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.
Circular Sun Halo
Want to see a ring around the Sun? It's easy to do in daytime skies around the world. Created by randomly oriented ice crystals in thin high cirrus clouds, circular 22 degree…
A Total Lunar Eclipse Corona
This moon appears multiply strange. This moon was a full moon, specifically called a Flower Moon at this time of the year. But that didn't make it strange -- full moons occur once…
A Face in the Clouds of Jupiter from Juno
What do you see in the clouds of Jupiter? On the largest scale, circling the planet, Jupiter has alternating light zones and reddish-brown belts . Rising zone gas, mostly hydrogen…
A Bright Nova in Cassiopeia
What's that new spot of light in Cassiopeia? A nova. Although novas occur frequently throughout the universe, this nova, known as Nova Cas 2021 or V1405 Cas, became so unusually…
A Distorted Sunrise Eclipse
Yes, but have you ever seen a sunrise like this? Here, after initial cloudiness, the Sun appeared to rise in two pieces and during partial eclipse, causing the photographer to…
The Shining Clouds of Mars
The weathered and layered face of Mount Mercou looms in the foreground of this mosaic from the Curiosity Mars rover's Mast Camera. Made up of 21 individual images the scene was…
Blood Monster Moon
On May 26, the Full Flower Moon was caught in this single exposure as it emerged from Earth's shadow and morning twilight began to wash over the western sky. Posing close to the…
Millions of Stars in Omega Centauri
Globular star cluster Omega Centauri , also known as NGC 5139, is some 15,000 light-years away. The cluster is packed with about 10 million stars much older than the Sun within a…
The Galactic Center in Stars, Gas, and Magnetism
What's going on near the center of our galaxy? To help find out, a newly detailed panorama has been composed that explores regions just above and below the galactic plane in radio…
Satellites over Orion
What are those streaks across Orion? They are reflections of sunlight from numerous Earth-orbiting satellites. Appearing by eye as a series of successive points floating across a…
Mimas: Small Moon with a Big Crater
Whatever hit Mimas nearly destroyed it. What remains is one of the largest impact craters on one of Saturn 's smallest round moons. Analysis indicates that a slightly larger…
Aurora over Clouds
Auroras usually occur high above the clouds. The auroral glow is created when fast-moving particles ejected from the Sun impact the Earth's magnetosphere , from which charged…
Lunar Dust and Duct Tape
Why is the Moon so dusty? On Earth, rocks are weathered by wind and water, creating soil and sand. On the Moon, the history of constant micrometeorite bombardment has blasted away…
Total Lunar Eclipse from Sydney
The reddened shadow of planet Earth plays across the lunar disk in this telescopic image taken on May 26 near Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. On that crisp, clear autumn night…
Mid-Eclipse and Milky Way
May's perigee Full Moon slid through Earth's shadow yesterday entertaining night skygazers in regions around the Pacific . Seen from western North America, it sinks toward the…
The Outburst Clouds of Star AG Car
What created these unusual clouds? At the center of this 2021 Hubble image , processed by Judy Schmidt, sits AG Carinae , a supergiant star located about 20,000 light-years away…
The Moon During a Total Lunar Eclipse
How does the Moon's appearance change during a total lunar eclipse? The featured time-lapse video was digitally processed to keep the Moon bright and centered during the 5-hour…
Lightning Eclipse from the Planet of the Goats
Thunderstorms almost spoiled this view of the spectacular 2011 June 15 total lunar eclipse . Instead, storm clouds parted for 10 minutes during the total eclipse phase and…
The Galaxy Tree
First came the trees. In the town of Salamanca , Spain , the photographer noticed how distinctive a grove of oak trees looked after being pruned . Next came the galaxy. The…
Markarian's Chain
Near the heart of the Virgo Galaxy Cluster the string of galaxies known as Markarian's Chain stretches across this deep telescopic field of view . Anchored in the frame at bottom…
Utopia on Mars
Expansive Utopia Planitia on Mars is strewn with rocks and boulders in this 1976 image. Constructed from the Viking 2 lander's color and black and white image data, the scene…
M13: The Great Globular Cluster in Hercules
In 1716 , English astronomer Edmond Halley noted, “This is but a little Patch, but it shews itself to the naked Eye, when the Sky is serene and the Moon absent.” Of course, M13 is…
The Jellyfish and Mars
Normally faint and elusive, the Jellyfish Nebula is caught in this alluring scene. In the telescopic field of view two bright yellowish stars, Mu and Eta Geminorum, stand just…
Jets from the Necklace Nebula
What celestial body wears the Necklace Nebula? First, analyses indicate that the Necklace is a planetary nebula , a gas cloud emitted by a star toward the end of its life. Also,…
Viewing discoveries from 10 June 2021 through 18 May 2021.