May 15, 1836: Francis Baily, an English astronomer, saw light shining through lunar ridges during an eclipse of the sun. These are now known as Baily's beads.
Corona Borealis, the Northern Crown, is an almost-perfect semicircle of stars. Learn to find it and identify its brightest star, and about its mythology.
The blue star Vega is the brightest light in the distinctive constellation Lyra the Harp. Vega is easy to spot in May by looking northeast in the evening.
On May 6, 1968, more than a year before he walked on the moon, Neil Armstrong narrowly escaped disaster during training. See Neil Armstrong's close call here.
Alan Shepard became the 1st American in space on May 5, 1961. His suborbital flight took place just 3 weeks after the Soviet Union's Yuri Gagarin orbited Earth.
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.
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.
Deborah Byrd (asteroid 3505 Byrd) helps edit EarthSky.org and is a frequent host of EarthSky videos. Deborah created the EarthSky radio series in 1991 and founded EarthSky.org in 1994. Prior to that, she had worked for the University of Texas McDonald Observatory since 1976, and created and produced their Star Date radio series. She has won a galaxy of awards from the broadcasting and science communities, including having an asteroid named in her honor in 1990, a Public Service Award from the National Science Board in 2003, and the Education Prize from the American Astronomical Society in 2020. A science communicator and educator since 1976, Byrd believes in science as a force for good in the world and a vital tool for the 21st century. "Being an EarthSky editor is like hosting a big global party for cool nature-lovers," she says.