BBC Sky at Night

Sky at Night magazine is your practical guide to astronomy. Each issue features the world’s biggest and best night sky guide complete with star charts, observing tutorials and in-depth equipment reviews to ensure that amateur astronomers never miss those must-see events.

Welcome • October brings a rare ring of fire and a bite out of the Moon

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Sky at Night - lots of ways to enjoy the night sky…

This month's contributors

Extra content ONLINE • Visit www.skyatnightmagazine.com/bonus-content/y8phiea to access this month’s selection of exclusive Bonus Content

STEPPING INTO THE RING • JWST turns its attention to the Ring Nebula

Colossal waves crash on stellar surface • A companion star could be creating breakers 4 million kilometres high

Comment

India's Chandrayaan-3 lands at Moon's south pole • The achievement makes India the fourth nation capable of controlled landings on the Moon

The Galilean moons in a new light • JWST’s infrared gaze gives a unique view of the moons

Red dwarfs pummel their planets

NEWS IN BRIEF

Mysterious star points to magnetar origins • Never-before-seen example may reveal source of ultra-magnetism

Martian seasons may have helped life emerge

A novel way to detect unseen worlds • Jupiter and Io’s interactions inspired a new method for finding exoplanets

Touching the night sky • 3D maps could reveal the cosmos to more people than ever before

INSIDE THE SKY AT NIGHT • In September, The Sky at Night met Abigail Frost who helps operate the telescopes at the Paranal Observatory in Chile. She tells us about her job

Looking back: The Sky at Night 18 October 1986

INTERACTIVE • Email us at inbox@skyatnightmagazine.com

ON FACEBOOK • As we reported on India’s Chandrayaan-3 landing on the Moon, many of you posted your messages of congratulation

SCOPE DOCTOR • Our equipment specialist cures your optical ailments and technical maladies With Steve Richards

BBC Sky at Night

SOCIETY IN FOCUS

WHAT'S ON

PICK OF THE MONTH

By the light of the silvery Moon • Jonathan Powell considers the natural world’s connection to the Moon and stars

Astronomy Photographer of the Year • BBC Sky at Night Magazine is proud to reveal the 2023 winners of the world’s biggest astrophotography competition

The judges

OBSERVING off the beaten track • Fancy a change from those familiar stargazing targets you’ve visited time and again? Stuart Atkinson is your guide to 10 dramatic alternative night-sky wonders to seek out

The Sky Guide • OCTOBER 2023

OCTOBER HIGHLIGHTS • Your guide to the night sky this month

NEED TO KNOW • The terms and symbols used in The Sky Guide

DON'T MISS Partial lunar eclipse • The top sights to observe or image this month

PICK OF THE MONTH • Our celestial neighbourhood in October

THE NIGHT SKY - OCTOBER • Explore the celestial sphere with our Northern Hemisphere all-sky chart

MOONWATCH • October’s top lunar feature to observe

COMETS AND ASTEROIDS • Comet Hartley 2 should be bright and high for observation all month

STAR OF THE MONTH • Markab, the ‘saddle’ in an iconic autumn asterism

BINOCULAR TOUR With Steve Tonkin • Wrestle a muscleman and do some bird-watching in our look around Cassiopeia

THE SKY GUIDE CHALLENGE • Can you capture colours in the shadow of this month’s slender lunar eclipse?

DEEP-SKY TOUR • Enjoy hunting down five clusters and a nebula in the western half of Cassiopeia

AT A GLANCE • How the Sky Guide events will appear in October

What we still don't...