“Astro Bob” returns in his second installment of the “Night Sky Explorer” series. Participants will learn about the Starlink satellites, how to see them, and hear news about upcoming celestial events! In addition, Astro Bob will give a brief introduction on using the free Star Chart phone app to discover constellations right above your head. As always, your astronomy questions will be “launched” off to Astro Bob for him to answer.
To fully engage in this webinar, please download the free Star Chart app on your phone before the event:
Star Chart App - iPhone
Star Chart App - Android
If you missed our last “Night Sky Explorer” webinar, you can view it here.
What is StarLink?
Starlink is the satellite network launched by the private spaceflight company SpaceX. The intention of launch is to provide low-cost internet to rural locations. On March 23rd, 60 satellites were launched into the atmosphere, but SpaceX eventually hopes to have as many as 12,000 satellites to form a “megaconstellation.” This has created questions and fears amongst astronomers and skywatchers as to how these orbiting satellites will affect skywatching.
About "Astro Bob"
Bob King fell in love with the night sky and astronomy when he was a kid and loves to share his passion with people of all ages. Bob was a photographer and photo editor at the Duluth News Tribune for 39 years before retiring in 2018, and also taught at the UMD planetarium for many years. His books "Night Sky with the Naked Eye" and "Wonders of the Night Sky You Must See Before You Die" describe the joys of skywatching. Bob's latest book, "Urban Legends of Space," examines science vs. pseudoscience in astronomy.
http://astrobob.areavoices.com
