Comets

The Orionids will be visible from both hemispheres, but they may be somewhat obscured by light from the moon.

How to Watch the Bright and Speedy Orionid Meteor Shower

While the Orionids, peaking early Sunday and Monday, might be hard to see because of the waning gibbous moon, these zippy meteors can produce long "trains" that last up to several minutes

A full moon rises in Denali National Park and Preserve in Alaska. The full moon this week is the closest one of the year.

See the Super Hunter's Moon Tonight, the Biggest and Brightest Full Moon of the Year

This week's supermoon is closer to Earth than any other in 2024

NASA astronaut Matthew Dominick captured this image of comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS) from the International Space Station, when the comet was 99.4 million miles away on September 22, 2024.

How to See the Bright Comet Flaring Up in the Night Sky This Week

Comet Tsuchinshan-ATLAS should be visible to the naked eye as it passes Earth on its way out of our solar system

A Draconid meteor streaks across the sky as the northern lights glow, as seen from north of Stockholm on October 8, 2011.

How to Catch a Glimpse of the Draconid Meteor Shower

While the annual shower usually makes for a sleepy showing, it has been known to produce fantastic outbursts in the past

Comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS) on September 28, 2024.

Two Comets Could Be Visible to the Naked Eye This Fall. Here's How to Get the Best View

While expectations are high for some special sightings, experts warn that comets are notoriously fickle and unpredictable

Göbekli Tepe is an archaeological site in southern Turkey.

Could These Carvings in Turkey Be the World's Oldest Lunisolar Calendar?

One researcher thinks the V-shaped markings engraved into a pillar thousands of years ago may represent the days of the year

An artist's illustration of the WISE spacecraft in orbit around Earth. The mission was renamed NEOWISE in 2013 to reflect a new focus on finding near-Earth objects.

NASA Retires Orbiting Telescope That Charted Asteroids for Over a Decade

NEOWISE, which looked for potentially hazardous objects in the solar system, received its last command on Thursday and will burn up when it re-enters Earth's atmosphere

The Perseids occur when Earth passes through the debris field of the comet 109P/Swift-Tuttle.

How to Watch the Perseids, the 'Best Meteor Shower of the Year'

The annual celestial event is one of the year's most anticipated, and it will peak from August 11 to 12

Meteors fly above Sydney, Australia, on July 28, 2022. The Southern Delta Aquariids will be easiest to see from the Southern Hemisphere, but will still be visible at southern latitudes in the United States.

How to Watch the Southern Delta Aquariids Meteor Shower

Though not as prolific as the Perseids, this annual spectacle is 'scientifically interesting' because its comet of origin remains a mystery

A bright green fireball is captured on camera over Cáceres, Spain, by the European Space Agancy. Officials say the object was a comet and likely broke up over the Atlantic Ocean.

Watch a Blue-Green Comet Illuminate Skies Over Spain and Portugal

The colorful fireball mesmerized onlookers—and its unexpected appearance surprised astronomers who are hoping to better predict when space rocks enter Earth's atmosphere

The Eta Aquarids appear to originate from a bright star in the constellation Aquarius.

How to Watch the Dazzling Eta Aquarid Meteor Shower, Bringing an Unusual 'Outburst' to Skies This Weekend

This year's spectacle will be more impressive than usual, as the Earth passes through a concentrated clump of 3,000-year-old comet debris

The Lyrids are slated to peak on April 21-22, though the moon will be nearly full, which could make the meteors more difficult to see.

How to Watch the Brilliant Lyrid Meteor Shower This Month

Fiery streaks will illuminate the night sky from April 15-29, with the spectacle's peak occurring from April 21-22

Roughly every 71 years, the bright periodic comet 12P/Pons-Brooks passes by the sun and Earth. At its brightest, it can be seen with the naked eye in fairly dark skies.

You Can See a Rare, Bright Comet This Month. Will It Be Visible During the Solar Eclipse?

Comet 12P/Pons-Brooks is a frigid, volcanic ice ball that won’t pass near Earth again until 2095

The Whirlpool Galaxy (also known as M51), located 31 million light-years from Earth, is a particularly radiant object seen during the Messier marathon. This image was captured by the Hubble Space Telescope—skywatchers looking through a backyard telescope or binoculars would see the galaxy in far less detail.

What It Takes to Complete the Ultimate Skywatching Endurance Challenge

The "Messier marathon" prompts space hobbyists to spot 110 celestial objects in one night, and the best time to try it is in March

Depictions of catlike animals are visible on stones under a rotating, starry sky.

These 15 Photos Capture the Beauty of the Night Sky

Stars shine in these heavenly images from the Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest

Solar eclipse viewers at NASA’s Johnson Space Center on October 14, 2023

Nine Dazzling Celestial Events to Watch in 2024

Skywatchers can expect spectacular meteor showers, a comet soaring past Earth and a long-anticipated total solar eclipse

A Quadrantid meteor flies through the sky, as captured by NASA's All Sky cameras.

What to See in the Sky in January: Meteor Showers, Planets and Comets

From the Quadrantids to a "swarm of stars," here are the celestial spectacles you won’t want to miss this month

The Geminids appear to originate from the Gemini constellation, but you can see them throughout the night sky.

How to Watch the Geminid Meteor Shower This Week

The celestial spectacle will peak on December 13 and 14, lighting up the night sky with as many as 120 shooting stars per hour

Half a century on, Kohoutek may be due a little more respect. Though it disappointed the media and the public, it proved to be a bonanza for serious scientists.

The 'Comet of the Century' Failed to Impress, but It Wasn't Such a Disaster After All

Highly anticipated before its arrival in late 1973, Kohoutek became an interplanetary punchline. But astronomers may have gotten the last laugh

The OSIRIS-REx sample return capsule (foreground) landed in the Utah desert on September 24, carrying samples collected from the near-Earth asteroid Bennu (background). 

How NASA Captured Asteroid Dust to Find the Origins of Life

The sample of the space rock Bennu that OSIRIS-REx collected could unlock an ancient existential mystery

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