Here are a few incredible facts to help bring the sky at night alive for your family:

Our star 
  • The sun is actually a star. If you hollowed it out you could fit nearly one million earths inside it. 
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Seeing into the past 
  • ‘When you see the stars you are looking into the past. Because light takes time to travel and stars are many light years away from us you could be seeing a star that doesn’t even exist anymore.’ 
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The power of the moon 
  • All of the world’s oceans are controlled by the moon. The moon is the reason we have high and low tides. Only 12 people have ever set foot there, but because there is no wind if you visited the moon today you would still see their footprints. 
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Closer than you might think 
  • ‘Space is only around 60 miles from the surface of the earth. That means if you live in the middle of England you could be closer to space than you are to the sea. Think about it - what is 60 miles from where you live?’ 
  • - Rod Hebden, science expert 
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We are made of stardust. 
  • It sounds unbelievable, but every atom in your body was formed from the dust of an exploded star.