Browse NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day archive by date and media: Archive Discoveries
Browse the NASA APOD archive without needing the exact date first. Filter by media type and keep moving deeper into older images and videos.
Planets over Paranal
Very bright planets and very large telescopes are part of this sunset view of Paranal Observatory . The observatory's four, massive 8.2 meter telescope units are situated on top…
The International Space Station from Orbit
The International Space Station (ISS) is the largest human-made object ever to orbit the Earth . Late last month and earlier this month, the station was visited and resupplied by…
Perseid Meteors and the Milky Way
Where will the next Perseid meteor appear? Sky enthusiasts who trekked outside for the Perseid meteor shower that peaked over the past few days typically had this question on…
Heating Coronal Loops
Why is the corona of the Sun so hot? Extending above the photosphere or visible surface of the Sun , the faint, tenuous solar corona can't be easily seen from Earth, but it is…
SNR 0103-72.6: Oxygen Supply
A supernova explosion, a massive star's inevitable and spectacular demise , blasts back into space debris enriched in the heavy elements forged in its stellar core . Incorporated…
A Meteor Shower Fireball Movie
Go outside tonight and see a celestial light show -- the later the better. Tonight is the peak of the month-long Perseid Meteor Shower . Although visible every year at this time,…
Young Suns of NGC 7129
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 about a…
The Heart and Soul Nebulas
Is the heart and soul of our Galaxy located in Cassiopeia ? Possibly not, but that is where two bright emission nebulas nicknamed Heart and Soul can be found. The Heart Nebula ,…
The Belt of Venus over Elwood Beach
Although you've surely seen it, you might not have noticed it. During a cloudless twilight , just before sunrise or after sunset , part of the atmosphere above the horizon appears…
Mars to Appear Normal This August
Will Mars appear extremely close and bright later this month? No . Regardless of numerous urban legends circulating, Mars will appear relatively normal in August. October is the…
Dueling Auroras
Will it be curtains for one of these auroras? A quick inspection indicates that it is curtains for both, as the designation “ curtains ” well categorizes the type of aurora…
Raining Perseids
Comet dust rained down on planet Earth last August, streaking through dark skies in the annual Perseid meteor shower . So, while enjoying the anticipated space weather, astronomer…
HD 188753: Triple Sunset
Although it looks like fiction, this artist's vision of sunset on an alien world is based on fact -- the recent discovery of a hot, jupiter-sized planet orbiting in triple star…
Stars Young and Old
Galactic or open star clusters are relatively young swarms of bright stars born together near the plane of our Milky Way Galaxy. Separated by about a degree on the sky, two nice…
The Busy Center of the Lagoon Nebula
Stars are battling gas and dust in the Lagoon Nebula but the photographers are winning. Also known as M8, this photogenic nebula is visible even without binoculars towards the…
A Shuttle Back Flip at the Space Station
Last week, crew members of the International Space Station (ISS) watched carefully as the Space Shuttle Discovery did a planned but unusual back flip upon approach. Discovery…
2003 UB313: A Tenth Planet?
Has a tenth planet been discovered? A newly discovered object , designated 2003 UB 313 and located more than twice the distance of Pluto , is expected to be at least as large as…
Solar System Object Larger than Pluto Discovered
Is that a tenth planet? A faint, slowly moving dot discovered by computer shows clear signs of being a deep Solar System object at least as large as Pluto . The object, designated…
M106 in Canes Venatici
Close to the Great Bear (Ursa Major) and surrounded by the stars of the Hunting Dogs (Canes Venatici), this celestial nebula was discovered in 1781 by the metric French astronomer…
ISS and Discovery Transit the Sun
That large sunspot near the right edge of the Sun is actually not a sunspot at all. It's the International Space Station ( ISS ) and the Space Shuttle Discovery on mission STS-114…
Spherical Planetary Nebula Abell 39
Ghostly in appearance, Abell 39 is a remarkably simple, spherical nebula about five light-years across. Well within our own Milky Way galaxy, the cosmic sphere is roughly 7,000…
America Returns to Human Space Flight
NASA 's launch of the massive Space Shuttle Discovery yesterday brought a nation known for its tremendous space program back to human space flight. Shuttle flights had been…
Hyperion: Sponge Moon of Saturn
Why is Saturn's moon Hyperion textured like a sponge? Recent high-resolution images from the robot Cassini spacecraft orbiting Saturn show Hyperion to be an even stranger place…
Unusual Gas Filaments Surround Galaxy NGC 1275
How were the unusual gas filaments surrounding galaxy NGC 1275 created? No one is sure. Galaxy NGC 1275 is the central dominant galaxy of the Perseus Cluster of Galaxies , a…
Viewing discoveries from 17 August 2005 through 25 July 2005.