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.
Globular Star Cluster NGC 6752
Some 13,000 light-years away toward the southern constellation Pavo, the globular star cluster NGC 6752 roams the halo of our Milky Way galaxy. Over 10 billion years old, NGC 6752…
NGC 7293: The Helix Nebula
A mere seven hundred light years from Earth toward the constellation Aquarius , a star is dying. The once sun-like star's last few thousand years have produced the Helix Nebula .…
Caught
What if a rocket could return to its launch tower -- and be caught? This happened for the first time 10 days ago, after a SpaceX Starship rocket blasted off from its pad in Boca…
M16: Pillars of Star Creation
These dark pillars may look destructive, but they are creating stars. This pillar-capturing picture of the Eagle Nebula combines visible light exposures taken with the Hubble…
Comet Tsuchinshan-ATLAS over California
The tails of Comet Tsuchinshan-ATLAS were a sight to behold. Pictured, C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS) was captured near peak impressiveness last week over the Eastern Sierra…
Dark Matter in a Simulated Universe
Is our universe haunted? It might look that way on this dark matter map. The gravity of unseen dark matter is the leading explanation for why galaxies rotate so fast , why…
Comet Tsuchinshan-ATLAS Flys Away
These six panels follow daily apparitions of comet C/2023 A3 Tsuchinshan-ATLAS as it moved away from our fair planet during the past week. The images were taken with the same…
Most of Comet Tsuchinshan-ATLAS
On October 14 it was hard to capture a full view of Comet C/2023 A3 Tsuchinshan-ATLAS . Taken after the comet's closest approach to our fair planet, this evening skyview almost…
The Clipper and the Comet
NASA's Europa Clipper is now headed toward an ocean world beyond Earth. The large spacecraft is tucked into the payload fairing atop the Falcon Heavy rocket in this photo, taken…
Colorful Aurora over New Zealand
Sometimes the night sky is full of surprises. Take the sky over Lindis Pass , South Island , New Zealand one-night last week. Instead of a typically calm night sky filled with…
Comet Tsuchinshan-ATLAS Over the Lincoln Memorial
Go outside at sunset tonight and see a comet! C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS) has become visible in the early evening sky in northern locations to the unaided eye. To see the comet…
Northern Lights, West Virginia
A gravel country lane gently winds through this colorful rural night skyscape. Captured from Monroe County in southern West Virginia on the evening of October 10, the starry sky…
Ring of Fire over Easter Island
The second solar eclipse of 2024 began in the Pacific. On October 2nd the Moon's shadow swept from west to east, with an annular eclipse visible along a narrow antumbral shadow…
Five Bright Comets from SOHO
Five bright comets are compared in these panels, recorded by a coronograph on board the long-lived, sun-staring SOHO spacecraft . Arranged chronologically all are recognizable by…
M106: A Spiral Galaxy with a Strange Center
What's happening at the center of spiral galaxy M106? A swirling disk of stars and gas, M106 's appearance is dominated by blue spiral arms and red dust lanes near the nucleus, as…
Annular Eclipse over Patagonia
Can you find the Sun? OK, but can you explain why there's a big dark spot in the center? The spot is the Moon , and the impressive alignment shown, where the Moon lines up inside…
The Long Tails Comet Tsuchinshan-ATLAS
A bright comet is moving into the evening skies. C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS) has brightened and even though it is now easily visible to the unaided eye, it is so near to the Sun…
The Magnificent Tail of Comet McNaught
Comet McNaught, the Great Comet of 2007, grew a spectacularly long and filamentary tail. The magnificent tail spread across the sky and was visible for several days to Southern…
M27: Not a Comet
While hunting for comets in the skies above 18th century France, astronomer Charles Messier diligently kept a list of the things encountered during his telescopic expeditions that…
Comet at Moonrise
Comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS) is growing brighter in planet Earth's sky. Fondly known as comet A3, this new visitor to the inner Solar System is traveling from the distant…
Eclipse at Sunrise
The second solar eclipse of 2024 began in the Pacific. On October 2nd the Moon's shadow swept from west to east, with an annular eclipse visible along a narrow antumbral shadow…
The Large Magellanic Cloud Galaxy
It is the largest satellite galaxy of our home Milky Way Galaxy. If you live in the south, the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) is quite noticeable , spanning about 10 degrees across…
Comet Tsuchinshan-ATLAS over Mexico
The new comet has passed its closest to the Sun and is now moving closer to the Earth. C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS) is currently moving out from inside the orbit of Venus and on…
Seven Dusty Sisters
Is this really the famous Pleiades star cluster? Known for its iconic blue stars , the Pleiades is shown here in infrared light where the surrounding dust outshines the stars.…
Viewing discoveries from 25 October 2024 through 29 September 2024.