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Geminids 2020

Explore the Night with Bob King

Get Ready to Greet the Geminid Meteor Shower!

The year's most spectacular meteor shower is upon us. Prepare to enjoy the Geminids under a dark, moonless sky, when you might see more than 100 meteors per hour.

Titania from Voyager 2

Occultations

Watch Uranus's Moon Titania Cover a Star Monday Night

Observers across much of the U.S. and Canada have a unique opportunity Monday night, November 20–21, to see Uranus's brightest moon occult a star.

Ryugu

Astronomy in Space with David Dickinson

Samples of Asteroid Ryugu Show Signs of Ancient Water

The distribution of elements seen in the samples of Ryugu brought back by Hayabusa 2 hints at a wet past.

GRS 2017 Juno

Explore the Night with Bob King

Jupiter's Great Red Spot Just Keeps Getting Smaller

Jupiter's Great Red Spot may be reaching a milestone this year by shrinking to its smallest size in recorded observational history.

Why We Look Up with Jennifer Willis

To the Stars, Through (or Despite) Hardship

Ad astra per aspera — to the stars through hardship. The saying applies universally, but personally, it might hit home in different ways.

Theia Impact

Solar System

Bits of Theia Might Be in Earth's Mantle

A "smoking gun" for the ancient calamity that formed Earth’s large Moon may still exist deep in the mantle of our planet.

Starlink flares

Explore the Night with Bob King

How to See Freaky Starlink "Cluster Flares", Plus the Latest on Comet Lemmon

Alien invasion or flares from satellites in multiple orbits? It depends on your point of view. We also check in on Comet Lemmon, poised to possibly reach binocular-visibility.

An artist’s impression of the collision of two black holes

The Black Hole Files with Camille Carlisle

Black Hole Rain

The planned LISA gravitational-wave detector might discover a shower of hundreds of small black holes falling in galactic centers.

Orionid composite 2015-2022

Explore the Night with Bob King

Orionid Meteors Fly; Two Moons Shadow Jupiter

Bundle up and enjoy the Orionid meteor shower under moonless skies this week. Don't miss the warm-up act, either, when two of Jupiter's moons pair up in a captivating double-shadow transit.

Sample

Astronomy in Space with David Dickinson

First Look at Material from Asteroid Bennu on the Ground

The Osiris-REX sample collection team reveals the first look at material collected from the asteroid Bennu.

Why We Look Up with Jennifer Willis

The Stars Are Waiting

Making room for astronomy in my life has felt like coming home — as if the universe has left a literal light on for me.

Comet 12P/Pons-Brooks outburst

Celestial News & Events

Comet 12P/Pons-Brooks (aka the "Millenium Falcon" Comet) Flares Again!

Comet 12P/Pons-Brooks has awakened again from its recent slumbers with a fresh outburst. It's now bright enough to see in a modest telescope.

Comet 103P/Hartley diffuse appearance

Explore the Night with Bob King

Comet Hartley Comes Home Again; Gegenschein-gazing

Get acquainted with Comet 103P/Hartley. It's been a dozen years since its last bright apparition. While you're at it challenge yourself to spot the elusive gegenschein.

Bennu sample return capsule on the ground in the desert, red-white parachute behind

Space Missions

Osiris-REX Capsule Returns Samples of Asteroid Bennu to Earth

Samples taken from the asteroid Bennu are now safely on Earth.

Flattened Sun

Celestial News & Events

Is the Day 12 Hours Long on the Equinox? It's Complicated

The Earth's atmosphere and the large size of the solar disk result in unequal days and nights, even on the equinox.

launch

Space Missions

X-ray, Moon Missions Launch from Japan

In an ambitious mission pairing, Japan launched a next-generation X-ray observatory and an innovative lunar lander.

Why We Look Up with Jennifer Willis

Cosmic Recovery

Maybe deliberate experiences of joy and awe should be standard in any post-op plan.

Explore the Night with Bob King

Action-packed Sky: Saturn, Comet Nishimura, and More

September is Saturn's time to shine. We also check on Comet Nishimura — now at 5th magnitude and still brightening — and look forward to a dramatic asteroid occultation. Not to mention that Jupiter just took another hit.

Aditya L1

Astronomy in Space with David Dickinson

India Launches Aditya L1 Solar Observatory

India’s first dedicated solar science mission Aditya L1 heads spaceward.

Comet Nishimura C/2023 P1

Explore the Night with Bob King

New Comet Nishimura May Become Naked-Eye Bright

Comet Nishimura is quickly brightening in the morning sky and may be faintly visible with the naked eye next month. And on August 24th observers in North America will be treated to an occultation of Antares.

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