The view from the edge of a sparkling spiral galaxy | Space photo of the day for Oct. 20, 2026
If you were approaching the edge of a spiral galaxy, arriving from afar through the cosmos, it might look something like this.
Red light, white light: How to preserve your night vision while using stargazing apps
The right apps can take a lot of the work out of stargazing, but they can also stop your eyes from adjusting to the dark. Here's how to use them without ruining your skywatching.
Giant canyon on Mars is still tectonically active today
Scientists at Columbia University and Imperial College London have found that the largest canyon system in the solar system is still active and shaping Mars today, billions of yea…
The sun may have stripped away meters of interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS
The interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS brought material from another planetary system within reach of our telescopes, but reading its chemistry poses a problem. Energetic particles encou…
Could a $200K bond for satellites paid before launch prevent a space junk disaster in orbit? Here's why some scientists think so
The space around Earth is turning into a junkyard. Researchers think a refundable deposit scheme could force satellite operators to clean up their act before a tipping point is re…
SpaceX launches its 'Starfall' return capsule for 2nd time ever
SpaceX launched its Starfall return capsule for the second time ever this morning (Oct. 20), sending it up on the Bandwagon-5 rideshare mission.
Lucy mission marks 5 years of discoveries
On Oct. 16, 2021, NASA's Lucy spacecraft began its journey to the never-before-explored Jupiter Trojan asteroids with an early morning launch. Now less than a year away from the f…
NASA closes the book on epic OSIRIS-REx asteroid-sampling mission: 'I am immensely proud of what we did'
NASA's OSIRIS-REx asteroid-sampling mission formally ended on Sept. 30, 2026, though scientists will continue to study the pieces of space rock it returned for decades.
Near miss: Indonesia probes crash of suspected Chinese rocket fragment
Indonesian authorities were investigating Tuesday after a car-sized piece of debris, possibly from a Chinese rocket according to a government agency, crashed into a palm oil plant…
Japan launches spacecraft to mysterious moons of Mars in a bold mission to bring home soil samples
A Japanese spacecraft rocketed toward Mars on Tuesday on a quest to explore its mysterious moons and bring back samples.
APOD: 2026 October 20 – An Anticrepuscular Rainbow Fan
APOD Science APOD APOD: 2026 October 20 – An… Today’s APOD Archive Submissions Index Search Calendar RSS Education About Discuss APOD Astronomy Picture of the Day Discover the c…
The Human Fingerprint on Earth’s Water Cycle
Human activities have become intertwined with how water is distributed across the continents. A new study brings their effects into sharper focus.
Curiosity Blog, Sols 5036-5042: Watching the Clouds Go By
Written by Alex Innanen, Atmospheric Scientist at York University Earth planning date: Friday, Oct. 9, 2026 Happy New Mars Year! We mark the start of a new year on Mars at the beg…
Planetary 'twins' Uranus and Neptune may have different origin stories
By indirectly probing the depths of Uranus and Neptune's atmospheres, an international team of scientists has revealed a significant contrast in their chemical composition. Neptun…
Who speaks for Mars? Scientists call for ethical debate before terraforming begins
Transforming Mars into a more Earth-like world could irreversibly destroy scientific evidence about the planet's history and the possibility of extraterrestrial life. In an opinio…
New 'Blade Runner 2099' trailer is a space fan's dream with sinister starships and strange exoplanets (video)
'More human than human. That's not a slogan; it's a shackle'
Cosmic 'hamburger' offers rare edge-on view of where giant planets may take shape
Astronomers using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) were surprised to discover the earliest phases of giant planet formation between the dense layers of gas …
Webb reveals metal-rich gas around Milky Way's central black hole
The gas orbiting Sagittarius A (Sgr A*), the supermassive black hole at the center of the Milky Way galaxy, is rich in metals, researchers at McGill University's Trottier Space In…
The X-Files Lego set is a wonderful bit of 90s sci-fi nostalgia
Brick by brick ... the truth is out there. You can now own a little piece of that with this 1,478-piece Lego set
Japan launches historic MMX sample-return mission to Mars' moon Phobos (video)
Japan just launched an epic mission to Mars' moons that could make history as the first spacecraft to return to Earth from the Red Planet — and it plans to come back with samples …
On this day in space! Oct. 19, 2016: Europe's ExoMars orbiter and Schiaparelli lander arrive at Mars
On Oct. 19, 2016, the European Space Agency's ExoMars orbiter and Schiaparelli arrived at Mars! Here's why it mattered.
Japan to launch world-first mission to moon of Mars
Japanese scientists will launch a spacecraft on Tuesday that aims to be the first to retrieve samples from one of Mars' moons, potentially helping unlock the origins of the solar …
NASA Improves Shock, Vibration Analysis
Rockets vibrate, shake, and flex intensely as they climb into space, and spacecraft packed with delicate scientific instruments must survive those forces. Before any rocket leaves…
The moon is shrinking. 10,000 cracks on the lunar surface reveal by how much
One new study shows how much the moon has diminished over time.