We can see millions of stars
In fact, only about 6000. They shine so brightly that we can distinguish them with the naked eye. However, about half of them are below the horizon at night. Another part near the horizon is hidden in haze. Therefore, most dark night, in the clearest sky, we can’t make out more than 2000 stars. If the observation site is surrounded by sources of artificial light, the number of stars is significantly reduced. From large city it is hardly possible to see one or two dozen of the brightest stars. The glittering belt of the Milky Way is also barely visible, not to mention the millions of stars merging into a single mass that make it up.
A comet has only one tail
Comets close to the Sun typically have two tails - one of gas and one of dust, and the tails do not affect the direction of the comet's movement in any way. As a comet approaches the Sun, its surface heats up. This releases frozen gas, which gives rise to huge amount dust. A gas plume occurs due to exposure solar wind on the released gas, and it is directed in the direction opposite to the Sun.
The stars don't move across the sky
All celestial bodies move, even the stars. Due to the enormous distances between them, the positions of the stars relative to each other are unlikely to change significantly over the course of human life. Only through precise measurements can scientists discover how stars move. Such a difference will be noticeable to the naked eye only after thousands of years. Only a small number of stars move fast enough to be shown in photographs. Most famous example- This is Barnard's Star.
Planets are visible only through a telescope
There are five planets that shine so brightly that they can be seen with the naked eye: Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn. Throughout the year they change their location in the sky. Before the invention of the telescope, they were called “traveling stars.” Mercury and Venus are almost always visible during evening or morning twilight, because... are closer to the Sun. Mars, Jupiter and Saturn are located outside the Earth's orbit, and therefore their movements occur throughout the entire sky. Jupiter usually appears as the brightest "star" in the southwest, in the constellation Gemini, and Mars is the red "star" in the constellation Virgo in the east. In the second half of the night, Saturn appears in the east, in Libra.
The unlit part of the Moon is in the shadow of the Earth
Like on Earth, there is day and night on the Moon. The phases of the Moon arise because the Moon rotates around the Earth and appears to us at different angles, and the Sun illuminates its surface, building one or another boundary between day and night. On a new moon, the Sun, Moon and Earth line up in one line; on a full moon, the positions of the Moon and Earth change places. IN in rare cases, when the Sun, Earth and Moon are exactly on the same line during a full moon, the Moon falls into the Earth's shadow, and we can observe a lunar eclipse.
Polaris is the brightest star in the sky
Polaris is just an ordinary star of average brightness. Her special meaning is that this star is located close to the celestial north pole, which causes all other stars to revolve around it in relation to the observer.
The Big Dipper is the most famous constellation
The Big Dipper is one of the most visible asterisms in the sky, but it is only part of the constellation Ursa Major. The seven brightest stars of Ursa form a kind of square with a handle. They are easy to distinguish in the sky, but if the night is dark enough, you can try to make out the entire constellation. The handle of the bucket turns into the tail of a bear. Since real bears do not have such huge tails, Greek mythology offers the following explanation: so that the bear would not know what killing was, Zeus grabbed her by the tail and attached her to the sky.
Black holes suck in absolutely everything.
Black holes are not voracious monsters; in fact, they are compact bodies in which matter is contained in a compressed form. As soon as something gets close to a black hole, there is a danger that it will tear it apart. Not even light can escape from a black hole. However, if in the place of our Sun there were a black hole of the same mass, all the planets would rotate unharmed in the same orbits as now.
In summer the Earth is closer to the Sun
Seasons do not arise due to the Earth's elliptical orbit, but due to different inclinations earth's axis in relation to the trajectory of the Earth's orbit. Thus, in the northern hemisphere of the Earth, it is summer when it is tilted towards the Sun, and winter when it is tilted away from the Sun. Unexpectedly, the Earth is closest to the Sun in early January - just when it is winter in the northern hemisphere and summer in the southern hemisphere.
A light year is a very long time
A light year is a measure of the distance a ray of light travels in a year. Light travels at a speed of about 300,000 kilometers per second, so a light year will be approximately 9.5 billion kilometers. Using this unit you can measure the distances from the Earth to the stars. So, the star Proxima Centauri, the closest to our solar system, is about four light years away. The Sun is only 150 million kilometers from Earth, that is, 8 light minutes.
Thousands of stars can be seen in the night sky with the naked eye. If you look closely, you will notice that some are brighter than others. Groups of bright stars forming a certain composition are clearly recognizable. We call them constellations.
Are we the only stars we see?
The Earth appears to hang in the center of a huge dark ball called the celestial sphere. At the same time, the position of the Earth's rotation axis in space remains unchanged, so we can see stars that shine only over the hemisphere where we live. Residents Northern Hemisphere They see the constellation Ursa Minor, but never the Southern Cross, which is located in the south. Those living in the Southern Hemisphere never see Ursa Minor. But people living on the equator can see almost all the stars of the celestial sphere throughout the year.
What are zodiac signs?
Over the course of a year, the Sun moves among the stars celestial sphere. It seems to pass through the 12 constellations that form the zodiac belt. These constellations are given names and corresponding signs that are important in astrology. Astrologers believe that stars influence a person’s life and destiny.
Why do stars move across the sky?
If we, living in the Northern Hemisphere, observe the celestial sphere in the evening, we will see that in the southern half of the sky the constellations gradually move from east to west, just as the Sun does during the day. The celestial sphere seems to rotate relative to a fixed point (the North Star). Ancient astronomers believed. that the stars are attached from the inside to the celestial sphere, which rotates around the stationary Earth. Now we know that everything happens the other way around: the stars are motionless, but the Earth moves. The earth rotates from west to east, so the stars appear to move in the opposite direction.
Some major constellations:
Northern Hemisphere constellations:
- Pegasus
- Perseus
- polar Star
- Ursa Minor
- Big Dipper
Constellations of the Southern Hemisphere:
- Aquarius
- Orion
- Scorpion
- South Cross
- Hydra
Constellations are areas of the starry sky. To better navigate the starry sky, ancient people began to identify groups of stars that could be connected into separate figures, similar items, mythological characters and animals. This system allowed people to organize the night sky, making each part of it easily recognizable. This made it easier to learn celestial bodies, helped to measure time, apply astronomical knowledge in agriculture and navigate by the stars. The stars that we see in our sky as if in one area can actually be extremely far from each other. In one constellation there may be stars that are in no way connected with each other, both very close and very far from the Earth.
There are 88 official constellations in total. In 1922, the International Astronomical Union officially recognized 88 constellations, 48 of which were described by the ancient Greek astronomer Ptolemy in his star catalog Almagest around 150 BC. There were gaps in Ptolemy's maps, especially southern sky. Which is quite logical - the constellations described by Ptolemy covered that part of the night sky that is visible from the south of Europe. The remaining gaps began to be filled during the times of the great geographical discoveries. In the 14th century, Dutch scientists Gerard Mercator, Pieter Keyser and Frederic de Houtman added to existing list new constellations, and the Polish astronomer Jan Hevelius and the French Nicolas Louis de Lacaille completed what Ptolemy had started. On the territory of Russia, out of 88 constellations, about 54 can be observed. 
Knowledge about the constellations came to us from ancient cultures. Ptolemy compiled a map of the starry sky, but people used knowledge about the constellations long before that. At least in the 8th century BC, when Homer mentioned Bootes, Orion and the Big Dipper in his poems “Iliad” and “Odyssey”, people were already grouping the sky into separate figures. It is believed that the bulk of the knowledge of the ancient Greeks about the constellations came to them from the Egyptians, who, in turn, inherited it from the inhabitants of Ancient Babylon, Sumerians or Akkadians. About thirty constellations were already distinguished by the inhabitants of the Late Bronze Age, in 1650−1050. BC, judging by the records on clay tablets Ancient Mesopotamia. References to constellations can also be found in Hebrew biblical texts. The most remarkable constellation, perhaps, is the constellation Orion: in almost every ancient culture it had its own name and was revered as special. So, in Ancient Egypt he was considered the incarnation of Osiris, and in Ancient Babylon he was called “The Faithful Shepherd of Heaven.” But the most amazing discovery was made in 1972: a piece of mammoth ivory, more than 32 thousand years old, was found in Germany, on which the constellation Orion was carved. 
We see different constellations depending on the time of year. Throughout the year, we see different parts of the sky (and different celestial bodies, respectively) because the Earth makes its annual voyage around the Sun. The constellations we see at night are those located behind the Earth on our side of the Sun, because... During the day, behind the bright rays of the Sun, we are unable to see them.
To better understand how this works, imagine that you are riding on a merry-go-round (this is the Earth) with a very bright, blinding light emanating from the center (the Sun). You will not be able to see what is in front of you because of the light, but you will only be able to discern what is outside the carousel. In this case, the picture will constantly change as you ride in a circle. Which constellations you observe in the sky and at what time of year they appear also depends on the geographic latitude of the viewer. 
Constellations travel from east to west, like the Sun. As soon as it begins to get dark, at dusk, the first constellations appear in the eastern part of the sky to pass across the entire sky and disappear with dawn in the western part. Due to the rotation of the Earth around its axis, it seems that the constellations, like the Sun, rise and set. The constellations we just observed on the western horizon just after sunset will soon disappear from our view, to be replaced by constellations that were higher up at sunset just a few weeks ago.
Constellations arising in the east have a diurnal shift of about 1 degree per day: completing a 360-degree trip around the Sun in 365 days gives about the same speed. Exactly one year later, at the same time, the stars will occupy exactly the same position in the sky. 
The movement of stars is an illusion and a matter of perspective. The direction in which stars move across the night sky is determined by the rotation of the Earth on its axis and really depends on the perspective and which way the viewer is facing.
Looking north, the constellations appear to move counterclockwise around a fixed point in the night sky, the so-called north celestial pole, located near the North Star. This perception is due to the fact that the earth rotates from west to east, i.e. the earth under your feet moves to the right, and the stars like the Sun, Moon and planets above your head follow the east-west direction, i.e. to the right left. However, if you face south, the stars will appear to move clockwise, from left to right. 
Zodiac constellations- these are those through which the Sun moves. The most famous constellations out of the 88 existing ones are the zodiacal ones. These include those through which the center of the Sun passes during the year. It is generally accepted that there are 12 zodiacal constellations in total, although in fact there are 13 of them: from November 30 to December 17, the Sun is in the constellation Ophiuchus, but astrologers do not classify it as a zodiac constellation. All zodiacal constellations are located along the visible annual path of the Sun among the stars, the ecliptic, at an inclination of 23.5 degrees to the equator. 
Some constellations have families are groups of constellations located in the same area of the night sky. As a rule, they assign the names of the most significant constellation. The most “largely populated” constellation is Hercules, which has as many as 19 constellations. Other major families include Ursa Major (10 constellations), Perseus (9) and Orion (9). 
Celebrity constellations. The largest constellation is Hydra, which covers more than 3% of the night sky, while the smallest constellation, the Southern Cross, covers just 0.165% of the sky. Centauri boasts the largest number visible stars: 101 stars are included in the famous constellation southern hemisphere sky. To the constellation Canis Major includes the most bright Star our sky, Sirius, whose magnitude is −1.46m. But the constellation called Table Mountain is considered the dimmest and does not contain stars brighter than 5th magnitude. Let us recall that in the numerical characteristic of the brightness of celestial bodies than less value, the brighter the object (the brightness of the Sun, for example, is −26.7m). 
Asterism- this is not a constellation. An asterism is a group of stars with a well-established name, for example, the “Big Dipper,” which is part of the constellation Ursa Major, or “Orion’s Belt,” three stars encircling the figure of Orion in the constellation of the same name. In other words, these are fragments of constellations that have secured a separate name for themselves. The term itself is not strictly scientific, but rather simply represents a tribute to tradition. 
Strange phenomena are observed in the sky, one might say inexplicable.
Many people see them. Experts are silent...Let me give you some quotes.
The day before yesterday, May 11, 2012, I was on the Kotelnikovskaya highway outside Volgograd. The time was 9.30 pm, just getting dark. I got out of the car for a “smoke break”, looked at the sky, Jupiter was shining brightly. The sky is clear. I looked a little to the left, 30 degrees above Jupiter. I saw a reddish star. Thought it was Mars. I asked my companion to get out of the car and also see Mars. When we looked again together, I saw that this star was moving chaotically. It will go to the left with acceleration, then back, then up, then down, describing circles. I was taken aback. I asked my companion if she saw the same thing. She was shocked too. I called my friend in Volgograd and asked him to also observe, he saw the same thing and was also shocked. This friend attended an astronomy club back in the late 70s and then also saw something through a telescope. Only even cooler. There, in a similar way, a certain point also walked, only among distant stars (or “distant”). The teacher of the astronomical circle, looking at the TV, weakly spread his hands, saying, I don’t know what it is. Looking at the sky in another place, I saw a couple more “walking” stars...or “stars”. As far as I know, the stars twinkle, but to move chaotically?! - I’ve never heard of this anywhere. The next day, I repeated the observation with another person at the Volzhskaya hydroelectric station in the direction of Saratov, he saw the same thing - the “star” was moving. By the way, I asked my friend what rationality there is in such a chaotic movement, he said that perhaps some kind of automation is working, swinging the pendulum... the military calls it a “bullet-proof zigzag”... so as not to be targeted.
I immediately remembered Charles Fort’s book “The Prophet from the Moon and the Angel from Venus,” where he trashes the off-science science of astronomy.
So I ask the question, what is this?
On the night of August 15-16, I saw a bunch of flickering objects in the sky.
They moved like molecules - chaotically. At the same time they flickered: red, White color, no glow, red color, etc...
This cluster of lights spread across the night sky. I don’t understand astronomy, but this happened somewhere in space, because an airplane flew under this clot and it was possible to estimate that this chaotic movement was occurring outside the atmosphere.
I looked through all the news on the Internet, but I couldn’t find any mention of this. There were 3 people with me and they also saw everything. Those. These are not hallucinations.
Yesterday (from August 22 to 23, 2014) at night, in the Novgorod region, on the western side of the sky, I observed the same object for 40-60 minutes. It moved chaotically over an area of approximately 1 square centimeter (or less), with variable acceleration. Moreover, as far as my vision allowed, I saw on this object a constant white glow (as if at the top) and a flickering red or orange (at the base). But it was so small that I can’t say for sure about its geometric proportions. But the fact is that it flickered and moved chaotically, then disappeared. None of my relatives believed it, so I started looking for similar cases on the Internet - it turns out I’m not the only one!
I've seen this happen many times in Nizhny Novgorod region. I always wondered what it was. Then the girl said that she had also seen something like this, they turned to the throat and ended up here.
Today, around 2 am, I saw such a dancing star. Not good at astronomy, but I think it counts eastern part sky.
I watched for about 30 minutes, she either moved sharply to the side, or simply moved back and forth, as if, like a pendulum, she was tied to one point and was swinging around it.
Moreover, about six months ago, in the same place, I already saw a dancing star, but I thought it was optical illusion Or maybe I need to drink less. And yesterday I became convinced that I’m not the only one who sees her. And now I’m convinced that this is a common occurrence.
Is there any more or less official opinion on this matter?
I'm seeing this now. 3 small ones behind and 1 bright one in front and they seem to be moving after her. If you observe the bright one, it seems to be getting closer and closer, and then to the right, then to the left, then down, and then up, and it gets brighter and brighter, and then again it returns to its place and the same brightness as initially. Am I crazy or is it a UFO...
From August 6 to 7, on the Volga River in the Samara region, we relaxed in nature and gathered for night fishing. We saw a bunch of twinkling stars in the night sky, about 20-30 pieces. Stars - because from the ground visually they are the same in size. An incomprehensible “veil of stars” moved across the sky from northeast to the southwest for 7-10 minutes. At the same time, changing shape, like a sheet blown by the wind hanging on a rope. The size of the object was approximately 1/4 the size of the constellation's bucket Big Dipper"Neither I nor my three friends have ever seen anything like this. An incredibly beautiful and mesmerizing spectacle. So we looked at it with open mouths until the "veil of stars" dissolved into darkness.
I'll tell you in a minute
I've seen cooler than all of you
Was a child
Sat on the steps at night with my grandmother
We looked at the sky
I saw a “star” that smoothly and quickly made an angle of 90 degrees
Grandma said that the satellite
Further, as the years passed and as I grew older, I looked with optics at the sky
Noticed objects moving smoothly along lines as if
Left and right
Again I think the satellites are changing orbits
But last year I went crazy
Two objects took off and began to move in a chaotic trajectory and chase each other in a spiral, as if they were playing catch-up
The witness is a mother who said that it was just some kind of “bullshit.”
Useful tips
Absence scientific knowledge about the sky not only gives rise to the most unusual fantasies and assumptions, such as belief in UFOs, but can also lead to panic fears, similar to what some of us experienced in December 2012.
Due to the unclear understanding of the Mayan calendar, the end date given in the records of this tribe was interpreted as the date of the end of the world, which caused great panic and fear among the people.
We often see strange lights in the sky. What is their origin? This question is asked quite often, since identifying night objects other than the Sun and Moon seems very difficult for most of us.
To help all those interested in the sky, NASA employees have published a special diagram that should help us understand the mysterious lights.
Thanks to observations and some basic knowledge, shedding light on the mysterious lights in the sky becomes easier.
Pay attention to whether the light moves and blinks. If so, you live near the city, as a rule, the light in the sky is an airplane. Very few stars and satellites are bright enough to be seen through the haze of artificial lights.
If you live far from the city, a bright light in the sky is most likely a planet. Perhaps you see the outlines of Venus or Mars.
Venus typically appears near the horizon just before dawn or just after sunset.
Flying lights in the sky
Sometimes it is very difficult to determine whether the light is the trajectory of an airplane at low altitude near the horizon or whether it is a bright planet. Sometimes, even after looking closely for a few minutes, you are not sure what those lights are in the night sky.
The above diagram gives a sometimes humorous, but very accurate definition.
A slow moving object with colorful lights is an airplane. Those that move slower and calmer are satellites. An object that moves very little during the night is a planet, and if the object does not move anywhere at all, it is a star.
Insufficient information about the sky, as mentioned earlier, can lead to paranoid thoughts and conclusions.
Many people remember very well the panic associated with the planet Nibiru, when thousands of people believed that our Earth was in danger of colliding with this mythical planet and what humanity would have to endure huge sacrifices and destruction.
Astronomers who tried to calm fearful people were called liars.
Nibiru
Nibiru is a mythical planet located on the edge solar system. Scientific proof this planet does not exist.
The ancient Sumerians allegedly predicted that Nibiru would invade the Earth's orbit in December 2012, causing chaos and widespread destruction.
NASA scientist David Morrison is sure that Nibiru does not exist. If it existed, it could cause the displacement of other planets.
Another source of danger is allegedly the Great Rift, where the Milky Way divides in the constellation Cygnus. According to some other beliefs, this is where the danger lies. The earth will be swallowed up and “the dark gods will devour the degenerate peoples.”
Such not-so-rosy predictions are attributed to the ancient Mayans. However, evidence of their involvement in this idea has never been identified.
The Great Rift is like a black river that stretches from the bright star Deneb in the constellation Cygnus in the southwest to the constellation Sagittarius at the center of our galaxy. The river itself consists of an incomprehensible dust that looks mysteriously black.
The night of September 11 will provide an excellent opportunity to see the world of the “ice giant” Uranus. At 2 am it will be close to the Moon, the visibility of which will gradually weaken.
Uranus and Neptune are called ice giants. They are much further from the Sun than gas giants Jupiter and Saturn, so these two planets are much colder, and their gas atmosphere contains more “ice”, similar to frozen water, as well as methane and ammonia.
Space records
The fastest planet is Jupiter. It rotates faster than other planets around its own axis. The rotation period is 0.41 Earth days. Thus, a day on Jupiter lasts less than 10 Earth hours.
Venus is the “slowest” planet in terms of rotation speed around its axis. It completes a full revolution in -243 days. The minus sign in this case means that Venus rotates clockwise, while our planet rotates counterclockwise.
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