Top 5 (Brightest) Stars

5.Vega
Its the brightest star in the constellation Lyra, and 25 light years away from Earth.
Vega was the nothern pole star around 12000 BC. It was the first star after the Sun to be photographed and have its spectrum recorded (Wiki). After Sirius and Arturus its one of the most luminous stars in the neighborhood.

4.Arcturus
A variable star, an orange giant, its twice as massive and 215 times brighter than our Sun. Its 37 light years away, however the distance was formly known to be 40 light years.

3. Alpha Centurai
Its the nearest star to Earth and shines 1.5 times brighter than the Sun. Its 4.22 light years away and you’ll find it at the foot of the constellation Centaurus. If you have a small telescope you’ll see a wonderful double star system.

2.Canopus
Though its 316 light years away but has a luminosity that is 14800 times more than our beloved Suns. Its has a magnituse of -0.72.

I think you all know about our winner …

1.Sirius
Its the brightest star in the night sky, and Hipparchus was the first to give it the first position. Shines at -1.42 magnitude and resides in Canis Major. Its very easy to spot, find the brightest star in the sky. :D

Top 10 Sights on Mars

Here’s the countdown…

9.Arsia Mons
Volcano on Mars

8.Tharsis Tholus

7.Athabasca Valles
A sheet like covering of lava.

6.Seven Sisters
The seven possible cave entrances on the flanks of Arsia Mons are collectively called the Seven Sister. Martian apes might have lived there :D ! They’re 100 to 252 m wide and approximatly 73 to 96 m deep.

5.Borealis Basin
Borealis Basin or North Polar Basin covers 40% of the Martian surface and is low, flat and relatively crater free. Viking 1 landed near it.

4.Victoria Crater

3.Polar Caps
Well, they’re mostly like Earth’s.

2.Valles Marineris
4000 km long, 200 km wide and 7 km deep, Valles Marineris is larger than any canyon on Earth, infact, its the largest canyon in the solar system! Its 6 times deeper than Grand Canyon and it would cover United States if placed on Earth!

1.Olympus Mons
Approximatly 3 times taller than Mount Everest and being the tallest mountain in the solar system, Olympus Mons wins the first position! It stretches 27 km (17mi).

A Starless Sky?

For those of you who are living in a densely populated city already get what the topic says. And those of you who are not, well you guys are simply lucky!
Living in a city areas can be a big hassle for amateur astronomers. I mean we can only gaze at what, like 15 stars, barely 20. Now compare that to the same sky you see in Arizona! Even the images are breath-taking.

We only see the brightest meteors in the city-sky. Last year, during the Persieds, I only saw 80 meteors, peak night. Though they were 200-300 meteors per hour! 80 meteor in a night isn’t a shower, merely a drizzle :( !
However, Sirius and Jupiter shine bright!

BLAME LIGHT POLLUTION!

What now?

Thinking what you can do to on your PC to boost your Astronomy passion? Well, if your still unaware about Galaxy Zoo, pay a visit. It will help you to help Astronomers. Sleek. Keep in touch with blogs and forums.