Welcome to BBC Sky at Night Magazine - skyatnightmagazine

Mercury passing in front of the Sun captured in 2006 by the Solar Optical Telescope. Credit: Hinode JAXA/NASA/PPARC

Transit of Mercury, 11 November 2019: what it is and how to see it

NASA’s VIPER rover to seek water ice at Moon’s south pole

What can we do about light pollution?

ULC Observatory's new Perren Telescope. Credit: UCL

University College London Observatory unveils new 80cm Perren telescope

A focal length of 1,000mm (or above) is needed to define Mercury against the Sun’s disc. Credit: Pete Lawrence

Astrophoto guides

How to photograph the transit of Mercury

Latest articles

Stargazing for beginners

New to astronomy? Get started with our newcomers' guides.

An image of Venus captured by the Venus Express spacecraft.

Observing guide The best planets to see in November 2019

Longer nights mean more time at the telescope. Make sure you're prepared for the 2019/20 astronomy season. Credit: m-gucci/GettyImages

Astronomy guide Night-sky highlights, autumn-winter 2019-2020

Can you spot each of Patrick Moore's top galaxies to see in the night sky during autumn?

Patrick Moore’s top 5 autumn galaxies

Read more beginners' guides

Space science

'Dr Space Junk' Alice Gorman.

Dr Space Junk: interview with a space archaeologist

An image of the aurora over Earth, as seen from the International Space Station on 26 June 2017. Credit: NASA

What causes the Northern Lights?

Patrick Moore pictured at his house in Selsey with a globe of the Moon. (Photo by Keystone/Getty Images)

How Patrick Moore mapped the Moon

A false-colour image showing aurorae hovering over Saturn’s south polar region. Credit: VIMS Team, U. Arizona, U. Leicester, JPL, ASI, NASA

What do aurorae look like on other planets?

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Astronomy equipment reviews

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

$Istar Perseus AT150-12 achromatic refractor$

Istar Perseus AT150-12 achromatic refractor review

$Meade Series 6000 115mm apo refractor$

Meade Series 6000 115mm apo refractor review

Sky-Watcher SkyMax 180 Pro Maksutov-Cassegrain

Sky-Watcher SkyMax 180 Pro Maksutov-Cassegrain review

Sky-Watcher SkyHawk 1145P SynScan altaz Go-To Newtonian

Sky-Watcher SkyHawk 1145P SynScan altaz Go-To Newtonian

Sky-Watcher Heritage-90 Virtuoso

Sky-Watcher Heritage-90 Virtuoso

Meade ETX 90 Observer telescope

Meade ETX 90 Observer telescope

Read more equipment reviews

Astronomy guides

Aurora Over Teepees, Yellowknife. Credit: iStock/ Getty Images

A traveller’s guide to aurora hunting

A sense of wonder: from a dark-sky site a wealth of deep-sky objects can be seen even with the naked eye, including the Milky Way, Orion Nebula and star clusters such as the Pleiades and Hyades. Credit: Mixetto/iStock/Getty Images

Deep-sky astronomy: a beginner’s guide

Slooh's Chile setup. Credit: Slooh Observatory

Armchair astrophotography: how to use a remote telescope

Good preparation will help you get the most out the darker autumn and winter nights. Credit: Astrobobo/iStock/GettyImages

The astronomy season returns: how to prepare for darker nights

Podcasts

We The Curious Planetarium. Credit Lee Pullen

Radio Astronomy Podcast 3D planetarium shows and extra-terrestrial life

An erupting volcano on Jupiter's moon Io. Credit: NASA/JPL

Radio Astronomy Podcast Apollo 12, volcanic moons and cannibal galaxies

Jim-Al-Khalili

Radio Astronomy Podcast Jim Al-Khalili, OSIRIS REx, IIAPY 2019, tardigrades on the Moon

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

16 gadgets to turn your smartphone into an astrophotography camera

The final shot of M33, stacked from 13 two-minute exposures, after post-processing. Credit: Dave Eagle

Astrophoto guides

Image processing How to use DeepSkyStacker for astrophotography

Supernova remnant LMC N63A. Credit Enhanced Image by Judy Schmidt (CC BY-NC-SA) based on images provided courtesy of NASA/CXC/SAO & NASA/STScI.)

Astrophotography

Eye On The Sky The remains of an exploded star appear in X-ray

Galaxy IC 4653. Credit: ESA/Hubble & NASA, D. Rosario (CEA, Durham University)

Astrophotography

Eye On The Sky Newborn stars glow in a galaxy 80 million lightyears from Earth

Jupiter's stormy atmosphere captured by NASA's Juno spacecraft. Credit NASA/JPL-Caltech/SwRI/MSSS/Kevin M. Gill.

Astrophotography

Eye On The Sky Jupiter's stormy atmosphere captured by NASA's Juno spacecraft

Astrophotography galleries

Into the Shadow László Francsics, Budapest, Hungary, 21 January 2019. Category: Our Moon (overall winner). Equipment: Sony Alpha 99 camera, 250mm Newtonian, Sky-Watcher EQ6 Pro mount.

Astrophotography

IIAPY 2019 winners revealed

Keeper of the Light James Stone, Bruny Island, Tasmania, Australia, 21 July 2017. Equipment: Nikon D750 camera, 15 mm lens. (IIAPY 2018 category: People & Space).

Astrophotography

IIAPY Australian astrophotography

Mariusz Szymaszek, Garðskagi lighthouse, Iceland, 2 February 2016. Equipment: Sony A7S camera, Samyang 14mm lens.

Astrophotography

Gallery Best readers' images of the aurora

The Rosette Nebula, William Tan, Johor Bahru, Malaysia, ZWO ASI1600MM camera, Skyrover 110ED doublet len, iOptron ZEQ25 mount.

Astrophotography

Gallery The best nebula astrophotos sent in by readers

A selection of images released to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Chandra X-ray Observatory. X-ray: NASA/CXC/UMass/D. Wang et al.; Radio: SARAO/MeerKAT

Gallery Chandra X-ray Observatory marks 20th anniversary with new astro images

Credit: Giovanni Fidone‎

Astrophotography

Sunspots: AR2192 in pictures

Spaceflight

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

Spacesuit engineer Amy Ross (left) and NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine (second from left) watch spacesuit engineer Kristine Davis wearing a prototype of NASA’s Exploration Extravehicular Mobility Unit (xEMU), 15 October 2019 at NASA headquarters in Washington. Dustin Gohmert (right), Orion Crew Survival Systems Project Manager, sports the Orion Crew Survival System suit, Credit: (NASA/Joel Kowsky).

A look at the NASA Artemis, SpaceX Crew Dragon and Virgin Galactic spacesuits

Alexei Leonov pictured during the Voskhod 2 mission that saw him become the first person to perform a spacewalk. Credit: Getty Images / SVF2 / Contributor

Alexei Leonov, the first person to spacewalk, dies aged 85

An artist's impression of the Galileo spacecraft at Jupiter. Credit: NASA

The scientific achievements of NASA’s Galileo mission at Jupiter

Former NASA astronaut Kathy Sullivan. Credit: Debbie Rowe

Interview Astronaut Kathy Sullivan on Hubble, Space Shuttle and being the first US woman to spacewalk

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

Abigail_Fraeman_NASA

Roving robots on Mars: interview with a NASA Opportunity scientist

Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/Wendy Stenzel

How the Kepler space telescope came to be

DIY Astronomy

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

How to hold your binoculars steady during long observing sessions. Credit: Steve Tonkin

How to hold your binoculars steady

The sensor of a DSLR camera is tucked behind the reflex mirror – as such, the camera has to be switched on while you clean it. Credit: Ian Evenden

How to clean your DSLR camera sensor

The finished smartphone finderscope. Follow our guide to make your own. Credit: Mark Parrish

Build a smartphone finderscope for your telescope

Click here for more DIY Astronomy projects