Fly through the Orion Nebula

Take 3 minutes to fly through the spectacular Orion Nebula, in this new 3D visualization from NASA.

Astronomers scrutinize Black Widow pulsar

They observed 2 intense regions of radiation on this rapidly spinning pulsar some 6,500 light-years away. "Like seeing a flea on the surface of Pluto," they said.

A space ant fires its lasers

A rare natural laser beaming from the heart of the spectacular Ant Nebula suggests the presence of a double star system.

A tiny helicopter for Mars 2020

"After the Wright Brothers proved 117 years ago that powered, sustained, and controlled flight was possible here on Earth, another group of American pioneers may prove the same can be done on another world."

Meet our solar system’s 1st-known permanent immigrant

Mysterious asteroid 2015 BZ509 - currently nestling in Jupiter's orbit - became less mysterious once astronomers realized it's an immigrant, captured from another solar system.

Astronomers spot exiled asteroid in outer reaches of solar system

This object was likely born in the Asteroid Belt between Mars and Jupiter, then flung billions of miles to the Kuiper Belt on the edge of the solar system.

TESS planet-hunter snaps 1st test image, swings by moon

How many unseen worlds orbit these stars? The TESS planet-hunter is designed to find nearby exoplanets, between 30 and 300 light-years away.

Wall-E and Eva set record, snag pic

The 1st-ever interplanetary CubeSats - nicknamed Wall-E and Eva - are now on their way to Mars. They set a new CubeSat distance record on May 8. Then Wall-E turned back and grabbed an image of the Earth and moon.

Meet the fastest-growing black hole

Because it sucks in so much gas, this black hole appears ultra-luminous. If it sat at the center of our Milky Way, we'd see it shining 10 times more brightly than a full moon.

Scientists discover a new type of magnetic event

They were working with spacecraft data, using a new technique to analyze it. They found a new type of magnetic event in the realm just beyond the boundary of Earth's magnetic field.

Matching Donation Campaign

Exciting news! EarthSky received a $50,000 gift, with a request that it be used to collect matching funds. Please help us meet this match by donating to EarthSky today!

Would you consider

donating?

If you've already donated, we apologize for the popup and greatly appreciate your support.