Winter is coming to an end, at least in astronomical terms. Officially we are halfway to spring, which means you should start to notice a little more daylight as we gain minutes each day. Also, imagine a planet orbiting two stars, also known as a binary star system. There are three such systems identified in our galaxy where a planet is orbiting two stars and treating those two stars as a single gravitational body. A well known binary star is Algol, also known as the Demon star, which can be seen with the naked eye in the right conditions. There are many other binary stars not too far away like Alpha Centauri at four light years away. And don’t miss what’s in the night sky this week including a full moon. All this and more on this week’s Sky Talk.

Are Martians invading the Earth? If so, where are they? They are actually all over the planet, but they blend in so easily because they are Martian meteorites. These meteorites are pieces of Mars that end up in orbit in our solar system and then collide with Earth. A group of them fell to Earth in Morocco in July, but astoundingly they were witnessed passing through the atmosphere and then were actually found on the ground. Through these rocks we can analyze Mars without actually going there. Also, we are coming to the peak of the 11 year sun spot cycle in 2013. The major effects of this cycle include the sighting of Northern and Southern lights and also tremendous effects on communication systems. And don’t miss what’s in the night sky this week. All this and more on this week’s Sky Talk.

Astronomers are training their telescopes on the most distant reaches of the universe, but don’t forget, out in space distance equals time. So when astronomers look into space they are trying to find out the early history of the universe. Recent findings include the most massive, hottest galactic cluster ever discovered, just seven billion light years from Earth. We can now apply what we are learning about objects at this great distance to learn about dark matter and dark energy. Think about deep sea research. Just like at the bottom of the ocean, astronomers are in a similar environment using instruments to blindly feel around in the darkness to see what’s out there. Also, don’t miss what’s in the night sky this week. All this and more on this week’s Sky Talk.

Scientists have discovered a star that is 160,000 light years away from us in a companion galaxy to our Milky Way. Spinning at 100 times the rotation velocity of our sun, this one is a real speed demon. That high rotational velocity actually squishes the star down and is spreading material in a wide area. Also get an update on Phobos-Grunt, the spacecraft that is about to fall to earth and don’t miss constellations of the Spring time sky. But how about an astronomical challenge? Well, you can track the motion of the Earth around the sun with Derrick Pitts’ help. Listen to this week’s Sky Talk to find out more.

For those of you fearful of the number 13, you may have a tough time in 2012. The 13th falls on a Friday more often this year, happening a total of three times. If that’s not strange enough, each Friday the 13th is 13 weeks apart! If we had celebrated the Julian New Year it would be 2765. This is based on the Julian calendar calculated from the date Rome was founded. Adjustments had to be made so the seasons related to the right time of year along with holidays. This new system evolved into the Gregorian calendar we use today.  Also, the spacecraft Phobos-Grunt will fall from orbit and most likely burn up in the Earths atmosphere. There is no real danger for earthlings as most of the craft will burn up during reentry. And don’t miss what’s in the night sky this week. All this and more on this week’s Sky Talk.

This week residents in the Delaware Valley will experience the latest sunrises of the entire year. This will be due to the Earth arriving at the point closest to the sun, perihelion. We will reach this point on Wednesday January 4th and for about five or six days our sunrise will be much later at about 7:23 am. This might be good for early risers trying to catch sight of a plethora of planets available during these long dark mornings. Also, 2012 should be a great year for space exploration, but where is manned exploration going? New players will be establishing orbiting space stations, China most notably. All this and more on this week’s Sky Talk.

Derrick Pitts and host Dave Heller highlight the biggest stories in astronomy in 2011. Including Earth-like planets discovered outside of our solar system, detecting water inside our solar system, two of the largest black holes ever imagined and advances in space flight as SpaceX makes its first commercial space flight in 2012. Also, don’t miss what’s in the night sky this week. All this and more on this week’s Sky Talk.

At this time of year why is it that the earliest sunset comes before the Winter Solstice? The answer lies in how humans have decided to regulate time. We have decided that a 24 hour day is better for us, but the day is actually just slightly shorter than that. If we took away the clocks we would find that everything works out just fine. The Winter Solstice finally comes for us this year on Thursday, December 22nd at 12:30 am. But what precisely happens at 12:30 am? The Earth arrives at a position in its orbit around the sun, which brings us to a point where we have the least amount of daylight. Also, don’t miss what’s in the sky during these long dark nights. Learn more on this week’s Sky Talk.

The years best meteor shower can be seen Tuesday evening, December 13th, right after sunset. The Geminid meteor shower will be hampered to some degree by a waning gibous moon, so best to catch it between sunset and moon rise.  This is the most prominent meteor shower of the year and has overtaken the Perseid meteor shower in terms of meteors per hour. Also, Kepler Space Telescope has possibly discovered a new planet that can sustain life. The satellite orbits the Earth and surveys 150,000 candidate stars for other planets. Closer examination by ground based instruments will give us more information. Scientists have also observed two new black holes in other galaxy’s. As it turns out these are the largest black holes ever discovered. And don’t miss what’s in the night sky this week. All this and more on this week’s Sky Talk.

Have you had your fill of long dark nights, yet? Well, Thursday marks the earliest sunset, but don’t despair. After the winter solstice we will begin to gain some minutes of daylight. A total lunar eclipse might lift your spirits, but this Saturday, amateur astronomers in the Delaware Valley probably won’t be able to see it, because we are too far east. Lucky sky watchers on the west coast will see almost all of it, but Hawaii will get to see it from start to finish. Also, the new budget for NASA is less than expected. If we’re scaling back our space program who is picking up the slack? China is going full blast and has plans to build a space station in orbit and wants to get to a point where they can send astronauts there. All that and more on this week’s Sky Talk.