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.
Three Nebulae in Narrow Band
Narrow band filters and a false-color palette give these three nebulae a stunning appearance against the cosmic canvas of the central Milky Way . All three are stellar nurseries…
Peculiar Arp 87
A cosmic bridge of stars, gas, and dust stretches for over 75,000 light-years and joins this peculiar pair of galaxies cataloged as Arp 87 . The bridge is strong evidence that…
Halloween and the Ghost Head Nebula
Halloween's origin is ancient and astronomical. Since the fifth century BC, Halloween has been celebrated as a cross-quarter day , a day halfway between an equinox (equal day /…
Comet Holmes' Coma Expands
Go outside tonight and see Comet Holmes . No binoculars or telescopes are needed -- just curiosity and a sky map . Last week, Comet 17P/Holmes underwent an unusual outburst that…
A Telescopic View of Erupting Comet Holmes
What's happened to Comet Holmes? A normally docile comet discovered over 100 years ago, Comet 17P/Holmes suddenly became nearly one million times brighter last week, possibly over…
Noctilucent Clouds Over Sweden
Sometimes it's night on the ground but day in the air. As the Earth rotates to eclipse the Sun, sunset rises up from the ground. Therefore, at sunset on the ground, sunlight still…
The Great Carina Nebula
A jewel of the southern sky , the Great Carina Nebula , aka NGC 3372, spans over 300 light-years, one of our galaxy's largest star forming regions. Like the smaller, more…
Comet Holmes in Outburst
Comet 17P/Holmes stunned comet watchers across planet Earth earlier this week. On October 24, it increased in brightness over half a million times in a matter of hours. The…
Apogee Moon, Perigee Moon
Tonight, those blessed with clear skies can enjoy a glorious Full Moon , (exact full phase at 0452 UT, October 26). In fact, the Moon will reach its full phase within a few hours…
Ring Scan
Scroll right and cruise above the thin, icy rings of Saturn . This high resolution scan is a mosaic of images presented in natural color and recorded in May, over about 2.5 hours…
Crescent Saturn
Saturn never shows a crescent phase -- from Earth. But when viewed from beyond, the majestic giant planet can show an unfamiliar diminutive sliver. This image of crescent Saturn…
Victoria Crater on Mars
Scroll right to see the largest crater yet visited by a rover on Mars. Reaching the expansive Victoria Crater has been a goal for the robotic Opportunity rover rolling across Mars…
Will the Universe End in a Big Rip?
How will our universe end? Recent speculation now includes a pervasive growing field of mysterious repulsive phantom energy that rips virtually everything apart. Although the…
The Milky Road
Inspired during a visit to Fort Davis, Texas, home of McDonald Observatory and dark night skies, photographer Larry Landolfi created this tantalizing fantasy view. The composited…
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…
The Elephant's Trunk in IC 1396
Like an illustration in a galactic Just So Story , the Elephant's Trunk Nebula winds through the emission nebula and young star cluster complex IC 1396 , in the high and far off…
I Zwicky 18: The Case of the Aging Galaxy
How old is this galaxy? The galaxy on the left, I Zwicky 18 , was once thought to be one of the youngest galaxies on record since its bright stars indicated an age of only 500…
SN 2005ap: The Brightest Supernova Yet Found
What could cause a bang this big? This supernova explosion was so inherently bright that it could be seen nearly 5 billion light years away (a redshift of 0.28) even with a small…
Jupiter's Clouds from New Horizons
The New Horizons spacecraft took some stunning images of Jupiter earlier this year while on the way out to Pluto. Famous for its Great Red Spot , Jupiter is also known for its…
NGC 3132: The Eight Burst Nebula
It's the dim star, not the bright one, near the center of NGC 3132 that created this odd but beautiful planetary nebula . Nicknamed the Eight-Burst Nebula and the Southern Ring…
Enceladus Ice Geysers
Ice geysers erupt on Enceladus , bright and shiny inner moon of Saturn. Shown in this false-color image , a backlit view of the moon's southern limb, the majestic, icy plumes were…
The Whale and The Hockey Stick
NGC 4631 is a big beautiful spiral galaxy seen edge-on (top right) only 25 million light-years away towards the small northern constellation Canes Venatici . This galaxy's…
Bright Planets, Crescent Moon
Early risers are currently enjoying the sight of dazzling Venus , near the eastern horizon as the morning star . Recorded on October 7, this predawn skyview does feature Venus at…
The Strange Trailing Side of Saturn's Iapetus
What has happened to Saturn's moon Iapetus? Vast sections of this strange world are dark as coal , while others are as bright as ice. The composition of the dark material is…
Viewing discoveries from 2 November 2007 through 10 October 2007.