M27, the Magnificent Planetary Nebula

My wife and I have sketched this beautiful nebula at least twice, but a recent post by a sketcher reminded me that it had been too long since I had seen it’s array of colors and shapes. We show this object during demonstrations quite often, but it always draws a… Continue reading

Waning Moon After Dusk

Observers of the sky typically avoid observing in bad sky conditions. In a larger context, however, ‘bad’ conditions often show different kinds of scenes and unusual lighting. Very often, an ‘off’ night like this is a reminder of the magnificent water cycle and the characteristics of the atmosphere, which are specifically created… Continue reading

Islands in the Sky: Galaxies

The Inspiration Page of our home-based ministry site (www.christworksministries.org) contains a new story (top left) about the Sculptor Galaxy. The link takes you to 3 sketches at 3 magnifications. There is information provided to new observers about how to find it but also general information about the physical characteristics of… Continue reading

Travels Around the Northern Cross (Cygnus)

The Scene in the Heavens. The late summer and fall season for middle northern latitudes are marked in the heavens from our vantage point by the Milky Way, which slices the sky from SSW to NNE. Cygnus (sometimes called the Northern Cross) is nearly at zenith (straight up) a few hours after… Continue reading