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Space

faraway galaxy
Science Wire | May 22, 2013

Rare, massive merging of two faraway galaxies

A massive and rare merging of two galaxies has been spotted in images taken by the Herschel space observatory.

Image via NASA SOHO
Blogs | May 22, 2013

M5-class solar flare on May 22

The flare produced a beautiful coronal mass ejection, or CME, which was not Earth-directed but could deliver a glancing blow in the next few days.

Full moon via Lance Bullion
FAQs | May 22, 2013

What is a supermoon?

The next full moon on May 24-25 is a supermoon, but the perigee full moon on June 23 will be the most “super” supermoon of five in 2013.

Look west after sunset on May 25, 26, 27
Blogs | May 20, 2013

Sky alert: Jupiter, Venus, Mercury closer and closer!

Between now and the end of May, watch for Venus, Jupiter and Mercury gathered in the bright twilight. They’ll soon form a bright triangle.

saturn_rings_300
Tonight | May 17, 2013

See it! Ringed planet Saturn still at its best

We passed between the sun and Saturn on April 28. May 2013 is a good time to see Saturn. Tips and charts that’ll let you locate the ringed planet.

Photo credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS/UA)
Blogs | May 17, 2013

Mars bombarded by more than 200 space rocks per year

That might seem like a lot, but new results suggest Mars gets pummeled by space rocks less frequently than previously thought.

Kepler spacecraft
Science Wire | May 16, 2013

How NASA might revive the Kepler planet-hunter

Scott Hubbard, a consulting professor of aeronautics and astronautics, explains how NASA might bring the planet-hunting spacecraft back online.

Kepler, planet-hunter.  Image via NASA
Blogs | May 16, 2013

Planet-hunting Kepler spacecraft in trouble

It went into safe mode on Tuesday, May 14 after the #4 reaction wheel, needed to orient the spacecraft, would not spin.

May 10 eclipse at sunrise via Colin Legg
Blogs | May 15, 2013

Video: May 10 ring of fire annular solar eclipse

Beautiful video of ring of fire eclipse by astrophotographer Colin Legg, who used three cameras along the ecliptic path in western Australia.

This dramatic new image of cosmic clouds in the constellation of Orion reveals what seems to be a fiery ribbon in the sky. The orange glow represents faint light coming from grains of cold interstellar dust, at wavelengths too long for human eyes to see. It was observed by the ESO-operated Atacama Pathfinder Experiment (APEX) in Chile. In this image, the submillimetre-wavelength glow of the dust clouds is overlaid on a view of the region in the more familiar visible light, from the Digitized Sky Survey 2. The large bright cloud in the upper right of the image is the well-known Orion Nebula, also called Messier 42.
Science Wire | May 15, 2013

Orion’s hidden fiery ribbon

This dramatic new image of cosmic clouds in the constellation of Orion reveals what seems to be a fiery ribbon in the sky.