BEGIN:VCALENDAR VERSION:2.0 PRODID:icalendar-ruby CALSCALE:GREGORIAN METHOD:PUBLISH BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:sh2-188-the-shrimp-nebula DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260929 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260930 DESCRIPTION:What causes the swirl in the Shrimp Nebula? Its high speed is l ikely. What is sure is that Sh2-188 is one of the larger planetary nebulas on the night sky\, by angular size\, spanning about half the diameter of the Moon. Moreover\, the white-dwarf core — leftover from the Sun-like s tar that shed its outer atmosphere — is moving unusually fast through in terstellar space\, creating a bow shock most visible on the upper left tha t is similar to a boat plowing through water. Although faint\, the Shrimp Nebula glows also by compressing and brightening gas on its leading edge. The featured image was taken in the light of hydrogen\, sulfur\, and oxyge n by a backyard telescope in Krakow\, Poland and then digitally adjusted t o approximate the nebula‘s true colors.APOD’s email for image submissi ons has changed. Please see: APOD SubmissionsAPOD’s main NASA site has m oved: From apod.nasa.gov to science.nasa.gov/apod\n\nCredit & Copyright Pa wel Piechnik\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-september-2 9-sh2-188-the-shrimp-nebula/ SUMMARY:Sh2-188: The Shrimp Nebula END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:cosmic-latte-the-average-color-of-the-universe DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260928 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260929 DESCRIPTION:What color is the universe? More precisely\, if the entire sky were smeared out\, what color would the final mix be? This whimsical quest ion came up when trying to determine what stars are commonplace in nearby galaxies. The answer\, depicted here\, is a conditionally perceived shade of beige. In computer parlance: #FFF8E7. To determine this\, astronomers c omputationally averaged the light emitted by one of the larger samples of galaxies analyzed: the 200\,000 galaxies of the 2dF Galaxy Redshift Survey . The resulting cosmic spectrum has some emission in all parts of the elec tromagnetic spectrum\, but a single perceived composite color. This color has become much less blue over the past 10 billion years\, indicating that redder stars are becoming more prevalent. In a contest to better name the color\, notable entries included skyvory\, univeige\, and the winner: cos mic latte.APOD’s email for image submissions has changed. Please see: AP OD SubmissionsTomorrow: APOD’s main NASA site is moving: From apod.nasa. gov to science.nasa.gov/apod\n\nCredit: Karl Glazebrook & Ivan Baldry (JHU )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-september-28-cosmic-la tte-the-average-color-of-the-universe/ SUMMARY:Cosmic Latte: The Average Color of the Universe END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:andromeda-before-photoshop DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260927 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260928 DESCRIPTION:What does the Andromeda galaxy really look like? The featured b efore image shows how our Milky Way Galaxy‘s closest major galactic neig hbor really appears in a long exposure through Earth‘s busy skies and wi th a digital camera that introduces normal imperfections. The picture is a stack of 223 images\, each a 300 second exposure\, taken from a garden ob servatory in Portugal during 2019. Obvious image deficiencies include brig ht parallel airplane trails\, long and continuous satellite trails\, short cosmic ray streaks\, and bad pixels. In the after image\, these imperfect ions were actually not removed with Photoshop specifically\, but rather gr eatly reduced with a series of computer software packages that included As tro Pixel Processor\, DeepSkyStacker\, and PixInsight. All of this work wa s done not to deceive you with a digital fantasy that has little to do wit h the real likeness of the Andromeda galaxy (M31)\, but to minimize Earthl y artifacts that have nothing to do with the distant galaxy and so better recreate what M31 really does look like.APOD’s email for image submissio ns has changed. Please see: APOD SubmissionsAPOD’s main NASA site is mov ing: From apod.nasa.gov to science.nasa.gov/apod\n\nCredit & Copyright: Ke es Scherer\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-september-27- andromeda-before-photoshop/ SUMMARY:Andromeda Before Photoshop END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:mirrored-meteor-and-milky-way DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260926 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260927 DESCRIPTION:On August 15\, this perseid meteor streaked through night skies over the Observatorio del Roque de los Muchachos at La Palma\, Canary Isl ands\, Spain. The bright and colorful meteor trail was captured next to th e central Milky Way\, whose dark interstellar dust clouds and luminous sta rlight reach above the horizon. In the foreground of this tantalizing cele stial scene is the 23 meter diameter mirror of the prototype Large-Sized T elescope (LST-1). LST-1 is the first telescope constructed at the northern hemisphere site of the innovative Cherenkov Telescope Array Observatory. With 198 hexagonal mirror segments and a large\, high-efficiency\, pixeliz ed camera\, LST-1 is designed to detect extremely brief\, atmospheric visi ble light flashes. Lasting about a billionth of a second\, the visible lig ht flashes are triggered by energetic gamma-rays from cosmic sources such as distant active galaxies and gamma-ray bursts. Of course\, on that night some individual mirror segments of LST-1 also reflected the atmospheric f lash of the bright perseid meteor.APOD’s email for image submissions has changed. Please see: APOD Submissions.APOD’s main NASA site is moving: From apod.nasa.gov to science.nasa.gov/apod\n\nCredit & Copyright: Jeff Da i (TWAN)\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-september-26-mi rrored-meteor-and-milky-way/ SUMMARY:Mirrored Meteor and Milky Way END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:globular-star-cluster-omega-centauri DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260925 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260926 DESCRIPTION:Globular star cluster Omega Centauri packs about 10 million sta rs much older than the Sun into a volume some 150 light-years in diameter. Also known as NGC 5139\, at a distance of 15\,000 light-years it’s the largest and brightest of 200 or so known globular clusters that roam the h alo of our Milky Way galaxy. Though most star clusters consist of stars wi th the same age and composition\, the enigmatic Omega Cen exhibits the pre sence of different stellar populations with a spread of ages and chemical abundances. In fact\, Omega Cen may be the remnant core of a small galaxy merging with the Milky Way. With a yellowish hue\, Omega Centauri’s red giant stars are easy to pick out in this sharp telescopic view. A two-deca de-long exploration of the dense star cluster with the Hubble Space Telesc ope has revealed evidence for a massive black hole near the center of Omeg a Centauri.APOD’s email for image submissions has changed. Please see: A POD Submissions.APOD’s main NASA site is moving: From apod.nasa.gov to s cience.nasa.gov/apod\n\nCredit & Copyright: Javier O. Cadenas Parra\nhttps ://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-september-25-globular-star-clu ster-omega-centauri/ SUMMARY:Globular Star Cluster Omega Centauri END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:the-ghosts-of-five-supernovas DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260924 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260925 DESCRIPTION:The ghosts of five supernovas haunt this extraordinary image. I t was acquired at Oukaïmeden Observatory in Morocco with approximately 20 0 hours of observations and shows a large patch of the sky\, equivalent to the area of one thousand full moons tiled together\, in the constellation of Auriga (the Charioteer). From left to right\, the five supernova remna nts visible across the field are G181.1+9.5\, G182.4+4.3\, G179.0+2.6\, G1 80.0−1.7 (Sh2-240\, the Spaghetti Nebula)\, and G178.2−4.2. They are h ighlighted in the annotated image\, together with open cluster M37 and the Tadpole Nebula. As each explosion expanded into space\, it created a grow ing shell of shocked gas and delicate filamentary structures shown in red (hydrogen) and blue (oxygen)\, respectively. These ancient stellar explosi ons happened independently\; they are at various distances up to about sev eral thousands of light-years away from Earth and have estimated ages up t o tens of thousands of years old. Early humans may have seen them as brigh t new stars\, fading over weeks or months.APOD’s email for image submiss ions has changed. Please see: APOD Submissions.APOD’s main NASA site is moving : From apod.nasa.gov to science.nasa.gov/apod\n\nStephane Vetter\, Yann Sainty\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-september-24 -the-ghosts-of-five-supernovas/ SUMMARY:The Ghosts of Five Supernovas END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:a-new-lunar-crater-mcgetchin DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260923 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260924 DESCRIPTION:A once-in-a-lifetime crater has appeared on the Moon! A comet o r asteroid roughly the size of a humpback whale (approximately 10-20 meter s\, 30-60 feet) crashed into the Moon sometime between April and May of 20 24. The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO)\, with its monthly monitoring o f the Moon\, captured today’s images of the lunar surface before and aft er the event. The resulting crater\, named after Apollo-era lunar scientis t McGetchin\, is two soccer fields across. Craters of this size are only e xpected once every 132 years! Follow up thermal imaging revealed a large c old spot that surrounds the warm crater. Surface impacts will puff up the loose lunar sediment\, or regolith\, making it less dense and harder to re tain heat. This event affected an area much larger than the visible crater \, which will inform humanity’s understanding of surface impacts and the evolution of the Moon’s surface. It also reminds us all to be thankful for Earth’s atmosphere.APOD’s submission email has changed. Please see APOD Submissions.APOD’s main NASA site is moving: From apod.nasa.gov to science.nasa.gov/apod\n\nCredit: NASA/GSFC/Intuitive Machines\nhttps://sc ience.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-september-23-the-mcgetchin-crater/ SUMMARY:A New Lunar Crater: McGetchin END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:chance-triple-alignment-plane-space-station-sun DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260922 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260923 DESCRIPTION:This shot captured an unexpected silhouette.   Which is it? It isn’t the sunspots\, the small dark regions caused by concentrated magn etic fields visible around the Sun’s bright disk.   Sunspots typically last for weeks and were expected\, since these spots were seen previously. It isn’t the International Space Station (ISS)\, the small dark structu re on the middle left.  This is because the featured picture was planned with sub-second timing to record the iconic structure passing before the Sun. It is the airplane. Just as this exposure was taking place in June\, from Prasek in the Czech Republic\, an airplane began its own miniature pa rtial eclipse. The result is this triply aligned image of our Sun. The pho tographer estimates that the chance of any random Sun image containing sil houettes of both a space station and an airplane\, from that location\, is about 30 million to one. APOD’s main NASA site is moving: From apod.na sa.gov to science.nasa.gov/apod\n\nCredit & Copyright Petr Horalek / Inst. Physics Opava\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-september -22-chance-triple-alignment-plane-space-station-sun/ SUMMARY:Chance Triple Alignment: Plane\, Space Station\, Sun END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:cocoon-nebula-wide-field DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260921 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260922 DESCRIPTION:When does a nebula look like a comet? In this crowded starfield covering over two degrees within the high-flying constellation of the Swa n (Cygnus)\, the eye is drawn to the Cocoon Nebula. A compact star forming region\, the cosmic Cocoon punctuates a nebula bright in emission and ref lection on the lower right\, with a long trail of interstellar dust clouds to the left\, making the entire complex appear a bit like a comet. Catalo ged as IC 5146\, the central bright head of the nebula spans about 10 ligh t years\, while the dark dusty tail spans nearly 100 light years. Both are located about 2\,500 light years away. A bright star near the colorful ne bula’s center likely supplies power and helps clear out a cavity. The lo ng dusty filaments of the tail\, although dark in this visible light image \, hide stars in the process of formation. The featured image was captured in July from Death Valley\, California\, USA.APOD’s main NASA site is m oving: From apod.nasa.gov to science.nasa.gov/apod\n\nCredit & Copyright: Piotr Czerski\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-september- 21-cocoon-nebula-wide-field/ SUMMARY:Cocoon Nebula Wide Field END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:analemma-over-the-callanish-stones DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260920 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260921 DESCRIPTION:If you went outside at the same time every day and took a pictu re that included the Sun\, how would the Sun’s position change? A visual answer to that question is an analemma\, a composite image taken from the same spot at the same time over the course of a year. The featured analem ma was composed from images taken every few days at noon near the village of Callanish in the Outer Hebrides in Scotland\, UK. In the foreground are the Callanish Stones\, a stone circle built around 2700 BC during humanit y’s Bronze Age. It is not known if the placement of the Callanish Stones has or had astronomical significance. The ultimate causes for the figure- 8 shape of this and all analemmas are the tilt of the Earth axis and the e llipticity of the Earth’s orbit around the Sun. At the solstices\, the S un will appear at the top or bottom of an analemma. The featured image was taken near the December solstice and so the Sun appears near the bottom. Equinoxes\, however\, correspond to analemma middle points — not the int ersection point. In two days there will be an equinox (“equal night”)\ , when day and night are equal over all of planet Earth. Many cultures cel ebrate a change of season at an equinox.APOD’s main NASA site is moving: From apod.nasa.gov to science.nasa.gov/apod\n\nCredit & Copyright: Giusep pe Petricca\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-september-20 -analemma-over-the-callanish-stones/ SUMMARY:Analemma over the Callanish Stones END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:a-zodiacal-night DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260919 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260920 DESCRIPTION:Also known as the false dawn\, a luminous band of zodiacal ligh t is captured in this dark night skyscape. The serene view was recorded ju st before the beginning of astronomical twilight during September’s star party at the remote Hanle Dark Sky Reserve\, Ladakh\, India\, planet Eart h. At about 4\,500 meters altitude\, the dark sky reserve presents a haven for hardy stargazing and astrophotography enthusiasts. While meteors stre ak through the night\, bright planet Jupiter appears immersed in the faint zodiacal glow near the eastern horizon. Follow the zodiacal band toward t he zenith to find open star cluster M44 and a yellowish tinged planet Mars near the center of the frame. In fact\, serendipitous detections of inter planetary dust by NASA’s Juno spacecraft suggest Mars itself is the sour ce of dust that back scatters sunlight and creates zodiacal light in plane t Earth’s night.APOD’s main NASA site is moving: From apod.nasa.gov to science.nasa.gov/apod\n\nCredit & Copyright: Neelam and Ajay Talwar (TWAN )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-september-19-a-zodiaca l-night/ SUMMARY:A Zodiacal Night END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:messier-33-the-triangulum-galaxy DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260918 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260919 DESCRIPTION:The small\, northern constellation Triangulum harbors this magn ificent face-on spiral galaxy\, Messier 33. Its popular names include the Pinwheel Galaxy or just the Triangulum Galaxy. M33 is over 50\,000 light-y ears in diameter\, third largest in the Local Group of galaxies after the Andromeda Galaxy (M31)\, and our own Milky Way. About 3 million light-year s from the Milky Way\, M33 is itself thought to be a satellite of the Andr omeda Galaxy and astronomers in these two galaxies would likely have spect acular views of each other’s grand spiral star systems. As for the view from the Milky Way\, this sharp telescopic image shows off M33’s blue st ar clusters and pinkish star forming regions along the galaxy’s loosely wound spiral arms. In fact\, the cavernous NGC 604 is the brightest star f orming region\, seen here at about the 5 o’clock position from the galax y center. Like M31\, M33’s population of well-measured variable stars ha ve helped make this nearby spiral a cosmic yardstick for establishing the distance scale of the Universe.APOD’s main NASA site is moving: From apo d.nasa.gov to science.nasa.gov/apod\n\nCredit & Copyright: George Chatzifr antzis\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-september-18-mess ier-33-the-triangulum-galaxy/ SUMMARY:Messier 33: The Triangulum Galaxy END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:a-treasure-chest-in-the-carina-nebula DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260917 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260918 DESCRIPTION:This treasure chest is full of stars. The featured image was ob tained with NASA‘s James Webb Space Telescope and shows a dust pillar in the Carina Nebula inside our Galaxy\, roughly 7500 light-years away. It i s formed by interstellar gas and dust\, and shaped by powerful stellar win ds and radiation from neighboring stars like the nearby Eta Carinae stella r system which is more luminous than 5 million suns. The star formation in side the pillar is excavating its head\, creating the open lid of the ches t. Astronomers estimate that there are about 70 stars in a compact cluster inside the pillar. This cluster is now thought to be only around 1.3 mill ion years old. Its bounty of young stars includes a massive star approxima tely 19 times as massive as the Sun. More massive stars are rarer\, shine brighter and evolve faster than less massive stars. They are the shiniest jewels in the treasure chest.APOD’s main NASA site is moving : From apod .nasa.gov to science.nasa.gov/apod\n\nESA/Webb\, NASA & CSA\, M. Reiter\; Acknowledgement: M. H. Özsaraç\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/a pod-2026-september-17-a-treasure-chest-in-the-carina-nebula/ SUMMARY:A Treasure Chest in the Carina Nebula END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:webb-s-view-of-m64 DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260916 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260917 DESCRIPTION:Sometimes where Hubble finds darkness\, Webb sees light. An exa mple is today’s composite images of Messier 64 (M64)\, a nearby spiral g alaxy of many names. The dark band of dust partially blocking its bright c ore earned it the moniker “the Black Eye Galaxy.” Webb’s Mid-InfraRe d Instrument (MIRI) sees that dust\, shown in red\, as it absorbs and re-e mits light from surrounding newborn stars. These young stars are embedded in pink star-forming regions in the Hubble-only image. M64’s inner and o uter gas regions counter-rotate\, creating regions of increased star forma tion where the two gas “currents” meet and compress. A merger between M64 and a smaller galaxy was likely the cause of the opposing motion of th e outer gas. Spiral galaxies were once thought to have peaceful histories. M64 was key evidence that spiral galaxies\, including the Milky Way\, can and do experience mergers. Webb’s view of M64 will tell astronomers abo ut the structure\, motion\, and composition of the galaxy’s dust and add context to the galaxy’s merger history and evolution.APOD’s main NASA site is moving: From apod.nasa.gov to science.nasa.gov/apod\n\nCredit: NA SA\, CSA\, ESA\, F. Belfiore (ESO)\, J. Lee (STScI)\, A. Leroy (OSU)\, and D. Thilker (JHU)\; Processing: G. Kober (NASA/Catholic University)\nhttps ://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-september-16-webbs-view-of-m64 / SUMMARY:Webb’s View of M64 END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:a-daytime-eclipse-moon-occults-venus DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260915 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260916 DESCRIPTION:There was something behind the clouds. Upon close inspection\, it was the Moon\, which was hard to see yesterday around noon above the sm all village of Cessy\, France. But soon\, it was not only the Moon. As exp ected\, a bright dot suddenly appeared from behind the Moon — the planet Venus far in the distance. Captured in the single featured exposure\, bot h appeared to show a crescent phase. The Moon’s crescent was quite sligh t — with only about 10 percent of its face illuminated by the Sun. In co ntrast\, Venus’s crescent was more full — showing about 25 percent ill umination. Venus appeared brighter because it is nearer the Sun and becaus e its clouds are more reflective than the dark lunar surface. An occultati on of Venus by the Moon is visible to only about 10 percent of the Earth\, but in yesterday’s event even most of that was experiencing daytime.APO D’s main NASA site is moving: From apod.nasa.gov to science.nasa.gov/apo d\n\nCredit & Copyright Arnaud Mariat\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-arti cle/apod-2026-september-15-a-daytime-eclipse-moon-occults-venus/ SUMMARY:A Daytime Eclipse: Moon Occults Venus END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:where-your-elements-came-from DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260914 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260915 DESCRIPTION:The hydrogen in your body and present in every molecule of wate r came from the Big Bang. There are no other appreciable sources of hydrog en in the universe. The carbon in your body was made by nuclear fusion in the interior of stars\, as was the oxygen. Much of the iron in your body w as made during supernovas of stars that occurred long ago and far away. Th e gold in your jewelry was likely made from neutron stars during collision s that may have been visible as short-duration gamma-ray bursts or gravita tional wave events. Elements like phosphorus and copper are present in our bodies in only small amounts but are essential to the functioning of all known life. The featured periodic table is color coded to indicate humanit y‘s best guess as to the nuclear origin of all known elements. The sites of nuclear creation of some elements\, such as copper\, are not really we ll known and are continuing topics of observational and computational rese arch.APOD’s main NASA site is moving: From apod.nasa.gov to science.nasa .gov/apod\n\nCredit: NASA GSFC‘s SVS\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-art icle/apod-2026-september-14-where-your-elements-came-from/ SUMMARY:Where Your Elements Came From END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:comet-neowise-rising-over-the-adriatic-sea DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260913 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260914 DESCRIPTION: This sight was worth getting out of bed early. Just over four years ago\, Comet C/2020 F3 (NEOWISE) rose before dawn to the delight  of northern sky enthusiasts awake that early. Up before sunrise on July 8th\, the featured photographer was able to capture in dramatic fashion on e of the few comets visible to the unaided eye this century\, an inner-S olar System intruder that has become known as the Great Comet of 2020. The resulting video detailed Comet NEOWISE from Italy rising over the  Adriatic Sea. The featured time-lapse video combines over 240 images t aken over 30 minutes. The comet was seen rising through a foreground of bright and undulating noctilucent clouds\, and before a background of dis tant stars. Comet NEOWISE remained unexpectedly bright for over a month\ , with its ion and dust tails found to emanate from a nucleus spanni ng about five kilometers across.APOD’s main NASA site is moving: From  apod.nasa.gov to science.nasa.gov/apod\n\nCredit & Copyright Paolo Gir otti\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-september-13-comet- neowise-rising-over-the-adriatic-sea/ SUMMARY:Comet NEOWISE Rising over the Adriatic Sea END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:apollo-11-catching-some-sun DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260912 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260913 DESCRIPTION: Bright sunlight glints as long dark shadows mark this image o f the surface of the Moon. It was taken on July 20\, 1969\, by Apollo 11 astronaut Neil Armstrong\, the first to walk on the lunar surface. Pict ured is the mission’s lunar module\, the Eagle\, and spacesuited lunar module pilot Buzz Aldrin. Aldrin is unfurling a long sheet of foil also kn own as the Solar Wind Composition Experiment. Exposed facing the Sun\, th e foil trapped particles streaming outward in the solar wind\, catching a sample of material from the Sun itself. Along with 22 kilograms of moon rocks and lunar soil samples\, the solar wind collector was returned for analysis in earthbound laboratories.APOD’s main NASA site is moving:  From apod.nasa.gov to science.nasa.gov/apod\n\nImage Credit: Apollo 1 1 \, NASA (Image scanned by Kipp Teague)\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-a rticle/apod-2026-september-12-apollo-11-catching-some-sun/ SUMMARY:Apollo 11: Catching Some Sun END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:m83-the-southern-pinwheel DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260911 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260912 DESCRIPTION: Beautiful and bright spiral galaxy M83 lies some twelve mil lion light-years away\, near the southeastern tip of the very long constel lation Hydra. Prominent spiral arms traced by dark dust lanes and blue st ar clusters lend this galaxy its popular name\, the Southern Pinwheel. Sti ll\, reddish star forming regions that dot this cosmic pinwheel’s spir al arms have suggested another nickname\, the Thousand-Ruby Galaxy. A mer e 40\,000 light-years across\, smaller than the Milky Way\, M83 is a membe r of a group of galaxies that includes active galaxy Centaurus A. In fact \, the core of M83 itself is bright at x-ray energies\, showing a high co ncentration of neutron stars and black holes left from an intense burst of star formation. This sharp\, groundbased telescopic view also features fo reground Milky Way stars and distant background galaxies.APOD’s main NAS A site is moving: From apod.nasa.gov to science.nasa.gov/apod\n\nCred it & Copyright Aldo Zanetti\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2 026-september-11-m83-the-southern-pinwheel/ SUMMARY:M83: The Southern Pinwheel END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:ldn-1295-the-giraffe-nebula DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260910 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260911 DESCRIPTION:What does this image look like to you? Many see a giraffe fac ing right\, with neck stretched high and long legs mid-stride (but some ma y see a squirrel instead). The featured image shows LDN 1295\, also c alled the Giraffe Nebula\, in the constellation of the mythical queen of A ethiopia (Cassiopeia). It is an object in the Lynds Catalogue of Dark N ebulas\, compiled in 1962 by American astronomer Beverly Lynds\, a pion eer for women in astronomy and astrophysics. Dark nebulas are interstell ar clouds of dust and gas that block the visible light of the stars beh ind them. These nebulas are often faint and challenging targets for astr ophotographers. Why do we see animal shapes and faces in nebulas\, clouds\ , and pretty much everywhere? It is due to pareidolia\, our tendency to look for familiar patterns. Pareidolia may provide animals with an evolu tionary advantage\, for example in identifying (and avoiding) predators.AP OD’s main NASA site is moving : From apod.nasa.gov to science.nasa. gov/apod\n\nCredit & Copyright Alessandro Merga\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/ image-article/apod-2026-september-10-ldn-1295-the-giraffe-nebula/ SUMMARY:LDN 1295: The Giraffe Nebula END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:witness-xz-andromedae-wink DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260909 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260910 DESCRIPTION:Is this star winking at us? The central object in today’s ani mation is not one but two stars. XZ Andromedae\, indicated by the bold lin es\, is an Algol-type eclipsing binary with a nearly edge-on orbit from Ea rth’s perspective. The bottom light curve shows the amount of light from the system dim and brighten as the cooler star eclipses its hotter\, brig hter companion. Analysis of several XZ Andromedae light curves indicates t here may be two other stars orbiting the system. This particular light cur ve was created with Citizen Astronomy\, an open-source software for differ ential photometry. The software takes the difference in brightness between a target and comparison star and traces its behavior over time. This tech nique reduces most variations from the instrument and Earth’s atmosphere . In addition to eclipsing binaries\, this analysis is useful for studying transiting exoplanets\, accreting black holes\, supernovae\, and many mor e time-varying astronomical phenomena. Astrophotographers: try it out on y our own data!APOD’s main NASA site is moving: From apod.nasa.gov to  science.nasa.gov/apod\n\nCredit: Ogetay Kayali (MTU\, Starfront Observat ories)\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-september-9-witne ss-xz-andromedae-wink/ SUMMARY:Witness XZ Andromedae Wink END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:hubble-decagon-around-saturns-south-pole DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260908 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260909 DESCRIPTION:Why are Saturn’s poles geometric? Saturn’s North Pole has been known to be surrounded by a hexagonal (6 sides) cloud since discov ery in 1987 in data taken by NASA’s Voyager spacecrafts\, which quickl y flew past the ringed world in the early 1980s. Now\, recent observatio ns of Saturn by the Hubble Space Telescope reveal a slightly different g eometric cloud pattern around the South Pole: a decagon (10 sides). The geometric boundaries are possibly caused by waves when the fast-moving gas away from the poles interacts with slower-moving gas closer to the pol es. In the featured image composite by the Hubble taken last year\, the  South Pole of Saturn is marked by an X and surrounded by bands of circu lating clouds. The decagon appears most prominent in the dark inner regi ons. The northern hexagon has proven stable for over 40 years\, while th e stability of the southern decagon will surely remain a topic of researc h.APOD’s main NASA site is moving: From apod.nasa.gov to science.na sa.gov/apod\n\nNASA\, ESA\, STScI\, HST\; A. Sánchez-Lavega (UPV)\, A. Simon (NASA-GSFC)\, M. Wong (UC Berkeley)\; Processing: A. Pagan (STS cI)\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-september-8-hubble-d ecagon-around-saturns-south-pole/ SUMMARY:Hubble: Decagon Around Saturn’s South Pole END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:the-pelican-nebula-in-gas-dust-and-stars DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260907 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260908 DESCRIPTION:The Pelican Nebula is slowly being transformed. IC 5070 (an off icial designation) is divided from the larger North America Nebula by a  molecular cloud filled with dark dust. The deep featured picture from  Utah\, USA incorporates 25 hours of exposure and brings out great deta ils of this filamentary dust. The Pelican Nebula receives much study be cause it is a particularly active mix of star formation and evolving gas clouds. The light from young energetic stars is slowly transforming the c old gas to hot gas\, with the advancing boundary between the two\, known as an ionization front\, visible in bright orange on the upper right. Pa rticularly dense tentacles of cold gas remain. Millions of years from no w\, the Pelican Nebula\, bounded by dark nebula LDN 935\, might no long er be known as the Pelican\, as the balance and placement of stars and ga s will surely leave something that appears completely different.APOD’s main site is moving: From apod.nasa.gov to science.nasa.gov/apod\n\nCredi t & Copyright: Mark Killion\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod/a pod-2026-september-7-the-pelican-nebula-in-gas-dust-and-stars/ SUMMARY:The Pelican Nebula in Gas\, Dust\, and Stars END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:pluto-in-enhanced-color DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260906 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260907 DESCRIPTION:Pluto is more colorful than we can see. Color data and high-res olution images of our Solar System’s most famous dwarf planet\, taken by the robotic New Horizons spacecraft during its flyby in 2015 July\, have been digitally combined to give an enhanced-color view of this ancient wor ld sporting an unexpectedly young surface. The featured enhanced color ima ge is not only esthetically pretty but scientifically useful\, making surf ace regions of differing chemical composition visually distinct. For examp le\, the light-colored heart-shaped Tombaugh Regio on the lower right is c learly shown here to be divisible into two regions that are geologically d ifferent\, with the leftmost lobe\, Sputnik Planitia\, also appearing unus ually smooth. After Pluto\, New Horizons continued on\, shooting past aste roid Arrokoth in 2019 with enough speed to escape our Solar System complet ely.APOD’s main NASA site is moving : From apod.nasa.gov to science.nasa .gov/apod\n\nCredit: NASA\, Johns Hopkins Univ./APL\, Southwest Research I nst.\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-september-6-pluto-i n-enhanced-color/ SUMMARY:Pluto in Enhanced Color END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:chasing-the-moon-s-shadow DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260905 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260906 DESCRIPTION:Chasing the shadow of a New Moon\, NASA’s WB-57F high altitud e research aircraft took to the skies off the coast of Iceland on August 1 2 to observe a total solar eclipse. At 50\,000 feet the aircraft was pilot ed along the precisely determined path of totality to maximize its time in the Moon’s shadow. A suite of high-resolution cameras on board was able to record eclipse data from above the clouds\, dust\, and atmospheric wat er vapor that interfere with observations made closer to the ground. This view from the cockpit\, taken from an inflight video\, captures the solar corona emerging at the beginning of totality. The sky appears dark in the shadow of the Moon. Venus is shining left of center in the video frame\, w hile Jupiter and Mercury are just visible to the right of the eclipsed Sun . But the sky is bright along the distant horizon below\, beyond the reach of the Moon’s shadow.APOD’s main NASA site is moving: From apod.nasa. gov to science.nasa.gov/apod\n\nCredit: NASA\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/ima ge-article/apod-2026-september-5-chasing-the-moons-shadow/ SUMMARY:Chasing the Moon’s Shadow END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:na-uhane-mahoe-huki-pu-i-ke-ola DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260904 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260905 DESCRIPTION:Nā ʻUhane Māhoe Huki Pū i ke Ola\, is the Hawaiian name giv en to this image of a pair of spiral galaxies locked in a mutual gravitati onal embrace. Some 200 million light-years distant toward the high flying constellation Pegasus their spectacular\, galactic scale merger is capture d in sharp detail in the image from the 8.1 meter Gemini North telescope o n Maunakea\, Hawai‘i. The galaxy pair\, known as NGC 7253 and Arp 278\, was chosen as a target\, researched\, and given a Hawaiian name by high sc hool students in the joint Gemini Observatory and University of Hawaiʻi P roject Hōkūlani internship program. The name translates to “The Twin S pirits Pulling Together Creating Life”. That’s both culturally and ast ronomically appropriate for galaxy collisions that trigger a cosmic maelst rom of star formation from galactic reservoirs of elemental building block s of life. These merging galaxies are found within a region of Pegasus ide ntified as the Hawaiian navigational constellation Ka Lupe o Kawelo.APOD ’s main NASA site is moving: From apod.nasa.gov to science.nasa.gov/apod \n\nCredit: Image Credit: International Gemini Observatory / NOIRLab/NSF/A URAImage Processing: J. Miller & M. Rodriguez (International Gemini Observ atory/NSF NOIRLab)\,T.A. Rector (University of Alaska Anchorage/NSF NOIRLa b)\, D. de Martin & M. Zamani (NSF NOIRLab)\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/imag e-article/apod-2026-september-4-na-uhane-mahoe-huki-pu-i-ke-ola/ SUMMARY:Na Uhane Mahoe Huki Pu i ke Ola END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:the-eclipse-and-the-stork DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260903 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260904 DESCRIPTION:How do animals react to a total solar eclipse? The featured i mage shows a stork roosting on her nest in Poland at a partial phase of t he recent total solar eclipse. If you are lucky enough to experience a to tal eclipse somewhere quiet and close to nature\, you may be able to notic e unusual daytime animal behaviors. During totality\, you may hear night time sounds like crickets and frogs and see fireflies. In the dark\, mos t birds are quiet. Thinking that it is time to go to bed\, ducks and othe r waterfowl prepare to sleep on one leg\, with their heads turned around a nd their beaks tucked into their back feathers (they don’t really sleep with their heads tucked under one wing). When sunlight returns at the end of totality\, songbirds greet the new “morning” with their dawn song s. The crickets and frogs go quiet again. Animals and people resume thei r lives\, only briefly disturbed by the chance alignment of our Sun an d Moon.APOD’s main NASA site is moving : From apod.nasa.gov to sci ence.nasa.gov/apod\n\nCredit & Copyright Włodzimierz Bubak\nhttps://scien ce.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-september-3-the-eclipse-and-the-stork/ SUMMARY:The Eclipse and the Stork END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:solar-eclipses-and-culture DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260902 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260903 DESCRIPTION:Pretend you have never heard of a solar eclipse. The Sun’s be havior has been predictable your whole life. One day\, you witness the sky transform as it does in today’s spliced image spanning two hours of the August 12\, 2026 solar eclipse. The Sun disappears\, leaving behind a bri ght\, empty ring. What would you think had happened? Humans have interpret ed eclipses in countless ways throughout history\, embedding beliefs about connection\, rebirth\, or danger into culture. “Eclipse” comes from t he Greek word “ékleipsis” meaning “abandonment”. In ancient Greec e\, the solar eclipse marked the anger of the gods and the Sun abandoning humanity. To the Diné people\, this celestial alignment is a time of rene wal. Out of respect and to avoid the danger of sunlight\, the Diné stay i nside until the Sun and Moon separate. The Batammariba people of Benin and Togo believe that the Sun and Moon fight during an eclipse\, so the commu nity encourages peace among themselves. Eclipses are an example of the lon gstanding connection between astronomy and society.Gallery: Solar Eclipse of 2026 August 12\n\nCredit & Copyright: Javier Castro\nhttps://science.na sa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-september-2-solar-eclipses-and-culture/ SUMMARY:Solar Eclipses and Culture END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:a-plane-lunar-eclipse DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260901 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260902 DESCRIPTION:Did you need to be on the right side of this airplane to see th is eclipse? No. Lunar eclipses are routinely seen from the half of the Earth facing the Moon when the eclipse occurs\, making them some of the m ost commonly witnessed astronomical events. You don’t even need any spe cial equipment to see one — just your unaided eyes. Lunar eclipses are also some of the most photographed astronomical events because\, unl ike with a solar eclipse\, your eyes and camera do not have to look towa rd the bright Sun. However\, considering the featured image taken last week from Portugal\, if you were on the left side of that airplane du ring takeoff\, you might have trouble seeing it — at first. But even the n\, after takeoff\, since lunar eclipses typically last for hours\, you might soon be able to safely cross the aisle(s) to see it.Gallery: Lunar Eclipse of 2026 AugustAPOD’s main NASA site is moving: From apod.nas a.gov to science.nasa.gov/apod\n\nPaulo Ferreira\nhttps://science.nasa.g ov/image-article/apod-2026-september-1-a-plane-lunar-eclipse/ SUMMARY:A Plane Lunar Eclipse END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:launch-of-the-roman-space-telescope DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260831 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260901 DESCRIPTION:A new telescope has been launched into space to study the unive rse. The Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope (RST) has the same size main mi rror as the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) but sees 100 times more sky durin g each snapshot. This is possible because when compared to HST\, RST’s m ain mirror is more curved\, its secondary mirror is closer\, and its main camera is larger. The result is that RST can inspect more of the sky more quickly\, likely allowing\, among other capabilities\, the discovery of ma ny more supernovas which tell us more about the expansion rate and composi tion of our universe\, and many more planets orbiting other stars that tel l us more about the possibilities for life elsewhere in the universe. RST will orbit the Sun\, not the Earth\, like the James Webb Space Telescope. The featured video shows Roman being launched yesterday from Kennedy Space Center\, Florida\, USA aboard a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket.APOD’s main NASA site is moving: From apod.nasa.gov to science.nasa.gov/apod\n\nCredit : NASA\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-august-31-launch- of-the-roman-space-telescope/ SUMMARY:Launch of the Roman Space Telescope END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:m74-a-grand-design-spiral DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260830 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260831 DESCRIPTION:If not the most grand\, then this spiral galaxy is at least one of the most photogenic. An island universe of about 100 billion stars\, 3 2 million light-years away toward the constellation Pisces\, M74 presents a gorgeous face-on view. Classified as an Sc galaxy\, the grand design of M74’s graceful spiral arms are traced by bright blue star clusters and d ark cosmic dust lanes. Constructed from archival images\, this sharp compo site is from the Hubble Space Telescope. Spanning about 30\,000 light-year s across the face of M74\, it includes exposures recording emission from h ydrogen atoms\, highlighting the reddish glow of the galaxy’s large star -forming regions.APOD is Moving : From apod.nasa.gov to science.nasa.gov/a pod\n\nCredit: NASA\, ESA\, and the Hubble Heritage (STScI / AURA)- ESA / Hubble CollaborationAcknowledgment: R. Chandar (U. Toledo) & J. Miller (U. Michigan)\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-august-30-m74 -a-grand-design-spiral/ SUMMARY:M74: A Grand Design Spiral END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:eclipse-pair DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260829 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260830 DESCRIPTION:Eclipses tend to come in pairs. Twice a year\, during an eclips e season that lasts about 34 days\, Sun\, Moon\, and Earth can nearly alig n. Then the new and full phases of the Moon\, separated by just over 14 da ys\, create a solar and a lunar eclipse. But only rarely is the alignment at both new moon and full moon during a single eclipse season close enough to produce a pair with both total solar and lunar eclipses. More often\, partial eclipses are part of any eclipse season. But\, the last eclipse se ason of 2026 did produce this fortnight-separated pairing of a total solar eclipse on August 12 (top) and an almost total lunar eclipse on the night of August 27/28. At New Moon\, the solar eclipse was captured at Peñafie l\, Spain near the begining of totality in this HDR composite image\, reve aling a flash of Bailey’s beads and a golden solar corona. At the follow ing Full Moon\, the deep partial lunar eclipse was recorded from Sèvres\, France. Also an HDR composite\, the image shows this partial eclipse at c loser to half its 93 percent maximum phase\, so about half the visible lun ar disk appears darkened and reddened within Earth’s umbral shadow. The coming eclipse season will see an annular solar eclipse on 2027 February 6 paired with a penumbral lunar eclipse on February 20/21.APOD’s main NAS A site is moving: From apod.nasa.gov to science.nasa.gov/apod\n\nCredit & Copyright: Gwenaël Blanck\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-20 26-august-29-eclipse-pair/ SUMMARY:Eclipse Pair END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:the-sky-turns-above-paranal DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260828 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260829 DESCRIPTION:At the latitude of ESO’s Paranal Observatory in Chile\, about 25 degrees south\, Earth’s rotation moves the planet’s surface eastwa rd at over 1\,500 kilometers per hour. And while that’s faster than the speed of sound at sea level\, the motion is imperceptible. Still\, that mo tion can be revealed in the apparent rotation of the night sky by photogra phing star trails. This star trail image was composed from a digital stack of 300 consecutive 25-second exposures made with a camera fixed to a trip od to trace the star trail arcs. The graceful arcs are concentric and cent ered at the south celestial pole\, the southern hemisphere extension of Ea rth’s axis of rotation into space. One of the observatory’s operating 1.8 meter auxiliary telescopes\, AT 3\, appears beneath the south celestia l pole\, faintly illuminated in the foreground of this well-planned scene from a rotating planet.APOD’s main NASA site is moving: From apod.nasa.g ov to science.nasa.gov/apod\n\nCredit & Copyright: Osvaldo Castillo\nhttps ://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-august-28-the-sky-turns-above- paranal/ SUMMARY:The Sky Turns Above Paranal END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:colorful-aurora-over-icenlandic-waterfall DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260827 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260828 DESCRIPTION:What a sight to behold\, when a night sky became filled with co lors that appeared to rain over the Skógafoss waterfall in Iceland. This image was taken in a single 5 second exposure by the photographer in Apr il 2025. Seeing an aurora is on many people’s bucket lists. But it is not easy. It requires high solar activity\, dark and clear skies\, and us ually a viewing location at high latitude. That makes the northern lights more easily seen than the corresponding southern lights\, simply because there is less landmass in the Southern Hemisphere\, especially around the Antarctic Circle. Auroras are caused by charged particles from the solar wind that are captured by the Earth’s magnetosphere and guided by th e magnetic field to a region close to one of the poles\, where they colli de with gas particles in the atmosphere. Different colors indicate intera ctions with different gases at different altitudes\, like oxygen (red an d green) and nitrogen (blue and pink).APOD’s main NASA site is movin g : From apod.nasa.gov to science.nasa.gov/apod\n\nCredit & Copyright Victor Lima\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-august-27-co lorful-aurora-over-an-icelandic-waterfall/ SUMMARY:Colorful Aurora over an Icelandic Waterfall END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:jwst-images-the-lion-s-head-nebula DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260826 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260827 DESCRIPTION:Are we looking at the future of our Sun? The James Webb Space T elescope captured today’s composite image of the Lion’s Head Nebula (N GC 2392) with its NIRCam and MIRI instruments. The Lion’s Head Nebula is the remnant of a Sun-like star. This star was unable to sustain the nucle ar fusion in its core needed to remain stable. It began to shed layers of gas and dust into space\, forming this planetary nebula. A hot stellar cor e\, called a white dwarf\, is left behind within the lion’s nose. Do not boop this nose! Intense radiation from the white dwarf is ionizing the ga s as it expands\, creating the irregular bubble that makes up the lion’s face. Dust clumps that have survived the white dwarf’s radiation and a cloud of ionized gas make up the lion’s mane. This new and more detailed view of the nebula will help humanity learn more about how the gas and du st interact with each other and the white dwarf radiation.\n\nCredit: Imag e: NASA\, ESA\, CSA\, STScI\; Image Processing: Alyssa Pagan (STScI)\nhttp s://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-august-26-jwst-images-the-lio ns-head-nebula/ SUMMARY:JWST Images The Lion’s Head Nebula END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:earths-shadow-visualized-with-lunar-eclipses DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260825 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260826 DESCRIPTION:What’s creating this giant hole in space? This is not a blac k hole — it’s a shadow. It’s Earth’s shadow. Since at least the time of Aristotle\, people have noted that Earth’s dark shadow on the Moon during a partial lunar eclipse is circular — although never a w hole circle. Using modern digital technology\, though\, the images of mul tiple lunar eclipses can be combined to show Earth’s complete shadow. T he featured image compilation by a perseistent astrophotographer is cons tructed from 22 years of lunar eclipses. The Moon is not eclipsed every month (moon-th) because the Moon’s orbit is slightly tilted relative to Earth’s orbit. Close inspection of some lunar eclipse images shows a  faint blue band where Earth’s atmosphere filters out more red sun light than blue. Later this week\, a new lunar eclipse will occur and wi ll be best visible in parts of North and South America\, Europe\, and Af rica.APOD’s main NASA site is moving : From apod.nasa.gov to scienc e.nasa.gov/apod\n\nCredit & Copyright Tim Martin\nhttps://science.nasa.gov /image-article/apod-2026-august-25-earths-shadow-visualized-with-lunar-ecl ipses/ SUMMARY:Earth’s Shadow Visualized with Lunar Eclipses END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:comet-220p-in-outburst DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260824 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260825 DESCRIPTION:Comet 220P is unexpectedly bright. Normally\, periodic Comet 22 0P/McNaught is so dim that to see it requires a telescope. Two surprising outbursts this year\, however\, have made it about 20\,000 times brighter than usual\, so that it is now visible with binoculars and long-duration c amera exposures. As expected\, Comet 220P continues to orbit the Sun betwe en Mars and Jupiter with a period of over 5 years. The featured long durat ion exposure\, taken 10 days ago from South Africa\, shows the comet‘s b right green head and short dust tail. Reasons for Comet 220P’s impressiv e outbursts are unknown but could be caused by the release of built-up sub surface gas or comet quakes. Comet 220P will pass about one Earth-Sun dist ance from the Earth in October\, after which it is expected to fade quickl y as it begins its return to the far part of its orbit.\n\nCredit & Copyri ght: Spilios Asimakopoulos\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod/ap od-2026-august-24-comet-220p-in-outburst/ SUMMARY:Comet 220P in Outburst END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:cassini-approaches-saturn DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260823 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260824 DESCRIPTION:What would it look like to approach the grand planet Saturn? On e doesn’t have to just imagine — the Cassini spacecraft did just this in 2004\, recording thousands of images along the way\, and hundreds of th ousands more since entering orbit. Some of Cassini’s early images have b een digitally tweaked\, cropped\, and compiled into the featured inspiring video which is part of a larger IMAX movie project named In Saturn’s Ri ngs. In the concluding sequence\, Saturn looms increasingly large on appro ach as cloudy Titan swoops below. With Saturn whirling around in the backg round\, Cassini is next depicted flying over Mimas\, with large Herschel C rater clearly visible. Saturn’s majestic rings then take over the show a s Cassini crosses Saturn’s thin ring plane. Dark shadows of the ring app ear on Saturn itself. Finally\, the enigmatic ice-geyser moon Enceladus ap pears in the distance and then is approached just as the video clip ends. After more than a decade of exploration and discovery\, the Cassini spacec raft ran low on fuel in 2017 was directed to enter Saturn’s atmosphere\, where it surely melted.\n\nCredit: Video Credit & Copyright: Cassini Imag ing Team\, ISS\, JPL\, NASA\, ESA\, S. Van Vuuren et al.\;Music: Adagio fo r Strings (NY Philharmonic)\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod/a pod-2026-august-23-cassini-approaches-saturn/ SUMMARY:Cassini Approaches Saturn END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:mostly-perseids DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260822 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260823 DESCRIPTION:Recorded the night of August 12-13\, images from four dedicated meteor-monitoring cameras at an astronomical observatory in Czechia were aligned and combined to create this all-night\, all-sky view. On that nigh t\, the total count came to 1\,706 meteors. And since that coincided with the peak activity of the 2026 Perseid Meteor Shower\, most are perseids. T heir overwhelming numbers make them easy to spot. Quite convincingly\, per seid trails all trace back to a single radiant on the sky at the upper rig ht\, a region in the annual shower’s eponymous constellation Perseus. Bu t meteors belonging to other much less active showers can be revealed by f inding their radiants too. For example\, seen crossing the perseid trails are meteors from a shower whose radiant lies in Cygnus\, known as Kappa Cy gnids. The antihelion complex\, a general region near Aquarius and opposit e the Sun in the sky\, is also identifiable as a weak source for meteors.\ n\nCredit & Copyright: Jakub Koukal (Valašské Meziříčí Observatory)\ nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod/apod-2026-august-22-mostly-pe rseids/ SUMMARY:Mostly Perseids END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:time-lapse-of-the-star-s301-orbiting-the-black-hole-in-the-center-of-th e-galaxy DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260821 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260822 DESCRIPTION:What does it feel like to zoom around a spinning supermassive black hole? The featured video is an animation showing a time-lapse of 4 years of observations of the star S301 orbiting Sagittarius A*\, the 4-m illion-solar-mass black hole in the center of our Galaxy. S301 was discov ered in 2023 with the Very Large Telescope Interferometer of the Europ ean Southern Observatory\, located in the Atacama Desert in Chile. Astro nomers recently found that S301 takes approximately 8.7 years to go arou nd and reaches speeds of 25\,000 km/s. It comes closer to the black hole t han any other stars detected before\, at a distance similar to that from  Saturn to the Sun. Because it comes so close to Sagittarius A*\, S301 could be used to directly measure how fast the black hole spins and test  Einstein‘s theory of general relativity. According to the theory\, a sp inning black hole drags the fabric of spacetime around itself\, affectin g the orbits of close-by objects.\n\nCredit & License ESO/GRAVITY collabor ation/L. Calçada\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod/apod-2026-a ugust-21-time-lapse-of-the-s301-star-orbiting-sagittarius-a/ SUMMARY:Time-Lapse of the Star S301 Orbiting the Black Hole in the Center o f the Galaxy END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:the-elephant-s-trunk-in-cepheus DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260820 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260821 DESCRIPTION:Like an illustration in a galactic Just So Story\, the Elephant ’s Trunk Nebula winds through the emission region and young star cluster complex IC 1396\, in the high and far off constellation of Cepheus. Also known as vdB 142\, this cosmic elephant’s trunk is over 20 light-years l ong. The detailed telescopic view features the bright swept-back ridges an d pockets of cool interstellar dust and gas that abound in the region. But the dark\, tendril-shaped clouds contain the raw material for star format ion and hide protostars within. Nearly 3\,000 light-years distant\, the re latively faint IC 1396 complex covers a large region on the sky\, spanning over 5 degrees. Top to bottom this proboscidean-like rendition reaches ac ross an almost 1 degree wide field of view\, though. That’s a little les s than the angular size of 2 full moons.\n\nand Copyright: Eddie Sgarbossa \nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod/apod-2026-august-20-the-elep hants-trunk-in-cepheus/ SUMMARY:The Elephant’s Trunk in Cepheus END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:the-case-of-the-mysterious-maybe-meteor DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260819 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260820 DESCRIPTION:Whatdunit? What disappeared while crossing a partially eclipsed Sun? Let’s present the evidence. The 24 frames-per-second video was tak en in Spain (40°34’30.3″N 1°12’28.8″W) at 20:28 local time on Au gust 12\, 2026. The Perseids meteor shower was at its peak during this tim e. Is this a meteor? Meteor showers trace back to a region of the sky call ed a radiant point that corresponds to where the Earth is crossing a comet ’s path. The object’s path might trace back to the Perseids’ radiant point in the Perseus constellation. The object trails a smaller angle on the sky than the 0.5 degree Sun and Moon\, which is smaller than expected for a meteor. Its brightness does not extend much past the Sun\, but a met eor burning up in the sky would not need sunlight to be seen. Perhaps the sunlight is reflecting off of the object? After cross-referencing the loca tion\, time\, and point in the sky with a flight database\, the culprit is found to be an airplane contrail!\n\nCredit & Copyright: Juan Pablo Casta ñeda\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-august-19-the-case -of-the-mysterious-maybe-meteor/ SUMMARY:The Case of the Mysterious Maybe Meteor END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:perseids-from-perseus DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260818 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260819 DESCRIPTION: This was a good year for the Perseids meteor shower. A key r eason was the Moon was absent from lighting up Earth’s night sky so that more meteors were visible than usual. Where was the Moon? It was bu sy visiting the Sun. Near the Perseids peak\, the Moon moved directly in front of the Sun and created a total solar eclipse visible from Greenla nd and Spain. The Perseids occur when the Earth collides with a strea m of Sun-orbiting debris cast off by Comet Swift-Tuttle. Perseid meteors \, although typically only the size of a sand grain\, tend to be fast an d bright because Swift-Tuttle’s debris orbits the Sun in a direction partly opposite Earth’s orbital motion. In the featured image compila tion\, accumulated over several nights from Jizerka in the Czech Republ ic\, the Perseids meteor streaks can be traced back to a single location o n the sky — its radiant in Perseus.Gallery: Perseids Meteor Shower o f 2026\n\nJakub Kuřák\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026- august-18-perseids-from-perseus/ SUMMARY:Perseids from Perseus END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:a-golden-corona-eclipse DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260817 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260818 DESCRIPTION:This total solar eclipse appeared not only poetically beautiful but scientifically interesting. Usually the solar corona appears white\ , and to some observers the corona of last week’s total solar eclipse di d appear this pearly color. But this time\, totality observers in Spain s aw a corona that appeared unusually golden. For one reason\, from Spain\, the totality occurred when the setting Sun was near the horizon. That low \, sunlight travels through a large amount of air which scatters out blu e light. An unusual amount of smoke in the air from nearby forest fires acted as a second filter\, further scattering the remaining blue tones and deepening the already gold-dominated light. The HDR-processed\, mult iple-exposure featured image was captured from Benavente\, Spain last we ek. One thing that did not appear golden was a hydrogen-glowing prominen ce that hovered over the Sun‘s left edge — its original bright pink  color survived.Gallery: Solar Eclipse of 2026 August 12\n\nCredit & Copy right: Rui Santos (Living Impressions)\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-art icle/apod-2026-august-17-a-golden-corona-eclipse/ SUMMARY:A Golden Corona Eclipse END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:milky-way-over-yellowstone DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260816 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260817 DESCRIPTION:The Milky Way was not created by an evaporating lake. The color ful pool of water\, about 10 meters across\, is known as Silex Spring and is located in Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming\, USA. Illuminated arti ficially\, the colors are caused by layers of bacteria that grow in the ho t spring. Steam rises off the spring\, heated by underground magma associa ted with the Yellowstone Hotspot. Unrelated and far in the distance\, the central band of our Milky Way Galaxy arches high overhead\, a band lit by billions of stars. The picture features a 16-image panorama taken in 2014. If the Yellowstone Hotspot causes another supervolcanic eruption as it di d about 640\,000 years ago\, a large part of North America would be affect ed.Growing Gallery: Solar Eclipse of 2026 August 12\n\nCredit & Copyright: Dave Lane\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod/apod-2026-august-1 6-milky-way-over-yellowstone/ SUMMARY:Milky Way over Yellowstone END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:bright-perseids-from-sweden DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260815 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260816 DESCRIPTION:Known for its bright and fast meteors\, the annual Perseid Mete or Shower comes to planet Earth’s skies from a radiant in the heroic con stellation Perseus. The popular northern summer celestial spectacle is cre ated as grains of dust cast off along the orbit of periodic comet 109P/Swi ft-Tuttle vaporize in Earth’s dense atmosphere\, tracing brief\, but bea utiful streaks through the night. Taken near the shower’s peak of activi ty on August 12\, this composite image recorded two bright perseid meteors and one meteor’s watery reflection from a location near the coastal vil lage of Grisslehamn\, Sweden. Almost as bright as Altair\, brightest star on the scene\, the meteors appear along with the faint\, diffuse backgroun d of the Milky Way. This year\, the shower’s peak activity coincided wit h a New Moon\, so perseid meteor flashes were undiminished by bright moonl ight. And for many skywatchers\, this night of bright perseid meteors foll owed their viewing of the silhouette of the New Moon in a much anticipated solar eclipse.Growing Gallery: Solar Eclipse of 2026 August 12\n\nCredit & Copyright: P-M Hedén (Clear Skies\, TWAN)\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/ima ge-article/apod/apod-2026-august-15-bright-perseids-from-sweden/ SUMMARY:Bright Perseids from Sweden END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:total-solar-eclipse-from-greenland DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260814 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260815 DESCRIPTION:On August 12\, the Moon’s shadow reached out to touch our fai r planet. Beginning in the Arctic Ocean\, it swept along a narrow track th at led the dark lunar umbra across parts of Greenland\, Iceland\, the Atla ntic\, Portugal\, and northern Spain. And for a moment\, denizens of Earth who found themselves with clear skies under the shadow of the Moon could witness a total solar eclipse. After dodging the weather by sea and making a landing along Rype Fjord on the Greenland east coast (at 71.07055N\, 27 .71252W)\, this hard-won snapshot was captured at 17:33:26 UTC. That’s n ear the initial reach of clearing skies along the path of totality\, so th e image is likely one of the first unobstructed views of the totally eclip sed Sun. Through a break in the clouds\, the stunning photo also records o ne of this eclipse’s transient diamond rings and the magnificent solar c orona emerging near the moment totality began.More spectacular eclipse ima ges: Solar Eclipse of 2026 August 12\n\nCredit & Copyright: Aditya Madhava n\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod/apod-2026-august-14-total-s olar-eclipse-from-greenland/ SUMMARY:Total Solar Eclipse from Greenland END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:total-solar-eclipse-over-spain DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260813 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260814 DESCRIPTION:On August 12th\, 2026\, the Moon totally eclipsed the Sun and  cast its shadow across Siberia\, Greenland\, Iceland\, Spain\, and Port ugal. Today’s image features two total solar eclipses viewed from Z aragoza\, Spain\, one over the Cathedral-Basilica of Our Lady of the Pilla r and the other reflecting in the Ebro River. For a few moments\, Spain sa w its first major total solar eclipse since 1905. Those witnessing totalit y may experience a chill in the air\, the quieting of birds\, the confused chirps of insects\, and the shared awe of many. It’s the corona’s ti me to shine as the Sun’s bright disk is blocked by the Moon. Among other  reasons to study eclipses\, they help scientists understand why the coro na is millions of degrees hotter than the Sun’s surface. Enthusiastic c itizens can contribute to these studies by recording how wildlife respond s\, imaging the corona\, and monitoring air temperature and clouds.More sp ectacular eclipse images: Solar Eclipse of 2026 August 12\n\nCredit & Copy right: Ruiyu Zhang\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-augus t-13-total-solar-eclipse-over-spain/ SUMMARY:Total Solar Eclipse Over Spain END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:perseids-over-a-little-planet DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260812 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260813 DESCRIPTION:It looks like a view from the Little Prince‘s planet. The fea tured image is a throwback to the 2024 Perseid meteor shower\, surrounded in this projection by the Bieszczady Mountains in Poland. Visible in the s ky is the arch of the Milky Way\, along with several nebulas in red and ov er a hundred meteors pointing to the radiant. The Perseids are easily visi ble and quite popular in the Northern Hemisphere summer. (Watching meteor showers in the winter is less convenient for a good reason). This year the y are expected to offer an even more dazzling spectacle than usual\, becau se the peak coincides with a new moon. The 2026 Perseid meteor shower will peak tonight with as many as 50-100 meteors per hour\, when the Earth’s path crosses through debris left behind by Comet Swift-Tuttle. Typically\ , the best times for seeing the meteors are between midnight and pre-dawn. You won’t need binoculars to see the meteors\, but a lawn chair and a d ark sky location help.NASA Stream: August 12 Total Solar Eclipse.\n\nCredi t & Copyright: Marcin Rosadziński\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article /apod/apod-2026-august-12-perseids-over-a-little-planet/ SUMMARY:Perseids over a Little Planet END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:six-moons-of-saturn DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260811 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260812 DESCRIPTION:How many moons does Saturn have? While the total will likely co ntinue to grow\, as of June 2026 the ringed gas giant had 293 confirmed mo ons. That’s easily more than any other planet of the Solar System\, incl uding ruling gas giant Jupiter with a mere 115 confirmed moons. Most of Sa turn’s known moons are small\, irregular satellites. Many are only few k ilometers to a fraction of a kilometer across and grouped in tilted outer orbits. Six of its largest satellites can be seen here\, though\, in this sharp telescopic Saturnian family portrait taken on August 5. Larger than Earth’s Moon and even slightly larger than inner planet Mercury\, Titan\ , with a diameter of 5\,150 kilometers\, is at lower right. You can also s pot icy major moons Mimas\, Tethys\, Enceladus\, Dione\, and Rhea in the f rame. Saturn’s first known natural satellite\, Titan was discovered in 1 655 by Dutch astronomer Christiaan Huygens. During the space age Voyager a nd Cassini discoveries have added to the swelling ranks of Saturnian moons .NASA Stream: August 12 Total Solar Eclipse.\n\nCredit & Copyright: Alexan dre Trentini\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod/apod-2026-august -11-six-moons-of-saturn/ SUMMARY:Six Moons of Saturn END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:three-galaxy-pairs DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260810 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260811 DESCRIPTION:Each of these pairs of galaxies is different. The two galaxies at the top are likely not interacting\, at least presently. However\, the top galaxy with the blue stripe\, NGC 4650A\, is a polar ring galaxy and m ay be the result of a past galaxy collision. The two galaxies in the middl e of the featured image appear like they could be interacting gravitationa lly — but their relative speeds make this unlikely. Of these two\, the l arger galaxy\, NGC 4650\, is a spiral galaxy with a bright bar of stars ac ross its center. The two galaxies at the bottom are actively interacting. Possibly in a billion years or so\, NGC 4622A and NGC 4622B will merge and become one single galaxy. All of these galaxies are likely members of the larger Centaurus Galaxy Cluster.\n\nCredit & Copyright: Rafael Sampaio\nh ttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod/apod-2026-august-10-three-galax y-pairs/ SUMMARY:Three Galaxy Pairs END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:contemplating-the-sun DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260809 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260810 DESCRIPTION:Have you contemplated your home star recently? Featured here\, a Sun partially eclipsed on the top left by the Moon is also seen eclipsed by earthlings contemplating the eclipse below. This spectacular menagerie of silhouettes was taken in 2012 from the Glen Canyon National Recreation Area near Page\, Arizona\, USA\, where park rangers and astronomers expou nded on the unusual event to interested gatherers. Also\, faintly visible on the Sun’s disk\, just to the lower right of the dark Moon’s disk\, is a group of sunspots. A new solar eclipse will occur this week and give many people in northeastern North America\, Europe\, and northwestern Afri ca a new chance to contemplate a partially eclipsed Sun. A thin swath of E arth from Greenland to Portugal will further experience a total solar ecli pse. An open question is whether any meteors from the peaking Perseids wil l be visible during totality.\n\nCredit & Copyright Steven Gilbert\nhttps: //science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod/apod-2026-august-9-contemplating-the -sun/ SUMMARY:Contemplating the Sun END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:a-messier-moment-for-tempel-2 DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260808 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260809 DESCRIPTION:Which of these is not a comet? You guessed it – the one on th e right is a globular star cluster. The diffuse greenish coma of periodic comet 10P/Tempel 2 is at left in the frame. In fact the globular star clus ter is Messier 30\, also known as M30\, or the 30th entry in astronomer Ch arles Messier’s catalog of things which are not comets. The well-known 1 8th century astronomer kept a list of objects he observed\, now his famous Messier Catalogue of Nebulae and Star Clusters\, which did not move from night to night against the background stars and so were not the comets he was hunting for. So the famous comet hunter would get the correct answer t oo\, even though his telescope would show both 10P/Tempel 2 and distant st ar cluster as similar looking faint and fuzzy objects in his field of view . Recorded on July 29\, this modern telescopic image captures periodic com et Tempel 2 as it briefly swept close on the sky to M30. While the periodi c comet’s faint\, narrow\, orbital dust trail seems to pierce the globul ar star cluster\, Tempel 2 was a mere 3.5 light-minutes away. Messier 30 i s some 28\,000 light-years distant.\n\nCredit & Copyright Dan Bartlett\nht tps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod/apod-2026-august-8-a-messier-mom ent-for-tempel-2/ SUMMARY:A Messier Moment for Tempel 2 END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:rubin-s-cosmos-field DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260807 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260808 DESCRIPTION: There are more than half a million galaxies in the central panel of this image from the NSF-DOE Vera C. Rubin Observatory in Chil e. This is the COSMOS field\, a patch of sky several times larger than th e full moon\, first observed by Hubble. It has also been observed by Web b and other telescopes because it contains comparatively few bright stars  from our own galaxy\, offering a relatively unimpeded view of other gala xies outside the Milky Way. The outer panels\, numbered 1-10\, show zoom ed-in views of the corresponding small regions highlighted in the central panel. The variety of galaxy shapes and sizes is astonishing. Some of th em are so far away that their light has traveled for billions of years b efore reaching Earth. Rubin will come back every couple of days to the C OSMOS field as part of its ten-year Legacy Survey of Space and Time. It w ill allow a dynamic view of the COSMOS field and how the sky changes over time.\n\nCredit & Copyright NSF–DOE Vera C. Rubin Observatory/NOIRLab/S LAC/AURA\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod/apod-2026-august-6-r ubins-cosmos-field/ SUMMARY:Rubin’s Cosmos Field END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:new-sharpest-image-of-the-sun-uncovers-instability DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260806 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260807 DESCRIPTION: What does the new sharpest image of our Sun show? Instability . To be clear\, a certain kind of interactive process called the Kelvin-H elmholtz instability (KHI). This instability can create waves and swirls  when two streams flow past each other — in this case variable streams of solar magnetic plasma. Long hypothesized to occur on the Sun’s surf ace\, KHI streaks and swirls were confirmed in just-released dramatic high -resolution images taken recently by the Inouye Solar Telescope in Haw aii\, USA.  The featured false-yellow image\, actually taken in deep bl ue\, is the highest resolution image yet of the Sun in visible light. I t spans about the radius of the Earth\, but its finest details are city s ized. Visible are several smooth tops of changing solar granules\, while the edges of the flower-like structures have been found to harbor multiple  KHI swirls. Future research may investigate how the KHI helps move ene rgy and magnetic fields\, and may even heat the surrounding solar corona. \n\nNSF\, NSO\, AURA\, MPS\, Inouye Tel\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/imag e-article/apod-2026-august-6-new-sharpest-image-of-the-sun-uncovers-instab ility/ SUMMARY:New Sharpest Image of the Sun Uncovers Instability END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:spokes-on-saturn-s-b-ring DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260805 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260806 DESCRIPTION:Don’t get spooked by Saturn’s ghostly spokes! Today we feat ure a nearly two-hour timelapse of Saturn and its rings looping forwards a nd backwards. If you look closely\, a ghoulish shadow appears and disappea rs as Saturn’s B ring rotates. Decades of observation with Voyager 2\ , Cassini\, and Hubble show the appearance of Saturn’s spokes varies with the planet’s seasons. Like Earth\, Saturn’s spin axis is tilte d compared to the plane of its orbit around the Sun. During Saturn’s eq uinox\, the rings are less tilted toward the Sun and they receive sunlig ht at a shallower angle. Saturn’s spokes may be electrically charged dus t and ice temporarily levitated above the rings by electromagnetic forces. It is still uncertain\, but the ring plasma and charge environment may be influenced by changing ultraviolet illumination\, meteoroid impacts\, or indirect effects from interactions between the solar wind and the planet ’s magnetic field.Note: The text of this APOD has been revised.\n\nCredi t & Copyright: Brad Croslin\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2 026-august-5-spokes-on-saturns-b-ring/ SUMMARY:Spokes on Saturn’s B Ring END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:curious-cometary-knots-in-the-helix-nebula DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260804 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260805 DESCRIPTION:What causes unusual knots of gas and dust in planetary nebulas ? Seen also in the Ring Nebula\, the Dumbbell Nebula and NGC 2392\, th e knots’ existence was not initially predicted\, and their origins are s till not well understood. Pictured here is a fascinating image of part  of the Helix Nebula by the James Webb Space Telescope showing tremen dous detail in infrared light. The cometary knots have masses similar to the Earth but have sizes typically several times the orbit of Pluto. On e hypothesis for the fragmentation and evolution of the knots includes ex isting gas being driven out by a less dense but highly energetic stella r wind of the central evolving star. The Helix Nebula is one of the clo sest examples of a planetary nebula created at the end of the life of a Sun-like star. Given a technical designation of NGC 7293\, the Helix Neb ula lies about 650 light-years away towards the constellation of Water C arrier (Aquarius).\n\nImage: NASA\, ESA\, CSA\, STScI\; Image Processing: Alyssa Pagan (STScI)\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-august-4 -2026-curious-cometary-knots-in-the-helix-nebula/ SUMMARY:Curious Cometary Knots in the Helix Nebula END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:vaporizing-meteor-photobombs-the-lacerta-nebula DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260803 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260804 DESCRIPTION:What’s happening to this meteor? This bright meteor streak  appeared and disappeared quickly during a long exposure of the Great Lace rta Nebula\, seen faintly in red toward the center of the image. The mete oroid\, likely a small pebble\, creates its glow partly by heating and e xciting surrounding air in Earth’s atmosphere\, but itself vaporizes an d leaves wind-blown gas and dust with colors that give clues to its comp osition. The featured image was captured last month from Death Valley Obs ervatories in Nevada\, USA. This month\, though\, is particularly good for seeing meteors. Presently there are three meteor showers ongoing\, al though they are currently competing for visibility with the glow of a br ight gibbous Moon. The most active of these showers\, the Perseids\, wil l be busiest in about 10 days — after the Moon has dimmed considerably . This year\, the Perseids peak nearly coincides with not only a new Mo on\, but\, from some locations\, one that totally eclipses the Sun.Sky Surprise: What picture did APOD feature on your birthday? (>1995)\n\nCred it & Copyright: Tom Burnett\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod/a pod-2026-august-3-vaporizing-meteor-photobombs-the-lacerta-nebula/ SUMMARY:Vaporizing Meteor Photobombs the Lacerta Nebula END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:a-fire-rainbow-over-west-virginia DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260802 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260803 DESCRIPTION:What’s happening to this cloud? Ice crystals in a distant cir rus cloud are acting like little floating prisms. Known informally as a fi re rainbow for its flame-like appearance\, a circumhorizon arc appears par allel to the horizon. For a circumhorizontal arc to be visible\, the Sun m ust be at least 58 degrees high in a sky where cirrus clouds present below — in this case cirrus fibratus. The numerous\, flat\, hexagonal ice-cry stals that compose the cirrus cloud must be aligned horizontally to proper ly refract sunlight in a collectively similar manner. Therefore\, circumho rizontal arcs are somewhat unusual to see. The featured fire rainbow was p hotographed in 2021 near North Fork Mountain in West Virginia\, USA.\n\nCr edit & Copyright: Christa Harbig\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/a pod/apod-2026-august-2-a-fire-rainbow-over-west-virginia/ SUMMARY:A Fire Rainbow over West Virginia END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:buck-moon-and-belt-of-venus DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260801 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260802 DESCRIPTION:The Buck Moon is a traditional name for the full moon of July. In this colorful Adriatic sea and skyscape captured on July 28 from Krk Is land along the coast of Croatia\, a full Buck Moon is just rising over dis tant mountains. Since a full moon rises as the Sun sets\, Earth’s shadow also rises in the twilight scene\, a diffuse gray band extending above th e mountainous southeastern horizon. Above Earth’s shadow band is the pin kish antitwilight arch. That subtly tinted band of backscattered sunlight is more widely known as the Belt of Venus. As it shares the eastern horizo n with the atmospheric shadow of Earth and Belt of Venus\, this full Buck Moon seems to set the stage for the New Moon to come. The New Moon of Augu st 12 will cast its own shadow on planet Earth in a much anticipated total solar eclipse.\n\nCredit & Copyright: Branko Nadj\nhttps://science.nasa.g ov/image-article/apod/apod-2026-august-1-buck-moon-and-belt-of-venus/ SUMMARY:Buck Moon and Belt of Venus END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:ngc-4372-and-the-dark-doodad DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260731 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260801 DESCRIPTION:The Dark Doodad Nebula drifts through southern skies\, a tantal izing target for binoculars toward the small constellation Musca\, The Fly . A dusty interstellar cloud\, it’s seen against rich starfields just so uth of the Coalsack Nebula and the Southern Cross. Stretching for about 3 degrees across this telescopic field of view\, the Dark Doodad is punctuat ed near its southern tip (upper right) by yellowish globular star cluster NGC 4372. Of course NGC 4372 roams the halo of our Milky Way galaxy\, a ba ckground object some 20\,000 light-years away and only by chance along our line-of-sight to the Dark Doodad. About 700 light-years distant and over 30 light-years long\, the Dark Doodad’s well defined silhouette belongs to the potentially star-forming Musca molecular cloud. The dusty Dark Dood ad’s delightfully alliterative moniker was first coined by astro-imager and writer Dennis di Cicco in 1986 while observing Comet Halley from the A ustralian outback.\n\nCredit & Copyright: Alessandro Cipolat Bares\nhttps: //science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod/apod-2026-july-31-ngc-4372-and-the-d ark-doodad/ SUMMARY:NGC 4372 and the Dark Doodad END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:red-sun-through-wildfire-smoke DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260730 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260731 DESCRIPTION: This could be the view from an exoplanet orbiting around a  red dwarf star\, but it is our own Sun. This image of was taken on July 22\, 2026\, in the Okanagan region in the Canadian province of British Columbia. Wildfire smoke from the Pacific Northwest acted as a solar filter\, allowing the photographer to take this photo of the Sun directly . Several sunspots are also visible in this eerie image\; just below and right of the center is AR 4493\, a fast evolving\, giant active solar r egion and sunspot group. The smoke is made of tiny particles that help bl ock and scatter light with bluer colors\, so the light we see coming fr om the Sun is dimmer and redder than usual (but it is never safe to star e directly at the Sun). Sunsets and sunrises are also more colorful beca use of the smoke. Some 6 billion years from now\, the Sun will actually s tart to turn redder as it approaches its red giant phase.\n\nImage Credit and Copyright: Debra Ceravolo\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apo d/apod-july-30-red-sun-trough-wildfire-smoke/ SUMMARY:Red Sun through Wildfire Smoke END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:psyche-receives-gravity-assist-from-mars DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260729 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260730 DESCRIPTION:Solar System bodies make deep space exploration more fuel effic ient! Today’s video shows the Psyche spacecraft gaining speed and ch anging its trajectory with minimal fuel spent due to a gravity assist fr om Mars in May 2026. Mars has an average orbital speed of almost 87\,000 k m/h (54\,000 mph) around the Sun. Its orbital motion and its gravity allow ed Mars to pull Psyche along with it\, increasing the spacecraft’s speed . Gravity assists have been used since 1959’s Luna 3 mission to allow for spacecraft (the Voyagers\, Cassini) to reach farther than they could with fuel alone. This assist helped the Psyche spacecraft on its journey t o the Psyche asteroid\, which it will reach in 2029. While passing Mars\, the spacecraft tested instruments that will analyze the asteroid’s compo sition and magnetic field. This is the first mission to an asteroid thoug ht to be largely made of metal\, an essential building block for planets\, rather than rock or ice.Find dark skies and look up this August to witnes s the Perseids meteor shower uninhibited by the Moon!\n\nNASA/JPL-Caltec h/ASU/True Story Films\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod/apod-2 026-july-29-psyche-receives-gravity-assist-from-mars/ SUMMARY:Psyche Receives Gravity Assist from Mars END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:barnards-loop-over-twin-volcanoes DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260728 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260729 DESCRIPTION: What’s connecting these two volcanoes? In ancient folklore\ , the two volcanoes\, Parinacota (left) and Pomerape (right)\, are connec ted by representing a mythical prince and princess who engaged in a forb idden romance. Beneath the ground\, the two peaks are not known to be co nnected by a common pool of hot magma\, and neither volcano has erupted i n the past 1000 years. Above the ground\, there is usually nothing in the sky that connects them — except if you use careful timing and look from a specific location. The featured well-planned image was captured from  Bolivia in mid-April with a series of camera exposures taken on the same day and from the same location. Then\, Barnard’s Loop appeared to con nect the volcanic peaks. Also visible in the image is the Orion Nebula i n the center\, the star Betelgeuse on the right\, and the Rosette Nebu la on the upper right.\n\nGonzalo Laserna Vargas\nhttps://science.nasa.go v/image-article/apod/apod-2026-july-28-barnards-loop-over-twin-volcanoes/ SUMMARY:Barnards Loop over Twin Volcanoes END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:ngc-7635-the-bubble-nebula DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260727 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260728 DESCRIPTION:What created this huge space bubble? Blown by the wind from a s tar\, this tantalizing\, head-like apparition is cataloged as NGC 7635\, but known simply as the Bubble Nebula. Taken from Krakow\, Poland\, the  featured view utilizes a long exposure to reveal the intricate details of this cosmic bubble and its environment. Although it looks delicate\, the 10 light-year diameter bubble offers evidence of violent processes  at work. Seen here right of the Bubble‘s center\, a bright hot star i s embedded in the nebula’s reflecting dust. A fierce stellar wind an d intense radiation from the star\, which likely has a mass 10 to 20 time s that of the Sun\, has blasted out the structure of glowing gas agains t denser material in a surrounding molecular cloud. The intriguing Bubbl e Nebula lies a mere 11\,000 light-years away toward the boastful cons tellation Cassiopeia.\n\nPaweł Piechnik\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image- article/apod/apod-2026-july-27-ngc-7635-the-bubble-nebula/ SUMMARY:NGC 7635: The Bubble Nebula END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:simulation-tng50-a-galaxy-cluster-forms DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260726 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260727 DESCRIPTION:How do clusters of galaxies form? Since our universe moves too slowly to watch\, faster-moving computer simulations are created to help f ind out. One famous effort is TNG50 from IllustrisTNG\, an upgrade of the famous Illustris Simulation. The first part of the featured video tracks c osmic gas (mostly hydrogen) as it evolves into galaxies and galaxy cluster s from the early universe to today\, with brighter colors marking faster m oving gas. As the universe matures\, gas falls into gravitational wells\, galaxies forms\, galaxies spin\, galaxies collide and merge\, all while bl ack holes form in galaxy centers and expel surrounding gas at high speeds. The second half of the video switches to tracking stars\, showing a galax y cluster coming together\, complete with stellar streams. The outflow fro m black holes in TNG50 is surprisingly complex and details are being compa red with our real universe. Studying how gas coalesced in the early univer se helps humanity better understand how our Earth\, Sun\, and Solar System originally formed.\n\nVideo Credit: IllustrisTNG Project\; Visualization: Dylan Nelson (Max Planck Institute for Astrophysics) et al.Music: Symphon y No. 5 (Ludwig van Beethoven)\, via YouTube Audio Library\nhttps://scienc e.nasa.gov/image-article/apod/apod-2026-july-26-simulation-tng50-a-galaxy- cluster-forms/ SUMMARY:Simulation TNG50: A Galaxy Cluster Forms END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:tranquility-and-serenity DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260725 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260726 DESCRIPTION:The Seas of Tranquility and Serenity are calm today. They’re calm most every day though\, since they are actually lunar maria\, ancient lava flows filling in large impact basins on the Moon. Also known by Lati n names Mare Tranquillitatis (right) and Mare Serenitatis\, the smooth dar k lunar “seas” are in stark contrast to the bright cratered lunar high lands surrounding them in this telescopic view. Of course their names are based on the historical\, pre-telescopic designations of lunar maria. Easi ly visible to the unaided eye\, the broad features on the Moon’s near si de were imagined to be like the expansive oceans of planet Earth. On July 20\, 1969\, the Apollo 11 lunar module Eagle touched down on the Mare Tran quillitatis (at lower right)\, establishing Tranquility base and the first human presence on the Moon.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Nyêrdson Ferrei ra\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod/apod-2026-july-25-tranquil ity-and-serenity/ SUMMARY:Tranquility and Serenity END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:rcw-86-historical-supernova-remnant DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260724 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260725 DESCRIPTION:In 185 AD\, Chinese astronomers recorded the appearance of a ne w star in the Nanmen asterism. That part of the sky is identified with par t of the southern constellation Centaurus on modern star charts. In fact\, the new star was reported to be visible to the naked eye for months befor e it faded from view\, and is now thought to be the earliest recorded supe rnova. In this 21st century telescopic image\, the wispy outlines of a fai nt emission nebula recognized as the remnant of that historical stellar ex plosion can be traced against a starry background. The ragged but roughly circular extent of the nebula\, cataloged as RCW 86\, represents interstel lar gas ionized by the supernova’s still expanding shock wave. Space-bas ed images indicate an abundance of the element iron in RCW 86 and the abse nce of a neutron star or pulsar within the remnant\, suggesting that the o riginal supernova was Type Ia. Unlike the core collapse supernova explosio n of a massive star\, a Type Ia supernova is a thermonuclear detonation on a white dwarf star that has accreted material from its companion in a bin ary star system. Near the plane of our Milky Way galaxy and larger than th e full moon on the sky this supernova remnant is too faint to be seen by e ye though. RCW 86 is some 8\,000 light-years distant and around 100 light- years across.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: David Cowland\nhttps://science. nasa.gov/image-article/apod/apod-2026-july-24-rcw-86-historical-supernova- remnant/ SUMMARY:RCW 86: Historical Supernova Remnant END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:the-large-magellanic-cloud DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260723 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260724 DESCRIPTION: Have you ever seen another galaxy with your own eyes? The  featured image shows the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC)\, one of the clos est neighbors of our Milky Way. If you are anywhere south of latitude 2 0° N (but the further south\, the better)\, you can see it with the unai ded eye if you go to a dark sky location\, away from big cities and ligh t polution. It is a dwarf irregular galaxy about 163\,000 light-years a way\, and a member of our Local Group of galaxies. Despite being small\, with a total mass approximately equivalent to 10% – 20% of the mass o f the Milky Way\, the LMC is very actively forming stars. This is likely due in part to the gravitational push and pull of tides caused by the Mi lky Way on the LMC. Some astronomers have predicted that it will collide  with the Milky Way in in about 2 billion years.\n\nMonica Mesa\nhttps:// science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod/apod-2026-july-23-the-large-magellanic -cloud/ SUMMARY:The Large Magellanic Cloud END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003404Z UID:the-corona-australis-cloud-and-the-chandelier-cluster DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260722 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260723 DESCRIPTION:The Southern Crown (Corona Australis) dazzles with young and an cient celestial jewels. The Corona Australis Cloud is a collage of refle ction and emission nebulae on the left of today’s image. At 430 light years away\, this cloud is one of the closest star-forming regions to Ea rth. It contains gas cool enough (-260 Celsius or -440 Fahrenheit) to coll apse into protostars. Recently formed stars paint blue hues across the cl oud as their light reflects off surrounding material. The waltz of the R C oronae Australis binary system stirs up the nebula NGC 6729. The younge r of the pair ionizes nearby gas with its ultraviolet light\, causing it to glow. The Chandelier Cluster (NGC 6723) dangles from the top right\, but is actually tens of thousands of light years farther away than its ap parent star-forming neighbor. While NGC 6723 experienced multiple periods of star formation creating slightly younger stars\, the chandelier twin kles with stars almost as old as the universe.Tomorrow’s APOD: a friendl y neighborhood galaxy\n\nDES/DOE/FNAL/DECam/CTIO/NOIRLab/NSF/AURA\; Proces sing: T.A. Rector (UAA/NOIRLab)\, R. Colombari & M. Zamani (NOIRLab)\nhtt ps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod/apod-2026-july-22-the-corona-aust ralis-molecular-cloud-and-the-chandelier-cluster/ SUMMARY:The Corona Australis Molecular Cloud and the Chandelier Cluster END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:turtle-rock-on-mars DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260721 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260722 DESCRIPTION:Is this a fossilized turtle on Mars? No. Although resembling a large Earth tortoise \, this is a layered rock outcrop on Mars that is est imated to span about 15 meters\, making it much larger than turtles on Ear th . NASA’s robotic Curiosity rover came across this unusual mound \, du bbed Miraflores\, last month during its 4922nd Martian day exploring Mars. The small butte may survive because it was somehow more resistant to eros ion than surrounding rock. More recent wind has now covered its top with o range Martian sand . Below the top shell\, many layers of stratified rock are visible \, possibly indicating a long history of intermittent wind-blo wn sand being deposited and then hardened by ground water. Similar wind-er oded layered landforms\, such as yardangs in the Qaidam Desert of China \, exist here on Earth. Curiosity and its companion rover Perseverance conti nue to investigate the ancient history of Mars as well as searching for si gns of primeval life .\n\nImage Credit: NASA / JPL-Caltech / MSSS \; Proce ssing & License : Thomas Thomopoulos\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-artic le/apod-2026-july-21-turtle-rock-on-mars/ SUMMARY:Turtle Rock on Mars END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:ngc-3576-the-statue-of-liberty-nebula DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260720 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260721 DESCRIPTION:What’s happening in the Statue of Liberty nebula? Bright star s and interesting molecules are forming and being liberated . The complex nebula resides in the star forming region called RCW 57\, and besides the iconic monument\, to some looks like a flying superhero or a weeping angel . This re-assigned color image showcases dense knots of dark interstellar dust \, fields of glowing hydrogen gas ionized by these stars\, and great loop s of gas expelled by dying stars. A detailed study of NGC 3576 \, al so known as NGC 3582 and NGC 3584 \, uncovered at least 33 massive stars i n the end stages of formation\, and the clear presence of the complex carb on molecules known as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). PAHs are th ought to be created in the cooling gas of star forming region s\, and thei r development in the Sun’s formation nebula five billion years ago may h ave been an important step in the development of life on Earth. Jigsaw Sta r Statue: Astronomy Puzzle of the Day\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Logan C arpenter\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-july-20-ngc-357 6-the-statue-of-liberty-nebula/ SUMMARY:NGC 3576: The Statue of Liberty Nebula END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:flying-saucer-crash-lands-in-utah-desert DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260719 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260720 DESCRIPTION:A flying saucer from outer space crash-landed in the Utah deser t after being tracked by radar and chased by helicopters. The year was 200 4\, and no space aliens were involved. The saucer\, pictured here\, was th e Genesis sample return capsule\, part of a human-made robot Genesis space ship launched in 2001 by NASA itself to study the Sun. The unexpectedly ha rd landing at over 300 kilometers per hour occurred because the parachutes did not open as planned. The Genesis mission had been orbiting the Sun co llecting solar wind particles that are usually deflected away by Earth’s magnetic field . Despite the crash landing\, many return samples remained in good enough condition to analyze. Genesis -related discoveries include d new details about the composition of the Sun and how the abundance of so me types of elements differ across the Solar System . These results have p rovided intriguing clues into details of how the Sun and planets formed bi llions of years ago. Almost Hyperspace: Random APOD Generator\n\nImage Cre dit: USAF 388th Range Sqd.\, Genesis Mission \, NASA\nhttps://science.nasa .gov/image-article/apod-2026-july-19-flying-saucer-crash-lands-in-utah-des ert/ SUMMARY:Flying Saucer Crash Lands in Utah Desert END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:shadow-and-rainbow DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260718 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260719 DESCRIPTION:At sunset\, an alignment of rainbow and mountain shadow was cap tured in this remarkable snapshot. The stunning view was recorded from a f ire lookout on Smith Peak in the Plumas National Forest near Portola\, Cal ifornia on July 13. Still\, near sunset it’s no accident that the majest ic mountain shadow seems to point to the center of the graceful rainbow ar c . Due to perspective and the long line of sight the mountain shadow natu rally forms a tapering triangular shape\, its apex positioned at the point opposite the Sun on the horizon. Following thunderstorms in the region\, the rainbow arched across the early evening sky\, with its colorful and ch aracteristic 42 degree arc formed as sunlight is refracted and reflected b y the atmospheric water droplets. The geometric center of a rainbow arc li es at the antisolar point. And in this scene from the golden hour on plane t Earth \, that’s also opposite the setting Sun along the distant horizo n.\n\nImage Credit & License: Dave Loschiavo\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/ima ge-article/apod-2026-july-18-shadow-and-rainbow/ SUMMARY:Shadow and Rainbow END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:the-dust-trail-of-comet-tempel-2 DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260717 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260718 DESCRIPTION:Comet 10P/Tempel 2 orbits the Sun once every 5.4 years. Current ly visible in binoculars or small telescopes toward the constellation Capr icornus\, the periodic comet is captured in this sharp telescopic image fr om July 11 sporting a bright nuclear region and pretty greenish coma. Rema rkably\, a thin dust trail \, not a typical dust tail\, is also seen exten ding both east and west of the Tempel 2 nucleus. Unlike a comet dust tail \, which tends to temporarily fan out in a direction away from the Sun\, t his dust trail is due to the residual dust shed during many past orbits al ong this ancient periodic comet’s orbital plane. In fact\, Tempel 2’s dust trail may get a little narrower and brighter from our perspective as Earth crosses through the comet’s orbital plane on July 20. Comet 10P/Te mpel 2 will reach a perihelion on August 2\, and make its closest approach to Earth on August 3.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Dan Bartlett\nhttps:// science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-july-17-the-dust-trail-of-comet-t empel-2/ SUMMARY:The Dust Trail of Comet Tempel 2 END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:ngc-300-a-cosmic-gemstone-with-stars-and-gas-clouds DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260716 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260717 DESCRIPTION:This sparkling\, colorful gemstone is a spiral galaxy\, NGC 300 . It is one of the closest spiral galaxies to Earth\, only about 6 millio n light-years away. But does it really look like this ? Here is a more sta ndard portrait of it. This unusual image combines the light from the stars and dust within the galaxy with the light from ionized clouds of interste llar gas shown in red (Sulphur)\, green (Hydrogen) and blue (Oxygen). Comb ining red and green light in different proportions makes yellow or orange light\, most visible in the image. Light from other ionized gases is also at work in neon signs\, fluorescent tubes and street lights. These massive clouds of ionized gas are typically created by young\, massive stars that produce high-energy ultraviolet radiation capable of ionizing the gas. Ma ssive stars are short-lived \, compared with lighter stars like our sun\, and explode as supernovas at the end of their lives. Some of the colorful clouds in the image could be hiding supernova remnants .\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Team Ciel Austral Text: Cecilia Chirenti ( NASA GSFC \, UMCP \ , CRESST II )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-july-16-ng c-300-a-cosmic-gemstone-with-stars-and-gas-clouds/ SUMMARY:NGC 300: A Cosmic Gemstone with Stars and Gas Clouds END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:gigantic-jet-over-the-tatacoa-desert DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260715 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260716 DESCRIPTION:Is there an angry Sith using force lightning in the Tatacoa Des ert ? This is not science fiction\, but a gigantic jet with multiple red s treamers ! Ordinary lightning occurs when thundercloud particles collide\, lose their electrons\, and build up negative charge at the cloud bottom. The cloud’s negative charge repels negative charge deeper into the Earth \, leaving Earth’s surface positively charged. The opposite charges attr act \, reaching towards each other and superheating the air into a white s trike of plasma . A gigantic jet occurs when internal cloud discharge esca pes upward through a weak positive shielding layer\, and shoots up from th e cloud in less than a second. They extend up into the mesosphere where th e air is too thin for thunder . The streamers at the top may resemble red sprites and get their color from heated molecular nitrogen . Note: The tex t of this APOD has been revised .\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Mario Varga s Text: Keighley Rockcliffe ( NASA GSFC \, UMBC CSST \, CRESST II )\nhttps ://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-july-15-gigantic-jet-over-the- tatacoa-desert/ SUMMARY:Gigantic Jet Over the Tatacoa Desert END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:double-lobed-asteroid-torifune DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260714 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260715 DESCRIPTION:Why is this asteroid a double? Earlier this month the Japan ese robotic spacecraft Hayabusa2 shot past asteroid 98943 Torifune and captur ed pictures . Although previous observations from distant Earth indicated that Torifune was oblong\, Hayabusa2 found that Torifune actually has two joined lobes. With a length of about four soccer field s\, this space rock frequently comes near the Earth as it orbits the Sun \, although it is no t a threat. Besides the two lobes\, Torifune shows many large boulders \, but\, surprisingly\, no obvious craters \, likely because its surface is a pile of rubble . Like asteroid Arrokoth \, it appears that each lobe form ed separately before colliding and becoming stuck together . Hayabusa2 fam ously encountered asteroid Ryugu in 2018\, and now heads for an encounter in 2031 with 1998 KY26 \, a smaller asteroid that rotates unusually fast a nd might have reservoirs of ice.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: JAXA \, U. o f Tokyo \, Chiba Tech \, Tokyo U. of Science \, AIST \, Paris Obs. \, IAC\ nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-july-14-double-lobed-ast eroid-torifune/ SUMMARY:Double Lobed Asteroid Torifune END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:auroras-from-space DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260713 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260714 DESCRIPTION:What do auroras look like from above? Behold! From the ground\, auroras dance high above clouds \, frequently causing spectacular display s . From space\, they look a bit different. As the International Space Sta tion (ISS) circles the Earth every 90 minutes\, it sometimes sees auroras below that are active on the night side. A one-hour time-lapse video showi ng auroras from above was captured about two weeks ago from the orbiting I SS. The ISS — and all objects in low Earth orbit — will pass well abov e green auroras but just a bit above red glowing auroras . The auroras’ electron and proton streams are too thin to be a danger to the ISS\, just as clouds pose little danger to airplanes . From orbit\, as magnetic field s change\, auroras can appear to squiggle and crawl like giant snakes . Th e featured one-minute video was captured by French astronaut Sophie Adenot of the ISS Expedition 74 crew. Auroras from Space Explanation: What do au roras look like from above? Behold! From the ground\, auroras dance high a bove clouds \, frequently causing spectacular displays . From space\, they look a bit different. As the International Space Station (ISS) circles th e Earth every 90 minutes\, it sometimes sees auroras below that are active on the night side. A one-hour time-lapse video showing auroras from above was captured about two weeks ago from the orbiting ISS. The ISS — and a ll objects in low Earth orbit — will pass well above green auroras but j ust a bit above red glowing auroras . The auroras’ electron and proton s treams are too thin to be a danger to the ISS\, just as clouds pose little danger to airplanes . From orbit\, as magnetic fields change\, auroras ca n appear to squiggle and crawl like giant snakes . The featured one-minute video was captured by French astronaut Sophie Adenot of the ISS Expeditio n 74 crew. Sky Surprise: What picture did APOD feature on your birthday? ( after 1995)\n\nImage Credit: ESA \, NASA \, ISS Expedition 74 \; Capture: Sophie Adenot \; Music: Circle of Light ( Patrick Hawes & Grace Davidson ) \nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-july-13-auroras-from-sp ace/ SUMMARY:Auroras from Space END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:galaxy-ngc-474-shells-and-star-streams DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260712 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260713 DESCRIPTION:What’s happening to galaxy NGC 474 ? The multiple layers of e mission appear strangely complex given the relatively featureless appearan ce of the elliptical galaxy in less deep images. The cause of the shells i s a topic of research\, but they are possibly tidal tail s related to debr is left over from absorbing numerous small galaxies in the past billion ye ars. Alternatively\, the shells may be like ripples in a pond\, where the ongoing collision with the spiral galaxy just to the right of NGC 474 is c ausing density waves to ripple through the galactic giant. Regardless of t he actual cause\, the featured image dramatically highlights the increasin g evidence that the halos of some elliptical galaxies are surprisingly com plicated. Similarly\, the halo of our own Milky Way Galaxy is one example of such unexpected intricacies . NGC 474 spans about 250\,000 light years and lies about 100 million light years distant toward the constellation of the Fish ( Pisces ).\n\nImage Credit & License: CFHT \, Coelum \, MegaCam \, J.-C. Cuillandre ( CFHT ) & G. A. Anselmi ( Coelum )\nhttps://science. nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-july-12-galaxy-ngc-474-shells-and-star-st reams/ SUMMARY:Galaxy NGC 474: Shells and Star Streams END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:messier-24-sagittarius-star-cloud DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260711 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260712 DESCRIPTION:Unlike most entries in Charles Messier’s famous catalog of de ep sky objects\, M24 is not a bright galaxy\, star cluster\, or nebula. It ’s a gap in nearby\, obscuring interstellar dust clouds that allows a vi ew of the distant stars in the Sagittarius spiral arm of our Milky Way gal axy. Direct your gaze through this gap with binoculars or a small telescop e and you are looking through a window over 300 light-years wide at stars some 10\,000 light-years or more from Earth. Sometimes called the Small Sa gittarius Star Cloud \, M24’s luminous stars stretch across this gorgeou s interstellar scene. Spanning over four full moons on the sky toward the constellation Sagittarius\, the telescopic field of view includes dark mar kings B92 and B93 near the center of M24\, along with other clouds of dust and glowing nebulae toward the center of the Milky Way.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Chuck Ayoub\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026- july-11-messier-24-sagittarius-star-cloud/ SUMMARY:Messier 24: Sagittarius Star Cloud END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:western-moon-eastern-sea DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260710 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260711 DESCRIPTION:The Mare Orientale \, Latin for Eastern Sea\, is one of the mos t striking large scale lunar features. The youngest of the large lunar imp act basins it’s very difficult to see from an earthbound perspective . S till\, captured on July 7 during a period of favorable tilt\, or libration of the lunar nearside\, the Eastern Sea can be found at the upper right i n this sharp telescopic view. In the image\, the large lunar mare is extre mely foreshortened and stretches along the Moon’s western edge. Formed b y the impact of an asteroid over 3 billion years ago and nearly 1000 kilom eters across\, the impact basin’s concentric circular features are rippl es in the lunar crust. But they are a little easier to spot in more direct images of the region taken from lunar orbit . So why is the Eastern Sea a t the Moon’s western edge? The Mare Orientale lunar feature was named be fore 1961. That’s when the convention labeling east and west on lunar ma ps was reversed.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Guy Bardon\nhttps://science. nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-july-10-western-moon-eastern-sea/ SUMMARY:Western Moon\, Eastern Sea END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:the-red-glow-of-the-cosmic-bat-nebula DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260709 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260710 DESCRIPTION:This Cosmic Bat wishes you a happy Summerween ! This mid-year c elebration of Halloween transcends hemispheres\, even though summer in the Northern hemisphere is winter in the South. Contrary to its eery aura\, t he Cosmic Bat Nebula ( LDN 43)\, not to be confused with the Bat Nebula (N GC 6995)\, is a vibrant birthplace for stars . A bit of young starlight pe eks through the dense clouds of gas and dust that make up the Cosmic Bat ’s 12 lightyear wingspan. The ultraviolet light from the young stars ene rgizes the nebula’s hydrogen gas\, causing it to glow an ominous red . T he jet of glowing hydrogen gas emerging from the bat’s head hints at the star formation hidden within.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Humbert Cédri c Text: Keighley Rockcliffe ( NASA GSFC \, UMBC CSST \, CRESST II )\nhttps ://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-july-9-the-red-glow-of-the-cos mic-bat-nebula/ SUMMARY:The Red Glow of the Cosmic Bat Nebula END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:swift-boost-mission DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260708 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260709 DESCRIPTION:Sometimes we can all use a little help from a friend . NASA ‘ s Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory needs a boost to stay in orbit after almo st 22 years of service. This video shows an artist’s visualization of th e Swift Boost Mission : The Katalyst ‘s LINK spacecraft was launched abo ard a Northrop Grumman Pegasus XL rocket on July 3 and it is now en route to rendezvous with Swift and boost it to a higher orbit over the course of the next several months . This type of maneuver has never been attempted before . If successful\, it will be the technology demonstration of a new key capability to extended the lifetime of spacecraft in low Earth orbit\, whose orbits decay over time . Swift has an array of instruments that obs erve the most energetic explosions in the Universe in gamma-rays\, X-rays and ultraviolet\, and the unique ability to repoint in their direction wit hin tens of seconds . Astronomers around the world\, and indeed all fans o f cosmic explosions\, are anxiously hoping for a successful mission! Swift Boost Mission Explanation: Sometimes we can all use a little help from a friend . NASA ‘s Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory needs a boost to stay in orbit after almost 22 years of service. This video shows an artist’s vi sualization of the Swift Boost Mission : The Katalyst ‘s LINK spacecraft was launched aboard a Northrop Grumman Pegasus XL rocket on July 3 and it is now en route to rendezvous with Swift and boost it to a higher orbit o ver the course of the next several months . This type of maneuver has neve r been attempted before . If successful\, it will be the technology demons tration of a new key capability to extended the lifetime of spacecraft in low Earth orbit\, whose orbits decay over time . Swift has an array of ins truments that observe the most energetic explosions in the Universe in gam ma-rays\, X-rays and ultraviolet\, and the unique ability to repoint in th eir direction within tens of seconds . Astronomers around the world\, and indeed all fans of cosmic explosions\, are anxiously hoping for a successf ul mission!\n\nImage Credit: Katalyst Space Text: Cecilia Chirenti ( NASA GSFC \, UMCP \, CRESST II )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2 026-july-8-swift-boost-mission/ SUMMARY:Swift Boost Mission END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:ngc-6188-dragons-of-ara DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260707 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260708 DESCRIPTION:Where can you find dragons fighting in the night sky? In the so uthern constellation of the Altar: Ara . The dragons are\, of course\, act ually made of suggestively shaped gas and dust. The celestial home of the mythological battling beasts is cataloged as NGC 6188 and located about 4\ ,000 light year s away near the edge of a large molecular cloud . Massive\ , young stars of the embedded Ara OB1 association were formed there only a few million years ago\, sculpting the dark shapes and powering the nebula r glow with stellar winds and intense ultraviolet radiation. Joining NGC 6 188 on this cosmic canvas\, visible toward the lower right\, is unusual em ission nebula NGC 6164 \, also created by one of the region’s massive st ars . This impressively wide field picture \, captured from Queensland \, Australia \, spans over 2 degrees (four full Moon s).\n\nImage Credit & Co pyright: Rod Prazeres\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-ju ly-7-ngc-6188-dragons-of-ara/ SUMMARY:NGC 6188: Dragons of Ara END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:dueling-bands-over-the-atacama-desert DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260706 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260707 DESCRIPTION:What are these two bands in the sky? The more commonly seen ban d is on the left and is the central band of our Milky Way galaxy . Our Sun orbits in the disk of this spiral galaxy so that from inside\, it appears as a band of comparable brightness all the way around the sky . The less commonly seen band\, on the right\, is zodiacal light — sunlight reflect ed from dust orbiting the Sun in our Solar System . Zodiacal light is brig htest near the Sun and so is best seen just before sunrise or just after s unset. On some evenings\, this ribbon of zodiacal light can appear quite p rominent . It was discovered only in this century that zodiacal dust was m ostly expelled by comets that have passed near Jupiter . The featured imag e was captured about a year ago from the Atacama Desert in Chile .\n\nImag e Credit & Copyright: Julien Looten\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-articl e/apod-2026-july-6-dueling-bands-over-the-atacama-desert/ SUMMARY:Dueling Bands over the Atacama Desert END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:saturns-iapetus-painted-moon DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260705 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260706 DESCRIPTION:What has happened to Saturn’s moon Iapetus? Vast sections of this strange world are dark as coal \, while others are as bright as snow . To help better understand this unusually tinted moon\, in 2007 NASA dire cted the robotic Cassini spacecraft then orbiting Saturn to swoop within 2 \,000 kilometers. Pictured here \, from about 75\,000 kilometers out\, is the hemisphere of Iapetus that is always trailing . A large impact crater seen in the south spans 500 kilometers and appears superposed on an older crater of similar size. The dark material is seen increasingly coating the easternmost part of Iapetus \, darkening craters and highlands alike. A l eading hypothesis is that the dark material is mostly a form of carbon-ric h soil leftover from when relatively warm but dirty ice sublimates . An in itial coating of this dark material may have been effectively painted on b y the accretion of meteor-liberated debris from other moon s. Jigsaw Moon: Astronomy Puzzle of the Day\n\nImage Credit: NASA \, ESA \, JPL \, SSI \, Cassini Imaging Team\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod/apod-20 26-july-5-saturns-iapetus-painted-moon/ SUMMARY:Saturns Iapetus: Painted Moon END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:pathfinder-on-mars DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260704 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260705 DESCRIPTION:On July 4th \, 1997\, using its own array of fireworks \, a par achute\, and a cocoon of airbags\, the Mars Pathfinder spacecraft bounced like a giant beach ball at least 15 times before it came to rest on the su rface of Mars at 10:07 AM Pacific Daylight Time. After its then novel airb ag-assisted landing sequence was completed \, Pathfinder transmitted this color mosaic to mission operators on Earth. In the scene from another worl d\, the Mars Sojourner robot rover is visible in the foreground\, crouched on top of the unfolded Pathfinder. About the size of a large house cat\, the six-wheeled\, solar-powered Sojourner became the first successful Mart ian rover. Surrounding Pathfinder are deflated airbags and the rock-strewn terrain of the Ares Vallis floodplain. In the distance Martian hills appe ar against a dusty brownish sky. The Pathfinder lander was subsequently re named the Carl Sagan Memorial Station .\n\nImage Credit: Mars Pathfinder \ , JPL \, NASA\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-july-4-pat hfinder-on-mars/ SUMMARY:Pathfinder on Mars END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:three-galaxies-in-pavo DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260703 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260704 DESCRIPTION:Some 190 million light-years away\, far beyond the bright stars and nebulae of the Milky Way\, these three galaxies are drawn together by gravity in a mesmerizing cosmic dance . Clearly distorted by galactic-sca le gravitational interactions\, large spiral galaxies NGC 6769 and NGC 677 0 are seen face-on\, with luminous galactic disks scarred by obscuring int erstellar dust lanes. Their young blue star clusters along drawn out spira l arms are spawned in star forming regions that resulted from collisions o f massive molecular clouds . Below\, spiral NGC 6771 presents a more edge- on perspective\, its boxy central bulge due to tidal star streams . Of cou rse\, in the distant future a merger of the three galaxies is inevitable. At the estimated distance of this galaxy trio\, known to some as the Devil ’s Mask \, the sharp telescopic frame spans over 300 thousand light-year s within the boundaries of the far southern constellation Pavo .\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Mike Selby\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apo d-2026-july-3-three-galaxies-in-pavo/ SUMMARY:Three Galaxies in Pavo END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:sibling-supernova-remnants DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260702 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260703 DESCRIPTION:What happens when one of the stars in a binary goes supernova? This image combines visible (yellow)\, ultraviolet (purple) and infrared l ight (cyan\, red and orange) to show two supernova remnants and their surr ounding environment\, about 6\,000 light-years away. The younger one is th e well-known Jellyfish Nebula in the center (mostly in yellow). If we coul d see it by eye\, it would appear larger than the full moon in the sky. Th e filament shown in purple is part of an older\, overlapping supernova rem nant\, G189.6+3.3 . A new study used data from NASA ‘s Fermi Gamma-ray S pace Telescope to piece together their story . Astronomers believe that th ere were two stars in a binary system\, then the first one exploded as a s upernova\, kicking away its companion\, which also exploded as a supernova tens of thousands of years later\, creating the superimposed supernova re mnants we see today. The bright star on the right is actually a triple sta r system named Propus .\n\nImage Credit: NASA Goddard Space Flight Center and M. Michailidis et al. 2026\; optical: DSS \; infrared: NASA / WISE / J PL – Caltech / UCLA \; ultraviolet: NASA / Swift Text: Cecilia Chirenti ( NASA GSFC \, UMCP \, CRESST II )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article /apod-2026-july-2-sibling-supernova-remnants/ SUMMARY:Sibling Supernova Remnants END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:the-cotton-candy-clouds-of-rho-ophiuchi DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260701 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260702 DESCRIPTION:Although they look like cotton candy\, you cannot eat these clo uds! Taken in Cádiz\, Spain \, today’s image features the Rho Ophiuchi complex \, a rich tapestry of young and old astronomical phenomena. This c olorful cloud complex is a nearby star-forming region containing hundreds of young stellar objects \, including protostars and T Tauri stars . Light from the triple star system at its center reflects off of small dust grai ns to create the blue reflection nebula . Ultraviolet light from hot stars ionizes the surrounding hydrogen gas\, creating the red emission nebula . Antares \, a red supergiant big enough to engulf the Solar System’s ast eroid belt \, lights up the yellow region. Dark interstellar dust blocks s ome of the complex’s color. Recent JWST observations exhibit shadows cas t by hidden circumstellar disks \, the beginning stages of planet formatio n. Messier 4 \, a globular cluster almost as old as the universe\, sits in the bottom right and witnesses yet another chaotic burst of youth in the Milky Way.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Ángel Molina Text: Keighley Rockc liffe ( NASA GSFC \, UMBC CSST \, CRESST II )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/im age-article/apod-2026-july-1-the-cotton-candy-clouds-of-rho-ophiuchi/ SUMMARY:The Cotton Candy Clouds of Rho Ophiuchi END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:unusually-smooth-sections-of-asteroid-itokawa DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260630 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260701 DESCRIPTION:Why are parts of this asteroid’s surface so smooth? The answe r seems likely to do with the dynamics of an asteroid that is a loose pile of rubble rather than a solid rock. The unusual asteroid Itokawa was visi ted by the Japan ese spacecraft Hayabusa in 2005 which imaged and document ed its unusual structure and mysterious lack of craters . Analyses of the border regions between smooth and rugged sections indicate that jostling o f the asteroid might be creating segregation between large and small rocks near the surface\, like the Brazil nut effect . The robotic Hayabusa actu ally touched down on one of the smooth patches\, dubbed the MUSES Sea \, a nd collected soil samples . These samples were returned to Earth and are n ot only giving clues to the ancient history of this unusual asteroid \, bu t also about the early years of our entire Solar System . Computer simulat ions show that 500-meter asteroid Itokawa may impact the Earth within the next few million years. Rocking Space: Today is Asteroid Day\n\nImage Cred it: JAXA \, ISAS\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-june-30 -unusually-smooth-sections-of-asteroid-itokawa/ SUMMARY:Unusually Smooth Sections of Asteroid Itokawa END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:m82-galaxy-with-a-supergalactic-wind DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260629 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260630 DESCRIPTION:Why is the Cigar Galaxy billowing red smoke? M82 \, as this sta rburst galaxy is also known\, was stirred up by a recent pass near large s piral galaxy M81 . This doesn’t fully explain the source of the red-glow ing outwardly expanding gas and dust\, however. Evidence indicates that th is gas and dust is being driven out by the combined emerging particle wind s of many stars\, together creating a galactic superwind . The dust partic les are thought to originate in M82’s interstellar medium and are actual ly similar in size to particles in cigar smoke. The featured photographic mosaic combines images taken in visible light from the Hubble Space Telesc ope and images taken in infrared light from James Webb Space Telescope . I t shows the light-colored central galaxy nearly edge on across the image c enter with tremendous orange and red colored filaments of gas and dust ext ending both up and down. The filaments extend for over 10\,000 light year s. The 12-million light-year distant Cigar Galaxy is the brightest galaxy in the sky in infrared light and can be seen in visible light with a small telescope towards the constellation of the Great Bear ( Ursa Major ).\n\n Image Credit: NASA \, ESA \, CSA \, A. Smercina (STScI\, Tufts)\, T. Willi ams (U. Manchester)\; Image Processing: A. Pagan (STScI)\nhttps://science. nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-june-29-m82-galaxy-with-a-supergalactic-w ind/ SUMMARY:M82: Galaxy with a Supergalactic Wind END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:ar-4478-giant-sunspot-group DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260628 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260629 DESCRIPTION:Right now\, one of the largest sunspot groups in recent history is crossing the Sun. Active Region 4478 is not only big — it’s violen t\, showing tangled magnetic fields capable of throwing off huge clouds of particles into the Solar System . Some of these CME s might impact the Ea rth. At the extreme\, these solar storm s could cause some Earth-orbiting satellites to malfunction \, the Earth’s atmosphere to slightly distort\ , and electrical power grids to surge . When impacting Earth’s upper atm osphere \, these particles can produce beautiful auroras . Pictured here\, AR 4478 and its dark sunspot s were captured in visible light a few days ago from Barcelona \, Spain . Almost as large as AR 3664 was in 2024\, the AR 4478 sunspot group is so big that it is visible just with glasses spec ially designed to view solar eclipse s. This week\, skygazing enthusiasts all over the globe will not only be tracking AR 4478 during the day — bu t keenly watching night skies for its corresponding bright auroras . Sky S urprise: What picture did APOD feature on your birthday? (after 1995)\n\nI mage Credit & Copyright: Alfredo Vidal Pérez\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/im age-article/apod-2026-june-28-ar-4478-giant-sunspot-group/ SUMMARY:AR 4478: Giant Sunspot Group END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:mars-marathon-by-perseverance DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260627 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260628 DESCRIPTION:In this recent HiRISE view from the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter \, the little green dot indicated on the surface of the big Red Planet is the Perseverance Mars rover. Recorded on June 13\, the car-sized\, six-whe eled robot was imaged a day before completing a Martian marathon\, traveli ng a total distance of 26.218 miles ( 42.195 kilometers ) since it began e xploring the surface of Mars. That equivalent marathon distance was achiev ed by Perseverance on its mission sol (Martian day) 1\,890\, after about 5 Earth years and 4 Earth months of driving. Perseverance is continuing to hunt for biosignatures. In the HiRISE image\, the Mars rover’s tracks ca n be seen leading to its location in an area west of its landing site in J ezero crater near an ancient river delta .\n\nImage Credit: NASA \, LPL (U . Arizona) \, MRO \, HiRISE\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2 026-june-27-mars-marathon-by-perseverance/ SUMMARY:Mars Marathon by Perseverance END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:milky-way-urban-style DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260626 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260627 DESCRIPTION:In a cosmic vista you can never see\, the Milky Way arcs throug h the night above Seoul\, South Korea. Remarkably\, this urban night skysc ape reveals our galaxy’s faintly luminous central region and dark obscur ing dust clouds in spite of the brilliant city lights . To overcome the ex treme light pollution of the metropolitan area and record faint cosmic det ails\, an infrared filter was used to capture the night scene in a single exposure. While the filter transmits predominately infrared light\, it sti ll passes some visible light to give the scene a natural appearance. The v iew is from Seoul’s Ttukseom Hangang Park\, with the Han River and a wel l lit railway bridge across the foreground. The 123 story Lotte World Towe r looms in the distance\, the tallest building in South Korea.\n\nImage Cr edit & Copyright: Shingoo Lee\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod -2026-june-26-milky-way-urban-style/ SUMMARY:Milky Way Urban Style END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:anticrepuscular-rays-over-sicily DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260625 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260626 DESCRIPTION:The Sun has just set… in the opposite side of the sky. Pictur ed here are anticrepuscular rays apparently converging in the east in this image of the limestone plateau in the heart of the Hyblaean Mountains of southeastern Sicily \, in Italy. How were these anticrepuscular rays forme d\, if the Sun wasn’t there ? After the Sun set (in the west\, as usual) its light still illuminated a cloud higher up in the sky. Partially block ed by the cloud\, the sunlight produced patterns of light and shadow\, cro ssing the sky in parallel lines. Perspective makes it look like they conve rge in the east\, in the same way that train tracks appear to meet in the distance. This effect can also happen at sunrise \, only the directions ar e exchanged. In rare cases\, both crepuscular and anticrepuscular rays can be seen at the same time .\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Marcella Giulia P ace Text: Cecilia Chirenti ( NASA GSFC \, UMCP \, CRESST II )\nhttps://sci ence.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-june-25-anticrepuscular-rays-over-si cily/ SUMMARY:Anticrepuscular Rays over Sicily END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:sdo-observes-a-coronal-mass-ejection DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260624 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260625 DESCRIPTION:Why does the Sun throw stuff at us? The Sun’s surface is a ch urning soup of energetic electrons and ions called plasma . The motion of those charged particles creates magnetic field loops that are larger than the Earth . These loops twist\, turn\, and trap plasma. The featured time- lapse\, taken over 2 hours on April 24th\, 2026 by the Solar Dynamics Obse rvatory \, shows what happens when those magnetic fields become too stress ed: they snap and expel billions of tons (trillions of kilograms) of plasm a into space at millions of miles (or kilometers) per hour in what is call ed a coronal mass ejection (CME). The Sun releases a few CMEs each day whe n it is at the peak of its activity cycle \, which passed in 2025. Some of these eruptions hit Earth and can disrupt power grids\, disable satellite s\, and endanger astronauts\, which is why space weather monitoring is so important. SDO Observes a Coronal Mass Ejection Explanation: Why does the Sun throw stuff at us? The Sun’s surface is a churning soup of energetic electrons and ions called plasma . The motion of those charged particles creates magnetic field loops that are larger than the Earth . These loops twist\, turn\, and trap plasma. The featured time-lapse\, taken over 2 hou rs on April 24th\, 2026 by the Solar Dynamics Observatory \, shows what ha ppens when those magnetic fields become too stressed: they snap and expel billions of tons (trillions of kilograms) of plasma into space at millions of miles (or kilometers) per hour in what is called a coronal mass ejecti on (CME). The Sun releases a few CMEs each day when it is at the peak of i ts activity cycle \, which passed in 2025. Some of these eruptions hit Ear th and can disrupt power grids\, disable satellites\, and endanger astrona uts\, which is why space weather monitoring is so important.\n\nVideo Cred it: NASA \, SDO \, AIA \; Processing: Richard Petarius III ( MTU ) Text: K eighley Rockcliffe ( NASA GSFC \, UMBC CSST \, CRESST II )\nhttps://scienc e.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-june-24-sdo-observes-a-coronal-mass-eje ction/ SUMMARY:SDO Observes a Coronal Mass Ejection END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:flying-past-neptunes-moon-triton DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260623 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260624 DESCRIPTION:What would it look like to fly past Triton \, the largest moon of planet Neptune ? Only one spacecraft has ever done this — and the ima ges of this dramatic encounter have been gathered into a video . In 1989\, the Voyager 2 robotic spacecraft shot through the Neptune system with cam eras blazing. Triton is slightly smaller than Earth’s Moon but has ice v olcanoes and a surface rich in frozen nitrogen . The first sequence in the video shows Voyager’s approach to Triton \, which\, with the exception of an overall false green tint \, appears in approximately true color. The mysterious cantaloupe terrain seen under the spacecraft soon changed from light to dark\, with the terminator of night crossing underneath . After closest approach\, Voyager pivoted to see the departing moon\, now visible as a diminishing crescent . In 2015\, the robotic New Horizons spacecraft famously flew past Pluto \, an orb of similar size to Triton. Flying Past Neptune's Moon Triton Explanation: What would it look like to fly past Tr iton \, the largest moon of planet Neptune ? Only one spacecraft has ever done this — and the images of this dramatic encounter have been gathered into a video . In 1989\, the Voyager 2 robotic spacecraft shot through th e Neptune system with cameras blazing. Triton is slightly smaller than Ear th’s Moon but has ice volcanoes and a surface rich in frozen nitrogen . The first sequence in the video shows Voyager’s approach to Triton \, wh ich\, with the exception of an overall false green tint \, appears in appr oximately true color. The mysterious cantaloupe terrain seen under the spa cecraft soon changed from light to dark\, with the terminator of night cro ssing underneath . After closest approach\, Voyager pivoted to see the dep arting moon\, now visible as a diminishing crescent . In 2015\, the roboti c New Horizons spacecraft famously flew past Pluto \, an orb of similar si ze to Triton. Almost Hyperspace: Random APOD Generator\n\nImage Credit: NA SA \; JPL \, Voyager 2\, Digital composition: Paul Schenk ( LPI \, USRA )\ nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-june-23-flying-past-nept unes-moon-triton/ SUMMARY:Flying Past Neptunes Moon Triton END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:m27-the-dumbbell-nebula DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260622 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260623 DESCRIPTION:Is this what will become of our Sun? Quite possibly. The first hint of our Sun ‘s future was discovered inadvertently in 1764 . At that time\, Charles Messier was compiling a list of diffuse objects not to be confused with comets. The 27th object on Messier’s list \, now known as M27 or the Dumbbell Nebula\, is a planetary nebula \, one of the brightest planetary nebula s on the sky and visible with binoculars toward the cons tellation of the Fox ( Vulpecula ). It takes light about 1000 years to rea ch us from M27\, featured here in colors enhanced by red for hydrogen and blue for oxygen . We now know that in about 6 billion years\, our Sun will shed its outer gases into a planetary nebula like M27\, while its remaini ng center will become an X-ray hot white dwarf star. Understanding the phy sics and significance of M27 was well beyond 18th century science\, though . Even today\, many things remain mysterious about planetary nebulas \, in cluding how their intricate shapes are created.\n\nImage Credit & Copyrigh t: Francesco Antonucci\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-j une-22-m27-the-dumbbell-nebula/ SUMMARY:M27: The Dumbbell Nebula END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:keogram-the-sky-in-2025 DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260621 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260622 DESCRIPTION:What if you could see the entire sky — all at once — for an entire year? That\, very nearly\, is what is pictured here. Every 15 seco nds during 2025\, an all-sky camera took an image of the sky over the Neth erlands . Central columns from these images were then aligned and combined to create the featured keogram \, with January at the top\, December at t he bottom\, and the middle of the night running vertically just left of ce nter. What do we see? Most obviously\, the daytime sky is mostly blue \, w hile the nighttime sky is mostly black. The twelve light bands crossing th e night sky are caused by the glow of the Moon . The thinnest part of the black hourglass shape occurs during the summer solstice \, like today \, w hen days are the longest\, while the thickest part occurs at the winter so lstice . Equinoxes can also be located in the keogram\, for example the no rthern-spring equinox from one year ago is about three-quarters of the way up.\n\nImage Credit & License: Cees Bassa ( Netherlands Institute for Rad io Astronomy )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-june-21-k eogram-the-sky-in-2025/ SUMMARY:Keogram: The Sky in 2025 END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:daytime-moon-meets-evening-star DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260620 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260621 DESCRIPTION:Venus is now appearing on the celestial stage as Earth’s bril liant evening star\, performing with the Moon\, other wandering planets\, and bright stars in western skies. For evening sky gazers on June 17\, the celestial beacon rose after sunset close by a young\, slender\, crescent Moon. But from some locations the Moon could be seen to occult or pass in front of Venus. And from a backyard observatory in southern British Columb ia\, Canada\, the lunar occultation was played out in daylight. This stunn ing telescopic snapshot captured a scene in dramatically cloudy skies \, f ollowing Venus’ hour long disappearance\, as the evening star emerged be yond the bright lunar limb.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Debra Ceravolo\nh ttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-june-20-daytime-moon-meets -evening-star/ SUMMARY:Daytime Moon Meets Evening Star END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:starry-night-ii DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260619 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260620 DESCRIPTION:Does this scene look familiar? It is a modern recreation of the famous painting Starry Night by Vincent van Gogh . Both the image and the painting depict a tall tree on the left\, a crescent moon on the upper ri ght\, the planet Venus just to the right of the tree\, a foreground horizo n rising from left to right\, and clouds above the horizon. Differences in clude that the photograph was taken in mid-April earlier this year in Casc avel \, Brazil \, while the painting was composed in Saint-Rémy-de-Proven ce \, France \, in 1889. The original Starry Night is considered by many t o be one of the three most famous paintings in the world today and a state ment about the wonders of the night sky. Today is (roughly) the anniversar y of the morning that van Gogh saw the sky that he later painted in his ve rsion of Starry Night . Night Sky Jigsaw: Astronomy Puzzle of the Day\n\nI mage Credit & Copyright: Rodrigo Guerra \, Original Painting: Vincent van Gogh\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-june-19-starry-nigh t-ii/ SUMMARY:Starry Night II END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:possible-supernova-remnant-in-galactic-center DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260618 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260619 DESCRIPTION:Do you see that blue blob to the lower right of the image cente r? Astronomers think that it shows where a massive star exploded as a supe rnova whose light reached Earth 1\,700 years ago . The image combines opti cal data from the PanSTARRS telescopes in Hawaii (background stars in red\ , green\, and blue)\, radio from the MeerKAT telescope in South Africa (la rge red cloud) and X-rays from NASA ‘s Chandra X-ray Observatory and ESA ’s XMM-Newton (shown in blue). The large cloud is a star forming region called Sagittarius C \, which is approximately 50 light-years in extent a nd about 26\,000 light-years from Earth . It is located only about 260 lig ht-years from the supermassive black hole in the center of the Galaxy (off to the left of the image). If the blue blob is confirmed to be a supernov a remnant \, it would be one of the closest ever discovered to the Galacti c Center . In this dense region \, the deaths of massive stars are connect ed to the birth of new stars through gas and magnetic fields in a complex way.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: X-ray: NASA / CXC / UCLA / Z. Zhu et al. \; ESA / XMM-Newton \; Optical: PanSTARRS \; Radio: MeerKAT \; Image Proce ssing: NASA / CXC / SAO / L. Frattare and P. Edmonds Text: Cecilia Chirent i ( NASA GSFC \, UMCP \, CRESST II )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-artic le/apod-2026-june-18-possible-supernova-remnant-in-galactic-center/ SUMMARY:Possible Supernova Remnant in Galactic Center END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:longmore-8-the-hamster-wheel-nebula DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260617 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260618 DESCRIPTION:How did a hamster wheel get into space? The Hamster Wheel Nebul a (Longmore 8) was discovered by Andrew Longmore in 1976 as a part of a la rger survey of the southern sky. This survey employed several improvements in photographic technology \, including the use of highly sensitive film \, to capture deeper and fainter objects on plates that were examined by e ye and catalogued. The featured image \, taken at Observatorio El Sauce in Chile\, depicts an intricate wheel structure of glowing hydrogen that was thrown out into space by a dying star and ionized by the leftover white d warf . This structure was barely visible on the original plate\, emphasizi ng the power of modern telescopes and cameras. Two opposing clumps of red hydrogen gas encased in the blue veil of ionized oxygen hint at the presen ce of a companion to the bright white dwarf at the wheel’s center!\n\nIm age Credit & Copyright: Mazlin \, Parker\, Forman\, Magill\, Hanson Text: Keighley Rockcliffe ( NASA GSFC \, UMBC CSST \, CRESST II )\nhttps://scien ce.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-june-17-longmore-8-the-hamster-wheel-n ebula/ SUMMARY:Longmore 8: The Hamster Wheel Nebula END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:moons-rings-shadows-clouds-saturn-cassini DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260616 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260617 DESCRIPTION:While cruising around Saturn\, be on the lookout for picturesqu e arrangements of moons\, rings\, and shadows. One such striking sight occ urred in 2005 and was captured by the then Saturn-orbiting Cassini spacecr aft. In the featured image\, moons Mimas (left) and Tethys (right) are vis ible on either side of Saturn’s thin rings \, which are seen nearly edge -on. Across the top of Saturn are dark shadows of the wide rings\, exhibit ing their impressive complexity. The violet-light image brings up the text ure of the backdrop: Saturn’s clouds . Cassini orbited Saturn from 2004 until mid-2017\, when the robotic spacecraft was directed to dive into Sat urn to keep it from contaminating any moons . Explore the Universe: Random APOD Generator\n\nImage Credit: NASA \, JPL-Caltech \, Space Science Inst itute\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-june-16-moons-ring s-shadows-clouds-saturn-cassini/ SUMMARY:Moons\, Rings\, Shadows\, Clouds: Saturn Cassini END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:triple-shockwave-from-sun-crossing-rocket DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260615 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260616 DESCRIPTION:What’s happening to this Sun-crossing rocket? The SpaceX Falc on 9 rocket\, visible on the upper left\, launched only about one minute b efore this amazing image was captured. As it rose to low Earth orbit from Cape Canaveral \, Florida \, USA \, in late May\, the rocket became supers onic before it crossed the disk of the distant Sun — from the perspectiv e of the well-placed photographer. The spacecraft’s high speed caused bo w-shaped compressed-air shockwaves to form across leading surfaces\, with at least three visible even outside the Sun ‘s disk because they refract sunlight . The trailing exhaust caused turbulence visible on the lower ri ght. None of this was damaging to the robotic Starlink 10-53 mission \, wh ich delivered 29 communications satellites to low Earth orbit as planned. And if that isn’t amazing enough – the Sun had spots ! Sky Surprise: W hat picture did APOD feature on your birthday? (after 1995)\n\nImage Credi t & Copyright: John Winkopp ( WAI Media )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image- article/apod-2026-june-15-triple-shockwave-from-sun-crossing-rocket/ SUMMARY:Triple Shockwave from Sun Crossing Rocket END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:10-days-of-venus-and-jupiter DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260614 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260615 DESCRIPTION:Venus and Jupiter may have caught your attention lately. The re cent close conjunction of the two brightest planets in recent evening skie s has been hard to miss . With Jupiter at the top\, starting on May 30 and ending on June 8\, their close approach was chronicled daily\, left to ri ght\, in the featured panels from Maharashtra \, India . Near the western horizon\, the evening sky colors and exposures used for each panel depend on the local conditions near sunset. At their closest on June 9\, the cele stial pair appeared to be only about three times the width of a full moon apart. Of course\, on that date\, the two planets were physically separate d by over 600 million kilometers in their orbits around the Sun . In the c oming days\, Jupiter will slowly settle into the sunset glare\, but Venus will continue to move farther from the Sun in the western sky to excel in its current role as the brilliant evening star . Gallery: Venus – Jupite r Conjunction of 2026 June\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Aditya Pawar\nhttp s://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-june-14-10-days-of-venus-and- jupiter/ SUMMARY:10 Days of Venus and Jupiter END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:interplanetary-earth DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260613 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260614 DESCRIPTION:In an interplanetary first\, on July 19\, 2013 Earth was photog raphed on the same day from two other worlds of the Solar System\, innermo st planet Mercury and ringed gas giant Saturn. Pictured on the left\, Eart h is the pale blue dot just below the rings of Saturn\, as captured by the robotic Cassini spacecraft then orbiting the outermost gas giant. On that same day people across planet Earth snapped many of their own pictures of Saturn. On the right\, the Earth-Moon system is seen against the dark bac kground of space as captured by the sunward MESSENGER spacecraft \, then i n Mercury orbit. MESSENGER took its image as part of a search for small na tural satellites of Mercury\, moons that would be expected to be quite dim . In the MESSENGER image \, the brighter Earth and Moon are both overexpos ed and shine brightly with reflected sunlight. Destined not to return to t heir home world\, both Cassini and MESSENGER have since retired from their missions of Solar System exploration.\n\nImage Credit: Cassini Imaging Te am \, SSI \, JPL \, ESA \, NASA & NASA / JHU Applied Physics Lab / Carnegi e Inst. Washington\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-june- 13-interplanetary-earth/ SUMMARY:Interplanetary Earth END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:venus-and-jupiter-conjunction-from-avebury DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260612 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260613 DESCRIPTION:To see Venus and Jupiter together this month\, you won’t need binoculars or even a telescope. Just look up after sunset and you’ll fi nd them emerging as the sky grows dark near the western horizon. In fact\, on June 9 the two brightest planets were in close conjunction\, separated on the sky by less than 2 degrees from our perspective. Since (brighter) inner planet Venus orbits the Sun faster than outer planet Jupiter\, it ca tches up with and passes the outer planet along the ecliptic roughly every 13 months. But every three years or so their resulting conjunction can be viewed far enough from the Sun to be easily seen in Earth’s twilight sk ies. On June 9\, the two celestial beacon’s close “cosmic kiss” was captured here next to two large standing stones\, the remains of a cove ne ar the center of a 4\,000 year old stone circle at Avebury \, UK. Larger t han Stonehenge \, the Avebury henge and stone circle complex is also recog nized as one of the most significant neolithic ceremonial sites on planet Earth.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Josh Dury\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/im age-article/apod-2026-june-12-venus-and-jupiter-conjunction-from-avebury/ SUMMARY:Venus and Jupiter: Conjunction from Avebury END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:the-mermaid-nebula-supernova-remnant DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260611 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260612 DESCRIPTION:Could the Little Mermaid turn into stardust instead of seafoam? It would seem so in this beautiful nebula . The featured image shows the Mermaid Nebula \, also known as the Betta Fish Nebula\, which is part of t he G296.5+10.0 Supernova Remnant . The blue color visible here originates from doubly ionized oxygen (OIII) \, while the deep red is emitted by hydr ogen gas . Estimated to be located a few thousand light-years away and abo ut 10\,000 years old\, this nebula was formed when a massive star exploded as a supernova . It left behind a peculiar pulsar \, a young radio-quiet neutron star that spins around about twice every second . The bright stars shown in the image are unassociated with the nebula. The pulsar can be de tected in the X-rays but it does not have a confirmed detection in the opt ical ( visible light ) so far. As a result\, the pulsar itself is not visi ble in this image.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Data acquisition: Sy Ming Wong\; Processing: Guangyan Gao Text: Cecilia Chirenti ( NASA GSFC \, UMCP \, CRESST II )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-june-11- the-mermaid-nebula-supernova-remnant/ SUMMARY:The Mermaid Nebula Supernova Remnant END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:the-eagle-nebula-and-friends DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260610 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260611 DESCRIPTION:What looks as if it is going to swallow the great Pillars of Cr eation ? The Eagle Nebula ( M16 ) is not a bird\, a plane\, or Superman . M16 is actually a combination of several celestial objects. NGC 6611 is th e young star cluster that appears to peak out beneath the Eagle’s “win gs”. The ultraviolet light from these stars ionizes the surrounding gas\ , creating the emission nebula IC 4703. The Stellar Spire is seen reaching towards the Pillars of Creation from the left. Both are structures of col d gas and dust that are optimal for star formation . Some astronomers prev iously thought the Pillars of Creation had been evaporated away by a super nova. Because M16 is 6\,000 light years away\, we would not be able to see the Pillars’ destruction for thousands more years. However\, there is n o conclusive evidence of the theorized supernova\, so the Pillars of Creat ion will likely continue to create stars for millions of years .\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Emmanuel Delgadillo Text: Keighley Rockcliffe ( NASA G SFC \, UMBC CSST \, CRESST II )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/ap od-2026-june-10-the-eagle-nebula-and-friends/ SUMMARY:The Eagle Nebula and Friends END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:thors-helmet DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260609 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260610 DESCRIPTION:Thor not only has his own day (Thursday)\, but a helmet in the heavens. Popularly called Thor’s Helmet\, NGC 2359 is a hat-shaped cosmi c cloud with wing -like appendages. Heroically sized even for a Norse god \, Thor’s Helmet is about 30 light-years across. In fact\, the cosmic he ad-covering is more like an interstellar bubble \, blown by a fast wind fr om the bright\, massive star near the bubble’s center. Known as a Wolf-R ayet star \, the central star is an extremely hot giant thought to be in a brief\, pre- supernova stage of evolution . NGC 2359 is located about 15\ ,000 light-years away toward the constellation of the Great Overdog . This sharp image is a combination of deep images taken in light emitted by hyd rogen (red) and oxygen (blue). The star in the center of Thor’s Helmet i s expected to explode in a spectacular supernova sometime within the next few thousand years. Sky Surprise: What picture did APOD feature on your bi rthday? (after 1995)\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Josep Drudis \, Christia n Sasse\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-june-9-thors-hel met/ SUMMARY:Thors Helmet END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:comet-r3-panstarrs-through-time DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260608 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260609 DESCRIPTION:What happens to a comet as it leaves our inner Solar System? No w\, the arrival of a comet into the inner Solar System is typically herald ed with great fanfare and high hopes that the comet will become bright and photogenic . But on the way out\, the comet’s nucleus is less warmed by the Sun \, less gas and dust are expelled \, the bright coma around the n ucleus shrinks and fades\, and the tail length drops off. Many comets will then return to the outer Solar System and only return in hundreds or thou sands of years. In contrast\, some comets — like Comet C/2025 R3 (PanSTA RRS) — receive a gravitational kick from the planets and so will never r eturn. Pictured\, Comet R3 PanSTARRs was imaged deeply many nights in earl y to mid-May near Cerro Paranal in Chile . Later images appear closer to t he top and clearly show the shrinking ion tail . Comet R3 Gallery: Comet R 3 PanSTARRS in 2026\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Jakub Kuřák & Martin Ma šek ( FZU of the Czech Academy of Sciences )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/im age-article/apod-2026-june-8-comet-r3-panstarrs-through-time/ SUMMARY:Comet R3 PanSTARRS Through Time END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:jupiter-and-venus-from-earth DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260607 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260608 DESCRIPTION:It was visible around the world. The sunset conjunction of Jupi ter (left) and Venus (right) in 2012 was visible almost no matter where yo u lived on Earth. Anyone on our planet with a clear western horizon at sun set could see them. That year\, a creative photographer traveled away from the town lights of Szubin \, Poland to photograph a near closest approach of the two planets . The bright planets were then separated by only three degrees and his daughter struck a humorous pose . A faint red sunset stil l glowed in the background. Jupiter and Venus are together again this week after sunset\, passing within a degree of each other about two days from today .\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Marek Nikodem ( PPSAE )\nhttps://scie nce.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-june-7-jupiter-and-venus-from-earth/ SUMMARY:Jupiter and Venus from Earth END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:charon-moon-of-pluto DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260606 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260607 DESCRIPTION:A darkened and mysterious north polar region known to some as M ordor Macula caps this premier view of Charon\, Pluto’s largest moon . T he high-resolution image was captured by the interplanetary space probe Ne w Horizons near its closest approach to distant Pluto on July 14\, 2015. T he combined blue\, red\, and infrared image data was processed to enhance colors and follow variations in Charon’s surface properties with a resol ution of about 2.9 kilometers (1.8 miles). A stunning image of Charon’s Pluto-facing hemisphere\, it also features a clear view of an apparently m oon-girdling belt of fractures and canyons that seems to separate smooth s outhern plains from varied northern terrain. Charon is 1\,214 kilometers ( 754 miles) across. That’s about 1/10th the size of planet Earth but a wh opping 1/2 the diameter of Pluto itself \, and makes it the largest satell ite relative to its parent body in the Solar System. Still\, the moon appe ars as a small bump at about the 1 o’clock position on Pluto’s disk in the grainy\, negative\, telescopic picture inset at upper left. That imag e was used by James Christy and Robert Harrington at the U.S. Naval Observ atory in Flagstaff to discover Charon in June of 1978 .\n\nImage Credit: N ASA \, Johns Hopkins Univ./APL \, Southwest Research Institute \, U.S. Nav al Observatory\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-june-6-ch aron-moon-of-pluto/ SUMMARY:Charon: Moon of Pluto END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:the-hydra-cluster-of-galaxies DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260605 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260606 DESCRIPTION:Within our own Milky Way galaxy\, two bright\, spiky stars stan d like sentinels in the foreground of this cosmic snapshot . Far beyond th em are the galaxies of the Hydra Cluster . In fact\, while the spiky foreg round stars are hundreds of light-years distant\, the Hydra Cluster galaxi es are well over 100 million light-years away. Three large galaxies near t he cluster center\, two yellow ellipticals (NGC 3311\, NGC 3309) and one p rominent blue spiral (NGC 3312)\, are the dominant galaxies\, each about 1 50\,000 light-years in diameter. An intriguing overlapping galaxy pair cat aloged as NGC 3314 lies above and left of NGC 3312. Also known as Abell 10 60\, the Hydra galaxy cluster is one of three large galaxy clusters within 200 million light-years of the Milky Way. In the nearby universe \, galax ies are gravitationally bound into clusters which themselves are loosely b ound into superclusters . Superclusters in turn are seen to align over eve n larger scales .\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Rafael Sampaio\nhttps://sci ence.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-june-5-the-hydra-cluster-of-galaxies / SUMMARY:The Hydra Cluster of Galaxies END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:a-planetary-nebula-with-cosmic-buckyballs DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260604 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260605 DESCRIPTION:What is happening inside this unusual nebula? Planetary nebula Tc 1 \, captured here in exquisite detail by the James Webb Space Telescop e \, is the celestial site where buckyballs were first identified in 2010. Buckminsterfullerene — as buckyballs are officially called — is a mol ecule with 60 carbon atoms (C 60 ) arranged in the shape of a soccer ball . The molecule is named for architect Buckminster Fuller because of its re semblance to the geodesic dome he helped popularize. Webb’s new data rev eal where the C 60 molecules live in this nebula\, and the geometry is str iking: they populate a thin spherical shell around the central star\, visi ble here as the bright edge of the nebula’s glowing orange central regio n. Look closely near the nebula’s heart and a more perplexing feature em erges: a delicate structure shaped uncannily like an upside-down question mark \, fitting punctuation for the many questions this nebula still poses .\n\nImage Credit: NASA / ESA / CSA / J. Cami ( Western University )\; Ima ge Processing: K. Beecroft Text: Jan Cami ( Western University ) & Cecilia Chirenti ( NASA GSFC \, UMCP \, CRESST II )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/ima ge-article/apod-2026-june-4-a-planetary-nebula-with-cosmic-buckyballs/ SUMMARY:A Planetary Nebula with Cosmic Buckyballs END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:andromeda-through-gas-and-dust DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260603 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260604 DESCRIPTION:Over 1000 years ago\, Persian astronomer Abd al-Rahman al-Sufi published humanity’s oldest known record of the Andromeda Galaxy in “T he Book of Fixed Stars” ( Bodleian Library MS. Marsh 144 p. 167 ). 800 y ears later\, Andromeda became the 31st entry in Charles Messier’s “ Ca talogue of Nebulae and Star Clusters ”. From “a small cloud” to “n ebula” and now known to be our nearest major galaxy \, Andromeda has rem ained a fundamental astronomical object. Today’s image \, taken over 202 hours\, shows how far we have come in our ability to observe our neighbor . The diffuse red and blue clouds are mostly foreground ionized hydrogen a nd oxygen well within our Milky Way . Pink-red clouds of hydrogen ionized by the energetic light of young stars trace the galaxy’s dusty spiral ar ms . M32 and M110 are satellite galaxies pictured orbiting the larger Andr omeda. Despite its long history of observation through ancient unaided eye s to modern telescopes\, Andromeda still holds countless secrets that astr onomers will continue to search for\, including how galaxies merge and evo lve \, as well as the nature of the dark matter that galaxies reside in. T eachers! the NASA/IPAC Teacher Archive Research Program is officially open for applications!\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Nick Fritz Text: Keighley Rockcliffe ( NASA GSFC \, UMBC CSST \, CRESST II )\nhttps://science.nasa.g ov/image-article/apod-2026-june-3-andromeda-through-gas-and-dust/ SUMMARY:Andromeda Through Gas and Dust END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:the-vela-supernova-remnant DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260602 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260603 DESCRIPTION:The explosion is over\, but the consequences continue. About tw elve thousand years ago\, a relatively normal star in the constellation Ve la suddenly exploded \, creating a strange point of light briefly visible to humans living near the beginning of recorded history . The outer layers of the star crashed into the interstellar medium \, driving a shock wave that is still visible today. The featured image \, taken piecemeal over 60 hours from the Khomas Region of Namibia \, captures some of that filament ary and gigantic shock in visible light \, with details highlighted by hyd rogen (red) and oxygen (blue) emissions. As gas flies away from the detona ted star\, it decays and reacts with the interstellar medium \, producing light in many different colors and energy bands. Remaining at the center o f the Vela Supernova Remnant is a pulsar \, a star as dense as nuclear mat ter that spins around more than ten times in a single second. Explore the Universe: Random APOD Generator\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: José Mtanous \nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-june-2-the-vela-superno va-remnant/ SUMMARY:The Vela Supernova Remnant END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:saturn-at-night DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260601 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260602 DESCRIPTION:Telescopic views of Saturn and its beautiful rings often make i t the star of star parties . But this stunning view of the outer gas gaint planet’s rings and night side just isn’t possible from telescopes in the vicinity of planet Earth. Peering out from the inner Solar System they can only bring Saturn’s day side into view. In fact\, this image of Sat urn’s slender sunlit crescent with the planet’s night shadow cast acro ss its broad and complex ring system was captured by the robot spacecraft Cassini. After a seven year long journey from planet Earth\, Cassini calle d Saturn orbit home for 13 years (from 2004 – 2017) before it was direct ed to dive into the atmosphere of the gas giant on September 15\, 2017. Th is magnificent mosaic is composed of frames recorded by Cassini’s wide-a ngle camera only two days before its grand final plunge . And Saturn’s n ight will not be seen again until another spaceship from Earth calls.\n\nI mage Credit: NASA \, JPL-Caltech \, Space Science Institute \, Mindaugas M acijauskas\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-june-1-saturn -at-night/ SUMMARY:Saturn at Night END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:eagle-nebula-pillars-in-infrared-from-hubble DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260531 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260601 DESCRIPTION:Newborn stars are forming in the Eagle Nebula. They are gravita tionally contracting in pillars of dense gas and dust. The intense radiati on of these newly-formed bright stars is causing surrounding material to b oil away. This image \, taken with the Hubble Space Telescope in near infr ared light \, allows the viewer to see through much of the thick dust that makes the pillars opaque in visible light. The giant structures are light years in length and dubbed informally the Pillars of Creation . Associate d with the open star cluster M16 \, the Eagle Nebula lies about 6\,500 lig ht years away. The Eagle Nebula is a satisfying target for small telescope s in a nebula-rich part of the sky toward the split constellation Serpens Cauda (the tail of the snake). Sky Surprise: What picture did APOD feature on your birthday? (after 1995)\n\nImage Credit: NASA \, ESA \, Hubble \, HLA \; Processing: Luis Romero Ventura\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-art icle/apod-2026-may-31-eagle-nebula-pillars-in-infrared-from-hubble/ SUMMARY:Eagle Nebula Pillars in Infrared from Hubble END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:supermoon-versus-micromoon DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260530 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260531 DESCRIPTION:What is so micro about tonight’s blue micromoon? Just after s unset\, a full moon will appear slightly smaller and dimmer than usual. Th e reason is that the Moon’s fully illuminated phase occurs within a shor t time of apogee – when the Moon is farthest from the Earth in its ellip tical orbit . In fact\, tonight’s micromoon will be the farthest\, small est\, and dimmest Moon this year. But tonight’s micromoon is notable for yet another reason: it is also a blue moon \, meaning that it is the seco nd full moon in the same month ( moon-th ). Pictured here \, a supermoon — when the full moon appears near its largest — is compared to a micro moon as photographed from Kolkata \, India in May and December of 2021. Al though the next micromoon occurs next month\, and the next blue moon at th e end of 2028\, the next blue micromoon will not occur until 2053 .\n\nIma ge Credit: Soumyadeep Mukherjee\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/ap od-2026-may-30-supermoon-versus-micromoon/ SUMMARY:Supermoon Versus Micromoon END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:messier-104 DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260529 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260530 DESCRIPTION:A gorgeous spiral galaxy\, Messier 104 is famous for its nearly edge-on profile featuring a broad ring of obscuring dust lanes. Seen in s ilhouette against an extensive central bulge of stars\, the swath of cosmi c dust lends a broad brimmed hat-like appearance to the galaxy suggesting a more popular moniker\, the Sombrero Galaxy. Also known as NGC 4594\, the Sombrero galaxy can be seen across the spectrum and is host to a central supermassive black hole. About 50\,000 light-years across and 28 million l ight-years away\, M104 is one of the largest galaxies at the southern edge of the Virgo Galaxy Cluster. Still\, the spiky foreground stars in this f ield of view lie well within our own Milky Way. This broad view of the wel l-known galaxy was processed to reveal M104’s extended halo\, as well as a faint tidal stellar stream . It was captured by the Dark Energy Camera (DECam) on the Blanco 4-meter telescope at the Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory .\n\nImage Credit: CTIO \, NOIRLab \, DOE \, NSF \, AURA \; I mage Processing: T. A. Rector ( U. Alaska Anchorage )\, D. de Martin ( NSF ’s NOIRLab ) & M. Zamani (NSF\, NOIRLab)\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/imag e-article/apod-2026-may-29-messier-104/ SUMMARY:Messier 104 END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:ngc-1514-the-crystal-ball-nebula DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260528 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260529 DESCRIPTION:What do you see in this crystal ball? The featured image shows NGC 1514 \, known as the Crystal Ball Nebula \, observed by the Gemini Nor th telescope on Maunakea \, in Hawai’i . NGC 1514 is 1\,500 light-years away and was discovered by William Herschel in 1790. This planetary nebula is formed when a star becomes a red giant and ejects its outer gas layers . The ejected shell of gas is heated up by the core of the star to tempera tures hotter than the surface of our Sun : that makes the gas shine\, crea ting beautiful images like this one. The slightly asymmetrical shape of th e Crystal Ball Nebula reveals a secret: the bright star in the center has a companion. As the two stars orbit each other with a period of about nine years \, they shape the gas around them. In about 10\,000 – 25\,000 yea rs the nebula will be dissipated by their stellar winds.\n\nImage Credit: International Gemini Observatory / NOIRLab / NSF / AURA \; Image Processin g: J. Miller & M. Rodriguez ( International Gemini Observatory / NSF NOIRL ab )\, T.A. Rector ( University of Alaska Anchorage / NSF NOIRLab )\, D. d e Martin & M. Zamani ( NSF NOIRLab ) Text: Cecilia Chirenti ( NASA GSFC \, UMCP \, CRESST II )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-may -28-ngc-1514-the-crystal-ball-nebula/ SUMMARY:NGC 1514: The Crystal Ball Nebula END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:pk-164-31-1-the-headphone-nebula DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260527 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260528 DESCRIPTION:What is a pair of headphones doing in the sky? Today’s image features the Headphone Nebula\, also known as PK 164 +31.1 or Jones-Embers on 1 . This planetary nebula \, the remnant of a dying Sun-like star\, fai ntly occupies an angular region of the Lynx constellation about 1/5 th the diameter of the full moon. The red and blue-ish green colors trace hydrog en and oxygen atoms\, respectively\, that have been excited and ionized by the nebula’s central white dwarf . The headphone shape\, where two lobe s of hydrogen puncture the inner region of oxygen\, adds this object to a long list of oddly shaped nebulae . The morphology of such strange nebulae hint at the presence of a stellar or planetary companion \, which can sti r the material flowing out from the dying star. You can listen to Hubble a nd JWST sonifications of planetary nebulae through your very own headphone s!\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Bernard Miller Text: Keighley Rockcliffe ( NASA GSFC \, UMBC CSST \, CRESST II )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-art icle/apod-2026-may-27-pk-164-31-1-the-headphone-nebula/ SUMMARY:PK 164 +31.1: The Headphone Nebula END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:ngc-3660-and-burcins-galaxy DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260526 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260527 DESCRIPTION:The upper galaxy might be more photogenic\, but the lower galax y is more unusual. The galaxy up top is NGC 3660 \, a spiral galaxy simila r to our own Milky Way galaxy in that it has several bright blue spiral ar ms and a central bar of stars\, dust\, and gas. Captured by chance in the featured deep and colorful image \, surprisingly\, is SN 2026cff \, a supe rnova found just to the right of the central bar. Farther in the distance is the bottom galaxy\, known informally as Burçin’s galaxy \, but forma lly cataloged as LEDA 1000714. The center of this galaxy appears to be an old elliptical galaxy \, but it is strangely surrounded by not one but two rings of stars . What created Burçin’s galaxy is a mystery and remains a continuing topic of research\, but it likely involves the accretion of one or more smaller galaxies .\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Adam Block \, El Sauce Obs.\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-may-26-ngc -3660-and-burcins-galaxy/ SUMMARY:NGC 3660 and Burcins Galaxy END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:thackerays-globules DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260525 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260526 DESCRIPTION:What are these strange space globs? Situated in rich star field s and glowing hydrogen gas\, these opaque clouds of interstellar dust and gas are so large they might be able to form stars. Their home is known as IC 2944 \, a bright stellar nursery located about 7\,600 light years away toward the constellation of the Centaur ( Centaurus ). The largest of the se dark globules \, first spotted by A. D. Thackeray in 1950 using a teles cope in South Africa \, is likely two separate but overlapping clouds\, ea ch more than one light-year wide. Along with other data\, the featured Hub ble palette image from the El Sauce Observatory in Chile\, indicates that Thackeray’s globules are fractured and churning as a result of intense u ltraviolet radiation from young\, hot stars already energizing and heating the bright emission nebula . These and similar dark globules known to be associated with other star forming regions may ultimately be dissipated by their hostile environment — like cosmic lumps of butter in a hot frying pan . Interstellar Jigsaw: Astronomy Puzzle of the Day\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: John Hayes\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-ma y-25-thackerays-globules/ SUMMARY:Thackerays Globules END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:a-martian-eclipse-phobos-crosses-the-sun DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260524 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260525 DESCRIPTION:What’s that passing in front of the Sun? It looks like a moon \, but it can’t be Earth’s Moon \, because it isn’t round. It’s th e Martian moon Phobos . The featured video was taken from the surface of M ars in 2022 by the Perseverance rover. Phobos \, at 11.5 kilometers across \, is 150 times smaller than Luna (our moon) in diameter\, but also 50 tim es closer to its parent planet . In fact\, Phobos is so close to Mars that it is expected to break up and crash into Mars within the next 50 million years. In the near term\, the low orbit of Phobos results in more rapid s olar eclipses than seen from Earth . The featured video is shown in real t ime — the transit really took about 40 seconds\, as shown. The videograp her — the robotic rover Perseverance (Percy) — continues to explore Je zero Crater on Mars \, searching not only for clues to the watery history of the now dry world \, but evidence of ancient microbial life . A Martian Eclipse: Phobos Crosses the Sun Explanation: What’s that passing in fro nt of the Sun? It looks like a moon\, but it can’t be Earth’s Moon \, because it isn’t round. It’s the Martian moon Phobos . The featured vi deo was taken from the surface of Mars in 2022 by the Perseverance rover. Phobos \, at 11.5 kilometers across\, is 150 times smaller than Luna (our moon) in diameter\, but also 50 times closer to its parent planet . In fac t\, Phobos is so close to Mars that it is expected to break up and crash i nto Mars within the next 50 million years. In the near term\, the low orbi t of Phobos results in more rapid solar eclipses than seen from Earth . Th e featured video is shown in real time — the transit really took about 4 0 seconds\, as shown. The videographer — the robotic rover Perseverance (Percy) — continues to explore Jezero Crater on Mars \, searching not on ly for clues to the watery history of the now dry world \, but evidence of ancient microbial life .\n\nVideo Credit: NASA \, JPL-Caltech \, ASU MSSS \, SSI\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-may-24-a-martian -eclipse-phobos-crosses-the-sun/ SUMMARY:A Martian Eclipse: Phobos Crosses the Sun END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:messier-2 DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260523 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260524 DESCRIPTION:After the Crab Nebula \, this giant star cluster is the second entry in 18th century astronomer Charles Messier’s famous list of things that are not comets. M2 is one of the largest globular star clusters now known to roam the halo of our Milky Way galaxy. Though Messier originally described it as a nebula without stars\, this stunning Hubble image resolv es stars across the cluster’s central 40 light-years. Its population of stars numbers close to 150\,000\, concentrated within a total diameter of around 175 light-years. About 55\,000 light-years distant toward the const ellation Aquarius\, this ancient denizen of the Milky Way\, also known as NGC 7089 \, is 13 billion years old. An extended stellar debris stream\, a signature of past gravitational tidal disruption\, was recently found to be associated with Messier 2 .\n\nImage Credit: ESA/Hubble & NASA \, G. Pi otto et al.\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-may-23-messi er-2/ SUMMARY:Messier 2 END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:the-nebulous-realm-of-wr-134 DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260522 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260523 DESCRIPTION:This cosmic snapshot covers a field of view over twice as wide as the full Moon within the boundaries of the high-flying constellation Cy gnus. Made using astronomical narrowband filters\, the image highlights th e bright edge of a ring-like nebula traced by the glow of ionized hydrogen and oxygen gas. Embedded in the region’s expanse of interstellar clouds \, the complex\, glowing arcs are sections of shells of material swept up by the wind from Wolf-Rayet star WR 134\, the brightest star near image c enter. Distance estimates put WR 134 about 6\,000 light-years away\, makin g this telescopic frame over 100 light-years across. Shedding their outer envelopes in powerful stellar winds\, massive Wolf-Rayet stars have burned through their nuclear fuel at a prodigious rate and end their final phase of massive star evolution in a spectacular supernova. Their stellar winds and final supernova explosion enrich the interstellar material with heavy elements to be incorporated in future generations of stars .\n\nImage Cre dit & Copyright: Luigi Morrone and Telescope Live\nhttps://science.nasa.go v/image-article/apod-2026-may-22-the-nebulous-realm-of-wr-134/ SUMMARY:The Nebulous Realm of WR 134 END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:a-collision-of-galaxy-clusters DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260521 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260522 DESCRIPTION:This big beautiful spiral shines in X-ray light . It is about 2 0 times larger than our Galaxy . It belongs to Abell 2029 \, a galaxy clus ter one billion light-years away. (To see only the galaxies\, hover your c ursor over the image\, or follow this link .) Galaxy clusters are the larg est structures in the universe that are supported by gravity. Abell 2029 i s formed by thousands of galaxies \, surrounded by a huge cloud of hot gas and the equivalent of hundreds of trillions times the mass of the Sun in dark matter . The spiral is made of gas\, mostly hydrogen and helium\, hea ted to tens of millions of degrees. It was found in a recent study that us ed data from NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory to show that Abell 2029 ha d a collision with a smaller cluster four billion years ago. The collision affected the gravitational field and caused the intracluster gas to slosh \, like wine moving in a wine glass \, shaping the spiral.\n\nImage Credit : X-ray: NASA / CXC / CfA / C. Watson et al. \; Optical: PanSTARRS \; Imag e Processing: NASA / CXC / SAO / N. Wolk and P. Edmonds Text: Cecilia Chir enti ( NASA GSFC \, UMCP \, CRESST II )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-ar ticle/apod-2026-may-21-a-collision-of-galaxy-clusters/ SUMMARY:A Collision of Galaxy Clusters END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:the-dark-wolf-nebula DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260520 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260521 DESCRIPTION:A dark wolf lies in gum. No\, this isn’t a riddle! Today’s image features the Dark Wolf Nebula ( Sandqvist-Lindroos 17)\, a spooky du st cloud embedded within the Gum 55 ( RCW 113) Nebula in the Scorpius cons tellation . While dust is a pest to us\, it serves a vital role in creatin g the necessary conditions for stars to be born . The Dark Wolf absorbs th e intense ultraviolet and visible light emitted by young stars in Gum 55 a nd re-emits it at longer\, mainly infrared \, wavelengths. This prevents t he higher energy light from heating up the gas in the region. When a regio n of gas is cool enough\, gravity takes over and causes the gas to collaps e into a star. Not only does dust act as an interstellar thermostat\, but it is also the meet-cute for single hydrogen atoms forming molecular hydro gen\, the building block for stars. The seemingly sinister Dark Wolf is ac tually a harbinger of cosmic life.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: William Vr basso Text: Keighley Rockcliffe ( NASA GSFC \, UMBC CSST \, CRESST II )\nh ttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-may-20-the-dark-wolf-nebul a/ SUMMARY:The Dark Wolf Nebula END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:ngc-2170-the-angel-nebula DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260519 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260520 DESCRIPTION:Is this a painting or a photograph? In this celestial abstract art composed with a cosmic brush\, dusty nebula NGC 2170 \, also known as the Angel Nebula\, shines just above the image center. Reflecting the ligh t of nearby hot stars\, NGC 2170 is joined by other bluish reflection nebu lae\, a red emission region\, many dark absorption nebulae \, and a backdr op of colorful stars . Like the common household items that abstract paint ers often choose for their subjects\, the clouds of gas\, dust\, and hot s tars featured here are also commonly found in a setting like this one — a massive\, star-forming molecular cloud in the constellation of the Unico rn ( Monoceros ). The giant molecular cloud Mon R2 \, is impressively clos e\, estimated to be only 2\,400 light-years or so away. At that distance\, this canvas would be over 60 light-year s across. Almost Hyperspace: Rand om APOD Generator\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Jason Marriott\nhttps://sci ence.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-may-19-ngc-2170-the-angel-nebula/ SUMMARY:NGC 2170: The Angel Nebula END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:unraveling-ngc-3169 DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260518 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260519 DESCRIPTION:Spiral galaxy NGC 3169 looks to be unraveling like a ball of co smic yarn. It lies some 70 million light-years away\, south of bright star Regulus toward the faint constellation Sextans. Wound up spiral arms are pulled out into sweeping tidal tails as NGC 3169 (left) and neighboring NG C 3166 interact gravitationally . Eventually the galaxies will merge into one\, a common fate even for bright galaxies in the local universe . Drawn out stellar arcs and plumes are clear indications of the ongoing gravitat ional interactions across the deep and colorful galaxy group photo. The te lescopic frame spans about 20 arc minutes or about 400\,000 light-years at the group’s estimated distance\, and includes smaller\, bluish NGC 3165 to the right. NGC 3169 is also known to shine across the spectrum from ra dio to X-rays\, harboring an active galactic nucleus that is the site of a supermassive black hole.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Simone Curzi and th e ShaRA Team\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-may-18-unra veling-ngc-3169/ SUMMARY:Unraveling NGC 3169 END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:ngc-1300-barred-spiral-galaxy DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260517 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260518 DESCRIPTION:Across the center of this spiral galaxy is a bar . And at the c enter of this bar is smaller spiral . And at the center of that spiral is a supermassive black hole . This all happens in the big\, beautiful\, barr ed spiral galaxy cataloged as NGC 1300\, a galaxy that lies some 70 millio n light-years away toward the constellation of the river Eridanus . This H ubble Space Telescope composite view of the gorgeous island universe is on e of the most detailed Hubble images ever made of a complete galaxy. NGC 1 300 spans over 100\,000 light-years and the Hubble image reveals striking details of the galaxy’s dominant central bar and majestic spiral arms. H ow the giant bar formed\, how it remains\, and how it affects star formati on remains an active topic of research . Jigsaw Universe: Astronomy Puzzle of the Day\n\nImage Credit: NASA ESA \, Hubble Heritage\nhttps://science. nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-may-17-ngc-1300-barred-spiral-galaxy/ SUMMARY:NGC 1300: Barred Spiral Galaxy END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:aurora-slathers-up-the-sky DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260516 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260517 DESCRIPTION:Like salsa verde on your favorite burrito\, a green aurora slat hers up the sky in this 2017 June 25 snapshot from the International Space Station. About 400 kilometers (250 miles) above Earth\, the orbiting stat ion is itself within the upper realm of the auroral displays. Aurorae have the signature colors of excited molecules and atoms at the low densities found at extreme altitudes. Emission from atomic oxygen dominates this vie w. The tantalizing glow is green at lower altitudes\, but rarer reddish ba nds extend above the space station’s horizon. The orbital scene was capt ured while passing over a point south and east of Australia\, with stars a bove the horizon at the right belonging to the constellation Canis Major \ , Orion’s big dog. Sirius \, alpha star of Canis Major\, is the brightes t star near the Earth’s limb.\n\nImage Credit: Jack Fischer \, Expeditio n 52 \, NASA\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-may-16-auro ra-slathers-up-the-sky/ SUMMARY:Aurora Slathers Up the Sky END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:r3-panstarrs-an-orion-comet DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260515 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260516 DESCRIPTION:Comet R3 PanSTARRS might be best remembered as an Orion comet. A key reason is because Comet C/2025 R3 (PanSTARRS) was near its most spec tacular — in terms of tail visibility — when passing in front of the i conic constellation . Although rare\, other bright comets \, too\, have ve ntured across Orion\, including Lovejoy in 2015 \, Hale-Bopp in 1997 \, an d the Great Comet of 1264 . Best visible in long duration exposures\, the featured image was captured last week from the Craigieburn Mountain Range in New Zealand . Visible in the deep background image are the Orion Nebula \, Barnard’s Loop \, and through R3’s tail\, the bright star Saiph \, the sixth brightest star in the constellation of Orion. Comet R3 PanSTARR S continues to fade as it moves further south\, passing into the constella tion of the Unicorn ( Monoceros ) in the next few days. Sky Surprise: What picture did APOD feature on your birthday? (after 1995)\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Chester Hall-Fernandez\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article /apod-2026-may-15-r3-panstarrs-an-orion-comet/ SUMMARY:R3 PanSTARRS: An Orion Comet END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:messier-catalog-at-uniform-scale DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260514 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260515 DESCRIPTION:What are some of the most interesting astronomical objects you can see in the night sky? Armed with a good pair of binoculars or a small telescope\, if you live in the Northern Hemisphere\, you can look for the very popular objects in the Messier Catalog . Most of them\, but not all\, are also visible from the southern half of the Earth. The featured image shows all 110 objects in the catalog at uniform scale — the same magnifi cation. Charles Messier created the catalog in the 18th century. He was in terested in comets \, and his catalog was a list of known comet-like “ o bjects to avoid ” in the sky when observing or hunting for comets. The d eep sky objects in the catalog include a supernova remnant (the Crab Nebul a \, M1)\, other galaxies (such as Andromeda \, M31)\, nebulae (e.g. the O rion Nebula \, M42\, a star-forming region) and stellar clusters (such as the Pleiades \, M45\, a bright young open cluster ).\n\nImage Credit: Sylv ain Villet Text: Cecilia Chirenti ( NASA GSFC \, UMCP \, CRESST II )\nhttp s://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-may-14-the-messier-catalog-at -uniform-scale/ SUMMARY:The Messier Catalog at Uniform Scale END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:ngc-188-old-cluster-in-the-new-general-catalog DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260513 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260514 DESCRIPTION:The New General Catalog of star clusters and nebulae really isn ’t so new. In fact\, it was published in 1888 – an effort by J. L. E. Dreyer to consolidate the work of astronomers William \, Caroline \, and J ohn Herschel along with others into a useful single\, complete catalog of astronomical discoveries and measurements. Dreyer’s work was largely suc cessful and is still important today\, as this famous catalog continues to lend its “NGC” to bright clusters\, galaxies\, and nebulae. Take for example the star cluster known as NGC 188 (item number 188 in the NGC comp ilation). It lies about 6\,000 light-years distant in the northern constel lation Cepheus and represents a galactic or open star cluster . With an ag e of about 7 billion years\, NGC 188 is old for an open cluster. Its old\, evolved red giant stars have yellowish hues in this colorful\, deep sky v iew . NGC 188 also enjoys the designation Caldwell 1 in a modern compilati on of deep sky objects. Located well above the plane of the Milky Way and seen in the direction of planet Earth’s north celestial pole\, the ancie nt stellar group is known to some as the Polarissima Cluster .\n\nImage Cr edit & Copyright: Neven Krcmarek\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/a pod-2026-may-13-ngc-188-old-cluster-in-the-new-general-catalog/ SUMMARY:NGC 188: Old Cluster in the New General Catalog END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:the-conjunction-of-comet-r3-panstarrs-and-the-orion-nebula DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260512 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260513 DESCRIPTION:Today’s composite image features something old \, something n ew\, something borrowed\, and something blue! Comet R3 PanSTARRS \, streak ing across the right of the image\, likely originated from the Oort Cloud \, meaning it is an old Solar System relic from billions of years ago. It ’s bright extended ion tail glows blue as the gas escaping the comet’s core is ionized by sunlight. Astronomers are fascinated by comets for all sorts of reasons: comet compositions are untouched time capsules containi ng the building blocks of Solar System planets\; comets may have delivered water to the young Earth\; the behavior of cometary tails shed light on s olar wind and radiation interactions. The background mosaic\, featuring th e Orion Nebula ( M42 )\, was taken over two nights of observation with the comet captured on the third night. The Orion Nebula is our nearest stella r nursery and\, at about 2 million years old \, is our something (relative ly) new! Now at around 127.5 million kilometers from Earth \, we wave good bye to the borrowed Comet R3 PanSTARRS as it leaves the Solar System. Grow ing Gallery: Comet R3 in 2026\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Julien De Winte r \, Sascha Ebeler Text: Keighley Rockcliffe ( NASA GSFC \, UMBC CSST \, C RESST II )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-may-12-the-co njunction-of-comet-r3-panstarrs-and-the-orion-nebula/ SUMMARY:The Conjunction of Comet R3 PanSTARRS and the Orion Nebula END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:moon-setting-behind-teide-volcano DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260511 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260512 DESCRIPTION:These people are not in danger. What is coming down from the le ft is just the Moon\, far in the distance. Luna appears so large here beca use she is being photographed through a telescopic lens . What is moving i s mostly the Earth \, whose spin causes the Moon to slowly disappear behin d Mount Teide \, a volcano in the Canary Islands of Spain off the northwes t coast of Africa . The people pictured are 16 kilometers away and many ar e facing the camera because they are watching the Sun rise behind the phot ographer. It is not a coincidence that a full moon sets just when the Sun rises because the Sun is always on the opposite side of the sky from a ful l moon. The featured video was made in 2018 during a full Milk Moon . The video is not time-lapse — this was really how fast the Moon was setting. \n\nVideo Credit & Copyright: Daniel López ( El Cielo de Canarias )\; Mus ic: Piano della Moon ( Dan Silva )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article /apod-2026-may-11-moon-setting-behind-teide-volcano/ SUMMARY:Moon Setting Behind Teide Volcano END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:comet-r3-panstarrs-and-orion DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260510 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260511 DESCRIPTION:Orion never had a sword like this. As Comet C/2025 R3 (PanSTARR S) heads out of the inner Solar System\, it is putting on quite a show for long exposure cameras . Currently seen toward the constellation of Orion the Hunter \, the distant Orion Nebula is visible on the upper right. Come t R3 PanSTARRS is now showing two distinct tails : a short dust tail point ing toward the top of the image and a long and wavy ion tail trailing off toward the upper left. The ion tail points away from the Sun and glows blu e from excited carbon monoxide . Large particles in the dust tail somewhat resist the radiation pressure that push them away from the Sun and so ret ain a bit of the comet’s orbit. The dust tail shines by reflected sunlig ht . The featured image was taken a few days ago from France ‘s Reunion Island in the southern Indian Ocean . Growing Gallery: Comet R3 PanSTARRS in 2026\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Luc Perrot ( TWAN )\nhttps://science. nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-may-10-comet-r3-panstarrs-and-orion/ SUMMARY:Comet R3 PanSTARRS and Orion END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:messier-craters-in-stereo DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260509 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260510 DESCRIPTION:Many bright nebulae and star clusters in planet Earth’s sky a re associated with the name of astronomer Charles Messier from his famous 18th century catalog. His name is also given to these two large and remark able craters on the Moon. Standouts in the dark \, smooth lunar Sea of Fer tility or Mare Fecunditatis\, Messier (left) and Messier A have dimensions of 15 by 8 and 16 by 11 kilometers respectively. Their elongated shapes a re explained by the extremely shallow-angle trajectory followed by an impa ctor\, moving left to right\, that gouged out the craters. The shallow imp act also resulted in two bright rays of material extending along the surfa ce to the right\, beyond the picture. Intended to be viewed with red/blue glasses (red for the left eye)\, this striking stereo picture of the crate r pair was recently created from high resolution scans of two images ( AS1 1-42-6304 \, AS11-42-6305 ) taken during the Apollo 11 mission to the Moon .\n\nImage Credit: Apollo 11 \, NASA \; Stereo Image Copyright Patrick Van tuyne\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-may-9-messier-crat ers-in-stereo/ SUMMARY:Messier Craters in Stereo END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:comet-r3-panstarrs-before-rigel DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260508 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260509 DESCRIPTION:Which way is Comet R3 PanSTARRS going? Not towards the star at the top of the image\, because that is Rigel \, which\, being far in the b ackground\, is unrelated to the comet. Not through the nebula in the image middle\, because that is the Witch Head Nebula and it\, too\, is far in t he distance — but not far from Rigel. Not into northern skies because ov er the past week Comet C/2025 R3 (PanSTARRS) has moved into southern skies and is now best visible in Earth ‘s Southern Hemisphere toward the west after sunset. Angularly\, Comet R3 PanSTARRS is slowly moving toward the upper right\, night by night\, and will soon be in the constellation Orion . Spatially\, the comet is now headed out of our Solar System but should remain visible to cameras in southern skies for about a week. The featured image was captured last week near Cerro Paranal in Chile . Growing Galler y: Comet R3 PanSTARRS in 2026\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Jakub Kuřák & Martin Mašek ( FZU of the Czech Academy of Sciences )\nhttps://science.n asa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-may-8-comet-r3-panstarrs-before-rigel/ SUMMARY:Comet R3 PanSTARRS Before Rigel END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:supernova-in-a-sideways-spiral DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260507 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260508 DESCRIPTION:A long time ago\, in a distant galaxy \, a massive star was des troyed in a supernova explosion. The light of this event travelled for ten s of millions of years and reached Earth last week as Supernova 2026kid . The featured video shows a time-lapse over three nights of the host galaxy NGC 5907 \, an edge-on spiral also known as the Splinter or Knife Edge Ga laxy\, as the supernova appears and becomes brighter. (The occasional stre aks are satellites in Earth orbit.) At its brightest\, a supernova can out shine the sum of all other stars in its galaxy. Supernova 2026kid appears relatively dim \, probably because we are seeing it through the edge-on di sk of the galaxy. Such explosions typically happen about once per century in galaxies similar to the Milky Way \, and their light can take months to fade away. The brightest supernova in recorded history was SN 1006 \; it is reported to have been brighter than Venus\, and even visible in the sky during daytime. Supernova in a Sideways Spiral Explanation: A long time a go\, in a distant galaxy \, a massive star was destroyed in a supernova ex plosion. The light of this event travelled for tens of millions of years a nd reached Earth last week as Supernova 2026kid . The featured video shows a time-lapse over three nights of the host galaxy NGC 5907 \, an edge-on spiral also known as the Splinter or Knife Edge Galaxy\, as the supernova appears and becomes brighter. (The occasional streaks are satellites in Ea rth orbit.) At its brightest\, a supernova can outshine the sum of all oth er stars in its galaxy. Supernova 2026kid appears relatively dim \, probab ly because we are seeing it through the edge-on disk of the galaxy. Such e xplosions typically happen about once per century in galaxies similar to t he Milky Way \, and their light can take months to fade away. The brightes t supernova in recorded history was SN 1006 \; it is reported to have been brighter than Venus\, and even visible in the sky during daytime.\n\nVide o Credit: Hunter Outten & Kaleb Jordan Text: Cecilia Chirenti ( NASA GSFC \, UMCP \, CRESST II )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-m ay-7-supernova-in-a-sideways-spiral/ SUMMARY:Supernova in a Sideways Spiral END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:the-retrograde-dance-of-saturn-and-neptune DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260506 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260507 DESCRIPTION:What does it mean for Saturn and Neptune to be in retrograde? F eatured is a composite of images taken over 34 nights from May 2025 to Feb ruary 2026 tracing Saturn (brighter\, foreground) and Neptune (dimmer\, ba ckground). Over that time\, the two planets exhibited retrograde motion \, meaning they appeared to move backward in the sky. This apparent backward s motion occurs when Earth overtakes the slower outer planets as they orbi t the Sun. Imagine the Solar System is a running track. Earth “runs” f aster along the inside of the track compared to the outer planets. As Eart h approaches\, aligns\, and then “laps” the outer planets\, they chang e position from ahead to behind from the Earth’s perspective. This persp ective shift is what causes the outer planets to change position in the ni ght sky. An animation corresponding to today’s image shows Saturn and Ne ptune’s months-long dance across the northern night sky. Saturn stepped from the Pisces constellation into Aquarius and back again while Neptune r emained in Pisces. This is the closest Saturn and Neptune have been in the sky since their last conjunction in 1989.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Tu nç Tezel ( TWAN ) Text: Keighley Rockcliffe ( NASA GSFC \, UMBC CSST \, C RESST II )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-may-6-the-ret rograde-dance-of-saturn-and-neptune/ SUMMARY:The Retrograde Dance of Saturn and Neptune END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:orion-over-mount-teide DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260505 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260506 DESCRIPTION:Orion is rarely seen like this. To achieve this majestic vista \, you need a camera capable of taking such long duration exposures that f aint features in the night sky become revealed. Iconic nebulas that appear include the Orion Nebula \, the Flame Nebula \, and Barnard’s Loop . Fo r contrast\, it also helps to have a volcano on the foreground\, in this c ase the Teide volcano on Tenerife on the Canary Islands of Spain . But if you want your Teide volcano snow-covered \, you also need good timing — because that only happens\, typically\, for a few days each year. Good tim ing also includes waiting for Orion to appear just behind Teide \, which o ccurred late last year after sunset. The featured image is the result of a series of images taken consecutively with the same camera from the same l ocation. Sky Surprise: What picture did APOD feature on your birthday? (af ter 1995)\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Marcin Rosadziński\nhttps://scienc e.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-may-5-orion-over-mount-teide/ SUMMARY:Orion over Mount Teide END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:superplumes-inside-earth DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260504 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260505 DESCRIPTION:Why are there huge\, unusual masses inside the Earth? No one is sure. By noting how earthquakes rumble through our planet ‘s interior\, humanity has discovered two deep structures that appear to have unusual t emperatures and/or chemical compositions. One hypothesis holds that the su perplumes are sunken debris left over from the Earth-shattering collision that created Earth’s Moon about 4.5 billion years ago. A competing hypot hesis is that they are graveyards for old tectonic plates that slowly slid under each other over the past few billion years. No matter their origin\ , the superplumes are thought to affect Earth’s surface volcanism\, poss ibly creating\, for example\, island chains such as Hawaii . Also known as large low-shear-velocity provinces (LLSVPs)\, Earth’s superplumes are v isualized in the featured animation . Superplumes Inside Earth Explanation : Why are there huge\, unusual masses inside the Earth? No one is sure. By noting how earthquakes rumble through our planet ‘s interior\, humanity has discovered two deep structures that appear to have unusual temperatur es and/or chemical compositions. One hypothesis holds that the superplumes are sunken debris left over from the Earth-shattering collision that crea ted Earth’s Moon about 4.5 billion years ago. A competing hypothesis is that they are graveyards for old tectonic plates that slowly slid under ea ch other over the past few billion years. No matter their origin\, the sup erplumes are thought to affect Earth’s surface volcanism\, possibly crea ting\, for example\, island chains such as Hawaii . Also known as large lo w-shear-velocity provinces (LLSVPs)\, Earth’s superplumes are visualized in the featured animation .\n\nImage Credit & License: Sanne Cottaar via Wikimedia Commons\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-may-4- superplumes-inside-earth/ SUMMARY:Superplumes Inside Earth END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:trifid-pillars-and-jets DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260503 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260504 DESCRIPTION:Dust pillars are like interstellar mountains . They survive bec ause they are more dense than their surroundings\, but they are slowly bei ng eroded away by a hostile environment. Visible in the featured picture b y the Hubble Space Telescope is the end of a huge gas and dust pillar in t he Trifid Nebula (M20)\, punctuated by a smaller pillar pointing up and an unusual jet pointing to the upper left. Many of the bright dots are newly formed stars . A star near the small pillar’s end is slowly being strip ped of its accreting gas by radiation from a tremendously brighter star si tuated off the top of the image. The jet extends nearly a light-year and w ould not be visible without external illumination. As gas and dust evapora te from the pillars\, the hidden stellar source of this jet will likely be uncovered\, possibly over the next 20\,000 years. Explore the Universe: R andom APOD Generator\n\nImage Credit: NASA \, ESA \, STScI \; Processing: J. DePasquale ( STScI )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026- may-3-trifid-pillars-and-jets/ SUMMARY:Trifid Pillars and Jets END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:seeing-titan DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260502 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260503 DESCRIPTION:Shrouded in a thick atmosphere\, the surface of Saturn’s larg est moon\, Titan \, is really hard to see. Small particles suspended in Ti tan’s upper atmosphere cause an almost impenetrable haze\, strongly scat tering light at visible wavelengths and hiding surface features from pryin g eyes. Still\, Titan’s surface is better imaged at infrared wavelengths \, where scattering is weaker and atmospheric absorption is reduced. Array ed around this visible light image (center) of Titan are some of the clear est global infrared views of the tantalizing moon so far. In false color\, the six panels present a consistent processing of 13 years of infrared im age data from the Visual and Infrared Mapping Spectrometer (VIMS) on board the Cassini spacecraft orbiting Saturn from 2004 to 2017. They offer a st unning comparison with Cassini’s visible light view. NASA’s revolution ary rotorcraft mission to Titan’s surface is due to launch no earlier th an July\, 2028.\n\nImage Credit: VIMS Team\, Univ. Arizona \, U. Nantes \, ESA \, NASA\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-may-2-seein g-titan/ SUMMARY:Seeing Titan END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:markarian-s-chain DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260501 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260502 DESCRIPTION:Near the heart of the Virgo Galaxy Cluster \, a string of galax ies known as Markarian’s Chain stretches across this telescopic field of view. Anchored in the frame at bottom right by prominent lenticular galax ies\, M84 (bottom) and M86 \, you can follow the chain’s gentle arc up a nd toward the left. Near center you’ll spot the pair of interacting gala xies NGC 4438 and NGC 4435\, known to some as Markarian’s Eyes . An esti mated 50 million light-years distant\, the Virgo Cluster itself is the nea rest galaxy cluster . With up to about 2\,000 member galaxies\, it has a n oticeable gravitational influence on our own Local Group of Galaxies . Wit hin the Virgo Cluster at least seven galaxies in Markarian’s Chain appea r to move coherently \, while others may appear to be part of the chain by chance.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Chuck Ayoub\nhttps://science.nasa.go v/image-article/apod-2026-may-1-markarian-s-chain/ SUMMARY:Markarian s Chain END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:waves-on-titan DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260430 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260501 DESCRIPTION:Have you ever thought about surfing on an alien world? We can n ow expand the search for the perfect wave from Earth to the rest of the So lar System\, and beyond . Scientists have developed a new model for simula ting waves on other planets . Titan is one of the 274 confirmed moons of S aturn to date\, and the only object in the solar system (besides Earth) kn own to have liquid lakes and seas on its surface. The featured video shows a simulation of waves on Earth (right) and on Titan (left)\, under the sa me conditions (the scale marker is in meters). A light breeze would create taller\, slower-moving waves on Titan than on Earth\, because the lakes t here are filled with light liquid hydrocarbons \, and because of Titan’s low gravity and higher atmospheric pressure. In a couple of years\, NASA expects to launch the Dragonfly mission\, which will travel for 6 years an d send a rotorcraft to explore Titan and study its microbial habitability . Waves on Titan Explanation: Have you ever thought about surfing on an al ien world? We can now expand the search for the perfect wave from Earth to the rest of the Solar System\, and beyond . Scientists have developed a n ew model for simulating waves on other planets . Titan is one of the 274 c onfirmed moons of Saturn to date\, and the only object in the solar system (besides Earth) known to have liquid lakes and seas on its surface. The f eatured video shows a simulation of waves on Earth (right) and on Titan (l eft)\, under the same conditions (the scale marker is in meters). A light breeze would create taller\, slower-moving waves on Titan than on Earth\, because the lakes there are filled with light liquid hydrocarbons \, and b ecause of Titan’s low gravity and higher atmospheric pressure. In a coup le of years\, NASA expects to launch the Dragonfly mission\, which will tr avel for 6 years and send a rotorcraft to explore Titan and study its micr obial habitability .\n\nVideo Credit: Una Schneck Text: Cecilia Chirenti ( NASA GSFC \, UMCP \, CRESST II )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/ apod-2026-april-30-waves-on-titan/ SUMMARY:Waves on Titan END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:the-moon-venus-and-the-pleiades DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260429 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260430 DESCRIPTION:No\, Earth did not recently acquire six more moons! Today’s A POD is a combination of images following the Moon\, Venus\, and the Pleiad es across a southern Sicilian sky as twilight turned to evening on April 1 9. From 2023 to 2029\, the Pleiades’ and the Moon “ visit “ each oth er once per month due to the Pleiades’ location in the ecliptic plane . April 2026 saw the celestial alignment of their visit with Venus . About s ix stars in the Pleiades cluster ( Messier 45 ) are typically visible with the unaided eye. Due to the cluster’s visibility across the world\, the re are many myths and legends across cultures associated with the Pleiades . The Haudenosaunee people of North America\, for example \, say that seve n boys danced so enthusiastically that they lifted off into the sky. Astro nomers recently found thousands more Pleiades members \, showing that afte r thousands of years of gazing upon this cluster\, there is yet more to le arn about the Pleiades.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Gianni Tumino Text: K eighley Rockcliffe ( NASA GSFC \, UMBC CSST \, CRESST II )\nhttps://scienc e.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-april-29-the-moon-venus-and-the-pleiade s/ SUMMARY:The Moon\, Venus\, and the Pleiades END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:cg-30-cometary-globules DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260428 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260429 DESCRIPTION:They’re like mountain peaks\, but they are forming stars. Bri ght-rimmed\, flowing shapes gather near the center of this rich starfield toward the borders of the nautical southern constellations Puppis and Vela . Composed of interstellar gas and dust \, the grouping of light-year siz ed cometary globules is about 1300 light-years distant. Energetic ultravio let light from nearby hot stars has molded the globules and ionized their bright rims. The globules also stream away from the Vela supernova remnant which may have influenced their swept-back shapes. Within them\, cores of cold gas and dust are likely collapsing to form low mass stars whose form ation will ultimately cause the globules to disperse . In fact\, cometary globule CG 30 (upper right in the group) sports a small reddish glow insid e its head\, a telltale sign of energetic jets from a star in the early st ages of formation .\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Marcelo Salemme\nhttps:// science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-april-28-cg-30-cometary-globules/ SUMMARY:CG 30: Cometary Globules END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:comet-r3-panstarrs-behind-satellite-trails DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260427 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260428 DESCRIPTION:Can you find the comet? Somewhere through this web of satellite trails is Comet C/2025 R3 (PanSTARRS) \, a bright visitor passing through the inner Solar System . Now\, the orbiting satellites themselves only ap pear as streaks because of the long camera exposure\, over 10 minutes in t his case. On the contrary\, to the eye \, satellites appear as points that drift slowly across the night sky and shine by reflecting sunlight — pr imarily just after sunset and before sunrise. The featured image was taken just before sunrise two weeks ago from Bavaria \, Germany . Presently\, C omet R3 PanSTARRS is hard to see for even another reason — because it is so (angularly) close to the Sun . As the comet rounds the Sun\, it will b e best seen in coming weeks from southern hemisphere e skies\, although th en it will be heading out to interstellar space and fading. If you haven ’t yet found the comet\, don’t despair \; please take a closer look ju st above the image center.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Uli Fehr\nhttps:// science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-april-27-comet-r3-panstarrs-behin d-satellite-trails/ SUMMARY:Comet R3 PanSTARRS Behind Satellite Trails END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:mystic-mountain-monster-being-destroyed DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260426 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260427 DESCRIPTION:Inside the head of this interstellar monster is a star that is slowly destroying it. The huge monster\, actually an inanimate series of p illars of gas and dust\, measures light years in length. The in-head star is not itself visible through the opaque interstellar dust but is bursting out partly by ejecting opposing beams of energetic particles called Herbi g-Haro jets. Located about 7\,500 light years away in the Carina Nebula an d known informally as Mystic Mountain\, the appearance of these pillars is dominated by dark dust even though they are composed mostly of clear hydr ogen gas. The featured image was taken with the Hubble Space Telescope . A ll over these pillars\, the energetic light and winds from massive newly f ormed stars are evaporating and dispersing the dusty stellar nurseries in which they formed. Within a few million years\, the head of this giant\, a s well as most of its body\, will have been completely evaporated by inter nal and surrounding stars.\n\nImage Credit: Hubble \, NASA \, ESA \; Proce ssing & License: Judy Schmidt\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod -2026-april-26-mystic-mountain-monster-being-destroyed/ SUMMARY:Mystic Mountain Monster being Destroyed END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:the-persistence-of-sunlight DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260425 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260426 DESCRIPTION:This seaside sunset offered a surreal experience\, captured in a sea and skyscape from the west coast of Sardinia\, Italy\, planet Earth. The Daliesque scene is a composition of sequential exposures made with a camera and long telephoto lens. The Sun is not melting\, though . Its shif ting and fluid appearance as it nears the horizon is caused as refraction along the line of sight changes and creates distorted images or mirages of the reddened solar disk . The changes in atmospheric refraction correspon d to atmospheric layers with sharply different temperatures and densities. Another famous but fleeting effect of atmospheric refraction produced by a long sight-line to the setting (or rising) Sun is often called the green flash .\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Lorenzo Busilacchi\nhttps://science. nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-april-25-the-persistence-of-sunlight/ SUMMARY:The Persistence of Sunlight END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:young-moon-and-sister-stars DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260424 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260425 DESCRIPTION:Sunlit arms of a crescent moon seem to embrace the faint lunar night side in this dramatic celestial view from planet Earth. The single t elephoto exposure tracking the sky was captured on the night of April 19\, when a two day old Moon was near perigee in its elliptical orbit. On that date\, the young Moon was also close on the sky to the lovely Pleiades St ar Cluster . With the moonlight dimmed by clouds the Pleiades sister stars gather below the Moon’s bright crescent\, seen through a faint but colo rful lunar corona . The lunar night side is illuminated by earthshine \, s unlight reflected from the Earth itself. The Moon’s ashen glow \, also k nown as the “old moon in the young moon’s arms\,” tends to be bright in the northern hemisphere spring. And for now\, the Moon’s orbit takes it near the Pleiades stars each month in planet Earth’s sky\, though th eir close conjunctions are easiest to see when the Moon is near a crescent phase.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Giorgia Hofer\nhttps://science.nasa.g ov/image-article/apod-2026-april-24-young-moon-and-sister-stars/ SUMMARY:Young Moon and Sister Stars END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:large-scale-structure-of-the-universe DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260423 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260424 DESCRIPTION:This is a map of the universe. The Dark Energy Spectroscopic In strument (DESI) at Kitt Peak National Observatory \, Arizona \, has finish ed its five-year survey . It observed more than 47 million galaxies and qu asars and created a 3D map centered on the Earth. Today’s featured image shows a thin slice of these data: the black gaps indicate where our Galax y obscures distant objects. The feathery web in the inset shows the large scale structure of the universe. Light of the most distant galaxies shown here travelled for 11 billion years to reach the Earth. Galaxies cluster t hroughout cosmic history under the competing influences of gravity and dar k energy \, responsible for the accelerated expansion of the universe. Ana lysis of early DESI results hinted at the possibility that dark energy\, d escribed as a cosmological constant by Albert Einstein \, may not be const ant after all. But we still have to wait for the analysis of the now compl ete dataset. The nature of dark energy is the biggest mystery of cosmology .\n\nImage Credit: Claire Lamman / DESI collaboration Text: Cecilia Chiren ti ( NASA GSFC \, UMCP \, CRESST II )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-arti cle/apod-2026-april-23-large-scale-structure-of-the-universe/ SUMMARY:Large Scale Structure of the Universe END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:earthset-with-an-iphone DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260422 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260423 DESCRIPTION:What does it mean for the Earth to set? Artemis II Commander Re id Wiseman gave us another spectacular view of Earth from their historic f lyby of the Moon. Commander Wiseman’s video \, taken with an iPhone at 8 x zoom\, shows our entire planet gradually blocked from view by the Moon. On the Earth\, the 24-hour planetary rotation causes the Sun to set below your horizon every night. However\, on Artemis II the Earthset was caused not by the Moon’s rotation but by the spacecraft moving behind the Moon (at about 55 seconds in this video ). Once rare\, views of Earth are now t aken many times a day from many spacecraft\, including NASA’s SWOT (Surf ace Water and Ocean Topography) satellite tracking freshwater resources an d USGS Landsat 8 and 9 satellites supporting water management for farmers \, for example. Space agencies around our home planet now work together to provide unique and ever-improving views of our Earth . Celebrate: Earth D ay\n\nVideo Credit: NASA\, Reid Wiseman Text: Keighley Rockcliffe ( NASA G SFC \, UMBC CSST \, CRESST II )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/ap od-2026-april-22-earthset-with-an-iphone/ SUMMARY:Earthset with an iPhone END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:three-sky-arches-over-snowy-alps DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260421 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260422 DESCRIPTION:Why are there three arches across the sky instead of two? Last month\, after being dropped off by a helicopter at a high mountain peak in the Alps near the Swiss Italian border\, an adventurous astrophotographer expected two arches of our Milky Way galaxy to be visible during the nigh t. These were the inner arch looking in toward the center of our galaxy on the left\, visible just before sunrise\, and the outer arch on the right visible just after sunset. But there were three arches. The surprised astr ophotographer soon realized that the sky was so dark that an entire arc of faint zodiacal light was also noticeable — sunlight scattered by inner Solar System dust . And it artfully connected the two Milky Way arches! Th e next morning a helicopter picked the astrophotographer back up\, and aft er 40 hours of processing and combining that night’s images\, the featur ed triple-arch 360-degree panorama resulted. Jigsaw Vistas: Astronomy Puzz le of the Day\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Angel Fux\nhttps://science.nasa .gov/image-article/apod-2026-april-21-three-sky-arches-over-snowy-alps/ SUMMARY:Three Sky Arches over Snowy Alps END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:comet-r3-panstarrs-over-a-himalayan-valley DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260420 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260421 DESCRIPTION:The best way to see comet R3 PanSTARRS’s long tail is with a camera. This week\, the recently brightened comet appears in northern skie s to the east just before dawn\, but is only barely visible to the unaided eye. The many-degree ion tail captured on long duration camera exposures is not unusual for a comet – it is primarily due to the Earth ‘s nearl y sideways view of the tail as it points away from the Sun. In the feature d image taken last week\, Comet C/2025 R3 (PanSTARRS) showed off its flowi ng tail through a valley between two peaks in the Himalayan mountains of I ndia . The comet passed its closest to the Sun yesterday. As it nears its closest approach to Earth next week\, a bushy dust tail may become visible . The comet is slowly moving out of northern skies and by the end of the m onth will be visible after sunset in southern skies as it fades and leaves our Solar System . Growing Gallery: Comet R3 PanSTARRS in 2026\n\nImage C redit & Copyright: Basudeb Chakrabarti & Samit Saha\nhttps://science.nasa. gov/image-article/apod-2026-april-20-comet-r3-panstarrs-over-a-himalayan-v alley/ SUMMARY:Comet R3 PanSTARRS over a Himalayan Valley END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:eye-on-the-milky-way DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260419 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260420 DESCRIPTION:Have you ever had stars in your eyes ? It appears that the eye on the left does\, and moreover\, it appears to be gazing at even more sta rs. The featured 27-frame mosaic was taken in 2019 from Ojas de Salar in t he Atacama Desert of Chile . The eye is actually a small lagoon captured r eflecting the dark night sky as the Milky Way Galaxy arched overhead. The seemingly smooth band of the Milky Way is really composed of billions of s tars\, but decorated with filaments of light-absorbing dust and red-glowin g nebulas . Additionally\, both Jupiter (slightly left the galactic arch) and Saturn (slightly to the right) are visible. The lights of small towns dot the unusual vertical horizon. The rocky terrain around the lagoon appe ars to some more like the surface of Mars than our Earth . Sky Surprise: W hat picture did APOD feature on your birthday? (after 1995)\n\nImage Credi t & Copyright: Miguel Claro ( TWAN \, Dark Sky Alqueva )\nhttps://science. nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-april-19-eye-on-the-milky-way/ SUMMARY:Eye on the Milky Way END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:panstarrs-and-planets DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260418 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260419 DESCRIPTION:Near the eastern horizon before sunrise\, Comet C/2025 R3 PanST ARRS is getting brighter . Readily visible in binoculars and small telesco pes\, the comet may be just on the verge of naked-eye visibility from dark sky sites. Though it was not quite apparent to the eye\, PanSTARRS is sti ll easy to spot in this camera image taken on April 16. In the view from a volcanic peak overlooking France’s Reunion Island\, planet Earth\, the comet shares eastern predawn skies with naked-eye planets Mars and Mercury and fainter Neptune. Saturn is hiding behind the low cloudbank that doesn ’t quite hide an old crescent Moon. This is a good weekend for northern hemisphere comet watchers to try to catch PanSTARRS an hour or so before s unrise\, as the comet grows brighter approaching its perihelion on April 1 9. On April 26 the comet makes its closest approach to our fair planet but by then will be difficult to see in the solar glare. Good views of this c omet PanSTARRS in late April and early May will be from the southern hemis phere.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Luc Perrot ( TWAN )\nhttps://science.n asa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-april-18-panstarrs-and-planets/ SUMMARY:PanSTARRS and Planets END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:m82-starburst-galaxy-with-a-superwind DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260417 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260418 DESCRIPTION:Messier 82 is a starburst galaxy with a superwind. In fact\, th rough supernova explosions and powerful winds from massive stars\, the bur st of star formation in M82 is driving a prodigious outflow. Evidence for the superwind from the galaxy’s central regions is clear in the sharp te lescopic portrait . The composite image includes 33 hours of narrowband da ta\, highlighting emission from long outflow filaments of atomic hydrogen gas in reddish hues. Some of the gas in the superwind\, enriched in heavy elements forged in the massive stars \, will eventually escape into interg alactic space . Triggered by a close encounter with nearby large galaxy M8 1 \, the furious burst of star formation in M82 should last about 100 mill ion years or so. Also known as the Cigar Galaxy for its elongated visual a ppearance\, M82 is about 30\,000 light-years across. It lies 12 million li ght-years away near the northern boundary of Ursa Major .\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Arnaud Malleval\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod- 2026-april-17-m82-starburst-galaxy-with-a-superwind/ SUMMARY:M82: Starburst Galaxy with a Superwind END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:south-celestial-tree DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260416 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260417 DESCRIPTION:If you live in the northern hemisphere \, you may have learned how to locate the North Star\, Polaris \, in the night sky. It can be used to find north\, and it approximately marks the northern celestial pole . If you live in the southern hemisphere\, there is no bright star marking t he southern celestial pole\, but the Southern Cross can be used to find so uth. The featured image was taken in Padre Bernardo ( GO )\, Brazil . It s hows the apparent motion of the stars around the apparently empty southern celestial pole over 2 hours\, on August 20\, 2018. Each star takes about 24 hours to make a complete turn around the pole in the sky. Padre Bernard o is located in the Cerrado region\, a tropical savanna that occupies most of central Brazil and supports rich biodiversity . The barren branch that apparently supports this sky wheel of rotating stars is a common sight th ere in the dry season during the southern winter.\n\nImage Credit & Copyri ght: Kiko Fairbairn Text: Cecilia Chirenti ( NASA GSFC \, UMCP \, CRESST I I )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-april-16-south-celes tial-tree/ SUMMARY:South Celestial Tree END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:the-iss-transits-the-moon DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260415 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260416 DESCRIPTION:Nope\, that is not an alien spaceship landing on the Moon! This is an image of the International Space Station (ISS) as it begins to tran sit in front of the Moon . The ISS is in low-Earth orbit (LEO) where it wi zzes around the Earth every 90 minutes. Orbiting the Earth 16 times per da y for 25 years\, the ISS has photobombed many familiar celestial objects i ncluding Venus \, Mars \, Saturn \, and the Sun . Thousands of experiments led by researchers from over one hundred countries have been conducted on the ISS. Growing protein crystals in low gravity was one of the first exp eriments onboard the ISS and continues to contribute to new medical treatm ents. ISS astronauts study plant growth\, water recycling\, human health\, and more to support the Artemis missions which will take humans farther t han they’ve ever gone before. Next time you are out and about at night\, try to spot the ISS zooming across the sky!\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Sébastien Borie Text: Keighley Rockcliffe ( NASA GSFC \, UMBC CSST \, CRE SST II )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-april-15-the-is s-transits-the-moon/ SUMMARY:The ISS Transits the Moon END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:the-long-wispy-tail-of-comet-r3-panstarrs DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260414 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260415 DESCRIPTION:Why does Comet R3 (PanSTARRS) have a wispy tail? The newest bri ght member of the inner Solar System\, Comet C/2025 R3 (PanSTARRS) is alre ady extending an impressive stream of glowing gas. This tail starts from a n unseen central nucleus of dirty ice that is likely a few kilometers acro ss. The nucleus is warmed by the Sun and emits a cloud of neutral gas into a coma that glows light green . Nuclear gas ionized by energetic sunlight is pushed away from the Sun by the solar wind into an ion tail that glows light blue . The wispy nature of the ion tail is caused by the constantly changing structure of the solar wind. Pictured from Rhode Island \, USA t wo days ago\, Comet R3 (PanSTARRS) shows off a many-degree ion tail. Comet R3 (PanSTARRS) is best seen before dawn from northern skies for another 1 0 days\, after which it will be best visible from southern skies. Growing Gallery: Comet R3 in 2026\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Haythem Hamdi\nhttp s://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-april-14-the-long-wispy-tail- of-comet-r3-panstarrs/ SUMMARY:The Long Wispy Tail of Comet R3 (PanSTARRS) END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:ngc-602-and-beyond DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260413 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260414 DESCRIPTION:The clouds may look like an oyster\, and the stars like pearls\ , but look beyond. Near the outskirts of the Small Magellanic Cloud \, a s atellite galaxy some 200 thousand light-years distant\, lies 5 million yea r young star cluster NGC 602 . Surrounded by natal gas and dust\, NGC 602 is featured in this stunning Hubble image of the region. Fantastic ridges and swept back shapes strongly suggest that energetic radiation and shock waves from NGC 602 ‘s massive young stars have eroded the dust y materia l and triggered a progression of star formation moving away from the clust er’s center. At the estimated distance of the Small Magellanic Cloud \, the featured picture spans about 200 light-years\, but a tantalizing assor tment of background galaxies are also visible in this sharp multi-colored view . The background galaxies are hundreds of millions of light-years or more beyond NGC 602 . Sky Surprise: What picture did APOD feature on your birthday? (after 1995)\n\nImage Credit: NASA \, ESA \, and the Hubble Heri tage Team ( STScI / AURA ) – ESA /Hubble Collaboration\nhttps://science. nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-april-13-ngc-602-and-beyond/ SUMMARY:NGC 602 and Beyond END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:comet-r3-panstarrs-brightens DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260412 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260413 DESCRIPTION:Comet R3 is brightening rapidly — will it survive? C/2025 R3 (PanSTARRS) has been slowly brightening and extending an ion tail since it s discovery last year. This shedding mountain of dirty ice puts on its bes t sky show this month\, though\, because it passes its closest to both the Sun (April 19) and the Earth (April 25). The featured image \, showing R3 already sporting a tail extending over 10 degrees\, was taken two nights ago from Sion \, Switzerland with the big mountain Bietschhorn on the left . Comet R3 will be visible during mid-April before sunrise. Although the f uture brightness of any comet is hard to predict\, the brightness of R3 ma kes it already a good camera comet and it may become visible to the unaide d eye in the next week. Comet R3 ‘s physical future is also unknown beca use\, like Comet A1 (MAPS) earlier this month\, it may disintegrate when i t passes its closest to the Sun. Or it may live to leave the Solar System. Growing Gallery: Comet R3 in 2026\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: José Rodr igues\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-april-12-comet-r3- panstarrs-brightens/ SUMMARY:Comet R3 PanSTARRS Brightens END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:artemis-ii-flight-day-6 DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260411 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260412 DESCRIPTION:On flight day 6 (April 6) the Artemis II mission achieved a his toric lunar flyby . Rounding the lunar far side\, the deep space maneuver marked humanity’s first venture to the Moon since Apollo 17 in 1972. The Orion spacecraft Integrity reached a maximum distance of nearly 407\,000 kilometers\, and the Artemis II crew \, Reid Wiseman\, Victor Glover\, and Christina Koch\, and Jeremy Hansen\, set the record for the farthest dist ance from Earth traveled by any human since the Apollo 13 crew in 1970. Fr om behind the Moon on flight day 6\, a solar array wing camera recorded th is space age selfie\, framing the spacecraft and lunar far side. Planet Ea rth\, home to the Artemis II crew\, is the small\, bright crescent beyond the lunar limb. The crew safely returned home on Artemis II mission flight day 10 . Artemis II: Splashdown\n\nImage Credit: NASA \, Artemis II\nhttp s://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-april-11-artemis-ii-flight-da y-6/ SUMMARY:Artemis II: Flight Day 6 END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:exploring-the-antennae DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260410 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260411 DESCRIPTION:Some 60 million light-years away in the southerly constellation Corvus \, two large galaxies are colliding. Stars in the two galaxies\, c ataloged as NGC 4038 and NGC 4039 \, very rarely collide in the course of the ponderous cataclysm that lasts for hundreds of millions of years. But the galaxies’ large clouds of molecular gas and dust often do\, triggeri ng furious episodes of star formation near the center of the cosmic wrecka ge . Spanning over 50 thousand light-years\, this stunning telescopic fram e also reveals new star clusters and matter flung far from the scene of th e accident by gravitational tidal forces. The remarkably sharp ground-base d image follows the faint tidal tails and distant background galaxies in t he field of view. The suggestive overall visual appearance of the extended arcing structures gives the galaxy pair\, also known as Arp 244\, its pop ular name – The Antennae . Artemis II: Splashdown\n\nImage Credit & Copy right: Acquisition – Mike Selby Processing – Roberto Colombari\nhttps: //science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-april-10-exploring-the-antennae / SUMMARY:Exploring the Antennae END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:destruction-of-comet-c-2026-a1-maps DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260409 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260410 DESCRIPTION:As the crew of Artemis II travelled towards the Moon this week\ , Comet C/2026 A1 (MAPS) was expected to have its closest approach to the Sun on Monday. At this point\, comet and Sun would be closer than half the distance separating the Earth and Moon . The comet did not survive \; the featured video was made with 40 hours of data and shows the comet plungin g toward the Sun\, like a moth to a flame. Observing the comet so close to our bright star requires a coronagraph \, an instrument that blocks the S un and is used for studies of its corona . This composite video combines\, starting from the outside\, views from: the wider angle coronagraph (blue ) and the narrower angle coronagraph (red)\, both on NASA’s Solar and He liospheric Observatory \, and NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory (black). We can see the comet approaching the sun\, stretching \, disappearing beh ind the coronagraph’s occulting disk and reappearing as a cloud of debri s that dissipates. Destruction of Comet C/2026 A1 (MAPS) Explanation: As t he crew of Artemis II travelled towards the Moon this week\, Comet C/2026 A1 (MAPS) was expected to have its closest approach to the Sun on Monday. At this point\, comet and Sun would be closer than half the distance separ ating the Earth and Moon . The comet did not survive \; the featured video was made with 40 hours of data and shows the comet plunging toward the Su n\, like a moth to a flame. Observing the comet so close to our bright sta r requires a coronagraph \, an instrument that blocks the Sun and is used for studies of its corona . This composite video combines\, starting from the outside\, views from: the wider angle coronagraph (blue) and the narro wer angle coronagraph (red)\, both on NASA’s Solar and Heliospheric Obse rvatory \, and NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory (black). We can see the comet approaching the sun\, stretching \, disappearing behind the coronag raph’s occulting disk and reappearing as a cloud of debris that dissipat es.\n\nVideo Credit: Brian Day \, SOHO \, SDO \, JHelioviewer Text: Cecili a Chirenti ( NASA GSFC \, UMCP \, CRESST II )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/im age-article/apod-2026-april-9-destruction-of-comet-c-2026-a1-maps/ SUMMARY:Destruction of Comet C/2026 A1 (MAPS) END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:earthset DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260408 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260409 DESCRIPTION:And to all of you down there on Earth and around Earth\, we lov e you\, from the Moon. We will see you on the other side\, said Artemis II pilot Victor Glover on April 6th at 6:44pm ET as 8.3 billion minus four p eople and one Earth set below the Moon’s horizon. The Orion spacecraft\, Integrity\, then traveled behind the Moon as part of its seven-hour lunar flyby. The crew characterized never-before-seen regions of the far side o f the Moon\, which is puzzlingly less volcanically active than the near si de. New observations of crater peaks\, floors\, terraces\, and rings prese rved on the lunar surface will help piece together the impact history of t he Solar System. Among many other surface characterizations\, the crew obs erved one of the Moon’s best-preserved basins\, the Orientale basin\, an d identified two new craters. As Earth rose above the Moon’s horizon and Integrity began its return home\, Artemis II mission specialist Christina Koch powerfully summarized humanity’s grander mission: …we will alway s choose Earth. We will always choose each other.\n\nImage Credit: NASA Te xt:Keighley Rockcliffe (NASA GSFC\, UMBC CSST\, CRESST II)\nhttps://scienc e.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-april-8-earthset/ SUMMARY:Earthset END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:ic-4592-the-blue-horsehead-reflection-nebula DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260407 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260408 DESCRIPTION:Do you see the horse’s head? What you are seeing is not the f amous Horsehead nebula toward Orion \, but rather a fainter nebula that on ly takes on a familiar form with deeper imaging. The main part of the here -imaged molecular cloud complex is reflection nebula IC 4592 . Reflection nebulas are made up of very fine dust that normally appears dark but can l ook quite blue when reflecting the visible light of energetic nearby stars . In this case\, the source of much of the reflected light is a star at th e eye of the horse . That star is part of Nu Scorpii \, one of the brighte r star systems toward the constellation of the Scorpion ( Scorpius ). A se cond reflection nebula dubbed IC 4601 is visible surrounding two stars jus t below the image center. The featured picture was taken from Sawda Nathee l in Qatar . Jigsaw Nebula: Astronomy Puzzle of the Day\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Rabeea Alkuwari\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-20 26-april-7-ic-4592-the-blue-horsehead-reflection-nebula/ SUMMARY:IC 4592: The Blue Horsehead Reflection Nebula END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:the-path-of-artemis-ii DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260406 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260407 DESCRIPTION:Why doesn’t Artemis II land on the Moon? The main reason is t hat Artemis II is primarily a test mission designed to make a future Artem is missions — which will land humans on the Moon — better prepared. Si milarly\, NASA’s Apollo 8 and Apollo 10 went right near the Moon as test s before Apollo 11 — which landed . As the trajectory in the featured an imated video shows\, Artemis II will loop around both the Earth and the Mo on before returning to the Earth about 10 days after launch. The Artemis I I mission will take human s outside the Earth’s magnetosphere for the fi rst time since the Apollo missions 50 years ago. In the video \, particles from the solar wind are shown as streaks\, while the Earth’s reacting m agnetosphere is shown in flickering green. The Earth’s magnetosphere is important in deflecting powerful particles arriving from the Sun as well a s creating picturesque auroras visible from the Earth’s surface. The Pat h of Artemis II Explanation: Why doesn’t Artemis II land on the Moon? Th e main reason is that Artemis II is primarily a test mission designed to m ake a future Artemis missions — which will land humans on the Moon — b etter prepared. Similarly\, NASA’s Apollo 8 and Apollo 10 went right nea r the Moon as tests before Apollo 11 — which landed . As the trajectory in the featured animated video shows\, Artemis II will loop around both th e Earth and the Moon before returning to the Earth about 10 days after lau nch. The Artemis II mission will take human s outside the Earth’s magnet osphere for the first time since the Apollo missions 50 years ago. In the video \, particles from the solar wind are shown as streaks\, while the Ea rth’s reacting magnetosphere is shown in flickering green. The Earth’s magnetosphere is important in deflecting powerful particles arriving from the Sun as well as creating picturesque auroras visible from the Earth’ s surface. Explore the Universe: Random APOD Generator\n\nVideo Credit: NA SA \, GSFC \, Artemis II \, SVS\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/ap od-2026-april-6-the-path-of-artemis-ii/ SUMMARY:The Path of Artemis II END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:ngc-3310-a-starburst-spiral-galaxy DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260405 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260406 DESCRIPTION:The party is still going on in spiral galaxy NGC 3310. Roughly 100 million years ago\, NGC 3310 likely collided with a smaller galaxy cau sing the large spiral galaxy to light up with a tremendous burst of star f ormation . The changing gravity during the collision created density waves that compressed existing clouds of gas and triggered the star-forming par ty . The featured image from the Gemini North Telescope shows the galaxy i n great detail \, color-coded so that pink highlights gas while white and blue highlight stars. Some of the star clusters in the galaxy are quite yo ung\, indicating that starburst galaxies may remain in star-burst mode for quite some time. NGC 3310 spans about 50\,000 light years \, lies about 5 0 million light years away\, and is visible with a small telescope towards the constellation of Great Bear Ursa Major .\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: AAO ITSO Office \, Gemini Obs. / AURA & T. A. Rector ( U. Alaska Anchorag e )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-april-5-ngc-3310-a-s tarburst-spiral-galaxy/ SUMMARY:NGC 3310: A Starburst Spiral Galaxy END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:hello-world DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260404 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260405 DESCRIPTION:From pole to pole our fair planet is captured in this snapshot from space\, an evocative image from a window of the Orion spacecraft Inte grity. From the spacecraft’s perspective the Sun is moving behind Earth ’s bright limb along the lower right. Africa and the Iberian peninsula a re in view on the pale blue planet’s surface\, while aurorae crown Earth ’s south and north poles at top right and bottom left. Commander Reid Wi seman took the historic picture on Artemis II mission flight day 2 (April 2)\, after the completion of the planned translunar injection burn. That b urn boosted the spacecraft out of Earth orbit\, sending Integrity and crew on a trajectory that will take them around the Moon and back again. That ’s a journey humans last made over 50 years ago. (Editor’s note: Venus is photobombing Wiseman’s historic pic. Currently appearing in our west ern skies after sunset\, the inner planet is in the frame below and right of Earth’s bright limb\, immersed in a faint band of zodiacal light.)\n\ nImage Credit: NASA \, Reid Wiseman\, Artemis II\nhttps://science.nasa.gov /image-article/apod-2026-april-4-hello-world/ SUMMARY:Hello World END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:caught-in-the-web DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260403 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260404 DESCRIPTION:How can we see what is invisible? Black holes are not easy to s ee in the dark cosmic night\, but astronomers can find them by analyzing t heir gravitational effects on matter \, light and spacetime . The featured image shows an illustration that combines a simulation of a black hole bi nary system in its final “ death-dance ” with an astrophotography imag e of the Tarantula Nebula in the background. Even though black holes don ’t emit light\, they distort the path of light rays\, acting like a grav itational lens . As a result\, the nebula appears extremely distorted\, fo rming Einstein rings and multiple images . Tarantula Nebula lies in the La rge Magellanic Cloud \, a dwarf galaxy that is one of the satellite galaxi es of the Milky Way\, 160\,000 light-years away. That is more than 1\,000 times closer than any of the binary black hole mergers detected so far . W e’ll probably never detect a merger so close to home!\n\nIllustration Cr edit & Copyright: Artwork: Carl Knox ( OzGrav \, Swinburne University of T echnology )\; Astrophotography: Blake Estes & Christian Sasse \, iTelescop e.net \; Text: Cecilia Chirenti ( NASA GSFC \, UMCP \, CRESST II )\nhttps: //science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-april-caught-in-the-web/ SUMMARY:APOD: 2026 April – Caught in the Web END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:liftoff-returning-to-the-moon DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260402 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260403 DESCRIPTION:We are one small step closer to returning to the Moon. A new ch apter in human exploration began yesterday when NASA’s Artemis II launch ed aboard the Space Launch System (SLS) from Kennedy Space Center . Carryi ng four astronauts \, the Orion spacecraft’s planned lunar flyby will be the first in over half a century. This historic test flight\, echoing the legacy of Apollo while pushing beyond it\, will carry its crew farther fr om Earth than any humans since 1972 \, looping around the Moon before retu rning home. During the approximately ten-day journey\, Orion’s systems –from life support to navigation–will be tested in deep space\, while astronauts observe the lunar surface\, including shadowed regions of the f ar side rarely seen with such perspective. After looping around the Moon\, the astronauts will return to Earth\, ending their journey with a Pacific Ocean splashdown .\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: NASA/Bill Ingalls \; Text : Ogetay Kayali ( MTU )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026- april-2-liftoff-returning-to-the-moon/ SUMMARY:Liftoff! Returning to the Moon END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:the-claw-and-bubble-nebulae DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260401 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260402 DESCRIPTION:What unexpected things do you see when you look up at the night sky? Today’s image resembles an abstract painting \, with large swaths of color strewn across a cosmic canvas seemingly without design. Despite t he image’s abstract nature\, the human mind finds patterns \, identifyin g a large claw reaching up towards a floating bubble. Embedded within thes e seemingly random structures are the physical laws that govern how light and matter interact . The Claw (Sh2-157) and Bubble ( NGC 7635 ) Nebulae g low colors that are mapped to the yellow and blue shown\, indicating the p resence of hydrogen and oxygen ionized by the intense light emitted from s tars several times the mass of the Sun. This image depicts both the chaos and structure of astronomical processes\, showing that a common thread bet ween art and science is to look for the unexpected .\n\nImage Credit & Cop yright: Richard Whitehead Text: Keighley Rockcliffe ( NASA GSFC \, UMBC CS ST \, CRESST II )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-april- 01-the-claw-and-bubble-nebulae/ SUMMARY:The Claw and Bubble Nebulae END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:uranus-largest-moon-titania DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260331 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260401 DESCRIPTION:Titania’s tortured terrain is a mix of canyons\, cliffs\, and craters. NASA ‘s interplanetary robot spacecraft Voyager 2 passed the l argest moon of Uranus in 1986 and took the feature picture . That the tren ches of Titania resemble those on another moon of Uranus\, Ariel \, indica te that Titania underwent some violent surface event possibly related to w ater freezing and expanding in its distant past. Although Titania is Uranu s’s largest moon\, it is only about half the radius of Triton – the la rgest moon of Uranus’s sister planet Neptune \, which itself is slightly smaller than Earth’s Moon . Titania \, discovered by William Herschel i n 1787\, is essentially a large dirty iceball that is composed of about ha lf water-ice and half rock. There is recent speculation that radioactive h eating melts some underground ice into oceans.\n\nImage Credit: NASA \, Vo yager 2 \; Processing & License: zelario12\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image -article/apod-2026-march-31-uranus-largest-moon-titania/ SUMMARY:Uranus Largest Moon: Titania END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:peculiar-elliptical-galaxy-centaurus-a DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260330 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260331 DESCRIPTION:What’s happened to the center of this galaxy? Dramatic dust l anes run across the center of unusual elliptical galaxy Centaurus A . Thes e dust lanes are so thick they almost completely obscure the galaxy’s ce nter in visible light . This is particularly unusual as Cen A ‘s older s tars and oval shape are characteristic of a giant elliptical galaxy \, a g alaxy type typically low in dark dust. Pictured in this deep image is a co mplex network of foreground gas and dust\, as well as shells of dim stars and a jet projecting to the upper right. Also known as NGC 5128\, Cen A is surely the result of a galactic collision where many young dust-creating stars were formed. However\, details of the creation of Cen A’s unusuall y active center and iconic central dust lanes are still being researched . Cen A lies only 13 million light years away\, making it the closest activ e galaxy . Jigsaw Galaxy: Astronomy Puzzle of the Day\n\nImage Credit & Co pyright: SADR Observatory Team: J-C Dalouzy \, P. Bazart\, M. Dherbécourt \, C. Humbert\, G. Leroy\, J-P Quéau\, H. Talbot\, & E. Valin\nhttps://sc ience.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-march-30-peculiar-elliptical-galaxy -centaurus-a/ SUMMARY:Peculiar Elliptical Galaxy Centaurus A END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:a-message-from-earth DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260329 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260330 DESCRIPTION:What are these Earthlings trying to tell us? The featured messa ge was broadcast from Earth towards the globular star cluster M13 in 1974. During the dedication of an upgrade to the Arecibo Observatory – then t he largest single radio telescope in the world – a string of 1’s and 0 ’s representing the diagram was sent. This attempt at extraterrestrial c ommunication was mostly ceremonial – humanity regularly broadcasts radio and television signals out into space accidentally. Even were this messag e received\, M13 is so far away we would have to wait almost 50\,000 years to hear an answer. The featured message gives a few simple facts about hu manity and its knowledge: from left to right are numbers from one to ten\, atoms including hydrogen and carbon \, some interesting molecules\, DNA \ , a human with description\, basics of our Solar System \, and basics of t he sending telescope. Several searches for extraterrestrial intelligence a re currently underway. Explore the Universe: Random APOD Generator\n\nImag e Credit: Frank Drake et al.\, Arecibo Observatory \; License: Arne Nordma nn (Wikimedia)\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-march-29- a-message-from-earth/ SUMMARY:A Message from Earth END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:robert-goddard-and-nell DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260328 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260329 DESCRIPTION:Robert H. Goddard \, considered the father of modern rocketry\, was born in Worcester Massachusetts in 1882. As a 16 year old\, Goddard r ead H.G. Wells’ science fiction classic “War Of The Worlds” and drea med of space flight. By 1926 he had designed\, built\, and flown the world ’s first liquid fuel rocket. Launched 100 years ago on March 16\, 1926 f rom his aunt Effie’s farm in Auburn Massachusetts\, the rocket\, dubbed “Nell\,” rose to an altitude of 41 feet in a flight that lasted about 2 1/2 seconds. In this posed photo \, Goddard stands next to the 10 foot t all rocket\, holding the launch stand frame. To achieve a stable flight wi thout the need for fins\, the rocket’s heavy motor was located at the to p\, fed by lines from liquid oxygen and gasoline fuel tanks at the bottom. Widely recognized as a gifted experimenter and engineering genius \, his rockets were many years ahead of their time. Goddard was awarded over 200 patents in rocket technology\, most of them after his death in 1945. A liq uid fuel rocket constructed on principles developed by Goddard landed huma ns on the Moon in 1969 .\n\nImage Credit: Esther Goddard\, from the Clark University archive\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-march -28-robert-goddard-and-nell/ SUMMARY:Robert Goddard and Nell END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:hickson-44-in-leo DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260327 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260328 DESCRIPTION:Scanning the skies for galaxies\, Canadian astronomer Paul Hick son and colleagues identified some 100 compact groups of galaxies \, now a ppropriately called Hickson Compact Groups . The four prominent galaxies s een in this intriguing telescopic skyscape are one such group\, Hickson 44 . The Hickson 44 galaxy group is about 100 million light-years distant\, f ar beyond the foreground Milky Way stars\, toward the northern springtime constellation Leo. The two spiral galaxies in the center of the image are edge-on NGC 3190 with distinctive\, warped dust lanes\, and S-shaped NGC 3 187. Along with the bright elliptical\, NGC 3193 (left) they are also know n as Arp 316. The spiral toward the lower right corner is NGC 3185\, the 4 th member of the Hickson group. Like other galaxies in Hickson groups \, t hese show signs of distortion and enhanced star formation \, evidence of a gravitational tug of war that will eventually result in galaxy mergers on a cosmic timescale. The merger process is now understood to be a normal p art of the evolution of galaxies\, including our own Milky Way . For scale \, NGC 3190 is about 75\,000 light-years across at the estimated distance of Hickson 44.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Peter Kennett\nhttps://science .nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-march-27-hickson-44-in-leo/ SUMMARY:Hickson 44 in Leo END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:black-holes-and-neutron-stars-218-mergers-and-counting DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260326 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260327 DESCRIPTION:What is the sound of two black holes merging in deep space? Sou nd waves don’t propagate in vacuum\, but gravitational waves do. In 2015 we were able to “hear” them for the first time and confirm one of Alb ert Einstein ‘s theoretical predictions. Each square on the grid of the featured image represents one of the gravitational wave detections announc ed so far by the LIGO – VIRGO – KAGRA Collaboration . These plots show how the binary pair accelerates in their orbit around each other towards merger: the rising frequency effect is called a “ chirp ”. Although th ere are significantly more neutron stars than black holes \, most of the d etections are binary black hole mergers. That happens because black holes are heavier and their signals are louder and can be seen farther away\, re sulting in more detections. These events are rare \, and we don’t expect to see one close by in our Galaxy any time soon. But they are happening c ontinuously throughout the cosmos.\n\nImage Credit: Ryan Nowicki \, Bill S mith & Karan Jani Text: Cecilia Chirenti ( NASA GSFC \, UMCP \, CRESST II )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-march-26-black-holes-a nd-neutron-stars-218-mergers-and-counting/ SUMMARY:Black Holes and Neutron Stars: 218 Mergers and Counting END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:the-guardians-of-rapa-nui-beneath-the-milky-way DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260325 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260326 DESCRIPTION:In the words of today’s astrophotographer\, Rositsa Dimitrova \, “What have these silent sentinels watched pass across the sky?” The volcanic mo’ai (meaning statue) of Anakena stand guard over Rapa Nui (I sla de Pascua\, Easter Island)\, a Polynesian island (annexed by Chile in 1888) located thousands of kilometers off the coast of South America in th e Pacific Ocean. Due to the island’s remoteness\, the mo’ai \, with th eir backs to the dark ocean\, are able to gaze upon a clear and vibrant ni ght sky. Pictured \, these larger-than-life statues stare at the bright ba nd of the Milky Way \, partly obscured by interstellar dust and blurred by Earth’s clouds. Under such clear night skies\, the Rapa Nui created obs ervatories and used astronomical observations for navigation\, calendar ca libration\, celebrations\, and more . Images like this one remind us of th e importance of dark skies \, protecting the land underneath them\, and pr eserving the culture that they inspire.\n\nImage Credit and Copyright: Ros itsa Dimitrova Text: Keighley Rockcliffe ( NASA GSFC \, UMBC CSST \, CRESS T II )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-march-25-the-guar dians-of-rapa-nui-beneath-the-milky-way/ SUMMARY:The Guardians of Rapa Nui beneath the Milky Way END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:a-gravity-map-of-earth DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260324 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260325 DESCRIPTION:Is gravity the same over the surface of the Earth? No — in so me places you will feel slightly heavier than others. The featured Earth m ap video shows in colors and exaggerated highs and lows where the gravitat ional field of Earth is relatively strong and weak. A low spot\, where you would feel slightly lighter\, can be seen just off the coast of India \, in blue\, while a relative high occurs in the mountains of Chile in South America . The cause of these irregularities does not always follow present surface features. Scientists hypothesize that other important factors lie in deep underground structures in Earth’s mantle and may be related to the Earth’s appearance in the distant past . The featured map was compos ed from data taken by NASA ‘s twin GRACE satellites that orbited the Ear th from 2002 to 2017. GRACE mapped Earth’s gravity by carefully tracking tiny changes in the distance between the two satellites. A Gravity Map of Earth Explanation: Is gravity the same over the surface of the Earth? No — in some places you will feel slightly heavier than others. The feature d Earth map video shows in colors and exaggerated highs and lows where the gravitational field of Earth is relatively strong and weak. A low spot\, where you would feel slightly lighter\, can be seen just off the coast of India \, in blue\, while a relative high occurs in the mountains of Chile in South America . The cause of these irregularities does not always follo w present surface features. Scientists hypothesize that other important fa ctors lie in deep underground structures in Earth’s mantle and may be re lated to the Earth’s appearance in the distant past . The featured map w as composed from data taken by NASA ‘s twin GRACE satellites that orbite d the Earth from 2002 to 2017. GRACE mapped Earth’s gravity by carefully tracking tiny changes in the distance between the two satellites.\n\nVide o Credit: NASA \, GSFC \, GRACE \, SVS\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-art icle/apod-2026-march-24-a-gravity-map-of-earth/ SUMMARY:A Gravity Map of Earth END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:light-pillars-and-orion-over-mohe DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260323 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260324 DESCRIPTION:What’s happening at the end of that street? Pictured here are not auroras but light pillar s\, a phenomenon typically much closer. In m ost places on Earth \, a lucky viewer can see a Sun pillar \, a column of light appearing to extend up from the Sun caused by flat fluttering ice-cr ystals reflecting sunlight from the upper atmosphere . Usually\, these ice crystal s evaporate before reaching the ground. During freezing temperatu res\, however\, flat fluttering ice crystals may form near the ground and are sometimes known as a crystal fog. These small ice crystals may then re flect not the Sun but ground lights. The featured image captured not only numerous light pillars but also the iconic constellation of Orion\, and wa s taken in Mohe\, the northernmost city in China.\n\nImage Credit & Copyri ght: Jeff Dai ( TWAN )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-m arch-23-light-pillars-and-orion-over-mohe/ SUMMARY:Light Pillars and Orion over Mohe END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:leaving-earth DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260322 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260323 DESCRIPTION:What would it look like to leave planet Earth? Such an event wa s recorded visually in great detail by the MESSENGER spacecraft as it swun g back past the Earth in 2005 on its way in toward the planet Mercury . Ea rth can be seen rotating in this time-lapse video \, as it recedes into th e distance. The sunlit half of Earth is so bright that background stars ar e not visible . The robotic MESSENGER spacecraft orbit around Mercury from 2011 to 2015 has conducted the first complete map of the surface . On occ asion\, MESSENGER peered back at its home world. MESSENGER is one of the f ew things created on the Earth that will never return . At the end of its mission\, MESSENGER was purposefully crashed into Mercury’s surface . Le aving Earth Explanation: What would it look like to leave planet Earth? Su ch an event was recorded visually in great detail by the MESSENGER spacecr aft as it swung back past the Earth in 2005 on its way in toward the plane t Mercury . Earth can be seen rotating in this time-lapse video \, as it r ecedes into the distance. The sunlit half of Earth is so bright that backg round stars are not visible . The robotic MESSENGER spacecraft orbit aroun d Mercury from 2011 to 2015 has conducted the first complete map of the su rface . On occasion\, MESSENGER peered back at its home world. MESSENGER i s one of the few things created on the Earth that will never return . At t he end of its mission\, MESSENGER was purposefully crashed into Mercury’ s surface . Almost Hyperspace: Random APOD Generator\n\nVideo Credit: NASA \, JHU Applied Physics Lab \, Carnegie Inst. Washington \, MESSENGER\nhtt ps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod/apod-2026-march-22-leaving-earth/ SUMMARY:Leaving Earth END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:galaxies-in-the-river-ngc-1300-and-ngc-1297 DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260321 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260322 DESCRIPTION:Spiral NGC 1300 and elliptical NGC 1297 are galaxies that lie o n the banks of the southern constellation Eridanus (The River) . At 70 mil lion light-years distant or more\, both are members of the Eridanus Galaxy Cluster . About 100\,000 light-years across\, at lower left in this sharp \, galaxy group photo NGC 1300 is seen face-on with a prominent central ba r and grand\, sweeping spiral arms. Like other spiral galaxies \, includin g our own barred spiral Milky Way Galaxy\, NGC 1300 is thought to have a s upermassive central black hole. A contrast in appearance and slightly more distant\, NGC 1297 is the roughly spherical large elliptical galaxy near the top of the frame. With little active star formation\, elliptical galax ies are composed of older populations of stars and are likely he result of multiple collisions and mergers with spirals.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright : Dietmar Hager and Eric Benson\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/ap od-2026-march-21-galaxies-in-the-river-ngc-1300-and-ngc-1297/ SUMMARY:Galaxies in the River: NGC 1300 and NGC 1297 END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:spring-equinox-at-teide-observatory DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260320 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260321 DESCRIPTION:The defining astronomical moment of the equinox today is at 14: 46 UTC (March 20). That’s when the Sun crosses the celestial equator mov ing north in its yearly journey through planet Earth’s sky\, marking the beginning of spring for our fair planet in the northern hemisphere and fa ll in the southern hemisphere. Then\, day and night are nearly equal aroun d the globe . In fact\, both day and nighttime exposures from a spring equ inox at the Observatorio del Teide in Tenerife\, Canary Islands\, Spain\, are used in this composited skyscape. Over 1\,000 images were taken with a fisheye lens and merged in the ambitious equinox project. The apparent mo tion of the Sun setting along the celestial equator on the equinox date fo llows the bright linear\, diagonal track from the sequence of daytime expo sures taken over 6 hours. After sunset\, nighttime exposures recorded star trails\, with the celestial equator as a linear track and concentric arcs circling the north celestial pole near Polaris at upper right and the sout h celestial pole beyond the lower left edge (and below the Teide horizon). The foreground includes the distant Teide volcano peak and the observator y’s pyramid-shaped solar laboratory building.\n\nImage Credit & Copyrigh t: Juan Carlos Casado ( Starry Earth \, TWAN )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/i mage-article/apod-2026-march-20-spring-equinox-at-teide-observatory/ SUMMARY:Spring Equinox at Teide Observatory END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:launch-plume-spacex-jellyfish DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260319 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260320 DESCRIPTION:Even if you live with your head in the clouds \, you won’t fi nd a jellyfish like this one very often. The featured image shows a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launch from Cape Canaveral in Florida on March 4. The lau nch happened 52 minutes before sunrise \, and the second stage rocket exha ust plume was high enough in the sky to catch the light of the rising sun \, while the photographer was still in the dark. This combination of light and shadow\, possible at dawn or dusk \, makes the exhaust\, mostly water vapor and carbon dioxide \, appear as a glowing cloud. It only looks like it’s going down\, as the rocket follows the curvature of the Earth on i ts way to space . A related effect is the twilight phenomenon \, which cau ses colorful contrails sometimes mistaken for UFOs . But\, in case you are wondering: real jellyfish were sent to space by NASA in the 1990s as part of a science experiment .\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Michael Seeley Tex t: Cecilia Chirenti ( NASA GSFC \, UMCP \, CRESST II )\nhttps://science.na sa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-march-19-launch-plume-spacex-jellyfish/ SUMMARY:Launch Plume: SpaceX Jellyfish END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:cygnus-and-the-solitary-tree DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260318 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260319 DESCRIPTION:A lone tree stands in a quiet meadow in Guadalajara\, Spain \, silhouetted against the Cygnus region rising above like flames in the nigh t sky. This deep night skyscape is a composite of exposures that reveals a range of brightness and color human eyes can’t quite see on their own. Spanning over a thousand times the angular size of the full moon\, Cygnus sets the sky afire with active star formation where clouds of gas and dust collapse under gravity until nuclear fusion ignites and new stars are bor n. These stars ionize the surrounding hydrogen gas\, causing it to glow cr imson \, while tendrils of interstellar dust absorb some of that light and cast dark shadows across the sky. Cygnus is a trove of celestial treasure s\, notably the Veil \, Crescent \, and Pelican nebulae\, as well as Cygnu s X-1 \, the first confirmed black hole . Cygnus continues to yield fresh science\, including a new three-dimensional model of the Cygnus Loop made possible by the Chandra X-ray Observatory . Almost Hyperspace: Random APOD Generator\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: 2025 Horacio Lander / AstroHoracio Text: Keighley Rockcliffe ( NASA GSFC \, UMBC CSST \, CRESST II )\nhttps: //science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-march-18-cygnus-and-the-solitar y-tree/ SUMMARY:Cygnus and the Solitary Tree END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:the-tadpoles-of-ic-410 DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260317 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260318 DESCRIPTION:This telescopic close-up shows off the central regions of other wise faint emission nebula IC 410\, captured under backyard skies. Present ed in a Hubble color palette\, the image combines visible broadband and na rrowband data with data from the near-infrared. Below and right of center are two remarkable inhabitants of the interstellar pond of gas and dust. t he Tadpoles of IC 410. Partly obscured by foreground dust\, the nebula its elf surrounds NGC 1893\, a young galactic cluster of stars. Formed in the interstellar cloud a mere 4 million years ago\, the intensely hot\, bright cluster stars energize the glowing gas. But the cosmic tadpoles themselve s are composed of denser cooler gas and dust. Around 10 light-years long t hey are likely sites of ongoing star formation . Sculpted by stellar winds and radiation their heads are outlined by bright ridges of ionized gas wh ile their tails trail away from the cluster’s central young stars. IC 41 0 lies some 10\,000 light-years away\, toward the nebula-rich constellatio n Auriga .\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Nico Carver\nhttps://science.nasa. gov/image-article/apod-2026-march-17-the-tadpoles-of-ic-410/ SUMMARY:The Tadpoles of IC 410 END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:ngc-1566-the-spanish-dancer-galaxy DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260316 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260317 DESCRIPTION:If not perfect\, then this spiral galaxy is at least one of the most photogenic. An island universe containing billions of stars and situ ated about 40 million light-years away toward the constellation of the Dol phinfish ( Dorado )\, NGC 1566 presents a gorgeous face-on view . Classifi ed as a grand design spiral\, NGC 1566 shows two prominent and graceful sp iral arms that are traced by bright blue star clusters \, red emission neb ula s\, and dark cosmic dust lanes. Numerous Hubble Space Telescope images of NGC 1566 have been taken to study star formation \, supernovas \, and the spiral’s unusually active center. NGC 1566’s flaring center makes the spiral one of the closest and brightest Seyfert galaxies \, likely hou sing a central supermassive black hole wreaking havoc on surrounding stars and gas . Sky Surprise: What picture did APOD feature on your birthday? ( after 1995)\n\nImage Credit: ESA/Hubble & NASA \, D. Calzetti & the LEGUS Team \, R. Chandar\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-march -16-ngc-1566-the-spanish-dancer-galaxy/ SUMMARY:NGC 1566: The Spanish Dancer Galaxy END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:equinox-at-the-pyramid-of-the-feathered-serpent DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260315 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260316 DESCRIPTION:To see the feathered serpent descend the Mayan pyramid requires exquisite timing. You must visit El Castillo — in Mexico ‘s Yucatán Peninsula — near an equinox . Then\, during the late afternoon if the sk y is clear\, the pyramid ‘s own shadows create triangles that merge into the famous illusion of a slithering viper . Also known as the Temple of K ukulkan \, the impressive step-pyramid stands 30 meters tall and 55 meters wide at the base. Built up as a series of square terraces by the pre-Colu mbian civilization between the 9th and 12th century\, the structure can be used as a calendar and is noted for astronomical alignments . The feature d composite image was captured in 2019 with Jupiter and Saturn straddling the diagonal central band of our Milky Way galaxy . In a few days another equinox will occur — not only at Temple of Kukulcán\, but all over plan et Earth .\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Robert Fedez\nhttps://science.nasa .gov/image-article/apod-2026-march-15-equinox-at-the-pyramid-of-the-feathe red-serpent/ SUMMARY:Equinox at the Pyramid of the Feathered Serpent END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:a-year-for-k2-315b DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260314 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260315 DESCRIPTION:Want to visit a planet that has 3.14 days in a year? Then plan a trip to K2-315b\, an earth-sized planet orbiting around a cool\, red\, M dwarf star about once every 3.14 days. The exoplanet’s discovery \, bas ed on publicly available data from the planet-hunting Kepler Space Telesco pe’s extended K2 mission\, was announced in 2020. K2-315b’s measured o rbital period in days is nearly equal to the extremely popular irrational number Pi. That puts the exoplanet so close to its parent star that its su rface is likely very warm\, baking-hot in fact . And this Pi planet is ove r 185 light-years away. So instead of trying to arrange for an interstella r vacation to K2-315b\, there may be easier and more comfortable ways for you to celebrate Pi day on planet Earth .\n\nArtist Illustration Credit: N ASA Ames/JPL-Caltech/T. Pyle\, Christine Daniloff\, MIT\nhttps://science.n asa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-march-14-a-year-for-k2-315b/ SUMMARY:A Year for K2-315b END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:toolondo-totality-trails DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260313 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260314 DESCRIPTION:In this composited night skyscape\, stacked exposures trace gra ceful star trails above Lake Toolondo\, Victoria\, Australia\, planet Eart h. Captured while the lunar eclipse of March 3 was in progress \, the expo sures used were made during the hour-long total eclipse phase . So faint s tar trails are easily visible along with the trail of the reddened Moon in eclipse-darkened skies above the lake and trees. Of course\, the apparent motion of Moon and stars revealed in the timelapse composite reflect the Earth’s daily rotation around its axis . Dramatically punctuating the Mo on’s trail as totality ended\, a single\, separate telephoto image of th e totally eclipsed Moon was scaled and blended into the scene. Growing Gal lery: Total Lunar Eclipse of March 3\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Jason Pe rry\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-march-13-toolondo-to tality-trails/ SUMMARY:Toolondo Totality Trails END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:a-near-full-rotation-of-uranus DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260312 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260313 DESCRIPTION:For the first timewe are witnessing outer planetUranus take cen ter stage andpirouette.Uranus is one of the Solar System’s strangest pla nets\, lying on its side and spinning like a rotisserie chicken.The featur ed video is composed of over 1000 spectra taken over 15 hours of continuou s viewing by JWST’s NIRSpec instrumentwhile Uranus rotates.The data capt ures the behavior of Uranus’s ionosphere:the ionized layer of a planet ’s atmosphere that strongly interacts with the planet’s magnetic field .The aurora’s rosy glow traces the complex interplay between Uranus’s misaligned rotation and magnetic axes.Clouds can be seen as bright spots t raveling across the ice giant. The blue-to-red colors represent low-to-hig h altitudes\, showinga brand new three-dimensional view into how energy is distributed throughout the planet’s atmosphere. In the image on the lef t\, everything is framed by the rings of Uranus.This is the most detailed look into the atmosphere of Uranus achieved yet! Almost Hyperspace: Random APOD Generator\n\nVideo Credit: ESA/Webb\, NASA\, CSA\, STScI\, P. Tirant i\, H. Melin\, M. Zamani (ESA/Webb) Text: Keighley Rockcliffe (NASA GSFC\, UMBC CSST\, CRESST II)\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026- march-12-a-near-full-rotation-of-uranus/ SUMMARY:A Near-Full Rotation of Uranus END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:cg-4-the-globule-and-the-galaxy DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260311 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260312 DESCRIPTION:Is this a cosmic monster ready to devour an unsuspecting galaxy ? Thankfully\, that is not the case. The red “monster” shown in the fe atured image is Cometary Globule CG 4 \, 1\,300 light-years away in the Co nstellation Puppis . CG 4 is a molecular cloud \, where hydrogen becomes c old enough to form molecules that can be brought together by gravity to cr eate stars . The shape of CG 4 resembles that of a comet \, but its head i s 1.5 light-year in diameter and its tail is 8 light-years long\; for comp arison\, the distance from the Earth to the sun is only 8 light-minutes . Astronomers believe that the tail of a cometary globule could have been sh aped by a nearby supernova explosion or by irradiation from hot\, massive stars. Indeed\, CG 4 and other nearby globules point away from the Vela Su pernova Remnant \, at the center of the Gum Nebula . The edge-on spiral ga laxy \, ESO 257-19\, is more than a hundred million light-years beyond CG 4\, and is completely safe from the “ monster ”.\n\nImage Credit & Cop yright: William Vrbasso Text: Cecilia Chirenti ( NASA GSFC \, UMCP \, CRES ST II )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-march-11-cg-4-th e-globule-and-the-galaxy/ SUMMARY:CG 4: The Globule and the Galaxy END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:sky-glows-over-paranal-observatory DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260310 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260311 DESCRIPTION:Are lasers from giant telescopes being used to defend the Earth ? No. Lasers shot from telescopes are now commonly used to help increase t he accuracy of astronomical observations. In some directions\, Earth atmos phere-induced fluctuations in starlight can indicate how the air mass over a telescope is changing\, but in other directions\, no bright star exists . In these directions\, astronomers can create an artificial star with a l aser . Subsequent observations of the artificial laser guide star can reve al information so detailed about the changing blurring effects of the Eart h’s atmosphere that much of it can be removed by rapidly flexing a teles cope’s mirror. Such adaptive optics techniques allow high-resolution gro und-based observations of real star s\, planets \, and nebulas . Pictured here \, telescopes at Paranal Observatory in Chile study a colorful sky fi lled with green airglow and the Magellanic Clouds on the left\, red airglo w on the right\, and the majestic central band of our Milky Way Galaxy arc hing across the center.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Julien Looten\nhttps: //science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-march-10-sky-glows-over-paranal -observatory/ SUMMARY:Sky Glows over Paranal Observatory END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:the-cranium-nebula-from-the-webb-telescope DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260309 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260310 DESCRIPTION:What’s going on inside the head of this nebula? Dubbed the Ex posed Cranium Nebula for its similarity to the human brain \, what created the nebula remains a mystery. One thought is that the Cranium Nebula\, al so known as PMR 1\, is a planetary nebula surrounding a white dwarf star . In this mode\, the outer atmosphere was expelled when the original Sun-li ke star ran out of central nuclear fuel and contracted. A competing though t is that the central star is much more massive\, possibly a Wolf-Rayet st ar \, that is ejecting gas and dust via turbulent stellar wind s. Adding t o the intrigue is the dark vertical central division and the thin outer ga seous shell. The featured image was taken by the Webb Space Telescope in m id – infrared light\, while a second image\, included as a rollover\, is in near- infrared . Future observations may reveal if this brainy system will quietly just fade from view or\, many years from now\, suddenly erupt in a powerful supernova .\n\nImage Credit: NASA \, ESA \, CSA \, STScI \; Processing: J. DePasquale ( STScI )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-artic le/apod-2026-march-9-the-cranium-nebula-from-the-webb-telescope/ SUMMARY:The Cranium Nebula from the Webb Telescope END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:the-aurora-tree DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260308 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260309 DESCRIPTION:Yes\, but can your tree do this? Pictured is a visual coinciden ce between the dark branches of a nearby tree and bright glow of a distant aurora. The beauty of the aurora — combined with how it seemed to mimic a tree right nearby — mesmerized the photographer to such a degree that he momentarily forgot to take pictures. When viewed at the right angle \, it seemed that this tree had aurora for leaves. Fortunately\, before the aurora morphed into a different overall shape \, he came to his senses and captured the awe-inspiring momentary coincidence . Typically triggered by solar explosions \, aurora are caused by high energy electrons impacting the Earth’s atmosphere around 150 kilometers up. The unusual Earth-sky c ollaboration was witnessed in March of 2017 in Iceland . Sky Surprise: Wha t picture did APOD feature on your birthday? (after 1995)\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Alyn Wallace\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-202 6-march-8-the-aurora-tree/ SUMMARY:The Aurora Tree END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:two-eclipses-of-saros-133 DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260307 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260308 DESCRIPTION:Centered on maximum eclipse\, these two total lunar eclipse seq uences look almost identical. Yet the one shown on top is composed of imag es recorded in February 2008\, while at the bottom is the recent March 202 6 total eclipse of the Moon. Why are they so similar? Because these two to tal lunar eclipses are from the same Saros cycle. The Saros cycle was disc overed historically from observations of the Moon’s orbit. With a period of 18 years\, 11 and 1/3 days\, the cycle predicts when the Sun\, Earth\, and Moon all return to the same relative geometry for a lunar ( or solar ) eclipse. Eclipses separated by one Saros period belong to the same numbe red Saros series\, in this case Saros 133. So expect the next lunar eclips e in Saros 133 to be a repeat of this year’s March 3 eclipse. You can wa tch the next Saros 133 total lunar eclipse on March 13\, 2044 . Growing Ga llery: Total Lunar Eclipse of March 3\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Tunc Te zel ( TWAN )\, Petr Horalek / Institute of Physics in Opava / KPNO / NOIRL ab / NSF / AURA\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-march-7- two-eclipses-of-saros-133/ SUMMARY:Two Eclipses of Saros 133 END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:the-astrosphere-of-hd-61005 DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260306 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260307 DESCRIPTION:Do young stars blow bubbles? The larger view shows a stellar fi eld observed with the Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory in Chile\, a nd the inset highlights HD 61005 \, a star like our Sun \, only 120 light- years away. Much younger than the Sun\, at just about 100 million years ol d\, it blows a fast and dense stellar wind that pushes out the cooler dust and gas that surrounds it\, forming a bubble called an astrosphere . The star-blown bubble was detected with the Chandra X-ray Observatory \, and i t has a diameter roughly 200 times the Earth-Sun distance . Our Sun has a bubble too\, called the heliosphere \, which protects the planets from cos mic radiation . Also shown in the inset is debris left behind from star fo rmation\, observed by Hubble . The debris appears as wings \, giving the s tar its nickname: the Moth .\n\nImage Credit: X-ray: NASA / CXC / Johns Ho pkins Univ. / C.M. Lisse et al.\; Infrared: NASA / ESA / STIS \; Optical: NSF / NoirLab / CTIO / DECaPS2 Processing: NASA / CXC / SAO / N. Wolk – Text: Cecilia Chirenti ( NASA GSFC \, UMCP \, CRESST II )\nhttps://science .nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-march-6-the-astrosphere-of-hd-61005/ SUMMARY:The Astrosphere of HD 61005 END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:total-lunar-eclipse-over-tse-bitai DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260305 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260306 DESCRIPTION:Earlier this week\, Earth’s shadow swept across the full Moon in the year’s only total lunar eclipse . This stunning sequence combine s images showing the Moon’s path across the night sky. Each lunar image captures our planet’s shadow gradually engulfing the Moon\, culminating in its red glow. Sunlight scatters and refracts as it passes through Earth ’s atmosphere toward the Moon. Shorter wavelength light (blue and green) scatters more efficiently \, leaving red\, orange\, and yellow hues to pa int the lunar surface. Tsé Bit’a’í (”rock with wings”\, also kno wn as Shiprock)\, located in Navajo Nation \, provides a powerful volcanic foreground central to this photo and to stories of Navajo origin\, advent ure\, and heroism . As the first full moon of the lunar new year \, this e clipse held significance across cultures. Visible from East Asia to North America \, this eclipse united observers across great distances\, a cosmic reminder that we share the same sky. Growing Gallery: Total Lunar Eclipse of March 3\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Satoru Murata \; Text: Keighley R ockcliffe ( NASA GSFC \, UMCP \, CRESST II )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/ima ge-article/apod-2026-march-5-total-lunar-eclipse-over-tse-bitai/ SUMMARY:Total Lunar Eclipse over Tse Bitai END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:shapley-1-an-annular-planetary-nebula DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260304 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260305 DESCRIPTION:What’s looking back at you isn’t a cosmic eye\, but Shapley 1 \, a beautifully symmetric planetary nebula . Shapley 1\, also known as the Fine Ring Nebula or PLN 329+2.1 \, bejewels the southern sky constell ation of the Carpenter’s Square ( Norma ). The nebula is the result of a star near the mass of our Sun running out of fuel and shedding its outer layers . Glowing oxygen from those expelled layers makes up the circular h alo. The bright central point is actually a binary: a white dwarf \, the r emaining stellar core after the outer layers are expelled into space\, and another star\, orbiting each other every 2.9 days. Shapley 1’s annular shape is due to our top-down view of the system and provides insight into the influence of central stars on planetary nebula structures .\n\nImage C redit & Copyright: Peter Bresseler \; Text: Keighley Rockcliffe ( NASA GSF C \, UMBC CSST \, CRESST II )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod -2026-march-4-shapley-1-an-annular-planetary-nebula/ SUMMARY:Shapley 1: An Annular Planetary Nebula END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:flying-over-the-north-pole-of-mars DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260303 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260304 DESCRIPTION:If you could fly over the North Pole of Mars \, what would you see? Images from ESA’s Mars Express mission in 2019 were compiled into t he featured video which shows just such a trip. First you see below you a landscape tinted orange by rusted iron in the fine soil\, with some land a ppearing darker due to exposed rock. Soon the northern polar cap comes int o view\, mostly white because of its reflective frozen water. Surrounding the polar cap is the North Polar Basin \, a layered depression covered wit h dust and sand . The frames in the featured video were captured during no rthern Martian Spring when the carbon-dioxide ice is evaporating\, leaving the underlying water-ice in the cap. Mars Express continues to study the Martian surface and look for clues about the Red Planet’s ancient climat e and potential for life . Flying over the North Pole of Mars Explanation: If you could fly over the North Pole of Mars \, what would you see? Image s from ESA’s Mars Express mission in 2019 were compiled into the feature d video which shows just such a trip. First you see below you a landscape tinted orange by rusted iron in the fine soil\, with some land appearing d arker due to exposed rock. Soon the northern polar cap comes into view\, m ostly white because of its reflective frozen water. Surrounding the polar cap is the North Polar Basin \, a layered depression covered with dust and sand . The frames in the featured video were captured during northern Mar tian Spring when the carbon-dioxide ice is evaporating\, leaving the under lying water-ice in the cap. Mars Express continues to study the Martian su rface and look for clues about the Red Planet’s ancient climate and pote ntial for life .\n\nVideo Credit: ESA \, Mars Express \, VMC \; Processing & License : Simeon Schmauß\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod- 2026-march-3-flying-over-the-north-pole-of-mars/ SUMMARY:Flying over the North Pole of Mars END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:the-dusty-surroundings-of-orion-and-the-pleiades DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260302 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260303 DESCRIPTION:How well do you know the night sky? OK\, but how well can you i dentify famous sky objects in a very deep image? Either way\, here is a te st: see if you can find some well-known night-sky icons in a deep image fi lled with filaments of normally faint dust and gas. This image contains th e Pleiades star cluster \, Barnard’s Loop \, Orion Nebula \, Aldebaran \ , Betelgeuse \, Witch Head Nebula \, Eridanus Loop \, and the California N ebula . To find their real locations\, here is an annotated image version . The reason this task might be difficult is similar to the reason it is i nitially hard to identify familiar constellations in a very dark sky : the tapestry of our night sky has an extremely deep hidden complexity . The f eatured composite reveals some of this complexity in a 16 hours of sky exp osure in dark skies over Granada \, Spain . Tonight: Total Lunar Eclipse\n \nImage Credit & Copyright: Ignacio Fernández\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/i mage-article/apod-2026-march-2-the-dusty-surroundings-of-orion-and-the-ple iades/ SUMMARY:The Dusty Surroundings of Orion and the Pleiades END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:the-moon-during-a-total-lunar-eclipse DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260301 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260302 DESCRIPTION:How does the Moon’s appearance change during a total lunar ec lipse? The featured time-lapse video was digitally processed to keep the M oon bright and centered during the 5-hour eclipse of 2018 January 31 . At first the full moon is visible because only a full moon can undergo a luna r eclipse. Stars move by in the background because the Moon orbits the Ear th during the eclipse . The circular shadow of the Earth is then seen movi ng across the Moon. The light blue hue of the shadow’s edge is related t o why Earth’s sky is blue \, while the deep red hue of the shadow ‘s c enter is related to why the Sun appears red when near the horizon. Tomorro w night \, people living in Eastern Asia \, Australia \, and much of North America may get to see a Total Blood Moon Lunar Eclipse . Here the term b lood refers to the (likely) red color of a fully eclipsed Moon . The Moon During a Total Lunar Eclipse Explanation: How does the Moon’s appearance change during a total lunar eclipse? The featured time-lapse video was di gitally processed to keep the Moon bright and centered during the 5-hour e clipse of 2018 January 31 . At first the full moon is visible because only a full moon can undergo a lunar eclipse. Stars move by in the background because the Moon orbits the Earth during the eclipse . The circular shadow of the Earth is then seen moving across the Moon. The light blue hue of t he shadow’s edge is related to why Earth’s sky is blue \, while the de ep red hue of the shadow ‘s center is related to why the Sun appears red when near the horizon. Tomorrow night \, people living in Eastern Asia \, Australia \, and much of North America may get to see a Total Blood Moon Lunar Eclipse . Here the term blood refers to the (likely) red color of a fully eclipsed Moon . Almost Hyperspace: Random APOD Generator\n\nVideo Cr edit: Wang Letian & Zhang Jiajie\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/a pod-2026-march-1-the-moon-during-a-total-lunar-eclipse/ SUMMARY:The Moon During a Total Lunar Eclipse END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:lunar-occultation-of-mercury DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260228 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260301 DESCRIPTION:Fans of the western sky after sunset have lately enjoyed this m onth’s remarkable array of bright planets. Witnessed from some locations \, on February 18 planet Mercury even appeared to slide behind the Moon\, an event known as a lunar occultation. These two snapshots\, taken in earl y evening skies show before and after telescopic views of the rare disappe arance of innermost planet behind young Moon. The top panel finds bright M ercury just visible at the northern (right) edge of the earthshine-illumin ated lunar disk. In the bottom panel the bright planet has emerged in dark er skies beyond the Moon’s sunlit crescent. As seen south of Sallisaw\, Oklahoma\, planet Earth\, this lunar occultation of Mercury lasted only ab out 3 minutes ( video ). But you can still check out a parade of planets t onight .March 3: Total Lunar Eclipse\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Fabrizio Melandri\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-february-28-lu nar-occultation-of-mercury/ SUMMARY:Lunar Occultation of Mercury END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:sharpless-249-and-the-jellyfish-nebula DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260227 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260228 DESCRIPTION:Normally faint and elusive\, the Jellyfish Nebula is caught in this alluring telescopic field of view . Floating in the interstellar sea\ , the nebula is anchored right and left by two bright stars\, Mu and Eta G eminorum\, at the foot of the celestial twins . The Jellyfish Nebula itsel f is right of center\, seen as a brighter arcing ridge of emission with da ngling tentacles. In fact\, this cosmic jellyfish is part of bubble-shaped supernova remnant IC 443 \, the expanding debris cloud from a massive sta r that exploded . Light from the explosion first reached planet Earth over 30\,000 years ago. Like its cousin in astrophysical waters the Crab Nebul a supernova remnant\, the Jellyfish Nebula is known to harbor a neutron st ar\, the ultradense remnant of the collapsed stellar core. An emission neb ula cataloged as Sharpless 249 fills the field at the upper left. The Jell yfish Nebula is about 5\,000 light-years away. At that distance\, this ima ge would be about 300 light-years across.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Kat elyn Beecroft\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-february-2 7-sharpless-249-and-the-jellyfish-nebula/ SUMMARY:Sharpless 249 and the Jellyfish Nebula END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:webb-and-hubble-ic-5332 DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260226 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260227 DESCRIPTION:What does the universe look like through infrared goggles ? Our eyes can only see visible light \, but astronomers want to see more. Toda y’s APOD shows spiral galaxy IC 5332 as seen by two NASA telescopes: Web b in mid- infrared and Hubble in ultraviolet and visible light. To toggle between the two space-based views just slide your cursor over the image (o r follow this link ). The Hubble image highlights the spiral arms of the g alaxy separated by dark regions\, whereas the Webb image reveals a finer\, more tangled structure. Interstellar dust scatters and absorbs light from the stars in the galaxy\, causing the dark dust lanes in the Hubble image \, and then emits heat in infrared light\, so dust glows in this Webb imag e. The Mid-InfraRed Instrument on Webb needs to operate at a chilling temp erature of -266ºC (or – 447ºF)\, otherwise it would detect infrared ra diation from the telescope itself. Combining these observations\, astronom ers connect the “small scale” of gas and stars to the truly large scal e of galactic structure and evolution.\n\nImage Credit: ESA/Webb \, NASA \ , CSA \, J. Lee and the PHANGS-JWST and PHANGS-HST Teams Text: Cecilia Chi renti ( NASA GSFC \, UMCP \, CRESST II )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-a rticle/apod-2026-february-26-webb-and-hubble-ic-5332/ SUMMARY:Webb and Hubble: IC 5332 END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:the-egg-nebula-from-the-hubble-telescope DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260225 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260226 DESCRIPTION:Ever wonder what it would look like to crack open the Sun? The Egg Nebula \, a dying Sun-like star \, can unscramble this question. Pictu red is a combination of several visible and infrared images of the nebula (also known as RAFGL 2688 or CRL 2688 ) taken with the Hubble Space Telesc ope . The star has shed its outer layers\, and a bright\, hot core (or “ yolk”) now illuminates the milky “egg white” shells of gas and dust surrounding the center. The central lobes and rings are structures of gas and dust recently ejected into space\, with the dust being dense enough to block our view of the stellar core . Light beams emanate from that blocke d core \, escaping through holes carved in the older ejected material by n ewer\, faster jets expelled from the star’s poles . Astronomers are stil l trying to figure out what causes the disks\, lobes\, and jets during thi s short (only a few thousand years!) phase of the star’s evolution \, ma king this an egg-cellent image to study! APOD Front Page: apod.nasa.gov\n\ nImage Credit & Copyright: ESA/Hubble & NASA \, B. Balick ( U. Washington )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-february-25-the-egg-ne bula-from-the-hubble-telescope/ SUMMARY:The Egg Nebula from the Hubble Telescope END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:planet-parade-over-sydney-opera-house DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260224 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260225 DESCRIPTION:Look up this week and see a whole bunch of planets. Just after sunset\, looking west (mostly)\, planets Mercury \, Venus \, Saturn \, and Jupiter will all be visible to the unaided eye simultaneously. If you hav e a telescope\, planets Uranus and Neptune can also be seen. In order up f rom the horizon\, the lineup this week will be Venus (the brightest)\, Mer cury \, Saturn \, Neptune\, Uranus\, and Jupiter (second brightest). It do esn’t matter where on Earth you live because this early evening planet p arade will be visible through clear skies all around the globe. The planet s will appear to be nearly in a line because they all orbit the Sun in nea rly the same plane: the ecliptic . The featured image shows a similar plan et parade that occurred in 2022\, captured over the Sydney Opera House in southern Australia . Although visible all week \, the planets will be most easily seen together this weekend.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Prasun Ag rawal\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-february-24-planet -parade-over-sydney-opera-house/ SUMMARY:Planet Parade over Sydney Opera House END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:pleiades-the-seven-sisters-star-cluster DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260223 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260224 DESCRIPTION:Have you ever seen the Pleiades star cluster? Even if you have\ , you probably have never seen it as large and clear as this. Perhaps the most famous star cluster on the sky\, the bright stars of the Pleiades can be seen with the unaided eye even from the depths of a light-polluted cit y . With a long exposure from a dark location\, though\, the dust cloud su rrounding the Pleiades star cluster becomes very evident. The featured 18- hour exposure \, taken from Bory Tucholskie \, Poland covers a sky area se veral times the size of the full moon . Also known as the Seven Sisters an d M45 \, the Pleiades lies about 400 light years away toward the constella tion of the Bull ( Taurus ). A common legend with a modern twist is that o ne of the brighter stars faded since the cluster was named\, leaving only six of the sister stars visible to the unaided eye. The actual number of P leiades stars visible\, however\, may be more or less than seven\, dependi ng on the darkness of the surrounding sky and the clarity of the observer ’s eyesight. Sky Surprise: What picture did APOD feature on your birthda y? (after 1995)\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Kamil Fiedosiuk\nhttps://scie nce.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-february-23-pleiades-the-seven-sister s-star-cluster/ SUMMARY:Pleiades: The Seven Sisters Star Cluster END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:shadow-of-a-martian-robot DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260222 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260223 DESCRIPTION:What if you saw your shadow on Mars and it wasn’t human ? The n you might be the Opportunity rover exploring Mars. Opportunity explored the Red Planet from 2004 to 2018\, finding evidence of ancient water \, an d sending breathtaking images across the inner Solar System . Pictured her e in 2004\, Opportunity looks opposite the Sun into Endurance Crater and s ees its own shadow . Two wheels are visible on the lower left and right\, while the floor and walls of the unusual crater are visible in the backgro und. Caught in a dust storm in 2018 \, Opportunity stopped responding\, an d NASA stopped trying to contact it in 2019 and declared the ground-breaki ng mission \, originally planned for only 92 days\, complete .\n\nImage Cr edit: NASA \, JPL \, Mars Exploration Rover Mission\nhttps://science.nasa. gov/image-article/apod-2026-february-22-shadow-of-a-martian-robot/ SUMMARY:Shadow of a Martian Robot END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:twilight-with-moon-and-planets DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260221 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260222 DESCRIPTION:Only two days after the February New Moon’s annular eclipse o f the Sun\, a slender lunar crescent poses near the western horizon in thi s wintry twilight skyscape. Its nightside faintly illuminated by earthshin e\, the young Moon is joined by three bright planets in the mostly clear\, early evening skies above the village of Kirazli\, Turkiye. Inner planet Venus appears closest to the horizon. Near the beginning of its 2026 perfo rmance as planet Earth’s evening star\, brilliant Venus is seen through the warm sunset glare near picture center. Straight above Venus\, innermos t planet Mercury is easy to spot as it stands remarkably high above the ho rizon even as the twilight sky is growing dark. Outer planet Saturn \, mos t distant of the naked-eye planets\, is found just left of the Moon’s su nlit crescent.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Tunc Tezel ( TWAN )\nhttps://s cience.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-february-21-twilight-with-moon-and -planets/ SUMMARY:Twilight with Moon and Planets END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:b93-a-dark-interstellar-ghost DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260220 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260221 DESCRIPTION:“A ghost in the Milky Way…” says Christian Bertincourt\, the astrophotographer behind this striking image of Barnard 93 (B93). The 93rd entry in Barnard’s Catalogue of Dark Nebula e\, B93 lies within the Small Sagittarius Star Cloud ( Messier 24 )\, where its darkness stands i n stark contrast to bright stars and gas in the background. In some ways\, B93 is really like a ghost \, because it contains gas and dust that was d ispersed by the deaths of stars \, like supernovas . B93 appears as a dark void not because it is empty\, but because its dust blocks the light emit ted by more distant stars and glowing gas. Like other dark nebulas\, some gas from B93 \, if dense and massive enough\, will eventually gravitationa lly condense to form new stars . If so\, then once these stars ignite \, B 93 will transform from a dark ghost into a brilliant cradle of newborn sta rs.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Christian Bertincourt \; Text: Keighley R ockcliffe ( NASA GSFC \, UMBC CSST \, CRESST II )\nhttps://science.nasa.go v/image-article/apod-2026-february-20-b93-a-dark-interstellar-ghost/ SUMMARY:B93: A Dark Interstellar Ghost END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:ic-2574-coddington-s-nebula DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260219 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260220 DESCRIPTION:Grand spiral galaxies often seem to get all the glory\, flaunti ng their young\, bright\, blue star clusters in beautiful\, symmetric spir al arms. But small\, irregular galaxies form stars too. In fact\, dwarf ga laxy IC 2574 shows clear evidence of intense star forming activity in its telltale reddish regions of glowing hydrogen gas. Just as in spiral galaxi es\, the turbulent star-forming regions in IC 2574 are churned by stellar winds and supernova explosions spewing material into the galaxy’s inters tellar medium and triggering further star formation. A mere 12 million lig ht-years distant\, IC 2574 is part of the M81 group of galaxies\, seen tow ard the northern constellation Ursa Major. Also known as Coddington’s Ne bula\, the faint but intriguing island universe is about 50\,000 light-yea rs across\, discovered by American astronomer Edwin Coddington in 1898.\n\ nImage Credit & Copyright: Dane Vetter\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-art icle/apod-2026-february-19-ic-2574-coddingtons-nebula/ SUMMARY:IC 2574: Coddington’s Nebula END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:orion-s-cradle DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260218 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260219 DESCRIPTION:Cradled in red-glowing hydrogen gas\, stars are being born in O rion. These stellar nurseries lie at the edge of the giant Orion molecular cloud complex \, some 1\,500 light-years away. This detailed view spans a bout 12 degrees across the center of the well-known constellation\, with t he Great Orion Nebula \, the closest large star -forming region\, visible toward the lower right. The deep mosaic also includes\, near the top cente r\, the Flame Nebula and the Horsehead Nebula . Image data acquired with a hydrogen-alpha filter adds other remarkable features to this wide-angle c osmic vista: pervasive tendrils of energized atomic hydrogen gas and porti ons of the surrounding Barnard’s Loop . While the Orion Nebula and many stars in Orion are easy to see with the unaided eye\, emission from the ex tensive interstellar gas is faint and much harder to record \, even in tel escopic views of the nebula-rich complex. Sky Surprise: What picture did A POD feature on your birthday? (after 1995)\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Pi otr Czerski\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-february-18- orions-cradle/ SUMMARY:Orion’s Cradle END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:tails-of-comet-wierzchoa DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260217 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260218 DESCRIPTION:Some comets are regular guests of our solar neighborhood\; othe rs come by only once\, never to return. We won’t have another chance to see Comet C/2024 E1 (Wierzchoś )\, which is currently making its way thro ugh the inner Solar System . The hyperbolic orbit of this comet indicates that it will likely become an interstellar traveler. Comet Wierzchoś is t oday near its closest approach to the Earth\, passing roughly the same dis tance from the Earth as is the Sun . The featured 30-minute exposure was t aken last week in Chile and shows a 5-degree long ion tail as well as thre e shorter dust tails . The green hue of the coma comes from the breakdown of dicarbon molecules by sunlight\, but that process does not last long en ough to also tinge the tails . On the far right lies a spiral galaxy far i n the distance: NGC 300 .\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: José J. Chambó \; Text: Cecilia Chirenti ( NASA GSFC \, UMCP \, CRESST II )\nhttps://scienc e.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-february-17-tails-of-comet-wierzchos/ SUMMARY:Tails of Comet Wierzchoś END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:unexplained-shocks-around-a-white-dwarf-star DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260216 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260217 DESCRIPTION:How is RXJ0528+2838 creating such shock waves? A recently disco vered white dwarf star \, the farther left of the two largest white spots\ , RXJ0528+2838 \, was found 730 light-years away from Earth . Most stars\, when done fusing nuclei in their cores for energy\, become red giant star s\, the cores of which live on as faint dense white dwarfs that slowly coo l down for the rest of time. White dwarfs are so dense that the only thing that stops them from collapsing further is quantum mechanics . In about 5 billion years\, our Sun will become a white dwarf \, too. The featured im age \, obtained with the European Southern Observatory ’s Very Large Tel escope \, shows unexplained bow shocks around RXJ0528+2838\, similar to th e bow wave of water around a fast-moving ship. Astronomers don’t yet kno w what is powering these shocks \, which have existed for at least 1\,000 years. The red\, green and blue colors represent trace amounts of glowing hydrogen \, nitrogen and oxygen gas. Open Science: Browse 3\,900+ codes in the Astrophysics Source Code Library\n\nImage Credit: ESO \, K. Iłkiewic z & S. Scaringi et al. \; Text: Cecilia Chirenti ( NASA GSFC \, UMCP \, CR ESST II )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-february-16-un explained-shocks-around-a-white-dwarf-star/ SUMMARY:Unexplained Shocks Around a White Dwarf Star END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:to-fly-free-in-space DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260215 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260216 DESCRIPTION:What would it be like to fly free in space? About 100 meters fr om the cargo bay of a space shuttle \, Bruce McCandless II was living the dream — floating farther out than anyone had ever been before. Guided by a Manned Maneuvering Unit (MMU)\, astronaut McCandless\, pictured \, was floating free in space. During Space Shuttle mission 41-B in 1984\, McCand less and fellow NASA astronaut Robert Stewart were the first to experience such an “un tether ed space walk ”. The MMU worked by shooting jets o f nitrogen and was used to help deploy and retrieve satellites . With a ma ss over 140 kilograms\, an MMU is heavy on Earth \, but\, like everything\ , is weightless when drifting in orbit. The MMU was later replaced with th e SAFER backpack propulsion unit.\n\nImage Credit: NASA \, STS-41B\nhttps: //science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-february-15-to-fly-free-in-spac e/ SUMMARY:To Fly Free in Space END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:roses-are-red DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260214 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260215 DESCRIPTION:Roses are red\, nebulas are too\, and this Valentine’s gift i s a stunning view! Pictured is a loving look at the Rosette Nebula ( NGC 2 237 ): a cosmic bloom of bright young stars sitting atop a stem of glowing hot gas. The rose’s blue-white speckles are among the most luminous sta rs in the galaxy \, with some burning millions of times brighter than the Sun. Their stellar winds sculpt the famed rose shape by pushing gas and du st away from the center. Though only a few million years old\, these massi ve stars are already nearing the end of their lives \, while dimmer stars embedded in the nebula will burn for billions of years to come. The vibran t red hue comes from hydrogen gas \, ionized by the ultraviolet light from the young stars . The rose’s blue-white center is color-mapped to indic ate the presence of similarly ionized oxygen. The Rosette Nebula reminds u s of the beauty and transformation woven into the fabric of the universe.\ n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Raffaele Calcagno Text: Keighley Rockcliffe ( NASA GSFC \, UMBC CSST \, CRESST II )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-art icle/apod-2026-february-14-roses-are-red/ SUMMARY:Roses are Red END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:ngc-147-and-ngc-185 DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260213 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260214 DESCRIPTION:Dwarf galaxies NGC 147 (left) and NGC 185 stand side by side in this deep telescopic portrait. The two are not-often-imaged satellite gal axies of M31\, the great spiral Andromeda Galaxy \, some 2.5 million light -years away. Their separation on the sky\, less than one degree across a p retty field of view toward the constellation Cassiopeia\, translates to on ly about 35 thousand light-years at Andromeda’s distance\, but Andromeda itself is found well outside this frame. Brighter and more famous satelli te galaxies of Andromeda\, M32 and M110 \, are seen much closer to the gre at spiral. NGC 147 and NGC 185 have been identified as binary galaxies\, f orming a gravitationally stable binary system. But recently discovered fai nt dwarf galaxy Cassiopeia II also seems to be part of their system\, form ing a gravitationally bound group within Andromeda’s intriguing populati on of small satellite galaxies .\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Chuck Ayoub\ nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-february-13-ngc-147-and- ngc-185/ SUMMARY:NGC 147 and NGC 185 END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:the-bay-of-rainbows DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260212 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260213 DESCRIPTION:Dark\, smooth regions that cover the Moon’s familiar face are called by Latin names for oceans and seas. That naming convention is hist orical \, though it may seem a little ironic to denizens of the space age who recognize the Moon as a mostly dry and airless world\, and the smooth\ , dark areas as lava-flooded impact basins. For example\, this telescopic lunar vista\, looks over the expanse of the northwestern Mare Imbrium\, or Sea of Rains and into the Sinus Iridum\, the Bay of Rainbows . Ringed by the Jura Mountains (montes) \, the bay is about 250 kilometers across. See n after local sunrise\, the mountains form part of the Sinus Iridum impact crater wall. Their rugged sunlit arc is bounded at the top by Cape (promo ntorium) Laplace reaching nearly 3\,000 meters above the bay’s surface. At the bottom of the arc is Cape Heraclides\, depicted by Giovanni Cassini in his 1679 telescope-based drawings mapping the moon\, as a moon maiden seen in profile with long\, flowing hair .\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Ol af Filzinger\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-february-12 -the-bay-of-rainbows/ SUMMARY:The Bay of Rainbows END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:a-year-of-sunspots DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260211 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260212 DESCRIPTION:How many sunspots can you see? The central image shows the many sunspots that occurred in 2025\, month by month around the circle\, and a ll together in the grand central image. Each sunspot is magnetically coole d and so appears dark — and can last from days to months. Although the f eatured images originated from NASA ‘s Solar Dynamics Observatory \, sun spots can be easily seen with a small telescope or binoculars equipped wit h a solar filter . Very large sunspot groups like recent AR 4366 can even be seen with eclipse glasses . Sunspots are still counted by eye \, but th e total number is not considered exact because they frequently change and break up . Last year\, 2025\, coincided with a solar maximum \, the period of most intense magnetic activity during its 11-year solar cycle . Our Su n remains unpredictable in many ways\, including when it ejects solar flar e s that will impact the Earth \, and how active the next solar cycle will be.\n\nImage Credit: NASA \, SDO \; Processing & Copyright: Şenol Şanli & Uğur İkizler \; Text: Cecilia Chirenti ( NASA GSFC \, UMCP \, CRESST II )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-february-11-a-year- of-sunspots/ SUMMARY:A Year of Sunspots END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:in-green-company-aurora-over-norway DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260210 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260211 DESCRIPTION:Raise your arms if you see an aurora. With those instructions\, two nights went by with\, well\, clouds — mostly. On the third night of returning to same peaks\, though\, the sky not only cleared up but lit up with a spectacular auroral display . Arms went high in the air\, patience and experience paid off \, and the creative featured image was captured a s a composite from three separate exposures. The setting is a summit of th e Austnesfjorden (a fjord ) close to the town of Svolvear on the Lofoten i slands in northern Norway . The year was 2014. This year\, our Sun is just passing solar maximum \, the peak in its 11-year surface activity cycle . As expected\, some spectacular auroras have recently resulted . Portal Un iverse: Random APOD Generator\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Max Rive\nhttps ://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-february-10-in-green-company-a urora-over-norway/ SUMMARY:In Green Company: Aurora over Norway END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:miranda-revisited DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260209 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260210 DESCRIPTION:What is Miranda really like? Visually\, old image s from NASA ’s Voyager 2 have been recently combined and remastered to result in the featured image of Uranus ‘s 500-kilometer-wide moon. In the late 1980s\ , Voyager 2 flew by Uranus \, coming close to the cratered\, fractured\, a nd unusually grooved moon — named after a character from Shakespeare ’ s The Tempest . Scientifically\, planetary scientists are using old data a nd clear images to theorize anew about what shaped Miranda’s severe surf ace features. A leading hypothesis is that Miranda \, beneath its icy surf ace\, may have once hosted an expansive liquid water ocean which may be sl owly freezing. Thanks to the legacy of Voyager 2\, Miranda has joined the ranks of Europa \, Titan \, and other icy moons in the search for water\, and\, possibly\, microbial life \, in our Solar System . Jigsaw Moon: Astr onomy Puzzle of the Day\n\nImage Credit: NASA \, JPL \, Voyager 2 \; Proce ssing & License: Flickr: zelario12 \; Text: Keighley Rockcliffe ( NASA GSF C \, UMBC CSST \, CRESST II )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod -2026-february-9-miranda-revisited/ SUMMARY:Miranda Revisited END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:active-sunspot-region-4366-crosses-the-sun DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260208 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260209 DESCRIPTION:An unusually active sunspot region is now crossing the Sun. The region\, labelled AR 4366 \, is much larger than the Earth and has produc ed several powerful solar flare s over the past ten days. In the featured image\, the region is marked by large and dark sunspots toward the upper r ight of the Sun’s disk. The image captured the Sun over a hill in Zacate cas \, Mexico \, 5 days ago. AR 4366 has become a candidate for the most a ctive solar region in this entire 11-year solar cycle . Active solar regio ns are frequently associated with increased auroral activity on the Earth . Now reaching the edge\, AR 4366 will begin facing away from the Earth du ring the coming week. It is not known \, though\, if the active region wil l survive long enough to reappear in about two weeks’ time\, as the Sun rotates .\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Daniel Korona\nhttps://science.nasa .gov/image-article/apod-2026-february-8-active-sunspot-region-4366-crosses -the-sun/ SUMMARY:Active Sunspot Region 4366 Crosses the Sun END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:crescent-enceladus DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260207 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260208 DESCRIPTION:Peering from the shadows\, the Saturn-facing hemisphere of tant alizing inner moon Enceladus poses in this Cassini spacecraft image. North is up in the dramatic scene captured during November 2016 as Cassini’s camera was pointed in a nearly sunward direction about 130\,000 kilometers from the moon’s bright crescent. In fact\, the distant world reflects o ver 90 percent of the sunlight it receives\, giving its surface about the same reflectivity as fresh snow . A mere 500 kilometers in diameter\, Ence ladus is a surprisingly active moon. Data and images collected during Cass ini’s flybys have revealed water vapor and ice grains spewing from south polar geysers and evidence of an ocean of liquid water hidden beneath the moon’s icy crust.\n\nImage Credit: Cassini Imaging Team \, SSI \, JPL \ , ESA \, NASA\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-february-7 -crescent-enceladus/ SUMMARY:Crescent Enceladus END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:supernova-remnant-cassiopeia-a DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260206 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260207 DESCRIPTION:Massive stars in our Milky Way Galaxy live spectacular lives. C ollapsing from vast cosmic clouds\, their nuclear furnaces ignite and crea te heavy elements in their cores. After only a few million years for the m ost massive stars\, the enriched material is blasted back into interstella r space where star formation can begin anew. The expanding debris cloud kn own as Cassiopeia A is an example of this final phase of the stellar life cycle . Light from the supernova explosion that created this remnant would have been first seen in planet Earth’s sky about 350 years ago\, althou gh it took that light 11\,000 years to reach us. This sharp NIRCam image f rom the James Webb Space Telescope shows the still-hot filaments and knots in the supernova remnant. The whitish\, smoke-like outer shell of the exp anding blast wave is about 20 light-years across. A series of light echoes from the massive star’s cataclysmic explosion are also identified in We bb’s detailed images of the surrounding interstellar medium.\n\nImage Cr edit: NASA \, ESA \, CSA \, STScI \; D. Milisavljevic (Purdue University)\ , T. Temim (Princeton University)\, I. De Looze (University of Gent)\nhttp s://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-february-6-supernova-remnant- cassiopeia-a/ SUMMARY:Supernova Remnant Cassiopeia A END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:ngc-1275-in-the-perseus-cluster DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260205 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260206 DESCRIPTION:Active galaxy NGC 1275 is the central\, dominant member of the large and relatively nearby Perseus Cluster of Galaxies . Wild-looking at visible wavelengths\, the active galaxy is also a prodigious source of x-r ays and radio emission. NGC 1275 accretes matter as entire galaxies fall i nto it\, ultimately feeding a supermassive black hole at the galaxy’s co re. Narrowband image data used in this sharp telescopic image highlights t he resulting galactic debris and filaments of glowing gas\, some up to 20\ ,000 light-years long. The filaments persist in NGC 1275\, even though the turmoil of galactic collisions should destroy them. What keeps the filame nts together? Observations indicate that the structures\, pushed out from the galaxy’s center by the black hole’s activity\, are held together b y magnetic fields. Also known as Perseus A\, NGC 1275 itself spans over 10 0\,000 light years and lies about 230 million light years away.\n\nImage C redit & Copyright: Michal Wierzbinski \, Hellas-Sky\nhttps://science.nasa. gov/image-article/apod-2026-february-5-ngc-1275-in-the-perseus-cluster/ SUMMARY:NGC 1275 in the Perseus Cluster END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:spiral-galaxy-ngc-1512-wide-field DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260204 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260205 DESCRIPTION:Most galaxies don’t have any rings — why does this galaxy h ave three? To begin\, a ring that’s near NGC 1512 ‘s center — and so hard to see here — is the nuclear ring which glows brightly with recent ly formed stars . Next out is a ring of stars and dust appearing both red and blue\, called\, counter-intuitively \, the inner ring. This inner ring connects ends of a diffuse central bar of stars that runs horizontally ac ross the galaxy. Farthest out in this wide field image is a ragged structu re that might be considered an outer ring. This outer ring appears spiral- like and is dotted with clusters of bright blue stars. All these ring stru ctures are thought to be affected by NGC 1512 ‘s own gravitational asymm etries in a drawn-out process called secular evolution . The featured imag e was captured last month from a telescope at Deep Sky Chile in Chile .\n\ nImage Credit & Copyright: Daniel Stern\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-ar ticle/apod-2026-february-4-spiral-galaxy-ngc-1512-wide-field/ SUMMARY:Spiral Galaxy NGC 1512: Wide Field END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:red-spider-planetary-nebula-from-webb DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260203 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260204 DESCRIPTION:Oh what a tangled web a planetary nebula can weave. The Red Spi der Planetary Nebula shows the complex structure that can result when a no rmal star ejects its outer gases and becomes a white dwarf star. Officiall y tagged NGC 6537 \, this two-lobed symmetric planetary nebula houses one of the hottest white dwarfs ever observed\, probably as part of a binary s tar system. Internal winds flowing out from the central stars\, have been measured in excess of 1\,000 kilometers per second. These winds expand the nebula\, flow along the nebula’s walls\, and cause waves of hot gas and dust to collide. Atoms caught in these colliding shocks radiate light sho wn in the featured false-color infrared picture by the James Webb Space Te lescope . The Red Spider Nebula lies toward the constellation of the Arche r ( Sagittarius ). Its distance is not well known but has been estimated b y some to be about 4\,000 light-years .\n\nImage Credit: ESA/Webb \, NASA & CSA \, J. H. Kastner ( RIT )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apo d-2026-february-3-red-spider-planetary-nebula-from-webb/ SUMMARY:Red Spider Planetary Nebula from Webb END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:orion-the-running-man-nebula DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260202 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260203 DESCRIPTION:What part of Orion is this? Just north of the famous Orion Nebu la is a picturesque star forming region in Orion’s Sword that contains a lot of intricate dust — some of which appears blue because it reflects the light of bright embedded stars . The region’s popular name is the Ru nning Man Nebula because\, looked at from the right\, part of the brown du st appears to be running legs. Cataloged as Sharpless 279 \, the reflectio n nebula is not only part of the constellation of Orion \, but part of the greater Orion molecular cloud complex . Light from the Running Man’s br ight stars\, including 42 Orionis \, the bright star closest to the featur ed image center\, is slowly destroying and reshaping the surrounding dust\ , which will likely be completely gone in about 10 million years. The nebu la spans about 15 light years and lies about 1\,500 light years away. Jigs aw Nebula: Astronomy Puzzle of the Day\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Robert G. Lyons ( Robservatory )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-20 26-february-2-orion-the-running-man-nebula/ SUMMARY:Orion: The Running Man Nebula END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:galle-happy-face-crater-on-mars DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260201 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260202 DESCRIPTION:Mars has put on a happy face. The Martian crater Galle is famou s because it has internal markings that make it look like a face that is b oth smiling and winking. These markings were originally discovered in the 1970s in pictures taken by the Viking Orbiter. The Mars Global Surveyor (M GS) spacecraft that orbited Mars from 1996 to 2006 captured the featured p icture . Happy Face Crater and its iconic features were formed by chance b illions of years ago when a city-sized asteroid slammed into the Martian s urface. All rocky planets and moons in our Solar System show impact crater s \, with the highest number of craters found on Earth’s Moon and the pl anet Mercury . Earth and Venus would show the most\, though\, were it not for weather and erosion . Sky Surprise: What picture did APOD feature on y our birthday? (after 1995)\n\nImage Credit: NASA \, MGS \, MSSS\nhttps://s cience.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-february-1-galle-happy-face-crater -on-mars/ SUMMARY:Galle: Happy Face Crater on Mars END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:artemis-i-flight-day-13 DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260131 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260201 DESCRIPTION:On flight day 13 (November 28\, 2022) of the Artemis 1 mission\ , the Orion spacecraft reached its maximum distance from Earth. At over 43 0\,000 kilometers from Earth\, its distant retrograde orbit also puts Orio n nearly 70\,000 kilometers from the Moon. In the same field of view in th is video frame from flight day 13\, planet and large natural satellite eve n appear about the same apparent size from the spacecraft’s perspective. On flight day 26 (December 11\, 2022)\, the uncrewed spacecraft splashed down on its home world concluding the historic Artemis I mission. The Arte mis II mission \, carrying 4 astronauts around the moon and back again\, w ill launch no earlier than February 8.\n\nImage Credit: NASA \, Artemis I\ nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-january-31-artemis-i-fli ght-day-13/ SUMMARY:Artemis I: Flight Day 13 END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:ngc-1333-stellar-nursery-in-perseus DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260130 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260131 DESCRIPTION:NGC 1333 is seen in visible light as a reflection nebula \, dom inated by bluish hues characteristic of starlight reflected by interstella r dust. A mere 1\,000 light-years distant toward the heroic constellation Perseus \, it lies at the edge of a large\, star-forming molecular cloud . This telescopic close-up spans over two full moons on the sky or just ove r 15 light-years at the estimated distance of NGC 1333. It shows details o f the dusty region along with telltale hints of contrasty red emission fro m Herbig-Haro objects\, jets and shocked glowing gas emanating from recent ly formed stars. In fact\, NGC 1333 contains hundreds of stars less than a million years old\, most still hidden from optical telescopes by the perv asive stardust . The chaotic environment may be similar to one in which ou r own Sun formed over 4.5 billion years ago.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Robert Eder\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-january-30-n gc-1333-stellar-nursery-in-perseus/ SUMMARY:NGC 1333: Stellar Nursery in Perseus END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:ngc-2442-galaxy-in-volans DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260129 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260130 DESCRIPTION:Distorted galaxy NGC 2442 can be found in the southern constell ation of the flying fish\, (Piscis) Volans . Located about 50 million ligh t-years away\, the galaxy’s two spiral arms extending from a pronounced central bar give it a hook-shaped appearance in this deep and colorful ima ge\, with foreground stars scattered across the telescopic field of view. The image also reveals the distant galaxy’s obscuring dust lanes\, young blue star clusters and reddish star forming regions surrounding a core of yellowish light from an older population of stars. But the star forming r egions seem more concentrated along the drawn-out (upper right) spiral arm . The distorted structure is likely the result of an ancient close encount er with a smaller galaxy that lies off top left of the frame. This telesco pic field of view spans over 200\,000 light-years at the estimated distanc e of NGC 2442.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Mike Selby\nhttps://science.na sa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-january-29-ngc-2442-galaxy-in-volans/ SUMMARY:NGC 2442: Galaxy in Volans END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:m78-reflecting-blue-in-a-sea-of-red DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260128 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260129 DESCRIPTION:In the vast Orion Molecular Cloud complex\, several bright blue nebulas are particularly apparent. Pictured here in the center are two of the most prominent reflection nebulas – dust clouds lit by the reflecti ng light of bright embedded stars . The more famous nebula is M78 \, in th e image center\, cataloged over 200 years ago. To its upper left is the le sser known NGC 2071 . Astronomers continue to study these reflection nebul as to better understand how interior stars form. The overall red glow is f rom diffuse hydrogen gas that covers much of the Orion complex that spans much of the constellation of Orion . Nearby in the greater complex \, whic h lies about 1\,500 light year s away\, are the Orion Nebula \, the Horseh ead Nebula \, and Barnard’s Loop — partially seen here as the white ba nd on the upper left. Almost Hyperspace: Random APOD Generator\n\nImage Cr edit & Copyright: Daniel McCauley\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/ apod-2026-january-28-m78-reflecting-blue-in-a-sea-of-red/ SUMMARY:M78: Reflecting Blue in a Sea of Red END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:orions-treasures-over-snowy-mountains DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260127 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260128 DESCRIPTION:Rising over a frozen valley in the Tatra Mountains \, the famil iar stars and nebulas of Orion dominate this wide-field nightscape. The fe atured deep photo was taken in southern Poland ‘s highest mountain range last month\, where dark skies and alpine terrain combined to reveal both Earth’s rugged beauty and the structure of our galaxy . Above the snowy mountains\, Orion’s bright belt stars anchor a region of glowing interst ellar clouds. The Great Orion Nebula \, a vast stellar nursery visible eve n to the unaided eye\, shines near the center of the scene. Surrounding it is the enormous arc of Barnard’s Loop \, a faint shell of ionized hydro gen gas spanning much of the constellation . To the left\, the round Roset te Nebula glows softly\, while the grayish Witch Head Nebula hovers to the right\, illuminated by nearby starlight. Near the top\, the orange superg iant Betelgeuse marks the hunter’s shoulder.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright : Włodzimierz Bubak \; Text: Ogetay Kayali ( MTU )\nhttps://science.nasa. gov/image-article/apod-2026-january-27-orions-treasures-over-snowy-mountai ns/ SUMMARY:Orions Treasures over Snowy Mountains END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:ngc-55-a-galaxy-of-nebulas DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260126 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260127 DESCRIPTION:Can you see nebulas in other galaxies? Yes\, some nebulas shine brightly enough — if you know how to look. Clouds of hydrogen and oxyge n emit light at very specific colors\, and by isolating them\, astronomers and astrophotographers can reveal structures that would otherwise be too faint to notice. This deep\, 50-hour exposure highlights glowing hydrogen (red) and oxygen (blue) across galaxy NGC 55 \, viewed nearly edge-on . Al so known as the String of Pearls Galaxy\, NGC 55 is often compared to our Milky Way ‘s satellite galaxy the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC)\, althoug h NGC 55 lies much farther away at about 6.5 million light-years . The res ulting image uncovers a sprinkling of emission nebula s within and sometim es above the galaxy’s dusty disk \, offering a detailed look at distant star -forming regions. Jigsaw Galaxy: Astronomy Puzzle of the Day\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Wolfgang Promper \; Text: Ogetay Kayali ( MTU )\nhttp s://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-january-26-ngc-55-a-galaxy-of -nebulas/ SUMMARY:NGC 55: A Galaxy of Nebulas END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:phobos-doomed-moon-of-mars DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260125 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260126 DESCRIPTION:This moon is doomed. Mars \, the red planet named for the Roman god of war \, has two tiny moons\, Phobos and Deimos \, whose names are d erived from the Greek for Fear and Panic . These Martian moons may well be captured asteroids originating in the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter or perhaps from even more distant reaches of our Solar System . T he larger moon\, Phobos \, is indeed seen to be a cratered\, asteroid-like object in this stunning color image from the robotic Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter \, which can image objects as small as 10 meters. But Phobos orbit s so close to Mars – about 5\,800 kilometers above the surface compared to 400\,000 kilometers for our Moon – that gravitational tidal forces ar e dragging it down. In perhaps 50 million years\, Phobos is expected to di sintegrate into a ring of debris.\n\nImage Credit: NASA \, LPL (U. Arizona ) \, MRO \, HiRISE\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-janua ry-25-phobos-doomed-moon-of-mars/ SUMMARY:Phobos: Doomed Moon of Mars END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:earthset-from-orion DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260124 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260125 DESCRIPTION:Eight billion people are about to disappear in this snapshot fr om space taken on 2022 November 21. On the sixth day of the Artemis I miss ion \, their home world is setting behind the Moon’s bright edge as view ed by an external camera on the outbound Orion spacecraft. Orion was heade d for a powered flyby that took it to within 130 kilometers of the lunar s urface. Velocity gained in the flyby maneuver was used to reach a distant retrograde orbit around the Moon. That orbit is considered distant because it’s another 92\,000 kilometers beyond the Moon\, and retrograde becaus e the spacecraft orbited in the opposite direction of the Moon’s orbit a round planet Earth. Swinging around the Moon \, Orion reached a maximum di stance (just over 400\,000 kilometers) from Earth on 2022 November 28\, ex ceeding a record set by Apollo 13 for most distant spacecraft designed for human space exploration . The Artemis II mission \, carrying 4 astronauts around the moon and back again\, is due to launch as early as February 6. \n\nImage Credit: NASA \, Artemis 1\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-articl e/apod-2026-january-24-earthset-from-orion/ SUMMARY:Earthset from Orion END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:planetary-nebula-abell-7 DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260123 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260124 DESCRIPTION:Very faint planetary nebula Abell 7 is about 1\,800 light-years distant. It lies just south of Orion in planet Earth’s skies toward the constellation Lepus\, The Hare . Posing with scattered Milky Way stars\, its generally simple spherical shape about 8 light-years in diameter is re vealed in this deep telescopic image. The beautiful and complex shapes see n within the cosmic cloud are visually enhanced by the use of long exposur es and narrowband filters that capture emission from hydrogen and oxygen a toms. Otherwise Abell 7 would be much too faint to be appreciated by eye . A planetary nebula represents a very brief final phase in stellar evoluti on that our own Sun will experience 5 billion years hence \, as the nebula ’s central\, once sun-like star shrugs off its outer layers. Abell 7 its elf is estimated to be 20\,000 years old. But its central star\, seen here as a fading white dwarf \, is some 10 billion years old.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Martin Pugh\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026 -january-23-planetary-nebula-abell-7/ SUMMARY:Planetary Nebula Abell 7 END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:ldn-1622-dark-nebula-in-orion DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260122 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260123 DESCRIPTION:The silhouette of an intriguing dark nebula inhabits this cosmi c scene . Lynds’ Dark Nebula ( LDN ) 1622 appears against a faint backgr ound of glowing hydrogen gas only visible in long telescopic exposures of the region. In contrast\, a brighter reflection nebula\, vdB 62\, is more easily seen just above the dusty dark nebula. LDN 1622 lies near the plane of our Milky Way Galaxy\, close on the sky to Barnard’s Loop \, a large cloud surrounding the rich complex of emission nebulae found in the Belt and Sword of Orion . With swept-back outlines\, the obscuring dust of LDN 1622 is thought to lie at a similar distance\, perhaps 1\,500 light-years away. At that distance\, this 3 degree wide field of view would span about 100 light-years. Young stars do lie hidden within the dark expanse and ha ve been revealed in Spitzer Space telescope infrared images . Still\, the foreboding visual appearance of LDN 1622 inspires its popular name\, the B oogeyman Nebula .\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Chris Fellows\nhttps://scie nce.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-january-22-ldn-1622-dark-nebula-in-or ion/ SUMMARY:LDN 1622: Dark Nebula in Orion END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:barred-spiral-galaxy-ngc-1365-from-webb DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260121 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260122 DESCRIPTION:A mere 56 million light-years distant toward the southern const ellation Fornax\, NGC 1365 is an enormous barred spiral galaxy about 200\, 000 light-years in diameter. That’s twice the size of our own barred spi ral Milky Way. This sharp image from the James Webb Space Telescope ‘s M id-Infrared Instrument (MIRI) reveals stunning details of this magnificent spiral in infrared light . Webb’s field of view stretches about 60\,000 light-years across NGC 1365\, exploring the galaxy’s core and bright ne wborn star clusters. The intricate network of dusty filaments and bubbles is created by young stars along spiral arms winding from the galaxy’s ce ntral bar. Astronomers suspect the gravitational field of NGC 1365’s bar plays a crucial role in the galaxy’s evolution\, funneling gas and dust into a star-forming maelstrom and ultimately feeding material into the ac tive galaxy’s central\, supermassive black hole .\n\nImage Credit: NASA \, ESA \, CSA \, Janice Lee ( NOIRLab ) – Processing: Alyssa Pagan ( STS cI )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-january-21-barred-s piral-galaxy-ngc-1365-from-webb/ SUMMARY:Barred Spiral Galaxy NGC 1365 from Webb END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:io-in-true-color DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260120 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260121 DESCRIPTION:The strangest moon in the Solar System is bright yellow. The fe atured picture \, an attempt to show how Io would appear in the “true co lors” perceptible to the average human eye\, was taken in 1999 July by t he Galileo spacecraft that orbited Jupiter from 1995 to 2003. Io’s color s derive from sulfur and molten silicate rock . The unusual surface of Io is kept very young by its system of active volcanoes . The intense tidal g ravity of Jupiter stretches Io and damps wobbles caused by Jupiter’s oth er Galilean moons . The resulting friction greatly heats Io ‘s interior\ , causing molten rock to explode through the surface. Io’s volcanoes are so active that they are effectively turning the whole moon inside out. So me of Io ‘s volcanic lava is so hot it glows in the dark .\n\nImage Cred it: NASA \, JPL \, Galileo Project\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article /apod-2026-january-20-io-in-true-color/ SUMMARY:Io in True Color END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:ctb-1-the-medulla-nebula DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260119 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260120 DESCRIPTION:What powers this unusual nebula? CTB 1 is the expanding gas she ll that was left when a massive star toward the constellation of Cassiopei a exploded about 10\,000 years ago. The star likely detonated when it ran out of elements\, near its core\, that could create stabilizing pressure w ith nuclear fusion . The resulting supernova remnant \, nicknamed the Medu lla Nebula for its brain-like shape \, still glows in visible light becaus e of the heat generated by its collision with confining interstellar gas . Why the nebula also glows in X-ray light \, though\, remains a topic of r esearch . One hypothesis holds that an energetic pulsar was created and po wers the nebula with a fast outwardly moving wind. Following this lead\, a pulsar was found in radio waves that appears to have been expelled by the supernova explosion at over 1000 kilometers per second. Although the Medu lla Nebula appears as large as a full moon \, it is so faint that it took 84-hours of exposure with a small telescope in Texas \, USA \, to create t he featured image .\n\nImage Credit: Pierre Konzelmann\nhttps://science.na sa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-january-19-ctb-1-the-medulla-nebula/ SUMMARY:CTB 1: The Medulla Nebula END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:jupiter-from-the-webb-space-telescope DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260118 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260119 DESCRIPTION:This infrared view of Jupiter by Webb is illuminating. High-res olution infrared images of Jupiter from the James Webb Space Telescope (We bb) reveal\, for example\, differences between high-floating bright clouds — including the Great Red Spot — and low-lying dark clouds. Also clea rly visible in the featured Webb image are Jupiter’s dust ring \, bright auroras at the poles \, and Jupiter’s moons Amalthea and Adrastea . The footprint of large volcanic moon Io ‘s magnetic funneling of charged pa rticles onto Jupiter is also visible in the southern aurora. Some objects are so bright that light noticeably diffracts around Webb’s optics creat ing streaks . Webb\, which orbits the Sun near the Earth\, has a mirror ov er six meters across making it the largest astronomical telescope ever lau nched — with over six times more light-collecting area than Hubble .\n\n Image Credit: NASA \, ESA \, CSA \, Jupiter ERS Team \; Processing: Ricard o Hueso ( UPV/EHU ) & Judy Schmidt\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article /apod-2026-january-18-jupiter-from-the-webb-space-telescope/ SUMMARY:Jupiter from the Webb Space Telescope END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:apollo-14-a-view-from-antares DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260117 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260118 DESCRIPTION:Apollo 14’s Lunar Module Antares landed on the Moon on Februa ry 5\, 1971. Toward the end of the stay astronaut Ed Mitchell snapped a se ries of photos of the lunar surface while looking out a window\, assembled into this detailed mosaic by Apollo Lunar Surface Journal editor Eric Jon es. The view looks across the Fra Mauro highlands to the northwest of the landing site after the Apollo 14 astronauts had completed their second and final walk on the Moon . Prominent in the foreground is their Modular Equ ipment Transporter\, a two-wheeled\, rickshaw-like device used to carry to ols and samples. Near the horizon at top center is a 1.5 meter wide boulde r dubbed Turtle rock. In the shallow crater below Turtle rock is the long white handle of a sampling instrument\, thrown there javelin-style by Mitc hell. Mitchell’s fellow moonwalker and first American in space\, Alan Sh epard \, also used a makeshift six iron to hit two golf balls . One of She pard’s golf balls is just visible as a white spot below Mitchell’s jav elin .\n\nImage Credit: Edgar Mitchell\, Apollo 14 \, NASA \; Mosaic – E ric M. Jones\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-january-17- apollo-14-a-view-from-antares/ SUMMARY:Apollo 14: A View from Antares END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:ngc-7023-the-iris-nebula DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260116 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260117 DESCRIPTION:These cosmic clouds have blossomed 1\,300 light-years away in t he fertile starfields of the constellation Cepheus . Called the Iris Nebul a\, NGC 7023 is not the only nebula to evoke the imagery of flowers . Stil l\, this deep telescopic image shows off the Iris Nebula’s range of colo rs and symmetries embedded in surrounding fields of interstellar dust. Wit hin the Iris itself\, dusty nebular material surrounds a hot\, young star. The dominant color of the brighter reflection nebula is blue\, characteri stic of dust grains reflecting starlight. Central filaments of the reflect ion nebula glow with a faint reddish photoluminescence as some dust grains effectively convert the star’s invisible ultraviolet radiation to visib le red light. Infrared observations indicate that this nebula contains com plex carbon molecules known as PAHs . The dusty blue petals of the Iris Ne bula span about six light-years.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Justus Falk\ nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-january-16-ngc-7023-the- iris-nebula/ SUMMARY:NGC 7023: The Iris Nebula END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:plato-and-the-lunar-alps DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260115 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260116 DESCRIPTION:The dark-floored\, 95 kilometer wide crater Plato and sunlit pe aks of the lunar Alps (Montes Alpes) are highlighted in this this sharp te lescopic snapshot of the Moon’s surface. While the Alps of planet Earth were uplifted over millions of years as continental plates slowly collided \, the lunar Alps were likely formed by a sudden collision that created th e giant impact basin known as the Mare Imbrium or Sea of Rains. The mare ’s generally smooth\, lava-flooded floor is seen below the bordering mou ntain range. The prominent straight feature cutting through the mountains is the lunar Alpine Valley (Vallis Alpes). Joining the Mare Imbrium and no rthern Mare Frigoris (Sea of Cold) the valley extends toward the upper rig ht\, about 160 kilometers long and up to 10 kilometers wide. Of course\, t he large\, bright lunar alpine mountain below and right of Plato crater is named Mont Blanc . Lacking an atmosphere\, not to mention snow \, the lun ar Alps are probably not an ideal location for a winter vacation . Still\, a 150 pound skier would weigh a mere 25 pounds on the Moon .\n\nImage Cre dit & Copyright: Luigi Morrone\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apo d-2026-january-15-plato-and-the-lunar-alps/ SUMMARY:Plato and the Lunar Alps END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:m51-the-whirlpool-galaxy DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260114 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260115 DESCRIPTION:The Whirlpool Galaxy is a classic spiral galaxy. At only 30 mil lion light years distant and fully 60 thousand light years across\, M51 \, also known as NGC 5194\, is one of the brightest and most picturesque gal axies on the sky. The featured deep image is a digital combination of imag es taken in different colors over 58 hours with a telescope from Lijiang \ , China . Anyone with a good pair of binoculars \, however\, can see this Whirlpool toward the constellation of the Hunting Dogs ( Canes Venatici ). M51 is a spiral galaxy of type Sc and is the dominant member of a whole g roup of galaxies . Astronomers speculate that M51 ‘s spiral structure is primarily due to its gravitational interaction with the smaller galaxy ju st above it.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Michael Sleeman\nhttps://science .nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-january-14-m51-the-whirlpool-galaxy/ SUMMARY:M51: The Whirlpool Galaxy END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:a-solar-eruption-from-sdo DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260113 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260114 DESCRIPTION:What just leapt from the Sun? A towering structure of solar pla sma suddenly rose from the Sun’s surface and unfurled into space — a s tructure so large that many Earths would easily fit within it– marking t he onset of a dramatic Coronal Mass Ejection (CME). The event was captured in striking detail in late 2024 by NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory (S DO)\, whose continuous monitoring improves space weather forecasts and hel ps humanity better understand how solar activity affects satellites\, GPS\ , radio communications\, and power grids on Earth. The featured video blen ds three extreme- ultraviolet views from SDO‚Äôs Atmospheric Imaging A ssembly (AIA)\, revealing how plasma at different temperatures surged upwa rd as the eruption unfolded. Here\, red highlights cooler\, denser materia l lifted from the Sun‚Äôs lower atmosphere \, while yellow traces hott er\, million-degree coronal loops stretching outward as magnetic fields op en. After the main outburst\, the Sun‚Äôs magnetic fields quickly reor ganize.\n\nVideo Credit: NASA \, SDO \, AIA \, Helioviewer \; Processing & Text: Ogetay Kayali ( MTU )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod/ apod-2026-january-13-a-solar-eruption-from-sdo/ SUMMARY:A Solar Eruption from SDO END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:meteor-dust DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260112 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260113 DESCRIPTION:What’s happening to this meteor? It is shedding its outer lay ers as it passes through the Earth’s atmosphere and heats up. The sudden high temperatures not only cause the bright glow along the dramatic strea k but also melt and vaporize the meteor’s component rock and ice \, crea ting dust. Wind in the atmosphere typically blows this dust away over the next few seconds\, leaving no visible trace after only a few minutes. Much of this dust will eventually settle down to the Earth . The featured imag e was captured in mid-December\, coincident with the Geminids meteor showe r . On the upper left is Sirius \, the brightest star in the night sky \, while in the foreground is fog-engulfed Huangshan \, the Yellow Mountains of eastern China .\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Xu Chen\nhttps://science.n asa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-january-12-meteor-dust/ SUMMARY:Meteor Dust END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:m104-the-sombrero-galaxy-in-infrared DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260111 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260112 DESCRIPTION:This floating ring is the size of a galaxy. In fact\, it is a g alaxy — or at least part of one: the photogenic Sombrero Galaxy \, one o f the largest galaxies in the nearby Virgo Cluster of Galaxies . The dark band of dust that obscures the mid-section of the Sombrero Galaxy in visib le light actually glows brightly in infrared light. The featured image \, digitally sharpened \, shows the infrared glow\, recently recorded by the orbiting Spitzer Space Telescope \, superposed in false-color on an existi ng image taken by NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope in visible light. The So mbrero Galaxy\, also known as M104 \, spans about 50\,000 light years and lies 28 million light years away. M104 can be seen with a small telescope in the direction of the constellation Virgo . Jigsaw Galaxy: Astronomy Puz zle of the Day\n\nImage Credit: NASA \, JPL \, Caltech \, SSC \, R. Kennic utt ( Steward Obs. ) et al.\,\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod -2026-january-11-m104-the-sombrero-galaxy-in-infrared/ SUMMARY:M104: The Sombrero Galaxy in Infrared END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:jupiter-with-the-great-red-spot DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260110 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260111 DESCRIPTION:Jupiter reaches its 2026 opposition today\, January 10. That pu ts our Solar System’s most massive planet opposite the Sun and near its closest and brightest for viewing from planet Earth. In fact\, captured on ly 3 days ago this sharp telescopic snapshot reveals excellent details of the ruling gas giant’s swirling cloudtops \, in light zones and dark bel ts girdling the rapidly rotating outer planet. Jupiter’s famous\, persis tent anticyclonic vortex\, known as the Great Red Spot \, is south of the equator at the lower right. But two smaller red spots are also visible\, o ne near the top in the northernmost zone\, and one close to Jupiter’s so uth pole. And while Jupiter’s Great Red Spot is known to be shrinking \, it’s still about the size of the Earth itself.\n\nImage Credit & Copyri ght: Christopher Go\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod/apod-2026 -january-10-jupiter-with-the-great-red-spot/ SUMMARY:Jupiter with the Great Red Spot END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:ice-halos-by-moonlight-and-sunlight DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260109 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260110 DESCRIPTION:Both Moon and Sun create beautiful ice halos in planet Earth’ s sky. In fact\, the two brightest celestial beacons are each surrounded b y a complex of ice halos in these photos of the sky above Chamonix-Mont-Bl anc in France. The panels were recorded one night (left) and the following day at the end of December 2025. Similar ice halos appear in moonlight an d sunlight because they are all formed through the geometry of flat\, hexa gonal ice crystals. The ice crystals reflect and refract light as they flu tter in the cold atmosphere above the mountain resort. In the pictures bot h Moon and Sun are surrounded by a more commonly seen 22 degree circular h alo. Bright and sometimes colorful patches at the intersections of the 22 degree circular halos with the indicated parselenic and parhelic arcs are also known as Moon dogs and Sun dogs . ( Editor’s note : Annotations upd ated by Marcella Pace)\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Antonella Cicala\nhttp s://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-january-9-ice-halos-by-moonli ght-and-sunlight/ SUMMARY:Ice Halos by Moonlight and Sunlight END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:ic-342-hidden-galaxy-in-camelopardalis DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260108 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260109 DESCRIPTION:Similar in size to large\, bright spiral galaxies in our neighb orhood\, IC 342 is a mere 10 million light-years distant toward the long-n ecked\, northern constellation Camelopardalis . A sprawling island univers e \, IC 342 would otherwise be a prominent galaxy in our night sky\, but i t is hidden from clear view and only glimpsed through the veil of stars\, gas and dust clouds along the plane of our own Milky Way galaxy . Even tho ugh IC 342’s light is dimmed and reddened by intervening cosmic clouds \ , this sharp telescopic image traces the galaxy’s own obscuring dust\, y oung star clusters\, and glowing star forming regions along spiral arms th at wind far from the galaxy’s core . IC 342 has undergone a recent burst of star formation activity and is close enough to have influenced the evo lution of the local group of galaxies and the Milky Way.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Gaetan Maxant\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-202 6-january-8-ic-342-hidden-galaxy-in-camelopardalis/ SUMMARY:IC 342: Hidden Galaxy in Camelopardalis END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:simeis-147-the-spaghetti-nebula-supernova-remnant DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260107 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260108 DESCRIPTION:Its popular nickname is the Spaghetti Nebula. Officially catalo ged as Simeis 147 and Sharpless 2-240\, it is easy to get lost following t he looping and twisting filaments of this intricate supernova remnant . Se en toward the boundary of the constellations of the Bull ( Taurus ) and th e Charioteer ( Auriga )\, the impressive gas structure covers nearly 3 deg rees on the sky\, equivalent to 6 full moons . That’s about 150 light-ye ar s at the stellar debris cloud’s estimated distance of 3\,000 light-ye ars. The supernova remnant has an estimated age of about 40\,000 years\, m eaning light from this powerful stellar explosion first reached the Earth when woolly mammoths roamed free. Besides the expanding remnant\, this cos mic catastrophe left behind a pulsar \, a fast-spinning neutron star that is the remnant of the original star’s core. The featured image was captu red last month from Forca Canapine \, Italy . Portal Universe: Random APOD Generator\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Saverio Ferretti\nhttps://science. nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-january-7-simeis-147-the-spaghetti-nebula -supernova-remnant/ SUMMARY:Simeis 147: The Spaghetti Nebula Supernova Remnant END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:jupiters-clouds-in-high-definition-from-juno DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260106 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260107 DESCRIPTION:How complex is Jupiter? NASA’s Juno mission to Jupiter is fin ding the Jovian giant to be more complicated than expected . Jupiter’s m agnetic field has been discovered to be much different from our Earth’s simple dipole field \, showing several poles embedded in a complicated net work more convoluted in the north than the south. Further\, Juno’s radio measurements show that Jupiter’s atmosphere shows structure well below the upper cloud deck — even hundreds of kilometers deep. Jupiter ‘s ne wfound complexity is evident also in southern clouds\, as shown in the tex ture and color enhanced featured image taken last month. There\, planet-ci rcling zones and belts that dominate near the equator decay into a complex miasma of continent-sized storm swirls. Juno continues in its looping ell iptical orbit\, swooping near the huge planet every month and exploring a slightly different sector each time around.\n\nImage Credit: NASA / JPL-Ca ltech / SwRI / MSSS \; Processing & License : Thomas Thomopoulos\nhttps:// science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-january-6-jupiters-clouds-in-high -definition-from-juno/ SUMMARY:Jupiters Clouds in High Definition from Juno END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:the-red-rectangle-nebula-from-hubble DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260105 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260106 DESCRIPTION:How was the unusual Red Rectangle nebula created? At the nebula ’s center is an aging binary star system that surely powers the nebula b ut does not\, as yet\, explain its colors. The unusual shape of the Red Re ctangle is likely due to a thick dust torus which pinches the otherwise sp herical outflow into tip-touching cone shapes . Because we view the torus edge-on\, the boundary edges of the cone shape s seem to form an X . The d istinct rungs suggest the outflow occurs in fits and starts. The unusual c olors of the nebula are less well understood \, however\, and speculation holds that they are partly provided by hydrocarbon molecules that may actu ally be building blocks for organic life. The Red Rectangle nebula lies ab out 2\,300 light years away towards the constellation of the Unicorn ( Mon oceros ). The nebula is shown here in great detail as a reprocessed image from Hubble Space Telescope . In a few million years\, as one of the centr al stars becomes further depleted of nuclear fuel\, the Red Rectangle nebu la will likely bloom into a planetary nebula .\n\nImage Credit: NASA \, ES A \, Hubble \; Processing & License: Judy Schmidt\nhttps://science.nasa.go v/image-article/apod-2026-january-5-the-red-rectangle-nebula-from-hubble/ SUMMARY:The Red Rectangle Nebula from Hubble END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:the-einstein-cross-gravitational-lens DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260104 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260105 DESCRIPTION:Most galaxies have a single nucleus — does this galaxy have f our? The strange answer leads astronomers to conclude that the nucleus of the surrounding galaxy is not even visible in this image . The central clo verleaf is rather light emitted from a background quasar . The gravitation al field of the visible foreground galaxy breaks light from this distant q uasar into four distinct images. The quasar must be properly aligned behin d the center of a massive galaxy for a mirage like this to be evident. The general effect is known as gravitational lensing \, and this specific cas e is known as the Einstein Cross . Stranger still\, the images of the Eins tein Cross vary in relative brightness\, enhanced occasionally by the addi tional gravitational microlensing effect of specific stars in the foregrou nd galaxy. Almost Hyperspace: Random APOD Generator\n\nImage Credit & Lice nse: NSF \, NOIRLab \, AURA \, WIYN \; Processing: J. Rhoads ( Arizona Sta te U. ) et al.\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-january-4 -the-einstein-cross-gravitational-lens/ SUMMARY:The Einstein Cross Gravitational Lens END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:full-moonlight DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260103 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260104 DESCRIPTION:The Full Moon is the brightest lunar phase\, and tonight you ca n stand in the light of the first Full Moon of 2026. In fact\, the Moon’ s full phase occurs on January 3 at 10:03 UTC\, while only about 7 hours l ater planet Earth reaches its 2026 perihelion\, the closest point in its e lliptical orbit around the Sun\, at 17:16 UTC. January’s Full Moon was a lso not far from its own perigee\, or closest approach to planet Earth. Fo r this lunation the Moon’s perigee was on January 1 at 21:44 UTC. You ca n also spot planet Jupiter\, near its brightest for 2026 and close on the sky to the Full Moon tonight. But while you’re out skygazing don’t for get to look for rare\, bright fireballs from the Quadrantid meteor shower. \n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Zhengjie Wu and Jeff Dai ( TWAN )\nhttps://s cience.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-january-3-full-moonlight/ SUMMARY:Full Moonlight END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:nanosail-d2 DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260102 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260103 DESCRIPTION:In 2011\, on January 20\, NASA’s NanoSail-D2 unfurled a very thin and very reflective 10 square meter sail becoming the first solar sai l spacecraft in low Earth orbit. Often considered the stuff of science fic tion \, sailing through space was suggested 400 years ago by astronomer Jo hannes Kepler\, who had observed comet tails blown by the solar wind. But modern solar sail spacecraft designs\, like NanoSail-D2\, Japan’s interp lanetary spacecraft IKAROS \, or the Planetary Society’s Lightsail A \, rely on the small but continuous pressure from sunlight itself for thrust. Glinting in the sunlight as it circled planet Earth\, NanoSail-D2’s sol ar sail was periodically bright and visible to the eye. These remarkably d etailed images were captured by manually tracking the orbiting solar sail spacecraft with a small telescope.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Ralf Vande bergh\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-january-2-nanosail -d2/ SUMMARY:NanoSail D2 END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:auroral-corona DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260101 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260102 DESCRIPTION:Cycle 25 solar maximum made 2025 a great year for aurora boreal is (or aurora australis ) on planet Earth. And the high level of solar act ivity should extend into 2026. So\, while you’re celebrating the arrival of the new year\, check out this spectacular auroral display that erupted in starry night skies over Kirkjufell \, Iceland. The awesome auroral cor ona\, energetic curtains of light streaming from directly overhead\, was w itnessed during a strong geomagnetic storm triggered by intense solar acti vity near the March 2025 equinox. This boreal skyscape captures the evocat ive display in a 21 frame panoramic mosaic.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: R oi Levi\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-january-1-aurora l-corona/ SUMMARY:Auroral Corona END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:hh-222-the-waterfall-nebula DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251231 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20260101 DESCRIPTION:What created the Waterfall Nebula? The origin is still being re searched. The structure\, officially designated Herbig-Haro 222\, appears in the region of NGC 1999 in the Great Orion Molecular Cloud complex. The elongated gaseous stream stretches about ten light years but appears simil ar to a long waterfall on Earth. Recent observations indicate that HH-222 is likely a gigantic gaseous bow shock \, similar to a wave of water cause d by a fast-moving ship. The origin of this shock wave is thought to be a jet outflow from the multiple star system V380 Orionis off the lower left of the frame. Therefore\, gas does not flow along the waterfall\, but rath er the entire structure moves toward the upper right. The Waterfall Nebula lies about 1\,500 light year s away toward the constellation of Orion. Th e featured image was captured earlier this month from El Sauce Observatory in Chile . Jigsaw Nebula: Astronomy Puzzle of the Day\n\nImage Credit & C opyright: Mike Selby\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-dec ember-31-hh-222-the-waterfall-nebula/ SUMMARY:HH 222: The Waterfall Nebula END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:an-artificial-comet DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251230 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251231 DESCRIPTION:Yes\, but can your comet tail do this? No\, and what you are se eing is not the tail of a comet . The picture features a cleverly overlaye d time-lapse sequence of a group of satellites orbiting Earth together in June. Specifically\, these are Starlink communications satellites in low E arth orbit reflecting back sunlight before sunrise to Inner Mongolia \, Ch ina . Although the satellites appear to the human eye as points\, the 20-s econd-long camera exposures caused them to appear as short streaks . Curre ntly there are over 9000 Starlinks in orbit \, with more being launched ne arly every week. Other satellite constellations are also being planned. Ex plore the Universe: Random APOD Generator\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Wan g Chao\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-december-30-an-ar tificial-comet/ SUMMARY:An Artificial Comet END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:m1-the-crab-nebula DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251229 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251230 DESCRIPTION:This is the mess that is left when a star explodes. The Crab Ne bula \, the result of a supernova seen in 1054 AD \, is filled with myster ious filaments. The filaments are not only tremendously complex but appear to have less mass than expelled in the original supernova and a higher sp eed than expected from a free explosion. The featured image was taken by a n amateur astronomer in Leesburg \, Florida \, USA over three nights last month. It was captured in three primary colors but with extra detail provi ded by specific emission by hydrogen gas. The Crab Nebula spans about 10 l ight year s. In the Nebula’s very center lies a pulsar: a neutron star a s massive as the Sun but with only the size of a small town . The Crab Pul sar rotates about 30 times each second. Explore the Universe: Random APOD Generator\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Alan Chen\nhttps://science.nasa.gov /image-article/apod-2025-december-29-m1-the-crab-nebula/ SUMMARY:M1: The Crab Nebula END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:ngc-1898-globular-cluster-in-the-large-magellanic-cloud DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251228 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251229 DESCRIPTION:Jewels don’t shine this bright — only stars do. And almost every spot in this jewel-box of an image from the Hubble Space Telescope i s a star. Now\, some stars are more red than our Sun \, and some more blue — but all of them are much farther away. Although it takes light about 8 minutes to reach Earth from the Sun\, NGC 1898 is so far away that it ta kes light about 160\,000 years to get here. This huge ball of stars\, NGC 1898 \, is called a globular cluster and resides in the central bar of the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) — a satellite galaxy of our Milky Way Gala xy . The featured multi-colored image includes light from the infrared to the ultraviolet and was taken to help determine if the stars of NGC 1898 a ll formed at the same time or at different times. There are increasing ind ications that most globular clusters formed stars in stages \, and that\, in particular\, stars from NGC 1898 formed shortly after ancient encounter s with the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC) and our Milky Way Galaxy. Space T elescopes Live: Where are Hubble and Webb looking right now?\n\nImage Cred it: ESA / Hubble & NASA\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025- december-28-ngc-1898-globular-cluster-in-the-large-magellanic-cloud/ SUMMARY:NGC 1898: Globular Cluster in the Large Magellanic Cloud END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:apollo-17-s-moonship DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251227 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251228 DESCRIPTION:Awkward and angular looking\, Apollo 17’s lunar module Challe nger was designed for flight in the near vacuum of space. Digitally enhanc ed and reprocessed\, this picture taken from Apollo 17’s command module America shows Challenger’s ascent stage in lunar orbit. Small reaction c ontrol thrusters are at the sides of the moonship with the bell of the asc ent rocket engine underneath. The hatch that allowed access to the lunar s urface is seen at the front\, with a round radar antenna at the top. Missi on commander Gene Cernan is clearly visible through the triangular window. This spaceship performed gracefully\, landing on the Moon and returning t he Apollo astronauts to the orbiting command module in December of 1972. S o where is Challenger now? While its descent stage remains at the Apollo 1 7 landing site in the Taurus-Littrow valley\, the ascent stage pictured wa s intentionally crashed nearby after being jettisoned from the command mod ule prior to the astronauts’ return to planet Earth .\n\nImage Credit: A pollo 17 \, NASA \, (Image Reprocessing: Andy Saunders )\nhttps://science. nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-december-27-apollo-17-s-moonship/ SUMMARY:Apollo 17 s Moonship END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:3i-atlas-flyby DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251226 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251227 DESCRIPTION:Attention grabbing interstellar visitor 3I/ATLAS made its not-s o-close flyby of our fair planet on December 19 at a distance of 1.8 astro nomical units. That’s about 900 light-seconds. This deep exposure captur es the comet from another star system as it gently swept across a faint ba ckground of stars in the constellation Leo about 4 days earlier. Though fa int\, colors emphasized in the image data show off the comet’s yellowish dust tail and bluish ion tail along with a greenish tinged coma. And even as it is scrutinized by arrays of telescopes and spacecraft from planet E arth\, 3I/ATLAS is headed out of the Solar System. It’s presently moving outward along a hyperbolic trajectory at about 64 kilometers per second r elative to the Sun\, too fast to be bound by the Sun’s gravity.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Dan Bartlett\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/ apod-2025-december-26-3i-atlas-flyby/ SUMMARY:3I/ATLAS Flyby END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:unicorn-fox-fur-and-christmas-tree DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251225 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251226 DESCRIPTION:A star forming region cataloged as NGC 2264 \, this beautiful b ut complex arrangement of interstellar gas and dust is about 2\,700 light- years distant in the faint but fanciful constellation Monoceros\, the Unic orn . Seen toward the celestial equator and near the plane of our Milky Wa y galaxy\, the seasonal skyscape mixes reddish emission nebulae excited by energetic light from newborn stars with dark interstellar dust clouds. Wh ere the otherwise obscuring dust clouds lie close to the hot\, young stars \, they also reflect starlight\, forming blue reflection nebulae . In fact \, bright variable star S Monocerotis is immersed in a blue-tinted haze ne ar center. Arrayed with a simple triangular outline above S Monocerotis \, the stars of NGC 2264 are popularly known as the Christmas Tree star clus ter . Carved by energetic starlight\, the Cone Nebula sits upside down at the apex of this cosmic Christmas tree while the dusty\, convoluted pelt o f glowing gas and dust under the tree is called the Fox Fur Nebula . This rich telescopic frame spans about 1.5 degrees or 3 full moons on the sky t op to bottom\, covering nearly 80 light-years at the distance of NGC 2264. \n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Michael Kalika\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/ima ge-article/apod-2025-december-25-unicorn-fox-fur-and-christmas-tree/ SUMMARY:Unicorn\, Fox Fur and Christmas Tree END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:mystery-little-red-dots-in-the-early-universe DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251224 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251225 DESCRIPTION:What are these little red dots (LRDs)? Nobody knows. Discovered only last year\, hundreds of LRDs have now been found by the James Webb S pace Telescope in the early universe . Although extremely faint\, LRDs are now frequently identified in deep observations made for other purposes. A wide-ranging debate is raging about what LRDs may be and what importance they may have. Possible origin hypotheses include accreting supermassive b lack holes inside clouds of gas and dust\, bursts of star formation in you ng dust-reddened galaxies \, and dark matter powered gas clouds . The high lighted images show six nearly featureless LRDs listed under the JWST prog ram that found them\, and z\, a distance indicator called cosmological red shift . Additionally\, searches are underway in our nearby universe to try to find whatever previous LRDs might have become today .\n\nImage Credit: NASA \, ESA \, CSA \, STScI \, JWST \; Dale Kocevski ( Colby College )\nh ttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-december-24-mystery-little -red-dots-in-the-early-universe/ SUMMARY:Mystery: Little Red Dots in the Early Universe END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:red-sprites-and-circular-elves-lightning-over-italy DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251223 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251224 DESCRIPTION:What’s happening in the sky? Lightning . The most commonly se en type of lightning involves flashes of bright white light between clouds . Over the past 50 years\, though\, other types of upper-atmospheric light ning have been confirmed\, including tentacled red sprites and ringed ELVE S . Although both last only a small fraction of a second\, sprites are bri ghter and easier to photograph than their more common electrical-discharge cousins. ELVES are rapidly expanding rings that are thought to be created when an electromagnetic pulse shoots upward from charged clouds and impac ts the ionosphere \, causing nitrogen molecules to glow. Capturing either form of lightning takes patience and experience — capturing them both to gether \, since they usually occur separately\, is rare. The featured imag e is a frame from a video recorded from Possagno \, Italy late last month above a distant thunderstorm over the Adriatic Sea .\n\nImage Credit & Cop yright: Valter Binotto\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-d ecember-23-red-sprites-and-circular-elves-lightning-over-italy/ SUMMARY:Red Sprites and Circular Elves Lightning over Italy END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:sunset-solstice-over-stonehenge DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251222 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251223 DESCRIPTION:Yesterday the Sun reached its southernmost point in planet Eart h’s sky. Called a solstice \, many cultures mark yesterday’s date as a change of seasons — from autumn to winter in Earth ‘s Northern Hemisp here and from spring to summer in Earth’s Southern Hemisphere . The feat ured image was taken just before the longest night of the 2025 northern ye ar at Stonehenge in United Kingdom . There\, through stones precisely plac ed 4\,500 years ago\, a 4.5 billion year old large glowing orb is seen set ting. Even given the precession of the Earth’s rotational axis over the millennia\, the Sun continues to set over Stonehenge in an astronomically significant way .\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: English Heritage \, Josh Du ry\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-december-22-sunset-so lstice-over-stonehenge/ SUMMARY:Sunset Solstice over Stonehenge END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:solstice-on-a-spinning-earth DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251221 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251222 DESCRIPTION:Can you tell that today is a solstice by the tilt of the Earth? Yes. At a solstice\, the Earth’s terminator — the dividing line betwe en night and day — is tilted the most. The featured time-lapse video dem onstrates this by displaying an entire year on planet Earth in twelve seco nds. From geosynchronous orbit \, the Meteosat 9 satellite recorded infrar ed images of the Earth every day at the same local time . The video starte d at the September 2010 equinox with the terminator line being vertical: a n equinox. As the Earth revolved around the Sun\, the terminator was seen to tilt in a way that provides less daily sunlight to the northern hemisph ere\, causing winter in the north. At the most tilt \, winter solstice occ urred in the north \, and summer solstice in the south. As the year progre ssed\, the March 2011 equinox arrived halfway through the video\, followed by the terminator tilting the other way \, causing winter in the southern hemisphere — and summer in the north. The captured year ends again with the September equinox \, concluding another of the billions of trips the Earth has taken — and will take — around the Sun. APOD Review: RJN’s Night Sky Network Lecture\n\nImage Credit: Meteosat 9 \, NASA \, Earth Ob servatory \, Robert Simmon\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod/ap od-2025-december-21-solstice-on-a-spinning-earth/ SUMMARY:Solstice on a Spinning Earth END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:a-solstice-sun-tattoo DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251220 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251221 DESCRIPTION:The word solstice is from the Latin for Sun and to pause or sta nd still. And in the days surrounding a solstice the Sun’s annual north- south drift in planet Earth’s sky does slow down\, pause\, and then reve rse direction. So near the solstice the daily path of the Sun through the sky really doesn’t change much. In fact\, near the December solstice \, the Sun’s consistent\, low arc through northern hemisphere skies\, along with low surface temperatures\, has left a noticeable imprint on this pat h to the mountain town of Peaio in northern Italy. The morning frost on th e road has melted away only where the sunlight was able to reach the groun d. But it remains in the areas persistently shadowed by the fence\, tattoo ing in frost an image of the fence on the asphalt surface.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Marcella Pace\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2 025-december-20-a-solstice-sun-tattoo/ SUMMARY:A Solstice Sun Tattoo END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:long-shadows-of-the-montes-caucasus DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251219 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251220 DESCRIPTION:When the Moon is at its first quarter phase\, the Sun rises alo ng the Montes Caucasus as seen from the lunar surface. The lunar mountain range casts the magnificent\, spire-like shadows in this telescopic view f rom planet Earth\, looking along the lunar terminator or the boundary betw een lunar night and day. Named for Earth’s own Caucasus Mountains\, the rugged lunar Montes Caucasus peaks\, up to 6 kilometers high\, are located between the smooth Mare Imbrium to the west and Mare Serenitatis to the e ast. Still mostly in shadow in this first quarter lunarscape \, at the lef t (west) impact craters reflect the light of the rising Sun along their ou ter\, eastern crater walls.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Guy Bardon\nhttps ://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-december-19-long-shadows-of-th e-montes-caucasus/ SUMMARY:Long Shadows of the Montes Caucasus END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:jupiter-and-the-meteors-from-gemini DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251218 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251219 DESCRIPTION:Jupiter \, the Solar System’s ruling gas giant\, is the brigh test celestial beacon at the center of this composite night skyscape . The scene was constructed by selecting the 40 exposures containing meteors fr om about 500 exposures made on the nights of December 13 and 14\, near pea k activity for this year’s annual Geminid meteor shower . With each sele cted exposure registered in the night sky above Alentejo\, Portugal\, plan et Earth\, it does look like the meteors are streaming away from Jupiter. But the apparent radiant of the Geminid meteors is actually closer to brig ht star Castor\, in the shower’s eponymous constellation Gemini. In this frame that’s just a little above and left of the Solar System’s most massive planet. Still\, the parent body of Geminid meteors is known to be rocky\, near-Earth asteroid 3200 Phaethon . And the orbit of Phaethon itse lf is influenced by the gravitational attraction exerted by massive Jupite r\, in concert with planets of the inner Solar System.\n\nImage Credit & C opyright: David Cruz\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-dec ember-18-jupiter-and-the-meteors-from-gemini/ SUMMARY:Jupiter and the Meteors from Gemini END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:w5-the-soul-nebula DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251217 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251218 DESCRIPTION:Stars are forming in the Soul of the Queen of Aethopia . More s pecifically\, a large star forming region called the Soul Nebula can be fo und in the direction of the constellation Cassiopeia \, whom Greek mytholo gy credits as the vain wife of a King who long ago ruled lands surrounding the upper Nile river. Also known as Westerhout 5 (W5)\, the Soul Nebula h ouses several open clusters of stars \, ridges and pillars darkened by cos mic dust \, and huge evacuated bubbles formed by the winds of young massiv e stars . Located about 6\,500 light years away\, the Soul Nebula spans ab out 100 light years and is usually imaged next to its celestial neighbor t he Heart Nebula (IC 1805). The featured image \, taken from near Nashville \, Tennessee\, USA\, is a composite of 234 hours of exposures made in diff erent colors: red as emitted by hydrogen gas\, yellow as emitted by sulfur \, and blue as emitted by oxygen . Explore the Universe: Random APOD Gene rator\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Jeffrey Horne\nhttps://science.nasa.gov /image-article/apod-2025-december-17-w5-the-soul-nebula/ SUMMARY:W5: The Soul Nebula END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:andromeda-and-sprites-over-australia DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251216 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251217 DESCRIPTION:What’s happening over that tree? Two very different things. O n the left is the Andromeda galaxy \, an object that is older than humanit y and will last billions of years into the future. Andromeda ( M31 ) is si milar in size and shape to our own Milky Way Galaxy . On the right is a re d sprite \, a type of lightning that lasts a fraction of a second and occu rs above violent thunderstorms . Red sprites were verified as real atmosph eric phenomena only about 35 years ago. The tree in the center is a boab \ , which may live for as long as a thousand years. Boab trees grow naturall y in Australia and Africa and are known for being able to store large amou nts of water: up to 100\,000 liters. The featured image was captured last month near Derby in Western Australia .\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: JJ Ra o\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-december-16-andromeda- and-sprites-over-australia/ SUMMARY:Andromeda and Sprites over Australia END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:gemini-meteors-over-snow-capped-mountains DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251215 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251216 DESCRIPTION:Where are all of these meteors coming from? In terms of directi on on the sky\, the pointed answer is the constellation of Gemini. That is why the major meteor shower in December is known as the Geminids — beca use shower meteors all appear to come from a radiant toward Gemini . Three dimensionally\, however\, sand-sized debris expelled from the unusual ast eroid 3200 Phaethon follows a well-defined orbit about our Sun\, and the p art of the orbit that approaches Earth is superposed in front of the const ellation of Gemini . Therefore\, when Earth crosses this orbit \, the radi ant point of falling debris appears in Gemini. Featured here is a composit e of many images taken over the past few days through dark skies from Slov akia and capturing the snow-covered peaks of the Belianske Tatra mountains Numerous bright meteor streaks from the Geminids meteor shower are visibl e. Orion is visible above the horizon\, while the bright star nearest the radiant is Castor . APOD Review: RJN’s Night Sky Network Lecture\n\nImag e Credit & Copyright: Tomáš Slovinský\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-a rticle/apod-2025-december-15-gemini-meteors-over-snow-capped-mountains/ SUMMARY:Gemini Meteors over Snow Capped Mountains END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:juno-flyby-of-ganymede-and-jupiter DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251214 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251215 DESCRIPTION:What would it be like to fly over the largest moon in the Solar System ? In 2021\, the robotic Juno spacecraft flew past Jupiter ‘s hug e moon Ganymede and took images that have been digitally constructed into a detailed flyby. As the featured video begins\, Juno swoops over the two- toned surface of the 5\,000-km wide moon\, revealing an icy alien landscap e filled with grooves and craters. The grooves are likely caused by shifti ng surface plates\, while the craters are caused by violent impacts . Cont inuing on in its orbit\, Juno then performed its 34th close pass over Jupi ter’s clouds. The digitally-constructed video shows numerous swirling cl ouds in the north\, colorful planet-circling zones and bands across the mi ddle — featuring several white-oval cloud s from the String of Pearls \, and finally more swirling clouds in the south.\n\nVideo Credit: NASA \, J PL-Caltech \, SWRI \, MSSS \; Animation: Koji Kuramura \, Gerald Eichstäd t \, Mike Stetson\; Music: Vangelis\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-articl e/apod-2025-december-14-juno-flyby-of-ganymede-and-jupiter/ SUMMARY:Juno Flyby of Ganymede and Jupiter END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:orion-and-the-ocean-of-storms DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251213 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251214 DESCRIPTION:On December 5\, 2022\, a camera on board the uncrewed Orion spa cecraft captured this view as Orion approached its return powered flyby of the Moon. Beyond one of Orion’s extended solar arrays lies dark\, smoot h\, terrain along the western edge of the Oceanus Procellarum. Prominent o n the lunar nearside Oceanus Procellarum \, the Ocean of Storms\, is the l argest of the Moon’s lava-flooded maria . The lunar terminator\, the sha dow line between lunar night and day\, runs along the left of this frame. The 41 kilometer diameter crater Marius is top center\, with ray crater Ke pler peeking in at the edge\, just right of the solar array wing. Kepler ’s bright rays extend to the north and west\, reaching the dark-floored Marius . By December 11\, 2022 the Orion spacecraft had returned to its ho me world . The historic Artemis 1 mission ended with Orion’s successful splashdown in planet Earth’s water-flooded Pacific Ocean.Watch: The Gemi nid Meteor Shower\n\nImage Credit: NASA \, Artemis 1\nhttps://science.nasa .gov/image-article/apod-2025-december-13-orion-and-the-ocean-of-storms/ SUMMARY:Orion and the Ocean of Storms END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:northern-fox-fires DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251212 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251213 DESCRIPTION:In a Finnish myth \, when an arctic fox runs so fast that its b ushy tail brushes the mountains\, flaming sparks are cast into the heavens creating the northern lights. In fact the Finnish word “revontulet”\, a name for the aurora borealis or northern lights \, can be translated as fire fox. So that evocative myth took on a special significance for the p hotographer of this northern night skyscape from Finnish Lapland near Kilp isjarvi Lake. The snowy scene is illuminated by moonlight. Saana\, an icon ic fell or mountain of Lapland\, rises at the right in the background. But as the beautiful nothern lights danced overhead\, the wild fire fox in th e foreground enthusiastically ran around the photographer and his equipmen t\, making it difficult to capture in this lucky single shot.Watch: The Ge minid Meteor Shower\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Dennis Lehtonen\nhttps:// science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-december-12-northern-fox-fires/ SUMMARY:Northern Fox Fires END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:galaxies-in-the-river DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251211 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251212 DESCRIPTION:Large galaxies grow by eating small ones. Even our own galaxy e ngages in a sort of galactic cannibalism \, absorbing small galaxies that are too close and are captured by the Milky Way’s gravity. In fact\, the practice is common in the universe and illustrated by this striking pair of interacting galaxies from the banks of the southern constellation Erida nus \, The River . Located over 50 million light years away\, the large\, distorted spiral NGC 1532 is seen locked in a gravitational struggle with dwarf galaxy NGC 1531\, a struggle the smaller galaxy will eventually lose . Seen nearly edge-on in this sharp image \, spiral NGC 1532 spans about 100\,000 light-years. The NGC 1532/1531 pair is thought to be similar to t he well-studied system of face-on spiral and small companion known as M51 .\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Vikas Chander\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/ima ge-article/apod-2025-december-11-galaxies-in-the-river/ SUMMARY:Galaxies in the River END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:the-horsehead-nebula DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251210 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251211 DESCRIPTION:Sculpted by stellar winds and radiation\, this dusty interstell ar molecular cloud has by chance assumed an immediately recognizable shape . Fittingly known as The Horsehead Nebula \, it lies some 1\,500 light-yea rs distant\, embedded in the vast Orion cloud complex. About five light-ye ars “tall\,” the dark cloud is cataloged as Barnard 33\, first identif ied on a photographic plate taken in the early 20th century. B33 is visibl e primarily because its obscuring dust is silhouetted against the glow of emission nebula IC 434. Hubble Space Telescope images from the early 21st century find young stars forming within B33. Of course\, the magnificent i nterstellar cloud will slowly shift its apparent shape over the next few m illion years. But for now the Horsehead Nebula is a rewarding though diffi cult object to view with small telescopes from planet Earth .\n\nImage Cre dit & Copyright: George Chatzifrantzis\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-art icle/apod-2025-december-10-the-horsehead-nebula/ SUMMARY:The Horsehead Nebula END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:the-heart-of-the-soul-nebula DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251209 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251210 DESCRIPTION:This cosmic close-up looks deep inside the Soul Nebula. The dar k and brooding dust clouds outlined by bright ridges of glowing gas are ca taloged as IC 1871. About 25 light-year s across\, the telescopic field of view spans only a small part of the much larger Heart and Soul nebulae. A t an estimated distance of 6\,500 light-years\, the star-forming complex l ies within the Perseus spiral arm of the Milky Way \, seen in planet Earth ’s skies toward the constellation of the Queen of Aethiopia ( Cassiopeia ). An example of triggered star formation \, the dense star-forming cloud s of IC 1871 are themselves sculpted by the intense winds and radiation of the region’s massive young stars. This color image adopts a palette mad e popular in Hubble images of star-forming regions.\n\nImage Credit & Copy right: Nicola Bugin\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-dece mber-9-the-heart-of-the-soul-nebula/ SUMMARY:The Heart of the Soul Nebula END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:flying-over-the-earth-at-night DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251208 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251209 DESCRIPTION:Many wonders are visible when flying over the Earth at night. S uch visual spectacles occur every day for astronauts in low Earth orbit\, but the featured video captured several from the International Space Stati on (ISS) in 2011 and set them to rousing music. Passing below are white cl ouds \, orange city lights \, lightning flashes in thunderstorm s\, and da rk blue seas . On the horizon is the golden haze of Earth’s thin atmosph ere \, frequently decorated by dancing auroras as the video progresses. Th e green parts of auroras typically remain below the space station\, but th e station flies right through the red and purple auroral peaks. Solar pane ls of the ISS are seen around the frame edges. The ominous wave of approac hing brightness at the end of each sequence is just the dawn of the sunlit half of Earth \, a dawn that occurs every 90 minutes. Free APOD Lecture i n Phoenix: This Wednesday (December 10) at 7 pm\n\nVideo Credit: Gateway t o Astronaut Photography \, NASA \; Compilation: David Peterson (YouTube)\; Music: Freedom Fighters ( Two Steps from Hell )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov /image-article/apod-2025-december-8-flying-over-the-earth-at-night/ SUMMARY:Flying Over the Earth at Night END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:the-sun-and-its-missing-colors DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251207 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251208 DESCRIPTION:It is still not known why the Sun’s light is missing some col ors. Here are all the visible colors of the Sun \, produced by passing the Sun’s light through a prism -like device. The spectrum was created at t he McMath-Pierce Solar Observatory and shows\, first off\, that although o ur white -appearing Sun emits light of nearly every color \, it appears br ightest in yellow-green light. The dark patches in the featured spectrum a rise from gas at or above the Sun’s surface absorbing sunlight emitted b elow. Since different types of gas absorb different colors of light \, it is possible to determine what gasses compose the Sun. Helium \, for exampl e\, was first discovered in 1868 on a solar spectrum and only later found here on Earth . Today\, the majority of spectral absorption lines have bee n identified – but not all . Free APOD Lecture in Phoenix: Wednesday\, D ecember 10 at 7 pm\n\nImage Credit: Nigel Sharp ( NSF )\, FTS \, NSO \, KP NO \, AURA \, NSF\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-decemb er-7-the-sun-and-its-missing-colors/ SUMMARY:The Sun and Its Missing Colors END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:apollo-17-at-shorty-crater DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251206 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251207 DESCRIPTION:Fifty three years ago \, in December of 1972\, Apollo 17 astron auts Eugene Cernan and Harrison Schmitt spent about 75 hours on the Moon e xploring the Taurus-Littrow valley\, while colleague Ronald Evans orbited overhead . This snapshot from another world was taken by Cernan as he and Schmitt roamed the lunar valley’s floor. The image shows Schmitt next to the lunar rover parked along the south rim of Shorty Crater . That locati on is near the spot where geologist Schmitt discovered orange lunar soil. The Apollo 17 crew returned with 110 kilograms of rock and soil samples \, more than was returned from any of the other lunar landing sites. And for now \, Cernan and Schmitt are the last to walk on the Moon .\n\nImage Cre dit: Apollo 17 Crew\, NASA\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-20 25-december-6-apollo-17-at-shorty-crater/ SUMMARY:Apollo 17 at Shorty Crater END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:the-bipolar-jets-of-kx-andromedae DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251205 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251206 DESCRIPTION:Blasting outward from variable star KX Andromedae\, these stunn ing bipolar jets are 19 light-years long. Recently discovered \, they are revealed in unprecedented detail in this deep telescopic image centered on KX And and composed from over 692 hours of combined image data . In fact\ , KX And is spectroscopically found to be an interacting binary star syste m consisting of a bright\, hot B-type star with a swollen cool giant star as its co-orbiting\, close companion. The stellar material from the cool g iant star is likely being transferred to the hot B-type star through an ac cretion disk \, with spectacular symmetric jets driven outward perpendicul ar to the disk itself. The known distance to KX And of 2\,500 light-years\ , angular size of the jets\, and estimated inclination of the accretion di sk lead to the size estimate for each jet of an astonishing 19 light-years . Free APOD Lecture in Phoenix: Wednesday\, December 10 at 7 pm\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Tim Schaeffer and the Deep Sky Collective\nhttps://sci ence.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-december-5-the-bipolar-jets-of-kx-an dromedae/ SUMMARY:The Bipolar Jets of KX Andromedae END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:galaxies-in-the-furnace DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251204 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251205 DESCRIPTION:An example of violence on a cosmic scale\, enormous elliptical galaxy NGC 1316 lies about 75 million light-years away toward Fornax \, th e southern constellation of the Furnace. Investigating the startling sight \, astronomers suspect the giant galaxy of colliding with smaller neighbor NGC 1317 seen just right of the large galaxy’s center\, producing far f lung star streams in loops and shells. Light from their close encounter wo uld have reached Earth some 100 million years ago. In the sharp telescopic image\, the central regions of NGC 1316 and NGC 1317 appear separated by over 100\,000 light-years. Complex dust lanes visible within also indicate that NGC 1316 is itself the result of a merger of galaxies in the distant past. Found on the outskirts of the Fornax galaxy cluster\, NGC 1316 is k nown as Fornax A. One of the visually brightest of the Fornax cluster gala xies it is one of the strongest and largest celestial radio sources with r adio emission extending well beyond this one degree wide field-of-view.\n\ nImage Credit & Copyright: Simone Curzi and the ShaRA Team\nhttps://scienc e.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-december-4-galaxies-in-the-furnace/ SUMMARY:Galaxies in the Furnace END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:visualization-near-a-black-hole-and-disk DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251203 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251204 DESCRIPTION:What would it look like to plunge into a monster black hole? Th is image from a supercomputer visualization shows the entire sky as seen f rom a simulated camera plunging toward a 4-million-solar-mass black hole\, similar to the one at the center of our galaxy . The camera lies about 16 million kilometers from the black hole’s event horizon and is moving in ward at 62% the speed of light . Thanks to gravity’s funhouse effects \, the starry band of the Milky Way appears both as a compact loop at the to p of this view and as a secondary image stretching across the bottom. Move the cursor over the image for additional explanations. Visualizations lik e this allow astronomers to explore black holes in ways not otherwise poss ible.\n\nIllustration Credit: NASA ‘s GSFC \, J. Schnittman & B. Powell \; Text: Francis Reddy ( U. Maryland \, NASA’s GSFC )\nhttps://science.n asa.gov/image-article/apod/apod-2025-december-3-visualization-near-a-black -hole-and-disk/ SUMMARY:Visualization: Near a Black Hole and Disk END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:m77-spiral-galaxy-with-an-active-center DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251202 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251203 DESCRIPTION:What’s happening in the center of nearby spiral galaxy M77? T he face-on galaxy lies a mere 47 million light-years away toward the const ellation of the Sea Monster ( Cetus ). At that estimated distance\, this g orgeous island universe is about 100 thousand light-years across. Also kno wn as NGC 1068 \, its compact and very bright core is well studied by astr onomers exploring the mysteries of supermassive black holes in active Seyf ert galaxies . M77’s active core glows bright at x-ray \, ultraviolet \, visible \, infrared \, and radio wavelengths. The featured sharp image of M77 was taken by the Hubble Space Telescope . The image shows details of the spiral’s winding spiral arms as traced by obscuring red dust clouds and blue star clusters \, all circling the galaxy’s bright white luminou s center . Free APOD Lecture in Phoenix: Wednesday\, December 10 at 7 pm\n \nImage Credit: Hubble \, NASA \, ESA \, L. C. Ho \, D. Thilker\nhttps://s cience.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-december-2-m77-spiral-galaxy-with- an-active-center/ SUMMARY:M77: Spiral Galaxy with an Active Center END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:3i-atlas-tails-of-an-interstellar-comet DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251201 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251202 DESCRIPTION:How typical is our Solar System? Studying 3I/ATLAS \, a comet j ust passing through\, is providing clues. Confirmed previous interstellar visitors include an asteroid \, a comet \, a meteor \, and a gas wind domi nated by hydrogen and helium. Comet 3I/ATLAS appears relatively normal whe n compared to Solar System comets \, therefore providing more evidence tha t our Solar System is a somewhat typical star system. For example\, Comet 3I/ATLAS has a broadly similar chemical composition and ejected dust . The featured image was captured last week from Texas and shows a green coma \ , a wandering blue-tinted ion tail likely deflected by our Sun’s wind \, and a slight anti-tail \, all typical cometary attributes. The comet\, vi sible with a telescope \, passed its closest to the Sun in late October an d will pass its closest to the Earth in mid-December\, after which it will return to interstellar space and never return. Explore the Universe: Rand om APOD Generator\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Victor Sabet & Julien De Wi nter\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-december-1-3i-atlas -tails-of-an-interstellar-comet/ SUMMARY:3I ATLAS: Tails of an Interstellar Comet END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:the-surface-of-titan-from-huygens DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251130 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251201 DESCRIPTION:If you could stand on Titan — what would you see? The feature d color view from Titan gazes across an unfamiliar and distant landscape o n Saturn’s largest moon. The scene was recorded by ESA‘s Huygens probe in 2005 after a 2.5-hour descent through a thick atmosphere of nitrogen l aced with methane. Bathed in an eerie orange light at ground level\, rocks strewn about the scene could well be composed of water and hydrocarbons f rozen solid at an inhospitable temperature of negative 179 degrees C. The large light-toned rock below and left of center is only about 15 centimete rs across and lies 85 centimeters away. The saucer-shaped spacecraft is be lieved to have penetrated about 15 centimeters into a place on Titan’s s urface that had the consistency of wet sand or clay. Huygen’s batteries enabled the probe to take and transmit data for more than 90 minutes after landing. Titan’s bizarre chemical environment may bear similarities to planet Earth’s before life evolved.\n\nImage Credit: ESA \, NASA \, JPL \, U. Arizona \, Huygens Lander\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/ap od-2025-november-30-the-surface-of-titan-from-huygens/ SUMMARY:The Surface of Titan from Huygens END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:moon-games DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251129 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251130 DESCRIPTION:This is not a screen from a video game . Nestled below the tree line\, the small mountain church does look like it might be hiding from Mo on though. In the well-composed telephoto snapshot\, taken on November 23\ , the church walls are partly reflecting light from terrestrial flood ligh ts. Of course\, the Moon is reflecting light from the Sun. At any given ti me the Sun illuminates fully half of the Moon’s surface\, also known as the lunar dayside\, but on that night only a sliver of its sunlit surface was visible. About three days after New Moon\, the Moon was in a waxing cr escent phase . The single exposure was captured shortly after sunset in sk ies near Danta di Cadore\, northern Italy\, planet Earth.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Giorgia Hofer\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-20 25-november-29-moon-games/ SUMMARY:Moon Games END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:ngc-6888-the-crescent-nebula DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251128 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251129 DESCRIPTION:NGC 6888\, also known as the Crescent Nebula\, is a about 25 li ght-years across\, a cosmic bubble blown by winds from its central\, massi ve star. This deep telescopic image includes narrowband image data\, to is olate light from hydrogen and oxygen atoms . The oxygen atoms produce the blue-green hue that seems to enshroud the nebula’s detailed folds and fi laments. Visible within the nebula\, NGC 6888’s central star is classifi ed as a Wolf-Rayet star (WR 136). The star is shedding its outer envelope in a strong stellar wind \, ejecting the equivalent of the Sun’s mass ev ery 10\,000 years. In fact\, the Crescent Nebula’s complex structures ar e likely the result of this strong wind interacting with material ejected in an earlier phase. Burning fuel at a prodigious rate and near the end of its stellar life\, this star should ultimately go out with a bang in a sp ectacular supernova explosion. Found in the nebula rich constellation Cygn us\, NGC 6888 is about 5\,000 light-years away.\n\nImage Credit & Copyrigh t: Greg Bass\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-november-28 -ngc-6888-the-crescent-nebula/ SUMMARY:NGC 6888: The Crescent Nebula END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:portrait-of-ngc-1055 DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251127 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251128 DESCRIPTION:Big\, beautiful spiral galaxy NGC 1055 is a dominant member of a small galaxy group a mere 60 million light-years away toward the aquatic ally intimidating constellation Cetus . Seen edge-on\, the island universe spans over 100\,000 light-years\, a little larger than our own Milky Way galaxy. The colorful\, spiky stars decorating this cosmic portrait of NGC 1055 are in the foreground\, well within the Milky Way. But telltale pinki sh star forming regions and young blue star clusters are scattered through winding dust lanes along the distant galaxy’s thin disk. With a smatter ing of even more distant background galaxies\, the deep image also reveals a boxy halo that extends far above and below the central bulge and disk o f NGC 1055. The halo itself is laced with faint\, narrow structures\, and could represent the mixed and spread out debris from a satellite galaxy di srupted by the larger spiral some 10 billion years ago .\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: John Hayes\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-n ovember-27-portrait-of-ngc-1055/ SUMMARY:Portrait of NGC 1055 END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:globular-cluster-m15-deep-field DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251126 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251127 DESCRIPTION:Stars\, like bees\, swarm around the center of bright globular cluster M15. The central ball of over 100\,000 stars is a relic from the e arly years of our Galaxy \, and continues to orbit the Milky Way’s cente r . M15 \, one of about 150 globular cluster s remaining\, is noted for be ing easily visible with only binoculars \, having at its center one of the densest concentrations of stars known\, and containing a high abundance o f variable stars and pulsars . The featured image of M15 was taken by comb ining very long exposures — 122 hours in all — and so brings up faint wisps of gas and dust in front of the giant ball of stars. M15 lies about 35\,000 light years away toward the constellation of the Winged Horse ( Pe gasus ). Almost Hyperspace: Random APOD Generator\n\nImage Credit & Copyri ght: Alvaro Ibanez Perez\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025 -november-26-globular-cluster-m15-deep-field/ SUMMARY:Globular Cluster M15 Deep Field END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:comet-lemmon-and-the-milky-way DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251125 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251126 DESCRIPTION:What did Comet Lemmon look like when it was at its best? One ex ample is pictured here\, featuring three celestial spectacles all at diffe rent distances. The closest spectacle is the snowcapped Meili Mountains \, part of the Himalayas in China . The middle marvel is Comet Lemmon near i ts picturesque best early this month\, showing not only a white dust tail trailing off to the right but its blue solar wind-distorted ion tail trail ing off to the left. Far in the distance on the left is the magnificent ce ntral plane of our Milky Way Galaxy \, featuring dark dust \, red nebula \ , and including billions of Sun -like stars. Comet C/2025 A6 (Lemmon) is a lready fading as it heads back into the outer Solar System\, while the Him alayan mountains will gradually erode over the next billion years. The Mil ky Way Galaxy \, though\, will live on — forming new mountains and comet s — for many billions of years into the future.\n\nImage Credit & Copyri ght: Lin Zixuan ( Tsinghua U. )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/ap od-2025-november-25-comet-lemmon-and-the-milky-way/ SUMMARY:Comet Lemmon and the Milky Way END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:apep-unusual-dust-shells-from-webb DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251124 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251125 DESCRIPTION:What created this unusual space sculpture? Stars . This unusual system of swirls and shells\, known as Apep \, was observed in unpreceden ted detail by NASA ’s James Webb Space Telescope in infrared light in 20 24. Observations indicate that the unusual shape originates from two massi ve Wolf-Rayet star s orbiting each other every 190 years with each close p asses causing a new shell of dust and gas to be expelled . Holes in these shells are thought to be caused by a third orbiting star . This stellar du st dance will likely continue for hundreds of thousands of years\, possibl y ending only when one of the massive stars runs out of internal nuclear f uel and explodes in a supernova punctuated by a burst of gamma-rays . Buil d your own star system: Astronomy Puzzle of the Day\n\nImage Credit: NASA \, ESA \, CSA \, STScI \, JWST \; Science: Y. Han ( Caltech )\, R. White ( Macquarie U. )\; Image Processing: A. Pagan ( STScI )\nhttps://science.na sa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-november-24-apep-unusual-dust-shells-from-w ebb/ SUMMARY:Apep: Unusual Dust Shells from Webb END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:the-observable-universe DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251123 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251124 DESCRIPTION:How far can you see? Everything you can see\, and everything yo u could possibly see\, right now\, assuming your eyes could detect all typ es of radiations around you — is the observable universe . In light\, th e farthest we can see comes from the cosmic microwave background \, a time 13.8 billion years ago when the universe was opaque like thick fog. Some neutrinos and gravitational waves that surround us come from even farther out\, but humanity does not yet have the technology to detect them. The fe atured image illustrates the observable universe on an increasingly compac t scale \, with the Earth and Sun at the center surrounded by our Solar Sy stem \, nearby stars \, nearby galaxies \, distant galaxies \, filaments o f early matter \, and the cosmic microwave background . Cosmologists typic ally assume that our observable universe is just the nearby part of a grea ter entity known as “the universe” where the same physics applies. How ever\, there are several lines of popular but speculative reasoning that a ssert that even our universe is part of a greater multiverse where either different physical constants occur\, different physical laws apply\, highe r dimensions operate\, or slightly different-by-chance versions of our sta ndard universe exist. Explore the Observable Universe: Random APOD Generat or\n\nIllustration Credit & Licence: Wikipedia \, Pablo Carlos Budassi\nht tps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-november-23-the-observable- universe/ SUMMARY:The Observable Universe END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:dione-and-rhea-ring-transit DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251122 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251123 DESCRIPTION:Seen to the left of Saturn’s banded planetary disk\, small ic y moons Dione and Rhea are caught passing in front of the gas giant’s ex tensive ring system in this sharp telescopic snapshot. The remarkable imag e was recorded on November 20 \, when Saturn’s rings were nearly edge-on when viewed from planet Earth. In fact\, every 13 to 16 years the view fr om planet Earth aligns with Saturn’s ring plane to produce a series of r ing plane crossings . During a ring plane crossing\, the interplanetary ed ge-on perspective makes the thin but otherwise bright rings seem to disapp ear. Saturn itself was close to the Sun on the sky and difficult to see th is year\, during the last ring plane crossing on March 23. But by November 23rd Saturn’s rings will have reached a minimum angle for now\, at thei r narrowest for viewing from planet Earth\, and then start to widen again. Of course\, Dione and Rhea orbit Saturn near the ring plane once every 2. 7 and 4.5 days respectively\, while the next series of Saturn ring plane c rossings as seen from Earth will begin again in 2038.\n\nImage Credit & Co pyright: Christopher Go\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025- november-22-dione-and-rhea-ring-transit/ SUMMARY:Dione and Rhea Ring Transit END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:3i-atlas-a-view-from-planet-earth DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251121 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251122 DESCRIPTION:Now outbound after its perihelion or closest approach to the Su n on October 29\, Comet 3I/ATLAS is only the third known interstellar obje ct to pass through our fair Solar System. Its greenish coma and faint tail s are seen against a background of stars in the constellation Virgo in thi s view from planet Earth \, recorded with a small telescope on November 14 . But this interstellar interloper is the subject of an on-going\, unprece dented Solar System-wide observing campaign involving spacecraft and space telescopes from Earth orbit to the surface of Mars and beyond . And while the comet from another star-system has recently grown brighter \, you’l l still need a telescope if you want to see 3I/ATLAS from planet Earth. It ’s now above the horizon in November morning skies and will make its clo sest approach to Earth\, a comfortable 270 million kilometers distant\, ar ound December 19.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Rolando Ligustri\nhttps://s cience.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-november-21-3i-atlas-a-view-from-p lanet-earth/ SUMMARY:3I/ATLAS: A View from Planet Earth END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:alnitak-alnilam-mintaka DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251120 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251121 DESCRIPTION:Alnitak \, Alnilam \, and Mintaka are the bright bluish stars f rom east to west (upper right to lower left) along the diagonal in this co smic vista . Otherwise known as the Belt of Orion \, these three blue supe rgiant stars are hotter and much more massive than the Sun. They lie from 700 to 2\,000 light-years away \, born of Orion’s well-studied interstel lar clouds. In fact\, clouds of gas and dust adrift in this region have so me surprisingly familiar shapes\, including the dark Horsehead Nebula and Flame Nebula near Alnitak at the upper right. The famous Orion Nebula itse lf is off the right edge of this colorful starfield. The telescopic frame spans almost 4 degrees on the sky .\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Aygen Erk aslan\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-november-20-alnita k-alnilam-mintaka/ SUMMARY:Alnitak\, Alnilam\, Mintaka END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:chamaeleon-dark-nebulas DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251119 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251120 DESCRIPTION:Sometimes the dark dust of interstellar space has an angular el egance. Such is the case toward the far-south constellation of Chamaeleon . Normally too faint to see \, dark dust is best known for blocking visibl e light from stars and galaxies behind it. In this 11.4-hour exposure \, h owever\, the dust is seen mostly in light of its own\, with its strong red and near- infrared colors creating a brown hue. Contrastingly blue\, a br ight star Beta Chamaeleontis is visible on the upper right of the V\, with the dust that surrounds it preferentially reflecting blue light from its primarily blue-white color. All of the pictured stars and dust occur in ou r own Milky Way Galaxy with one notable exception : a white spot just belo w Beta Chamaeleontis is the galaxy IC 3104 \, which lies far in the distan ce. Interstellar dust is mostly created in the cool atmospheres of giant s tars and dispersed into space by stellar light\, stellar winds \, and stel lar explosions such as supernovas .\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Xinran Li & Houbo Zhao\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-november-1 9-chamaeleon-dark-nebulas/ SUMMARY:Chamaeleon Dark Nebulas END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:the-galactic-plane-radio-versus-visible DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251118 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251119 DESCRIPTION:What does the Milky Way look like in radio waves? To better fin d out\, GLEAM surveyed the central band of our galaxy in high resolution r adio light as imaged by the Murchison Widefield Array in Australia . As th e featured video slowly scrolls\, radio light (71 – 231 MHz) is seen on the left and visible light — from the same field — on the right. Diffe rences are so great because most objects glow differently in radio and vis ible light\, and because visible light is stopped by nearby interstellar d ust. These differences are particularly apparent in the direction toward t he center of our galaxy \, seen about a third of the way through. Among th e many features that appear in the radio\, bright red patches are usually supernova remnant s of exploded stars\, while areas colored blue are stell ar nurseries filled with bright young stars. Did you know: APOD is availab le from numerous sites\, including social media ?\n\nImage Credit: Radio: S. Mantovanini & the GLEAM team\; Visible: Axel Mellinger ( milkywaysky.co m )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod/apod-2025-november-18-the -galactic-plane-radio-versus-visible/ SUMMARY:The Galactic Plane: Radio Versus Visible END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:comet-lemmons-wandering-tail DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251117 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251118 DESCRIPTION:What has happened to Comet Lemmon’s tail? The answer is blowi ng in the wind — the wind from the Sun in this case. This continuous out flow of charged particles from the Sun has been quite variable of late\, a s the Sun emits bursts of energy\, CME s\, that push out and deflect charg ed particles emitted by the comet itself. The result is a blue hued ion ta il for Comet C/2025 A6 (Lemmon) that is not only impressively intricate bu t takes some unusual turns. This long-duration composite image taken from Alfacar \, Spain last month captured this inner Solar System ionic tumult. Comet Lemmon is now fading as it heads out away from the Earth and Sun an d back into the outer Solar System .\n\nImage Credit: Ignacio Fernández\n https://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-november-17-comet-lemmons -wandering-tail/ SUMMARY:Comet Lemmons Wandering Tail END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:crossing-saturns-ring-plane DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251116 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251117 DESCRIPTION:If this is Saturn\, where are the rings? When Saturn’s “app endages” disappeared in 1612\, Galileo did not understand why. Later tha t century\, it became understood that Saturn ‘s unusual protrusion s wer e rings and that when the Earth crosses the ring plane \, the edge-on ring s will appear to disappear . This is because Saturn’s rings are confined to a plane many times thinner \, in proportion\, than a razor blade . In modern times\, the robotic Cassini spacecraft that orbited Saturn frequent ly crossed Saturn’s ring plane during its mission to Saturn\, from 2004 to 2017. A series of plane crossing images from 2005 February was dug out of the vast online Cassini raw image archive by interested Spanish amateur Fernando Garcia Navarro. Pictured here \, digitally cropped and set in re presentative colors\, is the striking result. Saturn’s thin ring plane a ppears in blue\, bands and clouds in Saturn’s upper atmosphere appear in gold. Details of Saturn’s rings can be seen in high dark shadows . The moons Dione and Enceladus appear as bumps in the rings .\n\nImage Credit: NASA \, ESA \, JPL \, ISS \, Cassini Imaging Team \; Processing: Fernando Garcia Navarro\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-november- 16-crossing-saturns-ring-plane/ SUMMARY:Crossing Saturns Ring Plane END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:andromeda-and-friends DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251115 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251116 DESCRIPTION:This magnificent extragalactic skyscape looks toward the Androm eda Galaxy\, the closest large spiral galaxy to the Milky Way. It also acc omplishes a Messier catalog trifecta by including Andromeda\, cataloged as Messier 31 (M31) \, along with Messier 32 (M32) \, and Messier 110 (M110) in the same telescopic field of view . In this frame\, M32 is just left o f the Andromeda Galaxy’s bright core with M110 below and to the right. M 32 and M110 are both elliptical galaxies themselves and satellites of the larger spiral Andromeda. By combining 60 hours of broadband and narrowband image data\, the deep telescopic view also reveals tantalizing details of dust lanes\, young star clusters\, and star-forming regions along Androme da’s spiral arms\, and faint\, foreground clouds of glowing hydrogen gas . For now \, Andromeda and friends are some 2.5 million light-years from o ur own large spiral Milky Way. Fun Fact: It has been 11\,111 days since AP OD was founded.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Piotr Czerski\nhttps://scienc e.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-november-15-andromeda-and-friends/ SUMMARY:Andromeda and Friends END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:florida-northern-lights DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251114 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251115 DESCRIPTION:Northern lights have come to Florida skies . In fact\, the bril liant streak of a Northern Taurid meteor flashes through the starry night sky above the beach in this sea and skyscape\, captured from Shired Island \, Florida on November 11. Meteors from the annual Northern Taurid meteor shower are expected this time of year. But the digital camera exposure als o records the shimmering glow of aurora\, a phenomenon more often seen fro m our fair planet’s higher geographical latitudes. Also known as aurora borealis\, these northern lights are part of recent\, wide spread auroral activity caused by strong geomagnetic storms. In the last few days\, storm y spaceweather has been triggered by multiple Earth impacting coronal mass ejections and intense solar activity .\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Samil Cabrera\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-november-14-flo rida-northern-lights/ SUMMARY:Florida Northern Lights END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:orion-and-the-running-man DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251113 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251114 DESCRIPTION:Few cosmic vistas can excite the imagination like The Great Neb ula in Orion . Visible as a faint\, bland celestial smudge to the naked-ey e\, the nearest large star-forming region sprawls across this sharp colorf ul telescopic image . Designated M42 in the Messier Catalog\, the Orion Ne bula’s glowing gas and dust surrounds hot\, young stars . About 40 light -years across\, M42 is at the edge of an immense interstellar molecular cl oud only 1\,500 light-years away that lies within the same spiral arm of o ur Milky Way galaxy as the Sun. Including dusty bluish reflection nebula N GC 1977 \, also known as the Running Man nebula at left in the frame\, the natal nebulae represent only a small fraction of our galactic neighborhoo d’s wealth of star-forming material. Within the well-studied stellar nur sery\, astronomers have also identified what appear to be numerous infant solar systems .\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: R. Jay Gabany\nhttps://scienc e.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-november-13-orion-and-the-running-man/ SUMMARY:Orion and the Running Man END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:a-super-lunar-corona DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251112 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251113 DESCRIPTION:What are those colorful rings around the Moon? A corona . Rings like this will sometimes appear when the Moon is seen through thin clouds . The effect is created by the diffraction of light around individual\, si milarly-sized water droplets in an intervening but mostly transparent clou d. Since light of different colors has different wavelengths \, each color diffracts differently. Lunar coronae are one of the few color diffraction effects that can be easily seen with the unaided eye. The featured image of a lunar corona was captured around last week’s full Super Moon from n ear Knight’s Ferry \, California \, USA . To the right of the full Moon is the giant orange star Botein . Similar coronae that form around the Sun are typically harder to see because of the Sun’s great brightness.\n\nI mage Credit & Copyright: Eric Houck\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-articl e/apod-2025-november-12-a-super-lunar-corona/ SUMMARY:A Super Lunar Corona END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:jupiter-in-ultraviolet-from-hubble DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251111 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251112 DESCRIPTION:Jupiter looks a bit different in ultraviolet light. To better i nterpret Jupiter ‘s cloud motions and to help NASA’s robotic Juno spac ecraft understand the planetary context of the small fields that it sees\, the Hubble Space Telescope was being directed to regularly image the enti re Jovian giant. The colors of Jupiter being monitored go beyond the norma l human visual range to include both ultraviolet and (not pictured) infrar ed light. Featured from 2017\, Jupiter appears different in near ultraviol et light\, partly because the amount of sunlight reflected back is distinc t\, giving differing cloud heights and latitudes discrepant brightnesses . In the near UV\, Jupiter ‘s poles appear relatively dark\, as does its Great Red Spot and a smaller (optically) white oval to the right. The Stri ng of Pearl storms farther to the right\, however\, are brightest in near ultraviolet\, and so here appear (false-color) pink. Jupiter’s largest m oon Ganymede appears on the upper left. Juno continues on a looping 33-day orbit around Jupiter\, while Earth-orbiting Hubble is aging and now relie s on a single stabilizing gyroscope .\n\nImage Credit: NASA \, ESA \, Hubb le \; Processing & License: Judy Schmidt\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-a rticle/apod-2025-november-11-jupiter-in-ultraviolet-from-hubble/ SUMMARY:Jupiter in Ultraviolet from Hubble END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:micro-moon-vs-super-moon DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251110 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251111 DESCRIPTION:What was so super about Wednesday’s supermoon? Last week\, a full moon occurred that appeared slightly larger and brighter than usual. The reason is that the Moon ‘s fully illuminated phase occurred within a short time from perigee – when the Moon was its closest to the Earth in its elliptical orbit . Although the precise conditions that define a supe rmoon vary\, last Wednesday’s supermoon was surely the closest\, largest \, and brightest full moon this year. One reason supermoon s are popular i s because they are so easy to see — just go outside at sunset and watch an impressive full moon rise! Pictured here \, Wednesday’s supermoon is compared to April’s micro moon — when a full Moon occurs near the furt hest part of the Moon’s orbit — so that it appears slightly smaller an d dimmer than usual. Given many definitions\, at least one supermoon occur s each year\, with another one coming next month (moon-th).\n\nImage Credi t & Copyright: Şenol Şanlı”\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/a pod-2025-november-10-micro-moon-vs-super-moon/ SUMMARY:Micro Moon vs Super Moon END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:road-to-the-galactic-center DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251109 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251110 DESCRIPTION:Does the road to our galaxy’s center go through Monument Vall ey ? It doesn’t have to\, but if your road does — take a picture. In t his case\, the road is US Route 163 and iconic buttes on the Navajo Nation al Reservation populate the horizon. The band of Milky Way Galaxy stretch es down from the sky and appears to be a continuation of the road on Earth . Filaments of dust darken the Milky Way \, in contrast to billions of br ight stars and several colorful glowing gas clouds including the Lagoon an d Trifid nebulas. The featured picture is a composite of images taken with the same camera and from the same location — Forrest Gump Point in Utah \, USA . The foreground was taken just after sunset in early 2021 Septemb er during the blue hour \, while the background is a mosaic of four exposu res captured a few hours later.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Michael Abram yan\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-november-9-road-to-t he-galactic-center/ SUMMARY:Road to the Galactic Center END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:a-full-moon-at-perigee DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251108 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251109 DESCRIPTION:What is big\, bright\, and beautiful \, can wear a cape made of clouds\, and is at the closest point in its elliptical orbit around plane t Earth? A full moon at perigee of course\, captured here near moonset in predawn skies on November 5 from Kayseri\, Turkiye. Full moons that happen at (or very near) perigee\, and so are slightly larger and brighter than full moons on average\, have become popularly known as supermoons . In fac t\, this full moon at perigee is the closest and brightest of the three su permoons of 2025. Rising as the Sun sets\, this full moon follows this Oct ober’s Harvest Moon and is traditionally known to some as the Hunter’s Moon .\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Betul Turksoy\nhttps://science.nasa.g ov/image-article/apod-2025-november-8-a-full-moon-at-perigee/ SUMMARY:A Full Moon at Perigee END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:a-dark-seahorse-in-cepheus DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251107 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251108 DESCRIPTION:Spanning light-years\, this suggestive shape known as the Seaho rse Nebula floats in silhouette against a rich background of stars and glo wing hydrogen gas. Seen toward the royal northern constellation of Cepheus \, the dusty\, dark nebula is part of a Milky Way molecular cloud some 1\, 200 light-years distant. It is also listed as Barnard 150 (B150)\, one of 182 dark markings of the sky cataloged in the early 20th century by astron omer E. E. Barnard . Packs of low mass stars are forming within \, but the ir collapsing cores are only visible at long infrared wavelengths . Still\ , the luminous depths of the Milky Way in Cepheus add to this stunning gal actic skyscape .\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Jordi Jofre\nhttps://science .nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-november-7-a-dark-seahorse-in-cepheus/ SUMMARY:A Dark Seahorse in Cepheus END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:ngc-253-dusty-island-universe DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251106 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251107 DESCRIPTION:Shiny NGC 253 is one of the brightest spiral galaxies visible\, and also one of the dustiest. Some call it the Silver Coin Galaxy for its appearance in small telescopes\, or just the Sculptor Galaxy for its loca tion within the boundaries of the southern constellation Sculptor. Discove red in 1783 by mathematician and astronomer Caroline Herschel \, the dusty island universe lies a mere 10 million light-years away. About 70 thousan d light-years across\, NGC 253 is the largest member of the Sculptor Group of Galaxies \, the nearest to our own Local Group of Galaxies . In additi on to its spiral dust lanes\, tendrils of dust seem to be rising from its galactic disk laced with young star clusters and star forming regions in t his colorful galaxy portrait . The high dust content accompanies frantic s tar formation\, earning NGC 253 the designation of a starburst galaxy . NG C 253 is also known to be a strong source of high-energy x-rays and gamma rays \, likely due to black holes near the galaxy’s center.\n\nImage Cre dit & Copyright: Adam Block\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2 025-november-6-ngc-253-dusty-island-universe/ SUMMARY:NGC 253: Dusty Island Universe END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:spiral-galaxy-ngc-3370-from-hubble DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251105 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251106 DESCRIPTION:Is this what our own Milky Way Galaxy looks like from far away? Similar in size and grand design to our home Galaxy (although without the central bar)\, spiral galaxy NGC 3370 lies about 100 million light-years away toward the constellation of the Lion ( Leo ). Recorded here in exquis ite detail by the Hubble Space Telescope \, the big\, beautiful face-on sp iral is not only photogenic \, but has proven sharp enough to study indivi dual stars known as Cepheids . These pulsating stars have been used to acc urately determine NGC 3370’s distance. NGC 3370 was chosen for this stud y because in 1994 the spiral galaxy was also home to a well studied stella r explosion — a Type Ia supernova . Combining the known distance to this standard candle supernova\, based on the Cepheid measurements\, with obse rvations of supernovas at even greater distances has helped to reveal the size and expansion rate of the entire Universe itself.\n\nImage Credit: ES A/Hubble & NASA \, A. Riess \, K. Noll\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-art icle/apod-2025-november-5-spiral-galaxy-ngc-3370-from-hubble/ SUMMARY:Spiral Galaxy NGC 3370 from Hubble END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:comet-lemmon-beyond-lomnicky-peak DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251104 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251105 DESCRIPTION:Comet Lemmon has been putting on a show for cameras around the globe. Passing nearest to Earth in late October\, the photogenic comet C/2 025 A6 (Lemmon) sprouted two long and picturesque tails: a blue ion tail a nd a white dust tail. The ion tail is pushed away from the coma by the eve r-present but ever-changing solar wind \, at one point extending over 20 t imes the diameter of the full Moon — as captured in this long-duration e xposure. The shorter and wider dust tail is pushed away from the coma and shines by reflecting sunlight. The featured picture \, captured two weeks ago\, framed the comet behind Lomnický Peak of the High Tatra Mountains \ , home to the Slovakia n Lomnický Stit Observatory . Comet Lemmon is now fading as it heads away from planet Earth. The huge shedding snow ball wil l round the Sun later this week.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Robert Barsa \nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-november-4-comet-lemmon -beyond-lomnicky-peak/ SUMMARY:Comet Lemmon Beyond Lomnický Peak END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:a-double-helix-lunar-eclipse DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251103 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251104 DESCRIPTION:The image was timed to capture a total lunar eclipse — but it came with quite a twist. First\, the eclipse : the fully Earth-shadowed M oon is visible as the orange orb near the top. The eclipsed Moon ‘s oran ge color is caused by a slight amount of red light scattered first by Eart h’s atmosphere \, adding a color like a setting Sun . Now\, the twist: o ne of the apparent double helix bands is the Milky Way \, the central disk of our home galaxy. The second band is zodiacal light \, sunlight scatter ed by dust in our Solar System . The reason they cross is because the plan e where dust orbits our Sun is tilted relative to the plane where stars or bit our Galaxy. This well-known tilt is shown dramatically in the featured wide-angle Mercator-projected picture\, spanning from horizon to horizon \, captured in early September from Mingantu Observing Station in Inner Mo ngolia \, China .\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Chunlin Liu\nhttps://scienc e.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-november-3-a-double-helix-lunar-eclipse / SUMMARY:A Double Helix Lunar Eclipse END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:a-horseshoe-einstein-ring-from-hubble DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251102 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251103 DESCRIPTION:What’s large and blue and can wrap itself around an entire ga laxy? A gravitational lens mirage. Pictured here \, the gravity of a massi ve elliptical galaxy (luminous red galaxy: LRG ) has gravitationally disto rted the light from a much more distant blue galaxy. More typically\, such light bending results in two discernible images of the distant galaxy\, b ut here the lens alignment is so precise that the background galaxy is dis torted into a horseshoe — a nearly complete ring: an Einstein ring . Alt hough LRG 3-757 was discovered in 2007 in data from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS)\, the image shown above is a follow-up observation taken wit h the Hubble Space Telescope ‘s Wide Field Camera 3 . A recent lens anal ysis of the central galaxy indicates that it likely hosts the single most massive black hole yet discovered: 36 billion times the mass of our Sun .\ n\nImage Credit: ESA / Hubble & NASA\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-artic le/apod-2025-november-2-a-horseshoe-einstein-ring-from-hubble/ SUMMARY:A Horseshoe Einstein Ring from Hubble END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:pleiades-from-planet-earth DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251101 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251102 DESCRIPTION:The lovely Pleiades star cluster shines in Earth’s night sky\ , a compact group of stars some 400 light-years distant toward the constel lation Taurus and the Orion Arm of our Milky Way galaxy . Recognized since ancient times\, the remarkable celestial gathering is visible to the unai ded eye. The Pleiades cluster is also well-placed for viewing from both no rthern and southern hemispheres\, and over the centuries has become connec ted to many cultural traditions and celebrations\, including the cross-qua rter day celebration Halloween . In Greek myth \, the Pleiades were seven daughters of the astronomical titan Atlas and sea-nymph Pleione. Galileo f irst sketched the star cluster viewed through his telescope with stars too faint to be seen by eye and Charles Messier recorded the position of the cluster as the 45th entry in his well-known catalog of things which are no t comets. In this dramatic night skyscape from planet Earth\, the stars of the Pleiades appear embedded in dusty blue reflection nebulae\, poised ab ove Mt Sefton\, one of the tallest peaks in New Zealand. There known as Ma tariki \, the star cluster is associated with the celebration of the Maori new year.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Max Inwood\nhttps://science.nasa.g ov/image-article/apod-2025-november-1-pleiades-from-planet-earth/ SUMMARY:Pleiades from Planet Earth END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:ghosts-in-cassiopeia DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251031 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251101 DESCRIPTION:Halloween is an astronomy holiday and spooky shapes always seem to lurk in planet Earth’s night skies. In fact\, near the center of thi s telescopic view toward the constellation Cassiopeia these swept-back int erstellar clouds IC 59 (left) and IC 63 look ghostly on a cosmic scale. Ab out 600 light-years distant\, the clouds aren’t actually ghosts. They ar e slowly disappearing though\, under the influence of energetic radiation from hot\, luminous star gamma Cas. The brightest bluish star in the frame \, Gamma Cas is physically located only 3 to 4 light-years from the nebula e. Slightly closer to gamma Cas\, IC 63 is dominated by red H-alpha light emitted as hydrogen atoms ionized by the hot star’s ultraviolet radiatio n recombine with electrons. Farther from the star IC 59 also shows H-alpha emission\, and both nebulae shine with the characteristic blue tint of du st reflected star light . The field of view spans about 2 degrees or 20 li ght-years at the estimated distance of the interstellar apparitions .\n\nI mage Credit & Copyright: Alex Rodriguez\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-ar ticle/apod-2025-october-31-ghosts-in-cassiopeia/ SUMMARY:Ghosts in Cassiopeia END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:lynds-dark-nebula-43 DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251030 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251031 DESCRIPTION:Sure\, Halloween is an astronomy holiday . But astronomers alwa ys enjoy scanning the heavens for spook-tacular galaxies \, stars\, and ne bulae. This favorite is item number 43 from the Beverly Lynds 1962 Catalog of Dark Nebulae \, fondly known as the Cosmic Bat nebula . While its visa ge looks alarmingly like a scary flying mammal\, Lynds Dark Nebula 43 is o ver 12 light-years across. Glowing with eerie light\, stars are forming wi thin the dusty interstellar molecular cloud that is dense enough to appear in silhouette against a luminous background of Milky Way stars. Watch out . This Cosmic Bat nebula is a mere 400 light-years distant toward the ser pent-bearing constellation Ophiucus.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Team Cie l Austral\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-october-30-lyn ds-dark-nebula-43/ SUMMARY:Lynds Dark Nebula 43 END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:dust-shapes-of-the-ghost-nebula DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251029 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251030 DESCRIPTION:Do any shapes seem to jump out at you from this interstellar fi eld of stars and dust? The jeweled expanse\, filled with faint\, starlight -reflecting clouds\, drifts through the night in the royal constellation o f Cepheus . Far from your own neighborhood on planet Earth \, these ghostl y apparition s lurk along the plane of the Milky Way at the edge of the Ce pheus Flare molecular cloud complex some 1\,200 light-years away. Over two light-year s across and brighter than the other spooky chimera s\, VdB 14 1 or Sh2-136 is also known as the Ghost Nebula \, seen across the middle o f the featured image . Within the reflection nebula are the telltale signs of dense cores collapsing in the early stages of star formation.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Kent Wood\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apo d-2025-october-29-dust-shapes-of-the-ghost-nebula/ SUMMARY:Dust Shapes of the Ghost Nebula END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:ngc-6995-the-bat-nebula DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251028 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251029 DESCRIPTION:Can you see the bat? It haunts this cosmic close-up of the east ern Veil Nebula . The Veil Nebula itself is a large supernova remnant\, th e expanding debris cloud from the death explosion of a massive star . Whil e the Veil is roughly circular in shape and covers nearly 3 degrees on the sky toward the constellation of the Swan ( Cygnus )\, NGC 6995\, known in formally as the Bat Nebula\, spans only 1/2 degree\, about the apparent si ze of the Moon . That translates to 12 light-years at the Veil’s estimat ed distance\, a reassuring 1\,400 light-years from planet Earth . In the c omposite of image data recorded through several narrow band filters\, emis sion from hydrogen atoms is shown in red and strong emission from oxygen a toms is shown in hues of blue. Of course\, in the western part of the Veil lies another seasonal apparition: the Witch’s Broom Nebula.\n\nImage Cr edit & Copyright: Francis Bozon-Gangloff\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-a rticle/apod-2025-october-28-ngc-6995-the-bat-nebula/ SUMMARY:NGC 6995: The Bat Nebula END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:two-tails-of-comet-lemmon DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251027 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251028 DESCRIPTION:How many bright tails does Comet Lemmon have? Two. In the featu red image it appears to have three\, but why? The reason is that the zigza gging brown filament is a persistent meteor train that by luck appeared in front of the distant comet C/2025 A6 (Lemmon) . A meteor train is the hot gas and fine dust that remains in the Earth’s atmosphere and disperses in the seconds after a bright meteor flashes by. The two bright tails are the blue ion tail stretching across the image\, and the white dust tail ne arer the green coma on the upper left. All real comet tails originate from the nucleus of the comet inside the coma. The image was captured a few da ys ago from Manciano \, Italy . This week\, from mid-northern locations\, Comet Lemmon will remain faintly visible in the northwest sky after sunset .\n\nImage Credit: Massimo Penna\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/a pod-2025-october-27-two-tails-of-comet-lemmon/ SUMMARY:Two Tails of Comet Lemmon END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:halloween-and-the-ghost-head-nebula DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251026 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251027 DESCRIPTION:Halloween’s origin is ancient and astronomical. Since the fif th century BC\, Halloween has been celebrated as a cross-quarter day \, a day halfway between an equinox (equal day / equal night) and a solstice (m inimum day / maximum night in the northern hemisphere). With a modern cale ndar however\, even though Halloween is later this week\, the real cross- quarter day will occur the next week. Another cross-quarter day is Groundh og Day . Halloween’s modern celebration retains historic roots in dressi ng to scare away the spirits of the dead. Perhaps a fitting tribute to thi s ancient holiday is this view of the Ghost Head Nebula taken with the Hub ble Space Telescope . Similar to the icon of a fictional ghost \, NGC 2080 is actually a star forming region in the Large Magellanic Cloud \, a sate llite galaxy of our own Milky Way Galaxy . The Ghost Head Nebula ( NGC 208 0 ) spans about 50 light-years and is shown in representative colors.\n\nI mage Credit: NASA \, ESA \, Mohammad Heydari-Malayeri ( Observatoire de Pa ris ) et al.\,\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-october-2 6-halloween-and-the-ghost-head-nebula/ SUMMARY:Halloween and the Ghost Head Nebula END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:webb-s-rho-ophiuchi DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251025 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251026 DESCRIPTION:A mere 390 light-years away \, Sun-like stars and future planet ary systems are forming in the Rho Ophiuchi molecular cloud complex\, the closest star-forming region to our fair planet. The James Webb Space Teles cope’s NIRCam peered into the nearby natal chaos to capture this infrare d image at an inspiring scale . The frame spans less than a light-year acr oss the Rho Ophiuchi region and contains about 50 young stars. Brighter st ars clearly show Webb’s characteristic pattern of diffraction spikes . H uge jets of shocked molecular hydrogen blasting from newborn stars are red in the image\, with the large\, yellowish dusty cavity carved out by the energetic young star near its center. Near some stars in the stunning imag e are shadows cast by their protoplanetary disks . The spectacular cosmic snapshot was released in 2023 to celebrate the successful first year of We bb’s exploration of the Universe.\n\nImage Credit: NASA \, ESA \, CSA \, STScI \, Klaus Pontoppidan (STScI)\,\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-arti cle/apod-2025-october-25-webbs-rho-ophiuchi/ SUMMARY:Webb’s Rho Ophiuchi END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:saturn-at-night-c50072 DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251024 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251025 DESCRIPTION:Saturn is bright in Earth’s night skies. Telescopic views of the outer gas giant planet and its beautiful rings often make it a star at star parties . But this stunning view of Saturn’s rings and night side just isn’t possible from telescopes in the vicinity of planet Earth. Pee ring out from the inner Solar System they can only bring Saturn’s day si de into view. In fact\, this image of Saturn’s slender sunlit crescent w ith night’s shadow cast across its broad and complex ring system was cap tured by the Cassini spacecraft. A robot spacecraft from planet Earth\, Ca ssini called Saturn orbit home for 13 years before it was directed to dive into the atmosphere of the gas giant on September 15\, 2017. This magnifi cent mosaic is composed of frames recorded by Cassini’s wide-angle camer a only two days before its grand final plunge . Saturn’s night will not be seen again until another spaceship from Earth calls.\n\nImage Credit: N ASA \, JPL-Caltech \, Space Science Institute \, Mindaugas Macijauskas\nht tps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-october-24-saturn-at-night/ SUMMARY:Saturn at Night END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:swan-swan-eagle DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251023 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251024 DESCRIPTION:Comet C/2025 R2 (SWAN) sports a greenish coma and fainter tail\ , seen against congeries of stars and dusty interstellar clouds in this 7 degree wide telescopic field of view from October 17. On that date\, the n ew visitor to the inner Solar System obligingly posed with two other celes tial birds seen toward the center of our Milky Way. Messier 16\, near the bottom of the frame\, and Messier 17 are also known to deep skywatchers as the Eagle and the Swan nebulae. While the comet coma’s greenish glow re corded in the image is due to diatomic carbon gas fluorescing in sunlight\ , reddish hues seen in the nebulae\, star forming regions some 5\,000 ligh t-years distant\, are characteristic of ionized hydrogen gas. Comet SWAN i s outbound now but still a good comet for binoculars and small telescopes that can look close to the southern horizon in the northern hemisphere’s early evening skies. C/2025 R2 (SWAN) was closest to our fair planet on O ctober 20\, a mere 2.2 light-minutes away.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Ad am Block\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-october-23-swan -swan-eagle/ SUMMARY:SWAN\, Swan\, Eagle END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:comet-lemmon-over-the-high-tatras DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251022 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251023 DESCRIPTION:Comet Lemmon putting on a show for cameras around the globe. Pa ssing nearest to the Earth this week\, the photogenic comet C/2025 A6 (Lem mon) is now extending two long tails : a blue ion tail and a white dust ta il. The ion tail is pushed away from the Sun by the ever-present by ever-c hanging solar wind\, and shows structure also created by how much gas is e jected at any one moment. It glows because it is ionized by high energy su nlight . The dust tail is pushed away from the comet by sunlight and shine s by reflecting sunlight. The featured image is an enhanced composite of 5 0 exposures all taken two days ago from Mlynica \, Slovakia . The mountain s in the foreground are the High Tatras that partly separate Slovakia from Poland . Although Comet Lemmon is best visible in long camera exposures\, the shedding ice ball has become faintly visible in northern skies even t o unaided eyes through dark skies toward the west after sunset.\n\nImage C redit & Copyright: Tomáš Slovinský & Constantine Themelis\nhttps://scie nce.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-october-22-comet-lemmon-over-the-high -tatras/ SUMMARY:Comet Lemmon over the High Tatras END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:ic-1805-the-heart-nebula DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251021 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251022 DESCRIPTION:What electrifies the Heart Nebula? First\, the large emission n ebula on the left\, catalogued as IC 1805 \, looks somewhat like a human h eart . The nebula glows brightly in red light emitted by its most prominen t element\, hydrogen \, but this long-exposure image was also blended with light emitted by sulfur (yellow) and oxygen (blue). In the center of the Heart Nebula are young stars from the open star cluster Melotte 15 that ar e eroding away several picturesque dust pillars with their atom-exciting e nergetic light and winds. The Heart Nebula is located about 7\,500 light y ears away toward the constellation of Cassiopeia . At the top right of the Heart Nebula is the companion Fishhead Nebula . This wide and deep image clearly shows that glowing gas surrounds the Heart Nebula in all direction s.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Toni Fabiani\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/ima ge-article/apod-2025-october-21-ic-1805-the-heart-nebula/ SUMMARY:IC 1805: The Heart Nebula END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:finding-comet-lemmon DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251020 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251021 DESCRIPTION:Tonight\, if you can see the stars of the Big Dipper \, then yo u can find comet Lemmon in your evening sky. After sunset\, look for the f aint but extended comet above your northwestern horizon — but below the handle of the famous celestial kitchen utensil of the north. It might be e asier to see this visitor to the inner Solar System through your camera ph one\, which is better at picking up faint objects. Either way\, look for a fuzzy green ‘star’ with a tail\, though probably not so long a tail a s in this impressive snapshot taken over Seč Lake in the Czech Republic t wo nights ago. Recent photographs of C/2025 A6 (Lemmon) often show a detai led and changing ion tail which extends farther than the eye can follow. T his Sun-orbiting comet is now near its closest approach to Earth and will pass its closest to the Sun in early November.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright : Petr Horalek / Institute of Physics in Opava\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/i mage-article/apod-2025-october-20-finding-comet-lemmon/ SUMMARY:Finding Comet Lemmon END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:comet-churyumov-gerasimenko-creates-its-tails DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251019 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251020 DESCRIPTION:Where do comet tails come from? There are usually no obvious pl aces on the nuclei of comets from which the jets that create comet tails e manate. One of the best images of emerging jets is shown in the featured p icture \, taken in 2015 by ESA’s robotic Rosetta spacecraft that orbited Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko (Comet CG) from 2014 to 2016. The picture shows plumes of gas and dust escaping numerous places from Comet CG ‘s nucleus as it neared the Sun and heated up. The comet has two prominent lo bes\, the larger one spanning about 4 kilometers\, and a smaller 2.5-kilom eter lobe connected by a narrow neck. Analyses indicate that evaporation m ust be taking place well inside the comet’s surface to create the jets o f gas\, dust\, and ice that we see emitted through the surface. Comet CG ( also known as Comet 67P) loses in jets about a meter of surface depth duri ng each of its 6.44-year orbits around the Sun\, a rate at which will comp letely destroy the comet in only thousands of years. In 2016\, Rosetta ‘ s mission ended with a controlled impact onto Comet CG’s surface.\n\nIma ge Credit & License: ESA \, Rosetta \, NAVCAM\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/im age-article/apod-2025-october-19-comet-churyumov-gerasimenko-creates-its-t ails/ SUMMARY:Comet Churyumov Gerasimenko Creates Its Tails END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:3d-bennu DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251018 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251019 DESCRIPTION:Put on your red/blue glasses and float next to asteroid 101955 Bennu . Shaped like a spinning toy top with boulders littering its rough s urface\, the tiny Solar System world is about one Empire State Building (l ess than 500 meters) across. Frames used to construct this 3D anaglyph wer e taken by PolyCam on the OSIRIS_REx spacecraft on December 3\, 2018 from a distance of about 80 kilometers. With a sample from the asteroid’s roc ky surface on board\, OSIRIS_REx departed Bennu’s vicinity in May of 202 1. The robotic spacecraft successfully returned the sample to its home wor ld in September of 2023.\n\nImage Credit: NASA \, GSFC \, U. Arizona – S tereo Image Copyright: Patrick Vantuyne\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-ar ticle/apod-2025-october-18-3d-bennu/ SUMMARY:3D Bennu END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:ida-and-dactyl-asteroid-and-moon DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251017 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251018 DESCRIPTION:This asteroid has a moon. The robot spacecraft Galileo enroute to explore the Jovian system in 1993\, encountered and photographed two as teroids during its long interplanetary voyage. The second minor planet it photographed\, 243 Ida \, was discovered to have a moon. The tiny moon\, n amed Dactyl \, is only about 1.6 kilometers across and seen as a small dot to the right in the image . In contrast\, Ida is much larger\, measuring about 60 kilometers long and 25 km wide. In fact\, Dactyl is the first moo n of an asteroid ever discovered. But now many asteroids are known to have moons. Minor planet names Ida and Dactyl were taken from Greek mythology .\n\nImage Credit: NASA \, JPL \, Galileo Mission\nhttps://science.nasa.go v/image-article/apod-2025-october-17-ida-and-dactyl-asteroid-and-moon/ SUMMARY:Ida and Dactyl: Asteroid and Moon END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:young-suns-of-ngc-7129 DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251016 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251017 DESCRIPTION:Young suns still lie within dusty NGC 7129 \, some 3\,000 light -years away toward the royal constellation Cepheus . While these stars are at a relatively tender age\, only a few million years old\, it is likely that our own Sun formed in a similar stellar nursery around five billion y ears ago. Notable in the sharp image are the lovely bluish dust clouds tha t reflect the youthful starlight. But the compact\, deep red crescent shap es are also markers of energetic\, young stellar objects. Known as Herbig- Haro objects\, their shape and color are characteristic of glowing hydroge n gas shocked by jets streaming away from newborn stars. Paler\, extended filaments of reddish emission mingling with the bluish clouds are caused b y dust grains effectively converting the invisible ultraviolet starlight t o visible red light through photoluminesence . Ultimately the natal gas an d dust in the region will be dispersed\, the stars drifting apart as the l oose cluster orbits the center of the Galaxy. At the estimated distance of NGC 7129\, this telescopic field of view spans nearly 40 light-years.\n\n Image Credit & Copyright: Timothy Martin\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-a rticle/apod-2025-october-16-young-suns-of-ngc-7129/ SUMMARY:Young Suns of NGC 7129 END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:rocket-launch-plume-over-tucson DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251015 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251016 DESCRIPTION:Yes\, but can your sunset do this? Looking west from Tucson \, Arizona \, USA one day last month\, the sunset sky looked strange when it briefly lit up with the plume of a rocket launched from California a few m inutes earlier. Appearing at times like a giant space fish \, the impressi ve rocket launch from Vandenberg Air Force Base near Lompoc \, California\ , was so noticeable because it was backlit by the setting Sun. The Falcon 9 rocket successfully delivered to low Earth orbit 28 Starlink communicati ons satellites. The plume from the first stage is seen on the right\, whil e the soaring upper stage rocket is seen at the apex of the plume on the f ar left. The picturesque foreground includes the arms of saguaro cacti \, city lights of Tucson\, and the Tucson Mountains .\n\nImage Credit & Copyr ight: Wayne Showalter\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-oc tober-15-rocket-launch-plume-over-tucson/ SUMMARY:Rocket Launch Plume over Tucson END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:an-unusual-globule-in-ic-1396 DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251014 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251015 DESCRIPTION:Is there a monster in IC 1396 ? Known to some as the Elephant ’s Trunk Nebula \, parts of gas and dust clouds of this star formation r egion may appear to take on foreboding forms\, some nearly human . The onl y real monster here\, however\, is a bright young star too far from Earth to hurt us. Energetic light from this star is eating away the dust of the dark cometary globule near the top of the featured image. Jets and winds o f particles emitted from this star are also pushing away ambient gas and d ust . Nearly 3\,000 light-years distant\, the relatively faint IC 1396 com plex covers a much larger region on the sky than shown here\, with an appa rent width of more than 10 full moon s.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Joach im Korb\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-october-14-an-un usual-globule-in-ic-1396/ SUMMARY:An Unusual Globule in IC 1396 END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:lemmon-tree DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251013 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251014 DESCRIPTION:The tree is not in danger. That’s because the comet pictured just above it\, Comet C/2025 A6 (Lemmon) \, is far in the distance\, well away from the Earth. Comet Lemmon now continues to brighten as it arcs thr ough the inner Solar System \, even though it has passed its nearest to th e Sun — because it is now approaching the Earth . The comet will likely appear brightest when it is at its closest to the Earth next week\, then c losing to about half the Earth-Sun distance . Comet Lemmon may then be vis ible to the unaided eye\, but it is more likely to be imaged by a camera p hone — if you know where to look . Comet Lemmon\, previously best visibl e in the morning\, is now also visible in the evening sky for northern obs ervers: look above the western horizon just after sunset. The featured ima ge \, centered on an unsuspecting European beech tree\, was taken in Slove nia about ten days ago.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Uroš Fink\nhttps://s cience.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-october-13-lemmon-tree/ SUMMARY:Lemmon Tree END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:all-the-water-on-europa DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251012 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251013 DESCRIPTION:How much of Jupiter’s moon Europa is made of water? No one is sure\, but probably a lot. Based on the Galileo probe data acquired durin g its exploration of the Jovian system from 1995 to 2003\, Europa possesse s a deep\, global ocean of liquid water beneath a layer of surface ice. Th e subsurface ocean plus ice layer could descend over 100 kilometers in ave rage depth. Adopting a high-end estimate of 100 kilometers depth\, if all the water on Europa were gathered into a ball \, it would have a radius of over 800 kilometers. To scale\, this intriguing illustration compares tha t hypothetical ball of all the water on Europa to the size of Europa itsel f (left) – and similarly to all the water on planet Earth . With a volum e possibly greater than Earth’s oceans\, the global subsurface ocean on Europa is a tantalizing destination to search for extraterrestrial life in our Solar System. NASA‘s robotic Europa Clipper was launched last year to investigate.\n\nIllustration Credit & Copyright: Kevin Hand ( JPL/Calte ch )\, Jack Cook ( Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution )\, & Howard Perlm an ( USGS )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-october-12-a ll-the-water-on-europa/ SUMMARY:All the Water on Europa END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:manicouagan-impact-crater-from-space DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251011 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251012 DESCRIPTION:Orbiting 400 kilometers above Quebec\, Canada\, planet Earth\, the International Space Station Expedition 59 crew captured this snapshot of the broad St. Lawrence River and curiously circular Lake Manicouagan on April 11\, 2019. Right of center\, the ring-shaped lake is a modern reser voir within the eroded remnant of an ancient 100 kilometer diameter impact crater. The ancient crater is very conspicuous from orbit \, a visible re minder that Earth is vulnerable to rocks from space . Over 200 million yea rs old\, the Manicouagan crater was likely caused by the impact of a rocky body about 5 kilometers in diameter. Currently\, there is no known astero id with a significant probability of impacting Earth in the next century. Each month\, NASA’s Planetary Defense Coordination Office releases an up date featuring the most recent figures on near-Earth object close approach es\, and other facts about comets and asteroids that could pose a potentia l impact hazard with Earth.\n\nImage Credit: NASA \, International Space S tation Expedition 59\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-oct ober-11-manicouagan-impact-crater-from-space/ SUMMARY:Manicouagan Impact Crater from Space END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:50-light-years-to-51-pegasi DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251010 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251011 DESCRIPTION:It’s only 50 light-years to 51 Pegasi. That star’s position is indicated in this snapshot from August 2025\, taken on a night with mo stly brighter stars visible above the dome at Observatoire de Haute-Proven ce in France. Thirty years ago \, in October of 1995\, astronomers Michel Mayor and Didier Queloz announced a profound discovery made at the observa tory. Using a precise spectrograph\, they had detected a planet orbiting 5 1 Peg\, the first known exoplanet orbiting a sun-like star. Mayor and Quel oz had used the spectrograph to measure changes in the star’s radial vel ocity \, a regular wobble caused by the gravitational tug of the orbiting planet. Designated 51 Pegasi b \, the planet was determined to have a mass at least half of Jupiter’s mass and an orbital period of 4.2 days. That made the exoplanet much closer to its parent star than Mercury is to the Sun. Their discovery was quickly confirmed and Mayor and Queloz were ultim ately awarded the Nobel Prize in physics in 2019. Now recognized as the pr ototype for the class of exoplanets fondly known as hot Jupiters \, 51 Peg asi b was formally named Dimidium \, Latin for half\, in 2015. Since its d iscovery 30 years ago\, over 6\,000 exoplanets have been found .\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: José Rodrigues\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-articl e/apod-2025-october-10-50-light-years-to-51-pegasi/ SUMMARY:50 Light-years to 51 Pegasi END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:the-jenga-moon DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251009 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251010 DESCRIPTION:That big\, bright\, beautiful Full Moon you watched rise on the night of October 6 was the Harvest Moon . Famed in festival\, story\, and song\, Harvest Moon is just the traditional name of the full moon nearest the time of the northern hemisphere’s autumnal equinox. According to lo re the name is a fitting one. Despite the diminishing daylight hours\, as the growing season drew to a close in the north\, farmers could harvest cr ops by the light of a full moon shining on from dusk to dawn. Later this y ear than usual\, in 2025 October’s Harvest Moon was also known to some a s a supermoon\, a term becoming a traditional name for a full moon near th e time of lunar perigee. And this telephoto snapshot of the (almost) full moon rising above a conspicuous skyscraper in New York city\, taken on Oct ober 5\, is suggestive of yet another full moon moniker.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Mike Carroll\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025 -october-9-the-jenga-moon/ SUMMARY:The Jenga Moon END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:ngc-7380-the-wizard-nebula DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251008 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251009 DESCRIPTION:What powers are being wielded in the Wizard Nebula? Gravitation strong enough to form stars\, and stellar winds and radiations powerful e nough to create and dissolve towers of gas . Located only 8\,000 light yea rs away\, the Wizard nebula\, featured here\, surrounds a developing open star cluster NGC 7380 . Visually\, the interplay of stars\, gas\, and dust has created a shape that appears to some like a fictional medieval sorcer er . The active star forming region spans about 100 light years \, making it appear larger than the angular extent of the Moon . The Wizard Nebula c an be located with a small telescope toward the constellation of the King of Aethiopia ( Cepheus ). Although the nebula may last only a few million years\, some of the stars being formed may outlive our Sun .\n\nImages Cre dit & Copyright: Nevenka Blagovic Horvat & Miroslav Horvat\nhttps://scienc e.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-october-8-ngc-7380-the-wizard-nebula/ SUMMARY:NGC 7380: The Wizard Nebula END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:sn-encore-a-second-supernova-seen-several-times DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251007 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251008 DESCRIPTION:Now a second supernova in this same galaxy is repeating. The ca use is the gravitational lens effect of a massive foreground cluster of ga laxies (MACS J0138) — it creates multiple images of a perfectly aligned background galaxy (MRG-M0138). What’s particularly interesting is that t his background galaxy has young stars that keep blowing up. And images of each supernova explosion keep coming to us multiple times through differen t paths through the cluster. The original lensed supernova set\, shown in the rollover \, is called Requiem and was first seen by the Hubble Space T elescope in 2016. This second lensed supernova set is called Encore and wa s first seen by the Webb Space Telescope in 2023. More images from these s upernovas are predicted to be on the way \, and exactly when they arrive s hould help humanity to better understand the mass distribution of the gala xy cluster\, the supernovas themselves\, and possibly even the universe .\ n\nImages Credit: Webb (main): NASA \, ESA \, CSA \, STScI \, J. Pierel ( STScI ) & A. Newman ( Carnegie Inst. for Science )\; Hubble (rollover): NA SA \, ESA \, STScI \, S. A. Rodney ( U. South Carolina ) & G. Brammer ( NB I\, U. Copenhagen )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-octo ber-7-sn-encore-a-second-supernova-seen-several-times/ SUMMARY:SN Encore: A Second Supernova Seen Several Times END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:the-changing-ion-tail-of-comet-lemmon DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251006 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251007 DESCRIPTION:How does a comet tail change? It depends on the comet. The ion tail of Comet C/2025 A6 (Lemmon) has been changing markedly\, as detailed in the featured image sequenced over six days between September 25 and Oct ober 4 (left to right) from Texas \, USA . On some days\, the comet’s io n tail was relatively more complex than other days. Reasons for tail chang es include the rate of ejection of material from the comet’s nucleus \, the strength and complexity of the passing solar wind \, and the rotation rate of the comet . Sometimes\, over the course of a week\, apparent diffe rences even result from a change of perspective from the Earth. In general \, a comet’s ion tail will point away from the Sun \, as gas expelled is pushed out by the Sun’s wind . Comet Lemmon is still inbound and bright ening \, passing nearest the Earth on October 21 and nearest the Su n on N ovember 8.\n\nImages Credit & Copyright: Victor Sabet & Julien De Winter\n https://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-october-6-the-changing-io n-tail-of-comet-lemmon/ SUMMARY:The Changing Ion Tail of Comet Lemmon END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:a-long-storm-system-on-saturn DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251005 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251006 DESCRIPTION:It was one of the largest and longest lived storms ever recorde d in our Solar System. First seen in late 2010\, the featured cloud format ion in the northern hemisphere of Saturn started larger than the Earth and soon spread completely around the planet. The storm was tracked not only from Earth but from up close by the robotic Cassini spacecraft then orbiti ng Saturn. Pictured here in false colored infrared in February\, orange co lors indicate clouds deep in the atmosphere\, while light colors highlight clouds higher up. The rings of Saturn are seen nearly edge-on as the thin blue horizontal line. The warped dark bands are the shadows of the rings cast onto the cloud tops by the Sun to the upper left. A source of radio n oise from lightning \, the intense storm was thought to relate to seasonal changes when spring emerges in the north of Saturn . After raging for ove r six months\, the iconic storm circled the entire planet and then tried t o absorb its own tail — which surprisingly caused it to fade away .\n\nI mage Credit: NASA \, JPL \, ESA \, Cassini Imaging Team \, SSI\nhttps://sc ience.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-october-5-a-long-storm-system-on-sa turn/ SUMMARY:A Long Storm System on Saturn END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:the-rotating-moon DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251004 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251005 DESCRIPTION:No one on Earth sees the Moon rotate like this. That’s becaus e the Moon is tidally locked in synchronous rotation \, showing only one s ide to denizens of our fair planet. Still\, given modern digital technolog y \, combined with many detailed images returned by the Lunar Reconnaissan ce Orbiter (LRO)\, a high resolution virtual Moon rotation movie can be co mposed. In fact\, the featured time-lapse video starts with a view of the familiar lunar nearside and quickly finds the Mare Orientale \, a large cr ater with a dark center that is difficult to see from the Earth\, rotating into view just below the equator. In a complete lunar rotation condensed into 24 seconds\, the video clearly shows that the Earth-facing nearside o f the Moon contains an abundance of dark lunar maria \, while the lunar fa rside is dominated by bright lunar highlands . Of course\, you can just jo in other moon-watchers under hopefully clear skies tonight. Check out the sunlit portion of the lunar nearside on International Observe the Moon Nig ht .\n\nVideo Credit: NASA \, Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter \, Arizona Stat e U.\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-october-4-the-rotat ing-moon/ SUMMARY:The Rotating Moon END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:pandora-s-cluster-of-galaxies DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251003 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251004 DESCRIPTION:This deep field mosaicked image presents a stunning view of gal axy cluster Abell 2744 recorded by the James Webb Space Telescope’s NIRC am. Also dubbed Pandora’s Cluster\, Abell 2744 itself appears to be a po nderous merger of three different massive galaxy clusters. It lies some 3. 5 billion light-years away\, toward the constellation Sculptor. Dominated by dark matter \, the mega-cluster warps and distorts the fabric of spacet ime\, gravitationally lensing even more distant objects. Redder than the P andora cluster galaxies\, many of the lensed sources are very distant gala xies in the early Universe\, their lensed images stretched and distorted i nto arcs. Of course\, distinctive diffraction spikes mark foreground Milky Way stars. At the Pandora Cluster’s estimated distance\, this cosmic bo x spans about 6 million light-years. But don’t panic. You can explore th e tantalizing region in a 2 minute video tour .\n\nImage Credit: NASA \, E SA \, CSA \, Ivo Labbe (Swinburne)\, Rachel Bezanson (University of Pittsb urgh)\, Processing: Alyssa Pagan ( STScI )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image -article/apod-2025-october-3-pandoras-cluster-of-galaxies/ SUMMARY:Pandora’s Cluster of Galaxies END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:pluto-at-night DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251002 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251003 DESCRIPTION:The night side of Pluto spans this shadowy scene . In the stunn ing spacebased perspective\, the Sun is 4.9 billion kilometers (almost 4.5 light-hours) behind the dim and distant world. It was captured by far flu ng New Horizons in July of 2015 when the spacecraft was at a range of some 21\,000 kilometers from Pluto. That was about 19 minutes after its closes t approach. A denizen of the Kuiper Belt in dramatic silhouette\, the imag e also reveals Pluto’s tenuous\, surprisingly complex layers of hazy atm osphere. Near the top of the frame the crescent twilight landscape include s southern areas of nitrogen ice plains now formally known as Sputnik Plan itia and rugged mountains of water-ice in the Norgay Montes.\n\nImage Cred it: NASA \, Johns Hopkins Univ./APL \, Southwest Research Institute\nhttps ://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-october-2-pluto-at-night/ SUMMARY:Pluto at Night END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:ngc-6960-the-witch-s-broom-nebula DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20251001 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251002 DESCRIPTION:Ten thousand years ago\, before the dawn of recorded human hist ory\, a new light would suddenly have appeared in the night sky and faded after a few weeks. Today we know this light was from a supernova\, or expl oding star \, and record the expanding debris cloud as the Veil Nebula \, a supernova remnant . This sharp telescopic view is centered on a western segment of the Veil Nebula cataloged as NGC 6960 but less formally known a s the Witch’s Broom Nebula. Blasted out in the cataclysmic explosion\, a n interstellar shock wave plows through space sweeping up and exciting int erstellar material. Imaged with narrow band filters\, the glowing filament s are like long ripples in a sheet seen almost edge on\, remarkably well s eparated into atomic hydrogen (red) and oxygen (blue-green) gas. The compl ete supernova remnant lies about 1400 light-years away towards the constel lation Cygnus . This Witch’s Broom actually spans about 35 light-years. The bright star in the frame is 52 Cygni \, visible with the unaided eye f rom a dark location but unrelated to the ancient supernova remnant.\n\nIma ge Credit & Copyright: Brian Meyers\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-articl e/apod-2025-october-1-ngc-6960-the-witchs-broom-nebula/ SUMMARY:NGC 6960: The Witchs Broom Nebula END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:the-complete-sharpless-catalog-313-nebulas DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20261002 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20261003 DESCRIPTION:What does it take to image hundreds of nebulas? Today’s image contains the entire Sharpless Catalog of H II Regions\, totaling 313 obje cts. Zoom in and explore! You may spot fan favorites like the Eagle (Sh2-4 9)\, Heart (Sh2-190)\, and Orion (Sh2-281) Nebulas. Despite its name\, thi s catalog contains more than the glow of ionized hydrogen that makes up H II regions. There are planetary nebulas (the Medusa Nebula\, Sh2-274) and supernova remnants (the Spaghetti Nebula\, Sh2-240) as well. Astrophotogra pher Bing Xin traversed the dark skies of Eastern China and Inner Mongolia to catch them all. Narrowband filters that primarily capture light from i onized hydrogen and oxygen as well as red-green-blue filters were used. Ea ch object took 2 to 6 hours to capture\, with the entire catalog taking ar ound 800 hours to complete! Which object is your favorite?APOD’s email f or image submissions has changed. Please see: APOD Submissions\n\nCredit: Bing Xin\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-october-2-the-c omplete-sharpless-catalog-313-nebulae/ SUMMARY:The Complete Sharpless Catalog: 313 Nebulas END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:harvest-moon-with-erupting-mount-etna DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20261001 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20261002 DESCRIPTION:Have you ever seen the full moon rise? This colorful image was photographed last weekend in Sicily\, just outside the town of Nicosia\, i n Italy. It is a composite photograph that shows the Moon rising as the sk y turns darker. Lower clouds are reflecting the colors of antitwilight\, w hile ash and gas from Mount Etna are seen higher in the background. The pi nk band lower in the sky is called the Belt of Venus. During a full moon\, the Moon and the Sun are in opposition in the sky: the moon rises as the sun sets. The lunar phase cycle lasts approximately 29.5 days (but the Moo n takes approximately 27 days to orbit the Earth). In some cultures of the Northern Hemisphere\, the September full moon is called the Harvest Moon. Does your culture have a special name for it? (A full moon by any other n ame would shine as bright.)APOD’s email for image submissions has change d. Please see: APOD SubmissionsAPOD’s main NASA site has moved : From ap od.nasa.gov to science.nasa.gov/apod\n\nCredit & Copyright Dario Giannobil e\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-october-1-harvest-moon -with-belt-of-venus-and-erupting-mount-etna/ SUMMARY:Harvest Moon with Erupting Mount Etna END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:arp-78-peculiar-galaxy-in-aries DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20260930 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20261001 DESCRIPTION:Peculiar spiral galaxy Arp 78 is found within the boundaries of the head strong constellation Aries. Some 100 million light-years beyond the stars and nebulae of our Milky Way galaxy\, the island universe is an enormous 200\,000 light-years across. Also known as NGC 772\, it sports a prominent\, outer spiral arm in this detailed cosmic portrait. Tracking al ong sweeping dust lanes and lined with young blue star clusters\, Arp 78 ’s overdeveloped spiral arm is pumped-up by galactic-scale gravitational tides. Interactions with its brightest companion galaxy\, the more compac t NGC 770 seen directly below the larger spiral\, are likely responsible. Embedded in faint star streams revealed in the deep telescopic exposure\, NGC 770’s fuzzy\, elliptical appearance contrasts nicely with spiky fore ground Milky Way stars.APOD’s email for image submissions has changed. P lease see: APOD Submissions.\n\nCredit & Copyright Robert Eder\nhttps://sc ience.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-september-30-arp-78-peculiar-galaxy -in-aries/ SUMMARY:Arp 78: Peculiar Galaxy in Aries END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:comet-lemmon-brightens DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20250930 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20251001 DESCRIPTION:Comet Lemmon is brightening and moving into morning northern sk ies. Besides Comet SWAN25B and Comet ATLAS \, Comet C/2025 A6 (Lemmon) is now the third comet currently visible with binoculars and on long camera e xposures. Comet Lemmon was discovered early this year and is still headed into the inner Solar System . The comet will round the Sun on November 8\, but first it will pass its nearest to the Earth — at about half the Ear th-Sun distance — on October 21. Although the brightnesses of comets are notoriously hard to predict \, optimistic estimates have Comet Lemmon the n becoming visible to the unaided eye. The comet should be best seen in pr edawn skies until mid-October\, when it also becomes visible in evening sk ies. The featured image showing the comet’s split and rapidly changing i on tail was taken in Texas \, USA late last week. Growing Gallery: Comet L emmon in 2025\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Victor Sabet & Julien De Winter \nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-september-30-comet-lemm on-brightens/ SUMMARY:Comet Lemmon Brightens END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:two-camera-comets-in-one-sky DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20250929 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20250930 DESCRIPTION:It may look like these comets are racing\, but they are not. Co mets C/2025 K1 ATLAS (left) and C/2025 R2 SWAN (right) appeared near each other by chance last week in the featured image taken from France’s Reun ion Island in the southern Indian Ocean . Fainter Comet ATLAS is approachi ng our Sun and will reach its closest approach in early October when it is also expected to be its brightest — although still only likely visible with long exposures on a camera. The brighter comet\, nicknamed SWAN25B \, is now headed away from our Sun \, although its closest approach to Earth is expected in mid-October\, when optimistic estimates have it becoming b right enough to see with the unaided eye. Each comet has a greenish coma o f expelled gas and an ion tail pointing away from the Sun. Growing Gallery : Comet SWAN25B\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Luc Perrot ( TWAN )\nhttps:// science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-september-29-two-camera-comets-in -one-sky/ SUMMARY:Two Camera Comets in One Sky END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:leopard-spots-on-martian-rocks DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20250928 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20250929 DESCRIPTION:What is creating these unusual spots? Light-colored spots on Ma rtian rocks \, each surrounded by a dark border\, were discovered last yea r by NASA ‘s Perseverance Rover currently exploring Mars . Dubbed leopar d spots because of their seemingly similarity to markings on famous Earth- bound predators \, these curious patterns are being studied with the possi bility they were created by ancient Martian life . The pictured spots meas ure only millimeter s across and were discovered on a larger rock named Ch eyava Falls . The exciting but unproven speculation is that long ago\, mic robe s generated energy with chemical reactions that turned rock from red to white while leaving a dark biosignature ring\, like some similarly appe aring spots on Earth rocks . Although other non-biological explanations ha ve not been ruled out\, speculation focusing on this potential biological origin is causing much intrigue .\n\nImage Credit: NASA \, JPL-Caltech \, MSSS \, Perseverance Rover\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-20 25-september-28-leopard-spots-on-martian-rocks/ SUMMARY:Leopard Spots on Martian Rocks END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:a-rocket-in-the-sun DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20250927 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20250928 DESCRIPTION:On the morning of September 24 a rocket crosses the bright sola r disk in this long range telescopic snapshot captured from Orlando\, Flor ida. That’s about 50 miles west of its Kennedy Space Center launch site. This rocket carried three new space weather missions to space. Signals ha ve now been successfully acquired from all three – NASA’s Interstellar Mapping and Acceleration Probe\, NASA’s Carruthers Geocorona Observator y\, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Space W eather Follow-On Lagrange 1 (SWFO-L1) – as they begin their journey to L 1\, an Earth-Sun lagrange point. L1 is about 1.5 million kilometers in the sunward direction from planet Earth. Appropriately\, major space weather influencers\, aka dark sunspots in active regions across the Sun\, are pos ing with the transiting rocket. In fact\, large active region AR4225 is ju st right of the rocket’s nose.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Pascal Fouqu et\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-september-27-a-rocket -in-the-sun/ SUMMARY:A Rocket in the Sun END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:a-swan-an-atlas-and-mars DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20250926 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20250927 DESCRIPTION:A new visitor to the inner Solar System\, comet C/2025 R2 (SWAN ) sports a long ion tail extending diagonally across this almost 7 degree wide telescopic field of view recorded on September 21 . A fainter fellow comet also making its inner Solar System debut\, C/2025 K1 (ATLAS) \, can be spotted above and left of SWAN’s greenish coma\, just visible against the background sea of stars in the constellation Virgo. Both new comets w ere only discovered in 2025 and are joined in this celestial frame by rudd y planet Mars (bottom)\, a more familiar wanderer in planet Earth’s nigh t skies. The comets may appear to be in a race\, nearly neck and neck in t heir voyage through the inner Solar System and around the Sun. But this co met SWAN has already reached its perihelion or closest approach to the Sun on September 12 and is now outbound along its orbit. This comet ATLAS is still inbound though\, and will make its perihelion passage on October 8.\ n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Adam Block\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-ar ticle/apod-2025-september-26-a-swan-an-atlas-and-mars/ SUMMARY:A SWAN an ATLAS and Mars END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:saturn-opposite-the-sun DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20250925 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20250926 DESCRIPTION:This year Saturn was at opposition on September 21\, opposite t he Sun in planet Earth’s sky. At its closest to Earth\, Saturn was also at its brightest of the year\, rising as the Sun set and shining above the horizon all night long among the fainter stars of the constellation Pisce s. In this snapshot from the Qinghai Lenghu Observatory \, Tibetan Plateau \, southwestern China\, the outer planet is immersed in a faint\, diffuse oval of light known as the gegenschein or counter glow. The diffuse gegens chein is produced by sunlight backscattered by interplanetary dust along t he Solar System’s ecliptic plane \, opposite the Sun in planet Earth’s sky. Like a giant eye\, on this dark night Saturn and gegenschein seem to stare down on the observatory’s telescope domes from their antisolar pe rspective. Strong atmospheric airglow forms a colorful background along th e horizon.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Jin Wang\nhttps://science.nasa.gov /image-article/apod-2025-september-25-saturn-opposite-the-sun/ SUMMARY:Saturn Opposite the Sun END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:gw250114-rotating-black-holes-collide DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20250924 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20250925 DESCRIPTION:It was the strongest gravitational wave signal yet measured — what did it show? GW250114 was detected by both arms of the Laser Interfe rometer Gravitational-wave Observatory (LIGO) in Washington and Louisiana USA earlier this year. Analysis showed that the event was created when two black holes \, each of mass around 33 times the mass of the Sun \, coales ced into one larger black hole with a mass of around 63 solar masses. Even though the event happened about a billion light years away\, the signal w as so strong that the spin of all black holes \, as well as initial ringin g of the final black hole\, was deduced with exceptional accuracy . Furthe rmore\, it was confirmed better than before\, as previously predicted \, t hat the total event horizon area of the combined black hole was greater th an those of the merging black holes . Featured\, an artist’s illustratio n depicts an imaginative and conceptual view from near one of the black ho les before collision.\n\nIllustration Credit: Aurore Simonnet ( SSU / EdEo n )\, LVK\, URI\; LIGO Collaboration\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-artic le/apod-2025-september-24-gw250114-rotating-black-holes-collide/ SUMMARY:GW250114: Rotating Black Holes Collide END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:ngc-6357-cathedral-to-massive-stars DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20250923 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20250924 DESCRIPTION:How massive can a normal star be? Estimates made from distance\ , brightness and standard solar models had given one star in the open clus ter Pismis 24 over 200 times the mass of our Sun \, making it one of the m ost massive stars known. This star is the brightest object located in the central cavity near the bottom center of the featured image taken with the Webb Space Telescope in infrared light. For comparison\, a rollover image from the Hubble Space Telescope is also featured in visible light. Close inspection of the images \, however\, has shown that Pismis 24-1 derives i ts brilliant luminosity not from a single star but from three at least. Co mponent stars would still remain near 100 solar masses\, making them among the more massive stars currently on record. Toward the bottom of the imag e\, stars are still forming in the associated emission nebula NGC 6357 . A ppearing perhaps like a Gothic cathedral \, energetic stars near the cente r appear to be breaking out and illuminating a spectacular cocoon . Teache rs & Students: Ideas for Utilizing APOD in the Classroom\n\nImage Credit: NASA \, ESA \, CSA \, STScI \, JWST \; Processing: Alyssa Pagan ( STScI )\ ; Rollover: NASA \, ESA \, HST \, & J. M. Apellániz ( IAA \, Spain)\; Ack nowledgement: D. De Martin ( ESA/Hubble )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image- article/apod-2025-september-23-ngc-6357-cathedral-to-massive-stars/ SUMMARY:NGC 6357: Cathedral to Massive Stars END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:equinox-at-saturn DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20250922 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20250923 DESCRIPTION:On Saturn\, the rings tell you the season. On Earth \, today ma rks an equinox\, the time when the Earth’s equator tilts directly toward the Sun. Since Saturn’s grand rings orbit along the planet’s equator\ , these rings appear most prominent — from the direction of the Sun — when the spin axis of Saturn points toward the Sun . Conversely\, when Sat urn ‘s spin axis points to the side\, an equinox occurs\, and the edge-o n rings are hard to see from not only the Sun — but Earth . In the featu red montage \, images of Saturn between the years of 2020 and 2025 have be en superposed to show the giant planet passing\, with this year’s equino x\, from summer in the north to summer in the south. Yesterday \, Saturn w as coincidently about as close as it gets to planet Earth\, and so this mo nth the ringed giant’s orb is relatively bright and visible throughout t he night.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Imran Sultan\nhttps://science.nasa. gov/image-article/apod-2025-september-22-equinox-at-saturn/ SUMMARY:Equinox at Saturn END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:equinox-sunset DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20250921 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20250922 DESCRIPTION:Does the Sun set in the same direction every day? No\, the dire ction of sunset depends on the time of the year. Although the Sun always s ets approximately toward the west\, on an equinox like tomorrow the Sun se ts directly toward the west . After tomorrow’s September equinox\, the S un will set increasingly toward the southwest\, reaching its maximum displ acement at the December solstice . Before tomorrow’s September equinox\, the Sun had set toward the northwest\, reaching its maximum displacement at the June solstice . The featured time-lapse image shows seven bands of the Sun setting one day each month from 2019 December through 2020 June. T hese image sequences were taken from Alberta \, Canada — well north of t he Earth’s equator — and feature the city of Edmonton in the foregroun d. The middle band shows the Sun setting during an equinox — in March. F rom this location \, the Sun will set along this same equinox band again t omorrow.\n\nImage Credit: Luca Vanzella\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-ar ticle/apod-2025-september-21-equinox-sunset/ SUMMARY:Equinox Sunset END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:gibbous-vs-crescent DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20250920 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20250921 DESCRIPTION:Early risers around planet Earth have enjoyed a shining crescen t Moon near brilliant Venus\, close to the eastern horizon in recent morni ng twilight skies. And yesterday\, on September 19\, skygazers watching fr om some locations in Earth’s northern hemisphere were also able to witne ss Venus\, in the inner planet’s waxing gibbous phase \, pass behind the Moon’s waning crescent . In fact\, this telescopic snapshot was taken m oments before that occultation of gibbous Venus by the crescent Moon began . The close-up view of the beautiful celestial alignment records Venus app roaching part of the Moon’s sunlit edge in clear daytime skies from the Swiss Alps. Tomorrow \, the Sun will pass behind a New Moon. But to witnes s that partial solar eclipse on September 21\, skygazers will need to watc h from locations in planet Earth’s southern hemisphere.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Luca Bartek\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025 -september-20-gibbous-vs-crescent/ SUMMARY:Gibbous vs Crescent END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:the-ngc-6914-complex DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20250919 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20250920 DESCRIPTION:A study in contrasts\, this colorful cosmic skyscape features s tars\, dust\, and glowing gas in the vicinity of NGC 6914. The interstella r complex of nebulae lies some 6\,000 light-years away\, toward the high-f lying northern constellation Cygnus and the plane of our Milky Way Galaxy. Obscuring interstellar dust clouds appear in silhouette while reddish hyd rogen emission nebulae \, along with the dusty blue reflection nebulae \, fill the cosmic canvas. Ultraviolet radiation from the massive\, hot\, you ng stars of the extensive Cygnus OB2 association ionize the region’s ato mic hydrogen gas \, producing the characteristic red glow as protons and e lectrons recombine. Embedded Cygnus OB2 stars also provide the blue starli ght strongly reflected by the dust clouds. The over one degree wide telesc opic field of view spans about 100 light-years at the estimated distance o f NGC 6914.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Tommy Lease\nhttps://science.nasa .gov/image-article/apod-2025-september-19-the-ngc-6914-complex/ SUMMARY:The NGC 6914 Complex END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:comet-c-2025-r2-swan DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20250918 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20250919 DESCRIPTION:A new visitor from the outer Solar System \, comet C/2025 R2 (S WAN) also known as SWAN25B was only discovered late last week\, on Septemb er 11. That’s just a day before the comet reached perihelion\, its close st approach to the Sun. First spotted by Vladimir Bezugly in images from t he SWAN instrument on the sun-staring SOHO spacecraft\, the comet was surp risingly bright but understandably difficult to see against the Sun’s gl are. Still close to the Sun on the sky\, the greenish coma and tail of C/2 025 R2 (SWAN) are captured in this telescopic snapshot from September 17. Spica\, alpha star of the constellation Virgo\, shines just beyond the upp er left edge of the frame while the comet is about 6.5 light-minutes from planet Earth. Near the western horizon after sunset and slightly easier to see in binoculars from the southern hemisphere\, this comet SWAN will pas s near Zubenelgenubi \, alpha star of Libra\, on October 2. C/2025 R2 (SWA N) is scheduled to make its closest approach to our fair planet around Oct ober 20.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Team Ciel Austral\nhttps://science.n asa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-september-18-comet-c-2025-r2-swan/ SUMMARY:Comet C/2025 R2 SWAN END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:nebulas-and-clusters-in-sagittarius DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20250917 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20250918 DESCRIPTION:Can you spot famous celestial objects in this image? 18th-centu ry astronomer Charles Messier cataloged only two of them: the bright Lagoo n Nebula (M8) at the bottom\, and the colorful Trifid Nebula (M20) at the upper right. The one on the left that resembles a cat’s paw is NGC 6559 \, and it is much fainter than the other two. Even harder to spot are the thin blue filaments on the left\, from supernova remnant (SNR G007.5-01.7) . Their glow comes from small amounts of glowing oxygen atoms that are so faint that it took over 17 hours of exposure with just one blue color to b ring up. Framing this scene of stellar birth and death are two star cluste rs: the open cluster M21 just above Trifid\, and the globular cluster NGC 6544 at lower left.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: J. De Winter \, C. Humber t \, C. Robert & V. Sabet \; Text: Ogetay Kayali ( MTU )\nhttps://science. nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-september-17-nebulas-and-clusters-in-sagi ttarius/ SUMMARY:Nebulas and Clusters in Sagittarius END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:new-comet-swan25b-over-mexico DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20250916 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20250917 DESCRIPTION:A newly discovered comet is already visible with binoculars. Th e comet\, C/2025 R2 (SWAN) and nicknamed SWAN25B\, is brightening signific antly as it emerges from the Sun’s direction and might soon become visib le on your smartphone — if not your eyes . Although the brightnesses of comets are notoriously hard to predict\, many comets appear brighter as th ey approach the Earth\, with SWAN25B reaching only a quarter of the Earth- Sun distance near October 19. Nighttime skygazers will also be watching fo r a SWAN25B -spawned meteor shower around October 5 when our Earth passes through the plane of the comet’s orbit . The unexpectedly bright comet w as discovered by an amateur astronomer in images of the SWAN instrument on NASA ‘s SOHO satellite . The comet is currently best observed in southe rn skies but is slowly moving north. The featured image was captured at su nset three days ago just above the western horizon in Zacatecas \, Mexico .\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Daniel Korona\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/ima ge-article/apod-2025-september-16-new-comet-swan25b-over-mexico/ SUMMARY:New Comet SWAN25B over Mexico END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:earth-during-a-powerful-solar-storm DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20250915 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20250916 DESCRIPTION:Can our Sun become dangerous? Yes\, sometimes. Every few years our Sun ejects a scary-large bubble of hot gas into the Solar System . Eve ry hundred years or so\, when the timing\, location\, and magnetic field c onnections are just right\, such a Coronal Mass Ejection (CME) will hit th e Earth . When this happens\, the Earth not only experiences dramatic auro ras\, but its magnetic field gets quickly pushed back and compressed \, wh ich causes electric grids to surge. Some of these surges could be dangerou s\, affecting satellites and knocking out power grids — which can take m onths to fix. Just such a storm — called the Carrington Event — occurr ed in 1859 and caused telegraph wires to spark . A similar CME passed near the Earth in 2012\, and the featured animated video shows a computer mode l of what might have happened if it had been a direct hit. In this model\, the Earth’s magnetopause becomes so compressed that it went inside the orbit of geosynchronous communication satellite s.\n\nVideo Credit: NASA ‘s SVS \, SWRC \, CCMC \, SWMF \; T. Bridgman et al.\nhttps://science.na sa.gov/image-article/apod/apod-2025-september-15-earth-during-a-powerful-s olar-storm/ SUMMARY:Earth During a Powerful Solar Storm END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:planets-of-the-solar-system-tilts-and-spins DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20250914 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20250915 DESCRIPTION:How does your favorite planet spin? Does it spin rapidly around a nearly vertical axis\, or horizontally\, or backwards? The featured vid eo animates NASA images of all eight planets in our Solar System to show t hem spinning side-by-side for an easy comparison. In the time-lapse video \, a day on Earth — one Earth rotation — takes just a few seconds. Jup iter rotates the fastest\, while Venus spins not only the slowest (can you see it?)\, but backwards. The inner rocky planets across the top underwen t dramatic spin-altering collisions during the early days of the Solar Sys tem. Why planets spin and tilt as they do remains a topic of research with much insight gained from modern computer modeling and the recent discover y and analysis of hundreds of exoplanets : planets orbiting other stars .\ n\nVideo Credit: NASA \, Animation: James O’Donoghue ( U. Reading )\nhtt ps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-september-14-planets-of-the- solar-system-tilts-and-spins/ SUMMARY:Planets of the Solar System: Tilts and Spins END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:star-trails-over-one-mile-radio-telescope DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20250913 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20250914 DESCRIPTION:The steerable 60 foot diameter dish antenna of the One-Mile Tel escope at Mullard Radio Astronomy Observatory \, Cambridge\, UK\, is point ing skyward in this evocative night-skyscape. To capture the dramatic scen e\, consecutive 30 second exposures were recorded over a period of 90 minu tes. Combined\, the exposures reveal a background of gracefully arcing sta r trails that reflect planet Earth’s daily rotation on its axis . The No rth Celestial Pole \, the extension of Earth’s axis of rotation into spa ce\, points near Polaris\, the North Star . That’s the bright star that creates the short trail near the center of the concentric arcs . But the h istoric One-Mile Telescope array also relied on planet Earth’s rotation to operate. Exploring the universe at radio wavelengths \, it was the firs t radio telescope to use Earth-rotation aperture synthesis. That technique uses the rotation of the Earth to change the relative orientation of the telescope array and celestial radio sources to create high resolution radi o maps of the sky .\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Joao Yordanov Serralheiro \nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-september-13-star-trail s-over-one-mile-radio-telescope/ SUMMARY:Star Trails over One Mile Radio Telescope END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003405Z UID:lunar-eclipse-in-two-hemispheres DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20250912 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20250913 DESCRIPTION:September’s total lunar eclipse is tracked across night skies from both the northern and southern hemispheres of planet Earth in these two dramatic timelapse series. In the northern hemisphere sequence (top pa nel) the Moon’s trail arcs from the upper left to the lower right. It pa sses below bright planet Saturn\, seen under mostly clear skies from the i nternational campus of Zhejiang University in China at about 30 degrees no rth latitude. In contrast\, the southern hemisphere view from Lake Griffin \, Canberra\, Australia at 35 degrees south latitude\, records the Moon’ s trail from the upper right to the lower left. Multiple lightning flashes from thunderstorms near the horizon appear reflected in the lake. Both se quences were photographed with 16mm wide-angle lenses and both cover the e ntire eclipse \, with the darkened red Moon totally immersed in Earth’s umbral shadow near center. But the different orientations of the Moon’s path across the sky reveal the perspective shifts caused by the views from northern vs. southern latitudes .\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: North – Zhouyue Zhu \, South – Lucy Yunxi Hu\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-art icle/apod-2025-september-12-lunar-eclipse-in-two-hemispheres/ SUMMARY:Lunar Eclipse in Two Hemispheres END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003406Z UID:the-umbra-of-earth DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20250911 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20250912 DESCRIPTION:The dark\, inner shadow of planet Earth is called the umbra . S haped like a cone extending into space\, it has a circular cross section m ost easily seen during a lunar eclipse . And on the night of September 7/8 the Full Moon passed near the center of Earth’s umbral cone\, entertain ing eclipse watchers around much of our fair planet\, including parts of A ntarctica\, Australia\, Asia\, Europe\, and Africa. Recorded from Zhangjia kou City\, China\, this timelapse composite image uses successive pictures from the total lunar eclipse \, progressing right to left\, to reveal the curved cross-section of the umbral shadow sliding across the Moon. Sunlig ht scattered by the atmosphere into Earth’s umbra causes the lunar surfa ce to appear reddened during totality. But close to the umbra’s edge\, t he limb of the eclipsed Moon shows a distinct blue hue. The blue eclipsed moonlight originates as rays of sunlight pass through layers high in the u pper stratosphere\, colored by ozone that scatters red light and transmits blue. In the total phase of this leisurely lunar eclipse \, the Moon was completely within the Earth’s umbra for about 83 minutes.\n\nImage Credi t & Copyright: Wang Letian ( Eyes at Night )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/ima ge-article/apod-2025-september-11-the-umbra-of-earth/ SUMMARY:The Umbra of Earth END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003406Z UID:the-great-lacerta-nebula DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20250910 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20250911 DESCRIPTION:It is one of the largest nebulas on the sky — why isn’t it better known? Roughly the same angular size as the Andromeda Galaxy \, the Great Lacerta Nebula can be found toward the constellation of the Lizard (Lacerta) . The emission nebula is difficult to see with wide-field binocu lars because it is so faint \, but also usually difficult to see with a la rge telescope because it is so great in angle — spanning about three deg rees . The depth\, breadth\, waves \, and beauty of the nebula — catalog ed as Sharpless 126 (Sh2-126) — can best be seen and appreciated with a long duration camera exposure . The featured image is one such combined ex posure — in this case taken over three nights in August through dark ski es in Moses Lake \, Washington \, USA . The hydrogen gas in the Great Lace rta Nebula glows red because it is excited by light from the bright star 1 0 Lacertae \, one of the bright blue stars just to the left of the red-glo wing nebula’s center. Most of the stars and nebula are about 1\,200 ligh t years distant. Jigsaw Universe: Astronomy Puzzle of the Day\n\nImage Cre dit & Copyright: Ian Moehring & Kevin Roylance\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/i mage-article/apod-2025-september-10-the-great-lacerta-nebula/ SUMMARY:The Great Lacerta Nebula END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003406Z UID:up-from-the-earth-gigantic-jet-lightning DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20250909 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20250910 DESCRIPTION:What’s that rising up from the Earth? When circling the Earth on the International Space Station early in July \, astronaut Nicole Ayer s saw an unusual type of lightning rising up from the Earth: a gigantic je t . The powerful jet appears near the center of the featured image in red\ , white\, and blue. Giant jet lightning has only been known about for the past 25 years. The atmospheric jets are associated with thunderstorms and extend upwards towards Earth’s ionosphere . The lower part of the frame shows the Earth at night \, with Earth’s thin atmosphere tinted green fr om airglow. City lights are visible\, sometimes resolved\, but usually cre ating diffuse white glows in intervening clouds. The top of the frame reve als distant stars in the dark night sky. The nature of gigantic jets and t heir possible association with other types of Transient Luminous Events (T LEs) such as blue jets and red sprites remain active topics of research .\ n\nImage Credit: NASA \, Expedition 73 \, Nicole Ayers\nhttps://science.na sa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-september-9-up-from-the-earth-gigantic-jet- lightning/ SUMMARY:Up from the Earth: Gigantic Jet Lightning END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003406Z UID:iras-04302-butterfly-disk-planet-formation DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20250908 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20250909 DESCRIPTION:This butterfly can hatch planets. The nebula fanning out from t he star IRAS 04302+2247 may look like the wings of a butterfly \, while th e vertical brown stripe down the center may look like the butterfly’s bo dy — but together they indicate an active planet-forming system . The fe atured picture was captured recently in infrared light by the Webb Space T elescope . Pictured\, the vertical disk is thick with the gas and dust fro m which planets form. The disk shades visible and (most) infrared light fr om the central star\, allowing a good view of the surrounding dust that re flects out light. In the next few million years\, the dust disk will likel y fragment into rings through the gravity of newly hatched planets. And a billion years from now \, the remaining gas and dust will likely dissipate \, leaving mainly the planets — like in our Solar System . Explore the U niverse: Random APOD Generator\n\nImage Credit: NASA \, ESA \, CSA \, Webb \; Processing: M. Villenave et al.\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-articl e/apod-2025-september-8-iras-04302-butterfly-disk-planet-formation/ SUMMARY:IRAS 04302: Butterfly Disk Planet Formation END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003406Z UID:all-the-water-on-planet-earth DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20250907 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20250908 DESCRIPTION:How much of planet Earth is made of water? Very little\, actual ly. Although oceans of water cover about 70 percent of Earth’s surface\, these oceans are shallow compared to the Earth’s radius. The featured i llustration shows what would happen if all of the water on or near the sur face of the Earth were bunched up into a ball . The radius of this ball wo uld be only about 700 kilometers\, less than half the radius of the Earth ’s Moon \, and slightly smaller than Saturn’s moon Rhea which\, like m any moons in our outer Solar System \, is mostly water ice. The next small est ball depicts all of Earth ‘s liquid fresh water\, while the tiniest ball shows the volume of all of Earth’s fresh-water lake s and river s. How any of this water came to be on the Earth and whether any significant amount is trapped far beneath Earth ‘s surface remain topic s of researc h.\n\nIllustration Credit: Jack Cook\, Adam Nieman\, Woods Hole Oceanograp hic Institution \; Data source: Igor Shiklomanov\nhttps://science.nasa.gov /image-article/apod-2025-september-7-all-the-water-on-planet-earth/ SUMMARY:All the Water on Planet Earth END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003406Z UID:sardinia-sunset DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20250906 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20250907 DESCRIPTION:When the sun sets on September 7 \, the Full Moon will rise. An d on that date denizens around much of our fair planet\, including parts o f Antarctica\, Australia\, Asia\, Europe\, and Africa can witness a total lunar eclipse\, with the Moon completely immersed in Earth’s shadow. As the bright Full Moon first enters Earth’s shadow it will darken\, finall y taking on a reddish hue during the total eclipse phase. In fact\, the co lor of the Moon during a total lunar eclipse is due to reddened light from sunrises and sunsets around planet Earth . The reddened sunlight is scatt ered by a dense atmosphere into the planet’s otherwise dark central shad ow. When the sun set on August 22\, this telephoto snapshot of red skies\, blue sea\, and the Mangiabarche Lighthouse was captured from Sant’Antio co\, Sardinia\, Italy.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Lorenzo Busilacchi\nht tps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-september-6-sardinia-sunset / SUMMARY:Sardinia Sunset END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003406Z UID:47-tucanae-globular-star-cluster DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20250905 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20250906 DESCRIPTION:Also known as NGC 104 \, 47 Tucanae is a jewel of the southern sky. Not a star but a dense cluster of stars\, it roams the halo of our Mi lky Way Galaxy along with some 200 other globular star clusters . The seco nd brightest globular cluster (after Omega Centauri ) as seen from planet Earth\, 47 Tuc lies about 13\,000 light-years away. It can be spotted with the naked eye close on the sky to the Small Magellanic Cloud in the const ellation of the Toucan . The dense cluster is made up of hundreds of thous ands of stars in a volume only about 120 light-years across. Red giant sta rs on the outskirts of the cluster are easy to pick out as yellowish stars in this sharp telescopic portrait . Tightly packed globular star cluster 47 Tuc is also home to a star with the closest known orbit around a black hole .\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Carlos Taylor\nhttps://science.nasa.go v/image-article/apod-2025-september-5-47-tucanae-globular-star-cluster/ SUMMARY:47 Tucanae: Globular Star Cluster END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003406Z UID:ngc-4565-galaxy-on-edge DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20250904 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20250905 DESCRIPTION:Magnificent spiral galaxy NGC 4565 is viewed edge-on from plane t Earth. Also known as the Needle Galaxy for its narrow profile\, bright N GC 4565 is a stop on many telescopic tours of the northern sky\, in the fa int but well-groomed constellation Coma Berenices . This sharp\, colorful image reveals the galaxy’s boxy\, bulging central core cut by obscuring dust lanes that lace NGC 4565’s thin galactic plane. NGC 4565 lies aroun d 40 million light-years distant while the spiral galaxy itself spans some 100\,000 light-years. That’s about the size of our own Milky Way. Easil y spotted with small telescopes\, deep sky enthusiasts consider NGC 4565 t o be a prominent celestial masterpiece Messier missed .\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: José Rodrigues ( IA \, OFXB )\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image- article/apod-2025-september-4-ngc-4565-galaxy-on-edge/ SUMMARY:NGC 4565: Galaxy on Edge END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003406Z UID:cir-x1-jets-in-the-africa-nebula DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20250903 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20250904 DESCRIPTION:How soon do jets form when a supernova gives birth to a neutron star? The Africa Nebula provides clues. This supernova remnant surrounds Circinus X-1 \, an X-ray emitting neutron star and the companion star it o rbits. The image\, from the ThunderKAT collaboration on the MeerKAT radio telescope situated in South Africa \, shows the bright core-and-lobe struc ture of Cir X-1 ‘s currently active jets inside the nebula. A mere 4600 years old\, Cir X-1 could be the “Little Sister” of microquasar SS 433 *. However\, the newly discovered bubble exiting from a ring-like hole in the upper right of the nebula\, along with a ring to the bottom left\, de monstrate that other jets previously existed. Computer simulations indicat e those jets formed within 100 years of the explosion and lasted up to 100 0 years. Surprisingly \, to create the observed bubble\, the jets need to be more powerful than young neutron star s were previously thought to prod uce. Open Science: Browse 3\,700+ codes in the Astrophysics Source Code Li brary\n\nImage Credit: J. English ( U. Manitoba ) & K. Gasealahwe ( U. Cap e Town )\, SARAO \, MeerKAT \, ThunderKAT \; Science: K. Gasealahwe\, K. S avard ( U. Oxford ) et al. \; Text: J. English & K. Savard\nhttps://scienc e.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-september-3-cir-x1-jets-in-the-africa-n ebula/ SUMMARY:Cir X1: Jets in the Africa Nebula END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003406Z UID:the-horsehead-and-flame-nebulas DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20250902 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20250903 DESCRIPTION:The Horsehead Nebula is one of the most famous nebulae on the s ky. It is visible as the dark indentation to the orange emission nebula at the far right of the featured picture . The horse-head feature is dark be cause it is really an opaque dust cloud that lies in front of the bright e mission nebula . Like clouds in Earth’s atmosphere \, this cosmic cloud has assumed a recognizable shape by chance. After many thousands of years \, the internal motions of the cloud will surely alter its appearance. The emission nebula ‘s orange color is caused by electrons recombining with protons to form hydrogen atoms. Toward the lower left of the image is the Flame Nebula \, an orange-tinged nebula that also contains intricate fila ments of dark dust.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Daniel Stern\nhttps://sci ence.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-september-2-the-horsehead-and-flame- nebulas/ SUMMARY:The Horsehead and Flame Nebulas END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003406Z UID:callisto-dirty-battered-iceball DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20250901 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20250902 DESCRIPTION:Its surface is the most densely cratered in the Solar System — but what’s inside? Jupiter ‘s moon Callisto is a battered ball of dirty ice that is slightly smaller than the planet Mercury . It was visite d by NASA’s Galileo spacecraft in the 1990s and 2000s\, but the recently reprocessed featured image is from a flyby of NASA’s Voyager 2 in 1979. The moon would appear darker if it weren’t for the tapestry of light-co lored fractured surface ice created by eons of impacts. The interior of Ca llisto is potentially even more interesting because therein might lie an i nternal layer of liquid water. This potential underground sea is a candida te to harbor life — similar with sister moons Europa and Ganymede . Call isto is larger than Luna \, Earth’s Moon \, and even with its high ice c ontent is still more massive. ESA’s JUICE and NASA’s Europa Clipper mi ssions are now headed out to Jupiter to better investigate its largest moo ns .\n\nImage Credit: NASA \, JPL-Caltech \, Voyager 2 \; Processing & Lic ense : Kevin M. Gill \;\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025- september-1-callisto-dirty-battered-iceball/ SUMMARY:Callisto: Dirty Battered Iceball END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003406Z UID:ngc-7027-the-pillow-planetary-nebula DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20250831 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20250901 DESCRIPTION:What created this unusual planetary nebula? Dubbed the Pillow N ebula and the Flying Carpet Nebula\, NGC 7027 is one of the smallest\, bri ghtest\, and most unusually shaped planetary nebula s known. Given its exp ansion rate\, NGC 7027 first started expanding\, as visible from Earth\, a bout 600 years ago. For much of its history\, the planetary nebula has bee n expelling shells\, as seen in blue in the featured image by the Hubble S pace Telescope . In modern times\, though\, for reasons unknown \, it bega n ejecting gas and dust (seen in brown) in specific directions that create d a new pattern that seems to have four corners . What lies at the nebula ’s center is unknown\, with one hypothesis holding it to be a close bina ry star system where one star sheds gas onto an erratic disk orbiting the other star. NGC 7027\, about 3\,000 light years away\, was first discovere d in 1878 and can be seen with a standard backyard telescope toward the co nstellation of the Swan ( Cygnus ).\n\nImage Credit: NASA \, ESA \, Hubble \; Processing: Delio Tolivia Cadrecha\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-art icle/apod-2025-august-31-ngc-7027-the-pillow-planetary-nebula/ SUMMARY:NGC 7027: The Pillow Planetary Nebula END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003406Z UID:a-two-percent-moon DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20250830 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20250831 DESCRIPTION:A young crescent moon can be hard to see . That’s because whe n the Moon shows its crescent phase (young or old) it can never be far fro m the Sun in planet Earth’s sky . But even though the sky is still brigh t\, a slender sunlit lunar crescent is clearly visible in this early eveni ng skyscape . The telephoto snapshot was captured on August 24\, with the Moon very near the western horizon at sunset. Seen in a narrow crescent ph ase about 1.5 days old\, the visible sunlit portion is a mere two percent of the surface of the Moon’s familiar nearside. At the Canary Islands Sp ace Centre \, a steerable radio dish for communication with spacecraft is tilted in the direction of the two percent Moon. The sunset sky’s pastel pinkish coloring is partly due to fine sand and dust from the Sahara Dese rt blown by the prevailing winds.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Marina Prol \nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-august-30-a-two-percent -moon/ SUMMARY:A Two Percent Moon END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003406Z UID:a-dark-veil-in-ophiuchus DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20250829 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20250830 DESCRIPTION:The diffuse hydrogen-alpha glow of emission region Sh2-27 fills this cosmic scene. The field of view spans nearly 3 degrees across the ne bula-rich constellation Ophiuchus toward the central Milky Way . A Dark Ve il of wispy interstellar dust clouds draped across the foreground is chief ly identified as LDN 234 and LDN 204 from the 1962 Catalog of Dark Nebulae by American astronomer Beverly Lynds . Sh2-27 itself is the large but fai nt HII region surrounding runaway O-type star Zeta Ophiuchi. Along with th e Zeta Oph HII region\, LDN 234 and LDN 204 are likely 500 or so light-yea rs away. At that distance\, this telescopic frame would be about 25 light- years wide.\n\nImage Credit & Copyright: Katelyn Beecroft\nhttps://science .nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2025-august-29-a-dark-veil-in-ophiuchus/ SUMMARY:A Dark Veil in Ophiuchus END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003406Z UID:galaxies-stars-and-dust DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20250828 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20250829 DESCRIPTION:This well-composed telescopic field of view covers over a Full Moon on the sky toward the high-flying constellation Pegasus. Of course th e brighter stars show diffraction spikes \, the commonly seen effect of in ternal supports in reflecting telescopes \, and lie well within our own Mi lky Way galaxy . The faint but pervasive clouds of interstellar dust ride above the galactic plane and dimly reflect the Milky Way’s starlight. Kn own as galactic cirrus or integrated flux nebulae they are associated with the Milky Way’s molecular clouds. In fact\, the diffuse cloud cataloged as MBM 54 \, less than a thousand light-years distant\, fills the scene. The galaxy seemingly tangled in the dusty cloud is the striking spiral gal axy NGC 7497. It’s some 60 million light-years away\, though. Seen almos t edge-on near the center of the field\, NGC 7497’s own spiral arms and dust lanes echo the colors of stars and dust in our own Milky Way .\n\nIma ge Credit & Copyright: Robert Eder\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article /apod-2025-august-28-galaxies-stars-and-dust/ SUMMARY:Galaxies\, Stars\, and Dust END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003406Z UID:selfie-at-vera-rubin-ridge DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20261003 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20261004 DESCRIPTION:On sol 1943 of its journey of exploration across the surface of Mars\, the Curiosity Rover recorded this selfie at the south rim of Vera Rubin Ridge. Of course a sol is a Martian solar day\, about 40 minutes lon ger than an Earth day. Curiosity’s sol 1943 corresponds to Earth date Ja nuary 23\, 2018. Also composed as an interactive 360 degree VR\, the mosai cked panorama combines 61 exposures taken by the small car-sized rover’s Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI). Frames containing the imager’s arm have been edited out while the extended background used was taken by the rover ’s Mastcam on sol 1903. At the top of the rover’s mast\, sitting above the Mastcam\, the laser-firing ChemCam housing blocks out the distant\, 5 kilometer high peak of Mount Sharp. On Earth date August 26\, 2026\, Curi osity marked an total elevation gain of 1 kilometer in its trek from the f loor of Gale Crater up the slope of Mount Sharp.APOD’s email for image s ubmissions has changed. Please see: APOD Submissions.\n\nCredit: Image Cre dit: NASA\, JPL-Caltech\, MSSS – Panorama: Andrew Bodrov\nhttps://scienc e.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-october-3-selfie-at-vera-rubin-ridge/ SUMMARY:Selfie at Vera Rubin Ridge END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003406Z UID:supernumerary-rainbows-over-new-jersey DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20261004 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20261005 DESCRIPTION:Yes\, but can your rainbow do this? After the remnants of Hurri cane Florence passed over the Jersey Shore\, New Jersey\, USA in 2018\, th e Sun came out in one direction but something quite unusual appeared in th e opposite direction: a hall of rainbows. Over the course of the next half hour\, to the delight of the photographer and his daughter\, vibrant supe rnumerary rainbows faded in and out\, with at least five captured in this featured single shot. Supernumerary rainbows only form when falling water droplets are all nearly the same size and typically less than a millimeter across. Then\, sunlight will not only reflect from inside the raindrops\, but interfere\, a wave phenomenon similar to ripples on a pond when a sto ne is thrown in. In fact\, supernumerary rainbows can only be explained wi th waves\, and their noted existence in the early 1800s was considered ear ly evidence of light’s wave nature.Your Sky Surprise: What picture did A POD feature on your birthday? (post 1995)\n\nCredit & Copyright John Entwi stle\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-october-4-supernume rary-rainbows-over-new-jersey/ SUMMARY:Supernumerary Rainbows over New Jersey END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003406Z UID:m104-the-sombrero-galaxy-s-tidal-streams DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20261005 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20261006 DESCRIPTION:A deep image of the Sombrero galaxy reveals surprises. M104 is named the Sombrero galaxy because\, on shorter exposures\, it looks like a hat. A key defining feature of this huge galaxy is a dark brim of dust th at circles the disk galaxy’s center. A much longer exposure\, however\, brings up a hairy past where a bright\, hazy halo is revealed that extends well past the central disk and contains many unresolved stars. Surprising ly\, in this stellar haze\, structures can be seen that include a diagonal ring. These structures and tidal streams provide fresh evidence that M104 had a violent past and is surely the result of collisions and mergers of smaller galaxies. Light takes about 30 million years to reach us from the Sombrero galaxy\, which fully spans about 150 thousand light years across. The featured image was taken over seven days in mid-2026 from Namibia.You r Sky Surprise: What picture did APOD feature on your birthday? (post 1995 )\n\nCredit & Copyright Engelbert Vollmer\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image- article/apod-2026-october-5-m104-the-sombrero-galaxys-tidal-streams/ SUMMARY:M104: The Sombrero Galaxy’s Tidal Streams END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003406Z UID:a-complete-auroral-oval-from-smile DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20261006 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20261007 DESCRIPTION:Have you ever seen a complete auroral oval? You can’t see one from the ground because it makes too large a circle around one of Earth ’s magnetic poles. But spacecraft high above the Earth can see them. The featured video from ESA and CAS‘s robotic SMILE spacecraft shows not on ly a full auroral oval\, but using ultraviolet light\, one that occurred d uring the day. The time-lapse covers about an hour in late July and shows visually how variable and turbulent auroras really are. The points of ligh t on the sides are distant stars that appear to move only because SMILE’ s camera view shifts as the spacecraft orbits the Earth. A goal of SMILE i s to better understand how the Sun’s wind interacts with the Earth’s m agnetosphere — and so better understand how to protect astronauts\, spac ecraft\, and ground-based electrical grids from solar storms.\n\nCredit: E SA\, CAS\, SMILE\, UVI\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-o ctober-6-a-complete-auroral-oval-from-smile/ SUMMARY:A Complete Auroral Oval from SMILE END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003406Z UID:supernova-remnant-pa-30 DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20261007 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20261008 DESCRIPTION:“Happy New Year!” No\, wait\, this is not a fireworks displ ay. This image shows Nebula Pa 30\, observed with the Gemini North Telesco pe in Hawai’i. It is likely the remnant of an old supernova explosion: s eparate historical records by Chinese\, Japanese and Arabic astronomers te ll of a “guest star” that appeared in the sky for 185 days in the year 1181. It is believed that this bright new point of light came from the su pernova that caused the fireworks in Pa 30. Astronomers don’t know exact ly what happened in this unusual explosion\, classified as a Type Iax supe rnova\, but it is thought to be caused by the merger of two white dwarfs. The mysterious central star in the image is extremely hot and produces a s trong wind\, possibly forming the radial filaments. Look closely at them: those pearl-like knots stringing the filaments are 4 light-days in diamete r. Understanding how a supernova created this amazing nebula continues an 845-year old mystery (and counting).\n\nCredit & License International Gem ini Observatory/NOIRLab/NSF/AURA. Acknowledgment: PI: T. Cunningham (Cente r for Astrophysics – Harvard & Smithsonian). Image Processing: J. Miller & M. Rodriguez (International Gemini Observatory/NSF NOIRLab)\, T.A. Rect or (University of Alaska Anchorage/NSF NOIRLab)\, D. de Martin & M. Zamani (NSF NOIRLab).\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-october- 7-supernova-remnant-pa-30/ SUMMARY:Supernova Remnant Pa 30 END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003406Z UID:the-saturn-system-smorgasbord DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20261008 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20261009 DESCRIPTION:How was the Saturn system imaged so clearly? Astrophotographer Tom Williams captured such exquisite details due to one night of exception al atmospheric conditions above the United Kingdom. This means more than a cloudless sky. Pockets of air at different temperatures and densities mov e around and bend light as it travels through Earth’s atmosphere\, disto rting astronomy images. This is called “seeing”. Less atmospheric turb ulence means clearer images. The astrophotographer reduced the impact of s eeing with the lucky imaging technique: thousands of short-exposure images are taken very quickly with a high-speed camera and the clearest images a re added up. Which object in this smörgåsbord interests you? Perhaps Tit an or the icy stripes of Enceladus? Maybe the gaps and spokes in Saturn’ s rings? Saturn’s opposition\, when Earth passes in between the planet a nd the Sun\, occurred on October 4th. Due to the planet’s proximity and full illumination from the Sun\, now is a great time of year to observe it !\n\nCredit: Tom Williams\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-202 6-october-8-the-saturn-system-smorgasbord/ SUMMARY:The Saturn System Smörgåsbord END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003406Z UID:stickney-crater DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20261009 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20261010 DESCRIPTION:Stickney Crater\, the largest crater on the martian moon Phobos \, is named for Chloe Angeline Stickney Hall\, mathematician and wife of a stronomer Asaph Hall. Asaph Hall discovered both the Red Planet’s moons in 1877. Over 9 kilometers across\, Stickney is nearly half the diameter o f Phobos itself\, so large that the impact that blasted out the crater lik ely came close to shattering the tiny moon. This enhanced-color image of S tickney and surroundings was recorded by the HiRISE camera onboard the Mar s Reconnaissance Orbiter as it passed within some six thousand kilometers of Phobos in March of 2008. Even though the surface gravity of asteroid-li ke Phobos is less than 1/1000th Earth’s gravity\, streaks suggest loose material slid down inside the crater walls over time. Light bluish regions near the crater’s rim could indicate a relatively freshly exposed surfa ce. The origin of the curious grooves along the surface is mysterious but may be related to tidal stresses experienced by close-orbiting Phobos or t he crater-forming impact itself.\n\nCredit: HiRISE\, MRO\, LPL (U. Arizona )\, NASA\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-october-9-stick ney-crater/ SUMMARY:Stickney Crater END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003406Z UID:lunar-farside DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20261010 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20261011 DESCRIPTION:Tidally locked in synchronous rotation\, the Moon always presen ts its familiar nearside to denizens of planet Earth. From lunar orbit\, t he Moon’s farside can become familiar\, though. In fact this sharp pictu re\, a mosaic from the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter’s wide angle camera\ , is centered on the lunar farside. Part of a global mosaic of over 15\,00 0 images acquired between November 2009 and February 2011\, the highest re solution version shows features at a scale of 100 meters per pixel. Surpri singly\, the rough and battered surface of the farside looks very differen t from the nearside covered with smooth dark lunar maria. A likely explana tion is that the farside crust is thicker\, making it harder for molten ma terial from the interior to flow to the surface and form dark\, smooth mar ia.\n\nCredit: NASA / GSFC / Arizona State Univ. / Lunar Reconnaissance Or biter\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-october-10-lunar-f arside/ SUMMARY:Lunar Farside END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003406Z UID:ice-fishing-for-cosmic-neutrinos DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20261011 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20261012 DESCRIPTION:Scientists are melting holes in the bottom of the world. In fac t\, almost 100 holes melted near the South Pole are now being used as an a stronomical observatory. Astronomers with the IceCube Neutrino Observatory lowered a long string knotted with basketball-sized light detectors into each vertical lake. The water in each hole soon refreezes. The detectors a ttached to the strings are sensitive to blue light emitted in the surround ing clear ice. Such light results from fast-moving secondary particles lib erated when high-energy neutrinos emitted by powerful processes out in the universe collide with ice molecules. IceCube has now detected many illumi nating neutrinos. Pictured in 2010\, one of the last of IceCube’s detect or strings is lowered into the freezing abyss\, making IceCube the largest neutrino detector ever created. In recognition of unprecedented discoveri es\, it was announced earlier this week that a founding leader of the IceC ube Collaboration will be awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics.\n\nCredit: N SF\, B. Gudbjartsson\, IceCube Collaboration\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/ima ge-article/apod-2026-october-11-ice-fishing-for-cosmic-neutrinos/ SUMMARY:Ice Fishing for Cosmic Neutrinos END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003406Z UID:jupiter-and-the-moons DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20261012 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20261013 DESCRIPTION:How many moons can you see? The best answer is five: four orbit ing Jupiter and Luna orbiting Earth. This multi-moon picture was possible because Earth’s Moon moved directly in front of Jupiter last week. The f eatured image is a series of exposures near alignment taken from Westchest er\, New York\, USA. The sunlit crescent of Earth’s Moon\, on the lower left\, is overexposed\, while the Moon’s night side\, on the upper right \, is faintly illuminated by Earthshine. Lined up nearly vertically above our Moon\, listed from bottom to top\, are Jupiter’s bright Galilean sat ellites: Ganymede\, Io\, Callisto\, and Europa. Callisto\, Ganymede\, and Io are larger than Earth’s Moon\, while Europa is only slightly smaller. NASA’s robotic spacecraft Juno is currently orbiting Jupiter and has ma de close passes near three of these moons.\n\nCredit & Copyright: Chirag U preti\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-october-12-jupiter -and-the-moons/ SUMMARY:Jupiter and the Moons END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003406Z UID:desert-stairway-to-heaven DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20261013 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20261014 DESCRIPTION:This stairway in Chile brings you only a little bit closer to h eaven. But ooh\, the sky above it makes you wonder. For example\, you may wonder about the dark lane of our own Milky Way galaxy rising behind the e xpansive Atacama Desert in Chile\, the band of zodiacal light on the upper left\, the green and red airglow just above the horizon\, the star Spica in the zodiacal light stripe\, and\, at the very top on the right\, the Sm all Magellanic Cloud galaxy. The Desert Staircase sculpture is in the fore ground\, and this image was timed to catch the picturesque peering perch j ust in front of the near-vertical Milky Way band. Upon close inspection of the horizon you can find\, left to right\, some Andes Mountains\, the Lic ancabur volcano\, and the town lights of San Pedro de Atacama. The feature d wide-angle composite was captured in July 2025.\n\nCredit & Copyright Ju lien Looten\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-october-13-d esert-stairway-to-heaven/ SUMMARY:Desert Stairway to Heaven END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003406Z UID:mars-and-the-beehive-under-an-aurora DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20261014 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20261015 DESCRIPTION:What a cosmic coincidence! In today’s image\, Mars joins the Beehive cluster (M44 or Praesepe) below an auroral curtain and above a hor izon of happy little trees near Lansjärv\, Sweden. An eruption off the Su n reached Earth on October 10th\, 2026 causing strong disturbances in Eart h’s magnetic field. Energetic particles from the eruption collide with a nd energize the molecules in Earth’s atmosphere\, which release that ext ra energy as the colorful aurora captured here. Auroras\, or guovssahasat in North Sámi\, is traditionally viewed with respect by the Sámi people indigenous to Sweden and other Arctic regions. Coincidentally\, Mars appea red closest to the center of the Beehive cluster in the sky at the time. A lthough bees have been to space\, the Beehive cluster is actually a swarm of young stars. Their rotation periods have helped humanity learn about ho w stars spin slower over time as they lose mass through their stellar wind s.\n\nCredit: Petr Horálek (Institute of Physics in Opava)\, Josef Kujal\ , Vojan Höfer\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-october-1 4-mars-and-the-beehive-under-an-aurora/ SUMMARY:Mars and the Beehive Under an Aurora END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003406Z UID:the-milky-way-over-manhattan DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20261015 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20261016 DESCRIPTION:The city lights outshine the stars in the City That Never Sleep s. Who would have thought that the Milky Way could be visible in this sky? This image was taken with a filter that blocks most visible light\, captu ring instead only light in the near-infrared region of the electromagnetic spectrum (with lower energy than visible light). The astrophotographer’ s clever setup blocks most of the light pollution from the city: old incan descent light bulbs and some neon lights are still bright in the near-infr ared\, but fluorescent and LED light bulbs are not. Of course\, stars are also bright in the near-infrared! This image is a reminder that we all liv e under the same sky\, and astronomy allows all of us to learn more about humanity’s place in the Cosmos.\n\nCredit & Copyright Jason Kurth\, Ty B uckley\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-october-15-the-mi lky-way-over-manhattan/ SUMMARY:The Milky Way over Manhattan END:VEVENT BEGIN:VEVENT DTSTAMP:20261017T003406Z UID:chasing-the-international-space-station DTSTART;VALUE=DATE:20261016 DTEND;VALUE=DATE:20261017 DESCRIPTION:Blasting into the predawn sky on Tuesday\, October 13\, a Falco n 9 rocket and Dragon spacecraft are headed for low Earth orbit in this st unning timelapse video captured from Indian Harbour Beach\, Florida. Start ing with a launch from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space For ce Station\, Falcon and Dragon are chasing the International Space Station on NASA’s 35th Commercial Resupply Services mission. On cue\, the space station itself enters the frame from the top. Almost 8 seconds into the 3 0 second timelapse. the bright streak of the ISS appears heading “down ” toward the horizon. The first and second stages of the Falcon 9 are se parating as the spectacular exhaust plume jellyfish grows\, already catchi ng the light of the rising Sun. The visible sequence of first stage boost back\, re-entry\, and landing burns begins around 20 seconds into the vide o. With the second stage following the ISS toward the distant horizon\, th e jellyfish plume continues to drift in the predawn sky\, even after the s uccessful first stage landing at planet Earth’s Landing Zone 40.\n\nCred it: Eric Holland\nhttps://science.nasa.gov/image-article/apod-2026-october -16-chasing-the-international-space-station/ SUMMARY:Chasing the International Space Station END:VEVENT END:VCALENDAR