Posts by 

Deborah Byrd

Arcturus, brightest star of the northern sky

Arcturus is the brightest star in the northern half of the sky. It's easy to find in spring in the Northern Hemisphere near the handle of the Big Dipper.

Visible planets and night sky guide for May

Visible planets and night sky guide. The moon is now one day past full. It's rising in the east about an hour after sunset, near bright red Antares.

Happy May Day! Today is an astronomy holiday

Happy May Day! This annual celebration has its roots in astronomy as 1 of 4 cross-quarter days. Dancing around a maypole is a traditional May Day celebration.

Hercules is between 2 bright stars: Vega and Arcturus

The bright stars Arcturus and Vega can help you find the constellation Hercules and its Keystone asterism. Hercules is home to 2 fabulous globular clusters.

What is a micromoon? We have 2 coming in May

What is a micromoon? It's a full or new moon near its farthest from Earth for the month. Depending on your definition, 2026 has either 2 or 3 full micromoons.

Here’s how to see the Lunar X and V at 1st-quarter moon

Lunar X and Lunar V are optical features on the moon. They are visible through a telescope for several hours around the time of the 1st quarter moon.

Summer solstice in Mars’ southern hemisphere is April 25

The summer solstice in Mars' southern hemisphere happens on April 25, 2026. Summertime there typically kicks off dust season on the red planet.

Happy Earth Day! Why do we celebrate it on April 22?

April 22 is the date of Earth Day in part because of Arbor Day, an earlier observance. The focus for 2026 is "Our Power, Our Planet."

Universe’s expansion rate: ‘Something doesn’t add up’

We think we understand the local universe's expansion rate. But measurements confirm a mismatch that could point to a need for new physics.

Artemis 2 splashdown! Astronauts return safely from historic mission

The Artemis 2 spacecraft and its 4 astronauts safely splashed down in the Pacific Ocean near California at 5:07 last night. Welcome home!