Astronomy July 2007

Earth's deadly future
A brightening Sun will boil the seas and bake the continents a billion years from now. But that's nothing compared with what we can expect further down the road. RICHARD TALCOTT

How astronomers capture the universe in a test tube
New simulations and lab experiments unmask supernovae, black holes, and the universe's first moments. STEVE NADIS

The asteroid collectors
The Minor Planet Center tracks hundreds of thousands of asteroids - and one may be heading our way. BRIAN MARDSEN

How large will telescopes get?
Move over, Keck. The colossal telescopes of the future will make discoveries that today's astronomers only dream about. CHRISTINA R. DUNN

All about the Lagoon Nebula
Explore the brightest stellar birthplace in the summer Milky Way. RAYMOND SHUBINSKI

Starry virtuoso
Celebrated for his mastery of deep-sky observing, Brian Skiff is also one of the most amateur-friendly astronomers. DANIEL PENDICK

MaxCam gets imagers started
Finger Lakes Instrumentation''s MaxCam ME2 CCD camera offers a host of features in a small package. DAVID HEALY AND BRUCE GARY

The brass and glass of astronomy's past
Antique telescopes, globes, and astrolabes fill the exhibit halls of Chicago's Adler Planetarium. MICHAEL E. BAKICH