SUNSET: 
The August Mars Hoax Is Back
No, Mars will not shine as big and bright as the full Moon. But you can't stop a good e-mail chain letter, now in its eighth year.
Sky at a Glance | July 23rd, 2010
At dusk, Venus guides the way to Mars and Saturn on one side of it and Mercury on the other side of it.
Sky at a Glance | July 16th, 2010
Mars continues closing in on Saturn at dusk. The Moon crosses Scorpius. And Jupiter is now up before midnight.
Sky at a Glance | July 2nd, 2010
Venus is closing in on Regulus at dusk. Mars is closing in on Saturn. And before dawn, Jupiter keeps getting higher and brighter.
Sky at a Glance | June 25th, 2010
Saturn, Mars, Regulus, and bright Venus form a diagonal line in the summer evening twilight. And the full Moon has a partial eclipse for the western U.S. before dawn on Saturday June 26th.
Saturday's Predawn Lunar Eclipse
You'll have to get up early — or party into the wee hours the night before — to see the Moon slide partly through Earth's shadow before dawn on June 26th.
Sky at a Glance | June 18th, 2010
The thickening Moon slides under Saturn and Spica. Saturn, Mars, Regulus, and bright Venus form a diagonal line in the western twilight; watch it shorten a little bit every day.
A Tidal Wave of Exoplanet Candidates
NASA's Kepler mission has found more than 700 stars that seem to have planets crossing their faces, mission scientists have announced. But it will take a lot of followup to separate the real ones from the false alarms.
The Jupiter Meteor that Didn't Go Splash
Scrutiny by Hubble finds no mark on Jupiter from the impact that two amateurs videorecorded on June 3rd. Apparently, the incoming meteor burned up high above Jupiter's clouds.
Sky at a Glance | June 11th, 2010
As twilight fades, the Mars-Regulus pairup in the west is growing wider. Saturn looks on from their upper left. Bright Venus shines far to their lower right.
Sky at a Glance | June 11th, 2010
As twilight fades, the Mars-Regulus pairup in the west is growing wider. Saturn looks on from their upper left. Bright Venus shines far to their lower right.
Sky at a Glance | May 28th, 2010
Watch Mars closing in on Regulus after dusk this week. The largest asteroid sails past the Lagoon Nebula. And one-belted Jupiter climbs up before dawn.
Sky at a Glance | May 14th, 2010
The crescent Moon joins Venus in the western twilight, just as Venus passes the horns of Taurus. The rings of Saturn have turned as thin as they'll become. And one-belted Jupiter is becoming higher and more prominent just before dawn.
Last “Missing” Normal Matter Is Found
Thin, elusive gas between the galaxies makes up about half of all the normal matter in the universe — neatly completing the inventory.
Sky at a Glance | April 30th, 2010
The Moon passes Antares, Venus continues to creep upward in twilight, Orion says goodbye for the season, and the rings of Saturn, high in the south, have turned eerily thin.
Sky at a Glance | April 23rd, 2010
Venus, the Evening "Star" at nightfall, passes the Pleiades, Aldebaran and the Hyades this week. Mars continues to fade. And Saturn shines high, with its rings turned nearly edge on.
Sky at a Glance | April 16th, 2010
Watch the first-quarter Moon pass under Castor, Pollux, and Mars. Venus blazes low in the west in evening twilight. And before dawn, will the Lyrid meteors show up?
Sky at a Glance | April 9th, 2010
Mercury dwindles away from Venus in twilight, even as the crescent Moon comes to join them. And the tall line of Sirius, Procyon, and Mars is bending in the spring-evening warmth.
One Supernova, Many Camera Angles
"Light echoes" off dust clouds far from an old supernova are still providing replays of the explosion — as seen from different directions. They show that the explosion was asymmetric.
Sky at a Glance | April 2nd, 2010
Venus and Mercury are at the height of their twilight pairing in the western sky. For once, Mercury is showing itself really well!
