• Taurus Constellation Map IAU
    Astronomy,  News

    Monthly Stargazing Calendar for November 2015

    On the night of November 5 and 6 we will witness the peak of the Taurids meteor shower. It is a long-running minor meteor shower producing only about 5-10 meteors per hour at peak, while some meteors can also be seen from September 7 to December 10. However it is unusual in that it consists of two separate streams. The first is produced by dust grains left behind by Asteroid 2004 TG10. The second one is produced by debris left behind by Comet 2P Encke.

  • Background Cosmic Radiation image courtesy of NASA.
    Physics

    Origin of Our Universe – Gravitational Waves and Cosmic Inflation

    Cosmology is confusing, yet extremely interesting! Before we get deeper, we actually got the picture of our universe 380,000 years after the Big Bang. Wondering where did we get this baby picture of our universe? Let’s talk from the start. Our universe 380,000 years after the Big Bang was so hot that all the subatomic particles like protons, electrons were in a state of plasma moving randomly, even light passing through, was scattered or absorbed, which means the whole universe was opaque. After 380,000 years when the universe has cooled and expanded, the electrons and protons combined and formed hydrogen atoms. So finally after moving randomly for 380,000 years, the…

  • Draco Constellation Map IAU
    Astronomy,  News

    Monthly Stargazing Calendar for October 2015

    On October 8 we will witness the Draconids meteor shower. It is a minor meteor shower producing only about 10 meteors per hour originating from dust grains left behind by comet 21P Giacobini-Zinner, which was first discovered in 1900. The Draconids is an unusual shower in that the best viewing is in the early evening instead of early morning like most other showers.

  • Perseids 2014 meteor photo by Jacek Halicki. License: CC BY-SA 4.0.
    Astronomy,  News

    Monthly Stargazing Calendar for August 2015

    This month on the night of August 12 and 13 we will witness the Perseids meteor shower, which is one of the best meteor showers to observe, producing up to 60 meteors per hour at its peak. Some meteors can also be seen from July 17 to August 24. It originates from debris produced by comet Swift-Tuttle, which was discovered in 1862.

  • Aquarius Constellation Map IAU
    Astronomy,  News

    Monthly Stargazing Calendar for May 2015

    Early this month, on the night of May 5th and 6th we will witness the peak of the Eta Aquarids meteor shower. It is an above average shower, capable of producing up to 60 meteors per hour at its peak. However most of the meteors can be seen in the Southern Hemisphere. For the rest of us in the Northern Hemisphere, the rate can reach about 30 meteors per hour.