SpaceX launch wowed many, scared some, in SoCal

SpaceX Falcon 9 launch created an eerie display in the night sky over southern California on the night of December 22. Photos and video here.

No big planets at Alpha Centauri, but maybe small ones

"Because Alpha Centauri is so close, it's our first stop outside our solar system. There are almost certain to be small, rocky planets around Alpha Centauri A and B."

IAU approves 86 more star names

"These professional astronomers are claiming the exclusive right to give 'approved' names to the stars. But the stars - and the sky - belong to all of us."

A grand year for the Geminids

The 2017 Geminid meteor shower was thought to have a better-than-average chance of producing a rich display, since the Geminids' parent body - a strange rock-comet called 3200 Phaethon - is nearby. And so it was! Photos here.

Study: A third of Asia’s glaciers likely gone by 2100

Meltwater from the glaciers supplies water to 800 million people, so that loss would mean serious consequences for water management, food security, energy production.

Exposed to wildfire smoke? 5 questions answered

The intense wildfires in southern California are triggering air quality alerts. What do health experts know about how inhaling smoke affects human health?

All the illions from Cosmos, in order

Why? Because we love Carl Sagan.

Audubon’s Christmas Bird Count starts December 14

Audubon’s Christmas Bird Count is one of the longest-running citizen science projects in existence. Here's how to participate.

Turning hurricanes into music

A meteorologist and a music technologist are turning data from tropical storms into musical graphs. Can listening to storms help us understand them better?

Yetis? Nope. DNA study says bears

A new DNA study of purported Yeti samples from museums and private collections is providing insight into the origins of this Himalayan legend.

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