| Ceres ~ Last in a series that in early 2009, highlights the five dwarf planets named so far, here’s the astronomy around Ceres, initially called an asteroid and discovered in 1801. As goddess of the harvest and cereals especially, Ceres seems suited to the rulership of Virgo, leaving Mercury to Gemini only, as it probably ought to be… |
| Chandra X-ray Observatory ~ The Chandra X-ray Observatory orbits at an altitude of 139,000km or a third of the distance to the Moon. Since 1999 it has been NASA’s flagship mission for X-ray astronomy and numbers among the world’s greatest observatories. Try checking out the photo galleries and added information on the constellations especially… |
| Chariklo Has A Ring System ~ A learned article, with all credit to the original source. Chariklo was the fifth centaur to be discovered, extending a family of diminutive bodies situated between the outer planets and now growing in number as telescopes improve. At the time of writing, Chariklo has been spotted with a ring system, like Saturn and Uranus. Word to the Mother Ship… |
| Chasing Comets ~ Anticipating the visibility and brightness of any comet a long way in advance seems a tricky task, fraught with the sort of unpredictability that makes firm forecasts a risky business. It is lucky, these observations are a job for an astronomer rather than an astrologer, then. This site does it well, on a monthly basis that is not hard to follow… |
| Chiron
Shrinking! ~
After recent revelations about Xena being much smaller than first thought,
it is sobering to realise that this is not the only minor planet with
rapidly diminishing dimensions. Early work put Chiron’s diameter at up
to 400km, by 1998 this was down to 170km and in May 2006 it is thought to be 142km tops, according to the latest from Wikipedia… |
| Claimed Moons Of Earth ~ Other moons of Earth: natural satellites apart from our regular Moon that orbit this planet, have been mooted since the nineteenth century. A couple: named after Adam’s apocryphal first wife as the Black Moon Lilith (BML) and Dark Moon Lilith (DML), are still deployed by a few astrologers today. The former has a firmer astronomical foundation. |
| Comet ISON Observing Campaign ~ Dubbed the Comet of the Century and slated to shine fifteen times brighter than the Moon, Comet C/2012 S1 (ISON) reached its anticipated perihelion on Thanksgiving Day then disappeared, having only ever been seen by a few lucky scientists. A lot of astronomers and at least one high-profile astrologer, are feeling very silly right now… |
| Cometography ~
Comets have always inspired awe and wonder. This site is for all those
who have ever been gripped by such phenomena. You’ll find comprehensive
information regarding comets that are currently visible, periodic comets,
memorable comets and comet researchers and discoveries. An excellent resource. |
| Constellation Photos ~ This site has pictures of the constellations from the northern hemisphere with their figurative outlines drawn on top of them. I do wonder how anybody saw these representations in the sky originally and hugely admire those able to locate them consistently now, especially from their own backyards like these two people can… |
| Constellations And Their Stars ~ An older site so far as the Internet goes; produced by Chris Dolan during the 1990s when he was studying astronomy for his PhD at the University of Wisconsin. With plenty of technical information about the constellations and the stars that comprise them, be ready for a few links that no longer work or don’t yield the expected results. |
| Corot ~ Launched on 27 December 2006, the Corot space mission is searching for telluric exoplanets, meaning planets outside the solar system that are like the Earth, or exoEarths, to you and me. They expect by
observing thousands of stars, that “tens” of new Earths will soon be earmarked for the next property boom. |
| Curiosity Rover: Martian Solar Day #2 ~ I’d be remiss not featuring NASA’s Curiosity rover, currently beaming back some of the best pictures of the surface of Mars since landing there on August 6, 2012. This interactive panorama was stitched together and uploaded by Andrew Bodrov from Estonia, member of the International Virtual Reality Photography Association. |
| Current
Impact Risks ~ Can anyone remember a time when
there wasn’t an asteroid about to hit the Earth? It’s a perennially popular
subject for the media everywhere, but here you’ll find the true facts
and all the latest data. Again a part of NASA’s Near Earth Object program,
making a speciality of this sort of thing! |
| Danjon Scale ~ How the Moon appears during a total lunar eclipse is affected by atmospheric conditions here on Earth. While our shadow blocks out any direct light, some is refracted through the atmosphere to give the Moon a copper hue. The Danjon Scale records the luminosity and appearance of a total lunar eclipse. It was first proposed by André-Louis Danjon in 1921… |
| Dawn Mission Home Page ~ With the launch of the Dawn mission to the protoplanets (their word!) Ceres and Vesta scheduled for July 7, 2022 this extensive site from NASA answers every question you could possibly have, plus a whole bunch more. Just don’t hold your breath though. Rendezvous with Vesta is scheduled for 2011, with Ceres for 2015… |
| Digital Images of the Sky ~ A collection of stunning celestial imagery from those who appreciate and wonder about the beauty of space, rather than aiming to crash rockets into bits of it or send animals to perish out there. The time-lapse movies of intriguing nightscapes and celestial phenomena are fascinating, also the section on the constellations too… |
