Bob Drieslein

Scorpius is one of those rare constellations whose star arrangement resembles its namesake. When you look at it in the night sky, it’s easy to visualize the j-shaped body of a scorpion.

The total solar eclipse that occurred on April 8 was a tough act to follow, but a summer meteor shower can still bring excitement to a star-gazer like me!
According to the American Meteor Society (AMS), the Perseid Meteor showers can be expected to occur every year between mid-July and late August.

Here’s a trivia question to consider: What is the brightest star in our Milky Way galaxy? Scientists say that the glowing ball of hydrogen and helium at the center of our solar system is technically a yellow, dwarf star so we might be tempted to nominate our Sun as the brightest.

How did the ancient mariners find their way at sea without the aid of GPS, radar, and the other modern conveniences that we consider essential for navigating the oceans today? We know they used the stars, and certain celestial bodies must have been particularly important to them.

Although several meteor showers already have occurred this year, the one on Dec. 13-14 promises to be one of the best.

The dictionary defines a “galaxy” as a system of millions or billions of stars, together with gas and dust, held together by gravitational attraction.
In the case of our galaxy, the Milky Way, scientists say it may include more than 200 billion stars, some a thousand times bigger than our Sun!

There will be four supermoons in 2023, with two during the month of August. The one occurring on Aug. 30 will be the biggest and brightest of the 13 full moons during calendar year 2023.

Sometimes a reader wanting to learn more about the night sky will ask for a recommendation on what kind of telescope to purchase. My advice is usually along the lines of “keep it simple.”

The second planet from the Sun and our closest neighbor will be at its best soon. On Sunday, June 4, 2023, Venus will reach its greatest elongation and appear very bright in our western night sky.