Astronomy news

• 01 May 2023 (8 hours ago): Mercury at inferior solar conjunction

  02-05-2023 01:22 via in-the-sky.org
  
  Mercury passes around the near side of the Sun.
  
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• After a lifetime of waiting, I'll finally witness a total solar eclipse next month on Aug. 12

  16-07-2026 17:00 via space.com
  
  On Aug. 12, I get to fulfil a lifelong ambition. I'll take a flight to Madrid and travel northwest to the city of Valladolid by rail, before striking out for Valoria la Buena — a charming town in central Spain with a population of less than 1,000.There, I'll bear witness to one of the most spectacular naked eye shows that the solar system has to offer: a total solar eclipse. My first total solar eclipse.Don't get me wrong. I've been obsessed with eclipses my entire life. I just haven't fou
  
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• 17 Jul 2026 (9 hours away): Lunar occultation of Regulus

  16-07-2026 16:54 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon will pass in front of Regulus (Alpha Leonis) creating a lunar occultation, though it will open be visible only at sea.
  
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• 17 Jul 2026 (23 hours away): Close approach of the Moon and Venus

  16-07-2026 16:54 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon and Venus pass close to each other.
  
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• 17 Jul 2026 (10 hours away): Lunar occultation of Regulus

  16-07-2026 16:01 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon will pass in front of Regulus (Alpha Leonis) creating a lunar occultation, though it will open be visible only at sea.
  
  Read more

• A laser disappears into the Milky Way's heart | Space photo of the day for July 16, 2026

  16-07-2026 16:00 via space.com
  
  The Gemini South Observatory shoots out a beam of light. (Image credit: International Gemini Observatory/NOIRLab/NSF/AURA/P. Horálek)A laser star guide beams up from the Gemini South Observatory and into the Milky Way on Cerro Pachón, a mountain in central Chile. What is it? The Gemini South Observatory, located in Chile, is one of two Gemini Observatories with the other located in Hawaii (named Gemini North, or 'Alopeke) on the volcano Mauna Kea. Each Gemini Observatory has a 26.6
  
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• 17 Jul 2026 (11 hours away): Lunar occultation of Regulus

  16-07-2026 14:30 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon will pass in front of Regulus (Alpha Leonis) creating a lunar occultation, though it will open be visible only at sea.
  
  Read more

• Watch SpaceX launch 21 'data transport' satellites for US military today

  16-07-2026 14:00 via space.com
  
  Starship won't be the only SpaceX rocket flying today, if all goes according to plan.A Falcon 9 rocket is scheduled to launch from California's Vandenberg Space Force Base today (July 16), carrying 21 satellites for the U.S. military's advanced new "Tranche 1 Transport Layer" (T1TL) constellation to orbit.Liftoff will take place during a 22-minute window that opens at 4:22 p.m. EDT (2022 GMT; 1:22 p.m. local California time). You can watch it live via SpaceX beginning about 10 minutes before lau
  
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• Is dark matter 'tuned in' to a hidden dimension?

  16-07-2026 14:00 via space.com
  
  Two major mysteries in science, the nature of dark matter and the possible existence of higher dimensions, could be linked, new research suggests. The team behind a new study proposes that dark matter may be so strange and ghost-like because it is in tune with a fifth dimension.When scientists discuss "extra dimensions," they aren't talking about other universes in which another evil version of you exists (and with a beard). Instead, they refer to dimensions that could be "curled up" with realit
  
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• 17 Jul 2026 (12 hours away): Lunar occultation of Regulus

  16-07-2026 13:37 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon will pass in front of Regulus (Alpha Leonis) creating a lunar occultation, though it will open be visible only at sea.
  
  Read more

• 17 Jul 2026 (13 hours away): Lunar occultation of Regulus

  16-07-2026 12:40 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon will pass in front of Regulus (Alpha Leonis) creating a lunar occultation, though it will open be visible only at sea.
  
  Read more

• SpaceX will launch Starship, the world's largest rocket, on critical Flight 13 test today. Here's what to expect.

  16-07-2026 12:00 via space.com
  
  SpaceX's Starship megarocket will take to the skies again today (July 16), and you can watch the thundering action live.Starship, the biggest and most powerful rocket ever built, is scheduled to lift off from SpaceX's Starbase site in South Texas today — the 57th anniversary of the launch of NASA's Apollo 11 moon mission, by the way — during a 90-minute widow that opens at 6:45 p.m. EDT (2245 GMT; 5:45 p.m. local Texas time). It will be Starship's 13th flight overall and its second m
  
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• 17 Jul 2026 (14 hours away): Lunar occultation of Regulus

  16-07-2026 11:42 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon will pass in front of Regulus (Alpha Leonis) creating a lunar occultation, though it will open be visible only at sea.
  
  Read more

• 17 Jul 2026 (15 hours away): Lunar occultation of Regulus

  16-07-2026 10:45 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon will pass in front of Regulus (Alpha Leonis) creating a lunar occultation, though it will open be visible only at sea.
  
  Read more

• 17 Jul 2026 (16 hours away): Lunar occultation of Regulus

  16-07-2026 09:55 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon will pass in front of Regulus (Alpha Leonis) creating a lunar occultation, though it will open be visible only at sea.
  
  Read more

• 17 Jul 2026 (17 hours away): Lunar occultation of Regulus

  16-07-2026 09:04 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon will pass in front of Regulus (Alpha Leonis) creating a lunar occultation, though it will open be visible only at sea.
  
  Read more

• 17 Jul 2026 (18 hours away): Lunar occultation of Regulus

  16-07-2026 07:37 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon will pass in front of Regulus (Alpha Leonis) creating a lunar occultation, though it will open be visible only at sea.
  
  Read more

• 17 Jul 2026 (19 hours away): Lunar occultation of Regulus

  16-07-2026 06:24 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon will pass in front of Regulus (Alpha Leonis) creating a lunar occultation, though it will open be visible only at sea.
  
  Read more

• 17 Jul 2026 (20 hours away): Lunar occultation of Regulus

  16-07-2026 05:46 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon will pass in front of Regulus (Alpha Leonis) creating a lunar occultation, though it will open be visible only at sea.
  
  Read more

• 17 Jul 2026 (21 hours away): Lunar occultation of Regulus

  16-07-2026 04:45 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon will pass in front of Regulus (Alpha Leonis) creating a lunar occultation, though it will open be visible only at sea.
  
  Read more

• 17 Jul 2026 (22 hours away): Lunar occultation of Regulus

  16-07-2026 03:30 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon will pass in front of Regulus (Alpha Leonis) creating a lunar occultation, though it will open be visible only at sea.
  
  Read more

• 17 Jul 2026 (23 hours away): Lunar occultation of Regulus

  16-07-2026 02:53 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon will pass in front of Regulus (Alpha Leonis) creating a lunar occultation, though it will open be visible only at sea.
  
  Read more

• 24 Jul 2026 (8 days away): Lunar occultation of Antares

  16-07-2026 01:03 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon will pass in front of Antares (Alpha Scorpii), creating a lunar occultation visible from countries and territories including Antarctica, French Southern Territories, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands and Falkland Islands amongst others.
  
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• 21 Jul 2026 (5 days away): Moon at First Quarter

  16-07-2026 01:03 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon reaches first quarter phase – appearing high in the sky at sunset and remaining visible until around midnight.
  
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• 17 Jul 2026 (Tomorrow): Lunar occultation of Regulus

  16-07-2026 01:03 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon will pass in front of Regulus (Alpha Leonis) creating a lunar occultation, though it will open be visible only at sea.
  
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• 17 Jul 2026 (Tomorrow): Conjunction of the Moon and Venus

  16-07-2026 01:03 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon and Venus share the same right ascension, at a separation of 2°01'.
  
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• 17 Jul 2026 (Tomorrow): Close approach of the Moon and Venus

  16-07-2026 01:03 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon and Venus pass close to each other.
  
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• 17 Jul 2026 (2 days away): Messier 55 is well placed

  16-07-2026 01:03 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The globular cluster M55 (NGC 6809l; mag 6.3) in Sagittarius culminates at around midnight local time.
  
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• 'Full steam ahead': NASA ramps up prep for Artemis III astronaut launch in 2027

  16-07-2026 00:00 via space.com
  
  NASA is picking up the pace on its Artemis III mission preparations, pressing forward on multiple fronts to assemble launch vehicle hardware and beginning routine simulations inside Artemis mission control. The agency is "full steam ahead," according to a July 13 NASA update. Across Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in Florida, components of Artemis III's Space Launch System (SLS) rocket are coming together, undergoing tests and awaiting transportation for final integration ahead of next year's launch.
  
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• Watch Archimedes burn! Rocket Lab fires up engine for its powerful next-gen Neutron launcher (video)

  15-07-2026 22:00 via space.com
  
  Rocket Lab has completed a major qualification test for its formidable Archimedes engine, which will power the company's next-gen Neutron launch vehicle. As Rocket Lab continues with regular launches of its workhorse small-lift Electron rocket, development of Neutron has carried on in the background, progressing toward a possible debut later this year. The company recently completed a full-duration burn of a second-stage Archimedes, paving the way for integration with Neutron in the coming month
  
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