Ptolemy included 48 constellations in his 2nd century Almagest. In the 20th century, the International Astronomical Union (IAU) listed 47 of Ptolemy's constellations and added 41 newer ones. Many of them depict animals, both real and mythical.

The Star of Bethlehem is a lovely symbol of Christmas. Was it based on an actual astronomical happening? Or perhaps an inspired idea to emphasize the spiritual importance of the story?

Canis Minor is one of Orion's hunting dogs. It trots along behind its master unperturbed by the unicorn Monoceros). It's a small constellation with not much more to offer than one bright star, but it has a long history.

Christmas 2021 is past, but you can still enjoy the Astro Advent images posted in the Bella Online Astronomy Forum. The second eight days included a funny face, an Arctic fireball, and some winners from the Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2021 competition at the Royal Greenwich Observatory.

Uranus and Neptune are twin planets, but they aren't identical twins. For example, Uranus orbits lying on its side, and Neptune has the strongest winds in the Solar System.

The night sky is full of starry birds. Here is a selection, ranging from the majestic swan to the exotic birds of the southern skies: the peacock, bird of paradise and toucan. There is also an emu whose image appears not in the stars, but in the dark nebulae.

Christmas 2021 is past now, but you can still enjoy the daily astro advent images posted in the Bella Online Astronomy Forum. The final days of the countdown included images of a prize-winning aurora, a nebula that looks like a dolphin head and the Moon looking like an eyeball.

It wasn't easy to choose the top stories for 2021. Although it was another hard year for people around the world, the year was also full of interesting astronomy and space events.

Millennia before the rise of Greece, the bull's red eye glared at Orion. But Orion doesn't feature in the Greek myth where Taurus is Zeus's guise for the seduction of Europa. Today's Taurus is a constellation memorable for two beautiful star clusters and one of the sky's most dramatic objects.

Christmas 2021 is past now, but you can still enjoy the daily astro advent images posted in the Bella Online Astronomy Forum. The first eight days of the countdown included the return of Comet 67P, a beautiful aurora in Canada, a strange spiral in the constellation Pegasus, and vivid skyscapes.