Wide-angle view of Aldebaran, the Hyades, and the Pleiades (barely, at the top). Imaged at Camp Hancock, Oregon, on 20 September 2026 by Jennifer Willis.

why Starbright is on Patreon (and my website) and not Substack

My Starbright newsletter — on the intersection of astronomy and disability, or “musings of a disabled stargazer,” if you will — would have launched almost a full year earlier if I hadn’t wrestled so long with which publication platform to choose. Everyone is on Substack, and the gravitational pull of that platform is strong. Some […]

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Lunar halo, with Jupiter. Captured with a Pixel 9 phone from Portland, Oregon, on 31 January 2026 by Jennifer Willis.

lunar halo

This past weekend, I saw a lunar halo for the first time. Apparently this phenomenon, also called a Moon ring or a 22° halo, isn’t uncommon. The effect is caused by the Moon’s light being refracted by ice crystals in the atmosphere. It looked especially cool with Jupiter appearing visually within the halo with the […]

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of interest this week: 17 April 2016

I have actually been doing quite a bit of online reading in the past couple of weeks, but I haven’t logged too many of them—there have been a lot of in-depth product reviews, author message boards, and the like that I figured not to many others would be tremendously curious about. But here are a […]

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astronomy round-up: 27 september 2013

The astronomy and science round-up will be on hiatus for the next couple of weeks. In the meantime, enjoy your stargazing! Hundreds attempt world record for largest astronomy lesson Bozeman Daily Chronicle “To break the record, more than 526 people needed to be present for the entire lesson. The previous record was set earlier this […]

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astronomy round-up: 20 september 2013

I’ve kept the list shorter this week. But the first (video about Hubble images) and the last (astrophotos) items will knock your socks off. The most important image captured by Hubble (video) All That Is Interesting “In 1996, scientists took a huge risk when they pointed the Hubble telescope to an inky field that they […]

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astronomy round-up: 13 september 2013

Yes, even on Friday the 13th, it’s time once again for the weekly round-up of science and astronomy stories. Voyager 1 becomes first human-made object to leave solar system CNN “Scientists now have strong evidence that NASA’s Voyager 1 probe has crossed this important border, making history as the first human-made object to leave the […]

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astronomy round-up: 6 september 2013

One of the things I’m working on these days is becoming more aware of the ever-changing phases of the moon. I have a couple of neat apps on my iPad that I check each day to see what Earth’s natural satellite is up to in that moment. How do you keep abreast of what’s happening […]

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