Jon Powell

Astronomy communicator

Jonathan Powell is a freelance writer and broadcaster. A former correspondent at BBC Radio Wales, he has written three books on astronomy and is currently astronomy columnist at the South Wales Argus.

Recent articles by Jon Powell

Illustration showing Genghis Kahn going into battle with a comet in the night sky

Key moments when cosmic events changed world history

halley's comet anti-comet umbrellas victorians

Anti-comet umbrellas and other strange Halley’s Comet inventions

Royal court astronomers. Credit: alex green/folio

A history of royal court astronomers

Artist's illustration of an astronaut in Earth orbit dropping a bag of tools

6 mishaps in the history of spaceflight

An illustration showing the proposed StarTram. Credit: NASA

7 spaceflight inventions that never took off

Did aurora play a part in the sinking of the Titanic? Credit: Alex Green / Folio

Did aurora play a part in the sinking of the Titanic?

OrionConstellation

Tales from the Eyepiece: Cold Winter Nights

Perseids-meteor-MAIN

Tales from the Eyepiece: Strangers in the Night

StoneKnivesMAIN

Astronomy and Society

Tales from the Eyepiece: Stone Knives And Bearskins

Getty Images / Cornelius Paas

Tales from the Eyepiece: Treading Carefully

An image of Halley’s Comet taken on 8 March 1986 by W. Liller from Easter Island. Credit: NASA/W. Liller - NSSDC's Photo Gallery (NASA)

Tales from the Eyepiece: Halley’s return

01 TFTEP - Eclipse pic

Tales from the Eyepiece: March 2015 eclipse