GEMMA LAVENDER

Editor-in-Chief

The hunt for life elsewhere in the universe still rages on, as you’ll discover in our cover feature this month. Turn to page 14 for full details on the missions, techniques and plans in our search for life beyond planet Earth. Are we any closer to finding it?

Elsewhere in the issue, your regulars are all here, including mysteries of the universe – where we go back to 1054 and reveal what caused the explosion that formed the Crab Nebula – your burning questions answered in Ask Space and this month’s guide to the night sky, where we tour Clavius crater on the surface of the Moon. There’s also naked-eye and binocular tours of some of the brightest stars in the constellations of Auriga, Taurus and their borders.

Also this month, we explore the surface and interior of the seventh world from the Sun, ice giant Neptune, reveal some of the greatest space innovations that will help us conquer the cosmos and get into the nitty gritty of some of Stephen Hawking’s most groundbreaking theories – some of which have revolutionised the way we view the universe, while others are still leaving scientists scratching their heads.

Enjoy the issue, and don’t forget to check out our exclusive interview with astronaut Tim Peake, who reveals more about his life after returning from space in June 2016.