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Outer Space

The crew of the Artemis 2 mission captured this image of a total solar eclipse just after rounding the far side of the moon on April 6.

‘Like a Hole in the Universe’: Artemis 2 Astronaut Victor Glover Reflects on Seeing a Total Solar Eclipse While Flying by the Moon

The four astronauts who rounded Earth’s natural satellite in April got an extremely rare view of the dark lunar disk blocking out the sun. Researchers say the observations provide unique scientific value for understanding our star’s mysteries

The Falcon 9 rocket's upper stage left its mark on the moon's surface. 

A SpaceX Rocket Part Just Slammed Into the Moon, Creating a Dust Plume and Crater. Here’s What Some Scientific Instruments Saw

The Korea Aerospace Research Institute captured before-and-after images of the impact site, and a telescope in Chile detected signs of the plume. However, no one was able to watch the collision live

An artistic rendering of a tidal disruption event, when a black hole rips apart and devours a star that got too close. These events help scientists find black holes, which don't emit light.

In a First, Astronomers May Have Spotted a Supermassive Black Hole That Wandered to the Edge of Its Galaxy

These giant celestial objects have mostly been identified at the centers of galaxies, where they’re known to reside. But a recently discovered one—found because of the light emitted while it snacked on a star—appears to be more than 30,000 light-years from its host galaxy’s heart

Betelgeuse, the inset image in the middle, is located in the constellation Orion, on the right. New images hint at a small companion star, shown in the inset image on the left, orbiting the supergiant star.

New Images Provide the Best Evidence Yet That Supergiant Star Betelgeuse Does, Indeed, Have a Long-Theorized Stellar Companion

The research team is mostly convinced by the data, but they want to capture additional observations in 2027 to confirm what they’ve found

A copy of the first daguerreotype photograph of a total solar eclipse

A Little-Known Photographer Captured the First Clear Image of a Total Solar Eclipse 175 Years Ago. Today, These Celestial Events Still Reveal the Mysteries of the Sun

Ever since that first daguerreotype on a light-sensitive metal plate, eclipse observations have continued to unveil the star’s corona and bring people together to experience the solar system’s majesty

An artist's impression of the CD-35 2722 star system

Is This Giant Celestial Body a Moon, a Planet or Something in Between? The Strange Object Calls Astronomical Labels Into Question

The newly found object, estimated to be roughly as massive as Jupiter, orbits a brown dwarf—a “failed star”—which in turn circles a small star. For now, researchers are calling the puzzling body an “exosatellite”

The upper stage of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket is estimated to hit the moon on August 5.

A SpaceX Rocket Part Is Expected to Smack Into the Moon in August, Highlighting the Growing Problem of Space Junk

The unintended event also creates an opportunity for scientists and skywatchers to witness lunar impact dynamics in real time, although the debris will hit a sunlit portion of the moon from the perspective of Earth, making it hard to see

An artistic rendering of LHS 1140 b and its host star, with another smaller exoplanet orbiting nearby.

Could Life Exist on This Nearby World? In a First, Astronomers Find an Atmosphere on an Earth-Like Exoplanet in the Habitable Zone

While the celestial body seems to host three features that could make a livable environment—an atmosphere, a rocky composition and a temperature that could allow liquid water to sit on the surface—researchers have not currently detected any residents

Luke Skywalker’s lightsaber and severed hand set a new record. 

Luke Skywalker’s Lightsaber and Severed Hand From Famed Darth Vader Duel Sold For a Record $3.75 Million at Auction

The item, which became the most-valued on-screen Star Wars prop ever sold at auction, was born from cast-off parts from a camera shop

A fragment of the Hillsborough meteorite

This Meteorite Crashed Into a New Jersey Home in 2024. Now, Scientists Say It Contains Some of the Building Blocks of Life

The Hillsborough meteorite belongs to a rare class of rocks from space, according to a new study. It holds amino acids and other organic compounds, as well as evidence of salty water

An illustration of the Beta Pictoris system features the newly discovered planet, Beta Pictoris d, at the right. Its orbit is wider than those of the two other known planets moving around its star.

Astronomers Noticed a Mysterious Spot Appearing in Telescope Images. It Turned Out to Be the Faintest Exoplanet Ever Imaged From Earth

The gas giant, called Beta Pictoris d, had been hiding in plain sight for more than a decade, until two independent teams verified its existence

The sugar was detected near the center of our Milky Way galaxy, which shines brightly with stars in this artificially colored image.

In a First, Astronomers Find Sugar in the Space Between Stars, Providing New Clues About the Origins of Life on Earth

Sugars are crucial components of RNA and DNA, the basis of all known organisms alive today. In a new study, the sugar erythrulose was detected in a gas- and dust-filled cloud near the center of our Milky Way galaxy

A view of the uncrewed Orion capsule in space during the 2022 Artemis 1 mission, with both the Earth and moon in the background. The Earth looks smaller because it is farther away.

Artemis 1’s Orion Spacecraft Withstood the Heat of Re-entry in a Critical Test for Humans’ Return to the Moon. Now, NASA Will Lend the Historic Capsule to the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum

The exact timeline for the spacecraft’s display hasn’t been announced, but the artifact will fit into an upcoming exhibition on how humans have built a long-term presence in Earth orbit and laid the groundwork for farther space travel

Asteroid Torifune as seen by Hayabusa2 from a little more than half a mile away

New Images Reveal That This Asteroid Is Actually Two Conjoined Space Rocks. They Form a Peanut-Shaped Object Called a ‘Contact Binary’

A flyby conducted by the Japanese spacecraft Hayabusa2 uncovered the asteroid’s strange shape. Data gathered by the probe will also help defend the planet against potentially threatening space rocks

Space Shuttle Endeavour

See the Space Shuttle ‘Endeavour’ in a Unique Vertical Display Before Its New Exhibition Launches at the California Science Center

This November, visitors to the new Samuel Oschin Air and Space Center in Los Angeles will get to see the “ready-to-launch” “Endeavour” complete with rocket boosters and a fuel tank

The Crimson Vortex and Sapphire Blossoms of Andromeda

See Ten Spectacular Images From This Year’s Astronomy Photographer of the Year Contest That Capture the Wonders of the Universe

The pictures, on the competition’s shortlist, reveal the remarkable celestial objects that lie above our heads, both in deep space and closer to home

An image of Skylab captured by its final crew as they departed. During launch, one of the solar array wings broke off, and the gold sheet at the center was quickly manufactured afterward to serve as a makeshift sunshield and control the internal temperature.

America’s First Space Station Proved Humans Could Live and Work in Orbit for Months. Now, the Public Can See What It Looked Like in Person for the First Time in Eight Years

A backup version of Skylab was displayed when the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum opened 50 years ago. After renovation of the building, the artifact is once more on view in a new gallery

Image of the constellation Lupus taken by the LSST camera

‘The Greatest Cosmic Movie Ever Made’: The World’s Largest Digital Camera Begins a Historic, Decade-Long Survey of the Night Sky

After a year of testing, the Vera C. Rubin Observatory in Chile has started capturing data as part of the much-anticipated Legacy Survey of Space and Time

The strawberry full moon rises behind the Empire State Building in New York City on June 29, 2026, as seen from Weehawken, New Jersey.

These 17 Stunning Photos of the Strawberry Moon Show Earth’s Natural Satellite in All Its Glory

The first full moon of the summer delivered dazzling visuals from across the globe. Its low position in the sky from the perspective of the Northern Hemisphere gave it a golden hue

The Perseverance rover inspects a Martian rock called Cheyava Falls using its Scanning Habitable Environments with Raman & Luminescence for Organics & Chemicals (SHERLOC) instrument.

Mars Rover Spots Complex Carbon on the Red Planet, Marking Yet Another Detection of a Building Block of Life

Along with other recent discoveries, the new finding from Perseverance boosts the case that Mars once hosted conditions that could support living things—but it isn’t a definitive sign of ancient organisms

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