Star Trails: From Backyard Astronomy to Cosmic Wonder5 Jul

Is there a Black Hole in Our Backyard?

What if the mysterious "Planet Nine" isn't a planet at all?

In this episode, we journey to the distant frontier of our Solar System to explore one of astronomy's strangest modern hypotheses: the possibility that the unseen object influencing the orbits of distant icy worlds could actually be a primordial black hole, an ancient relic formed in the first moments after the Big Bang.

Along the way, we'll revisit the discovery of Neptune, learn how astronomers detect objects they can't even see, and discover why gravity often reveals secrets long before telescopes do. We'll also look at the real observatories and sky surveys that may one day solve the mystery once and for all.

Then we'll head outside for your complete night sky guide for July 5-18, 2026, featuring the upcoming New Moon, Saturn in the morning sky, a beautiful crescent Moon meeting Venus, prime Milky Way observing, deep-sky targets including M13 and the Ring Nebula, and the first hints of summer meteor activity.

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Episoder(120)

When Black Holes Twist Spacetime

What happens when a black hole spins? According to general relativity, it doesn't simply rotate in space, it actually drags spacetime around with it.This episode explores the strange phenomenon known ...

2 Aug 38min

Listening to the Heartbeat of the Milky Way

Most amateur astronomers spend their nights collecting light. But what if you could study our galaxy without looking through a telescope at all?In this episode, we sit down with amateur astronomer and...

19 Jul 27min

How Jupiter Almost Destroyed the Solar System

For generations, we've pictured the Solar System as a stable and orderly place: planets forming where they are today and quietly orbiting the Sun for billions of years. But what if that picture is wro...

21 Jun 23min

A Summer Sky Road Trip

Summer is almost here, and with it comes one of the richest observing seasons of the year.In this episode, we take a road trip through the summer sky, exploring the constellations, deep-sky objects, p...

7 Jun 30min

From the Archive: Star Party Stories

Back in November of 2024, I attended a star party hosted by the Midlands Astronomy Club and recorded what became one of my favorite episodes of Star Trails. This week, while taking a short break to re...

31 Mai 17min

The Birth and Death of Galaxies

This week we conclude our month-long journey through galaxies by exploring one of the biggest questions in astronomy: how galaxies are born, evolve, and eventually die.We begin in the aftermath of the...

24 Mai 29min

The Hidden Universe: Cosmic Structures in the Dark

This week we continue our month-long journey through the world of galaxies, but this time, we venture into one of astronomy’s darkest frontiers. Beyond the glowing spirals and brilliant star clouds li...

17 Mai 21min