Astronomy Essentials
Tonight
Visible planets and night sky guide for September
Visible planets and night sky guide: Happy equinox! What is the equinox and why does it matter? And, most importantly, how can you experience it?
Sun
Sun news: 3 events to notice on today’s sun
Sun news September 22, 2026: We're poised for the September equinox. And we speak of 3 events today: the return of sunspots, C flares and fast solar wind.
Earth

Fat Bear Week 2026: Here’s how to participate!

It's time for Fat Bear Week 2026! Vote for your favorite corpulent cutie as the brown bears of Katmai National Park fatten up for winter.
Astronomy Essentials

Are day and night equal on the equinox? Not exactly

Are day and night equal at an equinox? No. There's slightly more day than night on the day of an equinox. Find out why here.
Space

JUICE mission to fly by Earth next week! Details here

The JUICE mission will perform a flyby of Earth next week on September 28. The spacecraft is headed toward Jupiter's icy moons, where it will arrive in 2031.
Human World

6th batch of Pentagon UAP files: Air Force talk and more

The 6th batch of the Pentagon UAP files has just been released. Read about a U.S. Air Force talk on UAP from 1952, see more videos and more.
Favorite Star Patterns

Great Square of Pegasus gallops into the autumn sky

The Great Square of Pegasus consists of 4 stars of nearly equal brightness in a large square pattern. It's a great jumping-off point for star-hopping.
Tonight

The equinox sun rises due east and sets due west

The 2026 September equinox occurs at 00:05 UTC on September 23, 2026. And the equinox sun rises and sets due east and due west.
Earth

Scientists discover a new tiger cat hiding in plain sight

Scientists studying the tiger cat have found 5 distinct species, revealing more diversity among these familiar-looking wild cats than previously known.
Astronomy Essentials

International Observe the Moon Night 2026 is tonight

International Observe the Moon Night is September 19, 2026. It's a global event for celebrating the moon. Here's how you can participate online or in person.