Sky & Telescope - USA (2020-06)

2 MARCH 2018 • SKY & TELESCOPE

FOR BEGINNERS

Find advice, free resources, and

ways to grow your interest into a

lifelong passion.

skyandtelescope.org/letsgo

MONTHLY SKY PODCAST

Listen as we guide you through

this month’s celestial sights.

Great for those learning how

to navigate the night sky!

skyandtelescope.org/podcasts

INTERACTIVE SKY CHART

Find out what the sky looks like for

your time and place. You can also

print the chart as a handout.

skyandtelescope.org/

interactive-sky-chart

RON BRECHER

SKY & TELESCOPE (ISSN 0037-6604) is published monthly by AAS Sky Publishing, LLC, owned by the American Astronomical Society, 1667 K Street NW, Suite 800, Washington, DC

20006, USA. Phone: 800-253-0245 (customer service/subscriptions), 617-500-6793 (all other calls). Website: skyandtelescope.org. Store website: shopatsky.com. ©2020 AAS Sky

Publishing, LLC. All rights reserved. Periodicals postage paid at Washington, DC, and at additional mailing offi ces. Canada Post Publications Mail sales agreement #40029823. Canadian

return address: 2744 Edna St., Windsor, ON, Canada N8Y 1V2. Canadian GST Reg. #R128921855. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Sky & Telescope, PO Box 420235, Palm

Coast, FL 32142-0235. Printed in the USA.

ONLINE

China’s Long March 5

rocket launches from

Hainan Province.

ON THE COVER

PHOTO: JOHN SHI

FEATURES

14 A Galaxy-Hop Around M

Join the author as he explores

the Pinwheel Galaxy and surround-

ing objects. By Alan Whitman

22 Treasures of the

Sharpless Catalog

Sample some of the delights in the

fi rst comprehensive catalog of

nebulae. By Ron Brecher

Cover Story:

34 China Launches to

Center Stage

A bold series of successful and

proposed missions are catapulting

China to prominence in space.

By Andrew Jones

58 Stellar Archaeology

Astronomers are illuminating the

universe’s early days by studying

chemical patterns in the oldest

stars. By Brian Ventrudo

66 Exploring the Deep Sky

with Video

With a little tech, you can see

farther and share the view.

By Rod Mollise

S&T TEST REPORT

30 Explore Scientifi c’s FirstLight

8-inch Dobsonian

By Ken Hewitt-White

COLUMNS / DEPARTMENTS

4 Spectrum

By Peter Tyson

6 From Our Readers

7 75, 50 & 25 Years Ago

By Roger W. Sinnott

8 News Notes

57 Books by S&T Authors

71 New Product Showcase

72 Astronomer’s Workbench

By Jerry Oltion

74 Gallery

84 Focal Point

By Joe Ulowetz

OBSERVING

41 June’s Sky at a Glance

By Diana Hannikainen

42 Lunar Almanac & Sky Chart

43 Binocular Highlight

By Mathew Wedel

44 Planetary Almanac

45 Under the Stars

By Fred Schaaf

46 Sun, Moon & Planets

By Fred Schaaf

48 Celestial Calendar

By Bob King

52 Exploring the Moon

By Charles A. Wood

54 Deep-Sky Wonders

By Sue French

THE ESSENTIAL GUIDE TO ASTRONOMY

CONTENTS

2 JUNE 2020 • SKY & TELESCOPE

June 2020 VOL. 139, NO. 6

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