The Sky at Night – Hiding in Starlight
Total solar eclipses are mesmerizing celestial events, and last month’s spectacle over North America provided an extraordinary opportunity.
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Space
The Sky at Night – Space Rock Return
This month, we delve deep into the heart of space exploration with an exclusive look at NASA’s groundbreaking OSIRIS-REx mission
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The Sky at Night – The Very Large Telescope
The Sky at Night – The Very Large Telescope – Nestled in the heart of Chile’s arid Atacama Desert, the Very Large Telescope (VLT) stands as a monumental testament to humanity’s quest for cosmic knowledge. This premier observatory has catalyzed paradigm-shifting astronomical discoveries, earning its place in the annals of science through contributions that have garnered Nobel recognition and profoundly reshaped cosmic comprehension. Situated within the Paranal Observatory in one of Earth’s most desiccated environments, the VLT benefits from unparalleled atmospheric conditions for stellar observation. The site’s minimal moisture significantly mitigates atmospheric distortion, granting an almost unadulterated view of the
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The Sky at Night – Black Holes: Searching for the Unknown
The Sky at Night – Black Holes: Searching for the Unknown – Delving into the vast mysteries of our cosmos, there’s never been a more electrifying period than now to immerse oneself in the enigma of one of space’s most captivating phenomena: black holes. This month, the illustrious team behind ‘The Sky at Night’ embarks on a profound journey, unraveling the sophisticated science behind black holes. Their mission is not just to uncover the guarded secrets of these space giants but also to potentially pave the way to answering some of the universe’s most profound questions. Chris, with
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The Sky at Night – Is There Anybody out There?
The Sky at Night – Is There Anybody out There – Diving into the intricate and somewhat contentious realm of alien communication, the Sky at Night team probes deep into the captivating pursuit of life on other celestial bodies, a topic that continues to fascinate the scientific community and beyond. The less publicized and arguably more intriguing aspect, however, lies in the extensive efforts taking place worldwide, seeking to answer the next logical question—what follows the potential discovery of alien life? The task of formulating how we might reach out to them, determining what the content of our initial communique
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The Sky at Night – Photographing the Universe
The Sky at Night – Photographing the Universe: For centuries, humans have been drawing what they see in the night sky through telescopes. But there is something about a photograph that can make you feel you are right there, up close to the moon, planet, star or galaxy you are looking at. Having the light from those distance objects, fixed in an image, has meant scientists can analyse and understand the beautiful universe around us. So, this month, the Sky at Night is looking at the wonderful world of astrophotography. Dr Jen Gupta visits Chris to talk about
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The Sky at Night – James Webb Road Trip
The Sky at Night – James Webb Road Trip: On 12 July 2022, the Sky at Night joined the rest of the world to watch as the James Webb Space Telescope released its long-awaited first images. And it didn’t disappoint. Stars and galaxies were revealed in such detail that they blew even the most experienced astronomers away. However, as spectacular as these images were, it was the data that they represented that really excited the scientists watching. Chris Lintott travels around the country, meeting some of the scientists getting their hands on the very first batches of data
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Super Telescope: Mission to the Edge of the Universe
Super Telescope: Mission to the Edge of the Universe – As Nasa releases the first images from the James Webb Space Telescope, this film tells the inside story of the telescope’s construction and the astronomers taking its first picture of distant stars and galaxies. Will it be the deepest image of our universe ever taken? The successor to Hubble, and 100 times more powerful, the James Webb is the most technically advanced telescope ever built. It will look further back in time than Hubble to an era around 200 million years after the Big Bang, when the first
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The Sky at Night – The Forgotten Solar System
The Sky at Night – The Forgotten Solar System: Of the 100 probes that have been sent out into space, only one probe – Voyager 2 in 1989 – has ever sent back any information about the solar system’s outer planets. From afar, they seem featureless and devoid of any significant geological activity. Since then, long-range telescopes have shown that there is much more to Neptune and Uranus than previously thought and that they both warrant closer inspection. Time, however, is of the essence. Deep-space missions are dependent on Jupiter. The slingshot effect it provides to move probes
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Brian Cox’s Adventures in Space and Time episode 4 – What Is Time?
Brian Cox’s Adventures in Space and Time episode 4 – What Is Time?: Brian explores a simple question that is causing a big stir today: what is time? Modern science shows it to be far stranger than we think. He recalls some highlights from his TV series that touch upon different aspects of this physics conundrum: from a mind-boggling encounter with Doctor Who, to breaking the sound barrier in a Eurofighter in order to see two sunsets in one day, to witnessing one of the oldest animal life cycles on earth on a remote beach in Costa Rica. Alternative
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Brian Cox’s Adventures in Space and Time episode 3 – What Is Gravity?
Brian Cox’s Adventures in Space and Time episode 3: Brian takes a fresh look at the concept of gravity, revealing it to be far more than just the force that makes things fall to the ground. Recent scientific breakthroughs are challenging physicists’ ideas of the very nature of reality. He recalls some of his most iconic TV moments: being first on the scene to meet a space capsule returning three astronauts from the International Space Station; demonstrating how a bowling ball and feather fall at the same speed in the largest vacuum chamber in the world; filming in
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Brian Cox’s Adventures in Space and Time episode 2
Brian Cox’s Adventures in Space and Time episode 2: Brian Cox looks at our attempts to answer one of the most profound questions we can ask – are we alone in the universe? With scientists sending space probes to the furthest reaches of our solar system and beyond, the scientific search for alien life has begun. Inspired by a childhood love of science fiction, Brian still hopes to hear from ET. In this film, he explains why this search deserves to be taken seriously, and he explores the chances of it happening. Discovering our place in the universe.
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