Astronomy news

• 19 Feb 2026 (9 hours away): Mercury at dichotomy

  19-02-2026 08:13 via in-the-sky.org
  Mercury reaches half phase in the evening sky.
  
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• NASA's doomed Swift space telescope restarts science work after rescue mission fails

  31-08-2026 23:00 via space.com
  
  NASA's Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory is back to studying the universe after spending months in a low-drag configuration while awaiting an orbital rescue mission that ultimately fell short.Mission controllers restarted two of Swift's three science instruments — its X-ray Telescope (XRT) and Ultraviolet/Optical Telescope (UVOT) — on Aug. 26. Both instruments had been shut down in February as part of an effort to minimize atmospheric drag and keep the aging spacecraft in orbit long eno
  
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• 'No guts, no glory': How I captured NASA's Roman Space Telescope cross the sun on a picture-perfect SpaceX Falcon Heavy launch

  31-08-2026 21:48 via space.com
  
  The SpaceX Falcon Heavy carrying NASA's Roman Space Telescope crosses the face o the sun as it launches to space from Pad 39A of the Kennedy Space Center in Florida in this photo taken by Space.com's Josh Dinner from a Titusville Hobby Lobby parking lot. Here's how he did it. (Image credit: Space.com / Josh Dinner)CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — Standing in the parking lot of the Titusville Hobby Lobby was maybe something I should have planned on before traveling to Florida for the launch of NASA's
  
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• What's next for Roman Space Telescope? Here's how NASA's flagship observatory will open up the universe

  31-08-2026 18:00 via space.com
  
  NASA's next big space telescope has left Earth, but it's not ready to start observing the heavens just yet.The Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope launched yesterday (Aug. 30), riding a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket into the heavens. Astronomers are very excited about Roman, for it's expected to discover thousands of new exoplanets and shed light on mysterious dark energy and dark matter, among other accomplishments.Such science work is a few months off, however. Here's a brief rundown of the next st
  
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• What's next for NASA's just-launched Roman Space Telescope?

  31-08-2026 18:00 via space.com
  
  NASA's next big space telescope has left Earth, but it's not ready to start observing the heavens just yet.The Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope launched yesterday (Aug. 30), riding a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket into the heavens. Astronomers are very excited about Roman, for it's expected to discover thousands of new exoplanets and shed light on mysterious dark energy and dark matter, among other accomplishments.Such science work is a few months off, however. Here's a brief rundown of the next st
  
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• SpaceX, NASA delay next astronaut launch to ISS due to leak on Dragon spacecraft

  31-08-2026 17:00 via space.com
  
  SpaceX's next astronaut mission to the International Space Station won't launch on Sept. 12 after all.That flight, known as Crew-13, has been delayed due to an oxidizer leak in the propulsion system of SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft, NASA announced on Saturday (Aug. 29). "Joint NASA and SpaceX teams are performing additional tests and data review and will complete any necessary rework prior to launch," NASA officials wrote in an update on Saturday. "A new target date will be announced once available
  
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• On this day in space! Aug. 31, 1965: NASA's ginormous Super Guppy carrier plane takes 1st flight like a flying whale

  31-08-2026 16:42 via space.com
  
  On August 31, 1965, NASA's Super Guppy cargo plane took its first test flight. This oversized aircraft looks a bit like a giant flying whale. It was built by a company called Aero Spacelines and based on the Boeing B-377 Stratocruiser. NASA uses these funny-looking planes to transport large cargo, like spacecraft parts and other smaller aircraft.(See the Super Guppy swallow a T-38 supersonic jet!) At the time, they needed the planes to transport Apollo program rocket stages from California to Fl
  
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• Roman telescope leaves its rocket behind | Space photo of the day for Aug. 31, 2026

  31-08-2026 16:00 via space.com
  
  NASA's Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope separates from a SpaceX Falcon Heavy upper stage after launching on Aug. 30, 2026. (Image credit: NASA)NASA caught a breathtaking image of its next-generation Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope deploying into space shortly after launch.What is it?This image was captured just some 31 minutes after the Roman telescope took off atop a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Sunday (Aug. 30). The photo shows the Nancy Grace Ro
  
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• September full moon 2026: When, where and how to see the Harvest Moon

  31-08-2026 15:00 via space.com
  
  The full moon of September 2026 will occur at 12:49 p.m. EDT (1649 GMT) on Sept. 26 as the moon glows opposite the sun in Earth's sky.September's full moon is often referred to as the Harvest moon — a traditional name for the full moon that falls closest to the September equinox, according to the Old Farmer's Almanac.Sadly, the sun, Earth and moon won't line up again to create a spectacular lunar eclipse, as was the case in August. But it'll still present a magnificent treat for stargazers
  
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• Scientists discover massive 'thermal anomaly' beneath the surface of Mars

  31-08-2026 14:00 via space.com
  
  New research into the interior of Mars further emphasizes that the Red Planet is a world of two very different halves.Deep inside the southern hemisphere of Mars, the temperature is up to 750 degrees Fahrenheit (400 degrees Celsius) warmer than beneath the northern hemisphere, deepening the mystery of the strange dichotomy between the Red Planet's flattened north and craggy southern highlands."Scientists usually assume that the interiors of planetary bodies are generally spherically symmetric, b
  
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• 06 Sep 2026 (6 days away): Conjunction of the Moon and Mars

  31-08-2026 10:30 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon and Mars share the same right ascension, at a separation of 3°00'.
  
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• 31 Aug 2026 (9 hours ago): Conjunction of the Moon and Saturn

  31-08-2026 10:07 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon and Saturn share the same right ascension, at a separation of 7°02'.
  
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• 31 Aug 2026 (8 hours ago): Conjunction of the Moon and Saturn

  31-08-2026 10:07 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon and Saturn share the same right ascension, at a separation of 7°02'.
  
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• 31 Aug 2026 (7 hours ago): Conjunction of the Moon and Saturn

  31-08-2026 10:07 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon and Saturn share the same right ascension, at a separation of 7°02'.
  
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• 31 Aug 2026 (6 hours ago): Conjunction of the Moon and Saturn

  31-08-2026 10:07 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon and Saturn share the same right ascension, at a separation of 7°02'.
  
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• 31 Aug 2026 (5 hours ago): Conjunction of the Moon and Saturn

  31-08-2026 10:07 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon and Saturn share the same right ascension, at a separation of 7°02'.
  
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• 31 Aug 2026 (46 minutes ago): Conjunction of the Moon and Saturn

  31-08-2026 10:07 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon and Saturn share the same right ascension, at a separation of 7°02'.
  
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• 31 Aug 2026 (4 hours ago): Conjunction of the Moon and Saturn

  31-08-2026 10:07 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon and Saturn share the same right ascension, at a separation of 7°02'.
  
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• 31 Aug 2026 (3 hours ago): Conjunction of the Moon and Saturn

  31-08-2026 10:07 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon and Saturn share the same right ascension, at a separation of 7°02'.
  
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• 31 Aug 2026 (23 minutes ago): Conjunction of the Moon and Saturn

  31-08-2026 10:07 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon and Saturn share the same right ascension, at a separation of 7°02'.
  
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• 31 Aug 2026 (2 hours ago): Conjunction of the Moon and Saturn

  31-08-2026 10:07 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon and Saturn share the same right ascension, at a separation of 7°02'.
  
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• 31 Aug 2026 (12 hours ago): Conjunction of the Moon and Saturn

  31-08-2026 10:07 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon and Saturn share the same right ascension, at a separation of 7°02'.
  
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• 31 Aug 2026 (11 hours ago): Conjunction of the Moon and Saturn

  31-08-2026 10:07 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon and Saturn share the same right ascension, at a separation of 7°02'.
  
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• 31 Aug 2026 (10 hours ago): Conjunction of the Moon and Saturn

  31-08-2026 10:07 via in-the-sky.org
  The Moon and Saturn share the same right ascension, at a separation of 7°02'.
  
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• 31 Aug 2026 (1 hour ago): Conjunction of the Moon and Saturn

  31-08-2026 10:07 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon and Saturn share the same right ascension, at a separation of 7°02'.
  
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• 31 Aug 2026 (1 minute away): Conjunction of the Moon and Saturn

  31-08-2026 10:06 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon and Saturn share the same right ascension, at a separation of 7°02'.
  
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• 31 Aug 2026 (25 minutes away): Conjunction of the Moon and Saturn

  31-08-2026 09:41 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon and Saturn share the same right ascension, at a separation of 7°02'.
  
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• 31 Aug 2026 (48 minutes away): Conjunction of the Moon and Saturn

  31-08-2026 09:18 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon and Saturn share the same right ascension, at a separation of 7°02'.
  
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• 31 Aug 2026 (1 hour away): Conjunction of the Moon and Saturn

  31-08-2026 08:29 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon and Saturn share the same right ascension, at a separation of 7°02'.
  
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• 31 Aug 2026 (2 hours away): Conjunction of the Moon and Saturn

  31-08-2026 07:18 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon and Saturn share the same right ascension, at a separation of 7°02'.
  
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