Welcome to BBC Sky at Night Magazine - skyatnightmagazine

Neptune is located in a triangle formed by Phi (ϕ) Aquarii, 96 Aquarii and HIP 115257

Observing guide How to see the planets, December 2020

How to observe Saturn’s moons

Telescope eyepieces: a beginner’s guide

A conjunction of the moon with Venus and Jupiter, Chanthaburi, Chanthabur, Thailand, 28 November 2019. Credit: Chakarin Wattanamongkol / Getty Images

Observing guide Upcoming conjunctions and how to see them

An artist's illustration of exoplanet WASP-12b. Credit: NASA/ESA/G. Bacon

9 of the weirdest exoplanets in the Universe

What's new?

Christmas gift guides

Ideas and inspiration if you're shopping for an astronomer this month

Best astronomy and space gifts

Gift Guide Astronomy and space gifts 2020

Lego Apollo 11 moon lander

Gift guide Top space toys and gifts for kids

Best astronomy and space books. Pic: ESA

Gift guide The best astronomy and space books

The best telescopes for kids and young astronomers. Credit: BBC Sky at Night Magazine

Best telescopes for kids

Celestron Omni XLT AZ 102 Refractor/basic mount

Best telescopes for astronomy beginners

A conjunction of Venus, Jupiter and the moon from February 2019, taken using an iPhone 7. Credit: Jamie Carter

Smartphone astrophotography gadgets

Exploring the cosmos

How big is our Solar System? credit: MARK GARLICK/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY

How big is the Solar System?

Massive galaxy cluster MACS J0717.5+3745, as seen by the Hubble Space Telescope. Credit: NASA, ESA, Harald Ebeling (University of Hawaii at Manoa) & Jean-Paul Kneib (LAM)

What are the biggest objects in the Universe?

A computer model of the Kuiper Belt. Credit: NASA

What is the Kuiper Belt?

A closeup of the Tarantula Nebula, as seen by the Hubble Space Telescope. Credit: NASA, ESA

9 of the most mind-blowing facts about the Universe

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Astronomy equipment reviews

The latest telescopes, cameras, binoculars, mounts and accessories tried and tested.

Sky-Watcher StarQuest 130P Newtonian reflector

Sky-Watcher StarQuest 130P Newtonian reflector review

ZWO ASI 1600GT M camera review

ZWO ASI 1600GT M camera review

Altair Starwave 110ED-R refractor review

Altair Starwave 110ED-R refractor

Bresser Spezial Astro SF 15x70 binoculars

Binoculars for astronomy

Bresser Spezial Astro SF 15×70 binoculars review

Sky-Watcher Heritage 150P Flextube Dobsonian review

Sky-Watcher Heritage 150P Flextube Dobsonian review

Lacerta MGEN-3 stand-alone autoguider review. Credit: BBC Sky at Night Magazine

Astronomy accessories

Lacerta MGEN-3 stand-alone autoguider review

Read more equipment reviews

Astronomy guides

Celestron Omni XLT AZ 102 Refractor/basic mount

Astronomy FAQs I'm buying my first telescope. Should I get a reflector or a refractor?

Asterisms (shown in red) can cross constellations, which are in fact regions of sky, not just the main patterns. Credit: Pete Lawrence

Constellations and asterisms: what’s the difference?

Sundogs. Credit: Science Photo Library

Daytime astronomy 6 phenomena to spot before nightfall

Get to a good, dark location away from light pollution and you will see so many more stars. Credit: Carlos Fernandez

12 top tips for stargazing

Podcasts

Listen to the latest episode of the Radio Astronomy podcast, in which we discuss the past, present and future of the New Horizons mission. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

Radio Astronomy Podcast Past present and future of the New Horizons mission

What is a black hole? Janna Levin appears on the Radio Astronomy podcast

Radio Astronomy Podcast What's a black hole?

Listen to the latest episode of the Radio Astronomy podcast in which we Stuart Clark discusses the history of ancient astronomy.

Radio Astronomy Podcast Stuart Clark discusses the history of astronomy

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Astrophotography

Guides and galleries to help you get imaging the night sky

Credit: abriendomundo / iStock / Getty Images Plus

Astrophotography

Astrophotography All you need to know to image the night sky

A stacked image of a partial eclipse of the Moon, 10 January 2020. Credit: Dave Eagle

Astrophotography guides

How to stack DSLR images of the Moon

How to create a stunning skyscape photo. Credit: Brandon Yoshizawa.

Astrophotography guides

Skyscape photography: tips for capturing a stunning night sky

Starlight Xpress Trius Pro 694

Best CCD cameras for astrophotography 2020

How to photograph Neptune and Triton

Astrophotography guide Photograph Neptune and moon Triton

How to photograph the Orion Nebula. Credit: Pete Lawrence

Astrophotography guides

Astrophotography guide How to photograph the Orion Nebula

Astrophotography galleries

Northern Dragon's Eye Elena Pakhalyuk (Ukraine). Category: Aurora. Equipment Canon EOS 6D camera, 14 mm f/2.8 lens, ISO 1600, 30-second exposure.

Gallery Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2020 shortlist images revealed

Jason Durrant, near Beccles, Suffolk, UK, 11 July 2020. Equipment: Sony A7III, Tamron 28-70mm lens, ISO 3200, 5

Gallery Comet NEOWISE blazes across the night sky

Hubble has helped to define the shape of the Ring Nebula, revealing it to be doughnut shaped, with lower density material at its core. Credit: Credits: NASA, ESA and the Hubble Heritage (STScI/AURA)-ESA/Hubble Collaboration

Gallery Hubble highlights: 16 of the space telescope's most iconic images

Graeme Whippy, Essex, UK. Equipment: Nikon D5300 DSLR camera, 55-300mm lens.

Astrophotography

Gallery The 7-8 April Supermoon, in pictures

Soviet Space Graphics

Gallery 10 iconic Soviet space posters of the Cold War era

Veil Nebula 24 September 2015. A small section of the outer shell of the Veil Nebula, the remnant of a star’s violent death 8,000 years ago. Credit: NASA, ESA, Hubble Heritage Team

Hubble at 30 21 incredible images of the past decade

Spaceflight

Celebrating the latest missions and the history of humanity's journey into space

An artist's impression of the Pioneer Venus Orbiter releasing probes into Venus's atmosphere. Credit: NASA/NSSDCA

Did the Pioneer mission discover phosphine in the clouds of Venus?

Space Shuttle Paul Dye

Interview NASA Space Shuttle Flight Director Paul Dye

Japanese astronaut Satoshi Furukawa's LEGO model of the ISS, build on board the ISS. Credit: NASA

The strangest things found on the International Space Station

The International Space Station in Earth orbit. Credit: NASA/Roscosmos

The history of the International Space Station

Buzz Aldrin pictured on the surface of the Moon during the Apollo 11 mission. Credit: NASA

Apollo 11 the journey to land on the Moon

Carey Lisse, an instrument scientist on the New Horizons science team reacts after the team received confirmation from the spacecraft that it has completed the flyby of Pluto, Tuesday, July 14, 2015 at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) in Laurel, Maryland. Photo Credit: (NASA/Joel Kowsky)

Interview New Horizons' Kuiper Belt encounter

Dr Abigail Fraeman, deputy project scientist of the Opportunity rover mission, pictured with a model of NASA's Curiosity rover. Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

Roving robots on Mars: interview with a NASA Opportunity scientist

Artist's impression of the Kepler space telescope Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Wendy Stenzel

How the Kepler space telescope came to be

DIY astronomy

Read our practical guides to get the most out of your observing sessions

Build a guidescope using an old camera lens

Build a guidescope using an old camera lens

A DSLR can easily capture the elliptical smudge of M31, as well as satellite galaxies M32 and M110. Credit: Pete Lawrence

Astrophotography guides

How to photograph the Andromeda galaxy with a DSLR camera

How to collimate a Newtonian telescope

How to collimate a Newtonian telescope

More DIY astronomy projects