Russell Deeks
Science writer
Russell Deeks is a freelance journalist specialising in science and technology. He has been an occasional contributor to BBC Sky at Night Magazine since 2006.
Recent articles by Russell Deeks
What causes a rainbow?
What causes a colourful rainbow to appear in the sky after rain?
Red rainbows exist, but they're extremely rare. Here's the science and how to see one for yourself
Eggnog is out! Here's how astronauts really spend Christmas in space
Yes, your Christmas lights CAN be seen from space – just ask NASA
Why can't we feel Earth spinning?
Donut Earth
How fast does the Earth spin? It's a question that's not as simple to answer as you might think
Olympus Mons, largest volcano in the Solar System
Ever seen a green Moon? Here's why our Moon can never really be green, and where the myth came from
Ancient stargazing software? A brief history of the orrery and where you can see the biggest in the world
Earth from space | Great Barrier Reef
How long is a year on each planet?
29 of the scariest things in space
Take our tour of terror through the cosmos.
Schumann resonances explained
What colour really is Pluto, and how accurate are the images we see of it?
Why is Mercury called Mercury?
Earth doesn't have rings, but it may once have (and humans have done a good job trying to give it some)
Gallery | Crescent Nebula
Pictures of the Crescent Nebula, NGC 6888, and facts about this beautiful deep-sky emission nebula powered by an ageing Wolf-Rayet star.
The South Pole-Aitken Basin is a colossal, ancient impact crater on the far side of the Moon
Dark side of the Moon? There's no such thing. Here's why
The biggest thing in the Universe is the Hercules-Corona Borealis Great Wall, measuring 10 billion lightyears across
The Milky Way and other galaxies are being pulled towards a point in space known as the Great Attractor
The story of Kepler-22b, the first exoplanet discovered orbiting within the habitable zone of its host star
Emission nebula vs reflection nebula
Confused about emission and reflection nebulae? This is our primer explaining the difference between the two.