The Page o' Links

 








 

Here are some cool astronomy and science related Web sites. Some have been discovered by students as extra-credit projects. You too can contribute to this site by digging up some links!

·         You can find the Crash Course Astronomy videos here

·         A list of some of my favorite books on the history of Astronomy

Astronomy News Sites -- Get the latest information about astronomy at these sites!

Livewatch

 

This supercool site, suggested by the supercool students of Courtney Phillips, has links to tons of images, videos and webcams.  A great place to spend some time wandering around the Universe!

 

Astronomy Picture of the Day

As advertised by the title, this is a site that every day offers a new image:  starts, planets, nebulae, galaxies, even the occasional historical picture.  The pictures are accompanied by descriptive text and links to more information. Definitely a site for the "Bookmark" file!

Texas Museum of Science and Technology

This organization, with a facility in Cedar Park., wants to build a planetarium in Austin.  Austin is the largest city in the USA that doesn't have a planetarium!  Outrageous!  Check them out and see how you can help!

Astronomy for Kids

The Title says it all!  Also check out:

  • A Kid’s Guide to Astronomy – Thanks to Ashley and her classmates in Delaware for pointing me to this great resource to help kids learn about astronomy!

 

The Bad Astronomy Page

Don't be deceived by the name of this site;  it's really very good!  Phil Plait likes to set the score straight on science misconceptions, and television and the movies unfortunately give him a lot to work with.

The Astronomy Cafe

This site, maintained by space scientist Dr. Sten Odenwald, is a treasure-trove of information about a variety of astronomy topics.  Between the "Ask the Astronomer" and "Ask the Space Scientist" features, Dr. Odenwald answers over Five Thousand questions about various topics in astronomy! 

The Nine Planets

This is the site on the Web for information about the solar system, presented in an entertaining and easy-to-read manner.  Bill Arnett is constantly updating his site with the latest information.  Not only can you find the "hard facts" about the planets and their moons, and beautiful photographs, but also background on who discovered each of them, and how they were named.

Views of the Solar System

Artist and author Calvin J. Hamilton has created a multi-media tour of the solar system on this site.  There is a lot of information here, more than most textbooks! 

NASA Homepage

This is where it all begins. This site is the gateway to a number of smaller, more specialized sites maintained by NASA. Be warned, though: there is enough material here to keep you occupied for weeks!

Also check out:  NASA Kids!
                         Space Science News

The Constellations and Their Stars

This site contains a listing of the official star groupings, known as constellations, as well as information about their brightest stars.  The site also contains a bibliography of star myths from many cultures, compiled by an elementary school teacher.  You can also find out more about constellations and such at The Constellations Web Page.

The Hubble Heritage Site

Since the Hubble Space Telescope is funded by tax dollars, astronomers only have exclusive rights to pictures taken by Hubble a brief time before they are released to the public.  The Hubble Heritage Project surveys these "public domain" images and chooses the best for display.

Hubble Space Telescope Public Pictures

This is the place to find that beautiful Hubble image you saw on television years ago, and many more besides.  Images are arranged by year or by subject.  There are even "Greatest Hits" sections, and places where viewers can cast their votes.  Every picture is accompanied by easy-to-understand background text.

SETI Institute Home Page

This is the place to go to find out the latest progress in finding signs of intelligent life on other planets.  You can help the search yourself!  Check out the SETI@Home site

The International Year of Astronomy

2009 was a very special year:  the 400th Anniversary of the great work of Galileo and Kepler, who literally changed the way we look at the Universe.  This site describes all the special events associated with this landmark year!

Lists of (Lists of) Links

Below are some sites with more astronomy links than you will likely ever need. Some are annotated, like this list; others merely invite you to explore! Visit these sites to truly see the immense extent of astronomy on the Internet.

 
Updated 8/20/11
By James E. Heath
  
 
 
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