Red Auroral Corona
15.01.2002

Few auroras show this level of detail. This unusual display of an auroral corona occurred on Earth three days after an unusual solar event -- the fifth most powerful explosion yet recorded on the Sun. An X14-class solar flare on April 15 sent a tremendous Coronal Mass Ejection (CME) into the Solar System.

Runaway Star
3.12.1997

Runaway stars are massive stars traveling rapidly through interstellar space. Like a ship plowing through the interstellar medium, runaway star HD 77581 has produced this graceful arcing bow wave or "bow shock" - compressing the gaseous material in its path.

The Last Launch of Space Shuttle Endeavour
18.05.2011

Two days ago, powerful yet controlled explosions rocketed the Space Shuttle Endeavor on its final trip into Earth orbit. The above image was taken seconds after liftoff as the massive orbiter and six astronauts began a climb to a height where the atmosphere is so thin it is unbreathable.

Ice Fishing for Cosmic Neutrinos
3.08.2003

Scientists are melting holes in the bottom of the world. In fact, several holes have been melted near the South Pole, and they are now being used as astronomical observatories. Astronomers with the Antarctic Muon and Neutrino Detector Array (AMANDA) lower into each vertical lake a string knotted with basketball-sized light detectors.

Shocked by Supernova 1987A
27.02.2012

Twenty five years ago, the brightest supernova of modern times was sighted. Over time, astronomers have watched and waited for the expanding debris from this tremendous stellar explosion to crash into previously expelled material.

NGC 4214: Star Forming Galaxy
7.01.2000

Dazzling displays of star formation abound across the face of galaxy NGC 4214, a mere 13 million light-years away in the northern constellation Canes Venatici. While this 1997 Hubble Space Telescope image shows...

The Gamma Ray Sky
22.02.1997

What if you could "see" gamma rays? If you could, the sky would seem to be filled with a shimmering high-energy glow from the most exotic and mysterious objects in the Universe.

IC1340 in the Eastern Veil
26.09.2003

These ghostly filaments of interstellar gas are just a small part of the expansive Veil Nebula, seen against a rich field of background stars in the long-necked constellation Cygnus. Also known as the Cygnus...

Searching for Meteorites in Antarctica
7.09.2008

Where is the best place on Earth to find meteorites? Although meteors fall all over the world, they usually just sink to the bottom of an ocean, are buried by shifting terrain, or are easily confused with terrestrial rocks.

Icelandic Legends and Aurora
8.12.2015

Legends collide in this dramatic vista of land, sea, and sky. The land is Iceland, specifically VМk М MЩrdal, a southern village known for its beautiful black sand beaches. The sea, the Atlantic Ocean...