President Donald Trump recently announced that the United States would work to land astronauts on Mars, preferably within the next four years — the extent of his presidential term. That goal has raised many eyebrows. After all, humanity has yet to return to the moon, following repeated delays to NASA’s Artemis 2 mission. So, is … Read more
Enjoy a video of some of January’s deep-sky photos and see more below. Stunning deep-sky photos from our community The EarthSky community has many talented astrophotographers who capture stunning images of the deep sky. We gathered some of our favorite deep-sky photos we received in January 2025 for you to enjoy. Do you have some … Read more
In late 1957, the US Navy’s Vanguard rocket was primed to launch the world’s first artificial satellite. But, on the morning of Oct. 4, the Soviet Union struck first and lobbed a small metal ball into orbit that Moscow Radio called Sputnik (“Fellow Traveler”). That “Sputnik Moment” had a profound impact on the nascent Space … Read more
View larger. | Here’s a practice image to start! Astronauts aboard the International Space Station took this photograph of a glowing city on April 8, 2015. Can you identify which of the world’s cities this is? … If you guessed the City of Lights – Paris – you’re right! The Seine flows through the city, … Read more
Sailing has been a mainstay of human history for millennia, so it’s no surprise that scientists would apply it to traveling in space. Solar sailing, the most common version, uses pressure from the Sun to push spacecraft with giant sails outward in the solar system. However, there is a more technologically advanced version that several … Read more
The moon may still be geologically active, judging from the way the lunar far side is wrinkling as the moon contracts. At least, that’s what planetary scientists who have discovered 266 lunar “wrinkle ridges,” say, as all of these ridges appear to have formed during the past 160 million years in the rare volcanic plains … Read more
NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter captured this mosaic image of the far side of the moon. For the first time, scientists have found evidence for relatively recent geological activity on moon’s far side. Via NASA/ GSFC/ Arizona State University. Across the lifetimes of people alive on Earth today, scientists have assumed the moon has been a … Read more
In the more than sixty years where scientists have engaged in the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI), several potential examples of technological activity (“technosignatures”) have been considered. While most SETI surveys to date have focused on potential radio signals from distant sources, scientists have expanded the search to include other possible examples. This includes other … Read more
Astronomers may have inadvertently complicated the mystery of how strange “roasting marshmallow” planets form. Using the Gemini South telescope, researchers found that the “hot and puffy” ultra-hot Jupiter planet WASP-121b may have formed closer to its star than previously believed, challenging what we know about how planets form. Since the discovery of the first planet … Read more
Punxsutawney Phil predicts six more weeks of winter. UPDATE FEBRUARY 2, 2025. IT’S CLOUDY AND COLD IN PUNXSUTAWNEY, PENNSYLVANIA. But the legendary groundhog, Punxsutawney Phil, somehow saw his shadow. The prediction is for six more weeks of winter! The great weather prognosticator In case you’ve just landed here from another planet … Groundhog Day happens … Read more