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The Conversation
The Conversation
Vahe Peroomian, Professor of Physics and Astronomy, USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences

Why are some stars always visible while others come and go with the seasons?

Stars near the north celestial pole circle the North Star, Polaris. Photographed in the Eastern Sierra Nevada, Calif. Vahé Peroomian

As a space scientist, every time I go outside with my family, I tell my children to look up at the sky. The front door of our home looks southeast, and on winter nights the constellation Orion hangs majestically just above the horizon as soon as it grows dark enough to see stars.

One summer night, my son came running in and exclaimed, “Dad, Orion’s not there!” It was time for his first real astronomy lesson.

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