The Remedy for Light-Polluted Sky

So what can you see light-polluted city skies?  Enough for a lifetime of viewing.

If you have sky that lets you see 4th magnitude stars, and you have a 4-inch telescope or larger, you can see...

• All 110 Messier objects, including the most challenging objects like M101 and M74

• Hundreds of NGC objects, including spectacular edge-on spiral galaxies, spanking-new open star clusters, and ancient globular star clusters, planetary nebulae cast off by the last gasp of a dying star, and countless new stars in the process of birth behind delicate tendrils of glowing gas and dust

• Binary and multiple stars with an endless range of colors, brightness contrast, and angular separation to test your seeing skills, your equipment, and your imagination

• Hundreds of variable stars, from eclipsing binary stars like Algol, to the swollen and throbbing semi-regular variable stars like Mira, to the rhythmic pulsations of Cepheid variables that astronomers use to measure the size of the known universe.

And of course, you can see the moon, all the planets, dozens of asteroids, meteors, and, with the right equipment, the only star we can see close-up, the Sun.

But that’s not all.  With the tips, techniques and suggestions you’ll find in this guide, you’ll also know how to see transient but spectacular celestial objects such as comets, flare stars, even supernovae, nature’s most powerful explosions, in the spiral arms of distant galaxies

And all this right from your backyard, balcony, or nearby park.  There is no shortage of things to see.  It’s just a matter of getting out there and seeing it.

This course consists of a recording and transcript of a one-hour audio teleconference with Rod Mollise, an expert urban stargazer, author, and teacher with 40 years of experience.  Rod wrote the excellent book "The Urban Astronomer's Guide".  But he reveals his best tips here for you.

All you need to do to hear Rod's tips and techniques is to register your account at Stargazer University (if you don't already have  one). You can get your user name and password over on the right side of the page.  Then you're ready to go.  Best of all... this course is free!