menu
close
subscribe

Enjoying EarthSky? Subscribe.

254,372 subscribers and counting ...

Hubble sees Phobos orbiting Mars

By in Space | Today's Image | 1 day ago

This image and video aren’t artists’ illustrations. They’re from a real time-lapse sequence of images – acquired by the Hubble Space Telescope – of the tiny moon Phobos orbiting Mars. Cool!

Video: Moon hoax not

By in Human World | Space | 2 days ago

SG Collins explains why the Apollo moon landings on the moon in the late 1960s and early ’70s couldn’t have been faked.

Today in science: 1st footsteps on moon

By in Human World | Space | 2 days ago

Today is the 48th anniversary of humanity’s historic first steps on the moon. The story in pictures, here.

How close will asteroid 2012 TC4 come?

By in Human World | Space | 2 days ago

Asteroid 2012 TC4 might give Earth a close shave in October, 2017. Or the asteroid could pass more distantly. Astronomers are keen to observe it now, to learn more about its orbit.

EarthSky’s meteor shower guide for 2017

By and in Astronomy Essentials | Space | 3 days ago

All you need to know about 2017’s major meteor showers. Next good opportunity is late July and early August. Watch between midnight and dawn, when the moon is down. You won’t catch a magnificent display, as in some years, but you might see some!

Have you seen the Mayak satellite?

By in Human World | Space | 4 days ago

On July 14, an amateur group in Russia launched a small satellite called Mayak. They said it would become the “brightest shooting star” in the sky. Why’d they do it? Here’s how to look for it.

Soar over Pluto and Charon

By in Human World | Space | 4 days ago

To celebrate the 2-year anniversary of New Horizon’s flyover of the Pluto system, NASA released these 2 cool videos. Sail over the surface of Pluto and its large moon Charon.

Peering toward the Cosmic Dark Ages

By in Space | 5 days ago

During the Cosmic Dark Ages, our universe matured from a primordial soup of neutral gas to the star-filled cosmos we see today. A new study probes this mysterious time.

No commands to Mars craft in late July

By in Space | 7 days ago

NASA says to blame the sun for its moratorium on sending commands to Mars from July 22 to August 1.

Strange radio signals from nearby star

By in Human World | Space | 1 week ago

A 10-minute observation in May of nearby star Ross 128 yielded a peculiar radio signal. Further observations planned for Sunday night.

Planet 9 hypothesis alive and well

By in Space | 1 week ago

Is there an unknown, massive planet on the fringes of our solar system? New work that claims to remove “observational bias” also supports this very exciting possibility.

Wow! Juno’s super-close Red Spot images

By in Space | 1 week ago

Raw images from the Juno spacecraft’s extremely close sweep past Jupiter’s Red Spot are beginning to come in. NASA invites you to help process them!

Astronomers find the smallest star yet

By in Space | 1 week ago

This star is just a sliver larger than Saturn, not even the largest planet in our solar system. Yet it’s massive enough to shine as a star, and its pull of gravity is some 300 times stronger than Earth’s.

Dawn at Saturn

By in Space | Today's Image | 1 week ago

Although the Cassini spacecraft – now on the verge of running out of fuel – is in its final year in orbit around Saturn, it’s still producing heart-stirring images.

James Webb Telescope chillin’ in Houston

By in Space | 2 weeks ago

In hot Houston, the telescope hangs in historic Chamber A at Johnson Space Center, with the best air conditioning available. It’ll soon receive a last test of its ability to withstand the cold of space.

Astronomers track hypervelocity stars

By in Space | 2 weeks ago

New video shows 6 hypervelocity stars, zipping from Milky Way center to outskirts. An interaction with our galaxy’s central, supermassive black hole might have kicked them into fast motion.

100 billion failed stars in Milky Way?

By in Space | 2 weeks ago

A recent survey revealed 1 brown dwarf for every 2 stars in the star cluster RCW 38 and other clusters. “There are a huge number of brown dwarfs out there,” astronomers said.

Sunspot, and chance of weekend storms

By in Earth | Space | 2 weeks ago

Experts say there’s a 60% chance this weekend of geomagnetic storms, possibly causing auroras. Plus, over the past couple of days, a lone sunspot has grown rapidly!

Solar minimum is coming

By and in Space | 2 weeks ago

Low ebb in the 11-year sunspot cycle expected 2019-2020. Want some basic information about the sunspot cycle and its effects? Watch this NASA ScienceCast.

How do planets form after star death?

By in Space | 2 weeks ago

Supernova explosions destroy pre-existing planets. Yet astronomers observe planets orbiting tiny, dense, essentially dead neutron stars left behind by supernovae. How do the planets get there?