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Larry Sessions

Larry Sessions

Larry Sessions has written many favorite posts in EarthSky's Tonight area. He's a former planetarium director in Little Rock, Fort Worth and Denver and an adjunct faculty member at Metropolitan State University of Denver. He's a longtime member of NASA's Solar System Ambassadors program. His articles have appeared in numerous publications including Space.com, Sky & Telescope, Astronomy and Rolling Stone. His small book on world star lore, Constellations, was published by Running Press.

Moon in Gemini.

Moon and Gemini stars on April 1 and 2

Posted by in Tonight | 4 days ago
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Watch for Gemini’s 2 brightest stars – Castor and Pollux – near tonight’s moon. On the other side of the moon, you’ll see a 3rd bright star. It’s Procyon in the constellation Canis Minor, the Lesser Dog.

Mimosa, 2nd-brightest in Southern Cross

Posted by in Astronomy Essentials | Brightest Stars | 5 days ago
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To see Mimosa, you need to be at the latitude of New Orleans, Hawaii, Cairo or New Delhi. From the Southern Hemisphere, Mimosa is a prominent and beloved star.
Image of bright star Pollux against a backdrop of fainter stars.

Pollux: The brighter twin star

Posted by in Brightest Stars | Space | 1 month ago
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Pollux, the brightest star in the constellation Gemini, blazes in a golden light next to its bluish-white heavenly twin, Castor, in the evening skies of the Northern Hemisphere’s spring.

Image of bright star Castor against a backdrop of fainter stars.

Castor is six stars in one

Posted by in Brightest Stars | Space | 1 month ago
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The bright bluish-white star, Castor, in the constellation Gemini, appears to our eyes as a single star. But it’s actually a family of 6 stars.

Come to know orange Arcturus in Boötes

Posted by and in Astronomy Essentials | Brightest Stars | 1 month ago
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Orange Arcturus is more evolved than our sun and has swollen up to a larger size. It’s less than 37 light-years away and appears as the brightest star north of the celestial equator. The Big Dipper can help you find it.

Procyon is the Little Dog Star

Posted by in Astronomy Essentials | Brightest Stars | 2 months ago
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The Dog Star, Sirius, is easy to spot because it’s the sky’s brightest star. Procyon – the other Dog Star – is near its brighter brother on the sky’s dome.

See a faint star cluster near bright Sirius

Posted by in Tonight | 2 months ago
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Sirius is easy to find. It’s the sky’s brightest star. If you have binoculars and a dark location, look near it for the star cluster M41.

Rigel in Orion is blue-white

Posted by in Astronomy Essentials | Brightest Stars | 3 months ago
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Rigel, brightest star in the easy-to-see constellation of Orion the Hunter, shines with a blue-white color. Hidden behind its brilliant classic beauty is a fascinating and complex stellar life history.

A crescent moon with lines drawn between the 2 horns of the crescent, and a 2nd line drawn perpendicular to the 1st to indicate the sun's whereabouts.

Moon phase a clue to the sun’s position

Posted by in Tonight | 3 months ago
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If you look in a clear western sky at dusk and early evening, you should spot the waxing crescent moon. Notice that its lighted crescent points toward the sunset.

Can you see stars’ different colors?

Posted by in Tonight | 3 months ago
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December is the perfect time for noticing the colors of the stars. Never noticed them? Today’s sky chart can help guide your eye.