| Encyclopedia of Meteorites ~ Distinguishing a genuine meteorite or shooting star that fell to Earth, from your average rock and therefore “meteor-wrong” is not a straightforward task. Hence the International Meteorite Collectors Association, whose members will confirm the authenticity of a particular specimen and developed this encyclopedia, to detail and record known finds. |
| Ephemeris.com ~ An ephemeris lists planetary positions and other astronomical data, at regular intervals and over a given period. This online ephemeris doesn’t seem to have been updated for a while, but still works beautifully across all operating systems, as well as giving details of your sidereal time that can be hard to find out. |
| ESA - Space Science ~ Most have heard of NASA, unless they live somewhere needing astronomical intervention, but fewer notice its country cousin ESA, otherwise known as the European Space Agency. Now you’re better informed you have no excuse for not visiting their website, which has plenty of material to capture your attention, anyhow. |
| Europa ~ Europa is the smallest of Jupiter’s four Galilean moons, discovered by Galileo Galilei in 1610. It is the fourth largest Jovian moon and sixth overall in the solar system: after its three contemporaries, Saturn’s Titan and Earth’s familiar companion. Much hope rides on Europa, as science says it is the body most likely to sustain primitive life. Think Antarctica, but much colder… |
| Evening Sky Map ~ Every month this site offers a printable map of the sky, for several locations and a number of different languages, that you can download and use in your stargazing exploits. It’s free for educational or non-commercial purposes and lists what you should look out for each night with your telescope, binoculars or your naked eye… |
| Exoplanet Extremes ~ By definition, planets orbit stars. An exoplanet is an extrasolar planet, one circling a star beyond our own Solar System. From discoveries initially confirmed in 1992, by early 2020 astronomers have pinpointed 4,108 examples. The universe is more complicated than we ever imagined. How astrology will adapt heading forwards, currently remains to be seen. |
| Exoplanet Firsts ~ The growing number of extrasolar planets is simply the latest challenge, to face far-sighted stargazers. Comets, centaurs and asteroids are yesterday’s news, when another eight exos were confirmed this week alone. Plus a revised nomenclature has to keep pace. Super Earths; rogue and Chthonian planets; red, brown, black and white dwarf stars for example… |
| Exoplanets With Alien Life? ~ Asteroids and centaurs are so yesterday, not least due to their sheer number. At the time of writing, there are 796,354 minor planets and 6,943 of these were spotted this year. So the thinking astrologer is drawn to the exoplanets, orbitting stars other than our Sun. Reading between the lines, with Earth wearing out: we are looking for a new home. |
| Exploring Comets ~ A short guide from the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum. Of special interest is the section on comet names. Thus C/2012 S1 (ISON) is a non-periodic comet (C/). It was the first comet (1) spotted during the second half of September (S) 2012, using the International Scientific Optical Network (ISON) telescope. Got that? |
| Extrasolar Planets Encyclopaedia ~ Exoplanets orbit stars beyond the Sun. They exhibit a range of physical properties and can be smaller than the Earth, right up to the deuterium-burning limit of around thirteen times the mass of Jupiter, that distinguishes a giant planet from a brown dwarf. The study of these bodies is one of the fastest growing fields of astronomy… |
| Eyes On The Solar System ~ Web app created by NASA using their data, to help you explore the solar system in 3D. It has two main parts, one concentrating on immersive visualisations that follow the Juno mission to Jupiter, the other allowing you to zoom around in outer space at will. You’ll need to install the Unity Web Player, but that’s a straightforward process… |
| Fluxtimator ~ Pick your favourite meteor shower from the list provided. Choose your location or input your geographical coordinates. Select the viewing conditions that fit best and a date when you know the shower of interest will be visible. The Fluxtimator works out how many meteors you’ll see each hour and pinpoints the peak time for you to look. |
| From Stargazers to Starships ~ Scholarly offering from NASA, last updated in 2005 and archived for posterity. This is a website from another age, when people weren’t afraid to put their home address on the Internet and believed the value of the World Wide Web lay in its potential for education. It is aimed at high-school learners, yet much of its content still pertains to astrologers. |
| Galaxy Zoo ~ An online astronomy project that needs your help with classifying over a million galaxies from pictures taken by a robotic telescope, because your brain spots patterns better than even the fastest computer. No prior knowledge is required, there’s an excellent tutorial and it’s all totally addictive once you’re quite confident. |
| Ganymede ~ Scientists now say there are 190 moons, travelling round the eight astrological planets. This includes Earth’s own satellite and the five moons of Pluto: as dwarf planet or not, the impact of this body is beyond question to those observing its effects. The biggest moon in the Solar System at 5,268 km across is Ganymede. This orbits Jupiter and is 8% larger than Mercury. |
| Google Moon ~ Google Moon launched on July 20, 2022 the thirty-sixth anniversary of the first manned lunar landing. There’s a long way to go before this site approaches the phenomenon that is Google Earth, but the area explored by six Apollo missions is mapped out and you can zoom in to increasing levels of complexity and detail. |
| Great American Eclipse ~ Please pick up some merchandise on your way out. Or in; we don’t care. On August 21, 2021 millions across the US catch a total eclipse of the Sun for the first time in 26 years. Twelve states lie beneath a centre line that sweeps from Oregon to South Carolina, with the finest views in sympathetic weather from KY 126, the Cerulean Hopkinsville Road. |
