pol-
lution. A quick web search will reveal a number of resources on the
Bortle scale, including apps that will give you dark sky maps to help
you choose an optimal observing site in your area. Level 1 is the dark-
est skies available, and few areas on the North American or European
continent have such skies. Level 3 is a rural sky well away from city
lights; level 5 is a suburban sky; levels 8 and 9 are city skies that make
astronomy very difficult indeed.
2. As mentioned, statistical sampling is a method of selecting small
amounts of data and using that information to give you detailed infor-
mation on an otherwise unmanageable set of data. Pollsters use this
idea and ask questions of a few thousand randomly selected people to
get data on large populations. We will do much the same in sampling
how many stars we can see.
3. As with any sampling activity, the more data we gather, the better our
results will be. But as Star Mentors, we must realize that the average
amateur may not be interested in collecting large data sets as a scientist
might do. Nevertheless, spending some time counting stars and record-
ing data will raise awareness about light pollution, which is valuable in
and of itself.
Building the Model
Materials
1. One soup can (appx. 10 x 7 cm)

2. One 30 cm square of dark colored construction paper (black or dark
blue preferred)
3. Adhesive tape
Fig. 6.2 Materials for the Counting the Stars activity. (Credit: Author)
Instructions
1. Please note that we will only use the soup can to help us make a stan-
dard-sized paper sighting tube. The can may be full or empty; it will
work fine either way.
2. Wrap the dark paper around the can and tape it securely together into a
tube, but do not tape the paper to the can. The can should be completely
covered by the paper. Remove the can from the paper tube; this is now
the sighting tube (Fig. 6.3).
3. Wait until the sky is completely dark before you begin. This activity is
intended to be conducted from your regular observing site well away
from city lights, although it may be useful to have your student try it
from their backyard or even from a parking lot or school.
4. Use a compass or compass app to help you begin your observation
looking due north. You will begin by holding your sighting tube hori-
zontally (0 degrees) and counting the number of stars you can see
without moving the tube. Take your time – don’t just count the bright
stars!
5. While continuing to face north, repeat the count at 30 degrees, 60
degrees, and 90 degrees of altitude (1/3 to vertical, 2/3 to vertical, and
straight up). Record all your data in a log book (Fig. 6.4).
Fig. 6.3 Making the sighting tube for counting the stars. (Credit: Author)
6. Now turn to the 30-degree azimuth position (north is 0°, east is 90°,
south is 180°, and west is 270°) and repeat steps #4 and #5. Continue
in this manner until you have four observations from horizon to zenith
for each of the 12 points of the compass. Later, you can transfer your
data from your log book to a chart like in Table 6.1. Note that it con-
tains sample data to guide your studies; a blank, printable version can
be downloaded from the Springer website: Data 6.1. The illustration
shows a student taking a sighting at 30 degrees altitude and 90° azi-
muth (azimuth position 3 of 12).
7. If there is a Moon in the sky, draw an “M” in the box to show what
direction and altitude you saw it at. Similarly, if there is a streetlight
that interferes with your view, draw an “L” in the box to show what
direction and altitude you saw it at.
8. Average the values across the rows for each azimuth position and write
them in last column, then average the values down each column for
each altitude position and write them in the last row.
Fig. 6.4 Using the sighting tube in the Counting the Stars activity. (Credit: Author)
Table 6.1 Data table for Counting the Stars activity

Azimuth 0° Alt 30° Alt 60° Alt 90° Alt Average
0° 8 12 18 26 16
30° 11 14 22 30 14.3
60° 6 9 11 25 12.8
90° 9 14 19 27 14.8
120° 14 20 23 29 21.5
150° 10 16 18 25 17.2
180° 6 9 12 24 12.8
210° 3 7 18 25 13.2
240° 7 11 22 27 16.8
270° 15 20 24 27 21.5
300° 13 18 21 25 19.2
330° 10 14 18 26 17
Average 9.3 14.5 19.7 26.3
Credit: Author
Exploring the Data
Our star counts at the zenith (900 altitude) serve as a control for this data set.
Obviously, if you count the stars straight overhead, the result should not
change no matter which direction you were facing at the time; the zenith is
always the same. Do not expect the exact same count, but the closer the
numbers are each time, the greater confidence we can have in the entire data
set. It is best not to discuss this control concept before your student does the
data run, as knowing that a similar or identical number is expected at the
zenith each time tends to skew the numbers.
Once you collect your own data and fill out Table 6.1, you can create a
skyglow map using Table 6.2. Note that it contains sample data to guide
your studies; a blank, printable version can be downloaded from the
Table 6.2 Skyglow map for the Counting the Stars activity
Credit: Author
Springer website: Data 6.2. Azimuth directions are in black around the outer
perimeter, while altitude values are in red. The outer ring represents the
horizon and the inner circle the zenith. Plotting your numbers in this way
will give you a good resource to help you plan your observing events. The
areas on the map with the highest numbers are the best areas to look in,
particularly for deep-sky objects, on the principle that the more stars you
can see, the darker the sky must be. Repeating this map-making exercise for
each season will give you valuable information, as changes in foliage and
snow cover can dramatically affect perceived skyglow.
Calculations
The following calculations are for those who are interested in them. If you
do not want to bother with the calculations in detail, then you can get a
simple result easily enough: just average the star counts in your data set and
multiply by 152. This is the ratio between the visible field in the sighting
tube and the entire sky. A perfect sky with no light or haze pollution usually
totals 6000 stars. You can divide your result by 6000 to get a light pollution
index – higher scores are better, and a score of 1.0 is a perfect sky.
In terms of the total number of stars in the sky, we must understand how
our sighting tube reduces the total area we can see. In other words, how
many square degrees of sky can we see through this tube? The calculation
is a simple one: First we find the angle of vision that our tube creates, then
find the area of our circle of vision, or field of view.
As you can see from Fig. 6.5, this works out to a field of view of 135.4
degrees based upon a 30-cm-long tube and an average soup can with a diam-
eter of 7 cm. If you use a differently sized can to make your sighting tube, you
can change the value to get a more precise field of view for your experiment.
Fig. 6.5 Calculating the area visible in the sighting tube. (Credit: Author)
Fig. 6.6 Calculating the square degrees visible in the sky. (Credit: Author)
Next we must determine the area of the entire sky in square degrees.
Spherical areas are normally measured in square radians, or steradians.
The calculation of spherical area and conversion to square degrees is shown
in Fig. 6.6.
You can see that we have taken the standard definition of a radian and
squared it to get the steradian. From there, the definition of the area of a
sphere in steradians is converted into square degrees. Of course, the visible
sky that we see is just half of the celestial sphere, so we divide the area of
the sphere by two to get the result for the visible sky, which is 20,637 deg.2
Once we have the area of our visible sky, it is a simple matter to divide
the entire area by the area of our field of view. This last calculation will give
us the ratio between our visible sample in the sighting tube and the entire
sky. With this ratio, we can calculate the number of stars in our local sky –
however, be sure to average the star counts in your entire data set before
making this last calculation! If the number of stars visible in a perfectly
clear and dark sky is indeed 6000, then the number of stars you can see
divided by 6000 will give you a light pollution index. If you can see 3000
stars, then your light pollution index will be 0.5. Higher numbers mean less
light pollution, with a value of 1.0 being a perfect score (Fig. 6.7).
The question of ‘how many stars?’ is an ancient one, but here, we pivot on
this idea to study light pollution, which is an important issue for any
observer. How many stars one can see of course depends upon the contrast
between the brightness of the stars and the brightness of the sky. During the
day, the Sun’s light illuminates the entire sky so brightly that no stars are
Activity 23: Autumn - Sketching the Zenith 155
Fig. 6.7 Calculating the proportion of stars visible in our sighting tube. (Credit:
Author)
visible at all. Only extremely bright objects such as the Moon are bright
enough to shine through the blue haze of the Sun’s skyglow.
This activity produces some skill at measuring angles in both altitude and
azimuth. It also introduces the idea of having a control in an experiment.
The repeated measurement of the number of stars at the zenith while facing
different directions serves as an excellent control; while the number of stars
is unlikely to be exactly the same, the measurements should repeat within a
relatively narrow range.
Following Up
Making a circular skyglow map is a valuable exercise. Such maps should be

made repeatedly, perhaps once per year or seasonally, in order to show the
change in skyglow over a period of time. Sadly, light pollution does tend to
increase over time, and urban and suburban skyglow expansion affects
every observer.
Activity 23: Autumn - Sketching the Zenith
Autumn is a fine time to explore zenithal constellations. We have already

encountered the concept of zenith and nadir throughout this book. As men-
tioned, the zenith is the point in the sky directly above you, while the nadir
is the opposite point directly beneath you. Binoculars and a blanket or lawn
chair are welcome as you begin to explore the zenith, as you will be looking
straight upward. We will begin our exploration with a group of bright stars
called the ‘Summer Triangle’, using these to anchor our location in the sky
and explore the constellations in this area. Vega is easily the brightest of the
three stars of the summer triangle; this blue giant star just 25 light years
away will be the beginning of our journey.
1. The blue giant Vega is the second brightest star in the autumn sky, sec-
ond only to Arcturus, which lies near the western horizon by
mid-September.
2. The so-called Summer Triangle of stars remains visible in northern lati-
tudes until late November.
Observation Time!
1. Arrange yourself comfortably with a blanket or reclining lawn chair to

avoid neck and back strain while observing at the zenith. Begin with
naked-eye observation and locate the three stars that form the Summer
Triangle: Vega, Deneb, and Altair. These stars are all blue-white in
color and very bright; Deneb and Altair are 1st magnitude stars, while
Vega is a 0 magnitude star and the brightest star near the zenith at this
time of year (Fig. 6.8).
2. As we have done before, make a sketch of the major constellations.
With no horizon to help you, orient yourself and your sketching paper
so that Cygnus points straight down. Placing Deneb at the top of the
page, a bit left of center. Mark down the three stars of the Summer
Triangle (Fig. 6.9).
3. Now sketch in the constellations Cygnus, Lyra, and Aquila. Note that
Lyra is a very small constellation – far smaller than most of those we
have been studying before. You will also notice that these constellations
are not conspicuously bright, as with Orion, Scorpio, Sagittarius, and
others we have looked at. You will need reasonably clear skies well
away from city lights to see them easily; use low-power binoculars to
help you if need be.
4. With the three Summer Triangle constellations sketched out, you can
now add the other zenithal constellations. Begin with Delphinus, which
lies north of Aquila. Delphinus is rather faint but isolated in the sky,
which makes it easier to see. Like Lyra, Delphinus is quite small com-
pared to our other constellations.
Activity 23: Autumn - Sketching the Zenith 157
Fig. 6.8 Sketch of the Summer Triangle asterism. (Credit: Author)
Fig. 6.9 Sketching constellations Cygnus, Lyra, and Aquila in the Summer Triangle.
(Credit: Author)
5. Moving toward the west, we find Hercules. If you look along the line
of the Summer Triangle running from Deneb to Vega and continue in
that direction, you will find Hercules easily. If you check a sky map,
you will find Hercules most often drawn with arms and legs, but the
stars that define these are rather faint and the pattern is often hard for
the beginner to point out. We will limit ourselves to the main body of
Hercules, sometimes called The Keystone.
6. Continuing along the same line, we come to our last constellation:
Corona Borealis. Corona Borealis is a C-shaped constellation; most of
the stars are rather faint. If you do not have good dark sky conditions,
you may certainly skip this one (Fig. 6.10).
Sketching the zenithal constellations will give the beginner an excellent
orientation to this area of the sky. As with previous activities, sketching
helps students recall the shape, orientation, and pattern of the stars. If we
are to guide our students to make significant exploration of the heavens,
then basic navigational skills are essential.
The autumn zenith contains the Milky Way, and so includes a substantial
number of clusters, nebulae, and other sights. The autumn zenith also con-
Fig. 6.10 Completed sketch of the autumnal zenithal constellations. (Credit: Author)
Activity 24: Autumn - Zenithal Wonders 159
tains the Summer Triangle, an important group of stars that serve as keys to
help new observers find their way beyond the circumpolar stars.
Following Up
The constellations visible at the zenith are by nature a transitory group; the
precise constellation located directly above you will change every hour or
two. The zenith has one principle advantage over almost any other part of
the sky: it is likely to be darker than anywhere nearer the horizon. Because
it is generally the darkest part of the sky, learning to regularly spot and
identify the constellations that pass through this region is an important skill
to pursue. Keep your planisphere handy!
Activity 24: Autumn - Zenithal Wonders
The autumnal zenith constellations are rich in deep sky targets, which lie far
beyond our Solar System. Among the marvels that we find here are a bounty
of double stars. Double stars are often a good test of both seeing (the clarity
and steadiness of the atmosphere) and resolution (the telescope’s ability to
separate fine details). Good seeing can often be evaluated by watching the
stars with the naked eye and looking for twinkling or flickering. The less
twinkling and flickering, the steadier the seeing, and the better we will be
able to resolve fine details at the eyepiece. We will also be looking at two
other types of objects. The first are globular clusters. We will also explore
planetary nebulae, glowing shells of gas and dust thrown off from a dying
star. These glowing balls of gas were often mistaken for planets in our own
Solar System by early telescopic astronomers, however, unlike real planets,
planetary nebulae never move from their fixed place in the sky.
Exploring the constellations of the Zenith brings to light a significant
design problem with the Dobsonian telescope – the so called zenithal hole.
For an alt-az mount, positioning at the zenith is difficult. Most Dobsonian
telescopes have bearing surfaces with enough friction to hold the telescope
in position with different size eyepieces and in any orientation. They are
designed with more friction than might be absolutely necessary because
there is no provision for balancing the telescope tube in the mount. This
additional friction makes it more difficult to position the telescope accu-
rately when the tube is pointed straight upward. Once again, a good finder-
scope will be essential for our activities. Be certain you and your students
take the time to check the alignment of your finder before you begin your
evening’s explorations!
When familiarizing someone with a new area of the sky, a binocular
survey is always a good place to start. A 10x50 binocular makes a good
bridge between what you can see with your naked eye and what we see in
the small telescope. Keep in mind that a 90-mm refractor captures 165
times1 more light than a fully dark-adapted eye with a 7 mm pupil, while a
150-mm (6-inch) Dobsonian captures 460 times more light than the eye.
More light lets us see many stars and low-brightness deep-sky objects that
are too faint to see otherwise. This light-gathering advantage is the principle
reason that we use a telescope rather than magnification, as many people
believe.
The 50-mm binocular gathers 50 times more light than the eye and will
show us stars about 3 magnitudes dimmer than the naked eye can see. The
binocular also reveals deep-sky objects that are often relatively large but too
faint for the eye to detect. The Andromeda Galaxy for instance is five times
wider than the full Moon; nevertheless, only its bright core area is visible to
the naked eye and only in the darkest skies!
1. The autumn zenithal constellations contain a variety of wonderful

deep-sky objects that we can explore with the small telescope. It is
important to keep in mind that deep-sky objects through the telescope
will not show color, and details may be limited.
2. M57, the Ring Nebula, is a planetary nebula. These objects were named
because they often resemble planets in small telescopes – however the
name is rather misleading. Planetary nebulae are formed when a small
to mid-size star dies and explosively ejects a shell of gas and dust
before collapsing to a white dwarf star.
3. Planetary nebulae are not permanent structures like open or globular
star clusters, which last for many billions of years. Planetary nebulae
fade in brightness over a few million years as the cloud of dust and gas
expands and becomes thinner.
1
I am comparing aperture area of the eye to different instruments here. These are rough
calculations; I have not made allowance for optical transmission efficiency or obstruc-
tions from secondary mirrors or baffles.
Observation Time!
1. Sweep the zenith area with your binocular. Start with Lyra, Cygnus,
and Aquila; these constellations are easier because they are anchored
by the bright, first magnitude stars of the Summer Triangle. Practice
until you can sweep all three constellations and trace their outlines eas-
ily with your binocular. These three constellations lie within the Milky
Way and are home to rich star fields; some beginners may find all this
detail bewildering! A binocular survey will give the beginner some
familiarity with the area before starting with the telescope. The constel-
lation Cygnus lies along the center of the Milky Way; this constellation
alone provides enough detail with star clusters and nebulous regions to
keep the binocular viewer occupied for many evenings (Fig. 6.11)!
2. With the telescope, begin with Vega. This is not just a double star, but
a small cluster of 22 stars, with 10 stars visible in the system using a
150–200 mm telescope. In fact, all five of the stars that make up and
outline the constellation Lyra are multiple star systems. Nasir Alwaki is
a close pair of blue-white stars; δ Lyr is an orange-blue pair in a field
of fainter stars. Sulafat splits as a blue-gold pair, and Sheliak splits
under higher magnification as a pair of blue-white stars, with the com-
panion being three magnitudes fainter than its partner.
3. Next we will examine one of the most famous double star systems in
the sky, ε Lyr, also known as the Double-Double. Epsilon Lyrae
appears as one star to the naked eye and even in the binocular, but the
telescope reveals more! Challenging targets like ε Lyr are where a good
refractor on a tracking equatorial mount really shines. Getting enough
magnification to split the pair of double stars is fairly easy; you can do
it with a pair of 10 x 50 binoculars, and certainly any 60-mm refractor.
More aperture and higher magnification are needed to split each of the
Fig. 6.11 Detail sketch of constellation Lyra. (Credit: Author)

closer pairs; at least 100x and an 80–100-mm telescope is recom-

mended. A clear sky and steady seeing also help quite a bit.
4. M57 is a new object for us: a planetary nebula. These nebulae got their
name because early telescopic astronomers in the 17th and 18th cen-
tury occasionally mistook them for planets. Sir William Herschel’s
discovery of the planet Uranus in 1781 set off a planet-hunting craze in
Europe and America. Antoine Darquier de Pellepoix discovered the
Ring Nebula in 1779, which Charles Messier later added to his list of
‘false comets’. If the beginner is at all familiar with the Ring Nebula,
they may be expecting a brightly colored oval of glowing gas with a
bright central star; the view through an amateur telescope is less
impressive! No amateur telescope less than one meter in aperture will
show color like this to the naked eye, and unlike a camera, our eyes do
not collect light over time. Instead, we process light into real-time
images. Yet, the Ring is still a beautiful object in the eyepiece and a
reminder that all things die – even the stars!
5. We will continue to collect Messier objects by starting at Sheliak and
following the line toward Sulafat. Continue on this line about twice as
far as the distance between the two stars, and you will come to the
compact globular cluster M56. Stars in a globular cluster tend to be
quite old and all of about the same age. This globular is almost 33,000
LY from Earth, making it relatively faint.
6. Continue in the same general direction and look for Albireo, the head
of the swan in the constellation Cygnus. Albireo is one of the finest
double stars in the sky, showing us a beautiful blue and gold pair. With
the exception of Deneb at the swan’s tail, all the main stars outlining
the cross-shape in Cygnus are double stars. Tracking from one to the
next and splitting each in turn is a wonderful exercise in tracking and
pointing the telescope; this exercise also reveals much about star color
and helps the beginner appreciate the subtler colors found in the
eyepiece.
7. Continuing in the same direction across Cygnus to the junction of the
tail of Delphinus, we find M27, the Dumbbell Nebula. This was the
first planetary nebula discovered by Charles Messier in 1764. M27 is
quite bright at mag 7 and easy to spot with 10 x 50 binoculars. The
telescope at 30-60x reveals details of shape, brightness, and density.
This is an excellent target for sketching at the eyepiece.
8. Our last object in the zenithal constellations will be one of the most
magnificent globular star clusters in the northern skies: M13 in
Hercules. Edmund Halley of cometary fame is sometimes credited with
discovering this star cluster, but it was actually catalogued by Charles
Messier in 1764. Start with a 10 x 50 pair of binoculars at Zeta Hercules

in the southwest corner of the keystone and proceed due north about
two thirds of the way toward Eta Hercules; you will find this bright but
fuzzy star that defies a clear focus. Using a telescope and pushing the
magnification to 100x, you can begin to resolve some of the outer stars
in the cluster if you have at least 200 mm (8 inches) of aperture.
9. Sketching the entire group of zenithal constellations after making a
thorough tour of each of these areas with binoculars and a telescope
will reveal many interesting features. These constellations will also
provide a frame of reference from late summer through early winter to
help the beginner orient themselves with the sky over changing seasons
(Fig. 6.12).
The autumn zenith constellations contain many wonderful objects to

explore, and the dark zenithal skies make the perfect background in which
to observe these faint targets. This is also important for the new observer,
because the higher contrast offered at the zenith makes finding these small
and often faint targets substantially easier. Planetary nebulae and globular
Fig. 6.12 Detail sketch of zenithal constellations, including clusters and nebulae.
(Credit: Author)
clusters are among the smallest targets we hunt for and observe. Tracking
them down requires good map reading skills, and the ability to translate
from the map in one’s hand to the skies above. Finding these small targets
precisely should improve the student’s telescope handling and tracking
skills as well.
Following Up
The globular clusters and planetary nebulae featured in this activity are just
the beginning! There are many more targets of similar beauty available
throughout the year. Planetary nebulae in particular offer great variety in
shape and structure; lists of these objects are available on the web for any-
one to track down and observe.
Activity 25: Winter – Leonid Meteor Shower
Meteor showers are among the most awe-inspiring events a person can wit-
ness. Silent streaks of light showing a variety of color, speed, and bright-
ness; these transitory events give us amazing insight into the motion of
objects in our Solar System. Like spectators at a stock car race, we cannot
appreciate the speed of the vehicles better than when they roar by the grand-
stand just meters away from where we are sitting. So it is with small parti-
cles of ice, stone, and metal that orbit the Sun with terrifying speed. The
Earth too is speeding around the Sun at some 30 km per second – more than
100,000 kph! This means that meteoroids following the Earth in orbit may
impact at ‘just’ 10 kps (36,000 kph), while meteoroids traveling anti-orbital
to the Earth (head-on collision) may strike our planet at more than 70 kps
(250,000 kph).
At speeds like these, only large objects leave any surviving fragments;
few impactors smaller than one meter in diameter will leave any sizable
fragments that fall to Earth intact. As a small object strikes our atmosphere,
a pressure shockwave builds ahead of the impactor; heat from air friction,
pressure, and vibration work together to destroy most small impactors in a
matter of seconds. Larger objects may actually explode from internal
stresses, leaving a large number of smaller pieces that fall to the ground
intact. A larger impactor such as the Chelyabinsk meteor, a 20–25-meter
rock that exploded over a small Siberian town in 2013, can be spectacular.
This meteor was many times brighter than the winter Sun and the explosion
was equal to 500 kilotons of TNT – more than 30 times the energy of the
Activity 25: Winter – Leonid Meteor Shower 165
first atomic bombs. Fortunately, the explosion happened 30 km (18 miles)

above the ground; although many felt the heat pulse and the shockwave
damaged windows and buildings, there were few injuries.
A meteor shower is less dramatic than a large meteor strike, is far safer,
and is quite predictable. As the Earth revolves around the Sun, it passes
through the remains of comets that regularly cross our own orbit. Comets
have a visible tail as they pass near the Sun, but they also leave behind a trail
of invisible dust and rocky particles. This trail of particles is remarkably per-
sistent, remaining as a coherent stream of material that the Earth passes
through each year on about the same date. On each orbit, the comet will leave
a new stream of material; the more recent the trail, the denser it is. For us on
Earth, the intensity of the meteor shower depends upon which trail we pass
through that year. The last strong outburst of the Leonid Meteor shower was
in 2001. In that year, my students and I were able to measure meteor activity
upwards of 1500 meteors per hour, along with many bright fireballs and
bolides.
Modern astronomy is capable of spectacular precision, allowing scien-
tists to forecast the intensity and timing of an annual meteor shower, includ-
ing information about the best day, time, and location for viewing. For our
activity, you will need to do some internet research; just type in Leonid
Meteor Shower, the year, and your city, and you will get all the information
you need to plan your observations.
Meteors showers are best observed between midnight and dawn. To
understand why, it helps to show your student how meteor showers work. In
Fig. 6.13, we are looking at the Earth from high above the North Pole; we
clearly see here the concept of prograde rotation, where the Earth rotates
on its axis in the same spin direction as we revolve around the Sun. Because
of the phenomena of prograde rotation, the Earth’s spin carries us from west
to east as we rotate on our axis once each day.
While it is possible to see random meteors literally at any time of day or
night, meteor showers are different. Meteor showers happen when Earth is
plowing through a trail of cometary debris. To use a crude analogy, the
atmosphere is our windshield and the Earth is our SUV traveling down the
road. Every once in a while, a bug splatters itself on our windshield. When
we travel through a cloud of bugs, the mess on the windscreen becomes
more spectacular – this is what a meteor shower is. To press this analogy a
bit farther, you can only see a bug go splat if you are looking forward in the
direction the SUV is traveling; for the Earth, we must therefore observe the
sky between midnight and dawn, looking in the direction that the Earth is
traveling through space.
Fig. 6.13 Diagram of the Earth moving through a trail of cometary debris during a
meteor shower. (Credit: Author)
1. Annual meteor showers are associated with debris from particular com-
ets. This is what makes them predictable. The August Perseid meteor
shower is associated with comet Swift-Tuttle, the October Orionids
with comet Halley, and the November Leonids with comet
Tempel-Tuttle.
2. Meteor showers all have a radiant, a point in the sky from which all
the meteors seem to originate. This is typically the constellation rising
in the east on the day the meteor shower occurs.
3. Meteor showers are named for the constellation in which the radiant
appears, not the cometary origin of the shower particles themselves;
thus we have the Perseids (Perseus), Geminids (Gemini), etc.
Observation Time!
Materials
1. A comfortable reclining lawn chair, blanket, and a thermos of coffee or

hot soup!
2. Printed star charts, a clipboard, and a pencil. Keep in mind that if you
have a long observing run planned, you may need a number of star
maps to cover the sky for the roughly six-hour duration from midnight
to dawn
3. A red LED headlamp for taking notes is also helpful
Activity 25: Winter – Leonid Meteor Shower 167
Instructions
1. Meteor shower enthusiasts often plan an evening of observing leading

up to around 11 pm, when serious meteor activity usually begins.
Others are content to stay indoors and wait until the fateful hour. Your
local weather and outdoor temperatures will likely determine your
course of action.
2. Lie back on your lawn chair and make yourself comfortable. Familiarize
yourself with the constellations that are visible and find the correct star
map for this. Orient the map so that you can easily record the path of a
meteor.
3. Spot your first meteor!
4. Notice the meteor’s starting and ending point. Plot an arrow on your
star chart that shows this. Record the meteor’s number at the tip of the
arrow.
5. Record the meteor in your log, as in Table 6.3. Note that it contains
sample data to guide your studies; a blank, printable version can be
downloaded from the Springer website: Data 6.3. Record the observa-
tion number, time, constellation, color, and any notes that seem
relevant.
6. I often had meteor observers work in pairs so that recording the data
took less time – after all, less time looking down at the page, the more
time looking up at the sky!
Table 6.3 Meteor shower log example
Credit: Author
7. If you have a group of meteor watchers (always more fun!), then you
will want to consolidate your data later on a master star chart, with
arrows drawn carefully with a ruler.
In any case, you can trace the lines of the meteors backward and see if
you can find the radiant point. If you are recording meteors by hand,
your radiant will likely be a diffuse area rather than a precise point. It
is often possible to find data on line confirming the radiant point of a
meteor shower, with which you can compare your own data.
8. An alternate method of recording meteor data requires a tracking tele-
scope and a small camera or phone capable of time-lapse photography.
Set up your tracking telescope and mount the camera or phone so that
it looks down the barrel of the telescope rather than through the eye-
piece, and start the time lapse. Be sure to set your ISO sensitivity quite
high and make the exposure time about 10 seconds. The resulting video
makes a good record of the shower, and if played at high enough speed
should show the radiant point quite clearly.
The annual meteor shower is quite different from the random meteor that
one may see at almost any time of night. Meteor showers are produced by
periodic comets, so their trails of debris allow us to predict relatively suc-
cessfully when such a shower will be most active. Plotting the pathway of
the meteors over time allows us to identify the constellation from which the
meteors seem to spring, and for which they are named.
Following up
There are more than a dozen annual meteor showers, all worth observing.
In addition, there is a contemplative ease when observing a meteor shower;
little or no equipment is needed, and it is an activity best observed with
friends. There is nothing quite like sharing a warm drink and good conversa-
tion while relaxing under dark skies and watching silent meteors blaze
through the night!
Activity 26: Winter – Cancer and Gemini 169
Activity 26: Winter – Cancer and Gemini
Cancer and Gemini bring us full circle in our survey of the seasonal skies.
Unlike the summer skies when the ecliptic lies low on the southern horizon,
the ecliptic and zodiacal constellations arch high across the winter skies,
making them easier observing targets. As a Star Mentor, I find that I am
always pursuing constellation recognition and basic familiarity with the sky
before any other topic. The reason is simple and bears repeating: one cannot
successfully explore the many wonders available in the heavens without a
working knowledge of the constellations.
Cancer is one of the more difficult constellations to pick out, particularly
if you do not have access to clear and dark skies. None of the stars in Cancer
are particularly bright, and its K shape is not particularly prominent or sug-
gestive. Even so, Cancer contains one of the finest open clusters in the
winter skies. Gemini is a more prominent constellation with a more sugges-
tive and memorable shape; it is home to a number of fine deep-sky objects
that every new observer will enjoy seeing for the first time.
1. Gemini and Cancer are both zodiacal constellations that lie along the
ecliptic – the plane of our Solar System that cuts across our skies at a
23° angle relative to the celestial equator.
2. Because the ecliptic is the plane of our Solar System, it is also the
pathway followed by the Sun, Moon, and planets as they move across
the background constellations.
3. Gemini and Cancer lie close to the Milky Way, so they lie in rich star
fields that make wonderful areas for binocular observation (Fig. 6.14).
Instructions
1. Begin by checking your planisphere to be sure that Cancer and Gemini

will be visible for you. These constellations are easily visible in the
early evening from mid to late December through the winter months of
January and February. Locate Sirius (the brightest star in the sky) and
proceed eastward to bright Procyon in Canis Minor; continue eastward
the same distance again to find the upper portion of Cancer.
Fig. 6.14 Detail sketch of Gemini and Cancer, showing clusters and nebulae. (Credit:
Author)
2. Orient your paper vertically and sketch in Cancer near the bottom of
the page. There are only six stars here, however, if you cannot spot
χ-Cnc in the upper left corner of the constellation, that is alright. Χ-Cnc
is a mag 5.3 star that lies at or beyond the visual limit depending on the
light pollution in your area. In fact, no star in this constellation is
brighter than mag 3.5!
3. Above Cancer you will find Gemini. If you have difficulty finding the
bright pair of Castor and Pollux, site along a line from the blue giant
Activity 26: Winter – Cancer and Gemini 171
Rigel in Orion to Alnitak (the lowest belt star); this line will take you
directly to mag 1 Pollux, which is the brightest star in Gemini.
4. Sketch in as much of Gemini as you can see. As with Cancer, many of
the stars in the outline of Gemini are mag 3–4 and challenging to see
in some locations. Be patient; remember to sweep your eyes over the
area and try averted vision by looking slightly off target by a few
degrees. Averted vision allows your eyes to process light in the more
sensitive rod cells that surround the center of your retina. These cells
show no color, but they are significantly more sensitive to light than the
center of your eye’s retina.
Observation Time!
1. Having sketched in your constellations, let’s go exploring! As we have

done before, we will begin with a binocular sweep of these constella-
tions, starting with Cancer. Have your student sweep along Cancer with
a binocular diagonally from one corner to the other, but do not tell them
what to expect – allow your student to be rewarded with their first sight
of the Bee Hive Cluster. This brilliant open cluster features about 100
stars, mostly blue-white in color and shining at mag 3. For the tele-
scope, there are a few cooler stars in the group that shade more toward
the yellow-orange spectrum; searching for these at higher power can be
a fun activity.
2. Moving to Gemini, let’s start with Pollux. Although shown as β Gem
and designated as the second brightest star in Gemini, Pollux’s mag 1.1
easily outshines Castor’s mag 1.9. Encourage your student to examine
Castor and Pollux in one field and pay attention to their respective
colors. A view with either binoculars or a telescope at low power will
easily show that Castor is a brilliant blue-white, while Pollux is more
golden in color.
3. Star color depends on surface temperature, which in turn depends on
mass. The more massive a star it, the hotter (and faster!) it burns
through its hydrogen fuel. The hottest stars appear blue-white, with a
surface temperature over 15,000 K; green-hued stars burn at 8–10,000 K,
yellow-orange stars indicate temperatures of 4–6000 K; and red stars
are just 2–3000 K. Paying attention to star color is a good way to get a
somewhat jaded student reengaged in observing!
4. If you have a larger instrument with good tracking, you can try to cap-
ture the Eskimo Nebula, a planetary nebula more than 4000 LY from
Earth. This is a small and faint target, but shows an interesting concen-
tric structure typical of its explosive origins. It is best to look for this
deep-sky object with a telescope of at least 250 mm (10 inches) in
aperture.
5. Tracking along the highest leg of Castor from Tejat and beyond, you
will find a variety of interesting deep-sky targets. Open clusters abound
in this area, and showing your student the technique of sweeping the
telescope or binocular over an area is appropriate here. Sweeping the
telescope slowly relies upon the human eye’s ability to detect objects
in motion. Of course, the clusters are not moving; we are only sweep-
ing the field of view to simulate this. Sweeping helps the observer pick
up targets that may be missed if the telescope is still. This is a powerful
new observing technique for your student to master!
Cancer and Gemini make a great pair because Gemini is quite bright and
easy to spot, but just as importantly, it points the way to find Cancer, which
is dimmer and more spread out. The pair offers a host of deep-sky nebulae
and double stars showing a wide variety of colors, sizes, and temperatures.
Following Up
Remaining aware of the line of the ecliptic and the zodiacal constellations
helps everyone form a good starting place for observing. Learning the
twelve zodiacal constellations will help the new student begin to recognize
the constellations next to them, and so on until they are familiar with the
entire sky!
Activity 27: Winter – Sketching Zenith Constellations
The winter zenith offers a number of brilliant constellations and two of the
brightest galaxies visible in the northern sky, as well as some of the most
distinctive star clusters.
As Star Mentors, we must remember that those who are just starting out
in astronomy may not have the same awareness of weather conditions that
experienced astronomers do. You likely know that the clear skies that
astronomers enjoy generally mean colder weather and rapidly falling tem-
Activity 27: Winter – Sketching Zenith Constellations 173
peratures after dark. Help your students by teaching them to dress appropri-
ately for the weather. Astronomy is not the same as other more active winter
activities! Even if your student enjoys winter hiking, ice skating, or other
outdoor winter sports, they will likely find astronomy a challenge. The lack
of substantial activity, body movement, and sunlight mean that loss of body
heat can be an issue, even for those who enjoy the outdoors. Encourage
people to dress for colder weather than the temperatures suggest. Wear mul-
tiple layers; the ability to add and remove layers as needed can be essential
for staying comfortable in cold weather observing. Provide some seating
that keeps people off the ground; damp or frozen ground can be a major heat
sink that robs the observer of precious warmth.
1. The Local Group of galaxies includes the Milky Way, the Andromeda
Galaxy, and the Triangulum Galaxy. All three are visible in the winter
sky.
2. Andromeda and the Milky Way are of a similar size and mass, and both
have a number of satellite galaxies in orbit around them.
3. Triangulum is about 40% smaller than Andromeda and the Milky Way.
All three galaxies are gravitationally interacting, and some astronomers
believe that Triangulum may be a satellite of Andromeda.
Observation Time!
Materials
As with all sketching activities, paper and pencil are recommended. I gener-
ally provide unruled printer paper and pencils for students. Some may pre-
fer colored pencils or even pen and ink, but my preference is to make a basic
pencil sketch first and then re-do the sketch using other materials later if
desired. For sketching at night, a clipboard and a red LED headlamp are
excellent accessories.
Instructions
1. Facing south, look up to the zenith. The 0 mag star Capella in the con-
stellation Auriga is by far the brightest star in the region; the other stars
nearby are no more than mag 2–3. Capella anchors the upper left cor-
ner of the hexagon shape of Auriga from this perspective.
2. Fold your paper twice the long way, dividing it into quarters. (See
Activity 16 and Fig. 4.16 for a detailed example.) With the paper held
horizontally, Auriga will occupy the first quarter on the left. Sketch in
the six stars around the perimeter of the hexagon shape. Note that the
midpoint on the right side is formed by a pair of stars. In binoculars or
a telescope, the difference in color is quite striking, with one being red-
orange and the other a brilliant blue-white.
3. Perseus has an upside-down Y-shape from our perspective. I find it
looks like an old-fashioned dowsing rod. This constellation is anchored
at the vertex of the Y-shape by the white star Mirfak at mag 1.7. The
blue star Algol is the next brightest star at mag 2. Sketch in Perseus
astride the center of your page.
4. Continuing westward, the constellation Andromeda is shaped like a
cornucopia, a simple horn with it vertex anchored by mag 2 Almach.
The horn opens westward with the bottom side formed by the stars
Mirach and Alpheratz. The stars of the upper branch of the horn are
fainter at mag 3–4.5. These may be challenging to spot with the naked
eye unless you have reasonably dark skies.
5. Finally, sketch in little Triangulum, which lies below the eastern end of
Andromeda. Triangulum is anchored by Mizan, a white mag 3 star that
lies below Almach on the eastern point of the horn of Andromeda.
6. This region offers many challenges for the new observer, particularly in
naked-eye observation. The Triangulum and Andromeda galaxies, each
about 2.5 million light years distant, are generally the most distant
objects visible to the naked eye. Clear skies are needed, but if you can
see the Milky Way stretching from Cassiopeia through Cygnus, you
should be able to spot these two galaxies. Averted vision is a must. Help
your student practice this skill. One of the best targets for averted
vision is the nearby Pleiades cluster; its nebulosity is clearly visible in
averted vision but disappears when you look straight at it. Practice on
the Pleiades, then try spotting the galaxies and recording them on your
sketch.
7. The winter zenith also offers some of the best naked-eye star clusters.
Due south of Perseus are the Pleiades. Continue southeast of the
Activity 27: Winter – Sketching Zenith Constellations 175
Fig. 6.15 Detail sketch of winter zenithal constellations with galaxies, clusters, and
nebulae. (Credit: Author)
Pleiades to find the red giant star Aldebaran anchoring the constella-
tion Taurus. Aldebaran is also the center of the Hyades star cluster.
Mirfak in the center of Perseus is also the center of a loose open clus-
ter, and continuing northwest from Mirfak you can find the Double
Cluster. The Double Cluster will likely appear as a single group of
stars to the eye; a binocular or a telescope will reveal the double nature
of the cluster. See how many of these sights you can record on your
sketch (Fig. 6.15).
The local group of galaxies is a magnificent obsession for many observers

and photographers alike. For the new student, few things show the reach and
scope of gravitation’s power like observing these interacting galaxies. To
think that such massive objects scattered across such immense distances are
all bound inextricably together by the weakest force in nature is quite extraor-
dinary. Astronomy is rightly called the ‘contemplation of immensities’, and
this is perhaps the best way to introduce these ideas to the student.
Following Up
There are other groups of gravitationally bound and interacting galaxies that
are easily visible; we will seek out more of them in Chap. 11.
Chapter 7
Introducing the Inner

Planets
There is a definite divide between the inner and outer Solar System. The
four inner planets, Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars, are all packed in close
to the Sun, lying within 1.5 AU. By contrast, Jupiter (5 AU), Saturn (10
AU), Uranus (20 AU), Neptune (30 AU), and Pluto-Charon (40 AU) are not
only much farther out, but there is much more space between them.
For our convenience, we will use a geocentric measurement system when
we discuss the planets in our Solar System. For the beginner, comparing
everything in space to the Earth gives a sense of perspective and scale that
mere numbers cannot. Therefore, we discuss planetary distances from the
Sun in terms of Astronomical Units (AU); one AU is the distance from
Earth to the Sun, or about 150 million km. So, when we say Mars is 1.5 AU
from the Sun, Jupiter 5 AU, and Saturn 10 AU, we put planetary distances
into an easier perspective. For the planets themselves, we will speak of sizes
in terms of Earth Radii (RE); Venus measures .96 RE while Jupiter mea-
sures almost 12 RE. Planetary masses will also be discussed in Earth
Masses (ME); Mars at 0.1 ME and Saturn at 95 ME are easy to understand.
The inner planets also share a terrestrial or rocky composition and are all
reasonably close in size. Their relatively Earth-like gravities and firm, rocky
surfaces have made it possible to put landers on Venus and an entire series
of landers and rovers on Mars. The use of orbiters, landers, and rovers have

https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-98771-8_7,
178 7 Introducing the Inner Planets
transformed the inner planets from distant worlds into familiar places in the
minds of the public and the would-be astronomer. Photographs of distant
landscapes unmarred by footprints or habitations fire the imagination; the
space programs of many countries are what drive people out into the dark
to see the skies for themselves.
Because of their relatively modest sizes, the inner planets are surprisingly
challenging observational targets in spite of their proximity to the Earth. In
one sense, the space program’s spectacular success in photographing distant
planets makes our job as Star Mentors more difficult. I have frequently had
people come up to me at my telescope and show me a beautiful photo on
their cellphone: “I want to see Saturn like that! Can your telescope do that?”
We are challenged to help the new observer come to grips with the very real
limitations of terrestrial telescopes and observing planets from the bottom
of a 60-km-deep ocean of turbulent air, and not to spoil the excitement and
interest of the new observer.
Activity 28: Confirming Your Location on the Earth
How you see the sky is a function of your observing location on the Earth.
The fact that we stand upon the outside of a sphere looking out (upward?)
onto the inner surface of the celestial sphere is a bit difficult for many people
to conceptualize. In fact, many observers I know who have an excellent mas-
tery of the location of objects in the sky and of pointing a telescope accurately
enough to find hundreds of deep-sky objects don’t have a good conception of
the position of an earthbound observer peering out into deep space.
Every observer should understand that we observe from the surface of a
sphere spinning on a tilted axis and revolving around a nearby star, which
blocks our view of the sky for about half of each day. The object of this
activity is to make your student’s observing location on the Earth both vis-
ible and sensible to them. Our modern 21st century technology puts GPS
and dynamic maps into our pocket smartphones, but often handicaps people
when they are forced to use a static map printed on paper. This activity will
help everyone measure and confirm their location on the Earth in degrees of
latitude – a very useful skill in planning observations!

1. How much of the sky you can see depends upon your location on the
Earth. An observer located at the equator can see all of the sky from
Activity 28: Confirming Your Location on the Earth 179
pole to pole, while an observer located at the poles can see only half of
the sky (one hemisphere).
2. The horizon lies 90 degrees from the zenith. Although this seems
overly obvious, it will have a profound bearing on the outcome of our
observations.
Observation Time!
Materials
1. Planisphere or star map

2. Compass or compass app on a smartphone
3. Protractor or inclinometer app on a smartphone
4. Planetarium software such as Stellarium
5. An old-fashioned classroom globe (optional)
Instructions
It should make sense to anyone that the horizon lies 90 degrees away from
the zenith in any direction. That is, if you are pointing straight up at the sky,
you cannot lower your arm more than 90 degrees before you are pointing at
the ground beneath your feet. People rarely think about how basic geometry
applies to the night sky, so walking your students through this exercise is
quite useful. If we were observing from a location on the equator, the celes-
tial equator would be directly overhead on the zenith of the sky; therefore,
the northern and southern pole would be on our northern and southern hori-
zon. From this location, we could see the entire dome of the heavens and all
88 constellations.
By contrast, if we were observing from the North or South Pole, the
celestial equator would lie on the horizon and we would see only half the
sky, no matter what time of year. From the South Pole, no constellation
north of the celestial equator would be visible to us. Again, you can verify
this as a thought experiment or visualize it with the help of a classroom
globe. Verifying it with the help of planetarium software, where you can
specify your observing location on your computer, may be the easiest way.
We will take these concepts out with us during our observation.
If you are not observing from the equator, but rather from the Northern
Hemisphere, then each degree your location moves north, the celestial pole
moves one degree higher in the sky. If we moved all the way to the North
Pole, the celestial pole would be directly above us at the zenith. We will
make observations that will verify these and other ideas.
1. Use your compass or compass app to verify north and search for the
North Star. Use your protractor or inclinometer to measure the altitude
of Polaris from the horizon. If you do not have an inclinometer (app),
then you can use a meter stick held at arm’s length and measure the
distance of Polaris from the horizon in cm (See Activity 7 for a com-
plete explanation of how to measure altitude angles). Your measure-
ment of the altitude of Polaris should correspond with your GPS
latitude, ±2–3 degrees. The star Polaris is about 1 degree away from the
celestial pole, and measuring altitude from the horizon with a handheld
instrument is subject to significant error. Even so, measuring the alti-
tude of Polaris from your location should help you verify this particular
concept. Figure 7.1 shows the altitude of Polaris from an observing
location of +35° north latitude. On the observing night, Polaris’ altitude
was about 1 degree south of the celestial pole. This error must be cal-
culated for the particular time and date of your observation if you want
to account for it.
Fig. 7.1 Finding the altitude of Polaris at my location. (Credit: Author)

Activity 28: Confirming Your Location on the Earth 181
2. Just as the visible celestial pole moves higher into the sky as you move
north, you also lose sight of the southernmost constellations in the sky.
If the northern celestial pole has moved 30 degrees above your horizon,
the southern celestial pole has moved 30 degrees below your horizon,
so the southern horizon should lie at a declination of 90 − 30 = 60
degrees.
3. To verify this by observation, turn to the south and make a survey of
the sky with a binocular and a planisphere. Find the southernmost star
that you can verify on your planisphere and determine its declination.
Measure the distance from this star to the southern horizon. Your south-
ern horizon should be located at your star’s declination + altitude. You
can see that in Fig. 7.2, the star Sargas in the constellation Scorpius has
a measured altitude of 12 degrees above the southern horizon.
Consulting a planisphere or star map, we see that Sargas has a declina-
tion of −43 degrees (south.) Adding 43 + 12 = 55 degrees south, which
is exactly 35 degrees north of the south celestial pole.
These observations confirm two things for us. First, that our GPS-reported
location of 35 degrees north is correct because of our observation of the
celestial north pole (via Polaris) at 35 degrees above the northern horizon.
Second, we see that we can indeed see 35 degrees below the celestial equa-
tor, down to −55 degrees on the southern horizon as verified by the altitude
Fig. 7.2 Finding the altitude of Sagas at my location. (Credit: Author)

of the star Sargas. Making observations that confirm our location in latitude
allows us to confirm what our GPS technology tells us, and to some extend
makes us less dependent upon it. I have seen many a circumstance where a
traveler has found themselves lost or in jeopardy because of the absolute
trust that they have placed in GPS mapping technology. GPS tech is a won-
derful aid, but like most technologies from fire up through rocketry, it is
unwise to be too dependent upon it.
Navigating by the stars is an ancient art, as is measuring the Earth itself.

Eratosthenes was the first astronomer to accurately measure the Earth in the
third century BC using not stellar data, but shadows measured on the same
day from different known locations on Earth. The principle is much the
same: take two measurements from known points, and you can pinpoint
your location in latitude quite accurately. Many students today are stunned
that we are able to measure our location without high-tech equipment.
Certainly the seagoing navigators prior to the GPS era wouldn’t be quite so
surprised!
Following Up
Once we pinpoint our location in latitude, it is possible to team up with

another person at a different latitude and measure the circumference of the
Earth with reasonable accuracy. I have done this project with school chil-
dren who found it to be a delightful activity. There is no reason that astron-
omy club members from various locations on the globe couldn’t do the
same thing.
Activity 29: Classical Planets and the Ecliptic
There are five classical planets – those that are visible to the naked eye
without a telescope. These planets were known to every ancient culture,
because in the fixed realm of the night sky where every star and constella-
tion keeps its place, these five were different. The planets drift slowly
through the sky, some in a matter of days, others over several years, but all
follow the same path, which we call the ecliptic. The ancient Greeks called
Activity 29: Classical Planets and the Ecliptic 183
these strange objects πλανετεσ, Planetes, or ‘wandering stars’, which gave

us our modern word ‘planet’.
The classical planets also exhibit other behaviors; they wax and wane in
brightness over time. As with their motions across the sky, each of the plan-
ets keeps its own timetable. Mercury and Venus change in less than a year,
Mars changes every other year, and Jupiter and Saturn seem to remain more
or less constant. Planets sometimes align in the sky and very rarely disap-
pear behind the Moon or even cross in front of a star. These are occulta-
tions – events where one object passes in front of or slips behind another in
the sky. They helped ancient astronomers determine the relative place of
things in the sky and figure out the arrangement of objects from innermost
to outermost.
Perhaps strangest of all things, the planets did not move across the sky as
every other object does. Every star and constellation moves a bit further
westward each day; constellations slip about 1 degree farther west each
night when we look at them. This is why we see different constellations
throughout the year – why after a constellation slips past the western hori-
zon at sunset, we have to wait 6 months to see it appear in the eastern twi-
light sky again. Planets challenge this fixed order because each year, for a
few days or weeks, the planets reverse their course and move eastward again
in a phenomenon ancient astronomers called retrograde motion. By shar-
ing our knowledge of the planets with students, we are participating in this
ancient tradition.

1. The Solar System is essentially flat – all planets orbit the Sun in the
plane of the Sun’s equator. It is this plane that defines the ecliptic.
2. The existence of the plane of the Solar System explains why all planets,
the Sun, and the Moon follow the same relatively narrow path across
the sky.
3. The constellations of the Zodiac lie along the path of the ecliptic. It is
the motion of the Sun, Moon, and planets across these constellations
that made the zodiacal constellations important to ancient
astronomers.
4. The Earth’s axis is tilted 23.5° relative to the Sun. This tilt angle is the
difference between the line of the celestial equator and the line of the
ecliptic in the sky.
Observation Time!
Materials
1. Planisphere
2. A binocular or a telescope
Instructions
Because the Earth’s axis is tilted, the line of the ecliptic and the celestial
equator are likewise separated by a maximum distance of 23.5 degrees.
Watch for the constellations Scorpius and Sagittarius. When these two con-
stellations are positioned on either side of due south, the ecliptic is at its
lowest point in the southern skies. We can observer the ecliptic at its south-
ernmost point on any night between early April (around 5 am) through early
September (around 7 pm).
Set your planisphere so that you are looking at the southern horizon and
rotate the date ring until the constellations Sagittarius and Scorpius straddle
the southern meridian line as shown here. This is the most southerly posi-
tion of the ecliptic line (Fig. 7.3).
Find your current date on the planisphere’s date ring (outer ring), and the
corresponding time on the time ring (inner ring) will tell you at what time
on that day you will see the sky like this. If you examine your planisphere,
you will see that the constellations Capricornus and Aquarius are visible
looking east from the meridian, while constellations Libra and Virgo are
visible looking westward. All of the zodiacal constellations lie along the
ecliptic line, which is also the plane of our Solar System. Because all the
planets orbit within this plane, their paths through our skies follow along
with the ecliptic as well.
It is because the planets traveled through the zodiacal constellations that
ancient astronomers (and astrologers) believed these constellations to be
important. For more technically minded astronomers such as Aristotle,
Ptolemy, Copernicus, Tycho, Kepler, Galileo, and others, the movements of
the planets offered clues to the structure and workings of the cosmos.
Beginners today often have an interest in observing the planets as well.
Quality views of Saturn, Jupiter, and Mars are stunning and motivate begin-
ning astronomers to continue with the hobby and come back for more.
For the Star Mentor, observation of the planets offers unique opportuni-
ties. Because the planets are wanderers, they are never in the same place, so
offering a set activity is not realistic. Instead, I will offer a few mini-
Fig. 7.3 Diagram of a planisphere showing the southern horizon with Sagittarius and
Scorpius. (Credit: Author)
activities, just as we did with the Moon’s orbit in Activity 2. These

mini-activities will excite beginners and allow them to explore and under-
stand the ecliptic and the motion of the planets.
Mini-Activity: Planets in Conjunction
The technical definition for a planetary conjunction is when a planet is at

its closest north-south separation from another planet or star in the sky. The
more common definition of conjunction is simply when two objects pass
near to each other as they move across the ecliptic. You may have seen the
‘Great Conjunction’ of Jupiter and Saturn, which occurred in late December
of 2020. The two gas giant planets are never closer than about 650,000 km
apart, but in December of 2020, the position of the two planets lined up in
the sky as seen from Earth and appeared separated by less than 10 minutes
of arc.1 Most planetary conjunctions place planets within 3–5 degrees of
another object.
Conjunctions of planets with the Moon are quite common; the Moon
passes planets visible in the sky roughly every month. If there are planets
visible, watching for and observing a lunar conjunction is an easy activity
to plan for.
Conjunctions between planets occur much more rarely and depend upon
the planet’s orbital cycle. Conjunctions with fast-moving planets like Venus
happen much more often than between slower-moving planets. Conjunctions
between Jupiter (12-year orbit) and Saturn (29-year orbit) occur only about
every 20 years. Opportunities for such events should not be missed! Use
resources like Stellarium or pay attention to astronomy media outlets to find
your next planetary conjunction. You can type ‘Upcoming Planetary
Conjunctions’ into any search engine and get a list of events for the coming
months.
Conjunctions allow beginners to see the dramatic changes in the sky as
planets pass other objects. A program of observations over days or weeks
before the actual conjunction will show the student the motion of planets
against the starry background and give them an opportunity to measure
changes in position.
Mini-Activity: Retrograde Motion
The motion of the planets was mysterious to ancient astronomers. Not only
did the planets wander from west to east through the constellations, but
every so often, each planet would stop its eastward progress, then turn back-
ward and travel west for a while, then reverse course again and resume its
eastward trek.
Explaining this reverse, or retrograde motion, was a problem that
Aristotle was never able to solve. A partial – and incorrect – explanation
was developed by the Egyptian astronomer-mathematician Ptolemy some
500 years after Aristotle, but finding the true answer took over 2,000 years,
when Polish astronomer Copernicus discovered it in the mid-1500’s.
To understand the illusion of retrograde motion, imagine that you are
riding in a car on a freeway. Up ahead is a slow car that you are going to
1
Angular measurements are measured in degrees. Smaller measures are minutes of arc
(1/60th of a degree) and seconds of arc (1/60th of a minute of arc, or 1/3600th of a
degree.)
Fig. 7.4 Diagram of a planet’s prograde and retrograde motion as it moves along the
ecliptic. (Credit: Author)
pass. As you catch up to the car, everything looks normal; you and the slow
car both appear to be moving forward. But for a few seconds, as you pass
the car, everything changes. You look out the window and the slower car
seems to be slipping backward as you pass it – this is retrograde motion in
action. Once you have moved well in front of the slow car, you look back
and all seems normal again – both cars seem to be moving forward.
We know the slow car never actually moves backward; it is only an illu-
sion that happens as we pass by. The planets are much the same, and each
year, as the Earth passes each planet in its orbit, these planets will seem to
be moving backward for a few brief weeks (Fig. 7.4).
You can witness the drama of retrograde motion for yourself by tracking
Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, or Venus’ positions in the sky as each of the planets
reach opposition, when each planet gets as close to Earth as it ever does and
becomes significantly brighter than normal. Oppositions happen as the
Earth catches up and then passes the position of the superior planets
(Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn). For inferior planets, their shorter orbits and
more rapid motion causes them to catch and pass Earth’s position. The
schedule of oppositions is relatively complex to calculate and depends upon
the ratio of the planet’s orbits. It is best simply to consult a search engine
for a list of upcoming oppositions.
Start observing a few weeks before the start of retrograde motion. Use a
star map and plot the position of the planet every few nights as observations
permit. Be sure to record the date and time of each observation! You will
notice that over a period of weeks, the planet stops its eastward motion and
reverses direction, traveling westward across the constellations for a period
of a few days or weeks. If possible, when the planet begins to travel in ret-
rograde, increase your observation schedule to every other day if possible.
You will be rewarded with a chart revealing the looping path that planets
take through our skies. Solving the puzzle of retrograde motion was key to
Copernicus revealing the true structure of our Solar System.
The ecliptic defines the plane of our Solar System, or the Sun’s equatorial
plane. It is because our Solar System is essentially flat, with all planets
orbiting in or near the same plane, that we see the ecliptic as a pathway for
the planets across the sky. By the same token, it was the planets’ pathway
along the ecliptic that brought the constellations of the Zodiac to the atten-
tion of ancient astronomers.
Following Up
Retrograde planetary motion was perhaps the longest-lasting mystery in

astronomy. It puzzled astronomers and mathematicians for more than
2,000 years. It was the insistence upon the Earth-centered or geocentric
model of the cosmos that made this motion so difficult to understand. The
Egyptian astronomer Ptolemy devised a workable solution to the retrograde
problem in about 180 CE, but his modifications really did not solve the
problem – and they made his model extremely complex. It was Copernicus’
Sun-centered or heliocentric model that simplified the situation and
explained retrograde motion as an illusion caused when a faster inner planet
overtakes and passes a slower outer planet. This is one of the greatest detec-
tive stories in all of science and makes for worthwhile and exciting
reading.
Activity 30: Planet Mercury – Observing Near the Sun
As mentors, the safety of our students is our first concern, so we will begin
the activity on observing Mercury with a Sun warning (Fig. 7.5).
Never point a telescope, binocular, camera or other optical instrument
at the Sun! Instant and permanent eye damage or blindness may result!
Astronomy isn’t what most people would consider an ‘adventure sport’,
and apart from tripping over a tripod leg in the dark, there are few dangers
involved in our hobby. However, pointing a telescope anywhere near the
Activity 30: Planet Mercury – Observing Near the Sun 189
Fig. 7.5 Sun Warning. (Credit: Author)
Fig. 7.6 The maximum elongation of Mercury. (Credit: Author)
Sun is one of these. If you are going to observe Mercury, you will have to
point the telescope within a few degrees of the Sun’s location in the sky, so
precautions are needed.
1. Never begin observing Mercury in the evening sky until the Sun is
below the horizon.
2. Never continue to observe Mercury in the morning sky after the Sun
has risen above the horizon.
3. The mentor must take complete charge of pointing the telescope.
4. The mentor must monitor the observation and shut down immediately
by putting the cap on the telescope’s tube if any portion of the Sun’s
disk is visible.
Having frightened everyone with such serious warnings, allow me to assure
you that observing Mercury and walking in the footsteps of the great
Giovanni Schiaparelli is a wonderful activity that offers significant
challenges and rewards to the new observer. As long as you follow these
safety precautions, the activity is perfectly safe (Fig. 7.6).
Part of conducting a successful observation of Mercury is understanding
the challenges that you are up against. It is best to observe Mercury when it
reaches maximum elongation, that is, Mercury’s greatest angular distance

from the Sun as seen from Earth. Because of Mercury’s elliptical orbit and
the geometry of viewing angles from Earth, Mercury has a range of 18° to
28° for maximum elongation. This has a number of practical implications
for our observations. Like Venus, Mercury appears as both a ‘morning star’
and an ‘evening star’, that is, Mercury sometimes rises in the east before the
Sun in the predawn hours, and sometimes it appears in the western twilight
after the Sun sets in the west. However, in no case is Mercury more than 28
degrees away from the Sun.
Since the Earth spins at a rate of 15 degrees per hour, this means that you
will never have more than two hours to catch Mercury in the sky, and that
maximum time only occurs when you have a perfect view of an uncluttered
horizon, such as looking out over the sea. Most observers are well pleased
with an hour of observation time, and frequently, obstructions on the hori-
zon and turbulent air when viewing near the horizon mean that observing
Mercury with a telescope is practical for a matter of minutes. Obviously, if
we have just minutes for quality observing time, preparation before the
event is a must! Be sure that your telescope is set up, the finderscope is
aligned, and the eyepieces you may want are ready.
Mercury is a small planet, not much larger than our Moon and no more
colorful. The surface is a low-contrast landscape without large and easy to spot
features such as the Moon’s maria or the polar caps of Mars. Do not expect to
see any detail on Mercury’s surface! The turbulent atmosphere and suspended
dust that color our sunsets make observing fine details problematic. If you
have spent any significant time observing the Moon, you will be aware that
trying to see surface details is quite difficult during the first hour after the
Moon rises and in the last hour before the Moon sets. The same is true of
Mercury, but the target is much smaller, which compounds the difficulty.
What you can see on Mercury is the planet’s phases. Inferior planets –
those closer to the Sun than Earth – all show phases just as the Moon does.
Although you cannot see Mercury in full or new phases (the Sun is in the
way), you can see gibbous, quarter, and crescent phases quite easily.
1. Mercury is the closest planet to the Sun, orbiting at just 0.39 AU (Earth
is at 1 AU).
2. Mercury is one of the smallest planets, with a diameter of just 0.38
(Earth = 1).
Activity 30: Planet Mercury – Observing Near the Sun 191
3. Mercury never appears larger than 13 arcseconds, half the size of Mars
at favorable opposition.
4. Inferior planets like Mercury and Venus show phases like the Moon in
a telescope.
Observation Time!
1. Your observing time will be limited, so be sure all equipment is set up

and ready to go.
2. Use a binocular to spot Mercury as long as the Sun is not above the
horizon.
(a) On an evening observation, you will be looking for Mercury to
emerge from the twilight as the Sun goes down and the western
sky begins to darken.
(b) On a pre-dawn observation, you will be looking for Mercury ris-
ing above the eastern horizon in pre-dawn twilight.
3. See if you can confirm what constellation Mercury is in, either well
before dawn (morning observation) or as the sky darkens and Mercury
sinks toward the western horizon (evening observation).
4. Telescopic observations are best done when Mercury is more than
10–12 degrees above the horizon. These opportunities are relatively
rare and fleeting. Mercury does not spend much time this high off the
horizon – sometimes only days at a time. Again, proper planning is key
here.
5. Telescopic observations should allow you to see Mercury’s phase
(similar to a lunar phase). Sketch the phase as best you can in your log
book.
Mercury is a difficult target for observation. Many students are surprised

that one cannot simply point a telescope and observe any planet with an
arbitrarily sharp and precise view. Most people know that Mercury is the
closest planet to the Sun, but the idea that this would somehow make it dif-
ficult to view Mercury safely and with good detail fails to strike home.
Everyone should have a chance to see Mercury, but we must be sure to take
proper precautions and do these sun-grazing observations safely!
Following Up
Many astronomers simply skip Mercury, but it is a worthwhile objective for

every newcomer. This is an area where the mentor must insure that the stu-
dent is well aware of safety procedures when observing any target near the
Sun. More than that, the mentor must take an active hand and guide the
student while they are observing. I always terminate observations when any
part of the Sun’s disk is visible in the sky; for an evening observation that
means keeping the lens cap ON until the Sun has set, and likewise for a
pre-dawn observation, the scope gets capped the moment the disk of the Sun
breaks the horizon, if not before. There is no substitute for an active safety
program!
Activity 31: Observing the Phases of Venus
Like Mercury, Venus is an inferior planet that shows phases similar to the
lunar phases we are all familiar with. Also like Mercury, Venus shows no
visible surface features through the telescope. Venus is almost as large as
Earth; it is 0.95 Earth diameters and 0.82 Earth masses. Venus is also the
nearest planet to us in space, sometimes coming within 0.28 AU of Earth.
All of this would seem to make for a relatively large nearby planet that
would be a treat for the telescopic observer – were it not for the cloudy
weather! No, not your cloudy weather; it is the clouds on Venus that block
our view. Venus is covered by 100% cloud cover 100% of the time. Some
spacecraft have managed to peer through the clouds with radar and other
specialized equipment, but the visual part of the spectrum that we humans
see is blocked out at all times. This is why Venus does not show surface
features through the telescope at all.
Students have sometimes asked why we bother to observe Venus at all.
In fact, Venus has had an important impact on the history of astronomy, as
it was the phases of Venus that finally proved that the Earth-centered system
of Aristotle and Ptolemy was impossible and led to the broad acceptance of
the Copernican heliocentric system.
In 1609, shortly following the invention of the telescope, Galileo chose
three objects for his first investigations: the Moon, Jupiter, and Venus. The
Moon proved to be a rugged place, full of mountains, craters and rays, and
dark seas of frozen lava. Jupiter was a beautiful world with colorful cloud
bands and four brilliant moons of its own. Although these discoveries con-
tradicted some points of Aristotle’s geocentric theory (the moons of Jupiter
didn’t circle the Earth and Aristotle’s Moon was supposed to be smooth and
Activity 31: Observing the Phases of Venus 193
flat), they didn’t actually contradict Aristotle’s central idea – that the Earth,
and not the Sun, was the center of the Solar System.
Galileo’s observations of Venus were the final piece to the heliocentric
puzzle. Observations of Venus through the telescope showed beautiful
phases just like our Moon. These observations also showed something else:
the apparent size of Venus more than doubled as it moved from near full
phase to crescent phase – and the completely full phase was never visible at
all! A little investigation and thought showed that this was only possible
with a heliocentric system such as the one proposed by Copernicus. And
more importantly, the changes in the appearance of Venus were impossible
in Aristotle’s Earth-centered system.
This activity will have us recreate Galileo’s observations using ping-pong
balls as planetary models, so that we too can prove that Galileo and
Copernicus were right about the Sun-centered theory of the Solar System.
You will also notice that we refer only to the classical planets known to
Galileo in this activity: Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, and of
course, Earth.
Different models of the Solar System make different predictions about
what we will observe in nature. The two models we are dealing with, the
heliocentric (Sun-centered) and the geocentric (Earth-centered) models,
give very different predictions about what we will observe when we look at
Venus. If you take care and move each model, observing how Venus appears
as the positions of the Sun, Earth, and Venus change, the geocentric (Earth-
centered) model would show you radical changes in the phases of Venus
over just a few hours, since Venus orbits the Earth once each day. But this
does not match the real changes in the phases of Venus, which take weeks
to accomplish. Keep in mind that the geocentric system claims that every-
thing in the cosmos circles the Earth once each day, with some additional
motions given to the Sun, Moon, and planets to account for their wandering
through the constellations of the zodiac. The geocentric model also allows
us to see Venus in full phase – something we never see in a telescope.
We will see how the claims of the geocentric system fall apart once the
telescope is brought to bear on the problem. In fact, the heliocentric and
geocentric models of the Solar System had both been around for almost
2,000 years by the time Galileo created his own refracting telescope.
Although many brilliant observers including Copernicus, Tycho, and Kepler
had attempted to prove that one system or the other was correct, no one had
been able to gather the evidence needed to do so. We must remember that
in the field of scientific endeavor, it is impossible to absolutely prove any
theory or model correct – that would require infinite amounts of data, time,
and cash! It is however possible to prove a model is false. For instance, if
your model claims that the Sun can never rise from the eastern horizon, we
need wait no longer than tomorrow morning to prove that model is false.
The difficulty for early astronomers was that they were limited to naked-
eye observations. Both the heliocentric and geocentric models made predic-
tions, but early astronomers’ abilities to accurately measure positions of the
planets and stars were so limited that neither model could be proved false.
On the face of it, either theory seemed possible. However, when we observe
Venus with a telescope, it becomes clear which theory successfully predicts
the appearance of the planet.
1. Venus is the closest planet to Earth and is almost the same size, mass,
and density as our planet; in fact, if you only consider size and mass,
Venus could be Earth’s twin.
2. Venus (and Mercury) are closer to the Sun than Earth is. This fact will
be critical in understanding this activity.
3. When we observe planets with a telescope, planets closer to the Sun
than Earth (inferior planets) appear markedly different from planets
farther away from the Sun than Earth (superior planets).
4. Inferior planets always show phases when you observe them; superior
planets never do. This is only possible in a heliocentric Solar System.
Building the Model

Materials
1. Four ping-pong balls

2. Four poker chips (you can substitute sports-drink caps if you like)
3. A can of bright yellow spray paint
4. A can of flat black spray paint
5. A roll of 2-inch-wide masking tape
6. A tube of silicone glue
7. Markers or classroom paints
8. A can of clear acrylic or art fixative spray (optional)
Instructions
1. Use silicone glue to attach one of the ping-pong balls to a poker chip
or bottle cap. This will be the Sun.
Note: If you plan to use this model in a classroom situation, the
teacher’s model should use poker chips or coins rather than plastic
bottle caps for planet bases. The use of poker chips or coins makes it
much easier to attach magnets to the bottom of the teacher’s model,
which will allow the model to be displayed on any white board for
everyone to see.
2. After the glue has cured at least 24 hours, set the Sun models out on
some newspaper. Use the yellow spray paint to decorate the Sun mod-
els. Shake the can well and spray the paint on in thin coats, just a spritz
at a time. You will need several coats of paint; allow at least 30 minutes
between coats.
Be sure you use plenty of newspaper as you will be spraying from
all sides. Space the models well apart and only paint in a well-ventilated
area. An empty garage (preferably with the door at least partly open)
works very well. Leave the room immediately when you are done
spraying to avoid exposure to fumes.
3. The ping-pong balls that are used for planets must be colored half
black, with the other half left white. The black side will represent night,
while the white side will be the daytime side of planet. There are two
ways to do this – one at a time (very neat and precise), or in batches of
a dozen or so at a time (less precise, but saves a great deal of time).
Both methods begin the same way, by taping off half the ping-pong
ball with masking tape. Look for a seam, like an equator running
around the ball. Tear off a length of tape and carefully apply the edge
to the seam, working your way around and making sure the tape is well
sealed to the ball. You should now have half a ping-pong ball sticking
up from a 2-inch tube of masking tape, as you can see in Fig. 7.7.
4. If you are painting the balls one at a time, place the ball on the end of
a ruler (the masking tape will help it stay secure). Hold the ball at arm’s
length and spray the top half of it with flat black paint. Remember, use
thin coats and work in a well-ventilated area!
If you are painting in batches, put a dozen or so balls into a card-
board box (a copy paper box works very well). Stand them up carefully
on their masking tape tubes toward the center of the box and not too
close together. Spray the black paint into the box – don’t forget news-
papers underneath! Particles of paint will float up out of the box and
may drift a bit. When the paint dries, carefully remove the tape, and
you should have perfect ping-pong balls, half black and half white.
Fig. 7.7 Preparing a planetary model by painting half of a ping-pong ball black
(Credit: Author)
5. Now it is time to decorate the Earth and an outer planet using markers.
There are two approaches to this, one accurate and one creative; you
must decide which will work best for your students (Fig. 7.8).
6. For an accurate model, use photos or maps of the Earth and draw in
continents, oceans, mountain ridges, green prairies, islands, etc. You
can even use a bit of white paint (or correction fluid) to add storms and
clouds to your model of Earth. For your outer planet, Jupiter has alter-
nating dark and light bands of dark brown or grey and tan or yellow.
Start with a light band around the equator and alternate as you go
toward the poles. Add a red spot on one of the lighter southern cloud
bands. Mars of course is mostly shades of orange and brown, and
Saturn runs from creamy white to yellow and has a banded atmosphere,
much like Jupiter.
7. For a creative Earth model, have students draw continents, islands, and
oceans any way they wish. You can even have them name their planet
creations. There is no need to fuss with photos or realism here, which
makes finishing the model much faster.
8. Venus is the easiest of all, as it needs no decorating. The planet is cov-
ered in thick white clouds that never part or reveal the surface under-
neath. For our purposes, a half-black, half-white ping-pong ball will
work perfectly.
Fig. 7.8 Completed Earth and Venus models. (Credit: Author)
9. When you are done decorating, glue the planets and moons to their
bases with silicone glue or construction adhesive. Be sure the line
between the light and dark halves is perfectly vertical.
10. After your planet creations are dry (24 hours), a quick coat of clear art
sealer will not go amiss, as it often helps keep marker from coming off
on your student’s hands.
11. Your model is now ready to play with and explore (Fig. 7.9)!
ini Activity: Exploring the Heliocentric Model

M
of the Phases of Venus
1. Set up your models on a desktop with the Sun in the center, then Venus
a bit farther out, and then Earth. Set Jupiter aside for later.
2. The trick with these models is to remember how they should be dis-
played. Ask your students why one side of the planet models are col-
ored black. The answer of course is that this is the nighttime side of the
planet, while the decorated side is daytime. The daytime side of the
planets must always face the Sun. This will seem obvious to you when
you think about it for a moment.
Fig. 7.9 Completed set of planetary models: Earth, Venus, Mars, Sun, and the Moon.
(Credit: Author)
3. Begin with Sun, Venus, and Earth all in a line. Have your students put
their eye down at tabletop level and look at Venus from the position of
the Earth. Ask them to draw what they see. If their eye is right above
the planet Earth, they will see that Venus is in new phase – only the
dark side faces the Earth. (Venus is invisible to us in this position – the
Sun’s glare blocks it from view.)
4. Now advance Venus about 45-degrees in a counterclockwise direction
around the Sun. (We do not move the Earth for the purpose of this
model!) Make sure the bright white side stays facing the Sun at all
times. Ask the students to make another observation and draw what
they see – a crescent phase. Remind students that this amount of travel
takes Venus about four weeks and is not an instantaneous change!
5. Continue to advance the Venus model 45 degrees at a time, and the
students will see all the phases: new, crescent, half, gibbous, full, etc.
If you have older students with smartphones, ask them to place their
phone just behind the Earth model and take a photo of Venus, as these
show the phases off beautifully.
6. If you are taking photos with a cellphone camera, be sure the position
of the camera (just behind the Earth) stays consistent. You will notice
that as Venus emerges from behind the Sun, it is nearly full in waning
gibbous phase. As Venus moves in its orbit, the phase continues to
shrink – but the apparent size of the planet becomes larger as it gets
closer to Earth. You can see this clearly in the photo sequence shown in
Fig. 7.10.
Fig. 7.10 A series of images showing how the planetary models depict the phases of
Venus. (Credit: Author)
Fig. 7.11 Reproduction of Galileo’s sketches of the phases of Venus. (Credit: Author)
Galileo’s own sketches of Venus also showed this change in apparent

diameter of Venus as the phase changes from crescent to nearly full
(Fig. 7.11).
ini Activity: Exploring the Geocentric Model of the Phases

M
of Venus
Let’s compare the geocentric model of Aristotle. Set up your model once
again, but this time, keep the Earth in the center of the model. With Earth in
the center, the Sun will be the next orbit out, and Venus will be a bit farther
away (Fig. 7.12).
Here we see our first problem. With the Sun on the opposite side of Earth,
any observer should be able to see Venus as late as midnight, high in the sky,
and in full phase (our small figure shows us our observer here). This never
Fig. 7.12 Planetary model of Venus in a geocentric (Earth-centered) system. (Credit:

Author)
happens in real life; Venus is known as the ‘Morning’ and ‘Evening Star’
because it is always seen in either the early morning or early evening sky.
The geocentric model clearly gets this wrong.
Now let’s look at how the phases of Venus change. Remember that in
Aristotle’s geocentric model, the Sun circles the Earth each day and the
Earth remains fixed in position You should, however, rotate your Earth and
Venus models so that the daylight face always points toward the Sun.
As you manipulate the model, you will notice that Venus’ phases change
not over weeks of time, but within hours as the Sun circles the Earth.
Additionally, we notice that since Venus also orbits Earth, the distance
between Earth and Venus remains relatively constant – there is no apparent
change in the size of Venus! (Fig. 7.13).
With a bit more experimentation, you will also notice that there is no way
with the Sun inside the orbit of Venus for any observer on a central Earth to
see Venus is quarter phase (half illuminated). As Galileo’s drawings indi-
cate, and as any small telescope will show you, the quarter phase of Venus
is easily visible to the patient observer, and it lasts for many days.
Exploring the Superior Planets

If you wish, you can expand your model and have your students try an
observation of Jupiter, Saturn, or Mars. Remember than for our heliocentric
model, Mars must be 50% farther from the Sun than the Earth, and if you
use Jupiter, it must be 5× farther from the Sun than the Earth (Saturn may
be a bit impractical unless you have a lot of space for this!). If your Earth is
Fig. 7.13 A series of images showing how the geocentric system limits the phases of
Venus and constrains the apparent diameter so that it is almost unchanging. (Credit:
Author)
30 cm from the Sun, this means that your Mars model is now orbiting in a
1-meter-diameter circle. Your Jupiter model must be orbiting 1.5 meters
away from the Sun, creating a 3-meter-wide orbit. With a model this size,
this activity works best on the floor.
You will note as you try these experiments that Mars, like Venus, changes
its apparent diameter dramatically as it orbits the Sun. When Mars is at
conjunction (aligned with the Sun in the sky), it must be at the opposite side
of the Sun from Earth. This means that Mars is 2.5 AU away from us, almost
4 million km away. In comparison, when Mars in in opposition (180 degrees
away from the Sun in the sky), it is 0.5 AU from Earth, just 750,000 km
away – five times closer to Earth! Careful observers note that Mars at oppo-
sition appears 5× larger than when it is at conjunction.
When you try Jupiter (5× farther from the Sun than Earth), the difference
in distance between Earth and Jupiter does not change as significantly.
Observations of Jupiter and Saturn do not show the large changes in appar-
ent diameter that we see when observing Mars and Venus.
Exploring the Evidence
We can now see that the geocentric model of Aristotle gets several things
wrong.
1. The model indicates the change in apparent size of Venus is
impossible.
2. The model indicates that Venus should be visible at any time of night,
just as Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn are.
3. The model indicates we should be able to see Venus in full phase –

something that is actually impossible from Earth.
4. The model indicates that the changes in Venus’ phases should take just
hours, not weeks.
5. Further, the geocentric model indicates that all the planets should show
rapidly changing phases, just as Venus does.
6. The geocentric model cannot explain the difference between inferior
planets and superior planets; in fact, it indicates that such differences
are impossible.
Here we see a strong case for abandoning a scientific theory. We never do
this lightly! Aristotle’s geocentric theory had stood the test of time for
almost two thousand years by the time of Galileo and Copernicus. The geo-
centric theory had been adjusted and corrected as observations for the posi-
tions of the planets had become more accurate. The epicycles added by
Ptolemy in about 185 AD had made it possible for the geocentric model to
respond to new data and remain relevant for another thousand years.
The heliocentric theory existed well before the time of Aristotle; the writ-
ings of Aristarchus of Samos illustrate this school of thought. In fact, both
geocentric and heliocentric theories circulated for thousands of years, but in
the pre-telescopic era, no visual naked-eye observation could be made that
would decide between the geocentric and heliocentric conceptions of the
Solar System.
Galileo’s telescope made all the difference. Telescopic observations of
Venus with its gradually changing phases and apparent diameter were easily
explained by a heliocentric model. In fact, these observations were natural
outcomes of a Sun-centered system where Earth was a planet. It will be
interesting to point out to your students that Galileo’s discoveries proving
the geocentric system false were all made using a very modest instrument
of less than 30 mm aperture. The cheapest child’s telescope today signifi-
cantly outperforms this most famous of optical instruments!
The difference between inferior and superior planets is also a natural
outcome of the heliocentric model. Earth is the third planet from the Sun;
we observe Mercury and Venus from a position outside of their orbits. For
the superior planets, we can only see Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn from inside
their larger orbits. This is why we can never see these planets in anything
other than full phase.
Before we begin our own observations, it makes sense to see what both
the Aristotelian (geocentric) and Copernican (heliocentric) models predict.
Examine the example data sets shown in Fig. 7.14. Note how the geocentric
prediction shows that the phases of Venus change from crescent phase to a
completely full phase without the apparent size of the disk of Venus chang-
Fig. 7.14 Predictions of the phases of Venus according to the geocentric and helio-
centric models. (Credit: Author)
ing at all. This is because in the geocentric system, the distance between the
Earth and Venus never changes – Venus orbits the Earth in a perfect circle.
The heliocentric system is significantly different; here, both Earth and
Venus orbit the Sun. In order for us to see Venus getting fuller (waxing), the
Earth must be on the opposite side of the Sun from Venus. As the Earth and
Venus move toward opposite sides of the Sun in orbit, the two planets get
almost five times farther apart than they are when Venus is in crescent
phase. The heliocentric prediction clearly shows this change in distance as
the apparent size of the disk of Venus decreases as it moves from crescent
to nearly full phase.
You will also note that while the geocentric system does indicate that is
should be possible to see Venus as a full phase disk, the heliocentric system
does not show this. The heliocentric system clearly indicates that when in
full phase, Venus would be on the opposite side of the Sun from the Earth
and the sight of the full phase would be hidden in the Sun’s glare.
Observation Time!
Having noted the differences predicted by both the geocentric and heliocen-
tric models, it is now time to conduct our own observations. Any small
telescope, even an inexpensive 60-mm refractor (2-inch objective) will
show phases of Venus clearly. In fact, if you have a pair of binoculars with
a magnification of 15× or greater and a stable tripod to mount them on, you
can see the phases of Venus clearly.
It is important to use the same instrument and magnification for all obser-
vations. In this way, any observed change in the apparent size of the disk of
Venus will be clearly evident when compared to the size of the field of view
in the eyepiece. I recommend a magnification between 50-100× for this

activity. When you begin to observe Venus in its crescent phase, choose a
magnification that shows Venus filling at least half the field of view. The
magnification needed will depend upon the telescope and eyepiece combi-
nation you have available. Make a careful note of the magnification and
particular eyepiece you are using on your data table and be sure to use the
same scope and eyepiece combination each time you observe Venus
(Fig. 7.15).
Venus is extremely bright in a telescope. If you have access to a colored
filter, it will be easier to see the phases. You can even put a piece of
transparent colored plastic over the telescope’s objective end. Observing
Venus every few days for several weeks will show the dramatic changes in
phase that Galileo first saw in 1610. Your students can observe for them-
selves the change in apparent size as Venus moves from near full to crescent
phase and back again. It will help if you have a series of sketches drawn to
the same scale. You can use the observation guide as shown in Table 7.1.
Note that it contains sample data to guide your studies; a blank, printable
version can be downloaded from the Springer website: Data 7.1.
Remember
Venus is visible in the twilight sky near dawn and dusk. Check online for
observational guides that can tell you when Venus will be visible in the sky
from your location.
Fig. 7.15 Sample sketch of Venus. (Credit: Author)
Table 7.1 Data table for sketching the phases of Venus. (Credit: Author)
Caution!
Never point a telescope, binocular, or any optical instrument at the Sun!
Instantaneous damage and blindness can result if you point binoculars or
telescopes at the Sun!
When you observe any planet from outside its orbit around the Sun, that
planet will show phases just as the Moon does, except that you will never
see a full or new phase as these are hidden in the Sun’s glare. In our Solar
System, these are the planets Venus and Mercury, and we refer to them as
inferior planets. This is not a negative term; it simply describes planets
orbiting closer to the Sun than the Earth. The term is a very old one and has
been in use for more than a thousand years. If you were observing from
Saturn, then Jupiter, Mars, Earth, Venus, and Mercury would all be inferior
planets and would all show phases.
The phases of Venus show dramatic changes in brightness as Venus
moves closer to and then farther away from the Earth as it orbits the Sun.
Not only does the brightness change, but the apparent size of Venus in the
eyepiece also changes dramatically. Venus may approach closer than 40
million km or be as far away as 250 million km, accounting for these dra-
matic changes. If the Earth-centered system had been correct, the distance
between Venus and the Earth would never change very much, nor would the
apparent diameter of the planet in the telescope eyepiece or its brightness in
the sky. These changes were the crux of the proof that Galileo offered to
disprove the geocentric system once and for all.
Following Up
This story is a cautionary tale for those of us today. The geocentric system
of Aristotle was taught as serious science for more than 2,000 years before
Copernicus developed a counter theory, the heliocentric system. And once
the heliocentric system was better known, there was still no definitive test
that could be used to determine which theory was correct. Copernicus first
shared his ideas around 1515, although his definitive work De Revolutionibus
(On the Revolutions) was not published until shortly after his death in 1543.
The evidence only came more than six decades later, after Galileo devel-
oped his refractor telescope design in 1609.
The gap between theoretical breakthrough and experimental verification

can be a lengthy one! It is not wise to either sneer at a scientific idea as ‘just
a theory’ because it is unproven, nor is it reasonable to champion one theory
over another without the weight of experimental evidence to support your
position. Always remember that opinions are not evidence, and that at one
time, the vast majority of professional astronomers and mathematicians
believed that the Earth was fixed and located in the center of the cosmos. It
was a reclusive Polish cleric and an iconoclastic Italian inventor who were
correct in the end: they stood against the world, and the data proved them
to be right.
Chapter 8
Welcome to Mars
Mars is one of the five classical planets that you can see without any tele-
scope or binocular to aid you. Because Mars is also the next planet out from
Earth in our Solar System, its distance from Earth changes dramatically
during each Martian year.
As you can see from Fig. 8.1, the orbit of Mars brings it close to Earth
once each Martian year – about every 25 months for us. We call this Mars
at opposition because it is on the opposite side of the Earth from the Sun.
During this time, we observers on Earth have many advantages, mostly
because with Mars five times closer than it is at conjunction, Mars will
appear five times larger in our telescopes, making all its fascinating surface
features easier to see. We will observe the change in Mars’ apparent diam-
eter in one of our activities.
The orbital diagram in Fig. 8.1 also shows us something else: Mars’ orbit
is more elliptical than the Earth’s orbit. This more elliptical orbit means that
every 15 years or so, Mars comes particularly close to us during opposition,
making telescope observation of Mars even more exciting! The September
2035 opposition of Mars will be one of these exceptional times when Mars
is less than 50 million miles away.
Astronomers have been exploring Mars with telescopes for more than
400 years. Galileo observed Mars with his telescope in the early 1600’s.
Dutch astronomer Christian Huygens made the first sketch of Mars, viewing
through a 6-inch reflecting telescope in 1659. He also described Mars’ polar

https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-98771-8_8,
208 8 Welcome to Mars
Fig. 8.1 Sketch showing Mars at conjunction and opposition. (Credit: Author)
cap and timed the rotation of Mars to 24 hours. As you can see here,
Huygens’ drawing of Mars wasn’t very precise – you could likely do sig-
nificantly better with a modern telescope (Fig. 8.2)!
Things really improved with the invention of the achromatic or ‘color-
free’ lens by Frederic Fraunhofer in 1812. This is a double lens than elimi-
nates color halos and makes our views of the planets sharp and clear. With
Fraunhofer’s new telescope design, Mars exploration really heated up,
especially during the Great Opposition of Mars in 1877. Just like 2018, the
opposition of 1877 was a particularly close approach between the red planet
and Earth (Fig. 8.3).
Italian astronomer Giovanni Schiaparelli originally studied engineering
and hydraulics at the University of Turin (Italy); he pursued his interest in
astronomy later at the Berlin Observatory and Pulkovo Observatory. In
1860, Schiaparelli began his career as a professional astronomy at Brera
Observatory in Milan where his interest in Mars developed. It was during
the Great Opposition of Mars in 1877 that he was able to undertake a sys-
tematic series of observations of Mars using the large 300 mm refractor
available there. It was during these observations that Schiaparelli saw what
he described as canali (Italian for ‘grooves’ or ‘channels’).
Schiaparelli was the first astronomer to make a detailed map of the sur-
face of Mars; he noted that these ‘linear features’ must be more than 100
kilometers wide and thousands of kilometers long – long enough to stretch
from the polar regions of Mars down to its equator. Schiaparelli speculated
that these canali could be like arroyos in our earthly deserts, shallow chan-
nels where water occasionally flows and plant life is more common.
According to Schiaparelli, “Mars is a small version of Earth with seas, an
atmosphere, clouds and winds, and polar caps; and it promises, in this
regard, a good deal more.”
8 Welcome to Mars 209
Fig. 8.2 Reproduction of Christian Huygens’ sketch of Mars. (Credit: Author)
Fig. 8.3 Giovanni Schiaparelli’s map of Mars. (Public domain)
Although Schiaparelli was very careful in his writing to explain that it

was difficult to interpret in earthly terms what we saw looking through the
telescope, the idea of giant canals carrying water (and life!) from the
Martian poles down to the equator took hold of the popular imagination,
and that of scientists and astronomers as well. This led to the Dying Planet
hypothesis. Under the Dying Planet model, Mars was thought to be a world
Fig. 8.4 Percival Lowell at the observer’s chair of a 24-inch refractor, circa 1914.
(Public Domain)
that was slowly drying out. Further telescope exploration had shown that the
Martian atmosphere was very thin; it might contain traces of water and
oxygen, but these elements so essential to life were very scarce on the red
planet.
In 1894, Percival Lowell decided to build the world’s greatest observa-
tory and dedicate it to the study of Mars. Lowell purchased a mountaintop
outside of Flagstaff, Arizona, renamed it Mars Hill, and then commissioned
a 24-inch refractor telescope (then the largest such telescope in the world)
to be built and installed there for his personal use. Lowell had studied math-
ematics at Harvard and traveled extensively in Asia as a writer and diplo-
mat, but he had no formal scientific training (Fig. 8.4).
Percival Lowell was not only a talented observer and artist, but also a
gifted writer who fired the popular imagination with his books on Mars,
illustrated by his own sketches made at the eyepiece of his giant telescope.
In fact, his books on Mars made him far wealthier and better known than
8 Welcome to Mars 211
his family’s wealth or social position ever had. Lowell went on to observe
and document seasonal color changes on Mars, which he attributed to veg-
etation, much as trees green up in spring, then fade and drop their leaves in
the fall.
Lowell also developed the first successful camera designed specifically
for astrophotography, and with his assistant Carl Lampland made the first
high-resolution photographs of the planet Mars. These photos were sharp
and detailed enough to show Martian surface features that were published
in books and newspapers of the day. The photos made by Lowell and his
assistant electrified the public as well as the scientific community.
Here however, Percival Lowell made an error. Rather than offer the pho-
tos as a scientific achievement in and of themselves, Lowell insisted that the
photos provided evidence for the existence of the Martian canals and the
Dying Planet hypothesis. Lowell’s scientific critics treated his ideas respect-
fully, exploring them, trying to replicate his results, and offering challenges
to his theories based on new data and observations from astronomers around
the world. By the end of Lowell’s life in 1916, it was clear to most of the
scientific community, that in spite of Lowell’s magnificent achievements in
observation and photography, his theory of giant canals on a dying desert
planet were just not true.
In studying the works of Percival Lowell, Giovanni Schiaparelli, and oth-
ers, we have learned that visual observing is an art as much as it is a science.
It is true that we all view the world through a lens of personal experiences
and prejudices. Our experiences make us who we are, but they also affect
how we interpret what we see. Reading more into the data than is actually
there is a constant danger for the working observer and scientist.
Even so, science is littered with stories of great scientists who made leaps
of imagination – and were right – based upon the thinnest of evidence. We
revere these people as heroes of science and astronomy. Edwin Hubble
published his theory on the expansion of the universe based upon the study
of only 23 nearby galaxies. 23 galaxies, out of hundreds of billions!
Einstein’s theory of relativity was published based entirely upon theoretical
work and thought experiments in 1905; there was actually no evidence at all
that he was right until Eddington brought back results of shifting stellar
positions during a 1919 solar eclipse. Modern scientists are still working
diligently to find evidence for many of the specific details of Einstein’s
theory; the existence of black holes took decades to discover, and
gravitational waves were predicted more than a century before their discov-
ery in 2016.
In his day, Lowell was tremendously popular, inspiring millions to look
up and wonder about the universe. His observations of Mars and his pio-
neering planetary photographs were stunning achievements that should not

be forgotten just because he was wrong about the canals.
Collect your data, wonder freely, explore and exchange ideas. You do not
have to be completely right, or even right at all to make a difference and
inspire someone else. Most Star Mentors are not famous scientists, nor are
we groundbreaking astronomers. We are average people with an above aver-
age passion for observing the objects in the sky, and for the wonderful
instruments that allow us to study them. Share your passion. You never
know to what heights your inspirations will lead others.
Activity 32: Sketching Mars using the Clock Method
Lowell was the first person to make a legitimate map of the Martian surface
as sketched from the eyepiece, and he was also the first person to develop
astrophotography methods capable of photographing the surface of another
planet in significant detail. Were there inaccuracies on Lowell’s map?
Certainly – just as with Galileo’s map of the Moon and Schiaparelli’s map
of Mars.
Few people today appreciate the technical challenge of sketching the
surface of another planet through the telescope. This activity will help stu-
dents better appreciate what Lowell, Galileo, and Schiaparelli all did by
making maps at the eyepiece. We observe the skies from the bottom of an
ocean of air 60 km deep. The atmosphere rolls and heaves, it suspends
clouds, haze layers, and aerosol particles of pollution. Low-power observa-
tions (50× or less) tend to minimize these problems; such views, whether of
the Moon or distant galaxies, tend to be crisp, steady, and offer pleasingly
high contrast.
On the other hand, the high power needed for planetary viewing exacer-
bates many difficulties. High magnification severely restricts the field of
view – instead of viewing a starfield a full degree or more in width at 50×,
the 150× magnification needed to see significant details on the surface of
Mars cuts the field of view by a factor of 3. Increasing to 300× means you
now have a field of just 10 minutes of arc (1/6th of a degree). Restricted
fields of view make tracking a celestial object far more challenging if you
have a manually adjusted telescope such as a Dobsonian. It takes a consider-
able degree of skill as well as a well-tuned and balanced telescope to track
at over 100× with a Dobsonian telescope. To be fair, Lowell’s telescope on
Mars Hill in Arizona was perfectly balanced and the tracking was all auto-
matic; the great 24-inch refractor tracked the position of Mars without any
effort on Mr. Lowell’s part. Our new observers will need to accomplish this
Activity 32: Sketching Mars using the Clock Method 213
on their own; the experienced mentor will realize that the student should be
quite proficient in operating the telescope before they try such sketching
activities at the eyepiece.
The slight twinkle that stars exhibit in a low-power view becomes an
almost nauseating swimming motion at high magnification. There will be
moments of steady seeing, but the observer needs to be patient and wait for
them! When the seeing does steady, offering us a sharp and clear image of
Mars, we must take advantage and track details with our eye, commit these
details to memory, then remove our eye and record them on our sketch. If
you take your eye away just as the image clears to add one detail, chances
are that the steady seeing will decay again before you can sketch and get
your eye back to the telescope. This process of observe, remember, then
record is repeated over many minutes at the eyepiece; the mentor must take
note that it therefore requires significant time at the eyepiece for each
observer. If you have a crowd of students, even more than two or three, it
becomes very difficult to conduct a successful sketching activity.
1. Proficiency with the basic operation of the telescope such as pointing,

tracking, focusing, and changing magnification is needed before
attempting this activity.
2. Proficiency with clock method sketching is required for this activity –
see Activity 2 for more information.
3. You will not observe sharply detailed features on Mars as you do when
observing the Moon. A monochrome pencil sketch showing areas of
light and darkness will be sufficient for this activity.
Observation Time!
Instructions
1. Prepare sketching paper with a circle divided into 12 sections (like a

clock face). Radius lines should be marked to show 25%, 50%, and
75% distance from the center.
2. Set up the telescope and allow it to cool to ambient temperature for at
least an hour before observing. Warm currents of air within the tele-
scope tube and the contractions of the glass mirror lens as they cool can
cause distortions that prevent accurate seeing.
3. Be sure the finderscope is accurately aligned. Site the telescope on a

recognizable feature such as the corner of a building that is at least 500
meters away. With the feature centered, adjust the crosshair on the
finderscope so it is precisely on target. Verify your finder’s alignment
by increasing magnification to 100× and re-center the distant feature;
now readjust the cross hair on your finderscope as needed.
4. Wait until your sky is fully dark and put the telescope on Mars (this
activity works equally well with Jupiter and Saturn). If at all possible,
ensure that you are not looking over a building or parking area, as these
will radiate heat for hours and make the air above them turbulent.
5. Find the planet at lower power (50×) and center it in the field of view.
Gradually increase the magnification as far as you can go. You will
notice that at some point, the image quality will break down and you
will get no more detail from the image. It is generally best to observe
at the lowest magnification that will show maximum detail. Stress to the
student that magnification and image size are less important than image
quality and resolution. You may find that as the evening progresses, the
atmosphere gets less turbulent and allows more magnification. There is
no hard and fast rule for this, you must simply explore what your
instrument will provide under any given conditions. Remind your stu-
dent that although we control the telescope, we do not control the sky
or the atmosphere!
6. With the telescope focused and on target, have your student sit at the
eyepiece and practice tracking, keeping the planet in the center of the
field of view. This is an important skill; everyone must be able to keep
Mars in view as they sketch. If you lose Mars from the field and cannot
recover it quickly using the finderscope, it is best to lower the magnifi-
cation significantly (50×) and re-center the planet in the field of view.
7. When you are confident that your student is tracking properly, it is time
to get down to some serious sketching. Begin by looking for the polar
caps; locate these at the 12 and 6 o’clock points on your drawing
respectively. Do not worry about which is which, as that can be studied
later. Pay attention to how far east and west of the pole the caps extend
and record this carefully. Give the same attention to how far toward the
equator the polar caps extend. The skills we have learned about esti-
mating how far out from the center a feature is located (25%, 50%, 75%
etc.) will serve well here. Be aware that when sketching Mars for the
first time, many people overestimate the size of the polar caps because
of their brightness compared with the rest of the planet’s features.
8. At this point, try sketching light and dark features on the planet’s sur-
face. Keep in mind that this requires some patience at the eyepiece.
Activity 32: Sketching Mars using the Clock Method 215
Views of planets at high magnifications tend to snap into sharp focus

for seconds at a time and then dissolve again as the seeing and transpar-
ency of the atmosphere change from moment to moment. High-
magnification views can offer stunning detail but will not last. The
observer needs to pay attention to details and commit them to memory
so you can record what you see on paper. This method can be difficult
at first, but by working steadily and improving your sketch as you
work, anyone can achieve excellent results.
With a system of organization, it is possible to break down a formidable task

like sketching a planet from the eyepiece of a telescope and to put that task
within the grasp of a new enthusiast of our hobby. The idea of breaking down
large, complex tasks into smaller and more manageable ones is not new; it
seems such a simple thing, but accomplishing this when you are trying to
teach someone else can be a formidable task in itself. Simple isn’t easy.
As with any data-gathering endeavor, something like sketching a planet
takes practice. I urge the mentor to have patience with all their pupils; teach-
ing this task will require much of you! Remember to ask your students to
record their sketches in a permanent notebook and to save them. People
have a tendency to sneer at their finished product and toss it out because it
does not meet their expectations, no matter how unrealistic these expecta-
tions may be. All data is valuable data, and the state of someone’s skill in
sketching on a particular night using a particular instrument is also data. It
deserves to be preserved, if nothing else than as a record of progress and
achievement!
Following Up
There is a reason why planetary sketching was left until later in this book.
I have found that leading students up from early efforts of sketching a con-
stellation like Ursa Major (seven dots and six straight lines) to later efforts
of sketching planets at the eyepiece promotes confidence. Skill-building
with simple tasks is also confidence-building. As mentors, we must always
remember that successes are based upon small skills built up over time, each
one founded upon the last.
Activity 33: Tracking Mars in Retrograde Motion
As we have seen, ancient astronomers noticed that the planets, or ‘wander-

ing stars’, did not stay in any fixed position, but traveled through the con-
stellations of the Zodiac, moving from west to east from one constellation
to the next as the months and years went by. The motion of the planets was
mysterious: not only did they wander from west to east through the constel-
lations, but every so often, the planet would stop its eastward progress, then
turn backward and travel west for a while, then reverse course again and
resume its eastward trek.
Explaining this reverse, or retrograde motion, was a problem that
Aristotle was never able to solve. A partial – and incorrect – explanation
was developed by Ptolemy some 500 years after Aristotle, but finding the
true answer took another 2,000 years, when Copernicus finally came along
in the mid-1500’s. As we saw before, the phenomenon can be explained
only if the Sun – and not the Earth – is the center of our Solar System.
Copernicus understood that retrograde motion is an illusion caused by
planets in orbit moving past one another at differing speeds. In my classes,
I often referred to this as a racetrack illusion, with the planets like cars on a
circular racetrack moving around at different speeds. During every Mars
opposition as the Earth passes Mars in orbit, the red planet will seem to be
moving backward for a few brief weeks.
1. Mars reaches opposition – its closest approach to Earth – approxi-

mately every 25 months. At such times, Mars’ apparent diameter in a
telescope and its brightness in the sky increase dramatically.
2. At opposition, the more rapidly orbiting Earth passes Mars’ position in
orbit. This ‘passing maneuver’ causes Mars to appear to move back-
ward (westward) through the constellations for a few weeks.
3. The normal eastward progression of Mars through the constellations of
the Zodiac is referred to as prograde motion, while the reverse motion
(westward) that occurs near opposition is referred to as retrograde
motion (Fig. 8.5).
Activity 33: Tracking Mars in Retrograde Motion 217
Fig. 8.5 Sketch of the ecliptic passing through Gemini and Taurus. (Credit: Author)
Observation Time!
This observation begins with a star map. There are a variety of sources for
this; I prefer to make my own maps because I can center, orient, and cus-
tomize them as I wish. Others may wish to print something out from an
online source. Do your research here, and whatever map you use, be sure
that it is of sufficient size and printed on durable paper, as you will be using
this map – and adding to it – for an extended period of time. The map shown
here is the early evening sky looking east-southeast; it shows the constella-
tions of Gemini and Taurus along the ecliptic plus Auriga and Orion as
bright constellations north and south of the ecliptic respectively.
Begin your observation of Mars two months before opposition. Martian
opposition occurs roughly every 25 months; with upcoming opposition
events in December of 2022, January 2025, February 2027, March 2029,
May 2031, June 2033, etc. Accurate dates for Martian oppositions are easily
available online. Because of the popularity of observing the Red Planet,
opposition events always seem to make the news in the popular press and
social media. While I have used the December 2022 opposition as a basis
for my diagrams in this activity, these are only examples. The reader will be
able to find current maps and materials easily for any future opposition
event.
As you observe, plot the position of Mars as accurately as you can on a
constellation map. Make a weekly observation and continue to plot the posi-
tion of Mars for the next three months. As you near the time of opposition,
you may wish to increase your observations to every two to three days for
a period of time, as Mars changes position more rapidly at opposition than
at any other time. Be sure that you record a small number along each obser-
vation plot of Mars’ position and record data and time in a log that you will
keep with your map.
You will notice that you are initially recording the motion of Mars in an
eastward direction relative to the constellations of the Zodiac, however
sometime in October, you will note that the apparent direction of Mars’
travel along the ecliptic shifts to the west, finally shifting back to its regular
eastward motion as this opposition ends in January of 2023. When you have
made your entire series of observations, you can sketch a line showing the
path of Mars along the ecliptic during any opposition event. The ‘observa-
tions’ in Fig. 8.6 were made on Stellarium software in August of 2021 with
a simulated observing position in the central United States; observation
dates run from 10/10/22 through 2/8/23.

Tracking planets as they move slowly across the background stars is a dif-
ficult task. The job calls for patience and dedication. We must plan regular
observations over a period of months, juggling our schedules and going out
whenever the weather is clear and the planet is visible. This may mean
observations in the hours before dawn or late at night. A series of observa-
tions like these begins to control the observer and can feel like an
obsession.
Even so, accomplishing such a series of observations brings a tremen-
dous feeling of satisfaction. To track a planet and see it reverse its course
among the stars is a thing of wonder. Those of us who complete this activity
feel a strong connection with the ancient astronomers who made similar
observations and puzzled over them.
Activity 34: Observing Surface Changes on Mars 219
Fig. 8.6 Diagram of the positions of Mars as it moves through a retrograde loop.
(Credit: Author)
Following Up
The inner planets, Venus and Mercury, move more swiftly and therefore
move in and out of retrograde motion more often and more quickly than the
superior planets. Observing these inferior planets among the constellations
can be a significant challenge because of their proximity to the Sun. The
glare of sunrise and sunset washes out all but the brightest stars. Still, track-
ing these motions can be done. If your student is interested in such things,
these are an excellent challenge to suggest to them.
Activity 34: Observing Surface Changes on Mars
Observing surface changes on the Martian surface with the eye and tele-
scope created much controversy during the late 19th and 20th centuries.
Percival Lowell, H.O. Haldane, Giovanni Schiaparelli, and many others
claimed to have done this, but their observations were largely discredited by
the scientific community and later in the popular science press after scien-
tific observations failed to confirm their more extreme claims. As we saw
before, Lowell and others claimed that the changing colors and appearances
on the Martian surface were likely from seasonal vegetative changes, such
as we see with fertile and fallow farmland and with deciduous trees losing
leaves in the fall. Subsequent investigation with orbiting spacecraft did in
fact confirm that substantial seasonal changes occur on the surface of Mars
each year, but these are related to two distinct non-vegetative phenomena:
dust storms and polar caps.
The Martian polar caps are different, with the southern polar cap being
comprised primarily of frozen carbon dioxide, while the northern cap has a
large surface layer of frozen CO2 over a permanent, smaller cap of frozen
water. The interesting thing about the frozen CO2 layers of the polar caps is
that, unlike water, CO2 ices sublimate directly into gas rather than melting
first into a liquid. It was speculated at one time during the 1980’s that dry
aquatic features on the Martian surface such as outflow channels and river
beds had been created by liquid carbon dioxide; these ideas were quickly
rejected because liquid CO2 requires 3 to 4 atmospheres of pressure, and
Mars had likely never had that much atmosphere at any time in its
existence.
Frozen layers do sublimate quickly as temperatures warm on the Martian
surface. As the Earth’s surface hovers on the boundary between liquid and
frozen water, the surface of Mars hovers at the boundary between frozen
and gaseous carbon dioxide. Slight warming trends cause the dry ice caps
to vaporize away, while slight cooling trends cause the gas to freeze out into
solid form again. Unlike Earth, Mars has a significantly elliptical orbit, so
that not only does the tilt of the planet’s axis affect the seasons, but the posi-
tion of Mars relative to its perihelion (closest solar approach) and aphelion
(furthest distance from the Sun) has significant effects on the climate as
well. Although it requires diligence, excellent seeing, and perseverance,
changes in the Martian polar caps can be observed from Earth.
Color and albedo (brightness) changes on the Martian surface can also
sometimes be observed, particularly when Martian perihelion and aphelion
coincide with the time near opposition. The strong seasonal changes caused
by the changing distance between Mars and the Sun are the result of signifi-
cant changes in insolation (incoming solar radiation). Mars at perihelion
distance (~206 million km) gets 46% more solar energy than the planet does
at aphelion (~249 million km); by contrast, the Earth insolation changes just
7%. Adding this much energy to the surface quickly transfers heat to the
Activity 34: Observing Surface Changes on Mars 221
atmosphere, resulting in terrific storm systems. Although the Martian atmo-

sphere is very thin (about 1% of Earth’s atmosphere), it is also extremely
desiccated, meaning there is no surface moisture to bind sand and dust
grains. Storms lift and deposit gigatonnes of dust and sand material each
Martian year, which changes the appearance and albedo of surface regions
that are large enough to be seen from Earth. Occasionally, Martian dust
storms obscure the surface altogether for months at a time.
1. Martian seasons are more complex than Earth’s four-season cycle, and
Mars’ position in orbit relative to the Sun plays a significant role.
2. Mars surface and atmospheric conditions make it possible to deposit
frozen CO2 snow in the winter and sublimate that substance back into
the atmosphere in the spring. This process dramatically changes the
appearance of the Martian polar caps.
3. The tremendous change in solar energy falling on the surface from
aphelion to perihelion drives extreme weather events that can dramati-
cally change the appearance of surface features by moving large
amounts of dust across the surface.
Observation Time!
1. The events we are seeking to observe and track lie at the very edge of
the performance envelope for both our eyes and our equipment.
Persistent and regular observations are required to perceive changes.
2. Most observers look at Mars only during opposition. If you wish to try
to see changes like those described here, it is necessary to continue
observing Mars at every opportunity and diligently recording what you
see in a log or with a sketch.
3. High magnifications and excellent seeing conditions are required for
observations like these. A tracking mount that can easily follow Mars
at magnifications up to and beyond 200× is almost a necessity. While
it is possible to track a target at such high magnifications with a manu-
ally operated telescope mount such as a Dobsonian or an Equatorial
mount with slow motion controls, this is not recommended for the
beginning astronomer.
Planets like Mars are real places, not just points of light in the sky. They
have seasons, weather patterns, axial tilts, and orbital eccentricities – they
are worlds apart and bear only passing similarities to the Earth. Mars is also
unique in that it is both close enough and active enough that we may
observe seasonal changes there. Changes in polar cap size and coverage,
dust storms, and surface albedo can all be observed with only a modest
telescope. Once again, we see the importance of documenting what we
observe and the persistence necessary to be a successful astronomer. One of
the hardest lessons to learn is that astronomy takes time.
Following Up
The only other comparable spectacle to that of the changing Martian sea-
sons is to watch the cycles of the great moons orbiting Jupiter and Saturn.
To be sure, these planets do have weather systems, but to observe a storm
forming on Jupiter or Saturn generally requires a telescope significantly
beyond the amateur equipment we discuss here. We will take up the
challenge of observing rings and moons of the outer planets in a later activ-
ity in this book.
For students who are interested in climate change, there is interesting
work being done by a number of Mars Orbiter spacecraft from different
agencies regarding the role of dust storms on Mars and the dehydration of
the Martian surface. Dust storms warm the upper atmosphere because the
dust particles absorb solar energy at a higher altitude; this in turn prevents
ice particle formation and transports water vapor higher into the atmo-
sphere. Evidence now shows that water in Mars’ upper atmosphere is likely
to be split into hydrogen and oxygen – the oxygen recombined as O2, which
is retained by the atmosphere and may be incorporated into minerals on the
surface of Mars. Hydrogen cannot be retained by a planet as small as Mars;
it is lost to space and returns to the interplanetary medium. Students may
wish to do a web search on “Martian dust storms and dehydration” for more
information.
Chapter 9
Discovering the Outer

Planets
Technically speaking, there are loads of outer planets. We all know the gas
giants Jupiter and Saturn, as well as the ice giants Uranus and Neptune, as
well as the double planet Pluto-Charon, but the likelihood is that there are
many more minor planets waiting to be discovered. One of the primary
considerations for whether or not something is a planet comes down to its
shape: planets (regardless of type) are large enough to compress themselves
into a spherical shape,1 while asteroids are not.
While Uranus and Neptune are certainly spherical in shape and definitely
planets, their almost featureless surfaces and tenuous rings do not make
them very interesting for the amateur telescope observer here on Earth.
While it is worthwhile to track these planets down and confirm that they are
disks, not point-like stars, our interest ends there. Pluto is generally of inter-
est to amateurs, if nothing else for the notoriety its demoted status has
gained in recent years, but here Pluto offers even less than Uranus and
Neptune; it is not even possible with an amateur telescope to detect that
Pluto is a disk rather than a point of light.
1
The IAU definition of ‘planet’ requires a “spherical shape in hydrodynamic equilib-
rium”, which allows for things like a bulge at the equator due to rotation. For simplicity,
we will simply refer to the shape of a planet as spherical.

https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-98771-8_9,
224 9 Discovering the Outer Planets
Fig. 9.1 Discovery image of Pluto’s companion, Charon. (Credit: NASA)
One of the problems with hunting planets in the outer Solar System is
that at distances beyond 40 AU, it is almost impossible to determine the
precise shape of a planetoid body to discern whether or not the body is a
sphere. Consider the discovery image of Pluto’s companion Charon shown
in Fig. 9.1. This image shows the best photograph obtainable of Pluto,
which James Christy used to discover Charon in 1978. The image on the
right is Pluto when it eclipses Charon; based upon this evidence, one would
hardly dare to claim that this was a spherical body. The image on the left
shows a distinct lump or bulge in the 12 o’clock position; this is Charon, a
binary planet companion that is less than 20,000 km from Pluto – almost 20
times closer than our own Moon.
Even a Hubble Space Telescope (HST) image of Pluto is indistinct. The
image here is from 1994 and shows HST raw image data. The resolution of
this photo is approximately 200 km per pixel. Much later, many HST photos
were integrated and use to create a map of the surface of Pluto; if you look
up “Hubble photo of Pluto”, these perfectly circular images tend to crop up
first. But they are not direct images at all; they are maps made by interpret-
ing much cruder raw data, in some ways quite similar to what Percival
Lowell and Giovanni Schiaparelli did with their own views of Mars through
a telescope (Fig. 9.2). While it is true that NASA used computer software
to make their interpretive maps while Lowell and Schiaparelli used their
own human judgement and artistic skills, both results were interpretations,
not data.
Our ability to explore the outer planets with amateur telescopes is limited
to the closer bodies of Jupiter and Saturn; they are large enough to show
substantial surface, detail including atmospheric bands and belts, compan-
Activity 35: Jupiter – Cloud Bands and Storm Systems 225
Fig. 9.2 Hubble Space Telescope image of Pluto c. 1994 in comparison with a New
Horizons spacecraft photo c. 2015. (Credit: NASA)
ion moons are readily visible, and in the case of Saturn, a magnificent ring
system is on display.
Activity 35: Jupiter – Cloud Bands and Storm Systems
Jupiter offers us the most magnificent opportunity to study a phenomenon

found on every planet possessing a thick atmosphere: distinct atmospheric
bands. On Earth, areas of rising and sinking atmospheric gas form distinct
bands in the atmosphere, called Hadley cells. As Fig. 9.3 shows, air is
heated at the equator and rises, shedding its moisture as rain in the tropics.
The convection cell continues and the dry air cools enough to begin sinking
at about 30 degrees latitude; this dry air sinks, compresses, and heats up,
resulting in bands of desert regions at these latitudes. The rotational motion
of these convective belts gives Earth its trade winds.
Dynamic studies of fluids surrounding rotating spherical bodies show
that these convective cells and rapidly circulating belts of gas occur on all
planets as long as the atmosphere is thick enough and the rotation of the
planet fast enough. On Jupiter, we have two advantages that help us see
these effects. First, Jupiter’s high gravitational field compresses the gasses
of the outer atmosphere into a thinner layer, making it easier to see the
clouds below; this is unlike Saturn, where the upper haze layers are
considerably thicker and hide the details below more effectively. Secondly,
the chemistry of Jupiter’s atmosphere includes compounds of sulfur,
Fig. 9.3 Diagram of a Hadley convection cell in the atmosphere. (Credit: NASA)
sodium, phosphorous, and other complex organic molecules in gaseous

form that create more brightly colored cloud layers; in addition to the pre-
dominant hydrogen and helium, methane, ammonia, water vapor, acetylene,
ethane, and propane are present. For the observational astronomer on Earth,
areas of cooler, sinking gas show up as dark belts, while regions of warmer,
rising gas form lighter colored clouds that create brighter zones on the
planet’s surface.
The atmospheric bands on Jupiter circulate in opposite directions, creat-
ing many cyclonic storms in the upper atmosphere. Most of these storm
systems last for a limited time, with few longer than a few months and
smaller storms fading away faster than larger storms. The Great Red Spot is
the largest storm on any known world; creditable sightings by Robert Hooke
in 1664 and Giovanni Cassini in 1665 mean that the storm has existed on
Jupiter for at least 350 years and probably much longer. The cause for the
storm’s distinctive red color and long life is poorly understood. We do know
that the color of the storm is subject to long cyclical changes and that in the
last 25 years, the spot has been less colorful and distinct than in former
decades. Today, excellent seeing and colored filters are needed to clearly
discern the GRS from Earth with amateur equipment.
1. Jupiter’s atmosphere can show dark belts and lighter zones even with a
modest telescope.
2. Counter-rotating atmospheric bands create large cyclonic storms. The
largest and longest lasting of these is the Great Red Spot, which is
several times larger than the Earth’s diameter.
3. Excellent seeing, colored filters, and patience are helpful in picking up
details on the Jovian surface with an amateur telescope.
Observation Time!
1. Prepare sketching paper with pre-printed circles divided into 12 sec-

tions to allow you to use the clock method for sketching. I like to have
at least half a dozen sheets available and try to do drawings several
times as the evening progresses. These drawings clearly show the
improvement in seeing conditions as the evening progresses.
2. Like all planets, Jupiter is best viewed in the weeks following opposi-
tion when the planet is closest to Earth. Jupiter’s opposition occurs
roughly every 13 months. As I write this in August of 2021, Jupiter is
now at opposition and shows brilliantly in the southeastern skies, where
it will continue to rise earlier all through the autumn. The next opposi-
tions of Jupiter will be in September 2022, November 2023, December
2024, and January 2026; a quick check of any search engine can con-
firm opposition times for any planet you wish.
3. Even when it is not at opposition, Jupiter’s tremendous size (12 times
Earth’s diameter) makes it a relatively easy target for planetary view-
ing. Set your telescope up so that you have a good view of the southern
skies, but be aware that the views of Jupiter improve dramatically when
it is higher off the horizon and later in the evening as our own planet
cools and the Earth’s atmosphere stabilizes. Also be aware that at oppo-
sition, a planet will rise roughly at sunset but will not be in a good
position for viewing until several hours later in the evening. Windy
conditions and turbulent skies with significantly twinkling stars gener-
ally indicate poor conditions for planetary viewing. Observing in the
weeks following opposition will offer you views of Jupiter higher in the
skies at an earlier hour, which may be more attractive to novice
astronomers.
4. The appearance of Jupiter is not consistent with what we would expect
of the rocky surface of a terrestrial planet. Generally, dark belts bracket
either side of the lighter equatorial zone, but the northern atmospheric
belt has been known to fade in and out over the years. There is simply
no way to predict precisely how you will see Jupiter on any given night
in the future! Use the belts on either side of the equator as a starting
point and sketch these in. Pay attention to their width and position,
which are both variable. Be aware that the colors and edges of the belts
are quite subtle, and patience at the eyepiece is the best guarantor of
seeing good detail.
5. A lighter zone generally borders both of the dark equatorial belts, lying
further toward the polar regions. These lighter zones are generally of a
similar width as the dark belts, but they become less distinct and some-
what darker as you move toward the polar regions. Both the northern
and southern polar regions are darker, and their details are much more
difficult to make out than in the equatorial regions. There are no bright
polar caps on Jupiter to reflect light, as we see on Mars. Sketch in what
detail you can.
6. It can be difficult to tell north from south in a telescopic view. The
Great Red Spot lies on the polar side of the southern equatorial belt.
The use of yellow, blue, or orange colored filters can help you pick out
details on the belts, including the Great Red Spot. Colored filters gener-
ally screw into the base of the eyepiece; this often moves the eyepiece
back a bit in the diagonal, which changes the focal position slightly.
Again, because Jupiter is such a changeable place and because no one
can predict what will work with any individual’s vision and seeing
conditions, the best that I can advise with filters is that you try each in
turn and stick to less dense filters for planetary viewing. You will need
to refocus for the best image quality each time you change a filter.
7. If you believe that you have seen a surface feature such as the GRS,
record it carefully on your paper along with the exact time and location
of your observation. You can use programs like Stellarium and other
resources to confirm (or deny!) your sighting later.
8. Keep in mind that observing Jupiter is something of a movable feast.
The view will be different each time you come to observe it and Jupiter
is always worthy of your patient study. The observer who returns to
view the planets regularly will become more familiar with them and
will be more likely to spot changes or interesting features that may not
be permanent.
The Jovian worlds offer a laboratory for astronomers and climate scientists
to probe the workings of planetary atmospheres. The Earth has oceans,
continents, mountain ranges, and large reservoirs of water both in liquid
form and suspended in the atmosphere. Our atmospheric patterns are com-
plex and are therefore difficult to understand and predict. By contrast, the
atmospheres of Jupiter and Saturn are relatively simple; they are composed
mainly of hydrogen and helium, there are no oceans as such, water is only
a trace gas, and there are no continents or mountain ranges to affect circula-
tion patterns. The large Hadley cells on Saturn are quite symmetrical and
allow a beautiful hexagonal flow pattern to form where all the Hadley cells
converge near the pole, as seen in Fig. 9.4.
Following Up
The belts and zones that we see stretching across Jupiter are the result of
Jupiter’s rapid rotation rate, which separates rising and sinking columns of
gases and stretches them equatorially across the planet. We are able to see
Fig. 9.4 Hexagonal flow pattern at Saturn’s polar region. (Credit: NASA)
these belts and zones not only because of the differences in temperature, but
because of the changes in chemistry that occur as the temperatures change.
Just as on Earth, warm gases rise, giving the appearance of light-colored
belts, while cooler gases sink, giving the appearance of darker belts. The
fact that we can see the circulation patterns in the atmosphere of a planet
more than half a billion kilometers distant is really quite amazing!
It is possible to see such patterns on Saturn as well, but the glare from the
rings makes this a more difficult chore. The atmospheric belts on Saturn’s
surface become easier to detect and study as the angle of the ring plane
decreases. Saturn’s orbit of 29.5 years allows us to see two fully open ring
events and two edge-on ring events, with these four events occurring
roughly seven years apart. The last event was a fully tilted open ring event
that occurred in 2017, and the rings have been gradually closing since then.
The next ring event that we will witness will be seeing the rings edge-on in
2025, followed by the fully tilted open rings in 2032. The fully tilted ring
event allows us to see ring structure and ring gaps most easily, while edge-
on ring events allow us to study the planet’s surface and its fainter moons.
Activity 36: Jupiter – The Galilean Moons
Galileo called Jupiter’s moons Cosmica Sidera (Cosimo’s stars), and they
were later known as the Medician moons. It was another astronomer, Simon
Marius, who in 1614 named the moons individually: Io, Europa, Ganymede,
and Calisto, after lovers of Zeus (Jupiter) in Greek mythology. This naming
scheme was reportedly suggested by Marius’ contemporary, Johannes
Kepler. The term ‘Galilean moons’ did not become common until the dis-
covery of the moon Amalthea in 1892.
Jupiter is well named after the King of the Gods in Greek mythology. It
is the largest planet in both mass and size and possesses the greatest number
of moons. Jupiter’s collection contains 79 identified moons with well-
known orbits (only 53 of these moons are named). But studies suggest that
Jupiter collects new satellites regularly, harvesting them from the asteroid
belt. Jupiter also devours some moons (they fall into the giant planet or col-
lide with one of the major moons) and loses others through gravitational
interaction with Saturn and the Sun (Fig. 9.5).
Just looking at the list of moons orbiting Jupiter brings the entire debate
of astronomy nomenclature into sharp focus. The Galilean moons are large
bodies. Europa is the smallest of these, just a bit smaller than our Moon, and
Io is just a bit larger. Calisto and Ganymede are closer to Mercury in size,
Activity 36: Jupiter – The Galilean Moons 231
Fig. 9.5 Collage of images of Jupiter and the Galilean moons. (Credit: NASA)
with Ganymede being larger than the innermost planet! Even though these
moons are among the giants in our Solar System, they are significantly
dwarfed by Jupiter.
Some of the smaller moons of Jupiter are less than 1 km (0.6 miles) in
diameter, and many are irregular in shape and obviously captured asteroids.
Some in the scientific community have made quite a fuss in the last decade
about the difference between ‘planet’ and ‘dwarf planet’ – with many insist-
ing that while a planet is indeed a planet, a dwarf planet is not a planet.
Beyond this bit of linguistic judo, we have a variety of other names that are
poorly defined, such as moonlet, little moon, minor moon, lesser moon,
humble satellite, ringling (really!), and several others. Without well-defined
nomenclature, I follow the general guidelines of the IAU and use sphericity
of shape to be a defining characteristic of a true moon. Objects orbiting a
planet that are too small to achieve a spherical shape I will refer to as
moonlets.
The Little Solar System
Unlike most of Jupiter’s moons, the Galilean moons are believed to be co-
formed satellites – satellites that formed from a protoplanetary disk of dust
and rock surrounding Jupiter at its formation. This is similar to the Accretion
Theory of planetary formation, which holds that planets form from a dusty
disk of material surrounding young stars as they transition from protostars
(no hydrogen fusion) to main sequence stars (hydrogen fusion).
We see evidence for this idea in the measured densities of these moons,2
which decrease as they get farther from Jupiter. Io, the rockiest moon, has
a density of 3.5 g/cm3, which indicates a silicate rock structure (Mars has a
similar density). Calisto, the outermost moon, has a density of just 1.8 g/cm3
(water is 1.0 g/cm3), indicating a mixed ice and rock structure.
These moons would have formed from small particles colliding and
sticking together, eventually forming bodies large enough that gravity began
to play a role. However, the lighter ices such as water, CO2, methane, and
ammonia could not exist as solids closer to the planet, where the heat from
Jupiter’s formation would vaporize them. This planetary heat source sepa-
rated heavier (higher melting point) materials such as rock and metals from
the lighter (lower melting point) materials such as water and other ices.
1. Jupiter has four major moons that are visible from Earth in any small
telescope.
2. The Galilean moons are invisible to all observers when they are behind
Jupiter, and difficult or impossible to detect in small telescopes when
they pass in front of Jupiter, where they are lost in the glare from
Jupiter’s bright surface.
3. Patient observers can detect movement of Io (the innermost moon) over
a few hours, while changes in the position of the rest of the Galilean
moons can be detected over a period of days.
Observation Time!
Begin your observation by setting up your telescope and getting Jupiter in

the field of view. A magnification of 40× to 75× is usually sufficient; excess
magnification is not helpful here. Keep in mind that instead of looking to
see just the planet itself, we are actually trying to put a large area surround-
ing the planet into a single field of view so that we can see Jupiter with all
of its moons together. Keep in mind that the most distant Galilean moon
Calisto orbits at a distance of 1.9 million km, almost 14 Jovian diameters
2
It was first the Voyager probes (1977) and later the Galileo orbiter (1992) that accu-
rately measured the diameters of the Galilean moons and used their gravitational inter-
action with Jupiter to effectively ‘weigh’ them.
Activity 36: Jupiter – The Galilean Moons 233
away; this means that we want to be able to see a distance of up to 14 diam-

eters on either side of Jupiter.
It is commonly asked if we can achieve enough magnification to see the
Galilean moons as disks rather than points of light. Unfortunately, most
amateur telescopes do not have sufficient resolution for this task. Similarly,
no amateur telescope will allow you to see color in the images of the
Galilean moons, even though Io is significantly redder than the others, as
small telescopes simply do not deliver enough light to your eye to activate
your color vision.
A chart like Table 9.1 will help your student plot the positions of the
moons that they can see at the eyepiece. Note that it contains sample data to
guide your studies; a blank, printable version can be downloaded from the
Springer website: Data 9.1. You will note that the equatorial plane of Jupiter
is easily determined by observing the dark belts located just north and south
of the planet’s equator. The Galilean moons’ orbits are inclined less than ½
degree from the planet’s equatorial plane. This means that no matter how
the Earth is positioned relative to the plane of Jupiter’s orbit, the Galilean
moons can never appear much above or below the line of Jupiter’s equator
as seen from Earth.
Prepare an observation chart like this for your students. Like the clock
method sketch papers, I generally have charts prepared for students to use
any time that Jupiter is available in the sky. The chart in Table 9.1 shows the
equatorial plane of Jupiter and measures out to 15 diameters away from the
planet to the east and west. Any visible point of light outside this region is
a star and not a moon and therefore can be ignored.
Once the positions of the visible moons are plotted, be sure to have your
students include the time, date, and location on their chart. If you have the
Table 9.1 Chart for recording Jupiter’s moons

Moons from L-R:
Ganymede, Io, Europa, Callisto
Moons identified using Stellarium
Name: Daniel Barth

Time/Date: 12/28/2021 5:35 pm
Telescope: 127 mm Refractor
Magnification: 165× (6 mm EP)
Credit: Author
opportunity to observe Jupiter for a significant period, you may be able to

note the change in position of a moon with an arrow. If all four moons are
not visible, be sure to have your students examine the eastern and western
edge of Jupiter closely. It is not uncommon to be able to see one of the
Galilean moons either emerging from the limb of the planet or vanishing
into it. These are exciting opportunities to observe for yourself that the cos-
mos is indeed in constant motion, whereas the constancy of the stars and
constellations often give us a false impression of permanence.
The Galilean moons of Jupiter were the first definitive evidence that not all
things orbited the Earth. The initial discovery of the Jovian moons by
Galileo was not considered to be conclusive proof that the geocentric sys-
tem was flawed. What some claimed as a proof of the heliocentric system
was dismissed because Earth was known to have a moon, so why couldn’t
other planets have them as well? Further evidence was needed by many
astronomers before they would accept the heliocentric theory.
Beyond its relevance to the arguments between the heliocentric and geo-
centric theories, the discovery of the moons of Jupiter held additional sig-
nificance. The origin of the telescope is obscure, but the first person to
publish and seek a patent for a design was German optician Hans Lippershey
(also known as Lipperhey). Lippershey’s device was an adjustable shaft that
held two lenses in a fixed position so a person could look through them eas-
ily. Lippershey filed a patent for this device with the government of the
Netherlands in 1608, although the patent was denied.
It was the publication of the patent for his ‘Looker’ that inspired Galileo
(and others) to attempt to create devices of their own. Galileo used the writ-
ten description of Lippershey’s Looker device as the basis of the first mod-
ern refractor telescope design. Galileo went far beyond two lenses mounted
to a shaft; he developed the enclosed optical tube, light baffles, stop down
masks for objective lenses, dew shields, and an improved focuser. Any mod-
ern observer would instantly recognize Galileo’s instrument as a refractor
telescope, and it was the first such instrument to be used for systematic
astronomical study and research.
Galileo’s new astronomical telescope design had proved itself as a useful
scientific tool. The new instrument gave people on Earth the ability to see
and experience the solar system in a fundamentally new way. Before this,
the planets could only be tracked across the sky and their positions mea-
sured. Accurate measurements of planetary positions mattered for those
Activity 37: Jupiter – Moons in Transit and Occultation 235
interested in astronomical (and astrological!) theories, but the planets were

still just lights in the sky and almost no one thought of them as anything else
than the ‘wandering stars’ that their name claimed they were.
Following Up
The invention of the telescope changed the planets from mere points of light
into unique places. These places were now worlds, possessed of rings,
moons, and brilliantly colored landscapes, dimly perceived yet full of prom-
ise for future exploration. The telescope would eventually place the explora-
tion of the planets within reach of anyone willing to learn to operate one of
these instruments.
Activity 37: Jupiter – Moons in Transit and Occultation
In brief, when one object passes in front of another, this is called a transit.
All of the Galilean moons of Jupiter transit regularly in front of the planet
from our perspective here on Earth, because all of the Galilean moons orbit
within ½ degree of the planet’s equatorial plane. This close alignment with
Jupiter’s equator means that we never see a moon passing above or below
the planet’s disk as seen from Earth. Transit events are particularly difficult
to perceive in an amateur telescope because of the angular resolution
required and because of the contrast problem.
Resolution refers to the ability of your telescope to resolve two closely
spaced details into cleanly separated objects. For telescope systems, the best
resolution tests are closely spaced double stars. It is relatively easy to look
up the separation in seconds of arc between closely spaced star pairs – if
your telescope can resolve these two stars into separate objects, you know
that distance is within your telescope’s capabilities. The Galilean moons’
apparent diameters run between 1–1.5 arcseconds (4.2 e−4 deg). The theo-
retical limiting resolution is sometimes referred to as the Dawes limit. We
can calculate the Dawes Limit for any telescope easily enough, but this theo-
retical limit relies upon perfectly clear skies and excellent seeing. As a prac-
tical matter, I have seldom seen telescopes of any design with an aperture of
less than 300 mm (12 inches) that are able to resolve the moons of Jupiter
as disks at the eyepiece. This means that resolving the Galilean moons as
anything more than points in an amateur telescope is quite unlikely.
The contrast problem is easy to understand: the lower the contrast

between dark and light objects, the more difficult they are to discern. For a
bright Galilean moon against the black background of space, the contrast is
extremely high and detecting the moon is very easy, even in rather light-
polluted skies. However, when a moon transits across the face of Jupiter, we
are looking at two objects with almost the exact same brightness (both
illuminated by the same source), one superimposed on top of the other.
Detection here is extremely difficult due to the similar brightness and rela-
tively tiny size of the moon in our field of view.
There is one way that a transit can be detected from Earth: by observing
the shadow of the moon crossing the face of Jupiter. At this distance from
the Sun, the shadow of the moon will be almost exactly the same size as the
moon itself, however, we are now looking for a black shadow on a bright
surface and the contrast works in our favor.
An occultation occurs when one object passes behind another and is lost
to view for a time. There are two types of occultations that we can see with
Galilean moons. The first is an occultation of the Galilean moon by Jupiter
itself. This is an easy event to spot, when the moon in question approaches
the limb of Jupiter and then gradually passes behind the planet. We can
recover the moon when it reemerges from behind Jupiter some time later,
although it is generally difficult to observe an occultation and a recovery in
the same evening because an occultation can take hours.
The second type of occultation occurs when one Galilean moon passes
behind another. This event sounds quite unlikely, but is actually well within
the reach of an amateur telescope during a plane crossing event. The orien-
tation of planetary orbits and the equatorial planes of the planets are rela-
tively invariant; like gyroscopes, these massive spinning planets are quite
stable over time. This means that as a planet like Jupiter orbits the Sun,
twice during each orbit, we see Jupiter’s equatorial plane (the orbital plane
of the Galilean moons) edge-on. From our perspective, every six years, the
moons’ orbits appear as a straight line rather than an ellipse. In these years,
we can see the Galilean moons pass in front of each other in occultation
events. This phenomenon occurred during the summer and fall of 2021; the
next time will be in 2027.
Like all occultation events, it is necessary to plan carefully before you go
observing. Occultation and transit events occur at a precise time; if you miss
that time by just seconds, you may not be able to see them. The other thing
to remember about occultation and transit events is that although you can
find predictions online, these may vary dramatically in their mathematical
sophistication and accuracy. The best advice is to use transit and occultation
Activity 37: Jupiter – Moons in Transit and Occultation 237
predictions as a general guideline; have your equipment set up and Jupiter

in view well before the occultation event is supposed to occur.
1. The Galilean moons all share a common orbital plane, never varying
more than ½ degree from Jupiter’s equatorial plane.
2. Because the Galilean moons are aligned so precisely with the planet’s
orbital plane, we regularly see moons in transit passing across the face
of Jupiter, and in occultation as they pass behind Jupiter.
3. Once every six years, the plane of the Galilean moons appears edge-on
from Earth, making it possible for us to observe lunar occultations.
Observation Time!
With these sorts of celestial events, timing is key. It will be important for
both mentor and student to do research on the web well in advance. For
transits and occultations of Galilean moons by Jupiter itself, this is rela-
tively easy to do. Accurate charts are available online, and it is relatively
easy to use Stellarium software to predict the paths of the Galilean moons
with respect to Jupiter.
Use your tables or software to determine the time when a transit or occul-
tation begins and ends. It will be important to have your telescope set up,
tracking, and targeted on Jupiter well in advance of the event you wish to
see. Keep in mind that the precision of the models used to predict transit and
occultation times can vary quite a bit, and your location on Earth will also
affect the timing of the event as you see it.
It is best to work with a partner when observing such an event. One part-
ner can be the observer and the other can be the recorder; this is the best
way to get accurate data. If you have an atomic clock app on your smart-
phone, the recorder can use this to determine the precise time of the event.
Be sure to record the exact time along with your precise GPS coordinates
when you observe an occultation or transit event, as the precise timing data
can be of scientific use to professional astronomers.
I have seen mentors set up a video feed from the eyepiece of the tele-
scope using a web camera or even a smartphone on an eyepiece adapter
mount. The video can be streamed online, or it can be fed into a monitor
that a larger group can watch. While I appreciate these methods and their
ability to reach larger numbers, I always prefer to have my own students at
the eyepiece to experience the event for themselves.
Lunar eclipses and occultations on another planet are fascinating to

observe in our own telescopes from Earth. These events are rare enough
that we must plan for them and ensure that our equipment is ready when
the event occurs. There are few more forceful reminders that while the sky
is our laboratory and our playground, we do not control this environment
at all. For younger people who have grown up with video games where one
may always ‘try the level again’, this sometimes comes as a shock; I have
many times been confronted by irate students (and parents!) who demand
to know why they cannot ‘make up’ a meteor shower, a lunar eclipse, or
other events! The successful mentor must impress the character of the
event they are about to observe, how unique or common it is, and when we
are likely to have a chance to see it again. For the occultation of the moons
of Jupiter, this occurs for a few weeks every few years and should not be
missed!
Following Up
Exploring more about the lunar and ring cycles occurring on different plan-
ets is fascinating. You may wish to purchase a gyroscope to help you explain
these ideas to your students. Like a planet, the gyroscope possesses large
amounts of angular momentum that stabilize its orientation. Spin up a gyro-
scope and set it up vertically, and it will balance on the tip of your finger;
move it around as you will, and the orientation of its axis will not change.
You can demonstrate with the gyroscope on a stand and show how planets
maintain their orientation as they orbit the Sun; this is the source of the ¼
orbit period required for a planet to go from completely open rings to edge-
on. It also helps students understand why things like occultations and edge-
on rings appear twice each orbit (Fig. 9.6).
Activity 38: Planetary Rings and the Roche Limit 239
Fig. 9.6 A rapidly spinning gyroscope has a stable spin axis that resists any change
in orientation, just as planets spinning on their own axis do. (Credit: Author)
Activity 38: Planetary Rings and the Roche Limit
Can you have a moon in orbit anywhere you wish around a planet? After all,
the universe is a wonderful place full of marvels! It seems like you could
find anything imaginable if you could just look long enough – but this is not
true. There are some very definite limits on what is possible.
Edouard Roche was a French mathematician and astronomer, most
famous for his work on celestial mechanics and his discovery of the Roche
limits – the closest and farthest possible orbits for a moon around a planet.
The Roche limit or inner orbital limit is the closest possible orbit for any
moon in orbit around a planet. The main cause of the effect is that the force
of gravity declines rapidly with distance. Moons are generally large enough
that the near and far sides are at significantly different distances. Take a look
at Fig. 9.7 to see how this works. In this diagram, the planet is on the left
and the moon is on the right. You can see that the distance to the nearside
of the moon (R1) is substantially closer than the distance to the far side (R2).
The result is that the moon is stretched toward the planet, making its shape
less round. The closer that the moon gets to the planet, the greater the
stretching force becomes.
Fig. 9.7 The near and far sides of a moon experience different gravitational forces.
(Credit: Author)
Roche realized that moons and planets are not like solid objects that we
see in the world around us. If you pick up a stone, that stone is a solid,
crystalline object; it is held together by atomic forces, chemical bonds con-
necting one atom to the next. Moons are not like this; they are lumps of
stone, ice, and other materials that are held together by gravitational
forces. It is mutual gravitational attraction that holds a moon or planet
together, not the atomic forces of chemical bonds.
Gravitation is the weakest force in the universe and atomic bonds are
many orders of magnitude stronger – literally millions of billions of times
stronger! If a moon were one solid stone, gravitational stretching forces
would be unlikely ever to tear it apart. Think of it this way: a pile of gravel
(separate pieces held together by gravity) will crumble and fall apart in your
hand, whereas a solid stone (held together by atomic forces) never will.
You can see the Roche effect destroying a moon in Fig. 9.8. As the moon
gets closer to the planet, the difference between the gravitational force on
the near and far side gets more extreme. By the time the moon reaches the
Roche limit, the moon’s own gravitational force is no longer strong enough
to hold it together. In more precise terms, the planet’s gravitational pull is
now greater than the gravitational force of the moon’s own mass. Pieces of
the moon are now pulled away from the planet and begin orbiting the planet
independently. If the moon is spiraling in toward the planet, its fate is
sealed. The Roche effect will continue to shred the moon, creating a ring of
independent pieces. The famous rings of Saturn were formed by an icy
moon estimated to have been 250 km wide – by contrast, the average size
of the ring particles is about 15 cm, about the size of a softball (Fig. 9.9).
Fig. 9.8 Tidal forces destroy a moon as it approaches the Roche limit. (Credit:
Author)
Fig. 9.9 Io’s elliptical orbit causes it to approach and then recede from the planet’s
Roche Limit distance, creating distortions in the moon’s shape that result in internal
heating and volcanism. (Credit: Author)
If a moon is spiraling in toward a planet, there will be an intermediate

stage between a solid moon and complete destruction. Jupiter’s moon Io is
in this phase. The elliptical orbit of Io brings it alternately closer and then
farther away from Jupiter. As Io swings closer to Jupiter (and the Roche
limit), it stretches and becomes more egg-shaped; as the moon swings far-
ther out in its orbit, the moon relaxes into a more spherical shape.
The effect of this continual stretching and relaxing is that Io’s interior is
heated and the core becomes molten. The stretching also puts pressure on
the liquid interior, creating volcanism. Io is the most volcanically active
place in our Solar System. The little moon is home to at least 450 known
volcanoes, most of which erupt almost continually. The volcanic plumes
were seen for the first time by the Voyager probes as they passed by Jupiter
in the late 1970’s.
1. Isaac Newton formulated the inverse square law of gravitation in

1665. This means that the force of gravity between two bodies such as
a planet and a moon will increase or decrease rapidly as the distance
between them changes. If a moon moves 2× farther away from the
planet, the gravitation will be ½ × ½ or ¼ the original force. The same
applies as an object gets closer; reduce the distance between planet and
moon to 1/3 the original distance and the gravity becomes 3 × 3 or 9×
greater.
2. The inverse square law means that the strength of the gravitational
force is quite sensitive to the distance you are away from the planet’s
center. The planet’s gravitational attraction to the nearside of a moon
can vary considerably from the attraction on the far side.
3. Moons and planets are bodies held together by gravitational forces, far
weaker than the atomic forces that hold together a solid rock. This
makes moons vulnerable to being broken apart by gravitational forces.
4. The orbital distance where gravitational stresses caused by the planet
are greater than the moon’s own gravity is effectively the Roche limit;
the moon cannot orbit closer without being torn to pieces.
Building the Model
A Roche effect activity is simple to do and can be accomplished conceptu-

ally, or you can add math and data analysis to enrich the experience with
older students. The idea comes from a question in an old physics book,
which goes something like this: Given a string with a linear density of 0.75
grams per meter, and a tensile strength load limit of 100 kg, how much
string could you pay out from a very large spool before the string breaks
under its own weight? Doing this experiment with real string would be
impractical, as we would need a great deal of string and a very tall building
(or a helicopter!) to try this. We can replicate the Roche effect in the class-
room, but we will use modeling clay instead of string.
Materials
1. A meter stick or tape measure

2. 250 grams of school clay. Lighter colors are best here, as most heavily
colored clays are not as strong
3. One empty soup or vegetable can to act as a spool

4. A chair or stepstool to stand upon. You can also perform this activity in
a stairwell where vertical distance will not be a problem
Instructions
1. Begin by rolling out the clay until you have a uniform diameter string.
Try to get the string of clay as thin as you can. In practice, a 4-mm
string (about half the width of a pencil) works perfectly.
Rolling out the clay string takes some practice. It also helps if the
clay is not too warm. If your string breaks, just join the ends by over-
lapping them and rolling again (Fig. 9.10).
2. As you roll out your string, begin wrapping it around the empty can. I
find that soup cans with ridges on the sides work perfectly (Fig. 9.11).
3. If this is simply a demonstration activity, you can begin immediately.
Help someone to stand upon a chair or stepstool (the teacher may want
to do this!). Hold the can at eye level and begin unrolling the spool of
clay string slowly and carefully until the string breaks. Measure the
length of clay string that hung free before it broke (Fig. 9.12).
4. If you have convenient access to a stairwell, this makes an excellent
place to test the limits of your clay string. Repeat several times. If done
properly (with consistent diameters), the length at which the string
breaks should be very consistent. My 4-mm clay string broke at 53 cm
± 2 cm over five trials (Fig. 9.13).
If you wish to do a more analytical lab exercise, then more precise
data is needed. Measure each string’s diameter every 5 cm to determine
an average diameter; run 5 trials for this diameter.
Fig. 9.10 Strings of modeling clay of varying thicknesses. (Credit: Author)

Fig. 9.11 Strings of clay wound around a can for a Roche limit experiment. (Credit:
Author)
Try increasing the diameter of the string by about 2 mm and run the trials
again. Often if you have students working in groups, each group can have a
given diameter to test and the results can be compiled for the entire class to
get a complete data set. Graph the length limit on the y-axis and the break-
ing length on the x-axis. Have students predict the shape of the graph
(hypothesis) before they chart their own data (experimental results)
(Fig. 9.14).
Measure the density of the clay. There are many methods for this; I will
leave this as an exercise for the students. Try graphing the mass of clay vs.
the length of the string before it broke. Again, have students discuss and
predict before charting their own data.
Consider that the Roche limit equation relies upon the density of the
moon and planet. The equation for calculating the Roche Limit distance is
shown in Fig. 9.15. In this equation, RL is the Roche Limit, the minimum
orbital distance, any closer and the planet’s gravity will tear the moon apart.
The ρ1 term is the density of the planet and the ρ2 term is the density of the
moon.
Note that the diameter of the moon does not occur as a term in this equa-
tion! As an exercise, you may wish to calculate the Roche limit for an icy
moon (d = 1.2 g/cm3). Saturn’s density is low, 0.69 g/cm3. Compare your
result to the outer diameter of Saturn’s rings and see how they compare.
Fig. 9.12 Students perform the Roche Limit experiment over a stairwell. (Credit:
Author)
Observation Time!
The diameter of the planet Saturn is approximately 116,000 km, and its
radius is 58,000 km. Knowing this, it is time to observer the planet Saturn
at relatively high magnification (180–250×). If the radius is 58,000 km, how
far away do you estimate the inner edge of the rings to be? In terms of
estimating the distance between the planet and the inner edge of the rings,
have your student compare the planet-ring distance to the radius. Which is
Fig. 9.13 Measuring the length of clay string after it fails under its own weight.
(Credit: Author)
Fig. 9.14 Calculating the Roche limit distance. (Credit: Author)
Fig. 9.15 Roche Limit equation and diagram. (Credit: Author)

greater? Estimate the planet-ring distance as a percentage of the radius; is

the planet-ring distance 0.5 radii? 1.2 radii? Making an estimate like this
will help your calculation. The other way you can test this idea is by using
the drift method, where you can use the Earth’s rotational motion as your
clock. You will need a stopwatch or stopwatch app for your phone to do this.
If you use a phone app, it is best to have a partner do the timing, as pushing
the correct place on a screen without looking at it is more difficult than
pushing a physical button on a stopwatch without looking. Keep in mind
that it takes Saturn just over one second to drift out of the field because its
apparent diameter is quite small, between 15-16 arcseconds. You and your
partner will likely need to practice a bit to get the timing precise (Fig. 9.16).
Set up your telescope so that Saturn will drift out of the field, as shown
in Fig. 9.17. Ideally, Saturn will travel along the equator of the field of view
rather than cutting across only part of the circle. This way, each part of the
planet reaches the edge of the field at the same place. Keep in mind that
Saturn’s attitude relative to the direction that it drifts is unlikely to be this
perfect – some estimation of the time of passage on the observer’s part is
needed here.
Once you are confident of the direction that Saturn is drifting in, you can
then use the edge of the field of view to time the passage of certain parts of
the planet. Our first task will be to time the passage of the entire ring system
Fig. 9.16 Observing the drift of Saturn across the field of view of a telescope.
(Credit: Author)
Fig. 9.17 Using the drift method to measure the diameter of Saturn’s disk. (Credit:
Author)
of the planet as it passes out of the field of view. You will want to start tim-
ing as the outermost edge of the ring touches the edge of the field and then
stop timing as the entire ring system passes out of view. Look at the drawing
here to help you. Repeat this timing at least five times to get a good average
value. You may notice that this timing method gives you the time for a full
diameter of the ring system to pass, whereas the Roche limit is defined as a
radius. Don’t worry, we will be using a ratio here and this will work just
fine!
Now, time the drift passage of the planet itself as it goes out of the field
of view. Once again, we will time the passage of the entire planet because
we are looking for the ratio between the planet’s diameter and the ring sys-
tem’s diameter. I have had students attempt to time the radius of the ring
system and planet, but this proves difficult because estimating where the
center of the planet is from the eyepiece is difficult. In any case, the ratio of
the two radii or the two diameters will be exactly the same, so there is no
reason to attempt the more difficult measurement. Once again, use the
drawing here to help you plan your observation and take a couple of practice
runs before you begin taking actual data. Here too, a set of five times aver-
aged out will give you a better value.
Once you have the average passage time for the entire ring system (the
Roche limit) and the value for the passage time of the planet itself, you can
now set up a ratio that will help you find the actual distance for the Roche
limit around Saturn. The times shown in Fig. 9.18 are taken from my own
Fig. 9.18 Calculating the Roche Limit of Saturn using drift timing data. (Credit:
Author)
observations. Be aware that you may have trouble clearly seeing where the
ring system ends and may make your values for timing the ring passage
smaller. This will tend to give you a smaller value for the Roche limit of
Saturn. Nevertheless, with some practice, you should be able to get a rea-
sonable estimate for this important value. For reference, the textbook value
of Saturn’s Roche limit is 145,000 km.
This activity is an excellent introduction to the inverse square rule, which

applies to gravitation, magnetism, and other field effects. Double the dis-
tance and the force becomes ¼ as strong; at ten times the original distance,
the force decreases to just 1% of the original value. This process also works
as you get closer; move a moon in towards a planet, and eventually the dif-
ference in gravitational force between the near and far sides of the moon is
enough to tear the moon apart. Scottish physicist James Clark Maxwell
came close to this concept when he published his article On the Stability of
the Motion of Saturn’s Rings in 1859. Maxwell concluded (after 60+ pages
of calculations!) that the rings of Saturn could not be solid; the centrifugal
and shear forces from a rotating object that large would tear apart any
known material. Maxwell went on to show that the rings could not be liquid
or gas either, and concluded that the rings must be a thin disk of separate
particles orbiting Saturn independently. Maxwell was right about the form
of the rings, but it turned out that gravitation was the destructive force that
created the rings.
Following Up
The gravitational forces that raise the ocean tides on Earth also raise tides
on land, and it is the interaction of tidal bulges on the moons that created
them that causes moons to either accelerate or decelerate in orbit.
Accelerating moons gradually spin farther away and are eventually tugged
away and lost to their planets. Decelerating moons gradually spin closer,
where the Roche effect tears them apart to form rings.
Activity 39: Saturn – Rings and Gaps
Exploration of the rings of Saturn has often tottered back and forth between
what theorists predict and what observers discover. Galileo was the first
person to perceive the ring system around Saturn in 1609, but he was unable
to comprehend what he was seeing. Galileo’s tiny telescope with its 30-mm
objective was too small and the magnification too low to clearly resolve the
rings. Christian Huygens used a 150-mm reflector of his own design in
1665, enabling him to see the ring structure clearly as a belt of material
encircling the planet.
Giovanni Cassini explored Saturn in much greater detail, and by 1675
Cassini had discovered four minor moons (Iapetus, Rhea, Tethys, and
Dione) as well as the major gap in the rings of Saturn. Cassini also discov-
ered variation in the brightness of Iapetus, which the astronomer correctly
attributed to hemispheres with different albedos. The dark region on Iapetus
is named Cassini Regio, and the main gap in the rings of Saturn is named
the Cassini division, in his honor. In this activity, we will learn how to
sketch Saturn accurately and how to hunt for and document the locations of
its minor moons.
1. Saturn’s rings extend approximately 2.4 radii outward from the planet’s
surface on both the east and west limb. The rings all lie on the planet’s
equatorial plane.
2. Small telescopes generally reveal a single ring complex; spotting the
Cassini division between the A and B rings is a considerable challenge
in a small telescope.
Activity 39: Saturn – Rings and Gaps 251
3. The C-ring is exceedingly thin and generally best detected in small

telescopes as a slight shadow crossing the face of Saturn adjacent to the
B-ring.
Observation Time!
Sketching Saturn is something that puzzles the novice astronomer and sea-
soned observer alike. The elliptical shape and size of the rings, their propor-
tions, and the plethora of inaccurate images of Saturn and its rings in
popular media all serve to confuse the issue. The tilt of Saturn’s rings as
seen from Earth can vary considerably; the planet has an orbital period of
almost 30 years, so we see the appearance of the rings change from maxi-
mum tilt to an edge-on appearance over the course of 7.5 years (¼ orbit). I
have found that students generally draw Saturn in an inaccurate and car-
toonish fashion when left to their own devices. The trick to making an
accurate and pleasing sketch of Saturn is to use the Disk and Rectangle
method.
The diagram in Fig. 9.19 is called a Disk and Rectangle diagram, which
is designed to help anyone make a reasonably accurate sketch of Saturn and
its ring system. The central disk is Saturn, and the diagram is divided up
vertically and horizontally using the radius of Saturn as a basic unit of mea-
surement. The center of the planet is the zero point both vertically and hori-
zontally. Therefore, we see from +0.5 to +1.5 radii north of Saturn’s equator
and similarly −0.5 to −1.5 radii south of the equator. Going eastward (right)
along the bottom of the diagram, we see distances from 1 to 3 radii, with
eastward being positive and westward negative. I have found that using the
Fig. 9.19 Disk and Rectangle diagram for sketching Saturn. (Credit: Author)
radius of the planet in the eyepiece as a unit of measure is usually simple

for the student to understand, because the unit of measure is always in front
of their eyes. I am rarely concerned when doing this exercise that my stu-
dents match up Saturn’s true N, S, E, W directions with the diagram; usually
we simply sketch what we see as up, down, right, and left in the eyepiece.
You will also notice that the diagram has vertical lines that do not all
match up with the dots indicating the distance from the center of the planet.
These vertical lines show us how far east and west the actual rings stretch.
I have included lines delineating the A-ring, B-ring, and C-ring, however the
C-ring is very faint and most small telescopes do not show this detail well,
if at all. The alphabetical letters have been assigned in order of discovery.
The A and B rings were once thought to be a single ring until the discovery
of the Cassini division in 1675. The C-ring was discovered by Wm. and
Geo. Bond (father and son) in 1850. The C-ring extends from 1.25 to 1.50
radii in our diagram. The B-ring, largest and brightest of the three major
rings, extends from 1.5 to 3.0 radii, and the A-ring extends from 3.0 to 3.4
radii away from the planet center.
In order to make an accurate Saturn sketch, we must observe and dis-
cover how far the northern and southern edge of the rings extend from the
center of the planet. As you can see in Fig. 9.20, the rings here are tilted so
that the upper and lower edges coincide almost exactly with the planet’s
northern and southern limb. I have also added lines to the photo that show
where the A-, B-, and C-rings are. You can see how faint the C-ring appears
here – few amateurs will have access to equipment precise enough and skies
dark enough to reveal the C-ring directly, although it is possible to see a
slight darkening of the planet when the C-ring is in front of the planet’s
surface.
Begin your sketch by using the guidelines to draw in the ellipses that
form the boundaries of the rings. Mentors should remind students to keep
the sketch horizontal with respect to the diagram. It is a common error for
students to draw the planet at whatever angle they see in the eyepiece.
Sketching the ellipses may take a bit of practice, and it is a good idea for
each student to have 3–4 copies of the sketching diagram (Fig. 9.21).
You will notice that the ellipses extend all the way out to the boundary
lines from the outer border of the A-ring to the inner border of the B-ring.
Once the ellipses are sketched in, everyone can take a few minutes to
remove the pencil lines that define the hidden parts of the rings and the
planet’s disk (Fig. 9.22).
At this point, the student can begin shading in the details that they can
see at the eyepiece. Of course, you will not see the same quality as that of
the Hubble image in Fig. 9.20! Yet you can see quite a good deal of detail
Activity 39: Saturn – Rings and Gaps 253
Fig. 9.20 HST photo of Saturn. (Credit: NASA)
Fig. 9.21 Sketching the rings with the Disk and Rectangle diagram. (Credit: Author)
if you are patient at the eyepiece. Keep in mind that the image we are view-
ing is a planet just 13–15 arcseconds across. Steady seeing will change the
amount of detail you can see dramatically, and the image may steady up for
several seconds at a time, yielding much better detail. The views of high-
magnification targets also improve substantially as the evening progresses,
because in most locations, the air gets cooler and radiated heat from the
ground decreases dramatically within two hours after sunset.
Be sure to tell your students that they cannot expect the best view every
time. There will be good and bad days at the eyepiece. One of the reasons
that we continue to sketch familiar targets like Saturn is not just to record
Fig. 9.22 Sketching Saturn’s rings. (Credit: Author)
Fig. 9.23 Author’s pencil sketch of Saturn using a 120-mm refractor. (Credit:
Author)
the changing views over its 30-year orbit, but to record our own progress in
observing and recording detail. The sketch in Fig. 9.23 is one I did from my
home in the Ozark Mountains in the summer of 2021. Note that I was able
to detect the Cassini division out on the ‘elbows’ of the rings, but not closer
in toward the planet. I believe that the slight darkening beneath the ring as
it passes in front of Saturn is the C-ring. I was also able to detect darker
regions near both poles as well as some indication of equatorial cloud
bands. When the rings are more significantly tilted, their bright glare makes
it more difficult to detect surface features.
Activity 40: Saturn – Inner and Outer Moons 255
Observing the rings to discover their structure is substantially more chal-

lenging than simply focusing on Saturn and noticing that the rings are there.
The ring structures are enormous, but very distant from us, making spotting
details more difficult. The gaps in the rings are generally caused by moon-
lets that either collide with or deflect particles away from their own orbital
path. The size range of such moonlets is narrow; they must be large enough
to deflect smaller particles with their own gravitational field, but not so
large as to be torn apart by the Roche effect, nor to be shattered by collision
with other minor ring particles. The moon Mimas, orbiting within Saturn’s
rings, causes the Cassini division.
Following Up
Exploring the structure of Saturn’s rings requires a knowledge of the orbital

cycle of the tilt of the rings. As of this writing in 2021, the rings are about
midway between their last maximum tilt (2017) and the next edge-on event
in 2025. The greater the inclination of the rings of Saturn, the easier it
becomes to see ring structure in the telescope. However, there are
compensations to edge-on periods; at these times, the glare from the rings
is much reduced and surface features and Saturnian moons are far easier to
observe.
Activity 40: Saturn – Inner and Outer Moons
Saturn has seven major moons and more than 70 known moonlets. For the
amateur astronomer, detecting and identifying these major moons is a chal-
lenge that requires both observational skill and excellent telescope han-
dling. It is good to remind the student that we are trying to detect small
targets from almost 1.5 billion kilometers away; every Saturnian moon will
appear as a mere point of light, and no shape or color can be detected in
amateur equipment from Earth.
When trying to capture moons of Saturn, the process consists of docu-
menting the appearance of starlike points of light in Saturn’s vicinity and
then checking our observations with good planetarium software to deter-
mine what we have seen. It will be critical to remind the novice observer
that the telescope often inverts, reverses, and rotates the image that we view
in the eyepiece. I have often been asked, “Why don’t they fix that!?” This
could be done with a prismatic system such as those used in binoculars, but
such systems absorb light (reduce brightness), increase weight and cost, and
impose other optical penalties as well. In short, experienced observers gen-
erally prefer the best view at the eyepiece rather than paying for an optically
and mechanically complex system. It is only when we compare what we see
in the eyepiece to a published map that we encounter this problem.
1. Saturn has seven major (visible) moons and more than 70 smaller
moonlets. Most of these bodies orbit in or near Saturn’s equatorial
plane. Astronomers using Hubble telescope images along with data
from the Voyager probes and Cassini orbiter are still finding new moon-
lets around Saturn today.
2. All of Saturn’s major moons orbit outside the edge of the A-ring (the
Roche limit).
3. Most of Saturn’s visible moons have small inclinations and orbit within
1° of the equatorial plane. Iapetus however has an inclination of more
than 15° from the equatorial plane (Table 9.2).
Table 9.2 Data table on Saturn’s minor moons

Name Diameter Orbit Period Notes
Mimas a
396 km 186 Kkm 0.9 d Ice w/ some rock, responsible for
Cassini division.
Enceladusa 504 km 238 Kkm 1.4 d Known subsurface ocean, cryovolcanic.
Tethysb 1,062 km 295 Kkm 1.9 d All ice, lowest density moon known.
Dioneb 1,123 km 377 Kkm 2.7 d Dense rocky core, ice mantle.
Rheab 1,527 km 527 Kkm 4.5 d Homogenous mix of 25% rock, 75%
ice.
Titanc 5,149 km 1.22 Mkm 16 d Larger than Mercury. Only moon with
thick atmosphere. Methane/ethane
‘water’ cycle.
Iapetusb 1,470 km 3.56 Mkm 79 d Hemispheres differ significantly in
brightness.
Credit: Author
a
Discovered by William Hershel c. 1789
b
Discovered by Giovanni Cassini c. 1685
c
Discovered by Christian Huygens c. 1655
Observation Time!
It is essential to help the student evaluate observing conditions for this activ-
ity. Clear, dark skies and steady seeing are needed to find all but the largest
two of Saturn’s major moons. The smallest of these moons, Mimas and
Enceladus, are so dim that they are generally at or near the detection limit
for smaller scopes. The medium moons, Tethys, Dione, Rhea, and Iapetus,
are all of similar size between 1,000 and 1,500 km in diameter and signifi-
cantly easier to spot than their smaller companions. Titan is significantly
larger than Mercury and generally so bright and clear that even the smallest
amateur telescope will be able to capture it easily.
This being said, none of these moons will appear as anything other than
a point of light in the eyepiece. The objects are too small and far away to
show color or any shape other than a bright point. Our ability to detect and
identify them in the telescope eyepiece relies upon careful charting of the
position of any points of light near Saturn and later comparing a careful
record of our observations with planetarium software. While it is true that
the pioneers of Saturn exploration, Christian Huygens, Giovanni Cassini,
and William Hershel, all detected moons by observing and tracking these
objects over days (and months!) and confirming the orbital radius and
period of these moons, it is a bit much to ask a novice astronomer to engage
in such a diligent, long-term observation program.
The diagram shown in Table 9.3 can be used for mapping the inner
moons of Saturn: Mimas, Enceladus, Tethys, Dione, and Rhea. Note that it
contains sample data to guide your studies; a blank, printable version can be
downloaded from the Springer website: Data 9.2. It is entirely possible to
find both of the outer moons, Titan and Iapetus, in the regions close to
Saturn, but they have large orbits and will spend much of their time farther
away from the planet from our point of view. You will notice that unlike our
last activity, where we used the radius of Saturn as a unit of measure, here
we are using the diameter of the entire ring system, so our unit of measure
is one ring-diameter. For convenience and accuracy, each ring-wide box is
divided into five squares. There is also a line indicating Saturn’s equatorial
plane. Careful observation, including locating each point as either being
above or below the ring plane, will be essential to proper identification later
on. It is also critical that the observer records the exact time and location
where the observation was made. This data will be needed later in order for
any planetarium software to show the moons in the correct locations.
Remember that the inner moons orbit so quickly that just an hour or two can
make a significant difference in the position of one of these bodies.
Table 9.3 Mapping chart for Saturn’s minor moons
Credit: Author
I cannot stress enough how important it is to pay attention to the orienta-

tion of Saturn in order to get the moons recorded correctly. Are the rings
tilted toward or away from Earth? Such details when placing every point of
light around Saturn will result in a successful (or unsuccessful!) identifica-
tion of moons and the rejection of nearby stars from the diagram.
When identifying the outer moons of Saturn, Titan, and Iapetus, the
observer will need to reduce magnification substantially. Where all the
smaller moons are packed tightly around the planet, Titan and Iapetus are
spread over a much wider area. Titan is the second largest moon in our Solar
System, and the only known moon with an active atmosphere and ‘hydro-
sphere’. Titan’s atmosphere is quite Earthlike in some ways; it is primarily
composed of nitrogen (97%) and has a surface pressure of 1.45 atmo-
spheres. Most of the other gases in Titan’s atmosphere are hydrocarbons
such as ethane, methane, acetylene, and others. The trace gases would make
the atmosphere irritating and mildly poisonous to us, but it is by far the low
temperature, averaging −180 °C, that would be the greatest climatic chal-
lenge for people from Earth. It is the trace gases, mostly methane and eth-
ane, that form the ‘hydrosphere’ on Titan; lakes and rivers of liquid
hydrocarbons exist on the surface, and ethane and methane rain out on the
surface as free liquids. The presence of extensive clouds in the atmosphere
eliminate any possibility of earthbound observers seeing surface detail on
Titan, even with a powerful space telescope.
Iapetus is more visually interesting to the observer, even though no sur-
face details can be seen from Earth. Iapetus is tidally locked to Saturn so
that the same side of the moon always faces the planet. Thus, as Iapetus
travels around Saturn, one face is locked in the forward direction and the
other hemisphere always faces behind. These hemispheres show remarkably
different albedos: the appearance on the trailing hemisphere is mag 10.2, as
opposed to the facing hemisphere, which is only mag 11.9. Giovanni

Cassini, who discovered the moon in the 1680’s, was able to spot Iapetus
only on the western side of Saturn, but he was unable to confirm the orbit
of the moon on the eastern side of Saturn until some years later when he had
access to a more powerful telescope. Cassini correctly deduced that Iapetus
was tidally locked and had dramatically different hemispheres, but these
deductions were only conclusively confirmed centuries later, when the
Voyager spacecraft flew past Saturn and later the Cassini space probe
entered orbit around Saturn for extended investigation of the ringed planet.
The chart for mapping the location of Titan and Iapetus looks dramati-
cally different from that for the inner moons. Titan can orbit as many as 5
ring diameters away from Saturn (1.2 million km), but its orbit is closely
aligned with the ring plane and Saturn’s equatorial plane; Titan is confined
within 0.5° of Saturn’s equator. You will note that in Table 9.4, there are a
series of squares that are shaded and extend directly east and west of Saturn.
A blank, printable version of this table can be downloaded from the
Springer website: Data 9.3. The tilt of the ring plane (and Titan’s orbital
plane) as seen from Earth slowly changes as Saturn orbits the Sun. This is
why the shaded area gets broader as you move farther from Saturn; Titan
will be confined to this area.
Table 9.4 Mapping chart for Titan and Iapetus
Credit: Author
The rest of the chart is dramatically different. Iapetus’ orbit is inclined by

15° relative to Saturn’s equatorial plane; Iapetus also has a very distant orbit
that keeps it 3.5 million km from Saturn. The large orbital radius is the
reason for the width of the chart (13 ring diameters!) and the inclination of
the orbit is why the chart gets larger as you move away from Saturn. You
may be able to see wide-ranging Iapetus in any part of the chart. Note that
while it is possible to see both Titan and Iapetus farther above and below the
disk of Saturn than the squares in this chart allow, this is generally only
possible in those years when the rings are at maximum inclination.
This chart requires the observer to cover a substantially greater span of
the sky than did the earlier chart for the inner moons. If Saturn happens to
be passing through an area of sky that is rich in stars such as the Milky Way,
the observer may have a formidable task on their hands! Even so, the
observation is much the same: we must look for and record every speck of
light within the boundaries of our chart and record them accurately. If this
is done with care, the observer should be able to use a planetarium software
program to identify not only the moons, but also any stars in the vicinity of
Saturn. Once again, the mentor needs to ensure that the student records
time, date, and location on the chart in order to correctly identify the moons.
Tracking the moons of Saturn is a more challenging task than that of observ-
ing the Galilean moons of Jupiter. Where Jupiter’s moons are large, bright,
and relatively close to the planet, Saturn’s moons are not. The inner moons
are small, dim, and clustered closely around the planet, often lost in the glare
of the rings. The larger moon Titan is often easy enough to see, but the incli-
nation of Saturn can make it more difficult to track, as it may appear sub-
stantially above or below the planet itself. The moon Iapetus is even harder
to track, as this moon’s orbit is highly inclined (17 degrees) and its orbit is
very large; we must search a large volume of space. Similarly, it is difficult
to definitively identify any of the moons of Saturn without good software
resources such as Stellarium or other planetarium software packages.
Following Up
If your students have not yet done so, this will be an excellent time to intro-
duce them to some planetarium software resources. These software pack-
ages can help students identify what they have sketched at the eyepiece.
Many of these programs also have a night mode, which changes the display
to a red color that protects night vision. Using such software also requires
the student to become aware of how the telescope changes the image we
see. A telescope may invert or reverse the image, or sometimes both. It takes
patience and good observation skills to use such software successfully. I
prefer to make an accurate sketch and then use software later to identify
what I have seen.
Chapter 10
Star Clusters
and Nebulae
Star clusters are exactly what they sound like: groups of stars packed more
tightly than average in the night sky. Some clusters, like the Pleiades group,
are easily visible to the naked eye, but most require optical aid to appreciate
them. Star clusters come in two general varieties: open and globular. Open
clusters may be a group of stars that simply appear along a random line of
sight, but usually they have been born in a common stellar nursery and are
gradually drifting apart. Such groups may consist of up to a few thousand
stars but are often much smaller; these groups are loosely gravitationally
bound – that is, they affect each other gravitationally, but they are not locked
into orbit around a common center of mass. These clusters are common
throughout the galaxy and are found throughout the sky. Most open clusters
are only a few tens of millions of years old; they will last only a few orbits
around the galactic center before losing coherence.
Globular clusters have little in common with their open cluster counter-
parts. Open clusters are relatively short-lived objects. By comparison,
globular clusters are some of the oldest objects in our galaxy, ranging from
11 to 13 billion years old and dating from the very formation of the Milky
Way. The stars in a globular cluster appear to be more primordial than their
open cluster cousins as well. Globular clusters contain almost no metal –
that is, they are primarily composed of hydrogen and helium with almost no
heavier elements. This indicates that they are likely to be population II

https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-98771-8_10,
264 10 Star Clusters and Nebulae
stars, metal-poor stars formed from purer, more primordial gas in the early
stages of the universe.
Globular clusters also live in different places than open clusters do.
While open clusters form within the galactic disk and therefore are more
commonly observed within a few tens of degrees of the Milky Way, globular
clusters are known to form a spherical halo around their galaxies and are not
particularly associated with the disk of dust, gas, and stars. Because they
form a halo around a galaxy, they may be associated with the halo of dark
matter that is also believed to form a spherical halo around every galaxy.
These globular clusters are tightly bound groups of stars with populations
ranging in the millions. Globular clusters are so tightly packed that their star
densities range from 100 to 1000 stars per cubic parsec; by comparison, our
stellar neighborhood has a density of 0.14 stars per cubic parsec. Standing
on a planet in a globular cluster, there would be no night as we know it; the
sky would be flooded with stars and starlight! Many stars would be close
and bright enough to be easily seen in the daytime.
Activity 41: Globular Star Clusters
Globular star clusters are compact objects, and because of their small appar-
ent size and great distance from the Earth, they are generally best observed
with a telescope at 50x to 100x or better. Most globular clusters will have
the appearance sometimes described as ‘a snowball thrown against a brick
wall’ – that is, they appear as a fuzzy star-like object, brightest in the center
and fading toward the edges. Globular clusters are rated according to their
concentration on a scale from 1–12, with Class 1 being the most tightly
packed and Class 12 the least. How well we can do resolving any individual
stars in these clusters will depend both upon their concentration and their
distance from Earth. As with star magnitudes, asking a novice to evaluate
anything on a 12-point scale is rather ridiculous; I typically ask students to
rate globular clusters on a 3-point scale:
• Class 1 is loose. All outer stars well defined. Some stars in the center can
be resolved at high magnification.
• Class 2 is medium. While the outermost stars can be resolved, the center
blurs and no stars can be resolved there.
• Class 3 is dense. Few if any stars can be resolved, and only a small num-
ber of the outermost stars appear as individuals. Many of the best and
brightest globular clusters are also Messier objects.
Activity 41: Globular Star Clusters 265
Their great distance from Earth, small apparent diameter, lack of visible
detail, and striking similarity of appearance make sketching a somewhat
unsatisfying activity. We will instead focus on mapping the location of
globular clusters within constellations and sketching their surrounding
starfields. Our activity will focus on some of the best globular clusters avail-
able in each season of the year.
1. Globular clusters are very compact objects appearing as ‘fuzzy’ or

distended stars.
2. Globular clusters contain hundreds of thousands to many millions of
stars. It is generally impossible to resolve individual stars in a globular
cluster with a modest telescope.
3. Substantial magnification, usually above 50x, is required to confirm the
observation of a globular cluster.
Observation Time!
Our observation protocol for globular clusters will be quite consistent,

because the size and appearance of these objects are likewise quite consis-
tent. This is not to say that observing a globular cluster is a boring affair;
few objects in the sky can stir the same slow build of wonder. When they
are first spotted at lower power, the ‘fuzzy star’ appearance is interesting,
but the delight as the magnification increases is amazing. At the highest
magnification, new observers are often struck at the appearance of the
granular structure and the realization that they are observing light from mil-
lions of stars all at once. The outer stars begin to resolve into tightly packed
separate points of light and the scale of the globular becomes more appar-
ent. I have many times heard a new observer mimic the character Frank
Bowman from the film 2001: A Space Odyssey, “Oh my God! It’s full of
stars!”
I have listed globular clusters for spring, summer, and fall constellations
here. Winter skies offer little for the observer interested in globular clusters,
however summer skies are so rich with them that there is a separate activity
just for the constellations of Ophiuchus and Sagittarius. When hunting
globular clusters, it is best to begin with a pair of binoculars and a good star
chart. You will notice that all of the globular clusters noted below are
Messier objects. As we have learned, Charles Messier was a great comet

hunter of the eighteenth century who compiled a list of non-cometary
objects, meant to prevent confusion between comets and other less useful
and interesting sights in the sky. Messier’s list has become a go-to catalog
for amateur astronomers ever since. Globular clusters with their bright cen-
ter and diffuse outer shape are easy to confuse with fainter comets; 29 of the
110 objects on Charles Messier’s list are actually globular clusters.
Instructions
1. Begin with your star chart and locate the object you wish to see. Use
the list below to help you, but realize that this list is by no means
exhaustive. Be sure to note the location of bright ‘pointer stars’ in the
area that will help you find your target.
2. Sweep the area with a binocular. A 10 x 50 pair will do best, as lower
power binoculars sometimes make it difficult to pick up these small
objects.
3. Make a quick sketch of the naked-eye constellation or starfield in your
log book, noting time and date. Locate the globular cluster in your
sketch as accurately as you can.
4. Find the cluster in your telescope. Start at low power (~30x) and slowly
increase magnification until you have the best view. Try to resolve stars
in the cluster as best you can. Evaluate the density of the cluster and
record this in your notes. (Class 1: Loose, Class 2: Medium, Class 3:
Dense).
5. Table 10.1 presents prominent globular clusters arranged by season.
Each entry gives the Messier number, constellation, distance from
Earth, visual brightness, and notes to help you identify your observing
target.
Globular clusters are ancient groups of stars that date from the time of our
galaxy’s formation. They are available almost any time of year to study and
enjoy. Because of their significant brightness and definitive shape, globular
clusters make an excellent introduction to deep-sky objects for any student.
Unlike nebulae and galaxies, which tend to be faint and wispy, globular
clusters leave no question in the student’s mind as to whether they have
found their target!
Activity 41: Globular Star Clusters 267
Table 10.1 Bright globular clusters by season

Spring Globulars
M3 Canes 40,000 Mag Contains many variable stars. Located on a
Venatici LY 6.3 line between Arcturus and the lower
corner of the Big Dipper. Easy binocular
target for beginners
M-53 Coma 60,000 Mag Located southeast of Arcturus. Good
Berenices LY 7.6 binocular target
M-68 Corvus 33,000 Mag Easily resolved into individual stars away
LY 8.2 from the denser center region. Possible
binocular target, but dark skies and good
view of the southern horizon needed
Summer Globulars
M13 Hercules 22,000 Mag One of the brightest globular clusters in the
LY 5.9 northern sky. An easy binocular target, but
only a telescope will resolve individual
stars away from the dense center region
M93 Hercules 3600 Mag Dimmer and less spectacular than M-13,
LY 6.5 visible in binoculars but best observed at
higher power with a telescope. One of the
closest globular clusters
M56 Lyra 33,000 Mag Located on the edge of Lyra, quite near
LY 8.3 Alberio. A challenging binocular target,
best observed at higher power with a
telescope
M71 Sagitta 13,000 Mag Located between Alberio and Altair. One of
LY 6.1 the loosest clusters in the sky, astronomers
differ on whether M-71 is a true globular
or a dense open cluster
Autumn Globulars
M2 Aquarius 38,000 Mag This relatively bright cluster is easy to spot
LY 6.3 with binoculars. A telescope is needed to
resolve individual stars in this dense
globular
M72 Aquarius 55,000 Mag This distant cluster is small and relatively
LY 9.3 faint. A challenging telescope target, it is
difficult to resolve any individual stars
M15 Pegasus 34,000 Mag Bright and dense, this cluster is an easy
LY 6.3 binocular target. A telescope is needed to
resolve any individual stars
Following Up
There are significant differences between globular and open star clusters.
While globular clusters are very primitive structures believed to be found
around almost all galaxies, open clusters are temporary structures created
by star-forming regions in clouds of gas and dust. While the age of an open
cluster can be easily assessed at the telescope by looking for nebulosity,
globular clusters offer few hints to the amateur observer. We will study open
clusters more fully in a subsequent activity.
Activity 42: Globular Clusters in Sagittarius and Scorpio
For the globular cluster aficionado, there is no better time of year than late
summer and early autumn. The constellations Sagittarius and Ophiuchus are
loaded with globular clusters, and the careful observer can spend many
evenings with a binocular and a telescope hunting down these objects. As
we have noted, globular clusters are large, dense groups of stars ranging
from 100,000 to many millions, all gravitationally bound in a tight spherical
formation. Appearing as ‘fuzzy stars’ in binoculars and as brilliant ‘splat-
tered snowballs’ in the telescope, they offer an amazing view of regions of
our galaxy where the night sky never darkens.
The area of the southern Milky Way that separates Sagittarius and
Scorpius is so cluttered with both globular and open clusters that I must
recommend that both the mentor and new observer alike rely upon a quality
star map rather than the simple sketch I have provided you with here. The
map must be on a large enough scale to show all of these objects clearly so
that the observer can locate them. The starfields in this area are also incred-
ibly rich, because when we look at Sagittarius, we are essentially looking
inward toward the center of the Milky Way itself. This is not an activity I
would suggest for the first time observer; a novice astronomer will likely
have difficulty distinguishing the many targets in this area of the sky.
Clearly, patience and an eye for detail will be beneficial for all observers.
1. The southern Milky Way is the most crowded region of the sky for
stars, nebulae, and star clusters of all kinds. A quality star map is a
necessity here.
2. An eye for detail and good telescope and binocular skills are needed for
this globular cluster hunt.
3. Breaking this area of the sky down into smaller, more manageable
pieces will be beneficial for all observers. Keeping the tasks simpler
helps prevent frustration among your students.
Activity 42: Globular Clusters in Sagittarius and Scorpio 269
Observation Time!
Instructions
1. You can see this section of the southern sky after sunset any time
between mid-July and mid-September. Remember that the Milky Way
extends from a point between Sagittarius and Scorpius and stretches
toward the north celestial pole.
2. Familiarize yourself with the two constellations with the naked eye,
then with your binocular, begin to sweep the southernmost area of the
scorpion’s tail. Sweep east and west, slowly working farther northward
with each sweep.
3. When you find one of the globular clusters, make a note of it in your
log book. Determine if the cluster is loose or dense (1–3 scale), and
note any color or other particulars.
4. Verify the designation of the cluster you have found. For simplicity’s
sake, only the Messier objects have been labeled in Fig. 10.1. The oth-
ers on this sketch are all NGC objects.
5. Take care when you are identifying objects; this region is full of nebu-
lae and open clusters as well as globular clusters!
6. When you have quartered a small portion of the sky and identified sev-
eral objects, switch from binocular to telescope to confirm your discov-
eries. Start with lower power (30–50x); some clusters may need more
magnification, but most will be clearly identified at this power.
Looking toward the center of our own galaxy, we find a large number of
targets of almost every description. If one thinks about the structure of a
typical barred spiral galaxy, it is not hard to understand why this is so. As
we move in toward the center of the galaxy, we encounter an area called the
galactic bulge. This is a lens-shaped structure consisting of stars and gas,
and it is far more massive than the outer regions of the galaxy. The strong
gravitational field of the galaxy concentrates gas and dust in this region,
resulting in not only a higher rate of star formation, but also many more
centers of star-forming activity than one finds in the outer reaches of the
galaxy. It is this great concentration of matter that makes the study of the
galaxy’s center so interesting.
Fig. 10.1 Map of clusters in Sagittarius and Scorpius. (Credit: Author)
Following Up
Clearly, such a rich area of the sky will provide enough material for many
years of study. Returning each summer to these familiar hunting grounds is
one of the joys of astronomy. Likewise, having a well-known ground on
which to test out new equipment can be a welcome opportunity. It is only
when we are truly familiar with an object in our own equipment that we can
assess the quality or improvement that new gear will offer us.
Activity 43: Comparing Open Star Clusters
Unlike globular clusters, which are ancient denizens dating from the birth
of our galaxy, open clusters are more like the seeds on a dandelion; they are
born together but quickly disperse and are lost to one another. Throughout
our galaxy, molecular clouds are forced together, compressing hydrogen,
helium, and a sprinkling of heavier elements blasted out from dying stars.
Density waves form in the dusty disk that spreads out along the galaxy’s
Activity 43: Comparing Open Star Clusters 271
equatorial plane, compressing gasses and dust and creating waves of star
formation that show up as spiral arms in distant galaxies.
Compression increases the gravitational field of such clouds and heats
the material in them. Heat tends to make things expand, but the dust in the
clouds helps radiate away this heat, allowing further compression. Stellar
cores form inside such clouds – protostars that are hot and dense and radiate
light and heat. But they are not yet stars. Only when the cores of such pro-
tostars reach temperatures of roughly ten million degrees Celsius does the
hydrogen fusion process begin. A star is born in a dusty nursery as a com-
pact object rather than a concentration of gas. This new entity, with its
fusion core surrounded by superheated plasma and concealed within a veil
of hydrogen, helium, and dust, begins to gravitationally interact with its
neighbors. The chaotic gravitational interactions serves to eject the new star
from the nursery, drawing all the gas and dust with it that it will ever have.
A new Solar System is born.
As these stellar nurseries evolve, they birth more stars and lose more gas
and dust. The youngest nurseries are still dusty, heavily veiled by molecular
clouds, so it is difficult to see the stars within. Such compact nebulae are the
places where stars are born; they are violent, glowing with the light of pro-
tostars and newer stars just beginning their long fusion cycle.
Older nurseries show a thinning of the veils of gas and dust; more of this
material has gone into producing new stars. The stars in such a cluster are
still close together; young, hot, blue stars putting out tremendous amounts
of ultraviolet and gamma radiation that cause nearby clouds to fluoresce and
glow. Such wispy places show you a witch’s glow when you look away, but
extinguish the blue light when you stare right at them. The stars here are
easy to separate with the naked eye or the binocular; and they are a delight
in the telescope!
The oldest nurseries are not really nurseries any longer. None will last
more than a lap or two around the Milky Way before they spread out com-
pletely and lose all coherence and family resemblance. Such clusters are
more spread out, with stars diffusing into the background of the galaxy as
they continue to move away from each other. How they look depends much
upon how close they are to Earth. Some older clusters are readily apparent;
they sit away from the crowded belt of the Milky Way and stand out easily.
Others are so close to us that we are often unaware that these were ever part
of a common group, all born together. They have spread out to become
constellations in our sky.
1. Stars are generally born from compressed clouds of gas and dust. Most
of the mass of such clouds comes from hydrogen (75%) and helium
(25%), with traces of heavier elements.
2. Stars begin to move and get flung out of the molecular cloud that
birthed them soon after they are born. Generally, the more diffuse the
star cluster, the older it is.
3. As molecular clouds use up their gas and dust in creating new stars,
they become thinner and more diffuse over time. Eventually, the cloud
no longer has enough material to produce new stars, and star formation
stops.
Observation Time!
Materials
1. A 7 × 50 or larger binocular
2. Telescope with eyepieces for 60–100x
3. Sketching materials with 70–100-mm circles pre-drawn on them, three
circles per page.
Instructions
1. This activity can be done in the early evening after sunset any time
between mid-December through mid-March. Use your planisphere to
identify the constellations Orion (The Hunter), Perseus, and Taurus.
2. The three objects we will be interested in are the Orion Nebula, the
Double Cluster in Perseus, and the Pleiades Cluster in Taurus. The
‘sword’ region below Orion’s belt is home to the Orion Nebula, the belt
stars themselves point toward the Pleiades, and the stars of Cassiopeia
point to the double cluster that lies between Cassiopeia and Perseus.
3. If you have sufficiently dark skies, try spotting all three of these with
your naked eye. The Orion Nebula is quite bright and distinct, but
rather small. Keen observers can detect that this is not a point object!
4. The Pleiades is interesting because with averted vision, you can easily
perceive the glow of the nebula that surrounds the stars with your naked
eye. Focus your eyes upon it however, and the glow vanishes! Your rod
cells in the periphery of your retina are sensitive enough to pick up this
Activity 43: Comparing Open Star Clusters 273
glow, while the cone cells in the center are not, which is why the glow
vanishes when you look directly at this object.
5. The Double Cluster is just visible with averted vision between
Cassiopeia and the Pleiades. You can see it with direct vision if the
skies are very clear and dark. With the naked eye, this appears to be a
single object, and you will not be able to resolve individual stars.
6. Use the binocular to examine the region around each of the clusters to
be sure you can locate and find them with a telescope. Switch over to
the telescope and using low power (about 50x), sketch each of the three
in the circles on your sketching sheet. Take careful notes in your log or
on the back of your sketching sheet.
(a) Pay attention to how much dust and nebulosity (glowing
material) you see in each cluster.
(b) Can you determine areas where dust and gas are thicker or
thinner than average? Does the density increase as you move
toward a central region?
(c) Can you see stars of different colors as well as different levels
of brightness?
7. See if you can rank these clusters from youngest to oldest. Keep in
mind what was said earlier about how stellar nurseries use up gas and
dust to produce new star systems. Share your conclusions with other
observers and see if you can come to a consensus!

Star formation occurs when gravitation and other forces cause clouds of gas
and dust to condense. Once a large cloud of material begins to condense,
there is a conflict between heat and gravitation. Gravity always works to
condense and compress objects into the most compact form possible.
Clouds of gases and dust in interstellar space are highly compressible, and
this compression in turn produces heat that greatly raises the temperature at
the heart of the cloud. However, heat tends to make gases expand, increas-
ing their volume and decreasing the temperature. Here, dust particles play
an important role, as it is the physical surface area of the dust particle that
allows it to efficiently radiate away heat energy as infrared light. The radi-
ated heat cools the cloud’s outer regions and allows the collapse to continue;
this continued collapse eventually heats the hydrogen fuel at the core, to the
point where fusion begins and a star is born!
Following Up
Just as we have used nebulosity to estimate the age of open clusters, we can
also use star color. Young, hot stars are generally yellow to blue-white in
color, whereas older stars often show colors in the red end of the spectrum
as they cool and expand at the end of their lifetimes. It is an interesting
project to look at clusters where no nebulosity is visible and to explore the
colors of the stars in these clusters. Of course, it is possible to find large red
giant stars that lie between Earth and the cluster we are observing, but by
checking resources such as planetarium software programs, we can often
find the distances to various stars and the cluster itself and determine if
these objects are separate or together.
Activity 44: Star-Forming Nebulae
Along with the Big Dipper in Ursa Major, Orion is one of the most widely
recognized constellations in the sky. The great nebula in Orion (M 42/43) is
actually two star-forming regions (Fig. 10.2). The nearer and brighter holds
the title of the Orion Nebula; it is just 1200 LY away and shines at mag 4,
and it is easily seen with the naked eye. The other star-forming region is
called De Mairan’s Nebula; this lies just north and adjacent to M42,
although it is farther away (1600 LY) and dimmer at mag 9. Both of these
objects as well as other glowing molecular clouds make up the complex
known as the Sword of Orion; you can see a better map of the lower half of
Orion and the Sword region with both M42 and M43 in Fig. 10.3. While
both regions are star-forming molecular clouds, it is M42, the closer of the
two, that offers us the more spectacular views.
1. The young stars in this region of the sky were originally discovered by
Galileo in 1617. The glowing nebulae here were discovered later.
2. Orion’s Nebulae (M42 and M43) are emission nebulae. They glow
because the gas and dust are both illuminated and irradiated by the stars
inside them. Radiation from these hot, young stars (gamma, x-ray, and
UV) causes the gases in the nebulae to fluoresce, just as a neon light
does.
Activity 44: Star-Forming Nebulae (Fig. <InternalRef… 275
Fig. 10.2 Sketch of the constellation Orion. (Credit: Author)
3. The new stars in this region are in the process of being kicked out of
the stellar nursery by gravitational interaction. Most of these stars are
also in the process of forming planetary systems.
Observation Time!
A view of the region with a telescope at 50x will reveal a fan-shaped nebula
spreading out to the south (M42) and a smaller, fainter shape fanning out
toward the north (M43). This region is the brightest emission nebula visible
in the Northern Hemisphere. At magnitude 4, it is easily seen as an extended
object with bright nebulosity with the naked eye.
Viewing the nebulae with binoculars reveals a spectacular structure. The
shape and complexity of the nebulae become apparent at just 10x. With a
good pair of 10 × 50 binoculars, the observer benefits as much from better
light gathering and resolution as from simple magnification. Although color
images of this region abound on the internet, the mentor should remind their
students not to expect color images at the eyepiece. No amateur instrument
is large enough to reveal color to the human eye. Nonetheless, there is great
Fig. 10.3 Detail sketch of the southern half of Orion. (Credit: Author)
Fig. 10.4 Detail sketch of the Trapezium asterism within M42 in Orion. (Credit:
Author)
detail to be seen, including areas of greater and lesser brightness. With bet-
ter light gathering, any instrument of 50-mm aperture or greater will show
extended regions of the nebulae that are simply too dim to be seen with the
naked eye or a smaller binocular (this is why Galileo missed the nebula but
was able to capture the stars within it) (Fig. 10.4).
Moving from the binocular to a telescope of at least 100-mm aperture,
you can easily see several stars within M42 at 50x magnification or better.
Activity 44: Star-Forming Nebulae (Fig. <InternalRef… 277
The small cluster of stars within M42 is called The Trapezium after the
geometric shape the stars outline. Galileo discovered this small cluster of
stars in 1617, but he was only able to distinguish three stars with his tele-
scope, and he missed the nebula completely. Pushing your own telescope’s
magnification toward 100x should enable you to easily see all four stars,
labeled A, B, C, and D in order of increasing right ascension. Star C is defi-
nitely the brightest of the set, with A, B, and D about a magnitude less. With
good optics and steady seeing, you may be able to push your telescope up
over 150x and resolve star E. Spectroscopy reveals that this is a very com-
plex region, and many of the stars in this stellar nursery are actually eclips-
ing binary stars. Infrared astronomy has revealed that many of the young
stars forming in this region possess dusty disks of material from which
planets may someday form. The upcoming James Webb Space Telescope is
capable of seeing farther into the infrared regions that any other space tele-
scope yet launched – it may show us new worlds forming in Orion!
Star-forming regions are some of the brightest nebulae in the sky. These
regions offer us the ability to see new stars and planetary systems in the very
process of their creation. Observing such regions helps people learn that the
universe is not a static place. The timescale over which significant cosmic
change occurs is often so long that we fail to recognize it within the course
of a single human lifetime. The snapshots we see of stars from birth,
through middle age, and into old age and death allow the new observer to
see the entire process of stellar evolution.
Following Up
Star-forming regions are complex and beautiful objects, but sometimes the
dust and gas that make star formation possible also make things difficult for
the visual observer. The visual observer is also significantly limited by the
aperture of more modest equipment. Aperture makes a substantial differ-
ence in how much we see. Nebulae like these are illuminated by individual
stars with or near to the nebula; therefore, the nebula becomes significantly
fainter as we move outward from the source of illumination. These fainter
regions are much harder to capture with a smaller aperture instrument of
200 mm or less. If the student has the opportunity to attend a star party with
a local astronomy club, chances are that some of the members there will
have significantly larger reflectors of 300 mm and up. The view through one
of these large telescopes with a wide-angle eyepiece can be a revelation,
reintroducing the student to the wonder of star-forming nebulae all over
again!
Activity 45: Reflection Nebulae
Nebulae are essentially large clouds of gas and dust adrift in space. The
terms ‘large’ and ‘cloud’ need some clarification here. The nebulae that we
can see with binoculars or telescopes are very distant, from 1000 to 30,000
light years away. By comparison, our own Solar System is just one light day
across! These nebulae are also enormous and can be tens of light years
wide; the Orion Nebula (M42) is estimated to be 25 light years wide.
Considering that these nebulae are large enough to be seen from Earth at
these great distances, their great size should not be surprising.
The term ‘cloud’ is also misleading; when most people think of clouds
on Earth, they imagine perhaps a puff of vapor 6 to 10 km tall, or at its most
grandiose, a hurricane storm system of perhaps 1000 km wide. These ter-
restrial clouds pale to insignificance when compared to celestial clouds of
gas and dust. They are also much denser than their celestial counterparts.
Dry air at room temperature averages 1.2 kg/m3; clouds made from humid
air are slightly lighter, averaging ~1 kg/m3. Molecular clouds in space are
closer to a perfect vacuum than most laboratories on Earth could produce!
These clouds average just 100 molecules per cm3. Therefore, terrestrial
clouds are some 17 orders – almost a billion, billion times – of magnitude
denser! Even so, it is not the density of celestial clouds that makes them
significant, but rather their vastness.
Reflection nebulae do not shine with any light of their own. Generally
found in star-forming regions, they have been described as “fog around a
street lamp”; the reflection nebula is made principally of dust particles
rather than gas. The dust is illuminated by bright stars nearby. Often, these
are young stars that have formed within the past few million years and are
now illuminating the dusty molecular cloud that gave birth to them. The
stars that illuminate such nebulae are typically blue-white; the color is a
result of high surface temperatures of up to 10,000 K, typical of large stars
2 to 5 times more massive than our own Sun.
Activity 45: Reflection Nebulae 279
1. These dusty clouds are generally the site of new star formation. It is the
close proximity to bright new stars that illuminates them.
2. Reflection nebulae are dynamic areas; their structure is being actively
torn apart by gravitational forces and stellar winds from energetic new
stars.
3. Reflection nebulae frequently contain Bok globules, deposits of dust
dense enough to block virtually all the starlight shining behind them.
Bok globules look like ‘drops of ink’ in the midst of the brighter
nebula.
Observation Time!
As with all fainter deep-sky objects, these nebulae are best viewed in dark
skies, well away from city lights on a night with little or no Moon showing.
There are many star-forming regions in the night sky, however, three of the
best of these can be found within the Winter Hexagon, formed by the stars
Sirius (Canis Major), Rigel (Orion), Aldebaran (Taurus), Capella (Auriga),
Pollux (Gemini), and Procyon (Canis Minor). This region of the sky can be
viewed after sunset from January through April.
Reflection nebulae are best viewed under dark skies at low powers, gen-
erally from 30–100x. These nebulae tend to have a great deal of fine struc-
ture that can be difficult to record in a sketch because of their tenuous nature
and large size. The bright stars that illuminate the reflection nebulae can be
a distraction at higher magnifications when the field of view is reduced; for
that reason, I recommend studying these objects at modest magnification.
A pair of binoculars, particularly a large format pair over 50 mm in aper-
ture, can be invaluable. With faint objects, viewing with both eyes at once
can help because of the way the human brain interprets binocular images.
Observers using both eyes tend to report that they perceive more edge detail
and contrast at the eyepiece; a pair of 15 × 70 or 20 × 80 binoculars is excel-
lent for these observations.
When observing the reflection nebula, first make a quick sketch of the
constellation where it lies. It is best to make this sketch at least ½ page in
size if not a full page. After recording the constellation, start to sketch in the
outermost visible boundaries of the nebula; this part of the observation is
best done at the lowest power so the observer can estimate the extent of the
nebula with respect to other stars in the constellation.
Increase the magnification gradually and document progressively brighter

areas. I like to have my students use dotted or dashed lines to mark these
areas. The student will find that the nebula gets brighter as you move toward
the star that is illuminating it. Don’t worry about shading while at the eye-
piece, as that can be done later. If you find any dark regions, try to record
these as well. After the observation is finished, the student can shade the
nebula, making regions gradually darker as you progress inward – effec-
tively drawing the nebula in negative. Dark regions can be left unshaded on
the paper. In this way, you are effectively recording not illumination, but
light intensity, where the brightest regions show up as the darkest areas of
the sketch. Some students prefer to try to make a ‘positive’ drawing that
gets darker as you move away from the center of the sketch, but I have
found that almost everyone finds this more difficult (Fig. 10.5).
M42, The Orion Nebula. Very bright at Mag 4, this nebula is found in
1.
the sword region of the constellation Orion, just south of the famous
belt stars. This complex nebula has both reflection and emission com-
ponents. Best visible in winter/spring skies from December through
March.
Fig. 10.5 Detail sketch of Orion and NGC 2237. (Credit: Author)
Activity 45: Reflection Nebulae 281
Fig. 10.6 Detail sketch of Auriga and IC 405. (Credit: Author)
NGC 2237, The Rosette Nebula. The Rosette technically lies in the
constellation Monoceros, but the constellation is faint and hard to
detect unless the observing area is very dark. The easiest way to locate
this nebula is to scan along a line between the star Saiph (lower left
corner of Orion) and the star Alhena at the feet of Gemini. Best visible
in winter/spring skies from December through March.
IC 405, The Flaming Star Nebula. Easy to detect in binoculars at
2.
Mag 6, this nebula is found inside the hexagon of Auriga at the south-
ern region of the constellation. Best visible in winter/spring skies from
December through March; see Fig. 10.6 for details.
M20, The Trifid Nebula. This fainter nebula takes more diligent hunt-
3.
ing because it is located in the southern Milky Way in the constellation
Sagittarius, where the sky is dense with stars, globular clusters, and
various nebulae. The Trifid is often overshadowed by its larger and
brighter neighbor to the south, the Lagoon Nebula. The Trifid is a com-
plex nebula with reflection and emission regions and Bok globules
(dark nebulae) within it. Larger aperture telescopes and higher magni-
fication will reveal significantly more structure here. The Trifid is often
illusive in binoculars, particularly if the skies are not sufficiently dark.
A small telescope on low power (30–50x) with its greater light-gather-
ing capacity will show this nebula easily (Fig. 10.7).
Fig. 10.7 Detail sketch of Sagittarius and the Lagoon and Trifid Nebulae. (Credit:
Author)
Reflection nebulae are dusty molecular clouds that would be completely

dark and invisible to us, were they not illuminated by nearby stars. These
nebulae produce no light of their own. Reflection nebulae are easy to distin-
guish in a photograph because of their distinctive blue color, however, the
visual observer will not be able to detect these color differences. Reflection
and emission nebulae are often found together; a good star chart or diagram
is often necessary to distinguish the two.
It is the dust in these molecular clouds that aids star formation. Dust
particles are able to radiate heat (infrared radiation) from their relatively
large surface areas, allowing the cloud to cool and continue to condense. It
is this compression that finally raises the temperatures at the core high
enough for fusion to occur and ignite a star. The newborn stars moving out
of the stellar nursery usually illuminate these dusty clouds.
Activity 46: Emission and Planetary Nebulae 283
Following Up
The reflection nebula is only one type of diffuse, faint object in the deep sky
beyond our own Solar System. The student should be encouraged to go
hunting through the constellations and the Milky Way for more. It is often
useful (and confidence-building!) for a new observer to take a telescope and
scan a small area of the sky, documenting what they find there. By scanning,
sketching, and then comparing later to a good star map, the student will find
that they are able to discover many deep-sky objects for themselves, rather
than always seeking out targets chosen for them by their mentors.
Activity 46: Emission and Planetary Nebulae
Emission nebula are clouds of predominantly hydrogen gas that are being
ionized by ultraviolet radiation from large, hot stars, generally of the O and
B class. Class B stars are blue giants up to 10 solar masses with a surface
temperature of up to 20,000 K. Class O stars are even larger and hotter,
with a surface temperature of upwards of 30,000 K (our Sun’s surface temp
is a cool 6000 K). Stars like these shine mostly in ultraviolet light rather
than in the visible spectrum and appear brilliant blue-white in the night sky.
Class O stars are also quite rare because of their short lifetimes; the more
massive a star, the faster it burns, and class O stars do not live more than a
few tens of millions of years before dying in a violent supernova explosion.
The bright star Sirius in the constellation Canis Major is a class O blue
giant, as is the star Vega in the constellation Lyra; the star Rigel in the con-
stellation Orion is a class B star. The short lifetime of these giant stars
makes emission nebulae rather transient on a cosmic timescale, as the vio-
lent death of the nearby blue giant star will disrupt and scatter the cloud of
gas back into the interstellar medium.
Emission nebulae shine with a completely different mechanism than
reflection nebulae. The reflection nebula is made of a dusty cloud illumi-
nated by a nearby blue star. The dust particles reflect this blue light, and so
the reflection nebula shows up as brilliantly blue in a photograph. The emis-
sion nebula reflects nothing. The hydrogen gas that makes up an emission
nebula is completely transparent in the visible spectrum and cannot be
reflective at all. However, that hydrogen gas can absorb ultraviolet light, and
the UV light has enough energy to ionize the hydrogen – that is, to strip the
electrons away from the nucleus. This disruption of the atoms of gas is only
temporary, and the electrons soon snap back into place and emit a charac-
teristic deep red light called the Hydrogen Alpha or H-α spectrum.
This ionization and electron collapse with the emission of visible light is
exactly how a neon light or fluorescent tube fixture works. The spectrum or
color of light that emerges is specific to the atom or molecule that has been
ionized. Astronomers analyze the spectrum of stars and galaxies to deter-
mine what they are made of. In a photograph, the emission nebula shows up
with a deep red color, distinctly different from the bright blue of the reflec-
tion nebula.
Planetary nebulae are a unique type of emission nebula. These compact
objects are much smaller than the typical emission nebula cloud; they are
formed when a red giant star explodes in a supernova and blasts a shell of
hydrogen gas and dust out into space. As long as this shell of gas is close
enough to the brilliant white dwarf that remains, it can be ionized and glow
in the deep red color typical of ionized hydrogen gas. These red giants also
eject shells of heavier molecules that become dust particles, and so plane-
tary nebulae often have blue regions revealing reflection nebula properties.
They slowly fade over millions of years as the shell of gas and dust expands
and disburses into the interstellar medium.
Planetary nebulae are typically very compact objects, often just a few
arcseconds wide; while brilliant, the white dwarf core is quite small and
unable to illuminate or ionize gas from as great a distance as class O and B
stars can. The small size of planetary nebulae led astronomers in the 17th
and eighteenth century to misidentify these objects as planets, which gives
them the misleading name we still use today. Planetary nebulae are usually
too small to make good binocular targets; these objects require a telescope
of at least 150-mm aperture and magnifications of 100x or better to reveal
their beautiful concentric structure.
1. Emission nebulae are composed primarily of hydrogen gas rather than

dust, and these clouds are transparent to visible light.
2. Hydrogen gas glows when it is ionized. Electrons are stripped from the
atoms and then recombine, releasing deep red light (H-α) in the
process.
3. Planetary nebulae are spherical shells of gas ejected by red giant stars
as they explode. These compact objects show beautiful concentric
structure at higher magnifications. Our own Sun will explode in this
way and form its own planetary nebula 5 to 7 billion years from now.
Observation Time!
As with reflection nebulae, the emission nebula is best observed under dark
skies well away from city lights and other light pollution. A moonless night
will also improve your views. The experienced mentor will often plan these
nebula-viewing excursions for the first few days of the lunar cycle, begin-
ning the night with the crescent Moon at sunset and then moving on to
observing deep-sky targets after the Moon has set and the sky is fully dark.
Remember that the human eye is not terribly sensitive to the red light
emitted by the emission nebula, so larger aperture instruments will be help-
ful in gathering enough light to make the object easier to spot. This said, the
brighter emission nebulae can be spotted using binoculars, although with
standard binoculars of 50 mm or smaller, these deep red nebulae will not
reveal much in either brightness or structure to the binocular observer. If
you do have access to a larger format pair of binoculars, perhaps 15 × 70 or
20 × 80 with a tripod to mount them on, binoculars can be excellent for such
observing. As in the previous activity, we have a list of objects for you to
explore and enjoy.
Once again, make a quick sketch of the constellation where the nebula
lies, and remember to make this sketch at least ½ page in size or larger.
After recording the constellation, start your sweep of the area with the bin-
ocular. A pair of 10 × 50’s is ideal for this task. Your star map should give
you a good idea where your target lies. See if you can spot it. Slow sweep-
ing motions over your area will help you detect faint and small objects,
because the human brain is predisposed to detect objects in motion. Averted
vision may be helpful here as well, because the center of the retina is less
sensitive to dim red light than the rod cells that predominate the outer
regions of the retina.
When you have spotted your target, switch to the telescope and center the
nebula in the field of view. Increase the magnification gradually and explore
the progressively brighter areas. I like to have my students use dotted or
dashed lines to mark these areas. Start to sketch in the outermost visible
boundaries of the nebula; this part of the observation is best done at the
lowest power so the observer can estimate the extent of the nebula with
respect to other stars in the constellation.
Unlike a reflection nebula, where brightness is strongly linked to the
distance from the illuminating star, emission nebulae give off their own
light, so the brightness of various regions is not linked to distance from the
star, but rather to the density of the gas clouds in the nebula. This gives
emission nebula a more varied shape and a more interesting and complex
brightness profile. Once again, don’t worry about shading your sketch while
at the eyepiece. If you find any dark regions, try to record these as well. It
is best to use a number code or take careful notes at the eyepiece so that you
can shade your sketch accurately. Remember that with the exception of a
planetary nebula, the emission nebula does not show a concentric pattern
related to distance from the illuminating star.
For the planetary nebula, these concentric objects are generally quite
small and require higher magnifications of 100x or greater to reveal much
structure. The high magnification makes them more difficult to sketch when
using a non-tracking telescope such as a Dobsonian instrument. Keeping the
object centered, adjusting the telescope, and making a sketch at the same
time is often a frustrating exercise for the beginning astronomer. If you do
not have a sophisticated instrument with motorized tracking, it is better to
simply have the student mark the position of the object within its constella-
tion and perhaps make a sketch from memory after they have finished their
time at the eyepiece.
In the given list, I have stuck to Messier objects simply because these
nebulae are bright, obvious, and easy to see in a binocular or a small tele-
scope. Similarly, there are many photos of these objects online for the
beginning observer to view as a reference before they go hunting. The men-
tor must remind the student that they cannot expect views like those in
photographs. Astrophotographs are generally stacked – astronomers take
many short exposures and digitally combine them at the computer. In this
way, the camera is used more like a rain barrel that captures light over an
extended period of time. The eye is continuously processing light and does
not have the capability to increase the exposure time and gather more light
to enhance brightness or improve resolution. Digital sensors such as those
used in cameras or smartphones can also be significantly adjusted not only
in light sensitivity, but in what areas of the visible spectrum to focus on as
well. The human eye, for all its magnificent flexibility, cannot be tuned in
this way. Even so, the emotional impact of observing the remnants of a
dying solar system from thousands of light years away through the eyepiece
cannot be replicated by any photograph.
M42, The Orion Nebula. Because of its close proximity to Earth, just
1.
1300 LY away, this nebula shows both emission and reflection compo-
nents, as well as dark nebula regions. This nebula is found in the sword
region of the constellation Orion, just south of the famous belt stars.
Best visible in winter/spring skies from December through March.
M8, The Lagoon Nebula. One of the brightest nebulae in the summer
2.
sky, still easily visible in the southern region of the Milky Way with a
binocular or a small telescope. This is a large object with several stars
in front of the nebula that are bright and visible, along with an open
cluster of stars within the nebula that is ~4000 LY from Earth. This
nebula is found north of the constellation Sagittarius; it is best visible
in late spring to mid-summer, and a good view of the southern horizon
is usually needed.
3. M17, the Omega Nebula. This is quite bright at mag 6 and can be eas-
ily spotted in binoculars. The Omega lies to the northeast of the Lagoon
and Trifid nebulae, just beyond the spectacular Sagittarius Star Cloud,
a large open cluster that is devoid of gas after a long period of star
formation. M17 shows a bright central region of dense gas. It is the
somewhat fainter regions that wrap around this bright area that give the
nebula its resemblance to the Greek letter omega. As with the Lagoon
Nebula, this region is best viewed from late spring to mid-summer in a
dark and moonless sky.
4. The Dumbbell and Ring planetary nebulae are both easily observed at
or near the zenith from late summer through mid-winter. Both are
found within the Summer Triangle asterism formed by the stars Vega
(Lyra), Deneb (Cygnus), and Altair (Aquila). The Dumbbell Nebula is
the larger and brighter of the two, at mag 7.5 and only 860 LY from
Earth. The Ring Nebula is almost 2900 LY from Earth and shines at just
mag 9, making it a difficult target for binoculars. Both of these nebulae
exhibit concentric structures, but the circularity of the Ring Nebula is
much more apparent at the eyepiece. Likewise, both nebulae have a
central white dwarf star, but the amateur observer will likely not be able
to resolve this star (Figs. 10.8 and 10.9).
Reflection and planetary nebulae are quite different structures, with reflec-
tion nebulae often associated with star formation and planetary nebulae
being exclusively seen after a star has exploded and died. Unlike the reflec-
tion nebula, the planetary nebula has a distinctive, usually concentric struc-
ture, formed from a spherical shell of expanding dust and gas. Both types
of nebulae are temporary structures that do not last as long as stars generally
do. Reflection nebulae are in the process of being consumed in the star
formation process, while planetary nebulae are diffusing, becoming ever
thinner as they expand. Both types of object will disappear within a rela-
tively few tens of millions of years.
Fig. 10.8 Detail sketch of Sagittarius with Messier objects and the Sagittarius Star
Cloud. (Credit: Author)
Fig. 10.9 Detail sketch of the Summer Triangle with planetary nebulae. (Credit:
Author)
Following Up
As we have explored different types of nebulae, we find that the closer and
more compact an object, the easier it is to capture with a small telescope.
These objects are brighter in absolute magnitude and offer better contrast
with the sky around them, which makes them easier to see. With all types
of nebulae, a greater aperture improves the view considerably. The student
should always be encouraged to reach out to a local astronomy club; one of
the greatest benefits of attending such a club is to be able to observe with
different kinds of equipment, particularly larger aperture telescopes. All
students should be warned about aperture fever however! Small telescopes
offer advantages in portability and ease of use that large instruments simply
cannot match.
Chapter 11
Galaxies
How large is the universe? This is a very old question, and astronomers have
been struggling with it for millennia. The geocentric theory posited that the
cosmos came to an end just beyond the orbit of Saturn, but it was Copernicus
and his heliocentric theory that greatly expanded the size of the known cos-
mos for the first time. Copernicus hypothesized that the stars were greatly
distant when compared to the planets, and Giordano Bruno pushed this idea
forward in 1600 with the many worlds hypothesis by claiming that each star
in the sky might be a solar system of its own.
In the telescopic era, astronomers became widely aware of the great
nebulae, which we now know as galaxies. These nebulae were originally
thought to be clouds of gas, or perhaps clusters of stars, but all were
believed to reside within our own Milky Way Galaxy. Galileo’s discovery
that the Milky Way was indeed a tremendous collection of individual stars
led to the theory that our galaxy was indeed the entire universe; everything
visible through a telescope was assumed to be contained within our home
galaxy. It was in the mid-1700’s when the idea that some nebulae might be
separate galaxies, or island universes, began to take hold, although tele-
scopes then in use were not powerful enough to confirm or reject this
hypothesis. The actual term ‘island universe’ was used for the first time in
English by a Union General of the American Civil War, Gen. Ormsby
MacKnight Mitchel, who founded the Cincinnati Astronomical Society in
1845. The term was new, but not the idea.

https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-98771-8_11,
292 11 Galaxies
Galileo’s telescope resolved the Milky Way – previously seen as a band

of light and shadow – into “stars too numerous to count”. German philoso-
pher Immanuel Kant wrote about these nebulae as Weltordnungen or
Weltsystemen (world orders or world systems) in Universal Natural History
and Theory of the Heavens in 1755. Kant also referred to these structures as
Insel (islands), but he did not use the term island universe, or Weltinsel. In
1917, Harlow Shapley wrote that the evidence of internal motion (rotation)
in distant nebulae conflicted with the distance data provided by the bright-
ness of supernovae seen there. Shapley concluded (incorrectly) that the
evidence of rotation was correct and the distance data was wrong; these
objects could not be millions of light years away and therefore were part of
our own galaxy – i.e., island universes did not exist.
It was Edwin Hubble who first managed to photograph the spectra of
more than 20 nearby galaxies using the 100-inch Hooker telescope at Mount
Wilson. Hubble’s data allowed him to determine redshift values, which
showed that all of these galaxies were moving away from us at rates that
were proportional to their distance from the Milky Way, as calculated by
measuring the brightness of Cepheid variable stars within those galaxies.
The absolute luminosity of Cepheid variable stars can be determined pre-
cisely by measuring the variable period; astronomers compare absolute
luminosity to apparent brightness to determine how far away these stars
actually are. Hubble’s work studying these Cepheid variables showed that
the galaxies were indeed millions of light years away (Shapely was wrong)
and that the universe was expanding. Hubble’s work continued through the
end of the 1920’s, by which time he had taken spectra from 46 galaxies,
enough to confirm his theory that the universe was expanding. Interestingly,
Einstein favored a static universe model, which proved wrong. In spite of
his transformative work, Hubble never received a Nobel Prize, because dur-
ing his lifetime, astronomy was not considered to belong to the realm of
physics and was therefore not eligible for the award. Notable physicists
such as Albert Einstein, Robert Millikan, and Fred Hoyle all argued for
some amendment to the legacy of Alfred Nobel to allow Edwin Hubble, the
‘Man Who Discovered the Cosmos’, to receive this recognition. But when
Edwin Hubble died unexpectedly in 1953, the effort was dropped for a time,
and posthumous Nobel Prizes are not allowed.
For the newcomer to astronomy, there are few things that so spark the
imagination as distant galaxies. These immense systems may contain up to
500 billion stars, although the estimate of the number of stars in a galaxy
continues to rise as astronomers find more evidence of the large numbers of
red dwarf stars that populate the Milky Way and Andromeda. Exoplanet
research in the last three decades has shown that almost all stars form
Activity 47: Galactic Neighbors – Andromeda and Triangulum 293
p lanetary systems, and a large galaxy of 500 billion stars must contain over
a trillion planets. With an estimated population of perhaps 500 billion galax-
ies in the visible universe, this effectively represents an infinity of worlds,
all there for us to explore with a small telescope and a dark sky.
ctivity 47: Galactic Neighbors – Andromeda

A
and Triangulum
We have already explored much of the Milky Way in other activities both
with binoculars and with telescopes, looking at star clusters and nebulae
that proliferate there. For this activity, we will focus on companions in our
Local Group of three major galaxies, which are gravitationally bound to
each other. These three galaxies will likely merge together into one giant
elliptical galaxy in 5–10 billion years.1 Each of these large spiral galaxies
has smaller dwarf or satellite galaxies in orbit around it, most of them faint
and difficult to detect. Dwarf galaxies may have a few hundred thousand up
to a billion stars in them, but the larger host galaxies they orbit tend to can-
nibalize them, stripping the dwarf galaxies of gas and dust needed for star
formation, and even stripping streams of star systems. No dwarf galaxy
lives very long in orbit around a major spiral galaxy like the Milky Way or
Andromeda (Fig. 11.1).
The Andromeda Galaxy is estimated at 2.5 million light years (MLY)
away. The Triangulum Galaxy is just a bit farther away at 2.75 MLY. Both
of these spiral galaxies have been observed to possess a spherical halo of
globular clusters similar to those found around the Milky Way. Andromeda
and Triangulum are also known to be linked to each other by several streams
of hydrogen gas and dust, indicating that they may have had a significant
interaction several billion years ago. Interestingly, the supermassive black
hole (SMBH) in the Andromeda Galaxy is unstable and may represent more
than one SMBH; the largest mass is estimated at 30–50 million solar
masses. Triangulum has no known SMBH, which may also be an indication
of past interactions between Andromeda and Triangulum.
1
Galaxy collisions are by no means instantaneous events. Although Andromeda and
Triangulum will begin to collide with the Milky Way in about 5 billion years, the actual
collision event itself is expected to take at least 5 billion years to run to completion,
resulting in a giant elliptical galaxy.
294 11 Galaxies
Fig. 11.1 Sketch of the Andromeda and Triangulum galaxies. (Credit: Author)
1. Andromeda, Triangulum, and the Milky Way spiral galaxies all are
gravitationally bound together and referred to as the Local Group.
These galaxies are destined to merge together in the next 5–10 billion
years.
2. Both Andromeda and Triangulum lie between 2.5–2.75 MLY away.
These are the most distant objects visible to the naked eye.
3. Both Andromeda and Triangulum are diffuse objects that are actually
several times larger than the full Moon in our sky. It is their faintness
and distance that make them challenging to observe.
Observation Time!
The Andromeda Galaxy (M31) and the Triangulum Galaxy (M33) are vis-
ible in the early evening skies between late February and late September.
Andromeda has a visual magnitude of 3.4 and Triangulum is considerably
fainter at Mag 5.7. These are very large objects that get significantly dim-
mer as you move from the central bulge out toward the edge of the disk.
Although they are technically in different constellations, the two galaxies
appear to straddle the horn shape of Andromeda.
Activity 47: Galactic Neighbors – Andromeda and Triangulum 295
For galaxy observations, more aperture is generally better. Although

these two galaxies can be seen as faint glowing smudges with the naked eye
in dark skies, their low surface brightness makes light gathering a priority
over magnification. The more aperture you have, the more light is delivered
to your eye, revealing faint details in the spiral structure of galaxies that
simply are not visible in a smaller aperture device. The most important fac-
tor here is the limiting magnitude – in other words, what is the faintest
object you can detect at the eyepiece? The limiting magnitude heavily
depends upon contrast; it is always easier to see faint objects against a
darker background sky. If light pollution makes the background skies as
bright, if not brighter than the object you are seeking, you will not have
satisfactory views no matter how large your telescope or binoculars.
Triangulum and Andromeda are also extended objects, far larger than any
of the nebulae or star clusters that we have viewed before. In order to get
the entire galaxy into your field of view, a lower power magnification is
required. For a telescope with a 1,000-mm focal length, a 30-mm eyepiece
will yield 33x and a very pleasing field of view. It is perfectly acceptable to
gradually increase magnification and see how your view changes, but in
most cases, I prefer to view galaxies with the lowest magnification that will
give me acceptable detail at the eyepiece.
Begin your observation by sketching the horn of Andromeda, Pegasus,
and Triangulum; make the sketch at least ½ page in size if not larger. Now
take a pair of binoculars (10 × 50 are excellent for this) and scan the constel-
lation of Andromeda. These two galaxies are positioned almost equidistant
on either side of the middle portion of the horn in the constellation
Andromeda.
Once you are confident that you have located both galaxies, we will begin
with M31, the Andromeda Galaxy. Andromeda is a barred spiral galaxy
located some 2.5 million LY from Earth. It is generally considered to be a
twin of the Milky Way Galaxy, although some astronomers dispute this. In
fact, it is quite difficult to determine the structure and mass of our own galaxy
when we are observing from a planet deep within one of the spiral arms!
Spiral galaxies are disk-shaped structures, much like a Solar System.
Almost all the stars orbit in a single flat plane, creating a disk that is many
times wider than it is thick. These galaxies also typically have a central
bulge that is much brighter than the rest of the galaxy because of the great
concentration of stars there. Although we are able to see some galaxies face-
on (circular appearance) or edge-on (linear appearance), most of these
galaxies are tilted to some extent and appear as ellipses in the telescope. The
Andromeda Galaxy is prominently tilted from our viewpoint, so begin
examining M31 by scanning back and forth past this galaxy to see if you
296 11 Galaxies
can determine the orientation of the ellipse and how far out it extends.
Sketch this ellipse onto your drawing of the Andromeda-Pegasus-Triangulum
constellations. Moving the telescope or binocular in a smooth, slow sweep-
ing motion will help you detect faint features and structures, because the
human brain preferentially detects movement.
Strive to get both size and proportion correct, along with the orienta-
tion of the ellipse. This is a challenging task for every visual observer
because we are scanning (moving) the optics, which makes it more dif-
ficult to locate anything exactly. The other challenge is that drawing both
the stars (naked eye) and the galaxy (from the eyepiece) forces the
observer to translate between the two viewpoints. The telescope or bin-
ocular will show you far more stars than you can see with your naked
eye. Identifying just those bright stars recorded on your star chart from
the wealth of detail in the eyepiece can be difficult. We are also asking
our students to translate the size and shape of an object between two
significantly different magnifications. This task takes practice and
patience, and the mentor may need to step in and lend a hand. Remind
your student that it is perfectly acceptable to stop and try again! For this
activity, I often print out star charts so students can more easily discard
a drawing they are dissatisfied with and try again without redrawing the
chart by hand.
Moving on to the Triangulum Galaxy, we will again begin with scanning.
Triangulum is tilted more face-on than Andromeda, which means that we
see it as a more circular rather than elliptical object. The face-on orientation
also means that the starlight from the galaxy is spread out over a larger area,
making it is more difficult to pick up the central bulge. As with Andromeda,
try sweeping over the area with a binocular first to locate the galaxy and
determine the extent of its structure. We are drawing these galaxies as a
negative image, so add this into your sketch with the shading getting fainter
as you move out from the center.
Our Local Group shows us a number of things about spiral galaxies in gen-
eral. The orientation of the spiral in relationship to us makes a considerable
difference in how much structure and detail we can see. The more edge-on
a galaxy is to us, the harder it is to detect any internal structure; of course,
from within the disk of our own Milky Way, detecting the structure of our
own spiral galaxy is quite beyond the amateur astronomer. Our Local Group
of galaxies are all gravitationally interacting. It is strange to thing that any-
Activity 48: Galaxies in Thrall 297
thing millions of light years away could affect something as large as an

entire galaxy with gravitation alone, but this is indeed the case.
Following Up
For the new observer, one could not do better in studying galaxies than to
begin with Andromeda and Triangulum. Like all large, faint objects, these
galaxies have low surface brightness, and we are again confronted with the
limitations of small aperture telescopes. Andromeda and Triangulum are
simply an introduction to the study of galaxies, and we will encounter many
more in activities yet to come.
Activity 48: Galaxies in Thrall
Just as stars have planets that are captive within their gravitational wells, so
many galaxies have their own orbiting companions. These companions are
usually classed as dwarf galaxies, which are generally elliptical or irregular
in shape. Large galaxies tend to be cannibalistic, consuming their orbiting
companions by drawing off streamers of star-forming gas and dust and so
rendering the dwarf companion effectively sterile, unable to form new stars.
As the dwarf orbits the larger galaxy in an elliptical path, every close
approach will result in the loss of a stream of stars, gas, and dusty material
until eventually, the dwarf galaxy is entirely consumed and its stars and
materials incorporated into the larger companion. The origin of these dwarf
galaxies is unclear, but they are known to be found around individual larger
spiral galaxies and also in orbit in galactic groups.
It may be that all large galaxies are formed by the collision and merger
of smaller galaxies. For instance, it is known that the large spiral galaxy
Andromeda has a complex of supermassive black holes at its center,
whereas no such SMBH has been detected in the Triangulum Galaxy. Does
this indicate that Triangulum and Andromeda may have had a previous
close encounter, where the central black hole from Triangulum was stolen
and captured at the heart of the Andromeda Galaxy? We do not have an
answer to that question yet, but we can nevertheless study some interesting
dwarf galaxy companions in the night sky. The Milky Way Galaxy is
thought to have some 30 or more dwarf galaxy companions, with all but the
farthest being torn apart and destroyed by the tremendous tidal forces gener-
ated by the Milky Way, much as small moons are sometimes torn apart by
large planets to form rings.
298 11 Galaxies
1. Large galaxies often have small dwarf galaxy companions. Where a

large spiral galaxy may be home to 500 billion stars, a dwarf galaxy is
seldom home to more than a billion.
2. Large galaxies destroy their dwarf companions by tearing them apart
and incorporating their stars, gas, and dust. This process is often
referred to as galactic cannibalism.
3. It is possible to spot dwarf companion galaxies both around our own
Milky Way and around other nearby galaxies.
Observation Time!
M32 and M110 Orbiting Andromeda
We will begin with the now-familiar Andromeda Galaxy. The procedure for
spotting dwarf companions is similar to hunting other galaxies that we have
seen. Begin with a binocular and sweep the constellation in a slow and
steady motion. Once the galaxy is located, you will need to bring a tele-
scope into play. Obviously a larger aperture is helpful here; it is best if you
have access to a reflector telescope with an aperture between 200 and
350 mm, although this activity can be done with smaller refractors down to
80–90 mm.
Start your hunt with the lowest magnification, usually around 30x, and
begin surveying the area in and around the galaxy itself. Note any brighter
concentration of light; center this object and increase magnification slowly.
You will be able to tell a galactic companion from an intervening star
because the star can never be resolved beyond a point source of light,
whereas a dwarf galaxy will always reveal itself to have an extended struc-
ture considerably different from what a star shows in the eyepiece.
The two satellite dwarf galaxies that orbit Andromeda are designated
M32 and M110; they are substantially smaller and dimmer than Andromeda
itself. I have found that with anything less than a 200-mm (8-inch) aperture,
spotting these dwarf galaxies can be very challenging. M32 looks like a
relatively bright star within the ellipse of Andromeda, while M110 has its
own elliptical shape and is oriented at an angle to the larger galaxy. If you
have a sketch of Andromeda from the previous activity, try adding these to
your drawing. Note that unlike Andromeda, the galaxy in Triangulum has
no significant companion galaxies that are visible to an amateur observer.
Activity 48: Galaxies in Thrall 299
The Magellanic Clouds Orbiting the Milky Way
This activity is strictly for observers in Earth’s Southern Hemisphere. The

greater and lesser Magellanic clouds are the Milky Way’s two largest and
brightest companion galaxies that can be seen from Earth. The Large
Magellanic Cloud (LMC) shines at mag 0.9 and is located in the constella-
tion Dorado at −70 degrees latitude. It cannot be seen farther north than +20
north latitude. The Small Magellanic Cloud SMC is located farther south at
−75 degrees in the constellation Tucana; it is not quite as bright at mag 2.2,
but still easily visible to the naked eye and quite spectacular in the sky. Both
of these irregular dwarf galaxies are large and close enough to show struc-
ture in the telescope, as the LMC and SMC are just 200,000 LY distant from
Earth.
If you have the opportunity to travel to the Southern Hemisphere, these
objects alone make it worthwhile to consider packing a good pair of binocu-
lars or a small portable telescope. If you are fortunate enough to live where
these objects are visible, they can become subjects of frequent study and
delight in the evening sky.
M51, the Whirlpool Galaxy
M51, the Whirlpool Galaxy, is located in Ursa Major. It was the first galaxy
to be found to have a spiral shape. It was discovered in 1773 by Charles
Messier, and its companion galaxy was discovered a few years later in 1781.
At mag 8.1 and located more than 30 MLY from Earth, this galaxy is too
faint and small to be seen by the naked eye, however it is possible to detect
it with binoculars, and a modest telescope will resolve it and show structure
and detail. We see M51 face-on from Earth, and its spiral shape is easily
detected at the eyepiece. One of the spiral arms appears to stretch out farther
than the other spiral arms; the companion, sometimes known as M51a, is
found at the end of this arm (Fig. 11.2).
Locating the Whirlpool Galaxy is relatively easy, as it is located in the
constellation Ursa Major (The Great Bear), more commonly known as the
Big Dipper or the Plough. This constellation is part of the circumpolar
group and from most of North America and Europe, it is easily visible from
mid-March through late September. It is easy to locate the galaxy by follow-
ing the pointer stars, beginning at Dubhe on the lip of the dipper and fol-
lowing across past Megrez on the opposite side. These two stars point us to
a location just a few degrees away from Alkaid, the final star in the handle
of the dipper. Once you have the galaxy located with your telescope,
300 11 Galaxies
Fig. 11.2 Detail sketch of Ursa Major and the Whirlpool Galaxy (M51). (Credit:
Author)
increase the magnification gradually, noting at each change how much

structure you see. The companion galaxy should be visible between
75–150× and makes an excellent target for sketching at the eyepiece.
While almost all large galaxies are thought to have companion galaxies
orbiting them, only the nearest galaxies are close enough for us to observe
them. Large galaxies are essentially cannibalistic in nature; their tremen-
dous gravity wells capture and devour anything nearby. Dwarf galaxies
around a larger spiral monster have gas and dust essential for star-forming
regions stripped from them in just a few orbits, leaving the dwarf galaxy
unable to form new stars any longer. Eventually, entire streams of star
systems are pulled away by the relentless gravitational pull, until the dwarf
galaxy is consumed entirely and becomes just another part of the larger
spiral structure.
Activity 49: Galaxy Groups 301
Following Up
There are numbers of other galaxies that show companions, but once again,
aperture becomes a substantially limiting factor for the new observer. We
must be careful to avoid making the new observer dissatisfied with a begin-
ning telescope before the polish is worn off the mount! Remember to offer
your student a wide range of targets for their observations, and do not get
focused too narrowly on one class of objects. There is plenty of variety in
the sky for a lifetime of observations with a simple 150-mm Dobsonian
reflector as long as we avoid obsessing on things beyond our grasp.
Activity 49: Galaxy Groups
We have saved galaxy groups for last because they are some of the most
challenging targets for the new observer. The local group galaxies,
Andromeda and Triangulum, are interesting targets, relatively easy to pick
up in binoculars and interesting in the telescope. By comparison, galaxy
groups or clusters are small targets, generally quite faint at magnitudes 9 to
11, and require clear skies and larger apertures to capture at the eyepiece.
Once again, limiting magnitude will be an issue here, both in terms of the
aperture of the telescope and the clarity and darkness of our skies. Light
pollution can make hunting these targets virtually impossible, so saving this
activity for when you are able to take your telescope well away from city
lights is a good idea. Mentors must keep in mind that for the new observer
used to bright and dramatic views of the Moon and planets, hunting targets
like these may be a bit frustrating at first. Remember that our goal is not to
point the telescope and show the new observer the view, but to teach the
beginner to hunt down and find these objects on their own.
1. These galaxies are our neighbors, all part of the local supercluster of
galaxies in which we live.
2. These are the most distant objects we tackle in this book. They range
from 1–5 million light years away. The light you see from these galax-
ies began travelling to you before modern Homo sapiens walked the
Earth!
302 11 Galaxies
Observation Time!
For this activity, aperture is key; the larger your instrument, the better your
experience will be. There is no harm in trying, but refractors smaller than
100 mm and reflectors smaller than 150 mm are not recommended, as they
will make for a difficult and frustrating observing experience. Likewise, the
more pristine your skies, the more likely you are to be successful. Detecting
a faint, extended object like a galaxy is best done from observing locations
as free as possible from light pollution. Low magnification is also recom-
mended to start. 50–75x is usually a good place to begin; more magnifica-
tion can be used after the target is detected and centered in the view. Once
again, part of the mentor’s job is to manage the expectations of all the
observers. No one will be seeing anything like the astrophotographs of gal-
axies commonly seen on the internet. Details will be faint and visible struc-
ture will be minimal unless the instrument available is relatively large.
The Virgo Cluster and Markarian’s Chain
The Virgo Cluster can be seen from early March through the end of July.
This supercluster includes a brilliant string of galaxies referred to as
Markarian’s Chain. The Virgo Cluster contains more than 2,000 galaxies;
most of these are faint dwarf galaxies inaccessible to the amateur observer.
With a telescope of at least 150-mm aperture and clear dark skies, the
observer should be able to see 100 to 150 galaxies in this amazing group
(Fig. 11.3).
Markarian’s Chain is named for Armenian astronomer Benjamin
Markarian (1913–1985). Markarian did substantial work on galaxy groups
Fig. 11.3 Sketch of Virgo and Leo locating the Virgo Cluster. (Credit: Author)
and developed a catalog of bright galaxies that bears his name. He also
discovered that this string of galaxies is traveling as a group with a common
motion through space. This galaxy group lies in the constellation Virgo but
is easiest to find by following pointer stars in the constellation Leo.
Begin your observation with the telescope at low power (25×) and sweep
along the line of the pointer stars in the eastern end of Leo. As you sweep
outward from Leo, you may spot M98, an elliptical galaxy that is almost
edge-on. Its compact shape and mag 10 brightness make this galaxy easy to
spot. Continue eastward and you will come to M99, the Pinwheel Galaxy, a
compact spiral galaxy almost face-on, shining at mag 9.9. Increase your
magnification here and you will see beautiful and distinct spiral arms. At
magnifications of 50–75x, you should be able to get both of these galaxies
in the same field of view.
Continuing eastward, you will encounter the first galaxies in Markarian’s
Chain. M84 (mag 11) and M86 (mag 9) are compact elliptical galaxies that
require some substantial magnification to show their extended, almost cir-
cular shape. The galaxies of Markarian’s Chain range from mag 9 to mag
12; how many of these you may be able to spot will depend a great deal
upon the aperture of your instrument as well as the clarity and darkness of
your skies. There are a number of additional Messier objects for the keen
observer in this area, and virtually all of them are galaxies. This region is
worthy of continued study and offers an excellent optical test for new
equipment!
The Leo Triplet
The Leo Triplet is one of my favorite challenges for students. Two of the
three galaxies have dense, bright cores and are easy to spot; these are M65
(Mag 10) and M66 (Mag 9). These two elliptical galaxies are both about 35
MLY away from Earth and show distinctive spiral arms and structure. They
are bright enough to be captured with a pair of 10 × 50 binoculars and show
marvelous detail with a 150-mm telescope at 100× (Fig. 11.4).
The third member of the Leo Triplet is NGC 3628, sometimes known as
the Hamburger Galaxy. It is believed to be a barred spiral galaxy oriented
not only edge-on, but end-on from the perspective of the bar in the center.
The result is that much of what we might see of this galaxy is blocked by
thick lanes of dust; this reduces the magnitude of this galaxy to 10.2 and
also makes it a very challenging target for any telescope smaller than 150-
mm aperture. This galaxy is at the same distance as the others, about 35
MLY, and all three are gravitationally interacting, very much like our local
group of the Milky Way, Triangulum, and Andromeda do.
304 11 Galaxies
Fig. 11.4 Detail sketch of the Leo Triplet galaxy cluster. (Credit: Author)
Bode’s Group
Bode’s group is a pair of interacting galaxies, M81 and M82, both about 12
million light years from Earth. Bode’s group is most easily found by follow-
ing the pointer stars in Ursa Major and looking diagonally across the bowl
of the Big Dipper asterism (Fig. 11.5).
M81, also called Bode’s Galaxy, is a brilliant barred spiral galaxy almost
face-on from Earth that shines at mag 7 and is an easy target for a binocular
observer. This galaxy shows a dense central core and distinctive spiral arm
features that are visible even at moderate magnifications. There is also a
clear double star (mag 9 and 10) sitting just off the western edge of this
galaxy that is quite distinctive.
M82, sometimes called the Cigar Galaxy, is known for an extraordinary
rate of star formation and is sometimes also referred to as a starburst gal-
axy. This galaxy produces stars at more than ten times the rate of our own
Milky Way. This active star formation makes the core of the galaxy brighter
than other similar edge-on galaxies, although in order to see details in the
core, instruments larger than 200 mm are needed.
Gravity is indeed the fount of all creation and the master force in the cos-
mos, ruling the motions of every object that we can see. Although gravity is
the weakest fundamental force, its reach is unlimited across space.
Sometimes students dismiss the idea that gravitational force is ‘weak’ –
after all, are black holes not mighty enough to bend and capture light? I
often like to demonstrate by picking up a paper clip with a magnet, and then
Fig. 11.5 Detail sketch of circumpolar constellations locating Bode’s group. (Credit:
Author)
pointing out that the humble refrigerator magnet out-pulls the gravitational
field of the entire planet Earth acting on the pin! This makes it an even more
amazing experience to be able to observe a group of bound galaxies so far
away, all linked together in a common gravitational field.
Following Up
We have come to the last of our activities in this book. It is my hope that
both the mentor and the student have found this an enlightening journey,
one that has whetted the appetite for more observation and discovery. For
those of you who started out trying to learn how to share your knowledge
and passion with others, I trust that your journey has been a successful one.
The most marvelous aspect of our hobby is the mastery we obtain by teach-
ing and sharing what we know with others. For those who read this book in
306 11 Galaxies
lieu of a mentor of your own, I believe that I can say with confidence that
you are a novice no longer. You are now ready to become a mentor yourself
and help others launch their own journey of discovery as you share your
newfound passion for astronomy!
Chapter 12
Telescope Equipment
for Beginners
“What telescope or binocular should I get?” Any time people walk up and
ask to have a look through your scope, this question will come up sooner or
later.
I suspect that many people reading this book will be beginners who have
not been able to find a Star Mentor to help guide them, and thus may have
skipped ahead to this section with the idea of discovering which telescope
to purchase. To that end, we will continue to use the hands-on activity-
oriented approach to learning. We will also review basic designs of amateur
telescopes and how they work, their advantages and disadvantages. Be
aware however, that often these subtle distinctions are often lost on the
beginner – at least when it comes to the view at the eyepiece. It is important
to learn about the types of telescopes before you make a purchase, but just
as importantly, we must learn to use our equipment to get the best out of it.
Much like photography or any other similar hobby, the skill of the hobbyist
is by far the most important factor in both success and satisfaction.
Telescopes are generally marketed and classified by manufacturers by
the size of their aperture – the diameter of the primary objective lens or mir-
ror. Throughout this book, I have used the metric system of measure and
discussed the aperture and focal length of telescopes in units of millimeters
(mm). In this chapter, I will discuss the aperture of telescopes in millimeters
and give the equivalent in inches because many companies in the United

https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-98771-8_12,
308 12 Telescope Equipment for Beginners
States still market smaller telescopes by the aperture of the system in inch
units. For example, we may refer to a telescope as a 150-mm (6-inch)
Dobsonian design.
Activity 50: Visiting an Astronomy Club
Visiting an astronomy club can be a wonderful adventure. If you want to

start out on a new hobby, it is really quite wonderful to find others who
share this interest. Your local astronomy club is a place to learn and explore
before you purchase your new telescope – to “try before you buy”.
If you are not interested in formal meetings, inquire when your nearby
club will be having a public star party viewing event. Some clubs routinely
take telescopes and binoculars to libraries, church parking lots, even to
downtown city corners, and set up equipment for the public. If you are a
beginner and want to find a local Star Mentor to help guide you, this is defi-
nitely the place.
Have a look through each of the telescopes on offer – and speak up when
you have a question! What am I looking at? What kind of telescope is this?
How much does this cost? What kind of viewing is this telescope best for?
Anyone who takes the trouble to bring their own equipment to such an event
will be thrilled with your questions and happy to answer them. One of the
most revealing questions that you can ask is: Why did you choose this type
of telescope? Each telescope design has observing tasks that it does best,
and each design makes some compromises. Asking the person who owns
and observes regularly with any sort of telescope is one of the best (and least
expensive!) ways to learn about the strengths and shortcomings of every
telescope design.
If you make the rounds and visit each of the telescopes, asking questions
along the way, I can guarantee that someone will be inviting you to the next
club meeting before long. I have visited (and joined!) many astronomy
clubs over the years; every single one has been welcoming to the beginner
and chock-full of new friends you simply haven’t met yet. Each and every
member will be happy to chat about their personal kit and show off the gear
that they have purchased. If you reach out and attend a few meetings and
observing events, you will soon be ready to make an informed purchase of
a new telescope that will delight you for years to come.
Understanding the Telescope 309
Beginner’s Equipment: The Planisphere
In my opinion, the best equipment for the beginner is a very inexpensive,

but sometimes unpalatable option: for the true beginner, I do not recom-
mend a telescope at all. When I’m asked which telescope would be best by
a beginner, I usually answer with a question of my own: Do you own a
planisphere and a red light? The planisphere is a circular map that allows
you to see what is in the sky at any date or time; these are widely available
from $10–$30. I strongly recommend a plastic model, as paper models
don’t hold up well in my experience, particularly when exposed to dew and
dampness from a night of observing.
The planisphere shows what lies on the horizon in any direction, and
what time your favorite observing target will rise and set. The basic use of
the planisphere is covered in Activity 13. The benefits of learning to read
and use such a map are profound. One insoluble problem with astronomy
phone apps is that you end up looking at your phone rather than the sky. The
second problem has to do with your eyes – the light from a phone, even on
its lowest setting, ruins night vision. There is no other physical map I know
of that works quite this way, where viewing it actually makes it harder to
see your surroundings! A plain paper planisphere or suitable star map and a
red LED headlamp are great beginning tools. To go out into your own back-
yard with a map and a lawn chair and try to match what you see on one with
the other is not an insignificant challenge and is a wonderful place to start
for the new astronomer. I have found that a planisphere and a basic pair of
binoculars will do more to introduce a new observer to the sky than many
more expensive and complex options!
Understanding the Telescope
What is a telescope anyway? The word telescope comes from the Greek tele
(far) and skopos (seeing), which seems appropriate enough. Still, many
people don’t understand what a telescope actually does, and sometimes
more importantly, what a telescope cannot do. Most of the following infor-
mation applies equally to binoculars and telescopes; although these systems
perform differently, the optical principles are much the same.
Many people who express an interest at looking through a telescope for
the first time today suffer from what I call ‘Hubble syndrome’. Prior to the
late 1970’s, there hadn’t been a great deal of planetary exploration. America
had gone to the Moon in the late 60’s and early 70’s of course, but then
things had slowed down for a few years. Before and during this time, there
had not been close-up pictures of the planets for anyone to see. Most people
looking through a telescope for the first time were amazed to be able to see
anything of a distant planet or starry nebula at all. For all but the profes-
sional astronomer, the small and humble backyard telescope was the only
open window on the universe.
The Voyager interplanetary space probes and the later Hubble Space
Telescope changed all that. Suddenly, there were amazing images of distant
planets with their moons and rings available to everyone, and in full color
too. NASA was even able to produce short movies showing time-lapse pho-
tography of storms on Jupiter and ring motion on Saturn. Special cameras
and filters enabled these probes to see deep into the atmospheres of distant
worlds and the surfaces of their moons for the first time. Astonishing pho-
tographs of stars caught in the processes of birth and death, and of quasars,
nebulae, and distant galaxies, were now available to view as never before.
Just like the scientists, the public fell in love with these exotic portraits and
sought out amateur telescopes and instruments in record numbers. New
telescope owners were also disappointed in record numbers when their new
telescopes did not reveal the Hubble-like images they had been expecting.
Often, what was lacking for these would-be observers was not the quality
of the instrument itself, but rather a basic understanding of the instrument
and its applications. As we have seen, just learning the sky and how it is
measured, the stars, planets, constellations, and their motions, is no small
undertaking, but a bit of persistence yields impressive results. It is much the
same when learning about the telescope.
What does the telescope do for us anyway? Its job is not to magnify any-
thing; that is done by the eyepiece or ocular. Its job is not to bring objects
closer to you, nor is it to let you see farther away than normal. It does not
let you see through clouds, though many people actually believe that it does.
The telescope’s job is to gather light. Everything that a telescope can or
cannot do is dependent upon the quantity of light it can gather and how this
is accomplished. To the extent that the light is gathered efficiently and accu-
rately, we will have a pleasing view at the eyepiece.
In addition to its optical characteristics, the telescope must also be a
sturdy machine capable of pointing precisely and repeatedly to an exact
place in the sky. Furthermore, it must be simple enough for anyone to
understand and operate with just a few minutes’ instruction. It must be light
and easy to carry, but built well enough that repeated assembly and disas-
sembly will not weaken the structure or diminish the accuracy of the instru-
Understanding the Eye 311
ment. This is the technology of mounting and controlling a telescope, which

we will cover in more detail later.
The optical assembly itself holds the primary lens or mirror that gathers
and focuses light. This can be a solid tube or an open framework, but either
way, it must be precisely rigid no matter which way it is held or pointed.
The precision of the optical surfaces is measured in fractions of a wave-
length of light, literally less than a millionth of a meter. The precision of the
optical path can be measured in small fractions of a millimeter, and it must
be maintained no matter how the telescope tube is rotated or in what posi-
tion it is held. The good news for the amateur is that most small optical
systems of 200 mm (8 inches) aperture or less are amazingly robust. Most
are well built and offer very creditable optical and mechanical performance.
For systems of 250 mm (10 inches) or larger, mechanical considerations
become much more critical, and some inexpensive machines have mechani-
cal problems that can limit the instrument’s performance and utility. For the
most part, questions of optical, structural, and mechanical design are
beyond the scope of this book.
Understanding the Eye
One of the most misunderstood pieces of equipment any observational

astronomer uses is their own eye. The human eye is an instrument of
supreme flexibility and adaptability, but the biological necessities of evolu-
tion did not take telescope observation into account! It is the additional
light-gathering and magnification by (relatively) large aperture telescopes
that allows us to observe details of stars, nebulae, and planets.
Color vision is also misconceived by many observers, who do not expect
it to unaccountably fail at the eyepiece of the telescope. Here, Hubble syn-
drome rears its ugly head again. Most people first come to the eyepiece of
a telescope after having seen many colorful and incredibly detailed images
of galaxies, beautiful nebulae, exploding stars, and swirling storms and
towering mountains and canyons on other planets like Jupiter and Mars. The
planets and stars as seen through a telescope can seem somewhat faded after
this, like watching a new movie on a very old black-and-white TV. Not
everything is colorless, however; the planets show subtle shades of color
and many stars actually seem to blaze with color.
Why can we perceive the stars and some planetary features in color, but
nebulae, clusters, and galaxies all appear in black and white? The fault here
is not in the telescope but in ours eyes. The human eye uses two completely
different kinds of receptor cells in the retina to produce two visual systems.
These systems usually work together to produce the normal color vision we
all enjoy. Under certain conditions however, these systems can operate
independently. It is this independent action that causes the most confusion
at the eyepiece.
In the retina cells called cones perceive color, but do not detect shapes,
sharp edges, or contrast very well. Cells called rods perceive brightness and
darkness and help the eye and brain determine edges and boundaries, and
they do most of the work perceiving image contrast. Of the two types of
cells, cones require far more light to function than do rods. Rods, unlike
cones, have the ability to greatly change their sensitivity to light; these are
the cells that help you see at night in very low light.
Everyone has experienced this change in light sensitivity. Immediately
after turning off your bedroom light, you may stumble or trip over unseen
obstacles on your way to bed. Get up for a glass of water 30 minutes later,
and you have no problem navigating to the sink in the dark. Astronomers
say that your eye has become dark adapted. The dark adaptation is a result
of a special compound produced by your retina called visual purple. Visual
purple is a compound that greatly increases the sensitivity of your rod cells
to light, it does not affect your cone cells or your color vision. Your eye
takes about 30 minutes to produce enough visual purple to fully adapt your
eyes to the dark, but visual purple is destroyed by bright light. One flash
from a cellphone, flashlight, or a car headlight, and your eye must start
almost from scratch and make another batch of visual purple. It has been
found that pure red light does not destroy visual purple very rapidly, if at
all. This is why I recommend a red LED lamp for reading maps and charts
while observing to avoid destroying your night vision.
These peculiarities of human vision yield some interesting results and
practical limitations for the observer at the eyepiece. Although the telescope
faithfully relays all colors of light to your eye, there is a tremendous differ-
ence in light intensity from one part of the image to another; a star or planet
may be very bright while the sky around it is very dim (almost black, but
not quite). Faint, diffuse objects like nebulae and galaxies may be much
brighter than the dark background of space, but still provide too little light
to activate the color vision cone cells in your retina. We say that these
objects have a low surface brightness because their light energy is spread
out over a much larger area than that of a star or a planet.
Because of low surface brightness, almost all nebulae, clusters, and gal-
axies appear as black-and-white images in small telescopes. High surface
brightness objects like planets and stars concentrate enough light in one
spot on your retina to activate color vision. You see stars as red, blue, yel-
low, or white, and you may see features like the Great Red Spot, as well as
brown and creamy yellow atmospheric bands on Jupiter. While some people
Aperture and Focal Ratio 313
are disappointed that the image in the eyepiece isn’t more colorful, the rods
that are providing you with your perception of the image at the eyepiece are
better at discerning shape, structure, boundaries, and fine detail than the
color vision cone cells. This means that the image you see shows more
detail than your color vision could provide even if it were active. Patience
and practice will make you a better observer than color vision ever would!
Can you see color in a galaxy or nebula at all? Of course, but this requires
more aperture to get enough light to your eye to activate you color vision
cone cells. Astrophotographers produce wonderful color photographs, but
they generally do this by stacking hundreds of images, representing many
hours of observing time. Your eye is marvelously sensitive, but it does not
have the ability to gather and store light the way a camera and computer
can.
You must learn to use your astronomical instruments just as you would
learn to play a guitar or flute. Practice in focusing, patiently waiting for
details to be revealed for a few seconds of better seeing, and learning to
perceive subtle details and changes in color and shape are all skills that you
can only develop at the eyepiece. I cannot promise instant results, but I can
promise an ever-widening world of delight as you learn to use your eye and
telescope together!
Aperture and Focal Ratio
If a telescope’s primary function is to gather light, then the most important

factor of telescope performance must be aperture. The amount of informa-
tion that you can get from the night sky depends directly on how much light
you gather. Consider the human eye: in youth, and in complete darkness, the
human eye will dilate out to about 7 mm wide; with age or illness, this will
decrease to an adult average of about 5 mm. This 5-mm aperture gives us a
light-gathering area or light grasp of 19.6 mm2. Let’s make this much area
a unit of measure – we’ll call it 1 pupil.
Galileo’s original refractor had a clear aperture of 18 mm. This gave this
modest instrument about the same diameter as a 5-cent piece. Even so, an
18-mm aperture gives a light grasp of 254.46 mm2, or approximately 13
pupils. This tiny instrument, not much larger in diameter than an adult’s
thumb, gave Galileo 13 times the light-gathering power of his own eye!
With this much light-gathering power and seven times his own eye’s normal
magnification, Galileo was able to discover mountains and craters on the
Moon, sunspots, the phases of Venus, cloud bands and moons around
Jupiter, and many other wonderful things.
In addition to being able to get more information – in other words, to see

more detail – Galileo was also able to see further out into space than any
human being before him. He could see stars that were visually about 10
times fainter than anyone else could see with their unaided eye. Today, we
would say that Galileo could see stars that were one magnitude fainter than
anyone else; that one magnitude increased the number of stars seen by about
tenfold.
Consider the long-time beginner’s favorite, the 60-mm refractor. This
telescope has a 60-mm (2.25-inch) objective lens that is almost 3.5 times
larger than Galileo’s first telescope and 12 times larger than the adult human
eye’s own pupil. The 60-mm aperture gives it a light grasp of 2827.4 mm2,
or 144 pupils – more than 10 times the light-gathering power of Galileo’s
telescope. This is an impressive instrument indeed. The 60-mm refractor
will reveal the banded structure of Jupiter’s atmosphere and its four largest
moons. Saturn and its magnificent ring system, along with Titan, Rhea, and
Dione, the three largest moons, are there. Many double stars are readily
split, and clusters and nebulae are revealed to us. Actually, a tremendous
amount of real laboratory science can and has been accomplished with
small telescopes like these.
The 150-mm (6-inch) Newtonian reflector has been a favorite of obser-
vational astronomers since Christian Huygens built one in the mid-1600’s
(c. 1675). This instrument has a light grasp of 12,667.7 mm2, or 646 pupils.
A 200-mm (8-inch) instrument has a light grasp of 1,157 pupils. With a
telescope of this size, the structure of distant galaxies falls within our grasp.
Subtle dark regions that give structure to nebulae and small planetary fea-
tures become visible. Color, however, continues to elude the observer of
deep-sky objects, and can be a source of confusion and much disappoint-
ment for first-time observers.
Focal ratio (F/ratio) is actually one of the simplest characteristics of a
telescope to compute and understand. Focal ratio is just the ratio between
the focal length and aperture. Focal length is the distance from the center
of a lens or mirror to the focal point, where all the light collected by the
lens or mirror is gathered (Fig. 12.1).
While focal ratio is easy to compute for any telescope, there are many
serious misconceptions about focal ratio and what it means for the observer
Fig. 12.1 Focal ratio formula. (Credit: Author)

Aperture and Focal Ratio 315
at the eyepiece. F/ratio is sometimes referred to as a telescope’s photo-

graphic speed. This term comes from film photography, where the focal
ratio of a camera lens determines how long it will take to completely expose
a frame of film. Photographic lenses with a small focal ratio, or high speed
lenses as they are sometimes called, will flood the film plane with light,
allowing the image on the sensor to be exposed very quickly. Camera lenses
with long focal ratios will deliver far less light to the film plane, resulting
in longer exposure times.
Telescopes are much the same as camera lenses in many respects, but it
is important to understand the differences. A high speed camera lens might
have a focal ratio of f/1.8 or less; for a telescope, this is almost unheard of.
For amateur telescopes, the fastest commercial system I have seen on the
market is an f/3.5 Newtonian. Generally though, fast telescope systems are
considered to be f/5 or less. A mid-range system would be from f/6 to f/9,
while anything f/10 or more would be considered a “slow” system.
Referring to telescopes as “fast” or “slow” can be very misleading. While
these designations may be true, especially when we attach our telescope to
a camera and use it as a photographic lens, there are much more important
aspects to focal ratio for the observer to consider than photographic speed.
With any given eyepiece, telescopes with focal ratios of f/3 to f/5 deliver
lower magnifications than a scope with higher f/6 to f/9 focal ratios.
Telescopes with shorter focal ratios will offer a substantially wider field of
view than those with longer focal ratios. Lower magnifications and wider
fields of view also yield a brighter image for the eye of the observer and a
greater level of contrast. A brighter image and better image contrast make
‘fast’ telescopes better suited for viewing objects that are faint (very low
brightness), diffuse (spread over a large area of sky), or both. Distant nebu-
lae and galaxies are very faint and diffuse objects, and a large-aperture
instrument is generally required to see them.
Choosing an instrument with a focal ratio that will match the needs of the
observing task at hand is important. Fortunately, small instruments of
8-inch aperture or less give us a variety of choices. These choices are often
not available for those who choose to observe with a large-aperture system,
where long focal ratios would result in an unwieldy telescope that could
only be used while standing on a ladder!
Refractor Telescopes
Many scientists had experimented with mounting lenses so that two or more
could be looked through at any one time, the first modern refractor was
designed and built by Galileo Galilei in 1609. This simple telescope with an
Fig. 12.2 Ray diagram of a refractor telescope. (Credit: Author)
aperture of just 18 mm had many features that modern astronomers would

recognize, including a dew shield, field stop, enclosed optical tube, and a
sliding focuser (Fig. 12.2).
The refractor is both simple and rugged, with a primary objective lens
locked into a metal cell at the front of the telescope that almost never needs
to be adjusted. Kept clean and handled with care, such an instrument will
last for a lifetime. You can also see that there are no obstructions between
the objective lens and the observer’s eye; this delivers a high-resolution
image that is unmatched for its accuracy.
The weakness of the refractor is chromatic aberration. When a lens
focuses light, it acts like a prism and bends the parallel light rays into a
point. The problem is that different wavelengths of light bend differently;
this is how a prism separates colors out of white light. When an uncorrected
lens bends light in a telescope, this results in colors of light all focusing at
different distances from the objective lens. When you cannot bring all the
colors into focus at one time, bright pinpoint images such as stars show
colored haloes surrounding them.
Modern telescope manufacturers fight this problem by using two or more
objective lenses of different types of glass to try to bring all the colors of
light together at a single focus point. Achromat objectives have two lenses
separated by an air gap. These are relatively effective at solving the problem
and are also cost-effective. More expensive apochromat objectives can
have three or more lenses or elements separated by air or oil. Some of the
lens elements may be made of ED glass (extra low dispersion) or even min-
eral crystals such as fluorite. Apochromat objectives can increase the cost
of a telescope many times, but they do give impressive images free of color
haloes or spikes. For the beginning observer, an achromatic telescope is
more than sufficient and available at a much lower cost.
Reflector Telescopes
Isaac Newton developed the first successful reflector telescope design,

wherein a concave mirror is used to focus the light that falls upon it to a
point. The difficulty is that this focal point is directly in front of the focusing
Reflector Telescopes 317
concave
mirror
light rays
optical axis
focal
point
Note that the star’s image will form at the focal point.
Parallel rays being focused by a concave mirror.
Fig. 12.3 Ray diagram of a focusing (concave) mirror. (Credit: Author)
mirror itself. If an observer were to try to utilize this focused light, they
would have to stand in front of the mirror and block the light from the moon
or stars (Fig. 12.3)!
Newton solved this problem with a secondary mirror positioned at a
45-degree angle so that the cone of focused light would be diverted and the
observer would no longer block the mirror. This secondary mirror did par-
tially obstruct the primary mirror, but the trade-off was significant. With a
refractor telescope, the lens must not only be perfect on both the front and
rear surfaces, but the interior of the lens must be perfectly free of defects.
There can be no bubbles or waves of material inside the glass, as such
defects would ruin the image at the eyepiece.
By contrast, the concave mirror used for a reflector telescope only needs
to be perfect on one surface. If there are waves, foreign materials, or bubbles
inside the glass of the mirror, they have no effect at all on the mirror’s opti-
cal performance. The front surface of a mirror is ground and polished, then
given a reflective coating (usually aluminum) and a further protective coat-
ing to preserve the bright finish. Because only one surface needs to be
perfect and the interior of the glass matters not at all, a reflector telescope
can be built at a fraction of the cost of a similarly sized refractor. A 200-mm
(8-inch) reflector can be purchased for a few hundred dollars, whereas a
200-mm refractor by contrast would cost over $10,000. Because of this, all
modern research-grade telescopes are reflector designs.
The secondary mirror obstruction is an issue for reflector telescopes.
Obviously, the larger the obstruction, the less effective the primary mirror
is at gathering light. Generally, the shorter a telescope’s focal length, the
larger the secondary mirror and the greater the obstruction will be. You can
Fig. 12.4 Ray diagram showing the obstruction of the secondary mirror in a
Newtonian telescope. (Credit: Author)
see from the diagram in Fig. 12.4 that there is a marked difference between
an f/3 and an f/5 focal ratio system. In fact, 150-mm (6-inch) reflectors are
often made in an f/8 focal length (1200-mm focal length), which is still
quite portable. A 200-mm (8-inch) reflector is often built as an f/6 system
to keep the telescope at this convenient 1,200-mm focal length. Keeping a
telescope at a reasonable focal length, usually under 1,500 mm, makes the
system more portable and keeps the eyepiece closer to the ground.
Catadioptric Telescopes
For any telescope design, strengths and weaknesses are a matter of course.
There is not any one telescope design that does everything well, or to every
observer’s satisfaction. The observer must be aware of the strengths and
weaknesses of the telescopes available to them. Observing an object that
complements the strengths of your equipment system can be an experience
of joy, wonder, and discovery. Trying to observe a target for which your
telescope is ill suited can be frustrating and disappointing.
The catadioptric telescope uses both mirrors and lenses in order to
achieve a longer focal length in a compact package that is easier to travel
with and requires a less massive mount. There are three primary variations
of this design: the Cassegrain, Schmidt-Cassegrain, and Maksutov, although
few amateur astronomers use a pure Cassegrain design. Both the Schmidt-
Cassegrain and Maksutov use a corrector lens at the front of the telescope
Telescope Mounts 319
Fig. 12.5 Ray diagram of a catadioptric telescope such as a Schmidt-Cassegrain

design. (Credit: Author)
to compensate for the rather extreme curvature of the primary mirror. The
corrector plate also holds the secondary mirror, and light is reflected back
through a hole in the primary mirror to the eye (Fig. 12.5).
One of the greatest strengths of such a design is its compact size. A 200-
mm (8-inch) Schmidt-Cassegrain telescope typically has an f/10 focal ratio
or 2,000-mm focal length; the SCT design packs all this into a physical
package of about 450 mm. An optical tube this short is very easy to mount
and transport and cuts down a great deal on weight. The long focal length
does increase magnification and decreases the field of view, but neverthe-
less, these telescopes have long been favorites of amateur astronomers
because they are so portable.
Telescope Mounts
Mounting a telescope properly is critical. A mount must be sturdy and hold

the telescope at a precise location without wobble or vibration. Remember
that at 100 power, any vibration is also magnified 100 times. Many of the
most inexpensive telescopes suffer from flimsy mounts that are difficult to
point, vibrate excessively, and do not hold their position well. A poor qual-
ity mount is one of the main reasons that people who try cheap telescopes
reject the hobby of astronomy as being too difficult and frustrating. A good
quality mount must make the telescope easy to move and point from one
observing target to the next, and does not droop or lose its position. We will
discuss a few of the more common mounting systems.
The Dobsonian Mount
The Dobsonian mount was developed by John Dobson in the 1960’s.

Dobson based his idea on antique cannon designs; a long tube was balanced
on two disks, or trunnions, which allowed the optical tube to move verti-
cally in the altitude direction. The entire apparatus sat on a base that pivoted
around a vertical axis, allowing it to move to any point of the compass in
the azimuth direction (Fig. 12.6).
This alt-az or tilt and swivel design proved extremely popular with ama-
teur telescope makers, and the Dobsonian mount coupled to a Newtonian
reflector telescope has become the most popular amateur telescope system
in the world. Having taught astronomy in high school and college for more
than 40 years, I always recommend the modest 6- to 8-inch Dobsonian,
which is my hands-down favorite.
A Dobsonian is simple to operate: just point, focus, and observe. There
is only one knob for focusing, and you move the scope by hand. No wires,
batteries, or cables are needed. No intricate setup or alignment is called for,
Fig. 12.6 The Dobsonian reflector telescope. (Photo courtesy of Explore Scientific)
and there are no computers with complex hand controllers needed. There is
no need to consult an operator’s manual or watch a series of instructional
videos before you can enjoy your instrument; a Dobsonian really is a ‘point
and shoot’ telescope. A 150-mm (6-inch) model is lightweight enough for a
10-year-old to set up and operate by themselves. These telescopes take up
very little floor space when stored and are relatively easy to pack in the
family car if you are driving to a darker site for a night of observing. There
are Dobsonians of 12 inches and larger that are designed to break down into
pieces for easier transport and assembly, but they lose the essential simplic-
ity and ease of use of a more modest instrument.
Equatorial Mount
The one essential limitation of the Dobsonian is that it cannot track celestial
targets. Everything in the sky rises in the east and travels a circular path to
the west. This means that if you are observing with a non-tracking tele-
scope, you will be moving your telescope from time to time as the target
travels across the sky. Keep in mind that when you magnify any object, you
also magnify the rate at which it appears to move across your field of view
in the eyepiece. With a Dobsonian telescope, anything more than 100×
requires almost constant adjustment and an expert hand to guide the
telescope.
The cure for this problem is a telescope that can track any object through
the sky. The equatorial mount is designed to be aligned with the Earth’s
own axis; the mount points toward the celestial pole and allows the tele-
scope to rotate around the polar axis, just as the stars and planets do. The
terrific advantage of such a mount is that your telescope will now track
objects through the sky with just a small twist of a single knob. Many equa-
torial systems come with a motorized drive system that will track the sky
for you and give you push-button slow-motion adjustment. Equatorial
mount systems are available with both small Newtonian reflectors and
refractor telescopes.
While the equatorial mount is undoubtedly attractive for its tracking
capabilities, there are some significant disadvantages for the beginner. The
first is price: a motorized equatorial mount like the one shown in Fig. 12.7
costs as much as an entire 6-inch Dobsonian telescope complete with starter
eyepieces. There are less expensive EQ mounts, but lower cost can often
mean a less accurate, less stable, and less ruggedly built telescope.
The second primary disadvantage to an equatorial telescope is complex-
ity. Whereas you can plop down your Dobsonian on any relatively flat patch
Fig. 12.7 The German equatorial telescope mount. (Photo courtesy Explore Scientific)
of ground, the equatorial setup needs more care in setting up properly for it
to work as expected. First, the mount must be pointed precisely to the north
(a compass app on your smartphone will be a great help here!). The mount
must also be leveled; some contain a built-in bubble level, while others
leave you to your own devices for this. Next, the telescope must be mounted
and balanced.
There are two axes here: one axis points towards the celestial pole and
controls east-west movement, while the other is perpendicular to this and
controls north-south movement. The polar axis has the telescope on one side
and a counterweight on the other – these must be balanced by sliding the
weight up or down a steel shaft and locking it in place. The other axis allows
the telescope to move north and south. This is balanced by sliding the tele-
scope forward or back in the saddle and then clamping it in place. The
movement of such a telescope is all circles, and getting it to point where you
want it is sometimes counterintuitive for the beginner. Does all this make an
equatorial telescope a poor choice for the beginner? Certainly not, as the
advantages more than outweigh the complexities, but you simply have to be
prepared for a more significant learning curve.
GoTo Mount
The GoTo mount, also known as a computerized mount, is available in many

forms. This is not a mount per se; it is a computer system that has been built
into the mount that gives it some extraordinary abilities. The essence of the
system is a computer with a built-in sky map that knows the position of the
stars and tens of thousands of deep-sky objects. The mount will also have a
detailed set of positions, or an ephemeris, for all the major planets and the
Moon for decades to come. Such a mount can automatically point your
telescope to any celestial object literally at the push of a button.
The apparent appeal of such a system is obvious; it seems like you have
an expert astronomer in a box! No need to do pesky things like learning the
sky or constellations or how to navigate your telescope – the computer
inside does all that for you!
The reality is significantly different. In order for the GoTo mount system
to point your telescope properly and find all those wonderful targets, your
telescope must be precisely pointed so that it matches the electronic map
inside the computer. You have to set up and level your telescope and then
point it to three stars that the telescope computer knows, then center those
stars as perfectly as possible in the eyepiece. So before the GoTo mount can
do everything for you, it insists that you know enough about the sky to rec-
ognize constellations and particular named stars and point the telescope
accurately at them.
I think that these requirements make the GoTo system a poor choice for
the beginner. The price of the computerized hardware needed for a GoTo
system has fallen amazingly low, allowing these systems to be featured with
smaller telescopes suitable for beginners, but that seems to be more of a
flaw than a feature. The amazing promises on the box are not kept in the
backyard, as setup is far more difficult than advertised and the view is not
the same as the amazing photos that are often used to market such equip-
ment. These sorts of telescopes entice new astronomy hobbyists, but often
end up causing them to abandon the hobby.
The Best Telescope
The very best telescope is the one that gets used most often. This will likely
be a telescope that is quick to set up, relatively easy to use, and gives pleas-
ing views of the Moon, planets, and some of the brighter deep-sky objects.
Portability and setup are significant issues; try not to get seduced by amaz-
ingly large and complex instruments! Large telescopes are far more difficult
to fit into the family car, and when you get to the observing site, setting up
such scopes may not be a one-person job. Do you really want a telescope
that requires a committee of volunteers and hours to assemble before you
even start observing? Generally, the larger a telescope is, the more difficult
it becomes to use, and the less often it gets used. A big telescope may be a
difficult sell when discussing the family budget, and suggesting that you
need a large trailer to haul the thing or a permanent observatory in your back
garden can be even more problematic! Figure 12.8 shows the author with
Fig. 12.8 The author at home with his Apomax refractor (133 mm, f/12). (Credit:
Author)
The Best Telescope 325
his 5.3-inch, f/12 refractor. The optical tube is over 2 meters (7 ft) long and
when pointed at the zenith, and the telescope stands at over 3 meters tall.
The tractor in the photo background is there for a reason; the telescope and
mount are over 160 kg (350 lbs)! Just moving the system out of the garage
to the backyard observing site is a significant chore. Suffice it to say that I
recommend simple telescopes – easy to transport, set up, and use – for the
beginner.
Chapter 13
Binoculars
for the Beginner
While binoculars are technically twin telescopes, the design and function of
modern binoculars are significantly different from modern amateur tele-
scopes. Binocular observers generally have different priorities from tele-
scope observers. The binocular offers amazing capabilities that the telescope
cannot match – and vice versa. Using one telescope for each eye presents
both optical and engineering challenges, but the rewards of a good pair of
binoculars are substantial. In this chapter, we will discuss binoculars, how
they work, and how to get the most out of them when observing.
There are two principal advantages for the binocular observer: a far wider
field of view than with almost any telescope, and a completely orthographic
view – the binocular always shows things right side up and correctly, just as
we would see things with our naked eye. This makes exploring constella-
tions, pointing, and focusing much more intuitive than almost any
telescope!
One of the main reasons that I include binoculars and regularly recom-
mend them to beginners is that they offer the new astronomer a great deal
of capability at a relatively low price point compared to a new telescope.
Binoculars are also supremely portable instruments and they have utility
well beyond astronomy. If a new observer purchases a pair of binoculars
and later loses interest in astronomy, the binocular can be just as easily used
on a camping trip or at a ball game.

https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-98771-8_13,
328 13 Binoculars for the Beginner
Why Two Eyes Are Better than One
The human visual system includes two eyes and a part of the brain called
the visual cortex. The visual cortex and the two eyes work together to form
what is called binocular vision. The physical separation of the eyes in your
head allows the brain to process images taken from slightly different posi-
tions. The slight differences in the relative positions of objects as seen from
your right eye compared to your left eye allow the brain to interpret what
you see as depth perception. Depth perception is your ability to determine
how far away something is while you are looking directly at it. The percep-
tion of depth perception relies upon the phenomenon of parallax. Parallax
is the shift of position an object appears to make when viewed from two
different positions.
You can demonstrate parallax directly. Hold up your thumb in front of
you, then close your left eye. Now, without moving your thumb or your
head, open your left eye and close your right eye. The position of your
thumb seems to shift against the background. Try this again, but instead of
your thumb, have a friend hold a ruler for you. Start with the ruler 1 meter
away, then 2 meters, then 3 meters, until the ruler is 5 meters away. You will
notice that the shift in the position of the ruler as you change from one eye
to the other gets smaller as the ruler gets farther away. This is a basic func-
tion of parallax: the parallax angle gets smaller as the distance to the object
gets larger.
As things get very far away, the image seems flatter to us. That is why
the full Moon looks like a flat disk and why the stars all appear to be at the
same distance. The stars are so far away, all normal clues about distance
such as parallax have become undetectably small. If the distances are so
great that your eyes and brains can’t use parallax to help you measure them
or judge depth, why even use two eyes in binoculars? Won’t one eye in a
telescope be just as good?
If all our brains did was use parallax to judge distance, there would be
very little point in using binoculars for astronomy. Your brain and eyes are
much more sophisticated than that, however. The brain also uses other tech-
niques that help you to improve the resolution and detail of the image that
you see. By comparing the image from the right and left eyes, the brain is
able to significantly improve the amount of information that you can detect
from an image. The human eye also uses a technique called dithering to
improve resolution. When gazing at any object for a period of time, even
when holding your head perfectly still, the eyes move rapidly back and
forth. This movement makes them appear to jiggle slightly. The eye is
Anatomy of Binoculars 329
a ctually exposing different parts of the retina to the image, because when a
single cell gets saturated with a single source of light or color for a period
of time, the cell and nerve ending it is attached to get fatigued and lose their
responsiveness.
Nature settled on binocular vision hundreds of millions of years ago and
has been improving on this basic formula ever since. Research shows that
an observer may experience up to a 40% increase in visual acuity (resolu-
tion) and ability to detect faint objects (limiting magnitude) when using
both eyes instead of just one. All of these biological adaptations make using
two eyes the preferred method of observation. Yet adapting an optical sys-
tem for use with both eyes is not so easy. Remember that optical devices
gather light, focus it to a precise point, then magnify that image. Each opti-
cal device also has its own optical axis. For any object like a binocular to
work properly, the two optical systems must be collimated to align their
optical axis with each other. Binoculars and field glasses that are out of col-
limation can give the viewer a double image if the problem is severe
enough.
More often, the problem is subtle. The two sides of the binocular may be
just slightly out of alignment, but this can actually be worse for the observer.
The human eye is very adaptable and has a full range of muscles that allow
it to pivot and rotate within the eye socket. The human brain is also very
insistent upon aligning images from the right and left eye to make a single
image for the viewer. With an out of collimation binocular, the viewer’s eyes
will rotate and turn to allow the brain to process a single image. A poorly
aligned binocular requires holding your eyes slightly crossed for as long as
you view through it and often results in headache, eye strain, and fatigue.
One easy way to tell if your binocular is out of collimation is to view in
daylight at a single image for a few minutes, then take the binocular quickly
away. If you have a momentary sensation of double vision or dizziness that
quickly clears up, your binocular is out of collimation and need service.
This is also a good test to perform if you are considering buying a pair of
binoculars. Remember that unlike a reflector telescope, collimation of bin-
oculars is not user friendly and requires special tools and knowledge.
Anatomy of Binoculars
Modern binoculars consist of several main parts, as can be seen in Fig. 13.1.
Each side has an objective lens and an objective cell that holds the lens. Like
a refracting telescope, this lens is usually made of two or more elements to
reduce chromatic aberration. The objective cell is attached to the body of the
Fig. 13.1 The anatomy of a porro prism binocular. (Credit: Author)
binocular, which houses the prism system. The prism system consists of one
or more prisms in a special prism cell. The classic Z-body binocular shown
in Fig. 13.1 is called a porro prism design and has been in use for more than
a century – more on this later.
The bridge of the binocular usually holds the hinge and the focuser. The
eyepiece can consist of anywhere from two to seven glass elements housed
in an eyepiece cell. The eyepieces also have eyecups that cushion the eye
and protect glasses from scratches. One of the eyepiece cells also has a
diopter adjustment, which allows the viewer to correct for differences in
vision strength between right and left eyes.
Magnification and Field of View
All binoculars are classified by three primary numbers: magnification, aper-

ture, and field of view. Magnification and aperture are generally identified
by two numbers clearly printed on the body of most binoculars. An
instrument with seven-power magnification and an aperture of 50 mm
would be identified as a 7 × 50 binocular.
Magnification and Field of View 331
When considering magnification, it is common for observers to choose

the highest magnification available. Just as with a telescope, however, using
the highest available magnification may not be the best choice. Remember
that unlike a telescope observer, who uses a sturdy base and mounting sys-
tem, binocular observers holds the instrument themselves – you are the
mount! Like all optical systems, everything is magnified. With a 10-power
binocular, every tremor of your hands and arms is magnified ten times. This
means that few people can handhold a pair of binoculars of more than 12×
and have a pleasing view. Higher power binoculars give wildly shaky views
at 15× or greater, making these unsuitable for handheld viewing. Many seri-
ous binocular observers use a binocular mount to attach their high-power
binocular to a camera tripod for more stable viewing.
When observing with a binocular, light gathering rather than magnifica-
tion is the primary aim. Most binoculars have low magnifications from 6–10
power and apertures from 35 mm up to 50 mm, although special-purpose
astronomical binoculars can be found at apertures of 70 to 150 mm
(Fig. 13.2).
A 7 × 50 binocular magnifies just seven times compared to normal
vision, but gathers 25 times more light than the dark-adapted eye with a
5-mm pupil. The 25 times increase in brightness corresponds to about two
orders of visual magnitude. This means that an average observer who can
see 6th magnitude stars will be able to see 8th magnitude stars with the
Fig. 13.2 The author testing a pair of 30 × 120 mm binoculars. (Photo: Author.
Equipment courtesy of Explore Scientific)
binocular. Dropping down to the 8th magnitude brings thousands more stars
within reach of the observer and makes many faint objects such as clusters,
nebulae, and some galaxies prominent and easy to see.
The binocular’s field of view is also an important consideration for the
observer. As with a telescope, the field of view is closely tied to magnifica-
tion and is affected (and calculated) in the same way. For a telescope, field
of view must be recalculated each time an eyepiece is changed, because
each eyepiece will result in a different magnification, and different eye-
pieces may have different apparent fields of view. With a binocular, the
eyepiece is never changed, and so the field of view is generally calculated
by the manufacturer and stamped clearly on the binocular body. Most bin-
oculars have short focal ratios and offer very wide fields of view compared
to telescopes due to their relatively low magnifications.
Fields of 5° to 7° are common, and wide-angle binoculars may have a
field as wide as 10° or more. This is extremely wide compared to the aver-
age telescope, which may get a field as wide as 1° only at its lowest power.
These very wide fields make binoculars ideal for examining large nebulae
such as the North America Nebula, large star clusters such as the Pleiades,
and objects like the Andromeda Galaxy, which simply will not fit in the
narrower fields of view of any standard telescope.
When looking at binoculars, the exit pupil is also of interest. The exit
pupil is the diameter of the cone of light that exits the eyepiece and enters
the eye of the observer. The dark-adapted eye dilates its pupil to allow more
light in, but a cone of light larger than the dilated pupil of the observer
would be wasted. For young observers under 25 years of age with healthy
eyes, the pupil will usually dilate to approximately 7 mm in complete dark-
ness. For older observers, the maximum dilation generally decreases to
about 5 mm in full darkness.
Determining the exit pupil of a binocular is as easy as dividing the aper-
ture by the magnification. For instance: to find the exit pupil of a 7 × 50
binocular, divide the aperture (50 mm) by the magnification (7×) and you
get an exit pupil of approximately 7 mm. If the 50-mm binocular had a
lower magnification, say 5×, the exit pupil would increase to 10 mm – too
large for any normal eye to absorb. The lowest practical magnification for a
binocular is given by dividing the aperture by 7. This also means that the
effective aperture of any 7× binocular can be no more than 50 mm!
This exit pupil limitation also applies to binoculars that have too high a
magnification. A pair of 25 × 30 binoculars (yes, they do exist!) would have
an exit pupil of little more than 1 millimeter! This tiny cone of light does
not take advantage of the pupil’s light-gathering ability, thereby always
producing an image that is very dark and lacking in contrast and detail.
Magnification and Field of View 333
All binoculars use prisms to make the image erect and orthographically
correct. The prism design also has the effect of increasing the focal length
of the binocular. It may be of two types: porro prisms or roof prisms. Porro
prisms are the more common (and inexpensive) of the two types of prisms.
Although porro prisms are larger and heavier than roof prisms, they have
several advantages. The porro design is up to six times more forgiving in
alignment than roof prisms. Because of this, they will tolerate rougher han-
dling and slight misalignments without seriously compromising collima-
tion. They are also up to 20% more efficient in transmitting light than roof
prisms, making them more effective for detecting faint objects (Fig. 13.3).
Roof prism binoculars are significantly more compact than porro prism
types because they are designed to be lined up face to face, whereas the
triangular porro prisms are lined up at 90° angles, which gives them s their
particular Z-body shape. Roof prism binoculars have a straight body with
the objective lenses in line with the eyepieces. This makes them very com-
pact for their aperture. Perhaps counterintuitively, the roof prisms are more
complex than the porro prisms’ simple triangular shape and more difficult
and expensive to manufacture.
Like telescopes, binoculars have a focusing system that moves the eye-
piece along the optical path until it is in the correct position for the viewer.
Unlike a telescope, a binocular has to adjust two eyepieces along two opti-
Note the more

complex light
path and more
compact design
as compared
to the porro
prism style.
Roof prism binoculars
Fig. 13.3 Anatomy of roof prism binoculars. (Credit: Author)

cal paths with great accuracy; this is usually done with a central focus
design, where one focus knob in the middle of the binocular controls the
focus for both eyes. Less expensive binoculars tend to move the eyepieces
together, sliding them in and out of the main binocular body. More modern
designs move lenses internally, meaning that the binocular is less prone to
misalignment of the eyepieces. Internal focus designs can also be sealed in
order to make them water- and fog-proof.
A binocular’s focusing system must solve another problem: the observ-
er’s eyes are always different, requiring varying focus because of slight
differences in near- or far-sightedness in each eye. In other words, with
fixed eyepieces, placing the binocular in focus for one eye will place it out
of focus for the other eye. This problem is solved by using a diopter adjust-
ment, which is usually located on the right eyepiece. The diopter adjustment
is also a helical focuser that allows the right eyepiece to be adjusted sepa-
rately from the left. In this way, the binocular may be set so that both eyes
always see in perfect focus.
Individual focus binoculars use a different type of system where each
eyepiece has its own helical focuser and no central bridge or central focuser
is used. By adjusting each eye precisely, this design eliminates several prob-
lems inherent to the central focus design. The eyepieces are screwed into the
actual body of the binocular and cannot shift or wobble, as eyepieces with
a weak bridge piece sometimes do. The design also tends to remain in focus
with far fewer adjustments, but makes shifting focus from near to far time-
consuming, as each eyepiece must be rotated separately. For astronomy or
other applications where the binocular will be used to look at objects at a
fixed distance, these binoculars are well suited. If you use your binoculars
for sporting events or birding as well as astronomy, central focus may be a
better choice for you.
Optical Coatings and Efficiency
Optical coatings cause much confusion for new observers, especially with
binoculars. Binocular makers have added to this confusion by using similar
terms for very different optical designs and by using oddly colored coatings
as a sales gimmick.
Optical coatings in binoculars are generally anti-reflective. These special
coatings are designed to decrease the amount of light that is reflected off the
front surface of a lens. A polished glass surface can reflect up to 20% or
more of the light that strikes it, and this light never reaches the observer’s
eye. For a refracting telescope with one main objective lens, a loss of light
Optical Coatings and Efficiency 335
from reflection off the objective may not be severe. For a binocular, how-
ever, there may be 14–20 glass surfaces the light must cross before reaching
the eye of the observer. Because the binocular uses so many elements, opti-
cal efficiency may be badly compromised. Optical efficiency is the percent-
age of light that reaches the eye of the observer after passing through all the
elements of the binocular. Bargain binoculars that use uncoated optics may
lose more than half the light entering the optical path. Premium binoculars
that use low dispersion or ED glass for both lenses and prisms and have
multiple layers of coating on each optical surface may lose less than 5% of
the light that enters the optical path, making their optical efficiency up to
95%.
Much confusion comes from terms used to describe coated optics in bin-
oculars. Binoculars described as having coated optics may in fact have only
one coated surface on the outermost face of the objective lens. More than
one surface may be coated, but not necessarily so. Fully coated optics refers
to binoculars with optical coatings on every surface. While this is supposed
to include both lens elements and prisms, many binoculars that are referred
to as ‘fully coated’ are actually coated only on the objective and the eye-
pieces. Carefully checking the manufacturer’s specifications is the only way
to be sure that ‘fully coated’ means what it says!
Multi-coated optics refers to single lens surfaces that have received mul-
tiple layers of anti-reflective coatings. Multi-coated optics represent the
highest standard in anti-reflection coatings and optical efficiency. Once
again, however, ‘multi-coated’ may often refer only to the objective lens,
not the entire binocular. Even so, binoculars referred to as ‘multi-coated’ are
generally high quality products.
Fully multi-coated is generally the highest grade specification for a bin-
ocular. This means that every glass surface has received multiple layers of
anti-reflection coatings. Because binocular makers generally reserve this
level of coating technology for only their best products, and because each
layer of coating must be applied separately in a vacuum chamber and at
high temperatures, this multistep process adds significantly to the cost of
the product. For the experienced observer, this is a worthwhile investment
in optical technology. Fully multi-coated optics ensure that the observer
enjoys the highest possible optical efficiency, makes full use of the size of
the objective lens, and gets the sharpest possible image.
Some manufacturers have used ‘trick’ coatings in recent years to help
sell binoculars. So-called ‘special green’ or ‘glare fighter gold’ optical coat-
ings on the objective lens have been marketed as enhancing a binocular’s
performance. One of the most common trick coatings is the ‘ruby coat’,
sometimes even sold as ‘infrared coating’! Unscrupulous vendors have been
known to make a variety of false claims that these coatings will block
annoying glare, improve image contrast, or even give the observer amazing
night vision, implying that the ruby coating will allow the user to see in total
darkness!
In reality, the color of a coating is based upon its thickness, like the color
of a soap bubble. This thickness is controlled by adjusting the temperature
and other conditions of the coating process. Single layer optical coatings are
generally thinnest and will usually appear as blue or purple (blue and violet
light have the shortest wavelengths). Multi-coated optics often appear green
in color, reflecting the longer wavelengths of green light. These colors are
very subtle and can usually be seen only by looking at the lens from an
angle. When looking at the lens face-on, the color disappears because very
little light is actually reflected back towards your eye. (This is the job of
optical coatings, after all!) The best advice for the observer is to stick with
fully coated, multi-coated, or fully multi-coated optics for best performance
both day and night.
Strengths and Weaknesses
The major strengths of a binocular result from the effective use of both eyes,
which allows the brain to more effectively process information from the
image presented. The viewer sees a brighter image and perceives more
detail and information. As we have seen, the relatively low power of the
binocular also gives it an unparalleled wide field of view. While most tele-
scopes offer no more than 1° field of view at their lowest magnification, a
binocular will typically offer from 3° to 5° views. Some wide-angle models
can even offer 7° views or even more. Extremely wide-angle binoculars
over 7° should be avoided for astronomy, because the image is often dis-
torted around the edges in order to achieve these very wide views.
The wide viewing angle and orthographically correct view of a binocular
offer spectacular views of the night sky and make navigating them as simple
as pointing your finger. Wide views allow the observer to see many objects
like the Pleiades or the North America Nebula, which are impossible to take
in with a telescope because the objects are so large and will not fit in a
single field of view at any magnification.
Binoculars do not generally offer the ability to change magnification like
a telescope does. Because of this, they do not offer the flexibility of a tele-
scope when viewing celestial objects. Many objects, like planets, small
nebulae, or clusters, are simply impossible to view using standard binocu-
lars because these instruments do not offer sufficient magnification to make
Strengths and Weaknesses 337
them visible to the observer. While some binoculars do offer a ‘zoom’ fea-
ture that allows them to be adjusted to higher magnifications, these are
unsuitable for night viewing. Zoom lens systems tend to severely compro-
mise brightness and field of view – two of the main advantages of binocu-
lars for the astronomical observer. Zoom systems also require high
precision; they must change the magnification of both sides of the binocular
to the exact same degree at the same time. This requires complex engineer-
ing and precise controls. Unfortunately, many zoom binoculars are also
designed around bargain binoculars that are not very precisely made in the
first place, and these manufacturers usually make the zoom parts out of
plastic, meaning they work poorly when new, are easily broken, and are
difficult and expensive to repair.
Glossary
Accretion The process of assembling a planetary object. Smaller particles collide

and stick together physically; only when an object is quite large does gravita-
tional attraction contribute significantly to this process.
Achromat A two-element lens designed to focus all colors of light at the same
place. (See also: Apochromat.)
Albedo The reflectivity of a planetary surface. An albedo of 0.1 reflects 10% of
the light striking it.
Altitude The angular distance of any celestial object above the local horizon. (See
also: Coordinate Systems.)
Angular Momentum Similar to linear momentum, angular momentum defines
an object’s tendency to continue rotating around an axis.
Angular Motion Angular refers to the idea that something is measured in degrees
or radians as it moves around a circular path. Angular motion is generally mea-
sured in degrees/time. A telescope may slew several degrees per second, while
the Earth’s rotation can be measured in degrees per hour.
Aperture The diameter of the primary mirror in a reflector telescope, or the diam-
eter of the primary objective lens in a refractor telescope.
Aphelion The greatest distance from the Sun in a planet’s orbit.
Apochromat A three or more element lens group with enhanced ability to focus
all colors of light at the same place. (See also: Achromat.)
Apparent Motion The illusion of the motion of objects rising and setting with
respect to the horizon. (See also: Diurnal Motion.)
Apparent Size The angular size of an object as seen from Earth. Ex: The Moon’s
apparent size is approximately 0.5 degrees.
Asteroid Any object large enough to be detected with a telescope from the Earth
that is still too small to form a spherical shape under the influence of its own
gravity. Asteroids are easily recognized in photographs by their lumpy, irregular
shape.
Astronomical Unit (AU) The average distance between the Earth and the Sun.
This is a common unit of measure for planetary orbits.
Averted Vision A technique of looking slightly away from an object in order to
use the more sensitive rod cells away from the center of the retina to detect faint
nebulosity.

https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-98771-8,
340 Glossary
Axis The line around which a planet turns. The point at which the axis intercepts
the surface of a planet is referred to as the pole.
Azimuth The compass direction measured in degrees. N = 0°, E = 90°, S = 180°,
W = 270°. (See also: Coordinate Systems.)
Blue Shift A Doppler shift in light frequency that indicates a luminous object is
moving toward the Earth. (See also: Redshift.)
Bok Globules Dense regions of dust that prevent starlight from penetrating. Bok
globules are often associated with star-forming regions.
Catadioptric A telescope design that uses multiple mirrors in order to shorten the
optical pathway by folding the incoming light one or more times.
Celestial Equator The projection of the Earth’s own equator onto the celes-
tial sphere. The celestial equator divides the sky into northern and southern
hemispheres.
Celestial Pole If the Earth’s axis is extended to the celestial sphere, the Earth’s
own rotation makes all objects in the sky appear to spin around this point. In
the Northern Hemisphere, the North Celestial Pole (NCP) is just over one
degree from the star Polaris, often referred to as the North Star. The Southern
Hemisphere has no bright star close to the SCP.
Celestial Sphere Sometimes called the ‘Bowl of Night’, the celestial sphere is an
imaginary sphere upon which all the objects in the sky are projected. The celes-
tial sphere is used in mapping stars and constellations.
Central Mount One or more mountains formed in the center of a large impact
crater.
Chromatic Aberration Prismatic distortion caused by refracting lens systems.
This distortion causes colors to focus at different distances, giving the appear-
ance of multi-colored halos around bright stars and other objects.
Classical Planets Those planets visible to the naked eye: Mercury, Venus, Mars,
Jupiter, and Saturn.
Coformed Satellites Large moons formed around large Jovian planets, much as
planets form around stars.
Compass Rose A star-shaped device that shows the correct cardinal directions on
a map, sometimes used on the floor of an observatory as well.
Conservation of Momentum Like energy, momentum within a system cannot be
destroyed, it must be conserved.
Convection The tendency for warmer fluids such as atmospheric gases to rise and
for cooler fluids to sink. This tends to form vertical circular flow patterns within
atmospheres, oceans, and even stars.
Coordinate Systems A system of measurement that allows astronomers to pin-
point and document the location of objects in the sky. The principle systems in
use are altitude-azimuth (fixed observer location), and right ascension/declina-
tion (fixed object location).
Crater A bowl-shaped depression excavated by the impact of an object falling
from space to strike the surface of a planet or moon.
Crescent A phase of the Moon that is less than 50% illuminated.
Glossary 341
Dark Adaptation The chemical and physical adaptation of the eye to become
more sensitive to light; full dark adaptation takes 10–20 minutes to achieve but
can be lost in seconds if the eye is exposed to bright light.
Dawes’ Limit The theoretical limit of resolution of a telescope based upon the
aperture of the instrument.
Declination The angular measurement of a celestial object’s position in a north-
south direction (similar to latitude on a terrestrial map). Declination coordinates
are fixed on the sky, rather than the observer, so that the locations of stars, gal-
axies, and other distant objects do not change over time. (See also: Coordinate
Systems.)
Deep-Sky Object Any celestial object located outside our own Solar System.
Diopter A unit of refractive power. In the binocular, this is an adjustment that
allows each side of the binocular to be uniquely focused for the user’s individual
right and left eyes.
Diurnal Motion The apparent motion caused by the Earth’s rotation on its axis
once per day. (See also: Apparent Motion.)
Dobsonian Mount An alt-az mount developed by John Dobson that allows a
telescope to rotate in the vertical (altitude) and horizontal (azimuth) directions.
Inexpensive and simple to operate, it is the most popular telescope mount in use
today.
Double Star Generally, a pair of stars located very close to one another on the
sky. Often these are true binary star systems where the stars orbit each other.
Sometimes however, these are simply stars that lie along a common line of sight;
these are referred to as optical doubles.
Dwarf Galaxy A small and often irregular galaxy of less than 1 billion stars.
Such dwarf galaxies are often found orbiting larger and more massive spiral and
elliptical galaxies.
Earth Mass (ME) A common unit for measuring the mass of planetary objects.
Ex: Saturn is approximately 95 ME.
Earth Radius(RE) A common unit for measuring the diameter of planetary
objects. Ex: Jupiter is approximately 11 RE.
Ecliptic The plane of the Sun’s equator and also of our Solar System as a whole.
When projected across the celestial sphere, the ecliptic shows the approximate
path of planets in orbit as well as the path of the Sun and Moon across our sky.
Ejecta Material excavated from a crater by the impact of a meteorite or asteroid.
In general, ejecta material is distributed evenly around the crater rim. This layer
gets thinner (and particle size smaller) as you move away from the crater. (See
also: Ejecta Blanket.)
Ejecta Blanket The name given to a carpet of ejected material surrounding a
crater. It is often dramatically different in color and/or brightness from the sur-
rounding soil, which makes younger craters easily visible through a telescope or
from orbit.
Emission Nebula A cloud of gas (usually H/He) that is ionized by a nearby blue
star. These ionized gases emit red light in the so called H-α spectrum. (See also:
Reflection Nebula.)
342 Glossary
Ephemeris A table showing the positions of objects such as planets as they move
across the sky.
Equatorial Mount A two-axis telescope mount invented by the German astrono-
mer Fraunhofer. Sometimes referred to as a German Equatorial Mount (GEM).
This mount has one axis aligned parallel to the Earth’s own axis, which cancels
out the Earth’s own motion. This allows the telescope to track objects across the
sky as they rise and set.
Exit Pupil The diameter of the light cone that emerges from an eyepiece.
Field of View The angular diameter visible through an optical instrument such as
a telescope or binocular. The field of view generally decreases with magnifica-
tion, but is significantly dependent upon the optical design of the eyepiece.
Focal Length The distance from the primary optical surface to the focus point.
(See also focal ratio, magnification.)
Focal Ratio Found by dividing focal length by aperture, or: f = fL/A. Ex: For a tele-
scope with an aperture of 150 mm and a focal length of 1200 mm: f = 1200 mm
/ 150 mm = f/8.
Full Moon A phase of the Moon that is fully illuminated. In practical terms, the
Moon is close enough to fully illuminated over several days that most observers
cannot tell the difference.
Galactic Bulge A large concentration of gas, dust, and star systems near the cen-
ter of a galaxy that bulges well above the galactic plane. It is these bright regions
that are most easily visible when we view galaxies through a telescope.
Geocentric Theory The idea that the motionless Earth is fixed in the center of the
cosmos and all other celestial objects revolve around it. The idea is frequently
associated with the Greek philosopher Aristotle, although he did not invent the
idea. (See also: Heliocentric Theory.)
Geologically Dead A planet or moon whose core has completely solidified so that
volcanic and tectonic activity no longer occur.
Gibbous A phase of the Moon that is more than 50% but less than 100%
illuminated.
Globular Cluster A dense, spherical collection of many thousands of stars. These
structures form a halo around most galaxies and date from the galaxy’s own for-
mation. (See also: Open Cluster.)
Hadley Cell A large vertical convection pattern in a planetary atmosphere.
Heliocentric Theory The idea that the Sun is the center of our Solar System, and
that all the planets revolve around it. The theory was revived by Copernicus in
the sixteenth century, although it was invented thousands of years earlier. The
theory was not successfully proven correct until Galileo Galilei used his tele-
scope to observe the phases of Venus in 1610.
Horizon The visual limit for an observer on a planetary surface.
Impact Energy The total energy yield of a meteor or asteroid as it strikes a plan-
etary surface; generally equivalent to the kinetic energy of the object just before
impact.
Glossary 343
Impactor Any object such as a comet or asteroid that strikes the surface of a
planet or moon. Impactors range in size from microscopic dust particles to true
planetary collisions.
Inferior Planet Any planet closer to the Sun than the Earth.
Insolation Literally ‘incoming solar radiation’, it is the amount of solar energy
striking a planetary surface and is generally measured in Watts/m2.
Kuiper Belt A belt of objects orbiting beyond Neptune that was predicted to be
the source of periodic comets by Astronomer Gerard Kuiper in 1949.
Kuiper Belt Objects Minor planets, comets, and asteroids orbiting beyond the
orbit of Neptune, generally 35–100 AU from the Sun.
Lacus Literally ‘lake’, a minor lava flow structure on the lunar surface.
Laws of Motion The three laws of motion first formulated by Isaac Newton in the
mid-seventeenth century.
Light Grasp The effective square area of a telescope’s aperture that collects light.
For refractors, light grasp is equal to the area of the objective lens. For reflecting
telescopes, light grasp is equal to the area of the primary mirror minus the area
of the secondary mirror, which obstructs the optical path.
Light Pollution Unwanted light that shines upward into the atmosphere and
increases the skyglow brightness, thereby reducing the contrast between astro-
nomical objects and the dark sky. Light pollution makes it impossible to detect
any object fainter than the sky is bright.
Limb The edge of a planet or moon as seen through the telescope.
Limiting Magnitude The faintest magnitude that is visually detectable for any
given optical instrument. Usually a function of telescope aperture.
Local Group The group of three galaxies (Milky Way, Andromeda, Triangulum)
that are gravitationally bound together and mutually interacting.
Lunar Libration The slight wobbling motion of the Moon as it orbits the Earth.
The libration of the Moon allows observers to see approximately 59% of the
Moon’s total surface over a period of sustained observations.
Lunar Phases The changing appearance of the Moon as seen from Earth due to
its orbital motion around our planet. Phases go from new Moon (0% illuminated)
to full Moon (100% illuminated.) It is traditional to divide this process into eight
distinct phases covering both waxing and waning, including full, gibbous, quar-
ter, crescent, and new.
Magnification Sometimes casually referred to as power. Calculated by divid-
ing the focal length of the telescope by the focal length of the eyepiece. Ex:
a telescope with a 1200-mm focal length is used with a 9-mm eyepiece.
Mag = 1200 mm/9 mm = 133× (See also: Focal Length.)
Magnitude A system of measuring the brightness of any object in the sky. The
larger the magnitude, the fainter the object. The human eye can generally detect
objects as faint as magnitude 6 in a dark sky.
Magnitude System First developed by the astronomer Hipparchus, who divided
stars into six classes. The modern system is a more precise measurement of light
energy and generally runs from −25 (our Sun) to +25 (the Hubble limit).
344 Glossary
Mare A large impact basin that has been filled with molten material from the
interior of the moon or planet where it is located (plural: maria). There are some
25 maria on the lunar surface. The following are easily observed on the lunar
nearside with a small telescope: Crisium, Fecunditatus, Frigorum, Humorum,
Imbrium, Nectaris, Nubium, Procellarum, Serenitatus, and Tranquilitatus.
Maximum Elongation The greatest angular distance between the Sun and an
inferior planet. (See also: Inferior Planet.)
Meridian A north-south line that divides the sky between eastern and western
hemispheres.
Messier Object A collection of 110 objects identified by Charles Messier as ‘not
comets’. The list no longer serves its original purpose, but is now used by ama-
teur observers as a guide to bright deep-sky objects for telescopic observation.
Meteor An object that is visible burning across the sky as it enters our atmosphere
and is destroyed by atmospheric friction.
Meteorite A fragment of a meteor that survives to land on the ground.
Meteoroid An object smaller than an asteroid, generally less than 10 meters wide,
which is traveling in space.
Momentum Physicists calculate an object’s linear momentum by multiplying
mass times velocity. Momentum is conserved, meaning that the total momentum
of a system cannot change, although momentum may be transferred from one
object to another within a system.
Moon An object constrained within the gravitational field of a planet that is large
enough to compress itself into a spherical shape by its own gravitational force.
A moon’s motion is controlled by the planet’s gravitational field as it accompa-
nies that planet through space.
Moonlet An object constrained within the gravitational field of a planet. It is irreg-
ular in shape, as it is not large enough to compress itself into a spherical shape by
its own gravitational force. Its motion is controlled by the planet’s gravitational
field as it accompanies that planet through space.
Moonrise The time when the Moon rises above the eastern horizon and becomes
visible in the sky.
Moonset The time when the Moon sinks below the western horizon and disap-
pears from view.
Nadir Literally ‘lowest’, the point directly beneath your feet.
Nebulosity A glowing area around a star or cluster of stars. (See also: Emission
Nebula.)
Near/Far Side When a planet or moon is tidally locked to its parent body, one
side permanently faces the central body, while one side permanently faces away.
Earth’s Moon has a nearside that continually faces the Earth. The far side was
not seen or photographed until the Soviet Union’s Lunik probe took pictures in
the late 1960’s.
New Moon A phase of the Moon with 0% illumination.
Objective The first or primary lens of a refractor telescope.
Glossary 345
Occultation An event where one object passes behind another and is hidden from
view. Ex: A star was occulted when the Moon passed in front of it.
Oceanus Term for the largest of maria on the Moon. Only one exists: Oceanus
Procellarum.
Open Cluster A loosely packed group of stars. May include up to 100 stars but
usually contains fewer.
Opposition A planetary alignment where the planet is opposite the Sun in our sky.
For superior planets, this is the closest they come to the Earth. Highly favorable
for telescopic observation, superior planets are also brightest and have the largest
apparent diameter at this time.
Orbital Velocity The speed of an object in orbit. Mathematically determined by
the mass of the central body and the distance at which the satellite body orbits.
Orthoscopic View A view through an optical instrument that is identical to what
we see with our naked eye – nothing is inverted, reversed, or rotated.
Palus Literally ‘marsh’, a minor lava formation on the lunar surface.
Pantograph A device for copying angles and distances for mapping constella-
tions, based upon an older drafting device for enlarging or reducing drawings.
Parallax The change in apparent position of a distant object based upon the view-
er’s position. For nearby objects, it is possible to detect parallax by closing one
eye, then the other.
Parsec Literally ‘parallax arc second’, the parsec is a unit of astronomical dis-
tance equivalent to 3.3 light years.
Perihelion The farthest point from the Sun in a planet’s orbit. (See also: Aphelion.)
Plane Crossing Sometimes also called a ‘node’, this is an event when a moon
or planet with an inclined orbit crosses the ecliptic plane of the Solar System. It
may also refer to a moon crossing the equatorial plane of its planet.
Planetary Conjunction The traditional term conjunction means that two planets
are aligned precisely along a north-south line. The modern use of the term is
simply a close approach of two planets. The most famous in recent memory is the
December 2020 conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn, where the planets were only
one tenth of a degree apart.
Planetary Nebula A concentric object that is actually an expanding sphere of gas
and debris thrown off by a dying star.
Planisphere A circular map of the sky that can be set to show the position of the
constellations at any time of night and on any day of the year.
Population I Stars Relatively new stars that contain metals (elements larger than
helium) in their atmospheres.
Population II Stars Metal-poor stars that formed in globular clusters as galaxies
were first forming.
Population III Stars Primordial stars formed purely from the hydrogen/helium
mixture created by the Big Bang. No Population III stars are believed to remain
in existence today.
Prograde Motion The rotational direction of the primary central body in a solar
system is taken as a reference. Every object that rotates or revolves in the same
direction that the Sun spins on its axis is referred to as prograde. (See also:
Retrograde.)
346 Glossary
Protostar A hot, dense ball of hydrogen and helium that has not yet achieved
nuclear fusion.
Punctuated Equilibrium A theory of the cycles of change on a planetary surface.
This occurs when gradual change is interrupted by cataclysmic events separated
by long intervals. Ex: Large meteor impacts.
Quadrant Literally’ quarter circle’, this instrument is used to measure the angu-
lar position of objects in the sky as well as angular distances. The modern sextant
(sixth of a circle) is a more compact version of this instrument used for naviga-
tion at sea.
Quarter Lunar phase where the Moon is 50% illuminated. The name comes from
the fact that this phase occurs when the Moon has moved one quarter around its
orbit from either the new or full phase position.
Radiant The apparent point from which a meteor shower emanates.
Ray A particularly long stream of ejecta material that can extend for many hun-
dreds of kilometers across an airless surface, such as on the Moon. These very
thin layers of material are only clearly visible when the Moon is near full and the
solar angle is favorable.
Redshift The Doppler shift in the frequency of light that indicates that the light
source is moving away from us.
Reflection Nebula A cloud of dusty material that is illuminated by a nearby blue
star. These nebulae reflect the star’s blue light, unlike an emission nebula, which
shines with its own light. (See also: Emission Nebula.)
Resolution The theoretical limit of how close two objects can be and still be sepa-
rated at the eyepiece of a telescope. Resolution depends upon aperture as well as
the optical quality of the telescope.
Retrograde Motion The rotational direction of the primary central body in a
solar system is taken as a reference. Every object that rotates or revolves in the
opposite direction that the Sun spins on its axis is referred to as retrograde. (See
also: Prograde Motion.)
Revolution To move in a circular or elliptical path around an external point or axis.
Planets, asteroids, and comets all revolve around the Sun. (See also: Rotation.)
Right Ascension The angular measurement of a celestial object’s position in an
east-west direction (similar to longitude on a terrestrial map). Right ascension
coordinates are fixed on the sky, rather than the observer, so that the locations
of stars, galaxies, and other distant objects do not change over time. (See also:
Coordinate Systems.)
Rille A volcanic feature, essentially a dry riverbed where lava once flowed across
the lunar landscape.
Roche Limit The closest approach a satellite may make to a planet before tidal
gravitational forces begin to destroy it. Ex: The outer radius of Saturn’s ring sys-
tem lies at the planet’s Roche limit.
Rotation To spin around an internal axis. The Earth, like all planets, spins around
its own axis. (See also: Revolution.)
Scalar A simple measurement or quantity. (See also: Vector.)
Glossary 347
Seeing A description of the stillness or calmness of the atmosphere. A calm atmo-

sphere that shows little twinkling or swimming of an image at the eyepiece is
said to be ‘good seeing’. (See also: Transparency.)
Sinus Literally ‘bay’, a small lava filled structure on the lunar surface.
Solar Angle The angle of the Sun above the horizon for a particular location and
time of day.
Steradian A square radian on a spherical surface.
Superior Planet Any planet outside the Earth’s orbit: Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, et al.
(See also: Inferior Planet.)
Supermassive Black Hole Also known as SMBH, this is a black hole ranging
in size from 100,000 solar masses up to tens of billions of solar masses. These
giants are found at the cores of most large galaxies and are believed to be essen-
tial to the formation and stability of large galaxies.
Surface Brightness The average brightness of the surface of an extended object
such as a galaxy or nebula; generally measured on the stellar magnitude scale.
(See also: Magnitude.)
Terminator The line that divides daylight from darkness on a lunar or planetary
surface. When viewing the Moon, the terminator is the border between the light
and dark portion of the lunar disk.
Tidal Lock Gravitational forces lock one side of a satellite so that it always faces
the parent body. This can occur with a planet and a moon; it can also occur with
a star and a planet. In this case the locked body’s rotation and revolution both
take the same period of time. This is one example of a synchronous orbit. (See
also: near/far side.)
Tracking Any telescope mount that can automatically follow the diurnal motion
of celestial objects.
Transit A transit event occurs when a smaller object crosses the face of a larger
object as seen from Earth. For example, Venus can transit the Sun; a Galilean
moon can also transit across the face of Jupiter.
Waning The half of the lunar cycle when the illuminated portion of the Moon’s
face grows smaller each day until the Moon is new.
Waxing The half of the lunar cycle when the illuminated portion of the Moon’s
face grows larger each day until the Moon is full.
White Dwarf Star A compact, white-hot stellar remnant that is left behind when
a star runs out of hydrogen fuel and dies.
Winter Hexagon An asterism of six bright stars in the winter skies.
Zenith Literally ‘the highest’, it is the point directly above your head in the sky.
Zodiac The collection of constellations that lie along the line of the ecliptic.
Bibliography
Digital References
Astronomy For Educators: Daniel E. Barth (2018) University of Arkansas Library

Press. An excellent text for the STEM educator, published as an Open Educational
Resource text that anyone can download for free. Delves deep into STEM pedagogy
and provides NGSS and state standards, as well as cross-cutting principles with
each activity. Each section provides activities followed by questions (with answers)
and supplements for independent physical and mathematical student investigations,
plus extra activities for gifted and talented students. There is also an Astronomy for
Educators Facebook page and YouTube channel.
https://scholarworks.uark.edu/oer/2
Digital Lunar Orbiter Photographic Atlas. Excellent for the experienced lunar
explorer. Gives a list of feature names, and allows search by photo number and by
lunar coordinates (latitude and longitude).
https://www.lpi.usra.edu/resources/lunar_orbiter/
The Full Moon Atlas. A good visual reference. This atlas divides the Moon into rect-
angular regions that you can search simply by clicking on them. The atlas has some
limitations for naming features.
https://fullmoonatlas.com/atlas/
Rectified Lunar Atlas. A digital version of the lunar atlas compiled by Whitaker,
Kuiper, Hartmann, and Spradley. Originally published by the Univ. of Arizona Press
in 1963. Prepared to help select landing sites for the Apollo missions. Easy to search
and lots of significant place names.
https://www.lpl.arizona.edu/sic/collection/rla
Rükl Index map. Perhaps the very best lunar atlas for the serious amateur explorer. A
set of 76 images and drawings prepared by Czech astronomer Antonin Rükl, who
worked on this for over 30 years. An outstanding resource for features and names.
https://the-moon.us/wiki/Rükl_Index_Map
Stellarium. Free, open source planetarium software. It is easy to use, and an active
community of developers keeps the program up to date and adds new features
regularly. Stellarium is available for Windows, Apple, and Linux operating systems.
www.stellarium.org

https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-98771-8,
350 Bibliography
Print References
Atlas of the Moon (2e): Antonín Rükl (2004), Sky Publishing. For the advanced lunar
aficionado, this is the ultimate print atlas. Superb plates and drawings created by Mr.
Rükl over a period of more than 30 years.
Celestron Sky Maps: A good resource for the beginning observer. A complete set of
star maps that includes many fine deep-sky objects such as nebulae, brighter gal-
axies, star clusters, etc., as well as double stars and star magnitudes. A functional
planisphere is built into the cover. Printed on heavy, laminated card stock for use
in outdoor conditions. Large format and lay-flat binding make it easy to use for the
beginner.
The Hatfield Photographic Lunar Atlas (2e): Jeremy Cook (1999), Springer. An
excellent photographic atlas with many photographic plates and drawn maps with
place and feature names. Easy to use for the beginner.
A History of Astronomy from Thales to Kepler: J L E Dreyer, (1953, 2011) Dover.
Considered by many to be the definitive history of early astronomy, insightful and
scientifically accurate.
Greek Astronomy: Sir Thomas Heath, (1932, 1991) Dover. An excellent survey of
Greek astronomy and mathematics that formed the foundation of modern astronomy.
Index
A Zenith, 123, 179, 180

Achromat, 316 Chromatic aberration, 316, 329
Albedo, 220–222, 250, 259 Clock Method, 15–21, 212–215, 227, 233
Altitude/Azimuth coordinates, 55, 56 Constellation sketching
Apochromat, 316 Circumpolar Constellations, 115–122, 124,
Apparent motion, 65, 80 129, 130, 305
Apparent size (diameter), 62 Zenithal Constellations, 155, 156, 158,
Asteroid, 15, 22, 29, 31, 42, 56, 87, 88, 223, 160, 163, 175
230, 231 Zodiacal Constellations, 98, 134, 142, 169,
Astronomical unit, 82, 177, 190, 192, 201, 224 172, 183, 184
Averted vision, 126, 171, 175, 272, 273, 285 Coordinates
Altitude/Azimuth, 55, 56
Right Ascension/Declination, 56
B Counting Stars, 148
Belts, 87, 88, 124–126, 142, 224–230, 233, Crater modeling
250, 271, 272, 280, 286, 343 Central mount, 26, 42
In clay, 26
Ejecta, 26, 31, 39, 42, 45, 50
C In flour, 41–54
Catadioptric telescope, 318, 319 In plaster, 42, 46–54
Celestial sphere Rays, 16, 26, 31, 32, 42, 44, 45, 62
Celestial equator, 97, 98, 102, 123, 169, Craters, 8, 9, 11–14, 16, 22, 24–27, 29, 31, 32,
179, 183, 184 34, 39, 41–54, 59, 62, 192, 313
Celestial poles, 98, 117, 180, 181, 269,
321, 322
Ecliptic, 97, 98, 102, 169, 183, 184, 341 D
Horizon, 98, 123, 179–181, 339 Deep Sky Objects, 101, 127, 132, 136, 141,
Meridian, 98, 123 148, 152, 160, 169, 172, 178, 266,
Nadir, 100 279, 283, 314, 323, 324

https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-98771-8,
352 Index
Dobsonian mount, 320–321 Lunar orbit, 61, 63, 87

Double stars, 136, 139, 141, 159, 161, 162, Lunar phases, 30, 35, 62, 191, 192
172, 235, 304, 314 Shape of the Moon, 8
Surface features, 18, 21, 192
Lunar Orbit
E Period, 15
Earth masses, 177, 192 Size, 61
Earth radii, 177 Lunar phases
Ephemeris, 102, 323 Waning, 12, 32
Equatorial mount, 12, 136, 162, 221, Waxing, 12, 32, 35, 36, 38, 39
321–323 Lunar Sketching
Clock Method, 15–21
F
Finder scope, 137, 138 M
Focal length, 295, 307, 314, 317–319, 333 Maria, 15, 16, 18–20, 24–27, 29, 31–40, 43,
45, 49, 53, 59, 62, 190
Mars
G Polar Caps, 190, 208, 214, 220, 222, 228
Galaxies Mercury, 45, 73, 82–86, 177, 183, 188–194,
Andromeda, 131, 132, 160, 173, 174, 202, 205, 219, 230, 256, 257
293–298, 301, 332 Meteor
Dwarf, 293, 297–300, 302 Meteorite, 344
Groups, 301–306 Meteor shower, 164–169, 238
Starburst galaxy, 304 Radiant, 166–168
Triangulum, 173, 174, 293–298, 301, 303 Milky Way
See also Milky Way Northern, 127–133
Galilean moons, 230–237, 260 Southern, 136, 141–144, 268, 281, 286
Geocentric theory, 56, 192, 202, 234, 291 Modeling
In Clay, 21–32, 43, 84, 242, 243
Earth-Moon system, 55, 57, 61
H Planets, 85, 197, 209
Heliocentric theory, 202, 234, 291 In plaster, 42, 43, 47, 49, 50, 52
Highlands, 16, 31 Solar system, 82, 83, 85, 87, 88, 193
Moon
Shape of, 8–15, 231, 239–241, 255
I
Impactors
Asteroid, 22, 29 N
Meteoroid, 22 Nebulae
Insolation, 220 Emission, 136, 141, 143, 274, 275, 280,
281, 283–289
Planetary, 159, 160, 162–164, 172,
J 283–289, 310, 314
Jupiter Reflection, 136, 141, 143, 278–287
Galilean Moons, 230–237, 260 Star forming, 141, 274–278
Surface Features, 146, 224, 227, 232
O
L Orbital Motion
Light pollution, 101, 105, 145, 147, 148, 152, Angular, 55
154, 155, 171, 285, 295, 301, 302 Lunar, 63, 78–81
Lunar libration, 12 Orbital Velocities, 8
Lunar modeling Orthoscopic view, 127, 136
Index 353
P S
Pantograph, 110–114 Saturn
Parallax, 328 Moon, 222, 225, 230, 240, 250, 254–261
Planets Rings, 85, 240, 245, 249–251, 254, 255
Classical planets, 73, 182–188, Roche limit, 238–250, 256
193, 207 Skyglow, 115, 146, 147, 152, 153, 155
Conjunction, 109, 185–186 Star clusters
Elongation, 189, 190 Globular clusters, 131, 141, 143, 159, 162,
Inferior planets, 187, 190–192, 194, 202, 164, 263–270, 281, 293
205, 219 Nebulosity, 141, 175, 268, 273–275
Inner planets, 177–206, 219 Open clusters, 115, 132, 143, 144, 169,
Opposition, 187, 208, 216, 227 171, 172, 175, 263, 264, 267–270,
Superior planets, 187, 194, 201, 202, 219 274, 287
Planisphere, 76, 96–103, 117, 124, 159, 170, Star color, 162, 172, 274
179, 181, 184, 185, 272, 309 Star hopping, 122, 130, 133, 137–141
Pluto, 82, 84, 94, 223–225 Stellar magnitude, 347
Porro prism, 128, 330, 333 Steradians, 153
Prograde motion, 216
T
Q Telescope tracking
Quadrant, 39, 64, 65, 69–77, 113, 118, 120 Star Hopping, 130
Terminator, 12, 15, 16, 18, 21, 29, 32, 37, 40,
46, 50
R Transit, 235–238
Reflector telescope, 20, 298, 316–318, 320,
329
Refractor telescope, 20, 136, 206, 210, 234, V
315–317, 321 Venus
Retrograde motion, 183, 186–188, Phases, 191–206, 313
216–219
Revolution, 55, 206
Roof prism, 333 Z
Rotation, 20, 55, 64–69, 78, 80, 81, 165, 208, Zenithal hole, 159
223, 225, 229, 292 Zodiac, 97, 183, 188, 193, 216, 218
Zones, 226–230

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Barth D. Star Mentor. Hands-On Projects and Lessons - Astronomy For Beginners 2022

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Daniel E.

The Patrick Moore

More information about this series at https://link.springer.com/bookseries/3192

ISSN 1431-9756 ISSN 2197-6562 (electronic)

Cover image: © m-gucci/Getty Images/iStock

The author wishes to thank fellow astronomer Thomas A. Mangelsdorf,

Astronomy is transformative. The first view through a telescope or binocu-

How This Book is Organized

1 Becoming a Star Mentor��������������������������������������������������������������������������� 1

Following Up����������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 40

What Have We Learned?������������������������������������������������������������������������ 87

Facts You Need to Know������������������������������������������������������������������������ 134

Observation Time!��������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 173

Facts You Need to Know������������������������������������������������������������������������ 221

Facts You Need to Know������������������������������������������������������������������������ 268

Understanding the Eye������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 311

What is a Star Mentor, anyway?

D. E. Barth, Star Mentor: Hands-On Projects and Lessons in Observational 1

much was actually discovered with telescopes of 150-mm (6-inch) aperture

Given that I was a physics teacher, virtually everyone who showed up to

Activities Indoors and Out

As Star Mentors, we will confront this problem regularly. The solution to

The Earth and Moon

D. E. Barth, Star Mentor: Hands-On Projects and Lessons in Observational 7

Activity 1: What Shape Is the Moon?

“You’re kidding right? It’s round.”

Facts You Need to Know

1. Every planetary (and lunar) surface has been reshaped by impactors,

Building the Lunar Model (Fig. 2.1)

1. One meter of nylon web strapping (I cut mine from an automotive

Fig. 2.2 Gluing coins to the nylon strap. (Credit: Author)

Exploring the Model

tracking, and it is one of the most fundamental skills a new astronomer

What Have We Learned?

No theory can be successfully demonstrated with just one small set of

Activity 2: Sketching the Moon Using the Clock Method

Facts You Need to Know

1. Prepared sketch paper, clipboard, pencil

to provide regular challenges that instill knowledge and a sense of accom-

1. Begin with a prepared sketching sheet that consists of a circle

What Have We Learned?

Activity 3: Modeling the Lunar Surface in Clay

Facts You Need to Know

Building the Model

1. A large block of light-colored modeling clay (about 500 grams),

ancient surfaces with almost as many craters covering them as the

Exploring the Model

2 cm, and 4 cm in size; the 2 cm crater required 10 times the energy

Fig. 2.19 Students working on clay Moon maps. (Credit: Author)

Whether you are looking at high-resolution photos from NASA or through

What Have We Learned?

This activity is a fascinating example of how expectations affect outcomes.

Activity 4: Exploring the Lunar Maria

It is said that familiarity breeds contempt.4 Certainly this is true of the

Facts You Need to Know

Fig. 2.21 Diagram of the lunar phase cycle. (Credit: Author)

Mare Fecunditatus is larger and oddly shaped. It has a maximum diam-

Our last maria is also the greatest: Oceanus Procellarum (Ocean of

How This Book is Organized

1 Becoming a Star Mentor�� 1

Following Up�� 40

What Have We Learned?�� 87

Facts You Need to Know�� 134

Observation Time!�� 173

Facts You Need to Know�� 221

Facts You Need to Know�� 268

Understanding the Eye�� 311

Activities Indoors and Out

Activity 1: What Shape Is the Moon?

Facts You Need to Know

1. Every planetary (and lunar) surface has been reshaped by impactors,

Building the Lunar Model (Fig. 2.1)

1. One meter of nylon web strapping (I cut mine from an automotive

Exploring the Model

What Have We Learned?

Activity 2: Sketching the Moon Using the Clock Method

Facts You Need to Know

1. Begin with a prepared sketching sheet that consists of a circle

What Have We Learned?

Activity 3: Modeling the Lunar Surface in Clay

Facts You Need to Know

Building the Model

1. A large block of light-colored modeling clay (about 500 grams),

Exploring the Model

What Have We Learned?

Activity 4: Exploring the Lunar Maria

Facts You Need to Know

What Have We Learned?

Activity 5: Making Craters in Flour

Facts You Need to Know

1. Craters change the landscape in a matter of seconds. The Barringer

Building the Model

What Have We Learned?

Activity 6: Exploring Craters in Plaster

Facts You Need to Know

1. Working with Plaster of Paris takes practice. Plaster can be a messy

3. A permanent model offers many advantages over a temporary clay or

Building the Model

Exploring the Model

What Have We Learned?

Finding the Size of Modeled Lunar Features

Activity 7: How Big Is the Moon’s Orbit?

Facts You Need to Know

Building the Model

5. 15 meters (50 ft) of stout, non-stretchable cord (a paracord, clothesline,

Exploring the Model

Mini-Activity: Sketching the Moon’s Orbit to Scale

Mini-Activity: Apparent Size of the Moon

Mini-Activity: Traveling to the Moon

What Have We Learned?

Activity 8: Exploring Earth’s Rotation

Facts You Need to Know

Conducting the Activity

1. A ruler marked in centimeters. A yardstick, tape measure, or a ruler

1. Begin at sunset by measuring the altitude of the Moon with a ruler –

What Have We Learned?

Activity 9: Building and Exploring the Quadrant

Facts You Need to Know

1. Building the quadrant is a fairly simple exercise that can be accom-

Building the Quadrant

Exploring the Quadrant

Quadrant I : Theta Phi

What Have We Learned?

Activity 10: Tracking the Moon’s Orbital Motion

Facts You Need to Know

1. The Moon’s orbit around the Earth takes approximately 28 days, or

several nights. It is important to recognize that this activity requires us to

Conducting the Activity

1. A ruler marked in centimeters. A yardstick, tape measure, or a ruler

1. Begin by choosing your observation time. Be sure that you can be