"Sky Publishing has decided to stop producing Night Sky, its bimonthly magazine for beginning amateur astronomers. The next issue, appearing in February and dated March/April 2007, will be the last. We are no longer accepting new orders for Night Sky. More information about the disposition of existing subscriptions will be available shortly.

"We launched Night Sky in May/June 2004 to serve entry-level stargazers who want to enjoy and explore the heavens but who find Sky & Telescope too advanced for their needs. Apparently, there aren't as many of these folks as we thought — at least, not enough of them prepared to buy a magazine like Night Sky.

"Sky Publishing was acquired by New Track Media in February 2006. NTM chief executive officer Stephen J. Kent explains, 'We decided to wind down Night Sky because it never gained traction in the marketplace. Despite three years of aggressive subscription and newsstand marketing, the magazine showed no sign of becoming profitable. I'm as disappointed as anybody, because it's a terrific product.' Kent adds, 'We'll enhance and improve the editorial mix in Sky & Telescope and on our website to make sure we continue to serve amateur astronomers of all levels.'

"Launching a new magazine is always a gamble. According to Samir A. Husni, chair of the journalism department at the University of Mississippi and a leading analyst of the magazine industry, 60% of new magazines fail in their first year, 80% fail by their fourth year, and 90% are gone within 10 years. Sky & Telescope, founded in November 1941, is now in its 66th year of continuous publication."

Ordinarily, we'd leave it at that. But I'd also like to make a few additional comments to address the rumors and innuendo circulating here and in other online forums.

Yes, we laid off five people last week. That's what happens when you close down an unprofitable part of your business. It was very painful, but sadly necessary. Four of the layoffs were associated with the closure of Night Sky, and one with cutbacks in our book-publishing business, which has also been struggling lately. The affected employees are sharing the news with friends and associates as they see fit; I don't think it would be appropriate for me to list their names here.

No, president/publisher Susan B. Lit was not dismissed; she decided to leave on her own. Over the past six years she led the conversion of Sky Publishing from a mom-and-pop operation to an enterprise worthy of becoming the foundation of New Track Media, but with that accomplished, she was no longer in charge. Not surprisingly for someone who had risen to the level of CEO, she decided to look elsewhere for new opportunities to apply her considerable knowledge and skills.

Yes, Stephen James O'Meara will now be writing regularly for Astronomy rather than Sky & Telescope. I'd tell you why he made this change if I knew, but I don't. One day he told us he didn't want to write his column for us anymore, and the next day we heard that he will be writing for the competition. I don't know what prompted this, and Steve won't tell me. All speculation voiced online to date is just that: speculation.

As far as Sky & Telescope is concerned, the only "writing on the wall" says that New Track Media is firmly committed to maintaining its flagship publication's leadership in the astronomy-magazine marketplace. Yes, we'll be doing some things differently, but all in the interest of operating more efficiently (to keep costs down and avoid having to raise the price you pay) and providing a better experience for our readers/customers.