Moon Shadow versus Sun Reflection
17.07.2017

What are those lights and shadows crossing the Earth? As the featured five-second time-lapse video progresses, a full day on planet Earth is depicted as seen from Japan's Himawari-8 satellite in geostationary orbit high above the Pacific Ocean.

Dione and Rhea Ring Transit
22.11.2025

Seen to the left of Saturn's banded planetary disk, small icy moons Dione and Rhea are caught passing in front of the gas giant's extensive ring system in this sharp telescopic snapshot. The remarkable image was recorded on November 20, when Saturn's rings were nearly edge-on when viewed from planet Earth.

2001: A Total Lunar Eclipse
18.01.2001

The first and only total lunar eclipse for the year 2001 occured on the evening of January 9/10 as the full Moon glided through Earth's shadow. Unlike a total solar eclipse, a total lunar eclipse is visible for anyone on the night side of the planet during the event.

Analemma over the Ukraine
17.06.2007

If you took a picture of the Sun at the same time each day, would it remain in the same position? The answer is no, and the shape traced out by the Sun over the course of a year is called an analemma.

APOD: 2024 May 28 Б Solar X Flare as Famous Active Region Returns
28.05.2024

It's back. The famous active region on the Sun that created auroras visible around the Earth earlier this month has survived its rotation around the far side of the Sun -- and returned. Yesterday...

A Complete Aurora
2.04.1997

Aurora frequently make complete rings around a pole of the Earth. This particular "crown", visible in orange near the top of this image, was taken by the orbiting Polar spacecraft about one year ago and released by NASA last month.

Partial Solar Eclipse over Argentina
2.05.2022

What's happened to the Sun? Two days ago, parts of South America were treated to a partial solar eclipse -- where the Moon blocked out part of the Sun. The featured image shows an image of the partially eclipsed Sun through clouds as it was setting over Patagonia, Argentina.

A Conjunction of Crescents
8.02.2025

A waxing crescent Moon and a waning crescent Venus are found at opposite corners of this twilight telephoto field of view. The close conjunction of the two brightest celestial beacons in planet Earth's western evening sky was captured on February 1 from Rosario, Argentina.

APOD: 2024 October 13 Б Aurora Timelapse Over Italian Alps
13.10.2024

Did you see last night's aurora? This question was relevant around much of the world a few days ago because a powerful auroral storm became visible unusually far from the Earth's poles.

APOD: 2025 November 3 Б A Double Helix Lunar Eclipse
3.11.2025

The image was timed to capture a total lunar eclipse -- but it came with quite a twist. First, the eclipse: the fully Earth-shadowed Moon is visible as the orange orb near the top.