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 • Get out under dark skies for the Perseids this month!

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Extra content ONLINE • Visit www.skyatnightmagazine.com/bonus-content/YG8K5WQ to access this month’s selection of exclusive Bonus Content

CURIOSITY LOOKS BACK • The NASA rover sends back its latest postcard from Mars

Hubble edits out satellite interference • New software will remove satellite streaks from the telescope’s images

Comment

Kepler's last planets found in archive data • The three worlds were detected when the now-defunct spacecraft was ‘running on fumes’

Landmark find as clearing cosmic fog witnessed • The observation proves that galaxies transformed the early Universe

Astronomers differ over Betelgeuse's demise

NEWS IN BRIEF

Crucial ingredient of life found by JWST • Molecule discovered around an infant star in the Orion Nebula

Solar activity silences radio communications

Lunar landings could create a dust dilemma • Moondust kicked up by spacecraft may cause problems for those in orbit

Massive stars ditch their discs • Stars in Sigma Orionis seem to shed materials that could build new worlds

The Sky at Night TV show, past, present and future INSIDE THE SKY AT NIGHT • In the latest episode of The Sky at Night, Arik Kershenbaum considers whether it’s inevitable that intelligent alien civilisations are out there

Looking back: The Sky at Night 27 August 1979

The Sky at Night AUGUST

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

BBC Sky at Night

We pick the best live and virtual astronomy events and resources this month WHAT'S ON

PICK OF THE MONTH

What does space smell like? • From rum to rotten eggs, Jonathan Powell turns his nose to heaven’s scents

See the Perseids in their prime • With no bright moonlight to spoil things, 2023 could be a vintage year for summer’s strongest meteor shower. Paul G Abel tells us how to make the most of the Perseids

What to bring on a meteor watch • A few common items to have as you settle in for a night of meteor spotting

Estimate the brightness of meteors • Being able to make a quick reckoning of meteor magnitude is a useful skill

Catch Saturn's rings before they disappear • Jane Clark explains the gear, software and techniques beginners need to capture Saturn on camera before its famous rings vanish from view

Recording the rings • The best way to make an image of a planet is to record it on video

Smartphones and DSLRs • You can have a go at planetary photography using equipment you may already own

Modified webcams • A little DIY can turn the humble webcam into a planetary powerhouse

CMOS cameras • Dedicated planetary cameras yield the best results and needn’t break the bank

Processing your images • Combine 1,000 images into just one to create stunning planetary photographs

The great American eclipses • In a once-in-a-lifetime spectacle, two solar eclipses are about to cross over the USA. Jamie Carter has the details

Annular eclipse, 14 October 2023 • Ten countries lie in the path of the ring of fire

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