Sky & Telescope May 2004 [antikvár]

by richard tresch fienberg |11New and Improved!many products that proclaim themselves "new and improvedl" are really just the same old thing in a fancier package. That's not the case with this issue of Sky Telescope, the first of our new design. We've worked for nearly a year to make the magazine more readable, easier to navigate, more useful, and nicer looking. We hope you like the resuU.Among the highlights, the paper between your fingers is a bit more substantial than our old stock, and brighter too. But what I like best is its smooth, satiny finish, which reduces glare and makes the text more legible even as it renders photos and charts rich and glossy.We've chosen attractive new typefaces, and we're now printing columns of text with ragged right margins, because studies show that magazines are simply easier to read that way.You may have noticed that this issue is a little wider than the last one. The extra room gives us more design flexibiMty, which translates into more open and engaging page layouts.I'm happy vrith the magazine's new look, but I'm even happier with its new structure. As reflected in the new table of contents (pages 6 and 7), ST Is now logically organized Into four main sections: News Features, Observing Exploring, Products Reviews, and Activities People. With articles grouped under common themes, it's easier to find what you're looking for, whatever your astronomical interests.Most departments and columns within each section will be familiar to longtime readers, but a few are new, and some others have been renamed and/or relocated. For example. Exploring the Moon (formerly Lunar Notebook} has been moved forward, adjacent to our other coverage of solai-system observing, and expanded so that Charles Wood has more room to lead us on monthly treks across our nearest and most telescopi-cally rewarding celestial neighbor. Stephen James O'Meara, widely celebrated for his remarkable visual skills and wonderfully written books, vrill help us all become better observers through his new column. Eye on the SkyAnd we're bringing back Deep-Sky Wonders! Of course, we can't bring back Walter Scott Houston, who penned the popular column for nearly 50 years until his death in 1993. But Sue French, whose Small-Scope Sampler has been read enthusiastically by observers with telescopes big and small, has arguably already taken up Scotty's mantle. She will continue her monthly column under the new (actually old!) name, with added space to comment on the appearance ofI'm happy with the magazine's new look, but I'm even happier with its new structure.deep-sky objects in larger apertures and to note worthwhilechallenges for smaller scopes.More new names include Spothght On . . . (formerly Images); Amateur Telescope Making (formerly Telescope Techniques, and long before that. Gleanings for ATMs); The Astronomy Scene (formerly Amateur Astronomers, but always open to a broad range of topics, mcluding public education and outreach by professionals); and Astrophotography (formerly Astro Imaging, because the term "photography" used to refer only to emulsion-based imaging, but now encompasses all film, video, and digital technologies).Our Tkrgets depajtment, which debuts next montli, will showcase timeless telescopic sights not covered elsewhere, and Observer's Log will revert to its original mission of reporting recent observations of events big and small by stargazers worldwide. Each issue will include two ST Test Reports - usually one hardware review and one software review - plus a Buyer's Guide covering a segment of the astronomy marketplace, and a Q&A column, where we'll answer frequently asked questions about the hobby.Last but not least, our Southern Hemisphere readership is growing, and more northerners are traveling across the equator to see and photograph the treasures of the southern night sky. So we now offer two large all-sky charts of the month's evening constellations, one for the north and one for the south (and each vrith a Binocular Highhght), on opposite sides of the foldout between pages 58 and 53.With all these changes, we hope you'll agree that Sky & Telescope, now 62V2 years old, nevertheless really is new and improved!6 June 2004 Sky & Telescope