Bob Berman

New York

Columnist and Contributing Editor at Astronomy Magazine

Host at WAMC, Northeast Public Radio

Articles

Mars meets the Moon

2 weeks ago | hudsonvalleyone.com | Bob Berman

Coming up this Saturday night, May 3, the fat crescent Moon will hover next to the famous blue star Regulus. As the brightest luminary in the entire zodiac and the main star of Leo the Lion, the ancient Persians considered it one of the “four royal stars.”The Babylonians, 4,000 years ago, knew that only six bright stars could ever appear next to the Moon or planets. So when it happens, like it will do spectacularly this Saturday, it’s definitely worth a look. It wasn’t always known as Regulus.
A Milky Way collision

2 weeks ago | wamc.org | Bob Berman

1 of 1 — strange universe .png NASA/ ESA/The Hubble Heritage Team (STScl/AURA) Time to explore a radical new idea shaking up our understanding of the cosmos: what if dark matter doesn’t exist at all? Some European astronomers propose that the Milky Way and Andromeda galaxies may have already collided once in the distant past—a theory that challenges long-held beliefs about gravity and the mysterious dark matter thought to hold galaxies together.
Lunar cycles and holidays

3 weeks ago | wamc.org | Bob Berman

1 of 1 — 04252c3f-69c2-474e-b754-afd9d6b8d3f1.jpg NASA/Bill Dunford For centuries, the full moon guided calendars and celebrations — and its legacy lives on. This weekend, we explore how lunar cycles still determine the timing of some holidays. Ever wonder why Easter moves around or why there's always a full moon during this time. It all comes down to ancient rules and celestial rhythms that still shape our holidays today. Strange Universe planetLunar EclipseNASA
Special Moons - Hudson Valley One

1 month ago | hudsonvalleyone.com | Bob Berman

For countless centuries, the Full Moon had great importance. One reason was the lack of artificial lights, which made travel perilous unless a bright Moon was out. Moonlight mattered until the 19th century. Now, few of those festivals and lunar calendars still remain. But one of them unfolds with last weekend’s Full Moon. Passover and Easter’s changing dates start out simple enough. Easter is the Sunday following the first Full Moon on or after the spring equinox, and that’s this Sunday.
The sky's brightest star

1 month ago | wamc.org | Bob Berman

1 of 1 — SU 4-13 NASA.jpg NASA/CXC/U.Texas/S.Post et al, Infrared: 2MASS/UMass/IPAC-Caltech/NASA/NSF – su 4-13 When darkness first falls these nights, the sky’s brightest star hovers in the west. This is the planet Jupiter. And just above it is a truly awesome object. It’s the twisted remains of one of the greatest start explosions. Tune in to hear how it could possibly be reached and what exactly happened. Strange Universe GalaxiesJupiterplanet
Magnificent rings

1 month ago | wamc.org | Bob Berman

For anyone with a telescope, Saturn is a knockout. Check out the magnificent rings! Once every 50 years those rings are angled towards us and the sun. This spring is Saturn’s equinox, so it’s time to celebrate.
Getting your mind blown

1 month ago | hudsonvalleyone.com | Bob Berman

Many of us seek out thrills. When such an experience includes an intellectually stimulating component or an exciting deep space connection, who can resist? Many websites oblige, but their writers almost never know enough astronomy to make the come-on truthful or realistic. This year has already seen an unusual amount of celestial hype. Numerous websites featured images of planets and eclipses, with headlines warning not to miss the supposedly great sky spectacles in February and March.
The Seven Sisters

1 month ago | wamc.org | Bob Berman

1 of 1 — PLEIA.jpg This week in the western sky you'll spot the bright planet Jupiter, with the famous red star Aldebaran just beneath it. Aldebaran is the brightest star in the constellation Taurus, but it’s also known as the “follower,” trailing the Seven Sisters, or the Pleiades, across the heavens.
Start of spring

1 month ago | wamc.org | Bob Berman

1 of 1 — SU NASA ATM. REFRA.jpg NASA This past Thursday marked the vernal equinox, signaling the official start of Spring. While the media often claims that "day and night are equal" on this day, a closer look at sunrise and sunset times reveals that daylight actually lasts a few minutes longer. The reason? Atmospheric refraction, which bends the sun’s image upward. But even so, it’s a close enough approximation. Tune in to hear more about the rhythms of our planet.
Equinox activities

1 month ago | hudsonvalleyone.com | Bob Berman

This newspaper hits the stands on Thursday, the vernal equinox, the first day of Spring. It happened just before sunrise, when Earth stood perfectly sideways to the Sun. The media often celebrates this by saying that, «Day and night are equal.» But some people must surely glance at local sunrise and sunset listings and see that this day’s sunshine were a few minutes longer than night plus twilight. The culprit is our atmosphere, which bends the sun’s image upward. But, hey, it was close enough.