Astronomy in Space with David Dickinson
Contact Briefly Lost with Voyager 2
NASA detected a faint "heartbeat" signal from Voyager 2, after an erroneous command caused the spacecraft to lose contact with Earth.
Why We Look Up with Jennifer Willis
Taking Deep Breaths of Starlight
Amateur astronomy need not be a race through an astronomical task list, but rather a kindling of joy.
Explore the Night with Bob King
View the Thin Crescent of Venus
With Venus approaching inferior conjunction in August here's a foolproof way to follow its thinning crescent as the planet transitions from Evening Star to Morning Star.
Explore the Night with Bob King
See Comet 12P/Pons-Brooks in Outburst!
Comet Pons-Brooks, a dim comet on its way to a great apparition next spring, suddenly sprang into action overnight, brightening by five magnitudes. Now you can see it in a 4-inch telescope.
Explore the Night with Bob King
Time-lapse Animations Reveal a Universe in Transformation
Deep-sky objects may appear static throughout our lifetime but by carefully "blinking" archival and current images we can discern real changes in their appearance.
Why We Look Up with Jennifer Willis
Let There Be Dark
Fighting light pollution, one mini star party at a time.
Euclid Space Telescope Launches to Explore Dark Energy, Dark Matter
The European Space Agency’s new space telescope promises to unlock a key mystery of modern cosmology.
Explore the Night with Bob King
See Summer's Best “Gobbled” Globulars
Mergers between the Milky Way and long-ago dwarf galaxies have enriched our skies with dozens of iconic globular clusters. Many are visible in small telescopes.
BepiColombo Mission Makes Third Mercury Flyby
The Mercury-bound BepiColombo Mission made its third flyby past the solar system’s innermost world on June 19th.
Cosmic Relief with David Grinspoon
Long Time Coming
Planetary exploration can take up a large portion of one’s life.
Eking Out Observing from under Wildfire Smoke
Smoke from Canadian wildfires has made observing the night sky a challenge for many. Here are some ways you can make the best of a bad situation.
Why We Look Up with Jennifer Willis
Confessions of a Photon Snob: Going Robotic
When visual astronomy isn't possible — or even when it is — robotic telescopes can make way for more stargazing.
Find a Horizon and Savor the Bending of Light
The full Strawberry Moon on June 3rd invites us to experience the refractive power of Earth's atmosphere.
Astronomy in Space with David Dickinson
United Arab Emirates Announces New Mission to the Asteroid Belt
An ambitious new mission from the United Arab Emirates would fly closely and speedily by seven main-belt asteroids.
Bright Supernova Blazes in M101, the Pinwheel Galaxy
A supergiant star exploded as a supernova in the prominent galaxy M101 in Ursa Major. It's now bright enough to see in a 4.5-inch telescope!
See the Moon-Jupiter Trifecta: Conjunction, Occultation, and Double-Shadow Transit
The May 17th dawn pairing of Jupiter and the Moon may be one of the most amazing conjunctions you'll ever see.
Scientists Confirm: Meteorite Crashed Into New Jersey Home
A rock that crashed through the roof of a house in New Jersey proved to be the real thing — a chunk spalled from a 4.5 billion-year-old asteroid.
Explore the Night with Bob King
Lie Back, Look Up, and Find Your Zenith Stars
When you want to relax under the stars there's no better way than on your back looking up at the zenith. We explore what's overhead and discover there's more than one zenith up there.
Astronomy in Space with David Dickinson
Magnets Are Bad News for Meteorites
Common handheld magnets can erase crucial data in ancient meteorites.
Why We Look Up with Jennifer Willis
Galaxy Quest!
When clouds get in your way, you may find consolation in knowing that the universe is still out there, waiting for your to discover it.