APOD: 2024 April 8 Б The Changing Ion Tail of Comet Pons Brooks
8.04.2024

How does a comet tail change? It depends on the comet. The ion tail of Comet 12P/PonsБBrooks has been changing markedly, as detailed in the featured image sequenced over nine days from March 6 to 14 (top to bottom).

Blue Ghost s Diamond Ring
19.03.2025

On March 14 the Full Moon slid through Earth's dark umbral shadow and denizens of planet Earth were treated to a total lunar eclipse. Of course, from the Moon's near side that same astronomical syzygy was seen as a solar eclipse.

Midnight s Solar Eclipse
3.06.2011

On June 1, the shadow of the New Moon was cast across a land of the midnight Sun in this year's second partial solar eclipse. This picture of the geocentric celestial event above the Arctic Circle was taken near midnight from northern Finland's Kaunispää Hill in Lapland.

Corona from Svalbard
31.03.2015

During a total solar eclipse, the Sun's extensive outer atmosphere, or corona, is an inspirational sight. Streamers and shimmering features that engage the eye span a brightness range of over 10,000 to 1, making them notoriously difficult to capture in a single photograph.

Stars of a Summer Triangle
27.06.2015

Rising at the start of a northern summer's night, these three bright stars form the familiar asterism known as the Summer Triangle. Altair, Deneb, and Vega are the alpha stars of their respective constellations, Aquila, Cygnus, and Lyra, nestled near the Milky Way.

A Distorted Sunrise Eclipse
6.06.2021

Yes, but have you ever seen a sunrise like this? Here, after initial cloudiness, the Sun appeared to rise in two pieces and during partial eclipse, causing the photographer to describe it as the most stunning sunrise of his life.

M27: The Dumbbell Nebula
12.07.2021

What will become of our Sun? The first hint of our Sun's future was discovered inadvertently in 1764. At that time, Charles Messier was compiling a list of diffuse objects not to be confused with comets.

APOD: 2024 April 2 Б Detailed View of a Solar Eclipse Corona
2.04.2024

Only in the fleeting darkness of a total solar eclipse is the light of the solar corona easily visible. Normally overwhelmed by the bright solar disk, the expansive corona, the sun's outer atmosphere, is an alluring sight.

Comet Williams in 1998
6.10.1998

The brightest comet in the sky right now is Comet Williams. Moving slowly though the constellation of Centaurus, Comet Williams, at magnitude 8, is visible to Southern Hemisphere observers with binoculars. In ten days...

Tyrrhenian Sea and Solstice Sky
21.12.2010

Today the solstice occurs at 23:38 Universal Time, the Sun reaching its southernmost declination in planet Earth's sky. Of course, the December solstice marks the beginning of winter in the northern hemisphere and summer in the south.