night sky

19 Stories

'Planet Collectors,' This Is Your Week

5 planets—Mercury, Jupiter, Venus, Uranus, and Mars—will be lining up, with best viewing Tuesday

(Newser) - Keep an eye to the sky this week for a chance to see a planetary hangout. Five planets—Mercury, Jupiter, Venus, Uranus, and Mars—will line up near the moon, per the AP . More details:
  • Where and when can you see them? The best day to catch the whole group
...

Hold Up Your Pinkie for Tonight's Sky Event

Jupiter, Venus 'conjunction' will make planets seem to be very close; they're still 400M miles apart

(Newser) - Jupiter and Venus are more than 400 million miles apart, but on Wednesday night, they'll appear to be just a pinkie finger's length apart, with your hand held at arm's length. That's according to AccuWeather , which notes that the month of March will kick off with...

There's a Reason Stars Appear Dimmer
There's a Reason Stars
Appear Dimmer
new study
Jan 19, 2023 6:50 PM CST

There's a Reason Stars Appear Dimmer

Night sky is becoming 10% brighter per year, research shows

(Newser) - Every year, the night sky grows brighter, and the stars look dimmer. A new study that analyzes data from more than 50,000 amateur stargazers finds that artificial lighting is making the night sky about 10% brighter each year. That's a much faster rate of change than scientists had...

The Wolf Moon Is Coming
Behold, the Wolf Moon
Jan 28, 2021 10:00 AM CST

Behold, the Wolf Moon

Expect some howling as January's full moon peaks Thursday

(Newser) - It's time to revive the howl in honor of the first full moon of the year. January's full moon is known as the "wolf moon" because "wolves were more often heard howling at this time," per the Old Farmer's Almanac . The traditional belief was...

Remember Monday Night's Treat in the Sky

Jupiter and Saturn will appear nearly as one planet, a celestial rarity

(Newser) - The 2020 winter solstice has arrived, and along with it a moment that sky watchers have been anticipating for a while. Jupiter and Saturn will be so close in the night sky that they'll be difficult to distinguish as separate planets, per CNN . This so-called Great Conjunction hasn't...

No Promises, but Aurora Borealis May Be Heading Our Way

Unpredictable sky show may appear in skies over northern United States on Thursday

(Newser) - The sun had a somewhat volatile week, and as a result, parts of the northern United States may get a rare sky show Thursday night . Per USA Today and AccuWeather , a solar flare burst out of the sun on Monday, producing a coronal mass ejection (CME)—a ball of plasma...

Earth's Gravity Catches 'Another Moon'

Scientists call it a 'minimoon'

(Newser) - Take a gander at the stars, and you might spot ... no, you won't. It's way too small. But scientists say Earth likely has another moon—at least for now—that's no bigger than a car, New Scientist reports. Astronomers at the Catalina Sky Survey in Arizona noticed...

One US State Vies for One of Earth's 'Exceptionally Dark' Skies

Central Idaho is cutting down on light pollution, trying to join elite group of 'dark-sky reserves'

(Newser) - There are fewer than a dozen dark-sky reserves on Earth—places where the skies are so "exceptionally dark" that they receive the elite designation from the International Dark-Sky Association, attracting astronomy lovers from around the world. Now Idaho hopes to be the first US state to make it onto...

Nonstop Artificial Light Might Even Affect Your Bones

Nonstop Artificial Light
Might Even Affect
Your Bones
study says
Aug 13, 2016 11:40 AM CDT

Nonstop Artificial Light Might Even Affect Your Bones

In a new study, mice became more frail, but only temporarily

(Newser) - Roughly one-third of the globe can no longer see the Milky Way thanks to artificial light at night. The impact of light pollution has long been obvious, but scientists are now exploring the role of constant exposure to light on health, and a study in the journal Current Biology adds...

Rare Blue Moon Fills Night Sky
 Rare Blue Moon Fills Night Sky 
Aug 21, 2013 6:50 AM CDT

Rare Blue Moon Fills Night Sky

Won't be back until 2015

(Newser) - Photographers were out in force last night to capture a rare blue moon. No, blue moons aren't actually blue (although there have been moons that were blue, most recently in 1950); rather, the term refers to the second full moon in a month, USA Today reports. But wait, you...

Tonight: 2 Meteor Showers?
 Tonight: 2 Meteor Showers? 
Dec 13, 2012 4:57 AM CST

Tonight: 2 Meteor Showers?

Geminid is one of year's biggest

(Newser) - Tonight's Geminid meteor shower—one of the year's two biggest—could bring 100 shooting stars per hour, and that's just the beginning. Tonight's sky may actually host two meteor showers, the second spawned by the comet Wirtanen, USA Today reports. That second shower hasn't yet...

Venus, Jupiter, Moon Come Together This Weekend

Stargazers will be able to see convergence around the world

(Newser) - Venus, Jupiter, and Earth's moon are coming together Saturday and Sunday to put on a brilliant show in the night sky, the AP reports. Venus and Jupiter have already been lining up, and a crescent moon will join them this weekend; stargazers will be able to see the convergence...

Explore Galaxy With New Google App
Explore Galaxy With New Google App
May 11, 2009 10:03 AM CDT

Explore Galaxy With New Google App

Star Droid helps cellphone astronomers with GPS, maps, tags

(Newser) - Budding astronomers will soon have a new cell-phone tool that spots the stars they’re looking for, the Telegraph reports. Google’s Star Droid helps stargazers navigate the night sky using GPS technology that cross-references the user’s position with existing space maps, and adds identifying tags to the heavenly...

Big Moon Rising This Weekend
 Big Moon Rising This Weekend 
Jan 10, 2009 1:03 PM CST

Big Moon Rising This Weekend

Star-gazers who missed December's perigee get a second chance to look up Saturday

(Newser) - Star-gazers are hoping for clear skies this evening, when the full moon will make its biggest and brightest appearance of 2009. As it rises at sunset, the moon will appear 14% larger and 30% brighter than the year's subsequent moons, Space.com reports. The show—the result of the moon...

Moon Will Appear Extra Bright Tonight

Tonight's sky will seem 30 percent brighter than usual, NASA says

(Newser) - If tonight’s full moon looks bigger and brighter than normal, that’s because it is, Space.com reports. The satellite reaches its perigree today, making its position the closest of the year to Earth—though still some 222,000 miles away. The moon's irregular orbit causes the distance to...

Town Bans Lights to Save Milky Way

(Newser) - Stargazing is more than an idle pleasure on Mount Desert Island, Maine. It's also a tourist attraction protected by law. Voters on the island recently banned new outdoor lights that aim upwards and contribute to obstructing the island's rare view of the naked Milky Way. The goal is to draw...

Jupiter, Venus, Moon Converge in Rare Reunion

Spectacular planetary 'huddle' to start tonight

(Newser) - Americans looking at the night sky this weekend will be able to see the three brightest celestial bodies come together for a Thanksgiving reunion, the AP reports. Jupiter and Venus will move closer and appear to be just a finger's width apart by Sunday. By Monday, the crescent moon will...

Light Pollution Veils Starry Skies

Obscured night sky could be a health hazard

(Newser) - Dark skies are being engulfed by light all over the world, creating some unexpected consequences, the Wall Street Journal reports. Over two-thirds of the world's people— including nearly all Americans—can no longer see "what is possibly the most extraordinary natural wonder," said one astronomer. The amount of...

Scientists Explain Northern Lights

Finding could help scientists predict storms that take out satellites

(Newser) - Scientists say they have solved the mystery of what causes the dazzling northern lights to seemingly dance across the sky, Wired reports. The light show, also known as aurora borealis, is triggered by explosions of magnetic energy about 80,000 miles away. The findings—drawn from five NASA satellites working...

19 Stories