We've managed to lose a few stars....

[PhantomWolf]

After noticing in 2016 a star in the constellation of Lupus had vanished, Dr Villarroel led an international team that looked at military sky maps and other public sources dating back to the 1950s to see what else might be missing.

The Vanishing and Appearing Sources during a Century of Observations (VASCO) project found about 100 "red transients" - stars that appear and disappear very quickly on an astronomical timescale.

Current suggestions on what might have made these stars vanish are failed super-nova or Dyson Spheres, of course it's never aliens, so.....

 

[Norman Alexander]

Have you tried looking down the back of the couch?

 

[Wolrab]

It's never Lupus.

 

[Skeptical Greg]

Surely they are wherever the missing socks in your dryer go..

 

[Norman Alexander]

I was reliably informed that whenever a needed ballpoint pen is missing, it has gone to the Great Planet Biro. There it metamorphosizes into a coathanger, and comes back to infest your closet.

 

[alfaniner]

Misplaced a few star systems, Obi-Wan has.

 

[shemp]

Look in your trousers!

 

[smartcooky]

Another reason why stars might "disappear" is that they were never stars in the first place, but some other astronomical object, usually a minor planet or a dwarf planet, recorded as a star. Pluto is a good example - it was discovered in 1930 by Clyde Tombaugh, but had been previously recorded as a star on photographic planets taken by Yerkes Observatory in 1909.

Same applies to other minor planets - discovery year (precovery year)

Pallas 1802 (1779)
Chaos 1998 (1991)
Ixion 2001 (1982)
Quaoar 2002 (1954)
Orcus 2004 (1951)
Haumea 2004 (1955)

This is just a few... there are many more

 

[rjh01]

Another reason why stars might "disappear" is that they were never stars in the first place, but some other astronomical object, usually a minor planet or a dwarf planet, recorded as a star. Pluto is a good example - it was discovered in 1930 by Clyde Tombaugh, but had been previously recorded as a star on photographic planets taken by Yerkes Observatory in 1909.

Same applies to other minor planets - discovery year (precovery year)

Pallas 1802 (1779)
Chaos 1998 (1991)
Ixion 2001 (1982)
Quaoar 2002 (1954)
Orcus 2004 (1951)
Haumea 2004 (1955)

This is just a few... there are many more

I hope they need to find two or more photos of the star taken at least a year apart. Then errors like this would not happen.

 

[Apathia]

Some stars ruin their careers. I'm told to click on links about them, but I never do.

 

[DuvalHMFIC]

I'm assuming someone wiped them off the dome when cleaning it. This can happen from time to time.

 

[PhantomWolf]

Another reason why stars might "disappear" is that they were never stars in the first place, but some other astronomical object, usually a minor planet or a dwarf planet, recorded as a star. Pluto is a good example - it was discovered in 1930 by Clyde Tombaugh, but had been previously recorded as a star on photographic planets taken by Yerkes Observatory in 1909.

Same applies to other minor planets - discovery year (precovery year)

Pallas 1802 (1779)
Chaos 1998 (1991)
Ixion 2001 (1982)
Quaoar 2002 (1954)
Orcus 2004 (1951)
Haumea 2004 (1955)

This is just a few... there are many more

I think this would have been taken into account.

 

[TragicMonkey]

They're always in the last place you look. Has anyone tried the junk drawer in the kitchen? Or that storage closet beneath the staircase? There's a cardboard box inexplicably labelled "FRMPTs - 2011" at the top of my coat closet, I have no idea what's in there and I'm afraid to pull it down because there may be cobwebs behind it.

 

[Rincewind]

I don't recall the quote exactly, but here goes:

To lose one star may be considered a misfortune; But to lose more than one might suggest carelessness!

 

[Ziggurat]

Some stars ruin their careers. I'm told to click on links about them, but I never do.

Number 7 will shock you!

 

[Ziggurat]

I don't recall the quote exactly, but here goes:

To lose one star may be considered a misfortune; But to lose more than one might suggest carelessness!

Once is happenstance. Twice is coincidence. Three times is enemy action.

 

[phunk]

I guess the monks finally finished their list.

 

[alfaniner]

I guess the monks finally finished their list.

 

[Ziggurat]

I guess the monks finally finished their list.

 

[smartcooky]

I guess the monks finally finished their list.

And it took them less than 15 thousand years... they must have bought a computer!