Please click any of the following links to further explore the exciting world of astronomy and space exploration:
For an encyclopedia listing for any subject, visit Wikipedia, the online encyclopedia.
Getting Started in Astronomy
Sky and Telescope Magazine Online — Sky and Telescope's revised Web site now features "how to" articles, a searchable magazine archive, online shopping, current sky information and customized star maps.
Astronomy Magazine Online
Que tal in the Current Skies — a great monthly online magazine of the current sky!
Skywatcher's Diary — the Abrams Planetarium's monthly look at the current sky.
What's Out Tonight? — hosted by Ken Press publishing, this general astronomy site helps the beginner and educator get started in the wonderful science of astronomy.
Skylights — weekly astronomy news maintained by University of Illinois professor Dr. James Kaler.
Sky and Telescope's Astronomy Basics — provides a wealth of information on backyard astronomy, including how to use a star map, how to select and use binoculars and telescopes, and more.
Sky and Telescope's Telescope Basics — how to select the best telescope and how to get the most out of it.
The Universe — a general introduction to the hobby of astronomy maintained by an amateur astronomer.
Astronomical Dealers on the Web — links to online astronomy equipment dealers and related resources.
Astronomy Equipment Ratings — before you buy, read the evaluations of numerous models of binoculars, telescopes, eyepieces, etc. posted to the Web site by amateur astronomers.
ScopeReviews.com — another excellent Web site that reviews telescopes, eyepieces and accessories.
Cloudy Nights Telescope Reviews — dedicated to providing reviews of astronomical scopes and equipment as written by experienced observers in the amateur astronomy community.
Astronomy Picture of the Day — features a different astronomy picture each day, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer.
Star Parties — a list of star parties (where you can observe the sky with others) throughout the nation, throughout the year.
Clear Sky Clock — developed from data supplied by the Canadian Meteorological Centre, this Web site presents graphics-based, 48-hour forecasts for observing conditions at sites scattered throughout the United States and Canada.
All About Light Pollution -- a web page that discusses the issue of light pollution and what can be done to limit its growth or reduce its effect on astronomy.
Vast Beyond — this Web site provides a list of "space places" in the United States, space-related headlines, skygazing calendar and more.
Science Hot Spots — New Scientist magazine's guide to science sites on the net, including their personal recommendations.
Yahoo! Index to Astronomy — more links!
Star Charts, Astronomy Calculators and Simulators
USNO Astronomy Calculator — calculate sunrise/set, moonrise/set, eclipses, seasons, dates of Easter and more.
Virtual Reality Moon Phase Pictures — the source for our Current Moon Phase (the U.S. Naval Observatory).
Earth and Moon Viewer — view the Earth and moon from anywhere in space with this outstanding virtual reality simulator!
Solar System Live — view the entire solar system or just the inner planets, with this interactive orrery.
The Planets — provided by the Castle Point Astronomy Club in the U.K., this online Java applet provides graphical information on the position of the planets, satellites of Jupiter and Saturn, and more.
Your Weight on Other Worlds — calculate your weight on the moon and other planets of our solar system.
Your Age on Other Worlds — calculate your age measured in other planetary years.
Build a Solar System — calculate planet sizes and distances on any scale you wish.
Skymaps.com — publication quality sky maps and star charts for both the northern and southern hemisphere.
A Space Library — tour NASA's solar system simulator, planetary maps, planetary artwork, star backgrounds and much more.
Solar System Simulator — view any object in the solar system (in full-color graphics) from any location and time.
Heavens Above — this excellent Web site can generate user-defined star maps as well as predictions for observing the space shuttle, International Space Station, Iridium Flares and other visible satellites from any location on Earth.
Artificial Satellite Predictions
USNO Master Clock — from the official source of time in the United States.
Mars Hemisphere Calculator — This Sky & Telescope online calculator indicates the Martian surface features visible for any date and time.
Jupiter Moons — This Sky & Telescope online calculator indicates the current position of Jupiter's largest moons.
Transit of Jupiter's Great Red Spot — This Sky & Telescope online calculator indicates the transit times of Jupiter's Great Red Spot.
Saturn Moons — This Sky & Telescope online calculator indicates the current position of Saturn's largest moons.
Sun, Moon, Planets, Comets and Meteors
Big Bear Solar Observatory — the latest images of the sun, showing any sunspots, prominences and flares.
NASA Space Weather Bureau — forecasts solar flares, magnetic storms, auroral activity and other space-related phenomena.
Latest Sunspot Images — current and recent full disk images of the sun, courtesy of NASA's SOHO.
Current Hydrogen-Alpha Solar Image — the latest image of the sun in H-Alpha light (weather and daylight permitting)
Eclipse Home Page — the definitive resource for solar and lunar eclipses, maintained by NASA's Fred Espenak.
Mr. Eclipse.com — solar eclipse expert Fred Espenak's excellent guide to eclipse photography.
The Moon Page
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Moon — detailed moon information for the lunar specialist.
Inconstant Moon — this excellent moon observer's site will take you on a new tour each night, with maps, photos and more!
Consolidated Lunar Atlas — this Web site features a collection of the best photographic images of the moon.
International Occultation Timing Association (IOTA) — how to observe and time the occultation (i.e., eclipsing) of stars by the moon, planets or asteroids.
Association of Lunar and Planetary Observers (ALPO) — an excellent resource for moon and planet information!
Lunar and Planetary Institute — a NASA-funded institute in Houston, Texas, devoted to studying the solar system and sharing the excitement of space exploration with the public.
The Nine Planets — an outstanding resource for planetary information.
Transit of Venus 2004 — an outstanding resource for all information related to the 2004 and 2012 transits of Venus.
Planet Artwork — Björn Jónsson's outstanding planetary artwork, animations, maps and data.
Java Jupiter — shows the positions of the four Galilean satellites of Jupiter, their shadows and the Great Red Spot.
Moons of the Solar System — managed by the Planetary Society, this Web site keeps pace with the rapidly changing number of known moons in our solar system.
Comet Observation Home Page — an excellent resource for all current and upcoming comets, maintained by NASA.
Meteor Observing Calendar — a listing of each month's major and minor meteor showers.
Stars, Constellations and Celestial Wonders
The Constellations — provides information on all 88 constellations, including both myths and facts.
The Constellations and their Stars
"Star of the Week" archive — provides a wealth of information on those stars featured in a weekly column by University of Illinois professor Dr. James Kaler.
The Messier Catalog — Charles Messier's catalog of star clusters, nebulae and galaxies, all visible with small telescopes.
American Association of Variable Star Observers (AAVSO) — how to observe variable stars and their importance to astronomy.
The Practice of Buying/Naming Stars
The Practice of Naming Stars — a list of frequently asked questions about the controversial subject of buying and renaming stars, from the only organization that actually can name stars.
Cernan Center's "Star Naming" Fact Sheet — our own fact sheet that explains the controversial subject of buying and renaming stars and our planetarium's own policies with regard to this issue.
NASA/Space Exploration
Space.com — the latest space news, as well as space-related entertainment and science fiction.
NASA TV — watch NASA TV on your computer.
Gene Cernan's Gemini 9 mission — a summary from NASA.
Gene Cernan's Apollo 10 mission — a summary from NASA.
Gene Cernan's Apollo 17 mission — a summary from NASA.
Astronaut Biographies — providing biographical information on the members of the space flight crews and candidates for future missions in NASA's space flight program.
Purchase "The Last Man on the Moon" from the Cernan Center's Star Store
NASA Home Page
NASA history
Human space flight (Space Shuttle and the ISS)
Viewing launches and landings
Hubble Space Telescope images
Hubble Heritage images
Human Spaceflight Gallery — a collection of the best NASA images from past and recent space missions.
The Apollo Gallery — a collection of the best NASA images from the Apollo missions.
NASA JSC Digital Image Collection — an immense collection of NASA mission photographs, from 1961 to the present.
Great Images in NASA — a collection of more than a thousand images of significant historical interest scanned at high-resolution in several sizes.
ISS EarthKAM - a NASA-sponsored program that provides stunning, high quality photographs of our planet taken from the Space Shuttle and International Space Station.
NASA Apollo Lunar Surface Journal — the complete transcript of all Apollo missions (with astronaut commentary), along with audio transcripts, still images, and audio and video clips. A unique and truly excellent site!
Apollo Manned Missions — another summary of Apollo missions, maintained by the National Air and Space Museum.
Exploring the Apollo Landing Sites — in a series of successively detailed images, this Web site shows each of the six Apollo lunar landing sites.
Space Story — the official Web site of Story Musgrave to share his experiences as an astronaut, marine, surgeon, scientist and literary critic.
The Association of Space Explorers — this organization, comprised of 200 individuals from 26 nations who have flown in space, promotes space exploration and environmental awareness.
Bad Astronomy.com
Science at NASA
New Science
NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Center for Mars Exploration — NASA's online resource for all things related to the Exploration of Mars.
Explore Mars Now — this interactive Web site allows the visitor to explore a futuristic Mars Habitat.
Mars Global Surveyor mission photos — become a Martian explorer by examining the images sent back from Malin Space Science Systems' (MSSS) robotic spacecraft.
Mars Odyssey mission photos — become a Martian explorer by examining the images sent back from the Mars Odyssey mission.
NASA (JPL) Mars Meteorite Home Page
NASA Human Spaceflight — NASA's Web page for the International Space Station, Space Shuttle and Mir.
The Universe Today — the latest space exploration news.
Where is the International Space Station? — displays the current location of the International Space Station and the Space Shuttle in both numerical and graphic form.
NASA Space Telescope Science Institute — the latest news about the Hubble Space Telescope.
SETI at Home — participate in the search for extraterrestrial radio signals with little more than your personal computer.
Yahoo! Index to Space Exploration — many more space links!
Astronomy Education / Astronomy News
NASA Office of Education
Space Science Education Resources — NASA's searchable, Web-based database of space science education resources for K-12 teachers and students.
The Space Educator's Handbook — NASA JSC resource files for educators.
NASA pages for kids - NASA's webpages specifically designed for children
Cosmic Mirror — an excellent online publication for late-breaking astronomy news.
Paper Plate Education -- an award-winning Web site that has a variety of innovative hands-on astronomy learning activities that can be demonstrated with common paper plates.
Teaching the Solar System — an outstanding collection of links and resources related to astronomy education, including activities and lesson plans.
Hands-On Universe — a national science educational program that enables high school students (and eventually middle school students, museums and science centers) to request their own observations from professional observatories.
Teaching Resources / Activities — Elizabeth E. Roettger's collection of classroom activities for astronomy eduction.
National Astronomy Education Projects: A Catalog -- an evolving list of projects and programs in astronomy education, sponsored by the Astronomical Society of the Pacific.
K-12 Astronomy Resources — an excellent collection of resources from the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh.
Astronomical Pseudo-Science: A Skeptic's Resource List — the Astronomical Society of the Pacific's Web site for teachers that addresses many of today's space-related hoaxes and urban legends.
SciCentral — maintained by professional scientists, this provides a gateway to more than 50,000 science sites.
World's Largest Solar System Model — centered at the Lakeview Museum of Arts and Sciences in Peoria, Ill.
The Night Sky in the World — satellite maps showing the artificial night sky brightness (light pollution) throughout the world, based on research conducted by the Italian Light Pollution Science and Technology Institute.
NASA Education Home Page — NASA's collection of educational information and resource materials for teachers, faculty and students.
NASA Spacelink — NASA's comprehensive electronic library supporting their aeronautics and space research.
The Space Place — NASA JPL's Web site for children, complete with space activities, demonstrations and "Dr. Marc's Amazing Facts."
NASA's Quest Project — NASA's collection of programs, materials and opportunities for K-12 teachers and students.
NASA Education Projects — an excellent set of NASA educational resources, sorted by grade level and topic.
NASA CERES Astronomy Education Home Page — an extensive library of interactive K-12 materials for teaching astronomy including classroom-ready lesson plans, NASA data search engines and distance learning courses for in-service K-12 teachers.
Yahoo! Index to Space Education — additional space education resources for teachers.
Sky Lore, Sky Mythology, Astronomy in Literature
Starlore of the American Indian — brief summaries of numerous native American sky legends.
Cosmic Quotations — a multicultural collection of sky-related quotations.
Astronomy/Planetarium Organizations
Astronomical League (AL) — the parent organization for most astronomy clubs in the United States.
Association of Lunar and Planetary Observers (ALPO) — an organization of both amateur and professional planetary astronomers.
International Occultation Timing Association (IOTA) — an organization that supports the observation of occultations and eclipses.
American Astronomical Society (AAS) — the major professional organization in North America for astronomers.
Astronomical Society of the Pacific (ASP) — the largest general astronomy society in the world, comprised of both amateur and professional astronomers.
International Planetarium Society (IPS) — the largest organization of planetarium professionals in the world.
Great Lakes Planetarium Association (GLPA) — serves planetarium professionals in the Great Lakes region and beyond.
Loch Ness Planetarium Compendium Online — a directory of planetariums throughout the world.
International Dark Sky Association — its goal is to improve the darkness of the night sky through more efficient outdoor lighting.
Chicago Area Astronomical Societies
The Chicago Astronomical Society — the world's oldest amateur astronomical society, which also sponsors Astrofest.
Naperville Astronomical Association.
The Lake County Astronomical Society.
The Northwest Suburban Astronomers.
Skokie Valley Astronomers.
Calumet Astronomical Society.
Astronomical League (AL) — find your nearest astronomy society (in the United States).
Astronomy Discussion Groups
(free subscription to the discussion group is generally required)
Yahoo! Groups — select from a range of Astronomy-related discussion groups
Yahoo! Groups: Talking Telescopes — a group devoted to the discussion of astronomical equipment, including telescopes, binoculars, eyepieces, books and star atlases, software and more.
Yahoo! Groups: Video Astrophotography — discussion of high resolution solar, lunar, planetary and deep sky astrophotography and video astronomy.
Astromart Forums
Cloudy Nights Forums
Space Entertainment/Attractions
U.S. Space Camp and Space Academy — offers astronaut training programs for ages 9 and up.
Star Trek.com — the official Star Trek Web site.
Star Wars.com — the official Star Wars Web site.