APOD

Astronomy Picture of the Day

APOD — Thu, 05 Feb 2026 05:12:49 GMT

Astronomy Picture of the Day

05 February 2026

Spiral Galaxy NGC 1512: Wide Field

Image Credit: Daniel Stern

Explanation:
Most galaxies don't have any rings -- why does this galaxy have three?

To begin, a ring that's near
NGC 1512's center --
and so hard to see here -- is the
nuclear ring
which glows brightly with recently formed
stars.

Next out is a ring of stars and
dust appearing both red and blue, called,
counter-intuitively, the inner ring.

This inner ring connects ends of a diffuse
central bar
of stars that runs horizontally across the galaxy.

Farthest out in this wide field image is a
ragged structure that might be considered an outer ring.

This outer ring appears spiral-like and is dotted with
clusters of bright blue stars.

All these ring structures are thought to be affected by
NGC 1512's own gravitational asymmetries in a drawn-out process called
secular
evolution.

The featured image was captured last month from a telescope at
Deep Sky Chile in
Chile.

#APOD #NASA #NASAInspires #Astrophoto #Astronomy

https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap260204.html

Astronomy Picture of the Day

APOD — Wed, 04 Feb 2026 05:20:44 GMT

Astronomy Picture of the Day

04 February 2026

Red Spider Planetary Nebula from Webb

Image Credit: ESA/Webb, NASA, CSA, J. H. Kastner, RIT

Explanation:
Oh what a
tangled web
a planetary nebula can weave.

The Red Spider Planetary Nebula
shows the complex structure that can result when a
normal star ejects
its outer gases and becomes a
white dwarf star.

Officially tagged
NGC
6537, this two-lobed symmetric
planetary nebula
houses one of the
hottest white dwarfs ever observed,
probably as part of a binary star system.

Internal winds flowing out from the central stars,
have been measured in excess of 1,000 kilometers per second.

These
winds expand the
nebula, flow along the nebula's walls, and cause waves of hot
gas and
dust to collide.

Atoms
caught in these colliding shocks radiate light shown in the

featured false-color
infrared picture by the
James Webb Space Telescope.

The
Red Spider Nebula lies toward the constellation of the Archer
(Sagittarius).

Its distance is not well known but has been
estimated by some to be about 4,000 light-years.

#APOD #Astrogeek #Space #Universe #Astrophoto

https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap260203.html

Astronomy Picture of the Day

APOD — Tue, 03 Feb 2026 05:06:51 GMT

Astronomy Picture of the Day

03 February 2026

Orion: The Running Man Nebula

Image Credit: Robert G. Lyons, Robservatory

Explanation:
What part of Orion is this?

Just north of the famous
Orion Nebula is a picturesque
star
forming region in
Orion's Sword that contains a lot of intricate
dust -- some of which appears blue
because it reflects the light of
bright embedded stars.

The region's popular name is the
Running Man Nebula because,
looked at from the right, part of the brown dust appears to be running legs.

Cataloged as
Sharpless 279,
the reflection nebula is not only part of the
constellation of
Orion, but part of the greater
Orion molecular cloud complex.

Light from the Running Man's bright stars, including
42 Orionis, the bright star closest to the
featured image center, is slowly
destroying and reshaping the surrounding dust,
which will likely be
completely gone in about 10 million years.

The nebula spans about 15
light years and lies about 1,500 light years away.

#APOD #Space #Astronomy #Science Astrophotography

https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap260202.html

Astronomy Picture of the Day

APOD — Mon, 02 Feb 2026 05:14:38 GMT

Astronomy Picture of the Day

02 February 2026

Galle: Happy Face Crater on Mars

Image Credit: NASA, MGS, MSSS

Explanation:
Mars has put on a happy face.

The Martian crater
Galle is famous because it has
internal markings that make it look like a face that is both
smiling
and winking.

These markings were
originally
discovered in the 1970s in pictures taken by the
Viking Orbiter.

The
Mars Global Surveyor (MGS) spacecraft that orbited
Mars from 1996 to 2006 captured the
featured picture.

Happy Face Crater and its iconic features were
formed by chance billions of years ago when a
city-sized asteroid
slammed into the Martian surface.

All rocky planets and moons in
our Solar System show
impact craters,
with the highest number of craters found on
Earth's Moon and the planet
Mercury.

Earth and
Venus
would show the most, though, were it not for weather and
erosion.

#APOD #GalleCrater #HappyFaceCrater #Mars #MartianGeology #ImpactCrater

https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap260201.html

Astronomy Picture of the Day

APOD — Sun, 01 Feb 2026 05:22:21 GMT

Astronomy Picture of the Day

01 February 2026

Artemis I: Flight Day 13

Image Credit: NASA, Artemis I

Explanation:

On flight day 13
(November 28, 2022) of the Artemis 1 mission, the
Orion spacecraft reached its maximum distance from Earth.

At over 430,000 kilometers from Earth,
its distant retrograde orbit also puts
Orion nearly 70,000 kilometers from the Moon.

In the
same field of view
in this video frame from flight day 13,
planet and large natural satellite
even appear about the same apparent size from
the spacecraft's perspective.

On flight day 26
(December 11, 2022),
the uncrewed spacecraft
splashed down on its home world concluding the historic Artemis I
mission.

The Artemis II
mission,
carrying 4 astronauts around the moon and back
again, will launch no earlier than February 8.

#APOD #ArtemisI #FlightDay13 #OrionSpacecraft #MoonOrbit #EarthDistance

https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap260131.html

Astronomy Picture of the Day

APOD — Sat, 31 Jan 2026 05:09:02 GMT

Astronomy Picture of the Day

31 January 2026

NGC 1333: Stellar Nursery in Perseus

Image Credit: Robert Eder

Explanation:

NGC 1333 is seen in visible light as a
reflection nebula,
dominated by bluish hues characteristic of starlight reflected by
interstellar dust.

A mere 1,000 light-years distant toward the heroic constellation
Perseus,
it lies at the edge of a large,
star-forming molecular cloud.

This telescopic close-up spans
over two full moons on the sky or just
over 15 light-years at the estimated distance of NGC 1333.

It shows details of the dusty region
along with telltale hints of contrasty red emission from
Herbig-Haro
objects, jets and shocked glowing gas
emanating from recently formed stars.

In fact, NGC 1333 contains hundreds of stars less than
a million years old, most still
hidden from optical telescopes
by the pervasive stardust.

The chaotic environment may be similar to one in which our own Sun
formed over 4.5 billion years ago.

#APOD #NGC1333 #StellarNursery #Perseus #ReflectionNebula #MolecularCloud

https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap260130.html

Astronomy Picture of the Day

APOD — Fri, 30 Jan 2026 05:16:40 GMT

Astronomy Picture of the Day

30 January 2026

NGC 2442: Galaxy in Volans

Image Credit: Mike Selby

Explanation:

Distorted galaxy NGC 2442
can be found in the southern constellation of the flying fish, (Piscis)
Volans.

Located about 50 million light-years away, the galaxy's two
spiral arms extending from a pronounced central bar give it a
hook-shaped appearance in this deep and colorful image,
with foreground stars scattered across the telescopic field of
view.

The image also reveals the distant galaxy's
obscuring dust lanes, young blue star clusters and
reddish star forming regions
surrounding a core of yellowish light from an older population of stars.

But the star forming regions seem more concentrated along
the drawn-out (upper right)
spiral arm.

The distorted structure is likely the result of an ancient
close encounter
with a smaller galaxy that lies off top left of the frame.

This telescopic field of view
spans over 200,000 light-years at the estimated distance of NGC 2442.

#APOD #NGC2442 #Galaxy #Volans #SouthernSky #SpiralGalaxy

https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap260129.html

Astronomy Picture of the Day

APOD — Thu, 29 Jan 2026 05:24:03 GMT

Astronomy Picture of the Day

29 January 2026

M78: Reflecting Blue in a Sea of Red

Image Credit: Daniel McCauley

Explanation:
In the vast Orion Molecular Cloud complex,
several bright blue nebulas are particularly apparent.

Pictured here in the center are two of the most prominent
reflection nebulas -
dust clouds lit by the
reflecting light of bright embedded
stars.

The more famous nebula is
M78,
in the image center, cataloged over 200 years ago.

To its upper left is the lesser known
NGC 2071.

Astronomers continue to
study these
reflection nebulas to
better understand how interior stars form.

The overall red glow is from diffuse
hydrogen gas
that covers much of the
Orion complex
that spans much of the
constellation of Orion.

Nearby in the
greater complex,
which lies about 1,500
light years away, are the
Orion Nebula,
the Horsehead Nebula, and
Barnard's Loop --
partially seen here as the white band on the upper left.

#APOD #M78 #OrionNebula #ReflectionNebula #OrionComplex #NGC2071

https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap260128.html

Astronomy Picture of the Day

APOD — Wed, 28 Jan 2026 05:10:48 GMT

Astronomy Picture of the Day

28 January 2026

Orion's Treasures over Snowy Mountains

Image Credit: Włodzimierz Bubak, Ogetay Kayali

Explanation:
Rising over a frozen valley in the
Tatra Mountains, the familiar stars and nebulas of
Orion dominate this wide-field nightscape.

The featured deep photo was
taken
in southern
Poland's
highest mountain range last month, where
dark skies and
alpine terrain combined to reveal both Earth's
rugged beauty and the structure of
our galaxy.

Above the snowy mountains,
Orion's bright belt stars
anchor a region of glowing interstellar clouds.

The Great Orion Nebula, a vast
stellar nursery visible even to the unaided eye,
shines near the center of the scene.

Surrounding it is the enormous arc of
Barnard's Loop,
a faint shell of
ionized hydrogen gas spanning much of the
constellation.

To the left, the round
Rosette Nebula glows softly,
while the grayish
Witch Head Nebula hovers to the right,
illuminated by nearby starlight.

Near the top, the orange supergiant
Betelgeuse
marks the hunter's shoulder.

#APOD #Orion #Stargazing #NightSky #TatraMountains #Poland

https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap260127.html

Astronomy Picture of the Day

APOD — Tue, 27 Jan 2026 05:18:26 GMT

Astronomy Picture of the Day

27 January 2026

NGC 55: A Galaxy of Nebulas

Image Credit: Wolfgang Promper, Ogetay Kayali

Explanation:
Can you see nebulas in other galaxies?

Yes, some
nebulas shine brightly enough -- if you know how to look.

Clouds of
hydrogen and
oxygen
emit light at very specific colors,
and by isolating them, astronomers and astrophotographers
can reveal structures that would otherwise be
too faint to notice.

This deep, 50-hour exposure highlights glowing
hydrogen (red) and
oxygen (blue) across galaxy
NGC 55, viewed nearly
edge-on.

Also known as the
String of Pearls Galaxy,
NGC 55 is often compared to our
Milky Way's satellite galaxy the
Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC),
although NGC 55 lies much farther away at about 6.5 million
light-years.

The resulting image
uncovers a sprinkling of
emission nebulas
within and sometimes above the galaxy's
dusty disk,
offering a detailed look at distant
star-forming regions.

#APOD #NGC55 #MilkyWayNeighbor #GalaxyOfNebulas #UnresolvedNebula #DeepSpace

https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap260126.html

Astronomy Picture of the Day

APOD — Mon, 26 Jan 2026 05:26:17 GMT

Astronomy Picture of the Day

26 January 2026

Phobos: Doomed Moon of Mars

Image Credit: NASA, LPL (U. Arizona), MRO, HiRISE

Explanation:
This moon is doomed.

Mars,
the red planet named for the
Roman god of war, has two tiny moons,
Phobos and
Deimos, whose
names are derived from the Greek for Fear and
Panic.

These Martian moons may well be captured
asteroids
originating in the main
asteroid belt between Mars and
Jupiter
or perhaps from even more distant reaches of
our Solar System.

The larger moon, Phobos, is indeed seen
to be a cratered, asteroid-like object in this
stunning color image from the robotic
Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter,
which can image objects as small as 10 meters.

But Phobos orbits
so close to Mars - about 5,800 kilometers above the
surface compared to 400,000 kilometers
for our Moon - that gravitational
tidal forces are dragging it down.

In perhaps 50 million years,
Phobos is expected to disintegrate
into a ring of debris.

#APOD #Phobos #Mars #MartianMoons #Astronomy #Astrophysics

https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap260125.html

Astronomy Picture of the Day

APOD — Sun, 25 Jan 2026 05:13:02 GMT

Astronomy Picture of the Day

25 January 2026

Earthset from Orion

Image Credit: NASA, Artemis 1

Explanation:

Eight billion people
are about to disappear in this
snapshot from space
taken on 2022 November 21.

On the
sixth day of the Artemis I mission,
their home world is setting behind the Moon's bright edge as viewed by
an
external camera
on the outbound Orion spacecraft.

Orion was headed for a powered flyby that
took it to within 130 kilometers of the lunar surface.

Velocity gained in the flyby maneuver was used to reach a
distant retrograde orbit
around the Moon.

That orbit is considered distant because it's another 92,000 kilometers
beyond the Moon, and retrograde because the spacecraft
orbited in the opposite direction of the Moon's orbit around planet
Earth.

Swinging around the Moon,
Orion reached a maximum distance (just over 400,000 kilometers)
from Earth on 2022 November 28, exceeding a record set by
Apollo 13 for most distant
spacecraft designed for
human space exploration.

The Artemis II mission,
carrying 4 astronauts around the moon and back
again, is due to launch as early as February 6.

#APOD #Earthset #OrionSpacecraft #ArtemisI #LunarFlyby #SpaceObservations

https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap260124.html

Astronomy Picture of the Day

APOD — Sat, 24 Jan 2026 05:20:07 GMT

Astronomy Picture of the Day

24 January 2026

Planetary Nebula Abell 7

Image Credit: Martin Pugh

Explanation:

Very faint planetary nebula Abell 7 is about 1,800 light-years distant.

It lies just south of Orion in planet Earth's skies toward the
constellation
Lepus, The Hare.

Posing with scattered Milky Way stars, its
generally
simple spherical shape about 8 light-years in diameter is revealed in
this deep telescopic image.

The beautiful and complex shapes
seen within the cosmic cloud are visually
enhanced by the use of long exposures and
narrowband filters
that capture emission from hydrogen and oxygen atoms.

Otherwise Abell 7 would be much
too faint to be appreciated by eye.

A
planetary nebula
represents a very brief final phase
in stellar evolution that our own Sun will experience 5 billion
years hence,
as the nebula's central, once sun-like star shrugs off its outer layers.

Abell 7 itself is estimated to be 20,000 years old.

But its central star, seen here as a
fading white dwarf,
is some 10 billion years old.

#APOD #Abell7 #PlanetaryNebula #Orion #Lepus #DeepSky

https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap260123.html

Astronomy Picture of the Day

APOD — Thu, 22 Jan 2026 05:14:59 GMT

Astronomy Picture of the Day

22 January 2026

LDN 1622: Dark Nebula in Orion

Image Credit: Chris Fellows

Explanation:

The silhouette of an intriguing
dark nebula
inhabits
this cosmic scene.

Lynds' Dark Nebula
(LDN)
1622 appears against a faint
background of glowing hydrogen gas only visible in long telescopic
exposures of the region.

In contrast, a brighter reflection nebula,
vdB 62,
is more easily seen just above the dusty dark nebula.

LDN 1622 lies near the plane of our Milky Way Galaxy,
close on the sky to
Barnard's Loop,
a large cloud surrounding the rich
complex of emission nebulae found in the Belt and Sword
of Orion.

With swept-back outlines, the obscuring dust of LDN 1622 is thought
to lie at a similar distance, perhaps 1,500 light-years away.

At that distance, this 3 degree wide field of view
would span about 100 light-years.

Young
stars do lie hidden within the dark expanse and have been
revealed in Spitzer Space telescope
infrared
images.

Still, the
foreboding
visual appearance of LDN 1622
inspires its popular name,
the Boogeyman Nebula.

#APOD #LDN1622 #DarkNebula #OrionNebula #MilkyWay #BarnardsLoop

https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap260122.html

Astronomy Picture of the Day

APOD — Wed, 21 Jan 2026 05:20:30 GMT

Astronomy Picture of the Day

21 January 2026

Barred Spiral Galaxy NGC 1365 from Webb

Image Credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, NOIRLab, STScI

Explanation:

A mere
56 million light-years distant toward the
southern constellation Fornax,
NGC 1365 is an enormous
barred spiral galaxy about 200,000 light-years in diameter.

That's twice the size of our own barred spiral Milky Way.

This sharp image
from the
James Webb Space Telescope's
Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI)
reveals stunning details
of this magnificent spiral
in infrared light.

Webb's
field of view
stretches about 60,000 light-years
across NGC 1365, exploring the galaxy's core and bright newborn star
clusters.

The intricate network of dusty filaments and bubbles is
created by young stars along spiral arms winding from the
galaxy's central bar.

Astronomers suspect
the gravitational field of NGC 1365's bar plays
a crucial role in the galaxy's evolution, funneling gas and dust into a
star-forming maelstrom
and ultimately feeding material
into the active galaxy's central,
supermassive black hole.

#APOD #NGC1365 #BarredSpiralGalaxy #JamesWebb #WebbSpaceTelescope #InfraredAstronomy

https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap260121.html

Astronomy Picture of the Day

APOD — Mon, 19 Jan 2026 05:24:55 GMT

Astronomy Picture of the Day

19 January 2026

CTB 1: The Medulla Nebula

Image Credit: Pierre Konzelmann

Explanation:
What powers this unusual nebula?

CTB 1 is the expanding gas shell that was left when a massive star toward the constellation of Cassiopeia
exploded about 10,000 years ago.

The star likely detonated when it ran out of elements, near its core, that could create
stabilizing pressure with
nuclear fusion.

The resulting
supernova remnant, nicknamed the Medulla Nebula for its
brain-like shape, still glows in
visible light
because of the heat generated by its collision with confining
interstellar gas.

Why
the nebula also glows in
X-ray light, though,
remains a topic of research.

One hypothesis holds that an energetic
pulsar
was created and powers the nebula with a fast outwardly moving wind.

Following this lead, a pulsar was
found in
radio waves
that appears to have
been expelled by the
supernova explosion
at over 1000 kilometers per second.

Although the Medulla Nebula appears as large as a
full moon,
it is so faint that it took 84-hours of exposure with
a small telescope in
Texas,
USA, to create the
featured image.

#APOD #astronomy #CTB1 #MedullaNebula #nebula #celestial

https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap260119.html

Astronomy Picture of the Day

APOD — Sun, 18 Jan 2026 05:05:49 GMT

Astronomy Picture of the Day

18 January 2026

Apollo 14: A View from Antares

Image Credit: Apollo 14, NASA, Eric M. Jones

Explanation:

Apollo 14's Lunar Module Antares
landed
on the Moon
on February 5, 1971.

Toward the end of the stay astronaut
Ed
Mitchell
snapped
a series
of photos
of the lunar surface while looking out a window,
assembled
into this detailed mosaic by
Apollo Lunar Surface Journal
editor Eric Jones.

The view looks across the
Fra Mauro
highlands
to the northwest
of the landing site after the Apollo 14 astronauts had completed
their second and final
walk on the
Moon.

Prominent in the foreground is their Modular Equipment Transporter,
a two-wheeled, rickshaw-like device used to carry tools and samples.

Near the horizon at top center is a 1.5 meter wide boulder dubbed
Turtle rock.

In the shallow crater below Turtle rock
is the long white handle of a sampling instrument,
thrown there javelin-style by Mitchell.

Mitchell's fellow moonwalker and first American in space,
Alan Shepard, also used a makeshift six iron
to hit
two
golf balls.

One of Shepard's golf balls is just visible as a white spot
below
Mitchell's javelin.

#APOD #Apollo14 #Antares #LunarModule #NASA #LunarSurface

https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap260117.html

Astronomy Picture of the Day

APOD — Sat, 17 Jan 2026 05:07:55 GMT

Astronomy Picture of the Day

17 January 2026

NGC 7023: The Iris Nebula

Image Credit: Justus Falk

Explanation:

These cosmic clouds have blossomed 1,300 light-years away
in the fertile starfields of the
constellation Cepheus.

Called the Iris Nebula,
NGC 7023
is not the only nebula
to evoke the imagery of flowers.

Still, this
deep telescopic image
shows off the Iris Nebula's range of colors and symmetries
embedded in surrounding fields of interstellar dust.

Within the Iris itself, dusty nebular material surrounds a hot, young
star.

The dominant color of the brighter reflection nebula is blue,
characteristic of dust grains reflecting starlight.

Central filaments
of the reflection nebula glow with a faint reddish
photoluminescence as some dust grains
effectively convert
the star's invisible ultraviolet radiation to visible red light.

Infrared
observations
indicate that this nebula contains complex carbon molecules known as
PAHs.

The dusty blue petals of the Iris Nebula span about six light-years.

#APOD #NGC7023 #IrisNebula #Cepheus #Nebula #ReflectionNebula

https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap260116.html

Astronomy Picture of the Day

APOD — Fri, 16 Jan 2026 05:10:06 GMT

Astronomy Picture of the Day

16 January 2026

Plato and the Lunar Alps

Image Credit: Luigi Morrone

Explanation:

The dark-floored, 95 kilometer wide crater Plato and sunlit peaks of the
lunar Alps
(Montes Alpes) are highlighted in this
this
sharp telescopic snapshot of the Moon's surface.

While the Alps
of planet Earth were uplifted over millions of
years as continental plates slowly collided, the lunar Alps were likely
formed by a sudden collision that created the giant
impact basin
known as the Mare Imbrium or Sea of Rains.

The mare's generally smooth, lava-flooded floor is seen
below the bordering mountain range.

The prominent straight feature cutting through the mountains
is the lunar Alpine Valley (Vallis Alpes).

Joining the Mare Imbrium and northern Mare Frigoris (Sea of Cold)
the valley extends toward the upper right, about 160 kilometers long
and up to 10 kilometers wide.

Of course, the large, bright
lunar alpine
mountain below and right of Plato crater is named
Mont Blanc.

Lacking an atmosphere, not to mention snow,
the lunar Alps are probably not an ideal location for a winter
vacation.

Still, a 150 pound skier
would
weigh a mere 25 pounds
on the Moon.

#APOD #PlatoCrater #LunarAlps #MontesAlpes #MareImbrium #LunarValleys

https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap260115.html

Astronomy Picture of the Day

APOD — Thu, 15 Jan 2026 05:12:07 GMT

Astronomy Picture of the Day

15 January 2026

M51: The Whirlpool Galaxy

Image Credit: Michael Sleeman

Explanation:
The Whirlpool Galaxy is a classic spiral galaxy.

At only 30 million
light years distant and fully 60 thousand light years across,
M51, also known as
NGC 5194, is one of the brightest and most
picturesque galaxies on the sky.

The featured deep image
is a digital combination of images taken in different colors
over 58 hours with a
telescope from
Lijiang,
China.

Anyone with a good pair of
binoculars,
however, can see this
Whirlpool toward the constellation
of the Hunting Dogs
(Canes Venatici).

M51 is a
spiral galaxy of type Sc
and is the dominant member of a
whole group of galaxies.

Astronomers
speculate that M51's
spiral structure is primarily due to its
gravitational interaction with the
smaller galaxy just above it.

#APOD #M51 #WhirlpoolGalaxy #NGC5194 #SpiralGalaxy #Astronomy

https://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap260114.html