Astronomy

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4 ASTRONOMY • JANUARY 2018

20 COVER STORY
Top 10 space stories
of 2017
Last year, we found a star with
seven Earth-sized planets, said
goodbye to the Cassini mission,
and watched a total solar eclipse
race across America. LIZ KRUESI

30
Do exoplanets
have moons?
Our solar system harbors at least
180 moons. Now astronomers
have launched a quest to find
satellites in another system.
NOLA TAYLOR REDD

36
Sky This Month
Totality over America. MARTIN
RATCLIFFE AND ALISTER LING

38
StarDome and
Path of the Planets
RICHARD TALCOTT;
ILLUSTRATIONS BY ROEN KELLY

44

Ask Astro

Celestial motion.

46

The real music

of the spheres

The sky is an endless source

of inspiration for artists and

composers. Here’s a look back

at how the stars have influenced

music. JOEL DAVIS

52

Explore Auriga’s

deep-sky wonders

Bright star clusters, challenging

nebulae, and even a distant

globular cluster await you in one

of winter’s great constellations.

STEPHEN JAMES O’MEARA

56

Snapshots from Starmus

The fourth Starmus Festival,

a celebration of science and the

arts, took place in Trondheim,

Norway, in June 2017.

DAVID J. EICHER

60

Explore Scientific’s

12-inch Truss Tube

Dobsonian

This telescope offers top-notch

construction and high-quality

optics, and is easy to set up and

use, as well. MIKE REYNOLDS

62

Starmus awards 2017

Stephen Hawking medals

The prestigious prize recognizes

popularizers of science from

around the world. JAKE PARKS

COLUMNS

Strange Universe 10

BOB BERMAN

Observing Basics 64

GLENN CHAPLE

Secret Sky 66

STEPHEN JAMES O’MEARA

Binocular Universe 68

PHIL HARRINGTON

QUANTUM GRAVITY

Snapshot 8

Astro News 12

IN EVERY ISSUE

From the Editor 6

Astro Letters 11

New Products 63

Advertiser Index 69

Reader Gallery 70

Breakthrough 74

FEATURES

JANUARY 2018

VOL. 46, NO. 1

30

Astronomy (ISSN 0091-6358, USPS 531-350) is

published monthly by Kalmbach Publishing

Co., 21027 Crossroads Circle, P. O. Box 1612,

Waukesha, WI 53187–1612. Periodicals post-

age paid at Waukesha, WI, and additional

offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to

Astronomy, P.O. Box 62320, Tampa, Fla. 33662-2320.

Canada Publication Mail Agreement #40010760.

ONLINE

FAVORITES

Go to http://www.Astronomy.com

for info on the biggest news and

observing events, stunning photos,

informative videos, and more.

ON THE COVER

Astronomers recently observed

gravitational waves from the long-

ago crash of two neutron stars.

ROBIN DIENEL COURTESY OF THE CARNEGIE INSTITUTION

FOR SCIENCE

Astronomy’s 2018

Guide to the Night Sky

This handy four-page insert will

keep you looking up all year.

BONUS!

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