APOD: 2026 June 28 Б AR 4478: Giant Sunspot Group
28.06.2026

Right now, one of the largest sunspot groups in recent history is crossing the Sun. Active Region 4478 is not only big -- it's violent, showing tangled magnetic fields capable of throwing off huge clouds of particles into the Solar System. Some of these CMEs might impact the Earth.

APOD: 2026 July 1 Б The Cotton Candy Clouds of Rho Ophiuchi
1.07.2026

Although they look like cotton candy, you cannot eat these clouds! Taken in Cádiz, Spain, today's image features the Rho Ophiuchi complex, a rich tapestry of young and old astronomical phenomena. This colorful cloud complex is a nearby star-forming region containing hundreds of young stellar objects, including protostars and T Tauri stars.

The Milky Way Over Tenerife
5.04.2011

Have you ever seen the band of our Milky Way Galaxy? Chances are you have never seen it like this -- nor could you. In a clear sky from a dark location at the right time, a faint band of light is visible across the sky. This band is the disk of our spiral galaxy.

Polaris and the Trail of Comet ZTF
3.02.2023

Stars trace concentric arcs around the North Celestial Pole in this three hour long night sky composite, recorded with a digital camera fixed to a tripod on January 31, near цger, Lleida, Spain. On that date Comet C/2022 E3 (ZTF) was near its northernmost declination in planet Earth's sky.

A Galaxy is not a Comet
12.04.2002

This gorgeous galaxy and comet portrait was recorded on April 5th in the skies over the Oriental Pyrenees near Figueres, Spain. From a site above 1,100 meters, astrophotographer Juan Carlos Casado used...

Leonids Above Torre de la Guaita
15.11.2014

Leonids Meteor Shower came to an impressive crescendo in 1999. Observers in Europe saw a sharp peak in the number of meteors visible around 0210 UTC during the early morning hours of November 18. Meteor counts then exceeded 1000 per hour - the minimum needed to define a true meteor storm.

Tychos Supernova Remnant
17.03.2009

What star created this huge puffball? Pictured above is the best multi-wavelength image yet of Tycho's supernova remnant, the result of a stellar explosion first recorded over 400 years ago by the famous astronomer Tycho Brahe.

A Galaxy is not a Comet
31.01.2004

This gorgeous galaxy and comet portrait was recorded on April 5th, 2002, in the skies over the Oriental Pyrenees near Figueres, Spain. From a site above 1,100 meters, astrophotographer Juan Carlos Casado used...

Massive Stars Resolved in the Carina Nebula
1.12.2008

How massive can stars be? Big, hefty stars live short violent lives that can profoundly affect their environments. Isolating a massive star can be problematic, however, since what seems to be a single bright star might actually turn out to be several stars close together.

APOD: 2026 March 20 Б Spring Equinox at Teide Observatory
20.03.2026

The defining astronomical moment of the equinox today is at 14:46 UTC (March 20). That's when the Sun crosses the celestial equator moving north in its yearly journey through planet Earth's sky, marking the beginning of spring for our fair planet in the northern hemisphere and fall in the southern hemisphere.