Tip Center Category: Stargazing Basics

Stargazing Basics: Visiblity and Cloud Cover

For the budding stargazer, the gift packages offered through Name a Star Live are the perfect answer to the question, "Where can I buy a star?"

This is because many Name a Star Live gift packages feature the Virtual Planetarium™ software DVD in addition to time on SLOOH, a robotically controlled online telescope. Name A Star Live is the only star naming company to offer SLOOH. Observers get to see their actual star in the night sky and learn about the cosmos through seven interactive programs. Both are wonderful educational resources that provide a superb jumping off point for young astronomers.

After time on the powerful SLOOH telescope, when attempting to view the gift star and its neighbors on one’s own, one must fist understand the first rule of stargazing; visibility is the key. One won’t see much on a cloudy, overcast night, so it’s best to keep an eye on the weather forecasts to pinpoint which night will feature ideal conditions. That said, partly cloudy evenings may not completely interfere with star viewing, though a bit of patience may be required to wait out any passing clouds.

Stargazing Help

If you buy a star for someone that isn’t quite an astronomy expert, consider Name A Star Live’s Ultimate Stargazer Gift Set that includes star charts, star gazing software, a constellation finder, and all the other essential resources a beginner needs to get started observing the sky.

It’s important for a budding astronomer to have guidance: The Ultimate Stargazer Gift Set provides the help new astronomers need. Included in the gift set is the “First Light Astronomy Kit,” which brings together “The Night Sky,” a uniquely designed low-distortion planisphere constellation finder, “Exploring the Night Sky with Binoculars,” an award winning introduction to observational astronomy, and “Sky Atlas for Small Telescopes and Binoculars,” a sky atlas designed specifically for beginners with small optics. The kit comes beautifully packaged in a heavy-duty two-pocket folder to be saved and used for organizing and protecting one’s astronomy materials.

Finding a particular star or constellation is tough without a star chart or Name a Star Live’s Virtual Planetarium™ software. First of all, the night sky is vast, and to the untrained eye, most celestial bodies all look essentially the same … white dots of varying brightness against a black backdrop. These guides help distinguish one “white dot” from another and pinpoint the location of specific stars in the sky depending on the season of year and the time of night. In the same way the moon isn’t viewable at a fixed point in the sky, just about any star’s position relative to your location on Earth also varies.

Taking it a step further, because the Earth orbits the sun, stargazing changes by season. What you can see clearly in the fall is not the same as what you can see clearly in the spring. And, frankly, the changing skies are one of the things that make stargazing so fun and interesting.

Why Are Some Stars Brighter Than Others?

Why are some stars brighter than others? There are two main factors when considering star brightness.

One is the actual brightness of the star. Some stars are simply more luminous than others are, and the brightness level varies greatly. Some stars burn brighter than a million suns, others emit only a millionth of the sun’s brightness.

The other factor is proximity. The sun is technically the brightest star when viewed from Earth, but it is also the closest star to Earth. In reality, the sun is in the middle of the brightness range when compared to other stars.

Stargazers might wonder then, why is Venus, which is not a star at all, much brighter than many stars when viewed from Earth?

The answer is simple, and it is a factor when considering brightness. Venus does not give off its own light, but it does reflect sunlight toward Earth. In fact, this is the same reason the moon is visible at night.

Stargazing and Meteor Showers

Stargazing isn’t limited to viewing stars; you can also spot meteor showers and other phenomenon. Viewing meteor showers is a fascinating part of night stargazing, and if you look at your gift star and its constellation long enough, chances are you’ll catch some meteor activity.

A meteor shower occurs when a comet streaks through the sky, orbiting the sun. The comet leaves a trail of debris (mainly ice and dust), which is also known as a meteor stream. When Earth passes through the debris, the meteor stream particles burn up in the Earth’s atmosphere, resulting in visible streaks of light, or the “shower” of meteors (a.k.a. “shooting stars”).

There are many meteors coasting through the sky on any given night, and astronomers can easily predict well in advanced when a meteor shower will come into view. Two of the most prominent meteor shower events are the Leonids and Perseids, which are visible in November and August respectively each year.

Stargazing Without a Telescope

Stargazing without a telescope or binoculars is a great way to get to know the heavens before looking at them more deeply with the aid of a lens. There are plenty of sights to explore with the naked eye.

The first thing you’ll probably notice are the brightest objects in the sky, which aren’t necessarily stars. Some planets look like stars. Venus, for example, is one of the brightest lights in the sky when it’s visible. It’s easily viewed without a lens.

Another great place to begin is with familiar constellations. If you find the Big Dipper, you can use it as a naked-eye astronomy landmark to find other constellations such as Leo, which is next to the Big Dipper. And if you find Leo, you can spot Virgo, which adjoins Leo.

Of course, it helps to use an astronomy star chart when finding these constellations—discovering the patterns may be tricky at first, but with a little help, you’ll eventually be able to easily identify them.