Sky and Solar

When not to watch a meteor shower — why I'm not staying up for the Orionids
16 October 2026

The Orionid meteor shower peaks next week, but a bright moon makes much of the night less than ideal. Sometimes the sensible observing decision is knowing when to stay in bed — and when to get up early.
Scientists find 'gemstones' in atmosphere of bizarre, scorching-hot 'marshmallow' exoplanet
16 October 2026

Using data from the James Webb Space Telescope, astronomers have unravelled some of the secrets of a bizarre, blisteringly hot exoplanet that has the consistency of marshmallow.
How to see the Orionid meteor shower 2026 peak this week — and when to look
16 October 2026

The Orionids peak around Oct. 21. Here's when and where to look for the best chance of spotting meteors.
SpaceX thrusters just made a Tesla Roadster 'fly' (and Elon Musk's car is still out there in space)
16 October 2026

Tesla just unveiled its new Roadster with a spectacular stunt, using SpaceX thrusters to make the sleek vehicle "fly."
On this day in space! Oct. 16, 1975: NASA launches the 1st-ever GOES weather satellite to watch Earth from space
16 October 2026

On Oct. 16, 1975, NASA launched the first operational GOES weather satellite. Here's why it mattered.

Happy New Year, Mars! The Red Planet is turning 39
29 September 2026

On 30 September the Red Planet officially begins Mars Year 39. Which is quite an achievement for a world that is actually more than 4.5 billion years old.
3I/ATLAS was born in the deep freeze
08 September 2026

Another piece of evidence suggests that this visitor formed in the bitterly cold outer reaches of a distant planetary system.
Roman Space Telescope launches on mission to survey the Universe
30 August 2026

NASA’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope has begun its journey into space, starting a mission that will survey the Universe on an unprecedented scale in search of clues to dark energy, dark matter and worlds beyond our Solar System.
JWST’s ‘impossible’ early galaxies may be even more massive than we thought
24 August 2026

Faint, low-mass stars could be hiding much of the mass in distant galaxies, making the surprisingly large galaxies discovered by JWST in the early Universe even harder to explain.
How to observe the 12 August 2026 solar eclipse
07 August 2026

On the evening of 12 August 2026, the Moon will pass between Earth and the Sun, producing a striking solar eclipse. Find out how, when and where to observe it safely.
Falcon 9 lunar impact: More than a new crater
05 August 2026

Today’s impact of a spent Falcon 9 rocket stage on the Moon may sound dramatic, but it is neither the first human-made object to strike our natural satellite nor the largest.