Space

I'm not sure if anyone noticed, but there is a nova (not supernova) now visible to the naked eye. It brightened up to about 4.5ish magnitude, which means if you are under truly dark skies, you could see it with the naked eye.

http://www.space.com...-discovery.html

http://www.universet...om-our-readers/

It's actually not hard to find with a pair of binoculars even in light polluted skies. Here's a pic I snapped. The curving line of three stars that ends in a prong is pretty distinctive.

210492Nova_Delphini_2013_Labels_Web.jpg


 
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EbylHusker said:
Anyone here into amateur astronomy?

Edit - Oh, I forgot to post this as well. If you're interested in recent news on science in general, including astronomy, this is a great site.

www.phys.org
Click to expand...
I used to be. Had a small telescope. Never could get the damn to focus properly. Actually took an astronomy class my first year of college. Don't have much time for it now. I've bee working the midnight shift for the past 12 years.

 
Yeah, working the late shift really kills much chance for all that. China's entry into the optics market has drastically improved the quality of affordable scopes over the last 10 years or so. Your basic scope from Celestron or Meade, for instance, is now very good, even if you get a cheap one. It's often the mount, focuser, and accessories that are skimped on these days.

If you ever want, or have the time, to get back into it, local astronomy clubs are usually very welcoming about letting people use their scopes during outreach events or allowing the public to attend meetings. Lincoln's club holds a public night at the Hyde Observatory every Saturday night. I'd be shocked if the clubs in your area didn't do something similar with outreach, or at the very least hold open meetings where anyone can attend.

 
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