Saturn near Opposition
17.06.2017

Saturn reached its 2017 opposition on June 16. Of course, opposition means opposite the Sun in Earth's sky and near opposition Saturn is up all night, at its closest and brightest for the year.

Leonid Meteors in 2002
19.11.2002

All during today, APOD will be posting the best images of the Leonid Meteor Shower as seen by the wide-angle digital cameras perched around the world as part of the Night Sky Live (NSL) Project. The main APOD site will be updated several times with topical information and new images.

Welcome to the International Year of Astronomy
1.01.2009

Astronomers all over planet Earth invite you to experience the night sky as part of the International Year of Astronomy 2009. This year was picked by the International Astronomical Union and the United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization because it occurs 400 years after Galileo turned one of the first telescopes toward the heavens.

A Comet Tail Horizon
24.01.2007

What's happening over the horizon? Many a sky enthusiast who thought they had seen it all had never seen anything like this. To the surprise of many Northern Hemisphere observers, the tail of Comet McNaught remained visible even after the comet's head set ahead of the Sun.

The Big Dipper Cluster
17.03.2006

A well-known asterism in northern skies, The Big Dipper is easy to recognize even when viewed upside down. Part of the larger constellation of Ursa Major, the bright dipper stars above are named (left to right along the dipper) Dubhe, Merak, Phecda, Megrez, Alioth, Mizar/Alcor, and Alkaid.

The NTT SUSI Deep Field
15.09.1998

What happens if you point a large telescope at nothing? The above New Technology Telescope SUSI Deep Field photograph isolated a small patch of sky picked to contain no bright objects at all.

Sunrise Over Kilimanjaro
11.07.2005

Is the Roof of Africa on fire? A group hiking at 6 am near the top of Mt. Kilimanjaro watched the rising sun peak above the clouds and the horizon light up red. Don't worry -- in this case the highest volcano in Africa is not even erupting.

APOD: 2024 February 21 Б Seagull Nebula over Pinnacles Peak
21.02.2024

The bird is bigger than the peak. Nicknamed for its avian shape, the Seagull Nebula is an emission nebula on the night sky that is vast, spanning an angle over five times the diameter of the full moon and over 200 light years.

Moonless Perseid Sky
16.08.2007

Last weekend, dark, moonless night skies brought many sightings of Perseid meteors to skygazers all over planet Earth. Early Sunday morning astronomer John Chumack's camera captured this Perseid meteor streak with a flare near the end of its track over Yellow Springs, Ohio.

Big Dipper over Pyramid Mountain
21.11.2017

When did you first learn to identify this group of stars? Although they are familiar to many people around the world, different cultures have associated this asterism with different icons and folklore. Known...