NASA’s Astronomy Picture of the Day

In today's image, we see the comet 12P/Pons-Brooks. The comet is currently heading to the inner solar system and will reach its closest approach to the Sun on April 21. This is just a couple of weeks after the total solar eclipse of April 8 of this year. My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel . This Podcast is an authorized New Media Mirror Site for APOD. You can acce...

In today's image, we see an example of a spiral galaxy. We can see many of the distinct features of star formation here including the dark dusty regions, the blue color of the spiral arms from the light of hot, young stars, and the pink glow of hydrogen gas excited by ultraviolet light from these hot stars. My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel . This Podcast is an a...

In today's image, we see the region around the Rosette Nebula. This is a region of star formation and we see the red glow caused by the excitation of hydrogen gas by the hot, young stars that have formed in the area. My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel . This Podcast is an authorized New Media Mirror Site for APOD. You can access the image and website directly at:...

In today's image, we see the full moon from this past month. The January full moon is often called the Wolf Moon. One full moon generally occurs each month - this is where our concept of a month comes from - it takes just about one month for our Moon to go through one full cycle of phases. My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel . This Podcast is an authorized New Medi...

In today's image, we see two examples of planetary nebulae in the direction of the constellation of Cassiopeia. A planetary nebula is the end state of a star much like our own Sun. It has exhausted the hydrogen fuel in its core and the outer layers expand. The glow because they are energized by ultraviolet light from the white dwarf star forming in the core. My podcasts are available in video form...

In today's image, we see the launch of the Space Shuttle Atlantis from 2001. We note how the exhaust behind the shuttle changes color. From the lower portion, the plume is at a level where the Sun has already set. At a higher level, the plume is still illuminated by the Sun which is not below the horizon yet from this height. Because of the precise positioning, the plume's shadow points straight b...

In today's image, we see part of the Martian surface as imaged from the Ingenuity helicopter on Mars. This is the result of the 72nd and final mission of the helicopter over the past three years. Contact was lost and part of the rotor blade was damaged as seen in the shadow. However, this mission was still a great success as it demonstrated the possibility of powered flight on another world for th...

In today's image, we see the Rosette Nebula. This is an example of an emission nebula that would normally glow red because of the emission of hydrogen gas. However, this is a narrowband image which looks at the light of three specific wavelengths and then maps them to the RGB colors. this allows us to see the detail in the gas in more detail than in other images. My podcasts are available in video...

In today's image, we see one of the brightest globular star clusters in our galaxy, known as 47 Tuc. Globular star clusters are some of the oldest parts of our galaxy and give us a glimpse into the early history of our galaxy as well as a better idea of our own position within the Milky Way. My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel . This Podcast is an authorized New Me...

In today's image, we see two galaxies in the process of colliding and merging together. Because of the great sizes and distances involved, the entire process can take billions of years. However, it is something that most galaxies go through during their lives. My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel . This Podcast is an authorized New Media Mirror Site for APOD. You ca...

In today's image, we see two views of a spiral galaxy from two different telescopes. We see the Hubble image in ultraviolet light and the James Webb Space Telescope image taken in the infrared. A comparison of these two images at different wavelengths gives us a more complete understanding of galaxies like this one. My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel . This Podcas...

In today's image, we see the central portions of the Carina Nebula. This includes the star Eta Carinae which was one of the brightest stars in the sky a couple of hundred years ago. It has since faded. We do know that this is the type of star we expect to become a supernova at the end of its life - but that could happen in a year or in a thousand years, we have no way of knowing until it happens....

In today's image, we see an image of the Cone Nebula. This is a region of star formation where this cone is a remaining dense area where stars continue to form. The less dense areas around this have already been eroded away by the energy of stars that formed previously. My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel . This Podcast is an authorized New Media Mirror Site for AP...

In today's image, we see an image taken by the astronauts from the Apollo 14 mission from February of 1971. This was toward the end of the mission as they were preparing to leave the Moon's surface to rendezvous with the command module. We can see their view of the lunar surface including many footprints and tracks in the lunar soil which would still be there today. My podcasts are available in vi...

In today's image, we see the star forming region known as NGC 1893. The "tadpoles" are regions where stars are currently trying to form. However, energy from the stars that have previously formed in the region eats away at the material and produces the patterns seen. My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel . This Podcast is an authorized New Media Mirror Site for APOD....

In today's image, we see the barred spiral galaxy known by its catalog designation of NGC 1365. The "island universe" is another galaxy, similar to our own Milky Way but about sixty million light years away. My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel . This Podcast is an authorized New Media Mirror Site for APOD. You can access the image and website directly at: Astronomy...

In today's image, we see the area around the constellation of Orion in the sky. This image, taken with just a camera, When an extended exposure like this is taken, more detail can be seen that would normally be visible as many features are too faint to see with the unaided eye. My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel . This Podcast is an authorized New Media Mirror Sit...

In today's image, we see the SLIM (Smart Lander for Investigating Moon) craft which recently dropped off two small roves on the Moon for future exploration. The main craft itself did not land as expected and its solar panels are not positioned correctly. However, this is not a big issue as the main craft was not designed to survive the lunar night which lasts for two weeks and will begin in anothe...

In today's image, we see the Pleiades Star Cluster. This is a prominent star cluster located in the constellation of Taurus. Currently, a dust cloud is passing through the cluster, causing the blue color to form because of reflection of the blue light from the stars off of the dust. My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel . This Podcast is an authorized New Media Mirro...

In today's image, we see the dwarf planet Pluto as imaged by the New Horizons spacecraft back in 2015. The image has been processed to reveal what Pluto would look like if we were able to see it directly with our eyes. My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel . This Podcast is an authorized New Media Mirror Site for APOD. You can access the image and website directly at...

In today's image, we see the full moon rising beyond the telescopes in the mountains of Chile is the Las Campanas observatory. The full moon in January is known as the Wolf Moon, which is what we see here. My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel . This Podcast is an authorized New Media Mirror Site for APOD. You can access the image and website directly at: Astronomy P...

In today's image, we see the star known as Epsilon Tauri. This relatively nearby star is known to have a planet orbiting it which is larger than Jupiter. The planet orbits must faster that Jupiter does in our solar system as it orbits its star is a little over a year and a half. My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel . This Podcast is an authorized New Media Mirror Si...

In today's image, we see the sky above the city of Jyväskylä in Finland. The Pilars of light in the sky that are seen here are from street lights in the neighborhood. When ice crystals are positioned correctly in the sky, we can se these pillars with show a kind of map of the nearby streets. My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel . This Podcast is an authorized New Me...

In today's image, we see our Earth and Moon as images from the Artemis I mission from 2022. This was a craft sent out beyond the Moon and then returned to Earth. Artemis II, currently planned for late 2025, will take humans around the Moon and back to Earth. Artemis III, currently scheduled for late 2026 is planned to land humans on the Moon for the first time since 1972. My podcasts are available...

In today's image, we see a part of the sky near the constellations of Orion and Taurus. This deep image, incorporating over 800 hours' worth of exposure allows us to see many of the nebulae in this region. Many of these nebulae have been the subject for APOD over the past few years. My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel . This Podcast is an authorized New Media Mirro...