Astronomy

The first private spacecraft mission to Venus, Rocket Lab's Photon Spacecraft, will take on the planet's hellish conditions with the aid of a novel woven heat shield called "HEEET."

The Force is strong with two rare screen-used 'Star Wars' props up for bids this month

A recent image from the Hubble Space Telescope captures a gorgeous spiral galaxy bursting with new star formation.

An audacious NASA mission suggests that dust blown north from Greenland couldhelp explain why Arctic ice is melting even faster than expected.

Why are there so many cyclones around the north pole of Jupiter?

Astronomers at the International Astronomical Union report that we have now detected more than 200 gravitational-wave events, most the merger of two black holes.

The post Status Report: Gravitational Waves appeared first on Sky & Telescope.

The Perseids peak on Sunday night, August 11-12 and just might be joined by a colorful display of northern lights. 

The post Tonight's Perseid Meteor Shower May Be Dipped in Aurora Sauce appeared first on Sky & Telescope.

It's time again for the annual August meteor-shower fest, the Perseids. This year's display should be a beauty with only minor moonlight and a special surprise at dawn.

The post Woo-hoo — The Perseid Meteor Shower Is Coming! appeared first on Sky & Telescope.

The Perseid meteor shower peaks late Sunday night August 11th and maybe Monday night too. Jupiter and Mars have a close conjunction on the morning of the 14th, looking radically different in the same telescopic view.

The post This Week's Sky at a Glance, August 9 – 18 appeared first on Sky & Telescope.

The year’s long-awaited Perseid meteor shower will be accompanied by a graceful planetary conjunction. It’s well worth staying up all night to watch.

The post Prepare for the Perseids and a Pretty Planetary Pairing appeared first on Sky & Telescope.

Fifteen years ago, the Hubble Space Telescope gazed intently at the infrared glow of galaxies in a tiny fraction of the sky. New research shows how this patch of space has changed since then.

The post The Hubble Ultra-Deep Field, 15 Years Later appeared first on Sky & Telescope.

New data on the brightest pulsar observed with a telescope on the International Space Station suggests neutron star interiors are "squishy."

The post Neutron Stars Might Be Squishy Inside appeared first on Sky & Telescope.

Amateur astronomers are all life-long learners — and this "back to school" time of year provides just the right motivation.

The post Enroll in the School of Stars appeared first on Sky & Telescope.

The Perseid meteors ramp up this week to their peak. Saturn is nicely up in the east by late evening. Jupiter and Mars near their conjunction in the morning sky. And there's a story behind Poniatowski's Bull.

The post This Week's Sky at a Glance, August 2 – 11 appeared first on Sky & Telescope.

"Leopard spots" on a Mars rock could come from life — or they could simply be a sign of a type of chemical reaction that requires water.

The post Does This Mars Rock Show a "Potential Biosignature"? Or Just "Wet Chemistry"? appeared first on Sky & Telescope.

Let’s go on a night-sky tour of the stars and planets that you’ll see overhead during August. Find a good seat for some great “shooting stars,” watch Saturn climb in the eastern sky in early evening, check out the summer's brightest stars, and start looking for a once-in-your-lifetime star blast. 

The post August Podcast: Nova Watch in the Northern Crown appeared first on Sky & Telescope.

Future funding for NASA's remaining Great Observatories — Chandra X-ray Observatory and Hubble Space Telescope — is still up in the air.

The post Reading the Tea Leaves: The Future of the Hubble and Chandra Space Telescopes appeared first on Sky & Telescope.

A professional astronomer turned dark-sky champion, David L. Crawford became synonymous with the fight against light pollution around the world.

The post David Crawford, 1931–2024 appeared first on Sky & Telescope.

Gravitational-wave astronomers have identified ripples in spacetime from the coalescence of a neutron star with what’s likely one of the smallest black holes ever found.

The post Neutron Star Eaten by Small Black Hole (Probably) appeared first on Sky & Telescope.

Very low in the west in bright twilight, have you picked up Venus yet? Binoculars help. Much tougher will be Mercury and Regulus. Their arrangement changes all week.

The post This Week's Sky at a Glance, July 26 – August 4 appeared first on Sky & Telescope.