14

Ten Commandments for Presentations, Tijana Prodanovic
Here are 10 simple ideas that can help you create, and deliver, a superior presentation that will be remembered no matter the level of your audience.

18

The Uses of Astronomy, Mary Crone Odekon
How do you explain the uses of astronomy? On a summer day in 1856 in Albany, New York, the answer came in a two-hour manifesto delivered by famed orator Edward Everett.

23

Low-Level Observing, Brian Oetiker
You can observe interesting celestial sights near big cities and at low elevations. In fact, astronomical discoveries are being made at sites other than at remote, high-elevation observatories.

28

Astronomy in the News
A baffling eclipse, Kepler finds exoplanets, and galactic dark matter mapped -- these are some of the discoveries that recently made news at the January 2010 American Astronomical Society conference.

Departments

4

Editorial, Paul Deans
New Columnists; Survey Results

5

First Word, James G. Manning
Apocalypse (S)Now

7

Echoes of the Past, Katherine Bracher
90 Years Ago: Einstein’s Theory of Relativity

8

Annals of Astronomy, Clifford J. Cunningham
Was Copernicus Really First?

9

Astronomer's Notebook, Jennifer Birriel
Climate Change and Spiral-Arm Crossings

10

Planetary Perspectives, Daniel D. Durda
A Brilliant Observation

11

Armchair Astrophysics, Christopher Wanjek
Gamma-Ray Burst Engine Revealed

12

Education Matters, David Bruning
Treasures for Astro 101 Instructors

13

Reaching Out, Bethany Cobb
Dance as Astronomical Outreach

34

Society Scope/ASP Supporters
Thank You to our Supporters

38

Sky Sights, Paul Deans
Mars in Cancer and the Beehive

41

Reflections
Avatar's Moon Pandora Could Be Real

As part of Mercury's transition from a print to a digital publication, the monthly star maps are no longer available as individual webpages. Instead, readers of digital Mercury now have access to Sky & Telescope's online star charts, which are available only to ASP members and institutional subscribers.