See the pole star

A Pole Star In The Sky

A pole star or polar star is a star, preferably bright, closely aligned to the axis of rotation  of an astronomical object. 

With regard to planet Earth, the pole star refers to Polaris,  a magnitude 2 star aligned approximately with its northern  axis, and a per-eminent star in celestial  navigation. 

Star Twinkle

Why do stars twinkle?

Stars twinkle because of turbulence in the atmosphere of the Earth. As the atmosphere churns, the light from the star is refracted in different directions. This causes the star's image to change slightly in brightness and position, hence "twinkle." This is one of the reasons the Hubble telescope is so successful: in space, there is no atmosphere to make the stars twinkle, allowing a much better image to be obtained.

earth moon

Earth Moon

Earth's Moon is the only place beyond Earth where humans have set foot, so far. The brightest and largest object in our night sky, the Moon makes Earth a more livable planet by moderating our home planet's wobble on its axis, leading to a relatively stable climate. It also causes tides, creating a rhythm that has guided humans for thousands of years. The Moon was likely formed after a Mars-sized body collided with Earth several billion years ago.
Earth's only natural satellite is simply called "the Moon" because people didn't know other moons existed until Galileo Galileo discovered four moons orbiting Jupiter in 1610. In Latin, the Moon was called Luna, which is the main adjective for all things Moon-related: lunar

solar system

                 Solar System

We live in an amazing planetary system. From the yawning Valles Marineris on Mars and the subsurface ocean hiding beneath the ice crust of Jupiter’s moon Europa, to the eerily Earth-like terrain of Saturn’s moon Titan, the solar system brims with wonders. And let’s not forget the Sun, with its mysteriously hot corona and its solar flares.

Here you’ll find the latest news from our ongoing exploration of the solar system. Whether it be stunning pictures from NASA’s Curiosity rover or new revelations about planets’ history and formation, we bring you authoritative reports on the coolest and most important developments in planetary science and heliophysics.