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Click HERE for
the latest realtime
solar/auroral data.
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My latest experiments with astro-imaging, using my 6" Newt and a Quickcam Pro:
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| Best 6 shots of Jupiter, averaged |
| Best single shot of Saturn.
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- SPACEDAILY
There's a plethora of informative updates at this website, stories ranging from astrophysics to recent satellite launches.
- SKY & TELESCOPE
Always a good idea to check out this page, as it keeps abreast of good things like new novae, comets, and impending cosmic-ray doom.
- AAVSO NEWS
Favorite cataclysmic variable in outburst? Find out with the Variable Star Observer's news flash site...
- CNN: SPACE
While not a dedicated space site, CNN sometimes has some moderately useful and informative space stories.
- SKY CALENDAR
Don't miss current astronomical events - use this online calendar to find out what's going on in our local area of the universe.
- GALILEO
The Galileo mission has been a priceless resource for info and nice new images of Jupiter and its tumultuous moons.
- CASSINI
Hopefully NASA's mission to Saturn will prove just as successful.
- MARS GLOBAL SURVEYOR
The Global Surveyor mission has been sending back really high-detail shots of the red planet. There are usually new images to peruse every month.
- EXTRASOLAR PLANETS
Then there's the search for the ones outside our solar system. Here's the offical website of Geoff Marcy, planet hunter extraordinaire.
- COMETS AND METEORS
Gary Kronk has one of the best webpages for observing comets and meteors. Lotsa history, too.
- MINOR PLANET CENTER
The IAU's MPC is the officially accepted list of all space chunks.
If your minor planet isn't listed with them, then it doesn't exist...
Also a great source for any ephemerides, should you want to see some space boulders for yourself.
- NEAR EARTH ASTEROID RENDEVOUS
This NASA Mission is just awesome. Our little probe has encountered (433) Eros, and is taking great images.
- AAVSO
For all your variable star needs, from finder charts to java-generated light curve, the AAVSO is there to help.
- ON THE INTERIOR OF STARS
Arthur Eddington's landmark book, still a gem to this day. Read it online.
- STAR TABLE LIST
Robin Gatter has provided us with just about all the stars down to magnitude 7, the SAO catalog included. Proper names, spectral type, precise position - all that good stuff.
- SEDS' Messier Database
This is a great place to start for pictures of your favorite faint fuzzies. They've also got great links to images taken by others. And while your at it, complete your very own Messier Marathon!
- SEDS' NGC Objects
For those who've outgrown the Messier objects, here are the NGC objects. Images, descriptions, Coordinates, etc...
- DIGITIZED SKY SURVEY
This a great place to find a picture of any place in the sky...enter in Right Ascension and Declination, or just have the SIMBAD system resolve the common name of your favorite Deep-Sky object. This can be a little slow sometimes, but the results are slick...And unless you're intending on doing serious astronomical work, make sure to specify GIF format - not FITS.
- NCSA ASTRO IMAGE LIBRARY
Another great lexicon of astronomy images is this library, with images in all sorts of wavelengths.
- HUBBLE SPACE TELESCOPE
Naturally one should start here for the best images anywhere.
- CHANDRA
For X-rays, this orbiting scope can't be beat.
- KECK
For ground-based observations, Keck is about the best in the world, weighing in with two 10 meter scopes.
- VLT
The VLT (Very Large Telescope) is actually 4 seperate 8 meter scopes, located in Chile.
- ALL THE OTHER TELESCOPES
More links than you can shake a stick at.
- AMATEUR TELESCOPE MAKING PAGE
Then again, for those of us who don't get any professional observing time, here's the ATM page, complete with several designs and plans for making your own light bucket. There's even more good stuff to be found on their links page.
- J-TRACK 3D
This is a great 3D Java app for viewing just about all of the satellites from an outside perspective. Lots of good background on each one, too.
- HEAVENS ABOVE
This site shows what satellites are visible from your skies on any given night...Just specify an area and go. It has Finder charts, and will even calculate Iridium Flares - an event well worth watching.
Here it is pre-specified for the Chicago area.
- SPACE TETHERS
Wacky concept, can't wait to see it implemented.
- INFRARED SATELLITE IMAGERY
Most amateur astronomy is, alas, dependent on the weather. Peruse the latest GOES image for the continental US.
- ASTROPHYSICS DATA SERVICE
See what the professional astrophysicist has to say...peruse abstracts and even some scanned papers from this library of asrophysical articles.
- PLANETARIUM SOFTWARE
Some software is always terribly useful for the amateur astronomer. Here's a link to a large variety covering several platforms and various licenses from freeware to commercial packages.
- BREAKTHROUGH PROPULSION PHYSICS
NASA's BPP program...very interesting stuff. Maybe getting to the closest star won't take unrealistic amounts of effort, fuel, and time if we can warp spacetime first. Okay, it's a pipe dream, but it's our last best effort to fool the speed of light.
- EDMUND SCIENTIFIC
ES has a homepage for all of your personal science project needs. Impress your friends - Buy their giant fresnel lens and start burning asphalt...
Comments? Kudos? Complaints?
Email me.
