Astronomy Essentials
Tonight
Visible planets and night sky guide for October
Visible planets and night sky guide. Watch a video about astrophotography. And this evening, look for the waxing crescent moon and the red star Antares.
Tonight
What star in the northeast flashes colorfully? It’s Capella!
If you're in Earth's Northern Hemisphere and see a bright star twinkling with red, green and blue flashes low in the northeast on October evenings, it's probably Capella. See charts here!
Today's Image

Strange cloud! What was it? Observers in U.S. East report

Many people up before sunrise on Tuesday morning saw a strange cloud. It was the plume from a SpaceX rocket. See stunning images here!
Sun

Sun news: See a huge solar eruption

Sun news, October 15, 2026: A large filament in the northeast erupted yesterday, hurling plasma into space. And that wasn't the only spectacular eruption.
Today's Image

Best deep-sky photos of September 2026 from EarthSky community

Enjoy this gallery of deep-sky photos from September 2026 by our EarthSky community. If you have a great photo to share, we'd love to see it!
Astronomy Essentials

Proxima Centauri is the closest star to our sun

Proxima Centauri is the nearest star to our sun at 4.22 light-years away. It's home to at least 3 planets and has massive solar flares.
Human World
Space

NASA’s Perseverance rover on Mars sets off-world driving record

The Mars Perseverance rover has set a new distance record on Mars. It has driven 28.10 miles (45.22 km) across the surface of the red planet.
Space

Weirdest cloud on Mars formed via ‘exotic physics’

The weirdest cloud on Mars has a funny-sounding name. Scientists call it the Arsia Mons Elongated Cloud. Come find out what's weird about it!
Astronomy Essentials
Constellations

Meet Aquarius the Water Bearer and its stars

Aquarius lies in a “watery” part of the sky, near Pisces the Fish, Cetus the Whale, Eridanus the River and Piscis Austrinus the Southern Fish.
Earth

Amazon wildfires hide another threat to the rainforest

Amazon wildfires are weakening the rainforest’s ability to absorb carbon, as ozone pollution damages trees that survive the flames.