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.
Light from Cygnus A
Celebrating astronomy in this International Year of Light , the detailed image reveals spectacular active galaxy Cygnus A in light across the electromagnetic spectrum.…
Interior View
Some prefer windows , and these are the best available on board the International Space Station. Taken on January 4, this snapshot from inside the station's large, seven-window…
Launch to Lovejoy
Blasting skyward an Atlas V rocket carrying a U.S. Navy satellite pierces a cloud bank in this starry night scene captured on January 20. On its way to orbit from Space Launch…
The Complex Ion Tail of Comet Lovejoy
What causes the structure in Comet Lovejoy's tail? Comet C/2014 Q2 (Lovejoy) , which is currently at naked-eye brightness and near its brightest , has been showing an exquisitely…
Approaching Asteroid Ceres
It is the largest asteroid in the asteroid belt -- what secrets does it hold? To find out, NASA has sent the robotic Dawn spacecraft to explore and map this cryptic…
Infrared Orion from WISE
The Great Nebula in Orion is an intriguing place. Visible to the unaided eye, it appears as a small fuzzy patch in the constellation of Orion . But this image , an illusory-color…
The Galactic Core in Infrared
What's happening at the center of our Milky Way Galaxy? To help find out, the orbiting Hubble and Spitzer space telescopes have combined their efforts to survey the region in…
Comet Lovejoy's Tail
Sweeping north in planet Earth's sky, Comet Lovejoy's greenish coma and blue tinted ion tail stretched across this field of stars in the constellation Taurus on January 13. The…
Huygens Lands on Titan
Delivered by Saturn-bound Cassini, ESA's Huygens probe touched down on the ringed planet's largest moon Titan, ten years ago on January 14, 2005. These panels show fisheye images…
Venus and Mercury at Sunset
Inner planets Venus and Mercury can never wander far from the Sun in Earth's sky. This week you've probably seen them both gathered near the western horizon just after sunset , a…
The Hunter, the Bull, and Lovejoy
Heading north, Comet Lovejoy (C/2014 Q2) is putting on its best show for comet watchers now , with moonlight absent from mid-January's early evening skies . An easy binocular…
The Soap Bubble Nebula
Adrift in the rich star fields of the constellation Cygnus, this lovely, symmetric nebula was only recognized a few years ago and does not yet appear in some astronomical…
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Super Planet Crash
Can you create a planetary system that lasts for 500 years? Super Planet Crash, the featured game, allows you to try. To create up to ten planets, just click anywhere near the…
Cataclysmic Dawn
Will this dawn bring another nova? Such dilemmas might be pondered one day by future humans living on a planet orbiting a cataclysmic variable binary star system. Cataclysmic…
The Windmill's Moon
Seen from the Canary Island of Fuerteventura , this bright Full Moon rose at sunset. Reaching its full phase on the night of January 4/5, it was the first Full Moon of the new…
In the Arms of NGC 1097
Spiral galaxy NGC 1097 shines in southern skies, about 45 million light-years away in the chemical constellation Fornax . Its blue spiral arms are mottled with pinkish star…
Stars and Dust in Corona Australis
Cosmic dust clouds and young, energetic stars inhabit this telescopic vista , less than 500 light-years away toward the northern boundary of Corona Australis , the Southern Crown.…
Hubble 25th Anniversary: Pillars of Creation
To celebrate 25 years (1990-2015) of exploring the Universe from low Earth orbit, the Hubble Space Telescope's cameras were used to revisit its most iconic image. The result is…
100 Million Stars in the Andromeda Galaxy
What stars compose the Andromeda galaxy? To better understand, a group of researchers studied the nearby spiral by composing the largest image ever taken with the Hubble Space…
A Fox Fur, a Unicorn, and a Christmas Tree
What do the following things have in common: a cone, the fur of a fox, and a Christmas tree? Answer: they all occur in the constellation of the unicorn ( Monoceros ). Pictured as…
Crescent Rhea Occults Crescent Saturn
Soft hues, partially lit orbs, a thin trace of the ring, and slight shadows highlight this understated view of the majestic surroundings of the giant planet Saturn. Looking nearly…
Apollo 17: A Stereo View from Lunar Orbit
Get out your red/blue glasses and check out this awesome stereo view of another world. The scene was recorded by Apollo 17 mission commander Eugene Cernan on December 11, 1972,…
At the Heart of Orion
Near the center of this sharp cosmic portrait , at the heart of the Orion Nebula , are four hot, massive stars known as the Trapezium . Tightly gathered within a region about 1.5…
Vela Supernova Remnant
The plane of our Milky Way Galaxy runs through this complex and beautiful skyscape . At the northwestern edge of the constellation Vela (the Sails) the telescopic frame is over 10…
Viewing discoveries from 24 January 2015 through 1 January 2015.