The Birth, Life, and Secrets of Stars: Unravelling the Mysteries of Cosmic Beacons

The motion of objects in the solar system takes place against the backdrop of the ‘fixed stars’—points of light that maintain their relative position night after night, year after year. Ancient astronomers had no understanding of the true nature of stars. As late as the nineteenth century, some philosophers argued we could never understand the true nature of stars. But, slowly, astronomers and physicists developed that understanding: ‘Twinkle, twinkle little star; now I know just what you are’.