The Sky at Night S26E08 · The Hunt for the Tenth Planet

Overview

Is there a new planet in the solar system? Many astronomers believe that there is a massive body beyond Neptune, the outermost of the main planets now known: it could be a planet, but it might also be a dark star or a black hole. The movements of the two Pioneer space-craft now on their way out of the solar system may provide valuable clues. Patrick Moore gives an up-to-date report.

Torrents

Subtitles

Episodes

1. 1 1. The Winter Sky1982-01-10Yesterday evening there was a lunar eclipse. The moon passed fully into the earth's shadow from 7.15 until 8.35 pm and the eclipse should have been seen well from all over Britain
2. 2 2. The Changing Face of Venus1982-02-07Venus has always been a planet of surprises, and very recently the Pioneer spacecraft orbiting the planet have provided some more. There is evidence of current active volcanoes, ve
3. 3 3. The Largest Star?1982-03-14Close to the brilliant star Capella, in the constellation of Auriga, there is a particularly interesting star, Epsilon Aurigae. We know it is made up of two stars, but we can only
4. 4 4. When Planets Loop the Loop1982-04-04During evenings in April three bright planets-Mars, Jupiter and Saturn - are very conspicuous, with Venus still prominent in the east before dawn. Patrick Moore explains how these
5. 5 5. The Unfolding Universe1982-04-25In this special programme to mark the 25th anniversary of The Sky at Night, Patrick Moore reports on what's happening at great observatories all over the world; he talks to space r
6. 6 6. The Depths of Space1982-05-16Astronomers in Australia have just discovered an object which may be the most remote and luminous known to man. It is a quasar, apparently 13,000 million light years from us. Yet s
7. 7 7. La Palma: a New Observatory1982-06-06La Palma, in the Canary Isles, is a picturesque place. It is also ideal as a site for large telescopes, and it is here that a major observatory is being established. It is linked w
8. 8 8. The Hunt for the Tenth Planet1982-07-19Is there a new planet in the solar system? Many astronomers believe that there is a massive body beyond Neptune, the outermost of the main planets now known: it could be a planet,
9. 9 9. Siding Spring1982-08-22Siding Spring Mountain in New South Wales is the site of one of the world's most sophisticated observatories. All the southern sky is available for study, and the AAT, or Anglo-Aus
10. 10 10. The Mystery of the Spiral Arm1982-09-26Why are some galaxies, such as ours, spiral in form like huge Catherine wheels, and why are stars born inside these arms? Patrick Moore and Dr John Beck -man of Queen Mary College
11. 11 11. The Cosmic Serpent1982-10-31Can comets have collided with the earth? According to a new theory by Dr Clube and Dr Napier from the Royal Observatory, Edinburgh, collisions can happen, and it was one such event
12. 12 12. The Last Man on the Moon1982-12-06Less than four years after Neil Armstrong made his 'one small step ...', Commander Eugene Cernan became the last man on the moon. In December 1972 when Challenger, the lunar module