There’s a partial Lunar Eclipse happening today but it will be very difficult to see as it happens during daylight hours in Western Europe. Only a very small part of the Moon’s disk will pass through the Umbra (the darkest part of the Earth’s shadow). The best places to see, at least some parts of…
The International Observe The Moon Night is an annual event designed to get astronomers and the public to look at, appreciate and gain some understanding of the Moon. Everyone on the planet is invited to take part. The Moon is the only astronomical body in the sky on which you can see details with the…
This new commercial is for my LunarPhase Pro software. If you’ve visited the site in recent days, you may have spotted a smaller version of it in the sidebar. If you’ve any feedback on it, I’d love to hear it (good or bad!).
China becomes the 3rd nation to successfully land a spacecraft on the Moon. It’s Yutu (Jade Rabbit) rover will explore the landing site in Sinus Iridum for 3 months. The mission marks just the first stage in China’s ambitions to land a man on the moon between 2025 and 2030. The full story is over…
The Harvest Moon is the full Moon that falls closest to the autumnal equinox, the beginning of northern autumn. In 2013 the Moon is full on Sept. 19th (the night of Sept. 18-19 in North America) while the equinox follows close behind on Sept. 22nd. Read the full story at MoonFacts.net.
A documentary from National Geographic looks at what Earth would be like without the moon in its regular orbit around the planet. Would life exist on Earth? Or would the climate teeter between cataclysmic extremes? Watch the video over at Moonfacts.net.
Back in the 60s and 70s, Apollo astronauts circling the Moon saw something that still puzzles researchers today. About 10 seconds before lunar sunrise or lunar sunset, pale luminous streamers would pop up over the gray horizon. These “twilight rays” were witnessed by crewmembers of Apollo 8, 10, 15 and 17. Back on Earth, we…
The night sky is set to be illuminated this weekend by what will appear to be a much bigger and brighter Moon. The so-called “supermoon” occurs when the Moon reaches its closest point to earth, known as a perigee full moon. The effect makse the Moon seem 30% bigger and 14% brighter than when it…
NASA is developing a lunar rover to find and analyze water and other materials trapped in deep freezes at the moon’s poles and to demonstrate how water can be made on site. Slated to fly in November 2017, the mission, called Regolith and Environment Science and Oxygen and Lunar Volatile Extraction (RESOLVE), will have a…
Many spacecraft just fade away, drifting silently through space after their mission is over, but not GRAIL. NASA’s twin GRAIL (Gravity Recovery and Interior Laboratory) spacecraft went out in a blaze of glory on Dec. 17, 2012, when they were intentionally crashed into a mountain near the moon’s north pole. Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera image…
The Sun Now (Visible light)
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The Sun Now (H-Alpha light)
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Aurora Oval
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Aurora Oval
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