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.
The Seasons of Saturn
Since Saturn's axis is tilted as it orbits the Sun , Saturn has seasons , like those of planet Earth ... but Saturn's seasons last for over seven years. So what season is it on…
Comet Lemmon and the Deep Sky
Now sweeping high above the ecliptic plane, Comet Lemmon has faded dramatically in planet Earth's night sky as it heads for the outer solar system. Some 16 light-minutes (2 AU)…
Take a Picture of Saturn
Take a picture of Saturn in the sky tonight. You could capture a view like this one. Recorded just last month looking toward the south, planet Earth and ruins of the ancient…
Hidden Galaxy IC 342
Similar in size to large, bright spiral galaxies in our neighborhood, IC 342 is a mere 10 million light-years distant in the long-necked, northern constellation Camelopardalis . A…
A Waterspout in Florida
What's happening over the water? Pictured above is one of the better images yet recorded of a waterspout , a type of tornado that occurs over water. Waterspouts are spinning…
The Moon from Zond 8
Which moon is this? Earth's. Our Moon's unfamiliar appearance is due partly to an unfamiliar viewing angle as captured by a little-known spacecraft -- the Soviet Union's Zond 8…
The Sombrero Galaxy from Hale
What's going on in the center of this spiral galaxy? Named the Sombrero Galaxy for its hat-like resemblance, M104 features a prominent dust lane and a bright halo of stars and…
The Pillars of Eagle Castle
What lights up this castle of star formation? The familiar Eagle Nebula glows bright in many colors at once. The above image is a composite of three of these glowing gas colors.…
Sunspot at Sunset
Reddened rays of the setting Sun flooded the skies over Cedar Creek Lake, southeast of Dallas, Texas, planet Earth on July 6th. And while sunsets may be the most watched celestial…
Messier's Eleven
This fifteen degree wide field of view stretches across the crowded starfields of Sagittarius toward the center of our Milky Way galaxy. In fact, the center of the galaxy lies…
Dusty Nebulae in Taurus
This complex of dusty nebulae linger along the edge of the Taurus molecular cloud , a mere 450 light-years distant. Stars are forming on the cosmic scene, including extremely…
Large Sunspots Now Crossing the Sun
One of the largest sunspot regions in recent years is now crossing the Sun. This region of convoluted magnetic fields may well produce a solar flare that releases a cloud of…
Supergiant Star Gamma Cygni
Supergiant star Gamma Cygni lies at the center of the Northern Cross, a famous asterism in the constellation of the Swan ( Cygnus ). Known by the proper name Sadr, the bright star…
Pluto's Newly Discovered Moons Receive Names
Pluto's newly discovered moons now have names. Known previously as P4 and P5 , the International Astronomical Union has now given the fourth and fifth discovered moons of Pluto…
NGC 2170: Still Life with Reflecting Dust
In this beautiful celestial still life composed with a cosmic brush, dusty nebula NGC 2170 shines at the upper left. Reflecting the light of nearby hot stars, NGC 2170 is joined…
NGC 6384: Spiral Beyond the Stars
The universe is filled with galaxies . But to see them astronomers must look out beyond the stars of our own galaxy, the Milky Way . This colorful Hubble Space Telescopic portrait…
Globular Star Cluster NGC 6752
Some 13,000 light-years away toward the southern constellation Pavo, the globular star cluster NGC 6752 roams the halo of our Milky Way galaxy. Over 10 billion years old, NGC 6752…
M82: Starburst Galaxy with a Superwind
Also known as the Cigar Galaxy for its elongated visual appearance, M82 is a starburst galaxy with a superwind. In fact , through ensuing supernova explosions and powerful winds…
Stars and Lightning Over Greece
It may appear, at first, like the Galaxy is producing the lightning, but really it's the Earth. In the foreground of the above picturesque nighttime landscape is the Greek Island…
Circling a Black Hole at its Photon Sphere
What would it look like to go right up to a black hole? One particularly interesting place near a black hole is its photon sphere, where photons can orbit in circles, a sphere 50…
Orbiting a Black Hole
What would it look like to orbit a black hole? Since the strong gravity of the black hole can significantly alter light paths, conditions would indeed look strange. For one thing,…
Saturn's Hyperion: A Moon with Odd Craters
What lies at the bottom of Hyperion 's strange craters? Nobody's sure . To help find out, the robot Cassini spacecraft now orbiting Saturn swooped past the sponge-textured moon in…
PanSTARRS: The Anti Tail Comet
Once known as Earth's sunset comet , PanSTARRS (C/2011 L4) is up all night now, but only for northern hemisphere skygazers. Telescopes are required to track its progress as it…
A Super Moon's Halo
A Full Perigee Moon rose as the Sun set last Sunday. At its closest to Earth it was, by just a bit, the year's brightest and largest Full Moon also known as a Super Moon . Seen…
Viewing discoveries from 21 July 2013 through 28 June 2013.