Explore the Universe

Exploring Space: From the Sun to Constellations

The Sun, also known as Sol, is the closest star to Earth and the center of our eight-planet solar system.
The Sun is a five-billion-year-old ball of superhot gas, with a core temperature of 15 million degrees Celsius.
Energy created in the Sun's core travels slowly to the surface before taking eight minutes to reach Earth as light and heat.
Without the Sun, Earth would be a dark, frozen world with no life.
The universe is massive, with the observable universe being 93 billion lightyears across.
Scientists measure distances in space using lightyears, which is the distance light can travel in one year.
Stars come in different colors and sizes, with red stars producing less energy and blue-white stars producing the most energy.
Betelgeuse and Rigel are two stars in the constellation Orion, with Betelgeuse being a red supergiant and Rigel being a blue-white supergiant.
Constellations are groups of stars that form patterns in the sky and have been used throughout history to tell stories and navigate.
The stars in a constellation may look similar from Earth, but they have different personalities, colors, and sizes.
The Milky Way Galaxy, which contains our solar system, has a wide range of stars.
Understanding the universe's vastness and complexity helps us appreciate our place in it and inspires us to learn more.Constellations and the Zodiac: Mapping the Night Sky
A constellation is a cluster of stars in the sky that have been grouped together in a pattern or shape and given a name.
Astronomers use constellations to help them map the night sky and find other objects in space.
There are 88 named constellations, with most of them coming from ancient Greek mythology.
The stars in a constellation are not related but form a shape that the Greeks used to tell stories about their gods and mythical creatures.
The Zodiac is a group of 13 constellations that form a circular pattern in the night sky and have been studied and tracked since ancient times.
The constellations in the Zodiac are highly visible from Earth during different months of the year, starting with Sagittarius in January and ending with Ophiuchus.
Earth rotates on its axis and revolves around the Sun, making one full trip around the star every year.
The Sun appears to move through the stars over the course of the year, but it is the Earth's movement that makes it seem that way.
Astronomers draw an imaginary line from the Earth through the Sun and toward the stars beyond it to track the Sun's apparent path through space, called the Ecliptic.
The Ecliptic is the imaginary line that the Zodiac sits on and tracks the Sun's apparent path through space.
The Sun remains in the same spot while Earth makes its annual journey, following the Ecliptic path through the Zodiac.
Understanding what happens in space is fascinating and helps astronomers map the night sky and find other objects in space.

Exploring Space: From the Sun to Constellations

The Sun, also known as Sol, is the closest star to Earth and the center of our eight-planet solar system.
The Sun is a five-billion-year-old ball of superhot gas, with a core temperature of 15 million degrees Celsius.
Energy created in the Sun's core travels slowly to the surface before taking eight minutes to reach Earth as light and heat.
Without the Sun, Earth would be a dark, frozen world with no life.
The universe is massive, with the observable universe being 93 billion lightyears across.
Scientists measure distances in space using lightyears, which is the distance light can travel in one year.
Stars come in different colors and sizes, with red stars producing less energy and blue-white stars producing the most energy.
Betelgeuse and Rigel are two stars in the constellation Orion, with Betelgeuse being a red supergiant and Rigel being a blue-white supergiant.
Constellations are groups of stars that form patterns in the sky and have been used throughout history to tell stories and navigate.
The stars in a constellation may look similar from Earth, but they have different personalities, colors, and sizes.
The Milky Way Galaxy, which contains our solar system, has a wide range of stars.
Understanding the universe's vastness and complexity helps us appreciate our place in it and inspires us to learn more.Constellations and the Zodiac: Mapping the Night Sky
A constellation is a cluster of stars in the sky that have been grouped together in a pattern or shape and given a name.
Astronomers use constellations to help them map the night sky and find other objects in space.
There are 88 named constellations, with most of them coming from ancient Greek mythology.
The stars in a constellation are not related but form a shape that the Greeks used to tell stories about their gods and mythical creatures.
The Zodiac is a group of 13 constellations that form a circular pattern in the night sky and have been studied and tracked since ancient times.
The constellations in the Zodiac are highly visible from Earth during different months of the year, starting with Sagittarius in January and ending with Ophiuchus.
Earth rotates on its axis and revolves around the Sun, making one full trip around the star every year.
The Sun appears to move through the stars over the course of the year, but it is the Earth's movement that makes it seem that way.
Astronomers draw an imaginary line from the Earth through the Sun and toward the stars beyond it to track the Sun's apparent path through space, called the Ecliptic.
The Ecliptic is the imaginary line that the Zodiac sits on and tracks the Sun's apparent path through space.
The Sun remains in the same spot while Earth makes its annual journey, following the Ecliptic path through the Zodiac.
Understanding what happens in space is fascinating and helps astronomers map the night sky and find other objects in space.