This month is a great time to catch Jupiter shining brilliantly in the evening sky. And for the next few weeks it will be its best and brightest for the year. The planet reaches opposition at 5:09am on…
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Museums Victoria Research Institute
Museums Victoria Research Institute is responsible for the state’s scientific and cultural collections, providing public access through three museums.
We also oversee a wide range of research programs, the continued development of the state’s collections, and run major education and research based websites.
We are the largest public museums organisation in Australia.
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Displaying 101 - 120 of 139 articles
Watching meteors in the night sky can be fun, although typically you only see a few flashes an hour. But there are certain times of the year when you can see many more – events known as meteor showers…
If you are away from the bustle of the city these holidays, then try your luck at spotting a faint comet in the northern sky. Comet Lovejoy C/2014 Q2 is the fifth comet to be discovered by Brisbane amateur…
The best meteor shower of the year should put on an impressive display this weekend – weather permitting – with the annual Geminids poised to light up the sky with bright, long meteors visible as frequently…
What a success! Right on track, confirmation was received just after 3am AEDT this morning that Philae had successfully landed on Comet Churyumov-Gerasimenko. It is the first time that a craft has landed…
The first ever attempt to land on a comet is set to be carried out by the European Space Agency (ESA) this Wednesday evening (AEDT). It is part of an exciting and highly successful space mission, which…
How many stars can you see at night? Right now people all over the world are being asked to go out and count them! It’s part of a dark-sky awareness campaign that’s been held each October for the past…
Visits to websites of Australia’s museums now exceed the number of visitors attending exhibitions, events or programs at actual bricks and mortar museums. Across the 62 museums that make up the Council…
A detailed study of comets orbiting the young nearby star Beta Pictoris is published today in the journal Nature, and it reveals striking similarities to the comets found in our solar system. Over the…
Each month, at the time of new moon, the sun and moon are together in the daytime sky. Most of the time the moon passes by unnoticed. But at least twice a year, somewhere on Earth will see the moon pass…
As Earth orbits the sun, it continually ploughs through dust and debris left behind by passing comets and asteroids. On any night of the year, a keen-eyed observer might see five, or even ten, meteors…
Astronomers world-wide are gearing up for what NASA calls a “once in a lifetime” event: the Comet Siding Spring will swing past Mars on its maiden voyage through the solar system in the early hours next…
At least twice a year, Earth comes between the sun and the moon. The result is a lunar eclipse, where we see the splendid sight of Earth’s shadow falling across the moon. Lunar eclipses are wonderful to…
Look up towards the east on Wednesday night (October 8) and a total lunar eclipse will be visible from across Australia. The moon will slowly move through Earth’s shadow, as the sun, Earth and moon fall…
Looking west after sunset on Friday September 26, the thin waxing crescent moon forms a triangle with Mercury and Spica, the brightest star in the constellation of Virgo. You can see how far Mercury has…
A complete tree of life – showing how and when organisms are related to each other – has long been desired by biologists, but obscured by the vagaries of the fossil record. Now, next-generation gene sequencing…
It’s the time of the equinox or more specifically the spring equinox for us in the southern hemisphere. The equinox is a midpoint. It’s around now that day and night become equal in length (but more about…
As another, hopefully sunny, weekend rolls around it’s a great time to get out and spot some planets. Around an hour before sunrise, you can catch Jupiter with the moon. The moon is a thin waning crescent…
During the early hours of this morning (3:42am AEST) our sun released a strong solar flare. It follows right on the heels of a more moderate flare that was released from the same region of the sun on Tuesday…
A small asteroid discovered just five days ago will fly past Earth early on Monday September 8 (AEST) travelling through our south-west sky. Designated 2014 RC, the asteroid will pass by at distance of…
Authors
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Senior Curator, Society & Technology Department, Museums Victoria Research Institute
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Senior Curator, Vertebrate Palaeontology, Museums Victoria Research Institute
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Research Associate, Marine Invertebrates, Museums Victoria Research Institute
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Chief Executive Officer, Museums Victoria Research Institute
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Senior Curator, Terrestrial Vertebrates, Museums Victoria Research Institute
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Entomology/Arachnology Registration Officer, Museums Victoria Research Institute
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Coordinator, Live Exhibits, Museums Victoria Research Institute
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Head of Sciences, Museums Victoria Research Institute
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Honorary Research Fellow, Museums Victoria Research Institute
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Senior Curator of Geology, Museums Victoria Research Institute
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Senior Curator (Astronomy), Museums Victoria and Honorary Fellow at University of Melbourne, Museums Victoria Research Institute
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Senior Curator (Vertebrate Palaeontology & Palaeobotany), Museums Victoria Research Institute
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Senior Curator of Marine Invertebrates, Museums Victoria Research Institute
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Collection Manager, Vertebrate Palaeontology, Museums Victoria Research Institute
