Stargazing Summary
The constellation Taurus is especially prominent this month thanks to the Moon and the planet Venus. The bull is dropping toward the western horizon at nightfall, and soon will disappear from view. But Venus, the "evening star," slides almost directly in front of its shoulder, the Pleiades star cluster, early in the month, and the crescent Moon passes between the Pleaides and the bull's orange eye, the star Aldebaran, later on. In the meantime, Saturn puts in its best showing of the year, while Mars continues to shine for most of the night.
Next Meteor Shower
The Lyrid meteor shower should be at its best on the nights of April 20 and 21, with a peak of perhaps a dozen or so meteors per hour. The Moon is new tonight, providing perfect conditions for viewing the shower.
Radio Program Highlights
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April 2-8: Fire and ice. Like mountains, solar systems have "snow lines" -- lines that divide the realm of the ice from bare rock. And some solar systems could have hellish worlds that were heated by being squeezed.
April 9-15: Touching a star. There's no way to touch a real star, so some astronomers are doing the next-best thing: they're making a star in the laboratory. Join us for this, plus a case of double stellar suicide.
April 16-22: Into the future. Emissaries from Earth have visited every planet in the solar system. But journeying beyond the solar system will take some big leaps in technology. We'll talk about some efforts along those lines.
April 23-29: Moon meanderings. The Moon passes by the brilliant planet Venus this week, as well as the baleful eye and sparkly shoulder of Taurus, the bull. We'll have details on these encounters, plus the first time America actually hit the Moon.
Premium Audio: Listen to today's program today on-demand with a paid subscription to StarDate premium audio.
April 2-8: Fire and ice. Like mountains, solar systems have "snow lines" -- lines that divide the realm of the ice from bare rock. And some solar systems could have hellish worlds that were heated by being squeezed.
April 9-15: Touching a star. There's no way to touch a real star, so some astronomers are doing the next-best thing: they're making a star in the laboratory. Join us for this, plus a case of double stellar suicide.
April 16-22: Into the future. Emissaries from Earth have visited every planet in the solar system. But journeying beyond the solar system will take some big leaps in technology. We'll talk about some efforts along those lines.
April 23-29: Moon meanderings. The Moon passes by the brilliant planet Venus this week, as well as the baleful eye and sparkly shoulder of Taurus, the bull. We'll have details on these encounters, plus the first time America actually hit the Moon.
Coming Up in StarDate Magazine
In the May/June issue of StarDate, get detailed information on the May 20 solar eclipse for the western United States, as well as the scoop on the transit of Venus in early June. And read about one of the world's fastest growing space programs, and the third nation to send people into space: China.
Celebrate Astronomy Day!
April 28 is Astronomy Day — a nationwide celebration of astronomy in which museums, astronomy clubs, libraries, universities, and many other groups host star parties, lectures, and other events for general audiences. Many events are held at shopping malls or other convenient locations.
Find an event near you
Find an event near you
News from the Observatory
On March 23, the peak was blasted off Las Campanas Mountain in Chile to create a level surface for the construction of the Giant Magellan Telescope (GMT) over the next decade. The blast was streamed live around the world on the internet, and the video is now available online. The University of Texas at Austin is a partner in the GMT, along with Texas A&M, several other U.S. universities, and institutions in Korea and Australia.
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