Earth & Space

3 breaks

Planets, weather, oceans and the sky above them.

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Why the night sky is dark: Olbers' paradox and the light that hasn't arrived yet Go outside and look between the stars: it's dark. That's strange. In an endless, unchanging universe, every line of sight would end on a star, and the whole… Earth & Space4 min read How astronomers find planets by their shadow: the dip in starlight Most planets around other stars are far too faint to see directly, so astronomers watch the star instead. When a planet crosses its face, a tiny dark disc… Earth & Space4 min read Earth is closest to the Sun in January. So why is that winter? Summer can't be caused by being closer to the Sun: Earth makes its closest pass around 3 January and is farthest around 4 July. The distance changes by only… Earth & Space4 min read