Browse NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day archive by date and media: Archive Discoveries
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A Spectrum of Nova Delphini
When a new star appeared in the constellation Delphinus late last week, astronomers found its spectrum hinted at the apparition's true nature. Now known as Nova Delphini 2013, its…
IC 5067 in the Pelican Nebula
The prominent ridge of emission featured in this dramatic skyscape is cataloged as IC 5067 . Part of a larger emission nebula with a distinctive shape, popularly called The…
Perseid Meteors Over China
Comet dust rained down on planet Earth earlier this month, streaking through dark skies in the annual Perseid meteor shower . While enjoying the anticipated space weather above…
Venus and the Triply Ultraviolet Sun
An unusual type of solar eclipse occurred last year. Usually it is the Earth's Moon that eclipses the Sun. Last June, most unusually, the planet Venus took a turn. Like a solar…
Noctilucent Clouds and Aurora Over Scotland
Why would the sky still glow after sunset? Besides stars and the band of our Milky Way galaxy, the sky might glow because it contains either noctilucent clouds or aurora. Rare…
Skylab Over Earth
Skylab was an orbiting laboratory launched by a Saturn V rocket in May 1973. Skylab , pictured above , was visited three times by NASA astronauts who sometimes stayed as long as…
M8: The Lagoon Nebula
This beautiful cosmic cloud is a popular stop on telescopic tours of the constellation Sagittarius . Eighteenth century cosmic tourist Charles Messier cataloged the bright nebula…
Gallery:
Using a small telescope to scan the skies on August 14, Japanese amateur astronomer Koichi Itagaki discovered a “new” star within the boundaries of the constellation Delphinus.…
The Magellanic Stream
In an astronomical version of the search for the source of the Nile , astronomers now have strong evidence for the origin of the Magellanic Stream . This composite image shows the…
Moonset from Taiwan
It took three worlds to create this simple image. The first world was the Earth , which was quite prominent. The dividing line running horizontally below the middle separates sea…
Perseid Meteors Over Ontario
Where are all of these meteors coming from? In terms of direction on the sky, the pointed answer is the constellation of Perseus. That is why the meteor shower that peaked over…
Orbits of Potentially Hazardous Asteroids
Are asteroids dangerous? Some are, but the likelihood of a dangerous asteroid striking the Earth during any given year is low. Because some past mass extinction event s have been…
M74: The Perfect Spiral
If not perfect, then this spiral galaxy is at least one of the most photogenic. An island universe of about 100 billion stars, 32 million light-years away toward the constellation…
Perseids over Meteora
The two bright meteors flashing through this night skyscape from August 7 are part of the ongoing Perseid meteor shower . In the direction indicated by both colorful streaks, the…
Perseid over Albrechtsberg Castle
Medieval Albrechtsberg castle is nestled in trees near the northern bank of the river Pielach and the town of Melk, Austria . In clearing night skies on August 12, 2012 it stood…
NGC 3370: A Sharper View
Similar in size and grand design to our own Milky Way , spiral galaxy NGC 3370 lies about 100 million light-years away toward the constellation Leo. Recorded here in exquisite…
Meteors and Aurorae over Iceland
What's going on behind that mountain? Quite a bit. First of all, the mountain itself, named Kirkjufell , is quite old and located in western Iceland near the town of Grundarfjrur…
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…
Leaving Earth
What it would look like to leave planet Earth? Such an event was recorded visually in great detail by the MESSENGER spacecraft as it swung back past the Earth, eight years ago, on…
Io's Surface: Under Construction
Like the downtown area of your favorite city and any self-respecting web site ... Io's surface is constantly under construction . This moon of Jupiter holds the distinction of…
Twisting with NGC 3718
A careful look at this colorful cosmic snapshot reveals a surprising number of galaxies both near and far toward the constellation Ursa Major . The most striking is NGC 3718 , the…
Tropic of Cancer
This intriguing monument can be found in Taiwan between the cities of Hualian and Taitong. Split into two sides, it straddles a special circle of latitude on planet Earth, near…
Moon Over Andromeda
The Great Spiral Galaxy in Andromeda (aka M31), a mere 2.5 million light-years distant , is the closest large spiral to our own Milky Way. Andromeda is visible to the unaided eye…
130 Years of Earth Surface Temperatures
How has the surface temperature of Earth been changing? To help find out, Earth scientists collected temperature records from over 1000 weather stations around the globe since…
Viewing discoveries from 23 August 2013 through 31 July 2013.