Best photos: This weekend’s planets before dawn

Venus is the brightest one up before dawn, but Mars and Jupiter were closer on Saturday than they will be again until 2018. Plus many people caught Mercury!

Milky Way over Morocco

The Milky Way over the top of Toubkal, a mountain peak in Morocco. At 4,167 meters, this point is the highest peak in North Africa.

Is this region empty of stars?

Meet the Coalsack Nebula, a cloud of dust and gas in space - birthplace for new stars. In millions of years, the Coalsack's stars will light up and shine brightly.

Full spectrum shooting star

You'll see the colors of a rainbow in this meteor ...

Seeing a jet’s shock wave

If you could see the shock wave from a jet moving faster than sound, this is what it would look like.

Wonderful solar halo over Croatia

High above Earth, tiny ice crystals create halos by refracting and reflecting the light of the sun or moon.

Best photos: Amazing moon and planets October 7-11

Best photos of the moon's glorious sweep past the planets Venus, Jupiter, Mars and Mercury. Photos from EarthSky friends. October 7, 8, 9, 10 and 11.

Traveling at warp speed through aurora territory

Fun photo from a great nature photographer, Göran Strand in Sweden.

Planets, east before dawn, October 2, 2015

Don't miss these bright planets in the east before dawn. They'll perform an intricate dance throughout October, 2015.

Stars over Mount Rainier

A beautiful place to see the night sky and contemplate nature's power.