Astronomy news

• 31 Aug 2026 (Yesterday): Close approach of the Moon and Saturn

  31-08-2026 04:32 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon and Saturn pass close to each other.
  
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• Stoke Space raises $1 billion for fully reusable rockets, targets 'early 2027' for 1st-ever launch

  08-09-2026 21:23 via space.com
  
  Stoke Space has amassed a substantial sum during its latest round of financing and is revealing exactly where it plans to invest its new stack of cash. The Kent, Washington-based company just raised$1 billion via its"Series E" capital campaign, bringing Stoke’s total investor haul to $2.3 billion. The Sept. 8 announcement provided a development update for Stoke’s fully reusable Nova Pathfinder launch vehicle and included plans for its never-before-seen Nova Block 2 rocket, a more pow
  
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• 'Star Trek' imagined strange new worlds 60 years ago, but are real exoplanets even stranger?

  08-09-2026 21:00 via space.com
  
  September 8th, 1966 was a Thursday. Not a fresh-start-Monday or an exciting Saturday. A regular old Thursday; except that this one catalysed a cultural phenomenon. This was the Thursday that "Star Trek" was first broadcast, drawing viewers across the United States into a space-age world that revolutionised television. The thing is, in 1966 no exoplanets (planets beyond our Solar System) had actually been discovered. Yet the franchise gave audiences a galaxy brimming with desert planets, ocean wo
  
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• 14 Sep 2026 (6 days away): Conjunction of the Moon and Venus

  08-09-2026 20:46 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon and Venus share the same right ascension, at a separation of 31'.
  
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• 13 Sep 2026 (5 days away): The Moon at perihelion

  08-09-2026 20:46 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon passes its closest point to the Sun, a monthly occurrence around the time of new moon.
  
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• 12 Sep 2026 (4 days away): Conjunction of the Moon and Mercury

  08-09-2026 20:46 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon and Mercury share the same right ascension, at a separation of 3°50'.
  
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• 08 Sep 2026 (40 minutes ago): Lunar occultation of Jupiter

  08-09-2026 20:44 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon will pass in front of Jupiter, creating a lunar occultation visible from countries and territories including Canada, Greenland, Russia and the Contiguous United States amongst others.
  
  Read more

• 08 Sep 2026 (40 minutes ago): Close approach of the Moon and Jupiter

  08-09-2026 20:44 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon and Jupiter pass close to each other.
  
  Read more

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• 08 Sep 2026 (2 minutes ago): Lunar occultation of Jupiter

  08-09-2026 20:44 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon will pass in front of Jupiter, creating a lunar occultation visible from countries and territories including Canada, Greenland, Russia and the Contiguous United States amongst others.
  
  Read more

• 08 Sep 2026 (2 minutes ago): Close approach of the Moon and Jupiter

  08-09-2026 20:44 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon and Jupiter pass close to each other.
  
  Read more

• 08 Sep 2026 (1 hour ago): Lunar occultation of Jupiter

  08-09-2026 20:44 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon will pass in front of Jupiter, creating a lunar occultation visible from countries and territories including Canada, Greenland, Russia and the Contiguous United States amongst others.
  
  Read more

• 08 Sep 2026 (1 hour ago): Close approach of the Moon and Jupiter

  08-09-2026 20:44 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon and Jupiter pass close to each other.
  
  Read more

• 08 Sep 2026 (32 minutes away): Lunar occultation of Jupiter

  08-09-2026 20:11 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon will pass in front of Jupiter, creating a lunar occultation visible from countries and territories including Canada, Greenland, Russia and the Contiguous United States amongst others.
  
  Read more

• 08 Sep 2026 (32 minutes away): Close approach of the Moon and Jupiter

  08-09-2026 20:11 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon and Jupiter pass close to each other.
  
  Read more

• 08 Sep 2026 (34 minutes ago): Conjunction of the Moon and Jupiter

  08-09-2026 20:11 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon and Jupiter share the same right ascension, at a separation of 50'.
  
  Read more

• 08 Sep 2026 (2 hours ago): Conjunction of the Moon and Jupiter

  08-09-2026 20:11 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon and Jupiter share the same right ascension, at a separation of 50'.
  
  Read more

• 08 Sep 2026 (1 minute away): Conjunction of the Moon and Jupiter

  08-09-2026 20:11 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon and Jupiter share the same right ascension, at a separation of 50'.
  
  Read more

• 08 Sep 2026 (1 hour ago): Conjunction of the Moon and Jupiter

  08-09-2026 20:11 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon and Jupiter share the same right ascension, at a separation of 50'.
  
  Read more

• Astrophotographer captures jaw-dropping view of the Crescent Nebula

  08-09-2026 20:00 via space.com
  
  The Crescent Nebula shines in the constellation Cygnus. (Image credit: Kevin Boardman)Astrophotographer Kevin Boardman captured this spectacular view of the Crescent Nebula, revealing intricate filaments of gas surrounding a massive star nearing the end of its life some 4,700 light-years from Earth in the constellation Cygnus.Boardman's image represents a turbulent chapter in the life of the colossal Wolf-Rayet star WR 136 (HD 192163), which, visible as a blue point of light at the center of the
  
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• 08 Sep 2026 (36 minutes away): Conjunction of the Moon and Jupiter

  08-09-2026 19:35 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon and Jupiter share the same right ascension, at a separation of 50'.
  
  Read more

• 08 Sep 2026 (1 hour away): Lunar occultation of Jupiter

  08-09-2026 19:35 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon will pass in front of Jupiter, creating a lunar occultation visible from countries and territories including Canada, Greenland, Russia and the Contiguous United States amongst others.
  
  Read more

• 08 Sep 2026 (1 hour away): Close approach of the Moon and Jupiter

  08-09-2026 19:35 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon and Jupiter pass close to each other.
  
  Read more

• On this day in space! Sept. 8, 2004: NASA's Genesis spacecraft crashed in the Utah desert, shattering its samples of solar wind particles from the sun

  08-09-2026 19:17 via space.com
  
  On Sept. 8, 2004, NASA's Genesis spacecraft crash-landed in Utah after its parachutes failed to deploy. Genesis was NASA's first sample-return mission since the Apollo program, and the first attempt ever to bring back samples from someplace farther than the moon. The spacecraft picked up solar wind particles while orbiting the L1 Lagrange point, which is about 1 million miles from Earth. L1 is a "sweet spot" between the Earth and the sun, where the gravitational pull from both objects balances o
  
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• An unmissable $450 off, we rank this vintage-style Nikon as the best camera under $2000, but it is going fast

  08-09-2026 19:00 via space.com
  
  Looking for a quality camera that marries style and performance? Look no further than the Nikon Zf. Despite its vintage looks, it's one of the best Nikon cameras you can buy and with its excellent low-light performance, we also rank it as one of the best astrophotography cameras. Now, thanks to this deal, it's the cheapest it's been since last year's Black Friday. Save $453 and get the Nikon Zf camera, on sale for $1,747 at Amazon.In our Nikon Zf review, our expert called it "A great buy that of
  
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• 08 Sep 2026 (1 hour away): Conjunction of the Moon and Jupiter

  08-09-2026 18:25 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon and Jupiter share the same right ascension, at a separation of 50'.
  
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• 2 satellites just burned up in Earth's atmosphere — and scientists were watching from a private jet. Here's why

  08-09-2026 18:00 via space.com
  
  A team of researchers just chased a pair of reentering satellites in a private jet to learn about the pollution caused by space debris burning up in Earth's atmosphere.The satellites in question were the European Space Agency's (ESA) Tango and Samba spacecraft, which once formed the Cluster constellation, together with the already de-orbited Rumba and Salsa. The quartet used to study the interaction of Earth's magnetic field with the solar wind. After 25 years of service, ESA took advantage of t
  
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• 08 Sep 2026 (2 hours away): Lunar occultation of Jupiter

  08-09-2026 17:47 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon will pass in front of Jupiter, creating a lunar occultation visible from countries and territories including Canada, Greenland, Russia and the Contiguous United States amongst others.
  
  Read more

• 08 Sep 2026 (2 hours away): Close approach of the Moon and Jupiter

  08-09-2026 17:47 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon and Jupiter pass close to each other.
  
  Read more

• 08 Sep 2026 (3 hours away): Lunar occultation of Jupiter

  08-09-2026 17:17 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon will pass in front of Jupiter, creating a lunar occultation visible from countries and territories including Canada, Greenland, Russia and the Contiguous United States amongst others.
  
  Read more

• 08 Sep 2026 (3 hours away): Close approach of the Moon and Jupiter

  08-09-2026 17:17 via in-the-sky.org
  
  The Moon and Jupiter pass close to each other.
  
  Read more

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