Astronomy

Latest about Astronomy

A painted portrait shows a man with a white beard and balding head looking at the camera while wearing a white collar and black shirt

Ancient eyes on the skies: Early astronomers quiz

By Kenna Hughes-Castleberry published

Long before modern telescopes, early astronomers mapped the heavens with math, myth, and sheer curiosity. This crossword quiz celebrates the minds who first charted the cosmos.

Astronomy
A telescope with a triangular top wrapped in foil stands next to a scaffold with people wearing white clean suits examining it under green light.

Roman around the Christmas tree | Space photo of the day for Dec. 25, 2025

By Kenna Hughes-Castleberry published

All the NASA engineers and scientists need is a star on top of the telescope in the cleanroom.

Astronomy
A glowing ball of blue light stands out against a black background

What old, dying stars teach us about axions as a candidate for dark matter

By Paul Sutter published

The axion could be a contender to explain the mystery of dark matter.

Stars
A view from the driver's side window of a car shows a white plane on the runway where the driver's hand shows a thumbs up on the left side of the image.

60,000 feet above Earth, NASA is hunting for the minerals that power phones, EVs and clean energy

By Julian Dossett published

The microwave-sized sensor detects 'spectral fingerprints' of important minerals.

Earth
A Hubble image of Dracula’s Chivito, the largest protoplanetary disk ever seen

'Dracula's Chivito' looks stunning in this tasty Christmas photo from the Hubble Telescope

By Robert Lea published

Using the Hubble space telescope, astronomers have imaged "'Dracula’s Chivito" the largest site of planetary birth ever seen.

Stars
Two large brown and white islands are seen in a dark blue ocean from space with various labels including Vindication Island, Medusa Pool and Lucifer Hill

NASA satellite gazes into Medusa Pool | Space photo of the day for Dec. 24, 2025

By Kenna Hughes-Castleberry published

The South Sandwich Islands were born from a tectonic collision, forged by volcanism and relentlessly reshaped by ice, wind and waves.

Earth
2025 was a big year for black holes

The biggest black hole breakthroughs of 2025

By Robert Lea published

2025 was another big year for black holes, and here's our pick of the top black hole stories from the last twelve months.

Black Holes

What is the moon phase today? Lunar phases 2025

By Tariq Malik, Daisy Dobrijevic last updated

Reference See what moon phase it is tonight and find out when you can see the rest of the moon phases for 2025.

Reference
An illustration of a rocket ship about to encounter a burst of cosmic rays

Before trips to Mars, we need better protection from cosmic rays

By Zahida Sultanova published

Outside Earth's protection, space travellers will be routinely exposed.

Mars
(Center) A white light of the comet 3I/ATLAS is surrounded by a blue glow against a black backgroundHubble Space Telescope captured interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS in November. (Corners) Images of the coma of 3I/ATLAS

Interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS reveals weird wobbling jets in rare sun-facing tail

By Robert Lea published

3I/ATLAS may have moved away from Earth as it makes its way out of the solar system, but this interstellar intruder continues to delight and surprise astronomers.

Comets
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