Astronomy: Supplemental Guide 3A | Stars 61Just how far away are the stars? Here’s one way to think
about it: if someone put you on the fastest rocket ship today and
launched you into space, it would take you thousands of years—
about seventy-three thousand to be exact—to reach the nearest
star beyond our sun!^5 That’s very far away. However, you can still
see the light from that massive, hot star, even though it looks more
like a tiny, twinkling diamond from here on the earth.
Show image 3A-3: Observatory
At night, astronomers study the stars. Astronomers work in
observatories, which are buildings where large telescopes are
housed.^6 Observatories are built high up on hills or mountaintops,
where there are no buildings or trees blocking the telescope.^7 The
roof of the observatory is designed so that it can open and allow
the giant telescope inside to move up and down and all around
without bumping into anything.
Show image 3A-4: Inside observatory
Astronomers need really big, powerful telescopes to do their
work. This is the kind of telescope you fi nd inside an observatory.^8
That’s a big telescope!
Show image 3A-5: Conventional telescope
But you don’t need a massive telescope and a fancy
mountaintop observatory to enjoy the wonders of stargazing, or
looking at the stars. If you want to get a better look at the stars or
a closer look at the moon, a pair of binoculars will do the trick.^9 Or
you can use a telescope like this one.^10 You’d be surprised by all
the different things you can see through a telescope!
Show image 3A-6: Magnifi ed stars^11
Through careful study, astronomers have fi gured out many
interesting facts about stars, even though no one is able to travel
and study a star up close.^12 Astronomers have learned that some
stars are older than other stars. Some stars are hotter than others.
Some appear red through the telescope^13 and others appear6 Telescopes are tube-like tools
with lenses and mirrors used for
magnifying objects in space in
order to observe them.
7 What smaller word do you hear in
the word observatories? Observe
means to look.
8 [Point to the large telescope.]
9 [Hold your hands to your eyes like
you are holding binoculars.]
10 [Point to the telescope in the
image.]
11 These are pictures of stars that have
been made larger, or magnifi ed.
12 Remember, it would take
thousands of years to get close to
one.
13 [Point to the red star on the left.]
5 Here the word ship means a large
spacecraft. The word ship can also
mean to send a package through
the mail.