Sign Up for Our Amazing Newsletter!
A daily update by email. Science news, great photos, sky alerts.
Thank you! Your submission has been received!
Oops! Something went wrong while submitting the form.
Posts by
Theresa Wiegert
Astronomy Essentials
Equinox sun above horizon all day at the poles
We know the equinox sun rises due east and sets due west. But what happens at Earth's poles? Does the sun look exactly the same at both poles?
March 19, 2024
SKA telescope 1st light! Milky Way core and more
A prototype antenna for the new SKA telescope, to be located in South Africa and Australia, just made a big step forward with a 1st-light image!
January 28, 2024
Oddly shaped suns and moons on the horizon
When light from the sun or the moon travels through more atmosphere to your eyes, you see oddly shaped suns or moons in interesting and beautiful ways.
April 26, 2023
How do you measure the mass of a star?
Binary stars - a star system consisting of two stars - are extremely useful. They give all the information needed to measure mass of a star. Here is how.
January 15, 2023
Andromeda and Milky Way galaxies are merging
The Milky Way and Andromeda merger has already begun. The two spiral galaxies will form one giant elliptical galaxy in 5 billion years.
March 2, 2022
A storm on the sun, and a great week for auroras
Aurora alert in effect for the next few days: the sun sent out a halo coronal mass ejection on November 2, 2021, due to arrive at Earth on November 4.
November 4, 2021
Astronomy art: Voices of Apollo 11
Voices of Apollo 11 is an image of the moon, made of the words transmitted from the moon by Apollo 11 astronauts. Astronomy artist J-P Metsavainio created it.
July 19, 2021
Finally, an electron-capture supernova
"We started by asking ‘what’s this weirdo?’ the astronomers said. Now they recognize SN 2018zd as an electron-capture supernova.
July 7, 2021
Supermassive black holes help with star birth
Supermassive black holes help form stars, according to a new study. They do it by clearing the way in the outskirts of the galaxies where they reside.
June 27, 2021
Milky Way center: Threads of hot gas and magnetic fields
An astronomer combined 2 decades worth of X-ray data with radio observations, creating an extraordinary image of the Milky Way center.
June 8, 2021
