Space

Jupiter will be at its most spectacular in 2026 in the early hours of Jan. 10, as it shines above the eastern horizon among the stars of the constellation Gemini. Here’s where to look and what to expect as the gas giant draws closest to Earth around opposition. The visibility of planets in the night sky varies dramatically based on their orbital positions relative to the sun and Earth. The…

Heads up! The solar system comet 24P/Schaumasse will make its closest approach to the sun in its current orbit on Jan. 8 during an event known to astronomers as perihelion. Here’s what to expect from the icy wanderer as it reaches peak visibility over the coming days. The short-period comet was discovered by astronomer Alexandre Schaumasse in December 1911 using a 16-inch (400 mm) telescope…

I should probably start with a confession for someone who writes about the night sky almost every day: until recently, I had never actually seen the Milky Way properly. Not as a bright, structured band stretching across the sky. Not in a way that made me stop and stare. I knew my home skies in central England were light-polluted. I also thought I had experienced reasonably dark skies before…

From orbit, Earth often looks more like art than geography. Satellites such as the European Union’s Copernicus Sentinel missions are designed to turn that beauty into information. Rather than taking only “normal” photographs, the Sentinel-2 satellites record Earth in multiple wavelengths of light, including bands beyond human vision. Scientists then combine those wavelengths into…