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.
Aurorae and Lightning on Jupiter
Why does so much of Jupiter's lightning occur near its poles? Similar to Earth , Jupiter experiences both aurorae and lightning. Different from Earth, though, Jupiter's lightning…
Mars over Duddo Stone Circle
Why are these large stones here? One the more famous stone circles is the Duddo Five Stones of Northumberland , England . Set in the open near the top of a modest incline, a short…
From Auriga to Orion
What's up in the sky from Auriga to Orion? Many of the famous stars and nebulas in this region were captured on 34 separate images, taking over 430 hours of exposure, and…
The Antikythera Mechanism
No one knew that 2,000 years ago, the technology existed to build such a device. The Antikythera mechanism , pictured, is now widely regarded as the first computer . Found at the…
The Leo Trio
This popular group leaps into the early evening sky around the March equinox and the northern hemisphere spring . Famous as the Leo Triplet , the three magnificent galaxies found…
Central Lagoon in Infrared
Stars fill this infrared view, spanning 4 light-years across the center of the Lagoon Nebula. Visible light images show the glowing gas and obscuring dust clouds that dominate the…
Stardust in the Perseus Molecular Cloud
Clouds of stardust drift through this deep skyscape, across the Perseus molecular cloud some 850 light-years away. Dusty nebulae reflecting light from embedded young stars stand…
The Surface of Venus from Venera 14
If you could stand on Venus -- what would you see? Pictured is the view from Venera 14, a robotic Soviet lander which parachuted and air-brake d down through the thick Venusian…
IC 1318: The Butterfly Nebula in Gas and Dust
In the constellation of the swan near the nebula of the pelican lies the gas cloud of the butterfly next to a star known as the hen. That star, given the proper name Sadr , is…
A Flag Shaped Aurora over Sweden
It appeared, momentarily, like a 50-km tall banded flag. In mid-March of 2015, an energetic Coronal Mass Ejection directed toward a clear magnetic channel to Earth led to one of…
SuperCam Target on Ma'az
What's the sound of one laser zapping? There's no need to consult a Zen master to find out, just listen to the first acoustic recording of laser shots on Mars . On Perseverance…
Messier 81
One of the brightest galaxies in planet Earth's sky is similar in size to our Milky Way Galaxy: big, beautiful Messier 81 . Also known as NGC 3031 or Bode's galaxy for its 18th…
Zodiacal Light and Mars
Just after sunset on March 7, a faint band of light still reaches above the western horizon in this serene, rural Illinois, night skyscape . Taken from an old farmstead, the…
NGC 1499: The California Nebula
Could Queen Calafia 's mythical island exist in space? Perhaps not, but by chance the outline of this molecular space cloud echoes the outline of the state of California , USA.…
Three Tails of Comet NEOWISE
What created the unusual red tail in Comet NEOWISE? Sodium . A spectacular sight back in the summer of 2020, Comet NEOWISE, at times, displayed something more than just a…
Pillars of the Eagle Nebula in Infrared
Newborn stars are forming in the Eagle Nebula. Gravitationally contracting in pillars of dense gas and dust, the intense radiation of these newly-formed bright stars is causing…
Perseverance Takes a Spin
After arriving at Jezero Crater on Mars, Perseverance went for a spin on March 4. This sharp image from the car-sized rover's Navcam shows tracks left by its six wheels in the…
A Little Like Mars
The surface of this planet looks a little like Mars . It's really planet Earth though . In a digitally stitched little planet projection, the 360 degree mosaic was captured near…
Mars in Taurus
You can spot Mars in the evening sky tonight. Now home to the Perseverance rover , the Red Planet is presently wandering through the constellation Taurus, close on the sky to the…
Stars over an Erupting Volcano
Mt. Etna has been erupting for hundreds of thousands of years. Located in Sicily , Italy , the volcano produces lava fountains over one kilometer high. Mt. Etna is not only one of…
Ingenuity: A Mini-Helicopter Now on Mars
What if you could fly around Mars? NASA may have achieved that capability last month with the landing of Perseverance , a rover which included a small flight-worthy companion…
The Pelican Nebula in Red and Blue
The Pelican Nebula is changing. The entire nebula, officially designated IC 5070, is divided from the larger North America Nebula by a molecular cloud filled with dark dust . The…
The Aurora Tree
Yes, but can your tree do this? Pictured is a visual coincidence between the dark branches of a nearby tree and bright glow of a distant aurora. The beauty of the aurora --…
Perseverance Landing Site from Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter
Seen from orbit a day after a dramatic arrival on the martian surface, the Perseverance landing site is identified in this high-resolution view from the Mars Reconnaissance…
Viewing discoveries from 24 March 2021 through 27 February 2021.