Topic: Hayden Planetarium
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Quadrantid meteors and 11 other big skywatching events of 2012
What lies ahead sky-wise for 2012? Joe Rao, SPACE.com Skywatching Columnist, selected what he considers to be the top 12 "skylights" for this coming year,
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Comet of the century? ISON has 'potential' to be visible all day.
As sun-grazing comet ISON approaches the sun, it's getting progressively brighter – and might even flare into a dazzling object bright enough to be visible in broad daylight.
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Fireballs! 'Tis the season for massive meteors.
Tonight (April 23) through Friday at dawn may be your best chance of the year to spot a fireball, a meteor that shines brighter than Venus, the brightest planet in the sky.
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Pink full moon Thursday: Who gets to see it?
April's full moon is traditionally called the 'pink moon,' a reference to pink phlox, one of the earliest flowers of spring. This week's 'pink moon' might actually appear pinkish in Europe, Africa, or Asia, where spectators will see a partial lunar eclipse.
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Quandrantid meteor shower: The best time to catch it
Quadrantid meteor shower: With a bright gibbous moon, the best time to view the Quandrantid meteor shower is between 2 a.m. and 7 a.m. EST, before the sun rises.
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Leonid meteor shower: When and where to watch
Leonid meteor shower: The meteor shower peak will come tonight (3 a.m. E.T. Saturday). The Leonid meteor shower is a product of the Earth passing through the tail of the Tempel-Tuttle comet.
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What is a 'blue moon' anyway?
August 31 will arrive with a blue moon, and it won't happen again for three years. What exactly is a blue moon? And where did it get its name?
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Sunset to transform New York City into 'Manhattanhenge'
Manhattanhenge: At 8:25 p.m. Thursday, New Yorkers will be treated to a unique spectacle of the setting sun aligning perfectly with Manhattan's street grid.
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Thanks to science, your weekend will be one second longer (+video)
As the Earth's rotation slows ever so slightly, from time to time we have to add a 'leap second' to the calendar to let our planet catch up with our clocks.
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Where's Mars? Look for the moon first.
Less than four months ago, Mars shone much brighter than today. Now spotting the Red Planet requires guideposts, such as the moon.
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How to watch the transit of Venus without blinding yourself (+video)
The transit of Venus across the solar disk won't make it okay to stare into the sun. Here's how to watch this rare astronomical event safely.
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Transit of Venus: Early 'tape measure' for size of our solar system (+video)
The next transit of Venus occurs June 5. Astronomers once used the transit of Venus across the sun to come up with the 'astronomical unit' – the distance from Earth to our sun.
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Manhattanhenge: Sun to align perfectly with New York street grid
Manhattanhenge: The street grid of New York's oldest and largest borough will briefly transform into a Stonehenge-like sundial, as the sun alights up the north and south sides of every cross street.
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Supermoon Saturday: Why it's the biggest, brightest of 2012 (+video)
Supermoon Saturday: It's also called the 'Flower Moon,' and 'Milk Moon.' The 'supermoon' will be only 221,802 miles from Earth, the closest to our planet this year.
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What does Easter have to do with the moon anyway?
Traditionally, Easter is observed on the Sunday after the first full moon of spring in the northern hemisphere.
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Mars, moon, and star form brilliant sky triangle tonight
The moon, Mars and the star Regulus will combine to form a very bright triple play Tuesday night.
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The science behind Groundhog Day (Hint: There isn't any.)
Despite the prognostications of celebrity marmots, the arrival of spring is based largely on the Earth's orientation to the sun.
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Quadrantid Meteor Shower peaks Weds, one of 2012's best
The Quadrantids are notoriously unpredictable, but if any year promises a fine display, this could be it.
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Quadrantid meteors and 11 other big skywatching events of 2012
What lies ahead sky-wise for 2012? Joe Rao, SPACE.com Skywatching Columnist, selected what he considers to be the top 12 "skylights" for this coming year,
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German satellite to fall to Earth. Here's how to watch it.
German satellite: A decommissioned German X-Ray space observatory about the size of a minivan is falling to Earth. With a dark sky, you can see it as it gradually descends.
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Moon, Jupiter to shine near each other tonight
Moon meet Jupiter, Jupiter meet moon. The two most brilliant objects in our current night sky will make for an eye-catching duo tonight, weather permitting.
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Perseid meteor shower: Best times to see the 'shooting stars'
Perseid meteor shower fans should go out Wednesday and Thursday a.m. to avoid the glare from the moon. The Perseid meteor shower peak is Aug. 13.
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School-bus sized asteroid to hurtle past Earth Monday morning
At 9:26 AM Eastern time on Monday, a small asteroid will make an extremely close pass to our planet, but there is no chance that it will strike it, say NASA officials.
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Summer solstice: Everything you want to know
Summer solstice: Summer arrives to the Northern Hemisphere at 1:16pm Eastern time on Tuesday.
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Space Shuttle Endeavour: See the last flyby early Tuesday morning
The Space Shuttle Endeavour will be visible in the night sky early Tuesday morning. When can you see Endeavor, on it's last mission, and where should you look?
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Solar Flare: A Northern Lights show for North America?
Solar flare - one of the biggest in four years - shot from the sun on Sunday. Scientists predict that a solar flare of this size - and traveling toward Earth - could produce a dramatic light show. Did it?
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