View the December 2023 Nature Friend Study Guide Andromeda Galaxy, M31. Photo © Shaphan Shank. Andromeda is one of those ideal constellations that is easy to find, and that contains a wide variety...
Constellations
Lacerta
View the November 2023 Nature Friend Study Guide Lacerta, the Lizard, is a small and little-known constellation that lies along the band of the Milky Way right between the constellations Cygnus and...
Aquarius
View the October 2023 Nature Friend Study Guide Helix Nebula, NGC 7293. Photo © Allexxandar/Dreamstime.com. Aquarius is a sprawling constellation that stretches across nearly 40° of the southern sky...
Aquila
View the August 2023 Nature Friend Study Guide Aquila, the Eagle, is a mid-sized constellation that lies right along the summer Milky Way just south of the zenith on September evenings in the...
Hercules
View the July 2023 Nature Friend Study Guide M13. Photo © Reinhold Wittich/Dreamstime.com. Hercules, the Strongman, is a large constellation that lies straight east of Bootes, the constellation we...
Bootes
View the June 2023 Nature Friend Study Guide M3. Photo © Reinhold Wittich/Dreamstime.com. Bootes lies nearly straight overhead on June evenings in the Northern Hemisphere. This constellation is...
Oatmeal-Box Planetarium
View the June 2023 Nature Friend Magazine Cylindrical cardboard boxes, of the type at least one brand of oatmeal comes in, can be used for projecting beautiful images of star constellations on the...
Coma Berenices
View the May 2023 Nature Friend Study Guide M64 On May evenings, our planet is turned so that we are looking out the side of the Milky Way instead of looking edgewise through its arms. This...
Leo
View the April 2023 Nature Friend Study Guide Leo Triplet. Clockwise from left: NGC 3628, M65, M66. Photo © Shaphan Shank. Leo, the Lion, is high in the evening sky during April. Leo lies about 40°...
Canis Major
View the March 2023 Nature Friend Study Guide Canis Major, the Great Dog, lies in the southern sky just southeast of Orion. Like Orion, many of the stars that make up Canis Major are bright. The...
Taurus
View the February 2023 Nature Friend Study Guide The Pleiades. Photo © Shaphan Shank. Taurus, the Bull, is a distinctive constellation that lies just northwest of Orion, high in the evening sky in...
Backyard Stargazing
View the January Nature Friend Magazine Andromeda Galaxy. Photo © Shaphan Shank. “Good night, Dad and Mom,” I said as I strode to the door, clad in a winter coat, hat, and boots.“Good night,” they...
Triangulum and Aries
View the January Nature Friend Study Guide Triangulum and Aries are a pair of small constellations that lie south of Andromeda, between the Great Square of Pegasus and the Pleiades. Triangulum, the...
On a Starry Night in December
View the December 2022 Nature Friend Magazine “Papa! May Joshua, Michaela, and I sleep outside on Tuesday night to watch the Geminid meteor shower?” I questioned eagerly, looking up from the...
Many, Many Meteors
View the December 2022 Nature Friend Magazine My brother and I stepped excitedly out of the darkened house into the exhilarating night air. The sky showed no sign of dawn, but in the west an...
