The Moon and All the Crashes
28.04.2001

A clear blue summer sky finally grows dark and the new telescope, hastily set up in the backyard, generates excitment and anticipation. "I bought it for the kids.", Dad assures himself as he anxiously supervises two young boys' efforts to center a bright, first quarter Moon in the finder.

Aurora Persei
9.08.2008

Dark skies are favored for viewing meteor showers -- so the best viewing of this year's Perseids will occur in the early morning. While the Perseid meteor shower is scheduled to peak over...

The Moon and All the Crashes
19.09.1996

A clear blue summer sky finally grows dark and the new telescope, hastily set up in the backyard, generates excitment and anticipation. "I bought it for the kids ...", Dad assures himself as he over-anxiously supervises the two young boys' efforts to center a bright, first quarter Moon, in the finder.

Brighter Than Mars
27.08.2010

Even though you may have just read an email claiming Mars will be incredibly bright tonight, the brightest star on the horizon is not Mars. From central Iran on August 24th, the brightest star in this twilight desert skyview is Venus, aka the Evening Star.

Perseid in the Light
11.08.2006

Dark skies are favored for viewing meteor showers -- so many are pessimistic about this year's Perseids. While the Perseid meteor shower is scheduled to peak this weekend, bright light from an almost full Moon will also flood the night and mask the majority of relatively faint meteors.

Deep Orion Over the Canary Islands
23.01.2012

Which attracts your eye more -- the sky or the ground? On the ground are rocky peaks in Teide National Park on Tenerife Island of the Spanish Canary Islands off the northwestern coast of Africa. The volcanic landscape features old island summits and is sometimes used as a testbed for instruments on future Martian rovers.

Conjunction at Sunset
29.12.2011

While Comet Lovejoy entertained early morning risers in in the southern hemisphere, a lovely conjunction of a young crescent Moon and Venus graced western skies at sunset. Captured on December 26th the conjunction, with beautiful sunset colors above and below, is seen here over Viverone Lake near Turin, Italy.

Rocket Streak and Star Trails
30.01.2014

Fixed to a tripod and looking east across the Kennedy Space Center's Turn Basin, a camera captured these star trails as a series of short exposures over a three hour period on the evening of January 23rd.

Jupiter by Moonlight
2.11.2023

That bright beacon you've seen rising in the east just after sunset is Jupiter. Climbing high in midnight skies, our Solar System's ruling gas giant was at its 2023 opposition, opposite the Sun in planet Earth's sky, on November 2.

Southern Comet
17.01.2007

After a remarkable performance in the northern hemisphere, the brightest comet in decades is now showing off in the south. Recorded during evening twilight on January 17, this view features the bright coma...