Look toward the southwestern horizon at sunset on Jan. 22 to witness the slender crescent moon cozy up to the gas giant Saturn beneath the stars of the constellation Pisces.
The moon’s 22%-lit disk will appear roughly 30 degrees above the horizon — roughly the width of three clenched fists held at arm’s length. Saturn will appear as a steady, bright star-like object less than 7 degrees to…
iOptron 80mm White Light Solar Scope review
January 23, 2026
Although it is marketed as a white-light solar telescope, the iOptron 80mm White Light Solar Scope is really a nighttime scope (which can be purchased on its own) alongside a detachable solar filter from Thousand Oaks. This may be a perk for users who don’t own a telescope…
Wobbling exoplanet hints at a hidden exomoon so massive it could redefine the word 'moon' altogether
January 23, 2026
A gas giant planet beyond the solar that wobbles as it circles its star, hinting to astronomers that it is orbited by its own moon. To make this suspected discovery even more remarkable, if this moon exists it would be absolutely massive, comparable to around half the mass…
The first emergency operation in the history of China’s human spaceflight program came to an end on Monday (Jan. 19) when an uncrewed Shenzhou 20 capsule parachuted into the Dongfeng landing site in north China’s Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region.
The spacecraft had spent 270 days in orbit, docked for nine months to the country’s Tiangong space station.
And that wasn’t the…
US Space Force awards 1st-of-its-kind $52 million contract to deorbit its satellites
January 22, 2026
Starfish Space will make history next year, if all goes according to plan.
The Washington-based company just scored a $52.5 million contract to deorbit satellites for the U.S. Space Force, the first deal ever signed for such end-of-life disposal services for a constellation…
Update for 11 a.m. EST on Jan. 21: Isar Aerospace has canceled the planned Jan. 21 launch attempt of its Spectrum rocket due to an issue with a pressurization valve. A new target date has not yet been announced.
A German company will attempt to make spaceflight history today…
James Webb Space Telescope discovers young galaxies age rapidly: 'It's like seeing 2-year-old children act like teenagers'
January 21, 2026
Astronomers have obtained their most detailed look yet at young galaxies in the early universe using the James Webb Space Telescope, Hubble Space Telescope and Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array. The conclusion? These cosmic adolescents grew up incredibly fast.
The team behind this research observed 18 galaxies located around 12.5 billion light-years away over a range of wavelengths of…
Comet Wierzchos buzzes the sun later today: But can you see it?
January 21, 2026
Solar system comet C/2024 E1 (Wierzchos) makes its closest approach to the sun today (Jan. 20) during an event known as perihelion, when it will pass a little over half the Earth-sun distance from our parent star, causing it to brighten significantly.
Comet Wierzchos makes…
We were expecting a show and boy did it deliver.
Skywatchers around the world were treated to stunning auroras that surged far beyond their usual polar limits, lighting up mid-latitude skies during a severe G4 geomagnetic storm.
Northern lights were reported across…
This is the sharpest view ever seen of a black hole's dusty disk
January 20, 2026
The James Webb Space Telescope has delivered its clearest view yet of a supermassive black hole’s immediate surroundings, NASA announced Tuesday (Jan. 13).
The snapshots show that the intense infrared glow in active galaxies comes not from powerful outflows, as long assumed, but from a dense disk of gas and dust feeding the black hole, NASA said in a statement.
The findings come from James Webb…
