View the full issue in the Magazine Archive Of course you’re familiar with the sugar maples, Wondernose, and you know what beautiful scarlet, orange, and yellow leaves they produce in the fall. But...
Articles & Stories
Frog City
View the full issue in the Magazine Archive Have you ever gone frog-spotting? Come along with me in your imagination! Even better, give frog-spotting a try at your nearby frog pond. It is one of the...
In Our Skies, March & April 2025
View the full issue in the Magazine Archive March 7 Mars will be <2° S of the Moon. March 8 Mercury will be at its greatest eastern elongation, meaning you can see it just after sunset. March 14...
Atmospheric Optics
View the full issue in the Magazine Archive www.atoptics.co.uk Not everything that looks like a rainbow is called a rainbow. Colorful arcs close to the Sun are in the not-a-rainbow category. You can...
Puppis
View the full issue in the Magazine Archive By the time March comes around in the Northern Hemisphere, Leo is high in the east and Arcturus is rising around dark—both sure signs that spring is...
Luscious Lettuce
View the full issue in the Magazine Archive Photo © Distinctivedesign/Dreamstime.com. I toss a mass of succulent green leaves onto a cutting board, lift a sturdy chef’s knife, and chop those leaves...
Where My Macro Photography Setup Met With Snowflakes—Part 2
View the full issue in the Magazine Archive Photo © Kevin Shank. No sooner had the February magazine gone to the printer than we had snow again, probably that very night. One of my goals after last...
Favorite Focus, March 2025
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Inside a Snow Globe
View the full issue in the Magazine Archive Snowflakes hissed into the dark water as we launched our kayaks on the Niangua River. The gloomy clouds made it feel like dusk instead of one o’clock in...
Winter Waterskiers
View the full issue in the Magazine Archive Stonefly. Photo © Dana Atkinson. Winter stoneflies do not seem to care that the river in front of our house is narrow enough to be designated as a “no...
Wondernose: What animal has teeth growing from its spine?
View the full issue in the Magazine Archive Now, Wondernose, I suppose you are imaging some kind of fish with sharp pegs sticking up from its back. But no, our mystery animal’s teeth grow...
The Resplendent Quetzal
View the full issue in the Magazine Archive Male Resplendent Quetzal. Photo © Martin Pelanek|Dreamstime. Silhouetted against the setting sun, a tall pine snag pierced the misty Guatemalan cloud...
In Anticipation of Spring
View the full issue in the Magazine Archive American Goldfinch. Photo © Cheryl Shank It is easy to enjoy winter when frosty clusters drifting from the sky turn the world into a snow globe. But when...
A Close Look at a Comet’s Nucleus
View the full issue in the Magazine Archive The size of this comet is approximately 2.7 x 2.5 miles (4.3 km x 4.1 km). Photo © CC BY-SA 4.0 The photo above is is a true-color photograph of the...
Lepus and Columba
View the full issue in the Magazine Archive Lepus and Columba are a pair of small constellations that lie straight south of Orion. Lepus lies immediately south of Orion, and Columba lies south of...