Astronomy

The extraordinary Ring Nebula (Messier 57), showing off its multilayered form. Image: Bob Fera. Messier 57, more famously known as the Ring Nebula, graces the constellation Lyra as one of the finest planetary nebulae in the night sky. A true summer showpiece, it’s remarkably easy to locate and observe—even through modest instruments as small as 80mm (about three inches) in aperture. As June nights fall, M57 rises swiftly in the east, already standing 50 degrees above the horizon by the time twilight yields to what little darkness midsummer offers. By mid-month, it culminates overhead, shining steadily through the warm season’s haze. Though its appearance is striking, the Ring Nebula’s small apparent size—just 86 by 62 arcseconds—can be a slight letdown for those using binoculars. Its comp...

One of Webb’s strong points is its ability to directly image planets around another solar system. The telescope has been in operation for long enough now that a flood of those images are starting, as more and more systems come under the telescope’s gaze. One of those is described in a recent paper and press release from NASA. According to the paper, the planet in a nearby system is about the size of Saturn, which would make it the smallest planet ever found by direct observation. The planet is located in TWA 7, a system located about 111 light years from Earth - a blink of an eye in galactic terms. Also known as CE Antliae, it is located in the constellation Antlia, hence its name. It garnered some attention in the astronomical community as of late due to its well-defined protopla...

Omegon 2 x 54 wide-field binoculars Multi-coating and blackened lens edges prevent reflections to ensure a clean untroubled field. Galilean binoculars go all of the way back to, well, the time of the great man himself. I vaguely recall reading once that he conceived of strapping two of his telescopes together, but the source of this tale now escapes me. We do know that the first pair to be constructed were made by fellow Italian Cherubin d’Orléans in the 1670s, mounting two Galilean telescopes in parallel to achieve ‘binocular’ vision. He even incorporated individual eyepiece focusing! In the nineteenth century, abbreviated ‘opera glass’ versions magnifying about 3× found favour in theatres – used as much to observe fellow patrons as the action on stage. A resurgence occurred in the mid-t...

It's official. NASA's Fiscal Year 2026 Discretionary Budget Request (FY 2026) has been released, and the news is decidedly mixed. In a previous article, we examined the FY 2026 Budget Request (released on May 2nd) and its recommendations for the coming year. With the release of the FY 2026 Budget, what was previewed and the anxiety it caused for many have been confirmed. While the Budget bolsters funding for NASA's exploration programs for the Moon and Mars, it also contains deep cuts to many other programs and the cancellation of key elements in NASA's Moon to Mars architecture. In addition to reducing NASA's overall funding for the coming year, the Budget calls for the cancellation of the Space Launch System (SLS), the Orion spacecraft, and the Lunar Gateway. It also contains de...