celestial body articles
Is the Sun supposed to be a star?
The concept that the Sun is merely one star among countless others in the vast expanse of the cosmos represents one of t...
What is the really bright star right beside the Moon?
That brilliant point of light hanging right next to the Moon is one of the most common questions amateur skywatchers ask...
What are the main characteristics of the moon?
The Moon, Earth’s only natural satellite, is a silent, familiar celestial neighbor whose characteristics shape our tides...
What is a rock that falls from space?
The object that completes its fiery voyage from the vacuum of space to the surface of our planet has several names depen...
Why is the Sun not a star?
The premise that the Sun is *not* a star fundamentally misunderstands celestial classification, as the Sun is, by every ...
What is an object of ice and dust?
Objects in space composed primarily of ice mixed with dust and rock are formally known as **comets** [^1][^2][^6]. These...
What is a ball of ice and dust?
This cosmic object, often described simply as a ball of ice and dust, is scientifically known as a **comet**. These are ...
What icy bodies mostly originate in the Oort Cloud before being flung toward the Sun?
The icy bodies that make their dramatic, fiery visits to the inner solar system—the long-period comets—are believed to h...
What icy bodies does the Oort Cloud contain?
The remote reaches of our solar system harbor a colossal, spherical reservoir composed primarily of icy debris, a struct...
Were any bodies recovered from the Challenger disaster?
The breakup of the Space Shuttle *Challenger* on January 28, 1986, resulted in the tragic loss of all seven crew members...
Did they recover the bodies from Columbia?
The breakup of Space Shuttle *Columbia* upon re-entry on February 1, 2003, initiated one of the most extensive and sombe...
What happened to the bodies of Columbia's crew?
The question of what became of the seven brave men and women aboard Space Shuttle *Columbia* when it broke apart during ...
How many bodies are in the Milky Way?
The sheer scale of our home galaxy, the Milky Way, is a concept that strains human intuition. Asking how many "bodies" r...
What is the apparent path of the Sun along the celestial sphere or equivalently the plane determined by the Earth's orbit called?
The apparent path traced by the Sun across the background stars over the course of a year, which also corresponds to the...
What is the apparent great circle annual path of the Sun in the celestial sphere as seen from the Earth?
The line traced by the Sun across the backdrop of the distant stars over the span of one year defines a fundamental conc...