Tag: astronomy
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Do the skies need our protection?
Stars as seen in midnight’s gaze Stars shining upon shoreline’s haze Guiding us, teaching us with stories manifold About ourselves, stars speak, from birth till old. Their permanence ties us to days gone by But to hide their secrets, they still do try To gaze upon them brings dreams of futures bright But to see…
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Featured constellations: the Bears and a Dragon
In last month’s blog, we discussed some of the constellations that are prominent in the spring: Leo the Lion, Cancer the Crab, and Coma Berenices (Queen Berenice of Egypt’s hair). This month, we will focus on two of the most well-known, as well as one of the longest, constellations visible in the night sky: Ursa Major, the…
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Eyes on the skies – March
Welcome to the Ontario Parks “Eyes on the Skies” series. This space (see what we did there?) will cover a wide range of astronomy topics with a focus on what can be seen from the pristine skies found in our provincial parks. March is one of the most glorious months to be camping, or even…
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Featured constellation: Leo the Lion
For thousands of years, humans have looked up at the stars. The stars helped them try to understand their purpose, and the role they play in our lives. To help memorize the different stars, patterns of connect-the-dot figures were created by many different cultures. Today, we recognize 88 official patterns or “constellations” of stars. In…
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Featured constellations: Gemini the Twins, Auriga the Charioteer, and Canis Minor
For thousands of years, humans have looked up at the stars. The stars helped them try to understand their purpose, and the role they play in our lives. To help memorize the different stars, patterns of connect-the-dot figures were created by many different cultures. Today, we recognize 88 official patterns or “constellations” of stars. In…
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Featured constellation: Orion
For thousands of years, humans have looked up at the stars. The stars helped them try to understand their purpose, and the role they play in our lives. To help memorize the different stars, patterns of connect-the-dot figures were created by many different cultures. Today, we recognize 88 official patterns or “constellations” of stars. Today…
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From the Big Bang to beyond: the astronomical origins of the universe – part 4
In the first three posts in this series (Part 1 – Origins, Part 2 – The Formation of Stars, and Part 3 – Planets and the Conditions Necessary for Life), we discussed our origins from the Big Bang to the formation of our solar system and the basic ingredients that allowed life to develop and flourish on our planet.…
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Eyes on the skies — December
Welcome to the Ontario Parks “Eyes on the Skies” series. This will cover a wide range of astronomy topics with a focus on what can be seen from the pristine skies found in our provincial parks. December brings some of the darkest skies of the year. Take advantage of this great opportunity to go out…
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From the Big Bang to beyond: the astronomical origins of the universe – part 3
In our previous post, we discussed the formation of stars from condensing balls of gas within interstellar nebulae, to the formation of open clusters of hundreds of sibling stars using images taken from the observatories in Killarney Provincial Park. In this post, we will discuss how planets and life arose from the debris of star…