SUNSET: 
Amateurs Help Discover Exoplanet
Artist David A. Aguilar depicts the exoplanet that professional and amateur astronomers discovered recently by gravitational microlensing. The planet is about 3 times as massive as Jupiter, and it orbits its host star (upper right) at about 3 astronomical units. The moon is hypothetical.Courtesy David A. Aguilar (CfA). In a…
Canadian Amateurs Access Big Hawaiian Scopes
This richly detailed close-up of the stellar nursery RY Tauri some 450 light-years away was captured by the 8-meter Gemini North telescope as part of a contest for Canadian amateur astronomers. It shows the young, low-mass star (below center) emerging from the vast cloud of gas and dust from where…
NASA Budget Crisis Threatens Space Telescopes
Astronomers are worried that future space-astronomy missions will be downsized, delayed, or cancelled because of a financial crisis within the space agency.
Astro Image in the News:
Another Moon for Saturn
On May 1st the Cassini spacecraft chalked up a new Saturnian moon.
America's Young Astronomers Recognized
The Astronomical League recently announced the winners of its 2005 National Young Astronomer Award.
Caught At Last! Swift Pinpoints a
Short Gamma-Ray Burst
An orbiting gamma-ray observatory pins down a site for one of the universe's biggest mysteries.
NASA Resumes Work on Shuttle Flight to Hubble
NASA administrator Michael Griffin has told the Hubble servicing team to resume preparations for a possible shuttle flight to upgrade the telescope.
Mars Polar Lander Found at Last?
Mars Polar Lander disappeared without a trace on December 9, 1999. No one has seen any evidence of the ill-fated craft — until now.
12 New Saturnian Moons
The circled white dot is one of 12 newly discovered Saturnian moons. This satellite, temporarily designated S/2004 S11, is about 6 kilometers (4 miles) across.Courtesy David Jewitt / Scott Sheppard / Jan Kleyna. There was once a time when the discovery of a single new moon was a landmark event…
Astronomy Tours
Sky & Telescope and its partner, TravelQuest International, offer astronomy-themed tours to exciting destinations worldwide.
Comet Machholz on the Wane
A fine binocular comet will be beautifully high in the evening sky for months to come.
"First Exoplanet" Image Confirmed
This infrared image resolves 2M 1207 into a close pair of objects, one of them 100 times brighter than the other. Astronomers infer that their masses are 25 and 5 Jupiter masses, which would make them a brown dwarf and a planet, respectively. Both are glowing with heat left over…
Astro Image in the News:
Catching Dust Devils in the Act
Spirit sees more dust devils and Opportunity hits a snag.
Astro Image in the News:
Happy 15th Birthday Hubble
The Hubble Space Telescope celebrates its birthday with two new magnificent views of classic astronomical scenes.
Philip Morrison, 1915–2005
A leading light of physics and science popularization has died at 89.
Sunny NEAF Weekend
Scopes of all shapes and sizes were on display at this years Northeast Astronomy Forum and Telescope Show.
Atom Smashers Shed Light on Supernovae, Big Bang
Particle accelerators may help explain how the cosmos makes chemical elements.
An Exo-Asteroid Belt
This artist's concept shows a massive asteroid belt in orbit around a star with an age and luminosity similar to our Sun. The Spitzer Space Telescope has apparently found such a belt around the star HD 69830.Courtesy NASA / JPL-Caltech / Tim Pyle (SSC). Astronomers have enjoyed considerable success in…
Senate Approves NASA's New Administrator
After being unanimously approved for the post by the US Senate Commerce Committee, Michael Griffin was appointed as the 11th NASA administrator on April 13th. He spoke to NASA employees the next day.Courtesy NASA / Renee Bouchard. On April 13th, just one month after President Bush nominated Michael Griffin as…
More on the April 8th Solar Eclipse
Eclipse watchers ducking clouds share some spectacular snapshots.
