Watch S&T senior editor Alan MacRobert show and explain how to use star charts and planispheres (star wheels).

Here are hyperlinks to many websites that can help you forecast the astronomical observing conditions for next few nights — or longer.

Have you ever felt that you ought to be able to see more in the night sky using just your unaided eyes? You may need nothing more than a new pair of eyeglasses.

Light pollution is most amateur astronomers' worst enemy. Learn here how to measure and describe how brightly your sky glows.

S&T contributing editor Fred Schaaf takes a new approach to an old subjecty by describing the 50 best astronomical sights of any kind, from naked-eye spectacles to objects that can only be seen through telescopes at high magnification.

Telescope tinkering can be fun and rewarding.

When Galileo Galilei first turned a telescope to the heavens four centuries ago, he discovered amazing things — and you can follow in his footsteps.

Just a couple hours spent learning to read a star map can open up the heavens for a lifetime of exploration.

Tips to ensure trouble-free slewing for Go To telescopes

Here's what you need to know to navigate the heavens with a telescope and star atlas.

How to keep your optics dry and clear even on the dampest, dewiest nights.

They come in a wide range of apertures. But for astronomy, large aperture is only part of the story. High magnification is just as important when binoculars are used on a night sky that's not absolutely dark.

All you need to enjoy the wonders of the night sky is a pair of binoculars.

Here are some plausible-sounding ideas that turn out to be less than true.

How do you find out what stars are visible tonight? With a planisphere or "star wheel." It's easy!

Beginners should ignore them and learn to navigate the sky by eyeball instead. However, setting circles do have their uses -- if you make all the right adjustments first.

Here are links to some websites that can help you predict where and when you'll get good transparency for deep-sky observing.

Even when the air is perfectly clear, a significant fraction of starlight is lost in the atmosphere. And when there's a lot of haze or your target is close to the horizon, atmospheric extinction is a major problem.