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The Earth and Beyond

Stars - General.

When you look at the sky at night
all of the points of light which you see (except for a few planets) are stars.

Stars generate their own heat and light by a process of nuclear fusion.
The nearest star to Earth is called the Sun.

Most of the stars are so very far away that they appear not to move.
In reality they might be hurtling through space at enormous speeds.
The patterns of "fixed" stars are called constellations.

The planets of our solar system are so close to Earth
that you can see them move against the fixed background of constellations.
If you see Jupiter in one place in the sky at night,
then the next night you can see that its position has changed.

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Copyright © 2008 Dr. Colin France. All Rights Reserved.