What are pan-starrs?

Pan-Stars are like super detectives who look at the sky and try to find hidden things that move.

Imagine you're playing hide-and-seek outside with your friends, but instead of hiding behind trees or bushes, they hide in space, maybe a new planet, a cool asteroid, or even a faraway star. That’s what Pan-Stars do: they look for these hidden sky friends by taking lots of pictures and comparing them over time.

Pan-Stars use a special camera called the Panoramic Survey Telescope and Rapid Response System, which is like having a giant, super-fast camera that can take photos of big parts of the sky. It takes many pictures night after night, kind of like when you take photos of your friend jumping on a trampoline every day to see how high they go.

By comparing these pictures, scientists can spot things moving or changing in the sky, just like how you might notice your friend growing taller by taking a photo each year!

Pan-Stars have found asteroids that could one day come close to Earth, comets with pretty tails, and even new planets hiding far away. It’s like having a super-powered flashlight for the night sky!