STEM · Full roadmap · ~90 min read · 26 steps
🔭Reading the night sky
Learn the sky, the universe, and how to actually go stargazing
Activities in this path
Skill tree
0 / 26 steps
Unit 1
Start here
Course overview
The sky is a dome, and you are inside it
The celestial sphere
Why the sky spins
Earth's rotation makes the sky appear to move
Polaris and the still point of the sky
The north celestial pole
Finding Polaris with the Big Dipper
Asterisms as signposts
Unit 2
Day, night, and why we get seasons
Earth's tilt drives the seasons
The Moon and its phases
Phases come from changing sunlight angles
Tides and the Moon's pull
Gravity from the Moon raises ocean bulges
The Solar System tour
Eight planets in two groups
Dwarf planets, asteroids, and comets
The smaller bodies of the Solar System
Unit 3
Why we measure space in AU and light-years
Distance units for a huge universe
The Sun is a star
Our Sun is an ordinary star up close
How bright is that star, really
Magnitude measures brightness
Star colors and temperatures
Color reveals a star's temperature
The HR diagram, without the math
A chart that sorts every star
Unit 4
How stars are born and live
Stars form in clouds and burn for ages
How stars die
Mass decides a star's ending
Constellations and the ecliptic
Patterns and the path of the Sun, Moon, and planets
The Milky Way and other galaxies
Our galaxy and the larger universe
The expanding universe and the Big Bang
The universe began 13.8 billion years ago and is growing
Unit 5
The dark universe
Most of the universe is unseen
Telescopes and binoculars for beginners
Aperture matters most, start small
Light pollution and dark skies
Darkness is the free upgrade
Common beginner mistakes
Avoid the traps that frustrate newcomers
Your first night out
A simple plan that works
Unit 6
Where to go next
Where to go next