Jupiter, Saturn, Venus, Mercury, Neptune and Uranus will all be visible at same time in curved line across sky
Six planets will parade across the sky this weekend in a rare celestial spectacle, experts have said.
For the next few days, Jupiter, Saturn, Venus, Mercury, Neptune and Uranus will all be visible at the same time in the night sky – although binoculars or a telescope will be needed to spot the latter two planets.
Continue reading...The geomagnetic storm, caused by powerful bursts of energy from the sun, also postponed the launch of two Mars-bound Nasa spacecraft in the US
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Skywatchers enjoyed a stunning treat on Wednesday night, with the southern lights visible across large parts of Australia and New Zealand.
The aurora australis that lit up the sky resulted from what has been dubbed a “cannibal” solar storm.
Continue reading...The planet will reach its maximum western elongation from the sun, making it visible in the early hours
Venus will reach maximum western elongation from the sun on 31 May. Maximum elongation means that it appears as far from the sun as it can, making it the most easily visible. The fact that it is to the sun’s west means that it is visible in the morning sky.
From the UK, Venus rises at about 03.15 BST, giving an observing window of about an hour from 03.30 BST. The sun rises at about 04.45 BST, and no observations should be undertaken once the sun is in the sky because permanent eye damage can occur from looking at its fiery surface.
Continue reading...Astrophysics team say observation of chemical compounds may be ‘tipping point’ in search for extraterrestrial life
A giant planet 124 light years from Earth has yielded the strongest evidence yet that extraterrestrial life may be thriving beyond our solar system, astronomers claim.
Observations by the James Webb space telescope of a planet called K2-18 b appear to reveal the chemical fingerprints of two compounds that, on Earth, are only known to be produced by life.
Continue reading...Data from European Space Agency’s mission has allowed researchers to create detailed catalogue of 380,000 galaxies
Astronomers are predicting an “avalanche of discoveries” after the first major release of observations from a European space telescope built to study the mysterious dark matter and dark energy that comprise the bulk of the universe.
The European Space Agency’s Euclid mission has captured images of 26m galaxies, covering 10bn years of cosmic history. They give researchers unprecedented insight into the forces that shape the cosmos and the galaxies it holds.
Continue reading...Astronomers deeply concerned that darkest, clearest skies in world will be compromised by proposed facility nearby
In the Atacama desert, the driest non-polar region on Earth, the sky shines when the sun sets.
Up in the arid hills 130km south of the Chilean city of Antofagasta, comets burn brightly and flawless trails of stars and nebulae streak the night sky.
Continue reading...These nocturnal events are more spectacular from dark country sky, but they can still be seen from a light-polluted city – and for many, no telescope is needed
Each night an annual parade of constellations passes above our heads but there are always exciting, less frequent events to look out for in the sky. The year 2025 is no exception. The night sky is more spectacular from a dark country sky, but you can see these events even if, like many others, you live in a light-polluted city. For most events you do not need a telescope or binoculars.
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Continue reading...Find a viewing spot that is dark and looks towards the east, which is where the moon will rise. A flat location will give a ‘really cool’ perspective, experts say
If you look up into the sky on Wednesday night, you’ll likely notice the full moon gleaming bigger and brighter than usual.
You’ll be looking at the second supermoon of the year – the term for when the moon’s orbit is closest to Earth while it is full.
How to take a good photograph of the full moon on your phone or camera
Continue reading...Illuminated signs have increased nocturnal artificial light and are detrimental to the city’s liveability and sustainability, a review has found
Large digital billboards could be turned off late at night under a proposal by Melbourne city council to crack down on light pollution and reduce its health and environmental impacts.
A review, commissioned by the council, recommended the introduction of a curfew for illuminated signs above ground level.
Continue reading...T Coronae Borealis, or the Blaze Star, was last seen in 1946 and will be visible again some time between now and September
In what is being called a “once-in-a-lifetime event”, light from a thermonuclear explosion on a star has been travelling towards Earth for thousands of years and it will be here any day.
T Coronae Borealis (also known as T Cor Bor, T CrB, and the Blaze Star) will be as bright as the North Star (for those in the northern hemisphere).
Continue reading...Exclusive: ‘Massive’ discovery raises possibility that conditions for life were present almost from dawn of time
Astronomers have detected carbon in a galaxy observed just 350m years after the big bang, in observations that raise the possibility that the conditions for life were present almost from the dawn of time.
The observations, made by the James Webb Space Telescope, suggest that vast amounts of carbon were released when the first generation of stars exploded in supernovae. Carbon is known to have seeded the first planets and is a building block for life as we know it, but was previously thought to have emerged much later in cosmic history.
Continue reading...Queensland- and Scotland-based PhD students co-lead team celebrating ‘Eureka moment’ spotting Gliese 12b
An Australian university student has co-led the discovery of an Earth-sized, potentially habitable planet just 40 light years away.
Shishir Dholakia, a PhD candidate in astrophysics at the University of Southern Queensland, is part of an international team that published the discovery in the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society.
Continue reading...Solar storm effects delight stargazers in Victoria, Tasmania and South Australia but most in NSW miss out
Australians should have a second chance to see the aurora australis on Sunday night, experts say, after a Saturday southern lights display so spectacular it left at least one astronomer in tears.
Social media users posted pictures of brightly coloured skies in Victoria, Tasmania, South Australia, and around the world.
Continue reading...Noaa issues warning for extreme G5 geomagnetic storm, with effects due to last through weekend and possibly into next week
A ferocious solar storm powerful enough to knock out or disrupt satellite and communications systems, the power grid and radio signals was raging on Friday, space weather researchers warned.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (Noaa) issued a rare warning for extreme G5 geomagnetic storm conditions when a solar outburst reached Earth on Friday afternoon, hours sooner than anticipated. The effects were due to last through the weekend and possibly into next week. The last extreme G5 event was in 2003.
Continue reading...Ethereal scenes of flowing super-heated material may help explain why atmosphere is hotter than surface
The sun’s otherworldly landscape, including coronal moss, solar rain and 6,000-mile-tall spires of gas, is revealed in footage from the Solar Orbiter spacecraft.
The observations, beamed back by the European Space Agency probe, reveal feathery, hair-like structures made of plasma and also capture eruptions and showers of relatively cooler material falling to the surface.
Continue reading...While 12P/Pons-Brooks may not be as famous as Halley’s, its appearance close to Jupiter is causing great excitement for stargazers
The green, horned “Devil comet” is now visible in Australian skies, offering a once-in-lifetime chance to see a unique celestial body.
The comet – real name 12P/Pons-Brooks – was nicknamed the Devil comet because eruptions from its nucleus can make it look like it has two horns. More recently, Star Wars fans have nicknamed it the Millennium Falcon.
Continue reading...Archaeologists and astronomers to study Wiltshire site’s lesser understood connection to the moon
The rising and setting of the sun at Stonehenge, especially during the summer and winter solstices, continues to evoke joy, fascination and religious devotion.
Now a project has been launched to delve into the lesser understood links that may exist between the monument and the moon during a rare lunar event.
Continue reading...Spectacular aurora borealis caused by geomagnetic storms on sun’s surface may be visible in North America as far south as the midwest
Solar eruptions are sending a stream of particles towards Earth, creating spectacular auroras in both hemispheres.
The aurora borealis – in the northern hemisphere – will be potentially visible on Monday night in the US as far south as the midwest. The northern lights, more commonly associated with northern Europe, could also be visible in northern United Kingdom.
Continue reading...New research from Australian scientists shows strong evidence even mid-life stable stars like our sun have engulfed entire planets
Planet-eating stars are more abundant in the universe than previously thought, an Australian-led study has found.
The study, by the Australian Research Council’s Centre of Excellence for All Sky Astrophysics in Three Dimensions (Astro 3D), looked at “co-natal” or twin stars, born from the same molecular cloud, where one had “eaten” a planet and the other had not.
Continue reading...Exclusive: Significant discovery, made by James Webb telescope, provokes disagreement over conditions on planet’s surface
Astronomers have observed a distant planet that could be entirely covered in a deep water ocean, in findings that advance the search for habitable conditions beyond Earth.
The observations, by Nasa’s James Webb space telescope (JWST), revealed water vapour and chemical signatures of methane and carbon dioxide in the atmosphere of the exoplanet, which is twice Earth’s radius and about 70 light years away. This chemical mix is consistent with a water world where the ocean would span the entire surface, and a hydrogen-rich atmosphere, according to researchers from the University of Cambridge, although they do not envisage a balmy, inviting seascape.
Continue reading...