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.
Shell Galaxy NGC 7600
Similar in size to the Milky Way, elliptical galaxy NGC 7600 is about 160 million light-years distant. In this deep image , spanning about 1/2 degree on the sky toward the…
Through a Sun Tunnel
Today the Sun stands still at 05:30 UT. Halting its steady march toward southern declinations and begining its annual journey north, the event is known as a solstice . In the…
A Horseshoe Einstein Ring from Hubble
What's large and blue and can wrap itself around an entire galaxy? A gravitational lens mirage. Pictured above , the gravity of a luminous red galaxy ( LRG ) has gravitationally…
NGC 253: The Sculptor Galaxy
NGC 253 is not only one of the brightest spiral galaxies visible, it is also one of the dustiest . Discovered in 1783 by Caroline Herschel in the constellation of Sculptor , NGC…
A Geminid Meteor Over Iran
Some beautiful things begin as grains of sand. Locked in an oyster, a granule grows into an iridescent pearl , lustrous and lovely to behold. While hurtling through the atmosphere…
Hints of Higgs from the LargeHadronCollider
Why do objects have mass? To help find out, Europe 's CERN has built the Large Hadron Collider (LHC), the most powerful particle accelerator yet created by humans . Since 2008,…
Comet Lovejoy: Sungrazing Survivor
Like most other sungrazing comets, Comet Lovejoy (C/2011 W3) was not expected to survive its close encounter with the Sun . But it did. This image from a coronograph onboard the…
Red Moon Rising
This surreal, wintry scene is a composite picture recorded on December 10 as the Moon rose behind the Zagros Mountains of Iran. A total lunar eclipse was already in progress . The…
The Umbra of Earth
The dark, inner shadow of planet Earth is called the umbra . Shaped like a cone extending into space, it has a circular cross section most easily seen during a lunar eclipse . For…
A Lunar Eclipse Over an Indian Peace Pagoda
Our Moon turned red last week. The reason was that during December 10, a total lunar eclipse occurred. The above digitally superimposed image mosaic captured the Moon many times…
In the Vicinity of the Cone Nebula
Strange shapes and textures can be found in neighborhood of the Cone Nebula . The unusual shapes originate from fine interstellar dust reacting in complex ways with the energetic…
An Unusual Vein of Deposited Rock on Mars
What could create this unusual vein of rock on Mars? A leading hypothesis is that this thin rock layer dubbed “Homestake” was deposited by a running liquid -- like most mineral…
Searching for Meteorites in Antarctica
Where is the best place on Earth to find meteorites ? Although meteors fall all over the world, they usually just sink to the bottom of an ocean , are buried by shifting terrain,…
Vesta Rocks
These colorful images are of thin slices of meteorites viewed through a polarizing microscope. Part of the group classified as HED (Howardite, Eucrite, Diogenite) meteorites for…
Eclipsed Moon in the Morning
Tomorrow, December 10 , the Full Moon will slide through planet Earth's shadow in a total lunar eclipse . The entire eclipse sequence , including 51 minutes of totality, will be…
Sh2-239: Celestial Impasto
The cosmic brush of star formation composed this alluring mix of dust and dark nebulae. Cataloged as Sh2-239 and LDN 1551, the region lies near the southern end of the Taurus…
Kepler 22b: An Almost Earth Orbiting an Almost Sun
It's the closest match to Earth that has yet been found. Recently discovered planet Kepler 22b has therefore instantly become the best place to find life outside our Solar System.…
Jupiter Rotation Movie from Pic du Midi
Observe the graceful twirl of the Solar System's largest planet. Many interesting features of Jupiter's enigmatic atmosphere, including dark bands and light zones, can be followed…
A Memorable Aurora Over Norway
It was one of the most memorable auroras of the season. There was green light , red light, and sometimes a mixture of the two. There were multiple rays , distinct curtains , and…
Light Echoes from V838 Mon
For reasons unknown , star V838 Mon 's outer surface suddenly greatly expanded with the result that it became the brightest star in the entire Milky Way Galaxy in January 2002.…
As Above, So Below
A single, long exposure captured these star trails above a remarkably colorful sea of clouds . As seen from Medvednica mountain, the surrounding peaks and lights illuminating the…
Solar Eclipse over Antarctica
Last Friday, the fourth and final partial solar eclipse of 2011 was only visible from high latitudes in the southern hemisphere. If you missed it, check out this dramatic picture…
Young Moon Meets Evening Star
Now appearing as planet Earth's evening star, brilliant Venus shines in western skies at twilight. Standing above a rugged horizon and warm sunset colors, the twilight's celestial…
Curiosity Rover Lifts Off for Mars
Next stop: Mars. This past weekend the Mars Science Laboratory carrying the Curiosity Rover blasted off for the red planet atop an Atlas V rocket from Cape Canaveral , Florida ,…
Viewing discoveries from 23 December 2011 through 30 November 2011.