41.   Amateur astronomers, too, wonder if back yard stargazing is what it used to be, says Elizabeth Waagen at the American Association of Variable Star Observers.

42.   Amateur astronomers fiddled with knobs and high-tech tripods while glancing repeatedly, and nervously, at the sky.

43.   A Chinese amateur astronomer has discovered a comet -- the first to be spotted by an amateur observer from China, the official Xinhua news agency said.

44.   Using backyard telescopes, amateur astronomers in China and Japan have spotted a fiery comet that may last have been seen when Isaac Newton was a student.

45.   That two amateur astronomers should make the discovery is a rare feat.