On Earth, there is a phenomenon known as nightglow, where the atmosphere experiences faint light emissions that prevent the night sky from becoming completely dark. This is caused by various processes in the upper atmosphere, like the recombination of atoms, cosmic rays striking the atmosphere, or oxygen and nitrogen interacting with hydroxyl a few hundred kilometers from the surface. Thanks to data obtained by the ESA’s ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO), the same phenomenon has been observed in the Martian atmosphere for the first time.
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This solar eruption was so powerful it warped the sun's magnetic field (video)
Satellites observed a coronal mass ejection on Wednesday (Nov. 15), capturing a bright burst of super-hot plasma that warped the sun's magnetic field.
Can a Dead Star Keep Exploding?
In September 2022, an automated sky survey detected what seemed to be a supernova explosion about one billion light-years away. The Zwicky Transient Facility (ZTF) spotted it and gave it the name AT2022tsd. But something was different about this supernova. Supernovae explode and shine brightly for months, while AT2022tsd exploded brightly and then faded within days.
Volcanic 'Devil Comet' erupts with its biggest blast yet as it races toward Earth
An icy volcanic comet that is three times as large as Mount Everest, nicknamed the "Devil Comet," erupted again Nov. 14. This is the fourth explosive event for 12P/Pons-Brooks since July 2023.
'For All Mankind' season 4 episode 2 review: A brilliant exploration of the haves and have-nots on Mars
Season 4 finds its groove with a story about divisions on the Happy Valley base — and the importance of a fast internet connection.
Satellites watch lava flows of Italy's Mount Etna volcano eruption (image)
Sicily's Mount Etna volcano erupted on Nov. 12, and ESA satellites caught the event in infrared.
April 2024 total solar eclipse viewing events: Parties, festivals and more
Celebrate April's total solar eclipse with these 10 awesome viewing events, parties and festivals.
See the highest-resolution image ever snapped by ALMA radio telescope
A new calibration technique allowed the ALMA radio telescope to capture its highest-resolution image ever, featuring a star in the final stages of its evolution.
These SpaceX fans say they'll stay after 1-day Starship launch delay to Saturday
Travelers from near and far aren't letting the launch delay deprive them of their chance to see the world's largest rocket — Starship — take flight.
Say goodbye to Mars! The Red Planet hides behind the sun for 2 weeks
Mars will disappear from the sky for a few weeks on Saturday (Nov. 18), moving to the opposite side of the sun as seen from Earth during the Red Planet’s period of solar conjunction.
Lego's Apollo 11 Lunar Lander is 20% off this weekend
This deal is exclusive to Lego Insiders members, it goes live this weekend and it's free to sign up.
Some exoplanets are shrinking. Here's why
Data from NASA's Kepler telescope shows why puffy sub-Neptunes are shrinking to rocky super-Earths.
Algol, the 'Demon star of Perseus,' gets eclipsed this week. Here's how to see it
The "Demon Star" of Algol gets eclipsed this week by one of its stellar siblings. Here's what you need to know.
Lost astronaut tool bag from ISS shines in new telescope image (photo)
Astronauts on the International Space Station harmlessly lost a tool bag during a spacewalk on Nov. 1. A new telescope image from Rome shows the stray bag shining among the stars.
This Week's Sky at a Glance, November 17 – 26
The bright gibbous Moon this week passes Saturn, then Jupiter, inviting telescopes of all sizes. And as winter approaches, Orion rises earlier and earlier.
Earth from Space: North Channel
Image: The North Channel, between Northern Ireland and Scotland, is featured in this false-colour radar image from the Copernicus Sentinel-1 mission.
Hubble Succeeds Where TESS Couldn’t: It Measured the Nearest Transiting Earth-Sized Planet
Twenty-two light-years away, a rocky world orbits a red dwarf. It’s called LTT 1445Ac, and NASA’s Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) found it in 2022. However, TESS was unable to gauge the small planet’s size.
An Asteroid Will Occult Betelgeuse on December 12th
I cannot for the life of me remember when it was or what it was but a fair few years ago I remember positioning a telescope to observe an asteroid as it silently and perhaps slightly eerily drifted between us and the Moon. I say eerily as this asteroid had the ability to cause widespread damage had it hit but of course we knew it posed no threat. I remember at the time thinking it was mind blowing that even today, we still use mathematics with roots (pardon the pun) centuries old to calculate the position of objects in our Solar System. We get to see evidence of this again on 12th December when something rare happens!
