The First Rocket Launch from Cape Canaveral
1.10.2008

A new chapter in space flight began on 1950 July with the launch of the first rocket from Cape Canaveral, Florida: the Bumper 2. Shown above, the Bumper 2 was an ambitious two-stage rocket program that topped a V-2 missile base with a WAC Corporal rocket.

Saturn After Equinox
10.11.2009

The other side of Saturn's ring plane is now directly illuminated by the Sun. For the previous 15 years, the southern side of Saturn and its rings were directly illuminated, but since Saturn's equinox in August, the orientation has reversed.

A Fading Moonset Over Hong Kong
15.12.2009

Do stars appear dimmer when nearer the horizon? Yes -- atmospheric air absorbs and reradiates light, so that the greater the airmass through which one peers, the fainter an object will appear. Pictured above in a multi-frame image, stars, the planet Jupiter, and even the Moon show the horizon-dimming effects of Earth's nearly-transparent atmosphere.

Tyrrhenian Sea and Solstice Sky
21.12.2010

Today the solstice occurs at 23:38 Universal Time, the Sun reaching its southernmost declination in planet Earth's sky. Of course, the December solstice marks the beginning of winter in the northern hemisphere and summer in the south.

Saturns Moon Dione in Slight Color
5.11.2012

Why does one half of Dione have more craters than the other? Start with the fact that Saturn's moon Dione has one side that always faces Saturn, and one side that always faces away. This is similar to Earth's Moon.

PanSTARRS over Parkes
9.03.2013

Sweeping quickly through southern skies on March 5, Comet PanSTARRS (C/2011 L4) follows the Sun toward the western horizon in this twilight scene. In the foreground is Australia's CSIRO Parkes Radio Telescope, a 64 meter wide steerable dish that is no stranger to the space age exploration of comets.

The Large Magellanic Cloud in Ultraviolet
10.06.2013

Where are the hottest stars in the nearest galaxies? To help find out, NASA commissioned its Earth-orbiting Swift satellite to compile a multi-image mosaic of the neighboring Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) galaxy in ultraviolet light.

Comet ISON Rising
27.11.2013

Will Comet ISON survive tomorrow's close encounter with the Sun? Approaching to within a solar diameter of the Sun's surface, the fate of one of the most unusual comets of modern times will finally be determined.

At the Heart of Orion
1.01.2015

Near the center of this sharp cosmic portrait, at the heart of the Orion Nebula, are four hot, massive stars known as the Trapezium. Tightly gathered within a region about 1.5 light-years in radius, they dominate the core of the dense Orion Nebula Star Cluster.

Cloud Swirls around Southern Jupiter from Juno
13.02.2017

Juno just completed its fourth pass near Jupiter. Launched from Earth in 2011 and arriving at Jupiter just last July, robotic Juno concluded its latest elliptical orbit around our Solar System's largest planet 11 days ago.