Astronomy & Space News

NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover used its black-and-white navigation cameras to capture panoramas at two times of day on Nov. 18, 2025, spanning periods that occurred on both the 4,722nd and 4,723rd Martian days, or sols, of the mission. The panoramas were captured at 4:15 p.m. on Sol 4,722 and 8:20 a.m. on Sol 4,723 (both at local Mars time), then merged together. Color was later added for an artistic interpretation of the scene with blue representing the morning panorama and yellow representing the afternoon one.

Data from NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope and Chandra X-ray Observatory come together in this eye-catching photo of colliding spiral galaxies released on Dec. 1, 2025.

Tiny ball bearings surround a larger central bearing during the Fluid Particles experiment, conducted inside the Microgravity Science Glovebox (MSG) aboard the International Space Station’s Destiny laboratory module.

NASA engineer Guy Naylor poses for a photograph wearing a custom Santa Claus suit on the 19th level of High Bay 4 inside the Vehicle Assembly Building with NASA's integrated Moon rocket behind him at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Thursday, Dec. 11, 2025.

From left to right, CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen and NASA astronauts Christina Koch, Victor Glover, and Reid Wiseman are seen as they depart the Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building to board their Orion spacecraft atop NASA’s Space Launch System rocket inside the Vehicle Assembly Building as part of the Artemis II countdown demonstration test, Saturday, Dec. 20, 2025, at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

These two galaxies are named NGC 4490 and NGC 4485, and they’re located about 24 million light-years away in the constellation Canes Venatici (The Hunting Dogs). They are the closest known interacting dwarf-dwarf galaxy system where astronomers have observed the interactions between them, as well as been able to resolve the stars within.

NASA astronaut Don Pettit demonstrates electrostatic forces using charged water droplets and a knitting needle made of Teflon.

Justin Hall, left, controls a subscale aircraft as Justin Link holds the aircraft in place during preliminary engine tests on Friday, Sept. 12, 2025, at NASA’s Armstong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California. Hall is chief pilot at the center’s Dale Reed Subscale Flight Research Laboratory and Link is a pilot for small uncrewed aircraft systems.

This NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope image features the blue dwarf galaxy Markarian 178 (Mrk 178) against a backdrop of distant galaxies in all shapes and sizes. Some of these distant galaxies even shine through the diffuse edges of Mrk 178.

Clockwise from left, JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Kimiya Yui and NASA astronauts Jonny Kim, Zena Cardman, and Mike Fincke pose for a playful portrait through a circular opening in a hatch thermal cover aboard the International Space Station on Sept. 18, 2025.

The Bassac River surrounds Cù Lao Dung, a river islet district in southern Vietnam, before emptying into the South China Sea.

The Calabash Nebula, pictured here — which has the technical name OH 231.8+04.2 — is a spectacular example of the death of a low-mass star like the Sun. This image taken by the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope shows the star going through a rapid transformation from a red giant to a planetary nebula, during which it blows its outer layers of gas and dust out into the surrounding space. The recently ejected material is spat out in opposite directions with immense speed — the gas shown in yellow is moving close to a million kilometres an hour. Astronomers rarely capture a star in this phase of its evolution because it occurs within the blink of an eye — in astronomical terms. Over the next thousand years the nebula is expected to evolve into a fully fledged planetary nebula. The nebula is also known as the Rotten Egg Nebula because it contains a lot of sulphur, an element that, when combined with other elements, smells like a rotten egg — but luckily, it resides over 5000 light-years away in the constellation of Puppis (The Poop deck).

Webb’s image of the enormous stellar jet in Sh2-284 provides evidence that protostellar jets scale with the mass of their parent stars—the more massive the stellar engine driving the plasma, the larger the resulting jet.

The Soyuz MS-27 spacecraft is seen as it lands in a remote area near the town of Zhezkazgan, Kazakhstan with Expedition 73 NASA astronaut Jonny Kim, and Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergey Ryzhikov and Alexey Zubritsky aboard, Tuesday, Dec. 9, 2025.

A flash of lightning, and then—something else. High above a storm, a crimson figure blinks in and out of existence. If you see it, you are a lucky witness of a sprite, one of the least-understood electrical phenomena in Earth’s upper atmosphere.

Most planets spend their lives orbiting a star, but some are destined for exile. According to a study published in Science on Jan. 1, 2026, astronomers have successfully measured the mass and distance of such a wanderer for the first time. Known as free-floating or rogue planets, these rogue worlds are thought to have beenContinue reading "Astronomers measure mass and distance of free-floating planet"

The post Astronomers measure mass and distance of free-floating planet appeared first on Astronomy Magazine.

The phenomenon of a Full Moon arises when our planet, Earth, is precisely sandwiched between the Sun and the Moon. This alignment ensures the entire side of the Moon that faces us gleams under sunlight. Thanks to the Moon’s orbit around Earth, the angle of sunlight hitting the lunar surface and being reflected back toContinue reading "2026 Full Moon calendar: When to see the Full Moon and phases"

The post 2026 Full Moon calendar: When to see the Full Moon and phases appeared first on Astronomy Magazine.

On Jan. 15, 2025, the Gaia spacecraft took its last image. Then the craft ran a final round of engineering tests, fired its thrusters to leave Earth behind, and slipped into an orbit around the Sun, finally turning off on March 27. After more than a decade in operation, 3 trillion observations, and 2 billionContinue reading "How Gaia revealed the Milky Way"

The post How Gaia revealed the Milky Way appeared first on Astronomy Magazine.

At 12:33 A.M. EST on Jan. 1, 2019 New Horizons made its closest approach to 2014 MU69, now named Arrokoth (though at the time, it had been nicknamed Ultima Thule). It was the most pristine distant world ever explored — albeit remotely — by humans. The craft zipped by the Kuiper Belt object (KBO) atContinue reading "Jan. 1, 2019: New Horizons flies by Arrokoth"

The post Jan. 1, 2019: New Horizons flies by Arrokoth appeared first on Astronomy Magazine.

Looking for a sky event this week? Check out our full Sky This Week column.  December 31: A Europa transit to welcome the new year Saturn points the way to Neptune all through the month of January, offering an easy way to spot the solar system’s most distant planet. The best time to view these distant worldsContinue reading "The Sky Today on Thursday, January 1: Follow Saturn to Neptune"

The post The Sky Today on Thursday, January 1: Follow Saturn to Neptune appeared first on Astronomy Magazine.

Saturn is on display in the early-evening sky this month along with Uranus and Neptune, both within reach of binoculars. Jupiter dominates the night, reaching opposition on the 10th. The gas giant is the prime target for the month; the long winter nights offer lots of time to enjoy the view. Mercury continues its year-endContinue reading "January 2026: What’s in the sky this month? Jupiter reaches opposition, Mercury briefly appears"

The post January 2026: What’s in the sky this month? Jupiter reaches opposition, Mercury briefly appears appeared first on Astronomy Magazine.

As the new year dawns, the solar system’s two largest planets put on fine shows in the evening sky. Saturn continues to dominate the western stage. It glows at magnitude 1.0 against the backdrop along the Aquarius-Pisces border. It officially leaves the Water-bearer in the middle of January and enters the Fish for what willContinue reading "January 2026: What’s in the Southern Hemisphere sky this month?"

The post January 2026: What’s in the Southern Hemisphere sky this month? appeared first on Astronomy Magazine.

If you have access to an 8-inch or larger telescope, look in the northern part of the constellation Andromeda the Princessfor a planetary nebula called the Blue Snowball. Insert an eyepiece that will give you a magnification around 100x, and you’ll see immediately why astronomers gave it that name. Specifically, point your scope roughly 4½° east of the magnitudeContinue reading "Michael’s Miscellany: Observe the Blue Snowball"

The post Michael’s Miscellany: Observe the Blue Snowball appeared first on Astronomy Magazine.

Born Dec. 31, 1864, in California, Robert Aitken was frequently ill as a child, with severe ear infections that eventually led to progressive deafness. Despite his education being delayed by his health until he was nine and his plans to become a preacher, Aitken graduated with a B.A. in mathematics in 1887. He taught mathContinue reading "Dec. 31, 1864: The birth of Robert Aitken"

The post Dec. 31, 1864: The birth of Robert Aitken appeared first on Astronomy Magazine.

Looking for a sky event this week? Check out our full Sky This Week column.  December 30: Catch Mercury, quick Our attention this evening is on Jupiter as the year comes to a close with a transit of the icy moon Europa across the cloud tops, trailing behind its dark shadow. Jupiter is approaching opposition, with theContinue reading "The Sky Today on Wednesday, December 31: A Europa transit to welcome the new year"

The post The Sky Today on Wednesday, December 31: A Europa transit to welcome the new year appeared first on Astronomy Magazine.

The Quadrantids and Eta Aquariids will have Moon trouble in 2026, but the beloved Perseids and Geminids should be glorious.

The post The Best Meteor Showers in 2026 appeared first on Sky & Telescope.

In this month’s episode, start with one of the year’s best meteor showers, then spend some time with Jupiter, and check out a mythical queen and hunter who have ego problems. So bundle up, grab your curiosity, and come along on this month’s Sky Tour.

The post January Podcast: Jupiter and Orion appeared first on Sky & Telescope.

Tour 15 of the sky's brightest stars all in one night on this New Year's Eve! This interactive Worldwide Telescope video will show you the way.

The post Tour 15 of the Brightest Stars on New Year's Eve (VIDEO) appeared first on Sky & Telescope.

Astronomers have discovered a bridge of gas and dust between two protostars, the signature of a close encounter 15,000 years ago.

The post Passing Baby Stars Lock Arms in Rare Astronomical Find appeared first on Sky & Telescope.

The highlights of spaceflight in 2025 have included missions to explore the Moon, Mars, and the Sun — and more is coming in the New Year.

The post Spaceflight for Astronomy — A Look Back and Ahead appeared first on Sky & Telescope.

Jupiter nears opposition. The waxing Moon pairs with Saturn, then guides the way to the fine telescopic double star Gamma Arietis. Later it passes the Pleiades.

The post This Week's Sky at a Glance, December 26 – January 4 appeared first on Sky & Telescope.

How to start sky exploring with that new telescope. How to set it up right, other key things to know -- and great cosmic immensities to start finding tonight.

The post How To Start with Your New Telescope appeared first on Sky & Telescope.

Astronomers are trying to determine if they've witnessed a complex stellar explosion or a relatively ordinary supernova.

The post Did Astronomers See a Star Explode Twice? appeared first on Sky & Telescope.

Waves of recent star formation have made Orion winter's most scintillating constellation. You can see how it all came to be.

The post Explore Orion's Massive New Stars with Binoculars appeared first on Sky & Telescope.

We greet the winter solstice. Jupiter nears opposition. Will the two Dog Stars balance for you? And meet the House in the Hyades.

The post This Week's Sky at a Glance, December 19 – 28 appeared first on Sky & Telescope.

A newly discovered exoplanet is rewriting the rules of what planets can be. Orbiting a city-sized neutron star, this Jupiter-mass world has a bizarre carbon-rich atmosphere filled with soot clouds and possibly diamonds at its core. Its extreme gravity stretches it into a lemon shape, and it completes a full orbit in under eight hours. Scientists are stunned — no known theory explains how such a planet could exist.

The Champagne Cluster is a rare and beautiful example of two galaxy clusters smashing together. Its festive name comes from both its New Year’s Eve discovery and its bubbly appearance in space. Images reveal superheated gas and galaxies spread across a massive collision zone. Astronomers believe this system could help explain how dark matter responds when giant structures collide.

New high-resolution images show that novae are anything but simple stellar fireworks. One exploded with multiple gas streams colliding almost immediately, while another shockingly delayed its eruption for more than 50 days before unleashing a powerful blast. These complex outflows create shock waves that produce intense gamma rays, confirming long-standing theories with direct visual evidence. The findings reveal novae as evolving, multi-stage events rather than single, instant explosions.

Mars once had sprawling river systems that rivaled major watersheds on Earth, and scientists have now identified the biggest ones for the first time. Researchers mapped 16 massive drainage basins where water likely flowed long enough to support life. Even though these areas cover just 5% of ancient Martian terrain, they account for a huge share of erosion and sediment movement. That makes them some of the most promising places to search for ancient life.

Thanks to Einstein’s relativity, time flows differently on Mars than on Earth. NIST scientists have now nailed down the difference, showing that Mars clocks tick slightly faster—and fluctuate over the Martian year. These microsecond shifts could play a big role in future Mars navigation, communications, and even a solar-system-wide internet. It’s a small time gap with big consequences for space exploration.

Mars isn’t just dusty—it crackles with electricity. Scientists discovered that dust devils can generate tiny electric sparks, captured for the first time by Perseverance’s microphone. These static discharges may rapidly destroy chemicals like methane and reshape how Mars’ atmosphere works. The sparks could even affect climate patterns and pose risks to future missions.

Scientists have detected the most distant supernova ever seen, exploding when the universe was less than a billion years old. The event was first signaled by a gamma-ray burst and later confirmed using the James Webb Space Telescope, which was able to isolate the blast from its faint host galaxy. Surprisingly, the explosion closely resembles supernovae linked to gamma-ray bursts in the modern universe.

A newly identified region on Mars may hold the key to future human landings. Researchers found evidence of water ice less than a meter beneath the surface, close enough to be harvested for water, oxygen, and fuel. The location strikes a rare balance between sunlight and cold, helping preserve the ice. It could also offer clues about whether Mars once supported life.

New observations reveal that the relationship between ultraviolet and X-ray light in quasars has changed over billions of years. This unexpected shift suggests the structure around supermassive black holes may evolve with time, challenging a decades-old assumption.

Astronomers have decoded the hidden past of a distant red giant star by listening to tiny vibrations in its light, revealing clues of a dramatic cosmic history. The star, which quietly orbits a dormant black hole, appears to be spinning far faster than it should—and its internal “starquakes” suggest it may have once collided and merged with another star. Even more puzzling, its chemical makeup makes it look ancient, while its internal structure reveals it’s relatively young.

When Earth was a molten inferno, water may have been locked safely underground rather than lost to space. Researchers discovered that bridgmanite deep in the mantle can store far more water at high temperatures than previously believed. During Earth’s cooling, this hidden reservoir could have held water volumes comparable to today’s oceans. Over time, that buried water helped drive geology and rebuild the planet’s surface environment.

Scientists have discovered a giant cosmic filament where galaxies spin in sync with the structure that holds them together. The razor-thin chain of galaxies sits inside a much larger filament that appears to be slowly rotating as a whole. This coordinated motion is far stronger than expected by chance and hints that galaxy spin may be inherited from the cosmic web itself. The finding opens a new window into how galaxies formed and how matter flows across the Universe.

This Christmas, astronomers are highlighting a spectacular region of space that looks remarkably like a glowing holiday tree. Known as NGC 2264, this distant star-forming region sits about 2,700 light-years away and is filled with newborn stars lighting up clouds of gas and dust. The stars form a triangular shape called the Christmas Tree cluster, crowned by the dramatic Cone Nebula and wrapped in the swirling Fox Fur Nebula below. Together, these features create a festive cosmic scene spanning nearly 80 light-years, showing how young stars shape their surroundings on a truly galactic scale.

Scientists are digging into the hidden makeup of carbon-rich asteroids to see whether they could one day fuel space exploration—or even be mined for valuable resources. By analyzing rare meteorites that naturally fall to Earth, researchers have uncovered clues about the chemistry, history, and potential usefulness of these ancient space rocks. While large-scale asteroid mining is still far off, the study highlights specific asteroid types that may be promising targets, especially for water extraction.

Black holes are among the most extreme objects in the universe, and now scientists can model them more accurately than ever before. By combining Einstein’s gravity with realistic behavior of light and matter, researchers have built simulations that closely match real astronomical observations. These models reveal how matter forms chaotic, glowing disks and launches powerful outflows as it falls into black holes. It’s a major step toward decoding how these cosmic engines actually work.