Have you got a big question about astronomy? Do you want to know why you can see the Moon in the daytime, or if aliens really exist? Well now you can get your question answered by an ROG astronomer in our monthly podcast On the Line.

In previous episodes we’ve answered popular questions asked after planetarium shows, but now we want you to ask the questions. All you need to do is ring our new phone line on 0208 123 9911 and leave your first name and your question and we’ll pick a selection of our favourites to answer each month.

Need some inspiration?

Why not listen to the questions asked by staff at the National Maritime Museum and the Royal Observatory, Greenwich in our October issue, or some of the most popular questions asked by visitors to the Peter Harrison Planetarium answered in previous episodes.

Jupiter is still visible throughout October, setting by 10pm local time. Look low towards the south-west and it is the brightest object in the sky. Take a look through binoculars, and see if you can spot the four bright Galilean moons that orbit around Jupiter. Our Moon is conveniently close to Jupiter in the night sky on the 6th & 7th of October, acting as a useful guide.

The Moon begins the month as a thin crescent – a beautiful sight in the evening sky. The Moon reaches full Moon, when it is on the opposite side of the sky to the Sun, on the 14th.

The summer triangle is still visible in October, despite its name, high in the South at 7pm. The three stars that make up the triangle are Vega, Altair & Deneb. Vega is the brightest of the three stars, and there maybe a planet like Jupiter in orbit around Vega. Altair is interesting because it rotates in just 7 hours! And Deneb is actually one of the brightest stars we know of – some 250,000 times bright than the Sun! The reason it looks fainter than Vega is only because it is much further away – Deneb is some 100 times further away than Vega. If Deneb was as close as Vega, it would be as bright as the Moon!