Galaxies

Celestial Visitor: Mars. You’ll see a bright "star" near the Moon, Mars — the planet long blamed for alien invasions in fiction. While Martian fears have faded, real space threats remain, like rogue asteroids. In 2013, one zipped past Earth while another exploded over Russia, injuring over a thousand. However, the ultimate doomsday scenario won’t come from space rocks, pandemics, or even climate change — it’ll come from our own Sun. In about 1.1 billion years, the Sun’s growing heat will boil Earth’s oceans, ending life as we know it. So, enjoy the night sky… while you can (you've got time).

There are two universes—the one we see, and the one we never will. The visible universe, just a sliver of the cosmos, ends where light can no longer reach us. Beyond that lies a possibly infinite realm—endless galaxies, stars, and mysteries forever out of reach. A groundbreaking study of 900,000 galaxies hints at this staggering vastness, suggesting that what we observe is zero percent of everything. An infinite universe could mean whole regions governed by unknown laws of physics. And if our view is that limited, can we trust the conclusions we’ve drawn? While science gives us solid facts, like the rotation of Mars, infinity challenges our grasp of the cosmos—and maybe that’s why it rarely makes the headlines.

Summer Solstice Oddities: On Friday, June 20th at 10:43 p.m. marks the official start of summer! While ancient cultures celebrated solstices with flair (sometimes literally tossing people off pyramids), we now settle for noting the longest day of the year. Expect the sun at its highest, shortest shadows, and sunsets as far north as they get. Upstate New York gets over 15 hours of sunlight and the longest twilight of the year—great for solar fans, not so much for stargazers.

On Sunday night, June 1, enjoy an easy and beautiful sky show: a crescent Moon pairs with two bright stars—one blue-white, one orange. The star just below the Moon is Regulus, the brilliant heart of Leo the Lion, once known as “Qalb” and later named by Copernicus. To the Moon’s right, the orange glow of Mars adds a planetary touch, though it’s dimmer now, sitting on the far side of its orbit. Look west anytime between nightfall and midnight for this celestial trio—no telescope needed.

This month look up for a colorful celestial display! Just find the crescent moon in the western sky—sitting in a line with orange-hued Mars and pale blue Regulus, the brightest star in Leo. Together, they create a striking trio of white, orange, and blue—a patriotic parade in the night sky. Tune in to hear when the magic will happen.

As we enter the moonless phase of the month — ideal for stargazing — it’s worth noting that even the darkest rural skies aren’t truly black. Natural skyglow, made up of airglow, Zodiacal Light, scattered starlight, and the unresolved shimmer of our galaxy, keeps the night subtly illuminated. During this period of solar maximum, the upper atmosphere glows more intensely, making the phenomenon even more striking. Despite urban light pollution, nature still puts on a quietly radiant show overhead.

Science shows and websites often explore wild ideas about the cosmos, like multiverses or the possibility that we’re living in a computer simulation. Unlike reliable measurements — such as Mars’ rotation, which is constant and observable — cosmology relies heavily on models built from limited data. Claims like the universe becoming transparent 379,000 years after the Big Bang sound precise but are rooted in theory. With 96% of the universe made up of mysterious dark matter and dark energy, and the rest possibly infinite, our observations cover only a tiny portion. As a result, cosmology builds layered assumptions that frequently shift, like when scientists thought the universe’s expansion was slowing in 1997 — only to find the opposite a year later.

When darkness first falls these nights, the sky’s brightest star hovers in the west. This is the planet Jupiter. And just above it is a truly awesome object. It’s the twisted remains of one of the greatest start explosions. Tune in to hear how it could possibly be reached and what exactly happened.

For anyone with a telescope, Saturn is a knockout. Check out the magnificent rings! Once every 50 years those rings are angled towards us and the sun. This spring is Saturn’s equinox, so it’s time to celebrate.

Tune in to hear about an upcoming vernal equinox! Many civilizations have made vernal equinoxes into special or even sacred days. Learn how the sun is shifting into new constellations, and what most people get wrong.