astronomy

Ghostly Stellar Tendrils of the Vela Supernova Remnant

The Detail in This New 1.3-Gigapixel Photo of a Supernova is Incredible

Using the remarkable 570-megapixel Dark Energy Camera (DECam), astronomers have made a 1.3-gigapixel image of the ghostly Vela Supernova Remnant. The beautiful, detailed, and colorful image is the largest DECam image ever at 35,786 by 35,881 pixels, putting even the highest-resolution medium-format interchangeable lens cameras to shame.

The James Webb Space Telescope captures an image of NGC 1559 as part of the PHANGS collaboration. It is the Webb Picture of the Month for February 2024.

A Stunning, Lonely, and Fiery Galaxy Is a Treasure Trove of Data

As scientists continue to use the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) to do incredible things, like find the first direct evidence of a neutron star in a nearby supernova remnant, it also generates many beautiful images that are easy for anyone to appreciate. That's where the monthly Webb Picture of the Month comes in. This month's new photo is of the barred spiral galaxy NGC 1559.

NASA SDO Solar Flare video, February 2024, image of the Sun

See the Sun’s Explosive Energy Captured Across Extreme Wavelengths

The Sun has been very active so far this month, with powerful sympathetic solar flares dazzling scientists and viewers alike and recent X-class flares making many wonder about communications network integrity. NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) constantly monitors the Sun and captures the recent powerful solar flares in exquisite detail across multiple wavelengths.

Webb searching for small, bright, and ancient galaxies that could upend cosmological theory.

Webb Can See Far Enough to Test Theories of Dark Matter

The Hubble Space Telescope (HST) upended beliefs about the fundamental nature of the Universe, delivering evidence that the Universe was not slowing down, as gravity seemingly implied it must be, but expanding. 25 years later, the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) can help scientists make another breakthrough.

NASA Hubble Picture of the Week ESO 245-5 irrregular galaxy

Hubble’s New Photo Shows the Immense Scale of Galaxies

The Hubble Space Telescope's new Picture of the Week shows a remarkably dense field of stars. However, what at first glance looks like just a field of stars, spread somewhat irregularly through the frame, the photo shows a considerable portion of a galaxy.

Webb surfs the cosmos

Webb Finds That Many Old, Distant Galaxies Look Like Surfboards

While the James Webb Space Telescope has been busy helping scientists solve some of the greatest mysteries of the early Universe, the powerful telescope has also found that many distant galaxies have flattened oval disk and tube-like shapes, unlike the spiral and elliptical structures that are more typically seen in closer galaxies.

Webb helps scientists answer one of the most persistent questions about the nature of the early Universe.

Webb Answers One of the Early Universe’s Biggest Questions

While the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) has delivered many beautiful images, its primary mission is to probe the early Universe and help humanity solve some of the most significant questions it faces. Webb has delivered on this promise by revealing, for the first time, what is in the local environment of galaxies in the very earliest days of the Universe.

The Best James Webb Space Telescope Photos of the Year (2023)

The Best James Webb Space Telescope Photos of 2023

The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) has wrapped up its first full year of scientific operations, and beyond "breaking" cosmology, the telescope has also delivered some of the most spectacular photos of deep space ever seen.

Purple swirls and stars as found in star cluster IC 348.

Webb Identifies a Tiny Brown Dwarf That Defies Explanation

Even as telescopes and observatories uncover more details about space, it remains mysterious. One puzzle revolves around the "smallest object that can form in a star-like manner," according to NASA. With the help of the James Webb Space Telescope, scientists have identified a new record holder for that category: a free-floating brown dwarf.

Hubble and Webb composite image of MACS0414 galaxy cluster

Hubble and Webb Deliver the Most Colorful View of the Universe Ever

Despite the somewhat familiar narrative that the James Webb Space Telescope has been built to supplant the aging Hubble Space Telescope, the two orbiting observatories regularly collaborate. Scientists have now combined data from Hubble and Webb to create the most colorful view of the Universe ever.

National Geographic Space Issue

National Geographic’s Space Issue Finds Humanity in the Vast Expanse

National Geographic's special Space issue is available now, full of amazing stories and images all about space. From articles about how the James Webb Space Telescope is rewriting astronomy and astrophysics to humankind's return to the Moon as part of the NASA Artemis mission, the NatGeo space issue has something for everyone with interest in the universe.