Look up...

"The heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament shows His handiwork.  Day unto day utters speech, and night unto night reveals knowledge.  There is no speech nor lanuguage where their voice is not heard." Psalm 19:1-3

The boys and I are studying astronomy using this book.  I've used it before with the girls, and am enjoying it almost as much the second time around.  Astronomy is a fascinating subject.  And this is a great time of year to get outside and observe the stars for ourselves...it gets dark early and there aren't any mosquitoes out. No matter how much I look up, I am always awestruck at the sight of the starry heavens.

Our latest topic has been Jupiter, and since it's now visible in the sky, we thought we'd try to see some of Jupiter's moons.  We think we saw two of them with the aid of the binoculars, one on each side of the planet. 

It's not hard to find Jupiter, since it stands out so well...

The colours of the stars show up better on pictures than they do to our eyes.  The colour indicates the star's temperature: hot stars are blue, cool stars are white and even cooler stars are yellow or orange.  The longer you look, the more stars you see.  Amazing!

I'm hoping that these pictures will inspire you to spend some time outdoors after dark looking up and contemplating the greatness of God who created it all.  If you can do this away from the city lights, you'll be able to see a lot more stars.  I promise you it will be worth getting a sore neck and a little chilly!  Of course, you could bundle up well and lay back in a recliner....why not?

It's a lot more fun when you can identify some of the stars, constellations, and even galaxies(!) that you are seeing.  I found a free, printable map of the night sky here.  If you scroll down a little way you'll find links for monthly maps in the language of your choice.

"When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which You have ordained, what is man that You are mindful of him, and the son of man that you visit him? ... O LORD, our Lord, how excellent is Your name in all the earth!" Psalm 8:3,4,9