Sky watchers have had a busy year so far in 2024. There’s been plenty to see among the stars and planets. In April, many people in the United States were able to watch a total eclipse of the sun. In the coming months there will be one nova of two stars. This week, we’ll learn about some of the special words you can use to talk about objects and events in the sky.
Visible to the naked eye
A nova is an explosion of a star. A pair of stars called T Corona Borealis, nicknamed the “Fiery Star”, will become so bright that people almost anywhere on Earth, even in cities, can see it. Scientists say the event will be “visible with the naked eye’ which means you don’t need any special equipment, like binoculars or a telescope, to see it. Visible is an adjective form related to the word “view.”
blast
The two stars that make up the Blaze Star produce an outburst, or period of increased energy, about every 80 years. Rebekah Hounsell is an assistant scientist specializing in nova events at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland.
“We don’t often see a repeated outburst in a human lifetime, and rarely one so relatively close to our system,” Hounsell said. Material from one star moves towards another and causes the explosion or burst of energy. This makes the bright light we can see from Earth.
constellation
Scientists say they are not sure when we will be able to see the nova. But you’ll probably hear about it in the news. Your next question may be, “How can I find it in the sky?” This is when you will need to know the word “constellation” and how to find it in the sky. A constellation is a group of stars. Some constellations look like special form for humans on Earth. This year’s nova is in the constellation Corona Borealis, or northern crown.
between
There are many uses of the preposition “between” to talk about the upcoming nova and its constellation. If you draw an imaginary line between the stars, you get one CURVED line that looks like a head piece worn by kings and queens. To find it, you can look for the two brightest stars in the northern hemisphere, Arcturus and Vega. In the space between them you will find two constellations, Hercules and Boots. The Northern Crown is among them.
entirety
People enjoyed another event in the sky in April: a total solar eclipse. The moon moved between the Earth and the sun, causing a shadow, or area of darkness, on the Earth. The path of the moon’s shadow on Earth is called the “path of totality”. We can change an adjective such as “total” into a noun with the noun suffix -ity. The resulting noun implies the state or condition of what the adjective describes. For example, it is used with “active” to form “activity”.
The next total eclipse on Earth will be August 12, 2026 and will be visible in Spain.
And that’s Everyday Grammar!
I’m Andrew Smith.
To learn more about nova, see our science story: https://learningenglish.voanews.com/a/nasa-nova-explosion-to-be-once-in-lifetime-event-in-night-sky /7664089.html
A free online star map on this website will help you find the constellations in the sky where you live.
Jill Robbins wrote this lesson to learn English.
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The words in this story
eclipse – n. a case where the sun appears to be completely or partially covered with a dark circle because the moon is between the sun and the earth
nova – n. a star that suddenly grows very bright and then within a few months or years becomes less bright again
visible – adj. able to be seen
view – c. to watch (something) carefully
special – adj. is used to indicate that it refers to a specific person or thing and no other
CURVED – adj. having a round shape
Do you like watching events in space? What is your favorite place to watch the sky? We want to hear from you. Write us in the comments section.