Inside the July 2016 Issue


PURCHASE PRINT ISSUE | PURCHASE DIGITAL ISSUE | PURCHASE BACK ISSUES | SUBSCRIBE
Sky & Telescope July 2016Mysteries Revealed: Juno at Jupiter, Aquila's Nebulae, and Fast Radio Bursts
Jupiter greets us with a familiar, friendly face at the telescope at night, but it hides secrets inside — and this July, NASA's Juno spacecraft will arrive at the king of planets to reveal those mysteries from its unique vantage point. Mysterious fast radio bursts have secrets to reveal, too. Once relegated to the scientific fringe, a multitude of discoveries  have put these enigmatic flashes of radio waves back under the spotlight — read the issue to see what we know. And there are no secrets deeper than those of the sky: look into Aquila's absorption nebulae this summer with a guide from Richard P. Wilds. Plus, get tips on the astrophotography software DeepSkyStacker, watch the planets all night long, and take the Pluto challenge.

FEATURE ARTICLES

Artist's impression of Juno orbiting Jupiter
Launched on Aug 5, 2011, the Juno spacecraft will arrive at Jupiter in July 2016.
NASA
Revealing Jupiter's Inner Secrets
NASA scientists hope their Juno orbiter will get the "inside story" on our solar system's largest planet.
By Fran Bagenal
The Mystery of Fast Radio Bursts
A decade ago astronomers discovered an ultrabright, ultrabrief flash of radio waves. Now, more than a dozen have been spotted, revealing tantalizing clues to their nature.
By Shannon Hall
Cold, Dark, DeepSpend the summer with the absorption nebulae of Aquila.
By Richard P. Wilds
A Forgotten Observing Classic1001 Celestial Wonders, by C.E. Barns deserves a place among the great observing guides of the last two centuries.
By James Mullaney
Combining Photos with DeepSkyStackerHere's a great freeware program that makes stacking your dep-sky images a snap.
By Jerry Lodriguss

BEYOND THE PRINTED PAGE

Hercules Galaxy Cluster.
Abell 2151. Ken Crawford
Going Deep: Hercules Galaxy ClusterFind here an expanded table of galaxies to accompany Steve Gottlieb's deep-sky column.
Hitomi Malfunction — The Full StoryRead the full, updated story on what went wrong for Japan's X-ray satellite.
Join S&T in Iceland
Join Sky & Telescope Observing Editor JR Johnson-Roehr for our fourth annual trip to Iceland to see the northern lights.
Lunar Librations
Librations and other lunar data for July 2016.

ALSO IN THIS ISSUE

pluto-global-color-7-24-15-300px
NASA / APL / SwRI
Full House
Every planet in the solar system makes an appearance this month.
By Fred Schaaf
Pluto Has the Last LaughFor a non-planet Pluto sure shows some amazing planetary traits. Here's how to see Pluto this summer.
By Alan MacRobert
Filters for Enhancing the PlanetsThese affordable accessories can bring out details when you observe bright planets.
By Thomas Dobbins
Starry SwarmsTour the great star cities of southern Ophiuchus.
By Sue French
Table of Contents
See what else July's issue has to offer.