Recent Astronomy Articles at Cosmic Pursuits

Auroral Activity Kicks Into High Gear

November 16, 2021 by Brian Ventrudo Filed Under: Celestial Events, Stargazing

An early-morning auroral display as seen from Calgary, Canada on Nov. 4, 2021

The sunrise comes late this time of year, especially for those who like me wake at 5 a.m. But on November 4, the man on the morning radio show announced, along with the standard traffic and weather reports, that a brilliant display of aurora borealis was underway and was visible from nearly anywhere in the city. So, despite a temperature well below freezing, I grabbed camera and tripod to head behind the house to see what all the fuss was about [Read more…] about Auroral Activity Kicks Into High Gear

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Contemplating the “Harp Star”

October 17, 2021 by Brian Ventrudo Filed Under: Deep Sky

Vega, the brightest star in the constellation Lyra.

“Out on the lawn I lie in bed, Vega conspicuous overhead…” -W.H. Auden

I see plenty of stars in my line of work, and I’ve yet to see one I don’t like. But if had to choose a favorite, it would be the dazzling star Vega, the jewel of the tiny constellation Lyra, the Lyre. Intensely bright and blue-white in color, Vega conjurs memories of pleasant summer evenings spent stargazing and offers astronomers a remote stellar laboratory to help understand how stars evolve [Read more…] about Contemplating the “Harp Star”

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The Crescent Nebula

September 17, 2021 by Brian Ventrudo Filed Under: Deep Sky

Of the many deep-sky sights in the constellation Cygnus along the rich band of the northern Milky Way, the Crescent Nebula (NGC 6888) isn’t the biggest or brightest, but it still finds its place on the target list of many astrophotographers and visual observers. This shimmering and intricate arc of glowing gas presents a rare example of a massive star in its end stages as it ejects mass at a furious rate on its way to a violent demise as a supernova.

[Read more…] about The Crescent Nebula

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Hard Sun

July 31, 2021 by Brian Ventrudo Filed Under: Atmospheric Sightings

A smoke-reddened sun setting over the western prairie of Alberta, Canada.

Our planet’s atmosphere, fragile and proportionately thin as the skin of an apple, is not living its best life right now. In my part of the world – western Canada – hundreds of wildfires have filled the air with grey-orange smoke for over a month, and the hot and bone-dry conditions show no sign of letting up. The only star I see these days is an angry red Sun. It’s an ominous sight, but still strangely beautiful as the fine smoke particles strongly scatter blue light out of the line of sight. Others have bigger problems than I, of course, but I do have a long list of astrophotography projects on hold. A good night of stargazing may still be weeks away. Is this the new normal?

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Dancing Galaxies

May 24, 2021 by Brian Ventrudo Filed Under: Science

The galaxies NGC 2936 and NGC 2937, collectively known as Arp 142 or the “Penguin and Egg” galaxies.

When it comes to galaxies, gravity and Newton’s first law of motion often combine to put the finest earthbound sculptors to shame. Take the galaxies NGC 2936 and NGC 2937, for instance. Here we see an everyday spiral galaxy bent and molded by the gravitational influence of a featureless elliptical companion galaxy into a graceful arc of stars and gas and dust a hundred thousand light years long. Together, the two bear a remarkable resemblance to a mother penguin holding watch over a shimmering egg. It’s one of the most beautiful galaxy pairs in the heavens [Read more…] about Dancing Galaxies

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