Sky Watching Guide

Phases of the 2017 total solar eclipse, captured from Farewell Bend State Recreation Area in Oregon.

Watch the Total Solar Eclipse From Your Home With These Live Streams Online

Not in the path of totality? See the moon blot out the sun, revealing its magnificent corona, from your computer or phone

Roughly every 71 years, the bright periodic comet 12P/Pons-Brooks passes by the sun and Earth. At its brightest, it can be seen with the naked eye in fairly dark skies.

You Can See a Rare, Bright Comet This Month. Will It Be Visible During the Solar Eclipse?

Comet 12P/Pons-Brooks is a frigid, volcanic ice ball that won’t pass near Earth again until 2095

The Whirlpool Galaxy (also known as M51), located 31 million light-years from Earth, is a particularly radiant object seen during the Messier marathon. This image was captured by the Hubble Space Telescope—skywatchers looking through a backyard telescope or binoculars would see the galaxy in far less detail.

What It Takes to Complete the Ultimate Skywatching Endurance Challenge

The "Messier marathon" prompts space hobbyists to spot 110 celestial objects in one night, and the best time to try it is in March

The last total solar eclipse visible from the United States took place on August 21, 2017.

How to Watch the Spectacular Total Solar Eclipse in April 2024

The moon will appear to completely block the sun's light across parts of Mexico, the United States and Canada on April 8—here's how to make the most of this rare celestial phenomenon

Depictions of catlike animals are visible on stones under a rotating, starry sky.

These 15 Photos Capture the Beauty of the Night Sky

Stars shine in these heavenly images from the Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest

Solar eclipse viewers at NASA’s Johnson Space Center on October 14, 2023

Nine Dazzling Celestial Events to Watch in 2024

Skywatchers can expect spectacular meteor showers, a comet soaring past Earth and a long-anticipated total solar eclipse

A Quadrantid meteor flies through the sky, as captured by NASA's All Sky cameras.

What to See in the Sky in January: Meteor Showers, Planets and Comets

From the Quadrantids to a "swarm of stars," here are the celestial spectacles you won’t want to miss this month

The consellation Orion and other stars in the sky in Alberta, Canada, in 2019.

An Asteroid Will Eclipse a Red Star in the Constellation Orion Monday Night

In the U.S., the rare event will only be visible from southern Florida, but it will be livestreamed from Italy for viewers everywhere

The Geminids appear to originate from the Gemini constellation, but you can see them throughout the night sky.

How to Watch the Geminid Meteor Shower This Week

The celestial spectacle will peak on December 13 and 14, lighting up the night sky with as many as 120 shooting stars per hour

The northern lights cast an eerie glow upon an abandoned, wrecked airplane.

These 15 Photos Capture the Beauty of the Northern Lights

Spiking solar activity could mean more chances to see the awesome aurora borealis

The Leonids appear to originate from the constellation Leo, but you can see them throughout the night sky.

How to Watch the Dazzling Leonid Meteor Shower This Weekend

The celestial spectacle has been ongoing since the beginning of the month, but it will peak Friday night into early Saturday morning

The James Webb Space Telescope's first image of Saturn.

Saturn's Rings Will Temporarily Disappear From View in 2025

From Earth’s perspective, we’ll be looking at the gas giant’s rings edge-on, making them nearly impossible to see

Shooting stars travel across the sky during the Draconid meteor shower.

How to Watch the Draconid Meteor Shower This Weekend

Though it’s usually a smaller display, the Draconids have historically produced breathtaking outbursts of shooting stars known as "meteor storms"

A supermoon appears above the Hagia Sophia Grand Mosque in Istanbul on August 2, 2023. Thursday's supermoon will be the fourth and final of 2023.

See the Last Supermoon of 2023 Illuminate the Night Sky Thursday

This special type of full moon, which will be slightly larger and brighter than usual, will not occur again until fall 2024

Comet Nishimura, as imaged on September 7. On Tuesday, the comet will pass within 78 million miles of Earth, the closest it will get for more than 400 years.

Newly Discovered Green Comet Is Passing By Earth This Week

Comet Nishimura, which appears only once every 435 years, is on track to approach the sun and shoot into deep space

A supermoon rises in Washington, D.C., on March 9, 2020.

How Rare Is the 'Super Blue Moon' Appearing in Skies Later This Week?

And why do they even call it a "blue moon" when it won't actually be that color?

A meteor streaks across the sky during the 2016 Perseid meteor shower in Spruce Knob, West Virginia.

How to Watch the Highly Anticipated Perseid Meteor Shower

This weekend, sky conditions will be almost perfect to catch a glimpse of shooting stars during one of the year's best celestial shows

Southern Delta Aquariids meteors and the Milky Way above Mount St. Helens

How to Watch the Striking Southern Delta Aquariids Meteor Shower

The spectacle is among several showers brightening skies this week, including the highly anticipated Perseids

The northern lights as seen through a layer of wildfire smoke in Banff National Park in Alberta, Canada, in September 2022.

Aurora Borealis Could Dazzle the Northern U.S. This Week

The current forecast from the University of Alaska, Fairbanks, says the glowing display could be visible as far as Madison, Wisconsin

Aurora borealis captured in northern Minnesota on April 23.

Widespread Auroras That Lit Skies This Week Are Getting More Common

The stunning colors that dazzled viewers on Sunday will appear again as the sun's activity builds to a peak in 2025

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