An arid expanse of the Tengger Desert in north-central China, planet Earth fills the foreground of this starry scene. A widefield panoramic view, it was recorded shortly after moonset in the local predawn hours of December 14. Pictured in the still dark sky, stars of the northern winter hexagon surround a luminous Milky Way. Seen […]
This Hubble Space Telescope image captures a portion of the reflection nebula IC 2631, which contains a protostar, the hot, dense core of a forming star that is accumulating gas and dust. via NASA https://ift.tt/3e2jzUE
Fireflies flash along a moonlit countryside in this scene taken on the night of December 13/14 from southern Uruguay, planet Earth. On that night meteors fell in the partly cloudy skies above during the annual Geminid meteor shower. Frames recorded over a period of 1.5 hours are aligned in the composite image made with the […]
Dr. Eugene Parker (seated), a pioneer in heliophysics, watches the liftoff of the mission named in his honor. via NASA https://ift.tt/3dRW299
What does Comet Leonard look like from space? Today’s featured image from Origin.Space’s Yangwang-1 space telescope shows not only the currently bright comet — but several other space delights as well. Taken in optical and ultraviolet light, C/2021 A1 (Leonard) is visible with an extended tail near the image center as it appeared five days […]
IIn this image, a Hayabusa2 sample canister containing sample fragments of the asteroid Ryugu is transferred from JAXA, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, to NASA. via NASA https://ift.tt/3oTCA1T
To some, it may look like a beehive. In reality, the featured image from the Hubble Space Telescope captures a cosmic pillar of dust, over two-light years long, inside of which is Herbig-Haro 666 — a young star emitting powerful jets. The structure lies within one of our galaxy’s largest star forming regions, the Carina […]
Each December the Geminids meteor showers appear in the night sky. via NASA https://ift.tt/31Mku9B
Comet Leonard is now visible to the unaided eye — but just barely. Passing nearest to the Earth today, the comet is best seen this week soon after sunset, toward the west, low on the horizon. Currently best visible in the north, by late December the comet will best be seen from south of Earth’s […]
From this vantage point about three quarters of a mile from planet Earth’s geographic South Pole, the December 4 eclipse of the Sun was seen as a partial eclipse. At maximum eclipse the New Moon blocked 90 percent of the solar disk. Of course, crews at the South Pole Telescope (left) and BICEP telescope (right) […]