N11: A Giant Ring of Emission Nebulas
6.10.2004

How did this unusually large nebula form? One of the largest nebulas yet detected is actually a complex ring of emission nebulas connected by glowing filaments. The unusual network, known as N11, spans over...

Planetary Systems Now Forming in Orion
22.12.2009

How do planets form? To help find out, the Hubble Space Telescope was tasked to take a detailed look at one of the more interesting of all astronomical nebulae, the Great Nebula in Orion.

HD 188753: Triple Sunset
5.08.2005

Although it looks like fiction, this artist's vision of sunset on an alien world is based on fact -- the recent discovery of a hot, jupiter-sized planet orbiting in triple star system HD 188753.

Protoplanetary Survivors in Orion
4.05.2001

The Orion Nebula is a nuturing stellar nursery filled with hot young stars and their natal clouds of gas and dust. But for planetary systems, the active star-forming region can present a hazardous and inhospitable birthplace.

NGC 4651: The Umbrella Galaxy
15.04.2010

Spiral galaxy NGC 4651 is a mere 35 million light-years distant, toward the well-groomed constellation Coma Berenices. About 50 thousand light-years across, this galaxy is seen to have a faint umbrella-shaped structure (right) that seems to extend some 50 thousand light-years farther, beyond the bright galactic disk.

APOD: 2025 August 27 Б WISPIT 2b: Exoplanet Carves Gap in Birth Disk
27.08.2025

That yellow spot -- what is it? It's a young planet outside our Solar System. The featured image from the Very Large Telescope in Chile surprisingly captures a distant scene much like our own Solar System's birth, some 4.5 billion years ago.

Moon Lightning
7.10.2004

Moonsets are not often quite as exciting as this one. But amateur astronomer Marc-Andre Besel was impressed by the brilliant lighting displays that joined the first quarter Moon and stars of the constellation Scorpius in western skies.

The E Nebula in Aquila
20.08.2003

Several unusual strands of darkness are prominent toward the constellation of Aquila. This particular dark nebula is known as the E Nebula, for its evocative shape, or B142 and B143, for its position(s) on a list of such nebula compiled by Barnard.

Cyg X-1: Can Black Holes Form in the Dark
12.06.2003

The formation of a black hole from the collapsing core of a massive star is thought to be heralded by a spectacular supernova explosion. Such an extremely energetic collapse is also a leading explanation for the mysterious cosmic gamma-ray bursts.

Cyg X-1: Can Black Holes Form in the Dark?
2.04.2005

The formation of a black hole from the collapsing core of a massive star is thought to be heralded by a spectacular supernova explosion. Such an extremely energetic collapse is also a leading explanation for the mysterious cosmic gamma-ray bursts.