Explore Gamma Cassiopeiae (Navi) and the Ghost Nebula IC 63, its history, stellar energy, and connection to astronaut Gus Grissom.
Category Archives: Top Object
NGC 6883: Star Cluster Looks Like Asteroids!
Explore NGC 6883, a small star cluster in Cygnus, and discover its connection to a sprawling stellar neighborhood. Includes sketch under suburban skies.
Stars Fell Like Snow: Witnesses to the 1833 Leonid Meteor Storm
The 1833 Leonid meteor storm stunned America. Read the harrowing eyewitness accounts of the night the stars fell like snow and the sky caught fire.
VV Cephei: The Colossal Supergiant of Cepheus
Explore VV Cephei, a massive red / orange supergiant in Cepheus. Find viewing tips, photos, and sketches for this rare and fascinating star.
Struve 331: A Binary of White and Blue-Green in Perseus
Struve 331 (HD 18537) is an optical double star in the constellation Perseus, bet viewed in Autumn. The pair of stars feature a bright white primary and a secondary fainter star that’s blue. Backyard astronomers should be able to split the double easily with most scopes to find that the bright white contrasted against the blue star makes for a pretty enchanting pair.
This double is also known as STF 331 and SAO 23763.
Messier 52 (NGC 7654): A Small Scorpion in Cassiopeia
M52 is a condensed cluster of mostly faint stars sitting in the Milky Way sea of stars. This makes the object tougher to find.
NGC 457: The Owl Cluster in Cassiopeia
An owl hides out in Cassiopeia, so on autumn and winter nights, turn your scope toward the constellation and look for cluster and its two bright stars that make up the eyes.
Iota Cassiopeiae: An Unforgettable Triple
Discover Iota Cassiopeiae, a triple star system hidden in Cassiopeia’s “W.” Through a telescope, it reveals a stunning trio of diamond-like stars.
The Garden Astronomer 