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Discovering the Depth of Starry Skies from Your Own Backyard

By Taylor Smith

Since the beginning of human history, the night sky has been one of the most intriguing and long-lasting forms of entertainment. It has assisted people in learning when to plant crops, chart the calendar, and navigate open seas.

Much can be viewed and learned by the naked eye, but the scientific development of the telescope and its use by astronomer Galileo Galilei in the early 17th century magnified the view of key planets like Jupiter, unique stars, and moons. While Galileo did not invent the telescope, he is credited with applying the instrument to the study of astronomy. Galileo also improved upon the design and strength of the telescope many times over. While the initial telescope magnified things by three times, Galileo eventually developed lenses that would enable 33 times magnification. Galileo’s work would inspire future scientists in pursuing the study of astronomy. His many accomplishments also include charting stars in the Milky Way and supporting the Copernican model that the Earth and planets revolve around the sun (britannica.com/biography/Galileo-Galilei/Telescopic-discoveries).

Galileo showing the Doge of Venice how to use the telescope (Fresco by Giuseppe Bertini, 1858. Wikipedia)

Although the development of astronomy may be steeped in complicated history and difficult theorems, the hobby of backyard astronomy can be a very achievable and accessible activity. Whether you reside in an urban area with a lot of light pollution or a rustic setting, stargazing with binoculars, the naked eye, or a telescope has much to offer.

During the daytime, the sun and possibly the moon may be available to view. Nighttime offers a greater chance of analyzing stars, the brightest constellations, neighboring planets, and even comets and meteors, which make for an unforgettable display.

There are even some tricks and tips to prepare your eyes for night vision. Twentieth-century astronomer Clyde Tombaugh would sit in the dark for an hour to adjust his pupils prior to exploring the night sky. It is also suggested that looking at an object from the corner of one’s eye, rather than straight on, will give the viewer more details. These suggestions must have proven effective for Tombaugh, since he would eventually discover the planet Pluto.

For those who are interested in tracking the seasons by the stars, most telescopes offer a chance to view the daily phases of the moon. A great scientific and creative project, making your very own moon calendar can involve charting the phases of the moon over the course of weeks, months, or even years.

No matter your geographic viewing location, all celestial objects seem to rise in the east, travel across the sky, and set in the west. This directional motion is due to the Earth rotating around its axis every 24 hours. This motion also gives us Earth dwellers night and day. Sky-watching can be dramatically enhanced by finding areas where there is little to no light pollution. Light pollution can come from street lamps, retail stores, and even back porch lights. But there are Dark Sky parks and reserves that are protected and organized by DarkSky International (darksky.org).The Astronomical Society of the Toms River Area operates a Dark Sky organization in Ocean County that can be contacted at astra-nj.com/darksky-new-jersey. Other light pollution-free reserves include Grand Canyon National Park in Arizona, Headlands in Michigan, Big Cypress National Preserve in Florida, and Canyonlands National Park in Utah.

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Sky-Watching Tools

Binoculars are a great step up from viewing the sky with your own eyes. Magnification, light-gathering power, and optical quality are important when purchasing your first pair. The higher the magnifying power, the greater the visibility of space objects. Binoculars have the power to reveal craters on the moon, comets, star fields along the Milky Way, Jupiter’s four biggest moons, and the planets Mercury, Uranus, and Neptune. The biggest problem with holding binoculars during your backyard space adventures is holding them steady. The bigger and heavier the binoculars become, the more difficult it is to avoid shaky hands. One suggestion is to rest your arms on a steady, harder surface. You can also try mounting the binoculars onto a camera tripod. This will greatly improve image clarity.

Personal telescopes range greatly in price, from under $100 to thousands of dollars, but a telescope can be a great investment for a thorough understanding of the night sky. The most important aspects are excellent optics and a very solid base. Structures made from wood or metal, rather than plastic, make the telescope less likely to wobble when you touch or adjust it. Also, the larger the primary mirror on the telescope, the brighter and larger the image will be.

User-friendly apps and software are now available to recreational astronomers. Planetarium apps such as Stellarium and SkySafari can be downloaded to mobile devices and computers. These apps depict millions of high-resolution images of stars and planetary objects. They are the ideal tool for cross-checking and comparing what you are seeing (and even discovering) for the first time. The NASA app and Star Walk are also recommended. If you want to share your own space photos try PhotoPills, which is designed for astrophotogrophers.

The sky can be especially fascinating for children. The first time that a child sees the moon or Saturn’s rings through the lens of a telescope can be life-changing. Planetariums are another great way to introduce a young person to the scope and diversity of the universe. Highly regarded planetariums in our area include the Planetarium at Liberty Science Center in Jersey City (the largest planetarium in the U.S.), Hayden Planetarium at the American Museum of Natural History in New York City, the Planetarium at New Jersey State Museum in Trenton, and the Fels Planetarium at The Franklin Institute in Philadelphia. In addition to the Planetarium, The Franklin Institute also operates a Mission2Mars program for kids that is based on NASA’s Artemis Lunar Exploration Program. NASA-inspired STEM activities guide children in grades four through eight on subjects related to moon exploration, the significance of lunar understanding, and deep space possibilities. Learn more at fi.edu/en/science-and-education.

The Amateur Astronomers Association of Princeton (AAAP) coordinates monthly events in the Princeton region for astronomers and night sky enthusiasts. Some programs take the form of lectures and guest speakers at Peyton Hall on the campus of Princeton University. For the latest event listings, visit princetonastronomy.org. AAAP invites the public to experience a guided tour of the night sky on Friday afternoons at Simons Observatory at Washington Crossing State Park in Titusville. The program is free to attend, and all ages are welcome. “Night Skies at the Crossing” operates from April through October. AAAP is also known to bring telescopes into Mercer County classrooms for science lessons and learning.

Liberty Science Center. (Photo courtesy of Shutterstock.com)

A Passion for The Sky

Today’s professional astronomers, astrophysicists, and masters of the sky continually make new contributions and discoveries regarding space. When not searching for stars and planets, these local professors and scientific experts are passing along their excitement to undergraduate and graduate students.

Gaspar Bakos, professor of astrophysical sciences at Princeton University, describes his area of research within astrophysics as that of extrasolar planets (that is, planets that orbit stars other than the sun).

“We only started finding such planets about 30 years ago, and since then the field has exploded,” he says. “We now know thousands of exoplanets; have measured their masses, radii, temperatures, and orbits; and have a good understanding on the occurrence rate of exoplanets. For example, we figured that there is roughly one planet per star in our galaxy, making that 400 billion exoplanets. We detected their atmospheres and carved out the future path to find ‘biomarkers,’ a potential sign of extraterrestrial life.”

Bakos continues, “I have been developing astronomical instrumentation to find extrasolar planets via the ‘transit method,’ whereby we try to catch the faint blink of a star as an exoplanet goes in front of it as seen from Earth. We established a network of small, automated telescopes, and found over 140 such transiting exoplanets. These telescopes are remotely operated from Princeton, and are imaging the starry sky from Chile, Namibia, Australia, and Arizona. Many of our findings were among the first of their kind, such as a transiting hot Neptune, the first transiting planet with an outer, second planet, one of the first planets that revolves around its star on a retrograde orbit, i.e., opposite to the spin of star, among other examples.”

During his studies and research, Bakos has been most surprised to find “that even small, ground-based telescopes can yield amazing, cutting-edge scientific results. In terms of concrete scientific results, it was surprising to see planets orbiting two stars (like  Tatooine in Star Wars), or planets orbiting retrograde with respect to the spin of their host stars (like the exoplanet HAT-P-7b).”

He says that his favorite course to teach at Princeton University is AST205, Planets in the Universe. “It is a medium-level introductory course in astrophysics that teaches the non-major students.” Bakos continues, “It is the only undergraduate course in the U.S. that teaches visual astronomical observing and astro-photography. Students borrow telescopes and cameras and carry out observations throughout the semester from our campus.”

Lauranne Lanze, associate professor of physics at The College of New Jersey (TCNJ), specializes in astrophysics. She teaches many interesting courses at TCNJ, including Astronomy: Planets; Astronomy: Stars and the Universe; Astrophysics; Galactice and Extragalactic Astronomy; and much more.

“Most of the classes I have taught at TCNJ have been on astrophysics,” says Lanze. “Most semesters I teach one of our two introductory astronomy classes, primarily the one on stars and galaxies. I also teach a 300-level class aimed at teaching students the techniques of observational astronomy and a 400-level class on astrophysics that dives into the details of the physics to explain why stars and galaxies are the way they are. In addition, I have also taught a first-year seminar on the history of the space race.”

Lanze describes her primary area interest as the evolution of galaxies and the role played by the supermassive black hole at the center of each galaxy. She explains, “It is understood that galaxies and their supermassive black holes grow together (via the gas turning into stars and being added into the black hole). The black hole, despite being much, much smaller than the galaxy, can still have a profound impact on the galaxy by driving winds and jets (as a result of the process of material being added to the black hole) that can heat gas or remove it from a galaxy, halting the galaxy’s growth. However, exactly how that process happens and what causes it to happen in some galaxies but not others is still poorly understood. Because galaxies take hundreds of millions to billions of years to change significantly, we cannot observe changes in a single galaxy; instead, we study large samples of galaxies to try and understand the process by having caught galaxies at different moments in this evolution. I primarily study this process and these black holes using X-ray, infrared, and radio observations from a variety of primarily space-based telescopes run by NASA and ESA.”

This illustration depicts NASA’s Juno spacecraft at Jupiter, with its solar arrays and main antenna pointed toward the distant sun and Earth. (Image courtesy of NASA)

When asked about the latest discoveries of some of the distance planets, Lanze says, “In terms of new discoveries, NASA’s mission Juno has been teaching us all sorts of really interesting things about Jupiter and its moons. For example, a new volcano has been discovered on the moon Io and studies of that moon are teaching us about how to get volcanoes in objects smaller than we would expect to still be liquid inside. Europa Clipper was also launched in October with the aim of learning much more about the moon Europa, which may be one of the largest sources of freshwater in the outer solar system (and will likely play an important part in future colonization of the solar system). JWST also recently detected carbon dioxide on the surface of Europa, but in a way that suggests that it has to be relatively geologically recent.”

Seeing Darkness

From the “naked-eye sky” to mobile apps, scientific instruments, and regional planetariums, recreational astronomy leaves plenty of room for “aha” moments. It is also a great hobby for all ages and certainly a transformative method of appreciating the path of the planets.

To infinity and beyond!