Stars and Galaxies

all links at this site were working on 5/30/2009

1. 47.2 Light-Years Radius - Nearby Star Map - java applet that lets you rotate the nearby stars around Sol
2. Amazing Space - a set of web-based activities primarily designed for classroom use, but made available for all to enjoy. Shockwave is required.
3. The Animated Virtual Planetarium - simulations designed to be used in the classroom, or in the lab by students, as demonstrations of various aspects of planetary motions
4. The Astronomy Picture of the Day: great photos and an explanation each day. Their search feature returns thumbnail images of matches and their archive extends back to June 16, 1995.
   1. Excellent examples from the APOD archive : Orion's Horsehead Nebula || Andromeda Island Universe || Cone Nebula Close-Up || Saturn At Night || The Newly Expanded International Space Station || The Cat's Eye Nebula || Watch the Sky Rotate || 2001: A Total Lunar Eclipse || A Mercury Transit Sequence || What our Moon looks like during a complete lunar cycle || The View from Everest || Three views of Saturn from HST || Earth at Night || Moonrise Over Seattle || November's Lunar Eclipse (excellent animation) || Satellites that Surround Earth - Zoom in from geosynchronus satellites to the International Space Station || Sunrise by Season - three pictures showing the sunrise at the equinox and each solstice || NASA TV - use this link to access NASA TV || Identify the constellations - roll your mouse over the picture to see constellations named
5. Astronomy Resources - posted by the Space Telescope Science Institute
6. Atlas of the Universe - what our universe looks like - nine main maps on this page, each is approximately ten times the scale of the previous
7. Big Bang Time Machine - go back in time to explore what the universe was like at various times
8. Canadian Astronomy Data Center - links to a large number of image archives
9. Classroom-Ready Astronomy Lesson Plans - scroll one-third of the way down the page to Sky Paths
10. Common Names for Deep Sky Objects - This list only covers non-stellar deep sky objects (nebulae, star clusters, and galaxies)
11. Constellation Quiz - see how well you know the night sky
12. The Cosmic Distance Scale - This feature will give an impression of how immense our Universe is by employing a method used many times in "Power of 10" films - that is, starting with an image of the Earth and then zooming out to the furthest visible reaches of our Universe.
13. The Cosmic Distance Scale - a series of web-based exercises designed to take students on an interactive tour measuring cosmic distances
14. The Cosmic Distance Scale - a lecture with illustrations and images
15. Digitized Sky Survey (DSS) Images of IC Objects
16. Field Guide to the Universe - Astronomers
17. Galaxies
    1. Galaxy Index - photo index which leads to pages with more complete information
    2. Spiral Galaxy pictures - Alwyn Botha has posted this excellent set of galaxy pictures to assist those who want to take their own astrophotographs, or those who simply want to see the beautiful pinwheel shapes of spiral galaxies. Thanks for all of the hard work Alwyn.
18. History of Astronomy - hosted by the University of Bonn
19. How many stars are there in the Universe? - an interesting article on how to make an estimate of the number of stars
20. Hubble Heritage Project - index to images from the Hubble Space Telescope
21. Hubble Space Telescope's greatest hits - some of the best images from 1990-1995, plus links to other Hubble images.
22. Interactive Sky Maps
    1. The Interactive NGC Catalog Online
    2. Interactive Sky Map - from Sky Map.org
    3. Interactive Star Chart - Weather Underground has a great star map - Click on a star, planet, sun or moon for more information.
    4. Interactive Star Chart - small java applet that allows you to quickly scroll through the entire sky
    5. Interactive Star Map - provided by the Hong Kong Space Museum - select location and features and then click the Submit button to see a star map for your location
    6. Mini-Astro Viewer - click on the Mini-Astro viewer button and use the Calendar button to select any date you want to see a star map for
    7. Your Sky - the interactive planetarium of the Web - You can produce maps in the forms described below for any time and date, viewpoint, and observing location.
    8. Interactive Sky Map - select an object to see a short video of the object
23. The Messier Catalog - links to images of the objects and information about the man and his catalog. There is also an index of Messier objects by object type: nebulae, clusters, galaxies, and other kinds of objects not under any major category.
24. Mount Wilson Observatory - a virtual tour designed to give a visitor a feel for the observatory grounds and to present some of the history and heritage of Mount Wilson Observatory
25. Mount Wilson Observatory Association - The Mount Wilson Observatory Association (MWOA) is a volunteer organization supporting the Mount Wilson Observatory
26. Mysteries of Deep Space - from PBS Online
27. National Science Foundation Division of Astronomical Sciences - useful links to astronomical on-line resources
28. NOVA - an archive of past NOVA shows on the subject of space
29. Papercraft: Rotating Star Chart (Planisphere) - from Canon's Bubble Jet Printer Creative Park
30. Photo Gallery of the National Space Science Data Center
31. Plans for Building a Dobsonian Telescope - "If there were a million amateur astronomers with telescopes, and they were willing to let a few thousand people each look through their telescopes, there would be a chance for the people in the world who wanted to see to see." John Dobson
32. Plans for Building a Dobsonian Telescope - a 52 page document from San Francisco Sidewalk Astronomers association
33. Sky & Telescope magazine - near the bottom of the page is a list of twelve interactive observing tools [free registration is required to use the tools]
34. Space Telescope Science Institute - astronomy resources, data archives and HST
35. StarChild - A Learning Center for Young Astronomers from NASA
36. Stargazing Guide - a handbook for night sky tour guides - four tours available; summer, autumn, winter and spring
37. Star Journey - based on National Geographic's popular map, "The Heavens"
38. Stephen Hawking's Universe - from PBS
39. Telescope Reviews - reviews of over 100 telescopes, eyepiece reviews, a beginner's advice column, feature articles, and lots more
40. Understanding the Universe - an exploration with the American Museum of Natural History at DiscoverySchool.com
41. Windows to the Universe - the site is written in three reading levels approximating elementary, middle school and high school reading levels - levels may be chosen by using the upper button bar of each page of the main site
42. Yahoo Astronomy Directory - Over three dozen sub directories are listed
43. Your Sky - [the interactive planetarium of the Web] - produce maps for any time and date, viewpoint, and observing location from this site