Best Space Pictures of the Week - Sep. 1, 2012

Hubble photo of the star-forming region NGC 1763
This photo of the star-forming region NGC 1763 was created with data from the Hubble Space Telescope archive by Josh Lake. Lake won first prize in the image processing category in the 2012 contest to unearth Hubble's hidden treasures. (Image credit: Josh Lake/NASA & ESA)

Neil Armstrong's Photo Legacy: Rare Views of First Man on the Moon

NASA

There is only one photograph of Neil Armstrong walking on the moon, and in it, he has his back to the camera. [Full Story]

Josh Lake/NASA & ESA

Swirling galaxies, glowing nebulas and shimmering stars: these are the winners in a public contest to unearth beautiful images from the horde of unprocessed data collected by the Hubble Space Telescope. [Full Photo Gallery]

'Tatooine' Solar System: 2 Alien Planets with Twin Suns Found

NASA/JPL-Caltech/T. Pyle

An artist's illustration of the alien solar system Kepler-47, a twin star system that is home to two planets. The planets have two suns like the fictional planet Tatooine in the "Star Wars" universe. [Full Photo Gallery]

Stunning Night Sky Views by Photographer Jeffrey Berkes

Jeff Berkes

Photographer Jeffrey Berkes of Pennsylvania has snapped spectacular views of the night sky over the years. See some of his amazing night sky images here. [Full Photo Gallery]

Amazing Photos: Royal Observatory’s 2012 Space Photographer of the Year Finalists

Thomas O'Brien

Judging is underway to choose the most beautiful photos of the night sky from among thousands of entries in the 2012 Astronomy Photographer of the Year contest. [Full Photo Gallery]

NASA Captures Amazing View of Tropical Storm Isaac at Night

NASA Earth Observatory

A NASA satellite captured a spectacular photo of what is now Hurricane Isaac from space, a nighttime view showing the then-tropical storm's clouds lit up by moonlight as it approached the U.S. Gulf Coast. [Full Photo Gallery]

Millions of Black Holes Seen by WISE Telescope (Photos)

NASA/JPL-Caltech/UCLA

The entire sky as mapped by WISE at infrared wavelengths is shown here, with an artist's concept of the WISE satellite superimposed. Image released August 29, 2012. [Full Photo Gallery]

Spacewalking Astronauts Fix Up Space Station (Photos)

NASA TV

NASA astronaut Sunita Williams floats outside the International Space Station's Quest airlock just after beginning a maintenance spacewalk on Aug. 30, 2012, in this view from a NASA camera on the station's exterior. [Full Photo Gallery]

Liftoff! NASA Radiation Belt Storm Probes Launch Photos

NASA/Tony Gray and Robert Murray

The United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket carrying NASA’s Radiation Belt Storm Probes, or RBSP, spacecraft creates a halo of light at Space Launch Complex 41 on Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. [Full Photo Gallery]

'Blue Moon' of 2012: See the First Photos

Tomsajinsa

The first photos are starting to appear from today's (Aug. 31) blue moon, the last such sight until 2015. [Full Photo Gallery]

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Space.com Staff
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Space.com is the premier source of space exploration, innovation and astronomy news, chronicling (and celebrating) humanity's ongoing expansion across the final frontier. Originally founded in 1999, Space.com is, and always has been, the passion of writers and editors who are space fans and also trained journalists. Our current news team consists of Editor-in-Chief Tariq Malik; Editor Hanneke Weitering, Senior Space Writer Mike Wall; Senior Writer Meghan Bartels; Senior Writer Chelsea Gohd, Senior Writer Tereza Pultarova and Staff Writer Alexander Cox, focusing on e-commerce. Senior Producer Steve Spaleta oversees our space videos, with Diana Whitcroft as our Social Media Editor.