Artemis II appears as a short streak in this 30 second image taken 12 hours ago at 15:35 UT (2 April 2026). JPL Horizons was used to compute the position of the spacecraft every few minutes, thus enabling it to be found using plate solving. 🔭
#Artemis #space
Artemis II imaged a few minutes ago from my Bortle 7 backyard in southern Australia. The 29x30sec Live Stack shows a distinct pattern of brightening and dimming as the Orion spacecraft headed into a Sagittarius star cloud (M20 & M8 nearby). The Full Moon added to the imaging challenge. 🔭
#Artemis
A detailed telescopic photograph of the Full Moon against a black background. The image exhibits a range of gray tones that emphasize its craters, plains, and other surface features. The image was taken with a Sky-Watcher Maksutov-Newtonian telescope described at: skymaps.com/ir2/ Image Credit: Kym Thalassoudis
🌕 The Full Moon occurs at 2:12 UT (now) on 2 April 2026. Step outside this evening to enjoy the view knowing that 4 astronauts are currently on their way to the Moon. 🔭
April 2026 sky events: skymaps.com/skycalendar/
Imaging rig: skymaps.com/ir2/
The Evening Sky Map is a 2-page monthly publication in the PDF format that features an all-sky map of the night sky, a calendar of celestial events, and a list of celestial objects visible to the naked eye, binoculars and telescopes.
🌟 The April 2026 edition of The Evening Sky Map (PDF) is now available for download at skymaps.com/tesm/. The PDF features easy-to-use sky maps for the northern & southern hemispheres, and for the equatorial regions. Please share, and enjoy exploring the Universe! 🔭
#stargazing #space
⭐ In a few hours time, the Moon will once again pass near the bright star Regulus. Closest approach is at 18h UT on 29 March 2026, with an occultation visible from parts of Asia, Africa, Europe and western Russia. 🔭
More info: in-the-sky.org/news.php?id=...
#stargazing #moon
A telescopic photograph of a First Quarter Moon showing well defined craters along the terminator.
🌓 25 March: First Quarter Moon at 19:18 UT (now).
The days around First Quarter are a great time to explore and view craters and other lunar features. A telescope will provide the best views. 🔭
📖 NG Moon Map (Amazon): skymaps.com/a1/1566959535/
#stargazing #moon
A telescopic photograph of the Pleiades star cluster showing many bright white stars with light blue coloured nebulosity surrounding most of the brighter stars.
On the evening of 23 March, look up to view a close approach of the Moon and the Pleiades star cluster (aka The Seven Sisters). Closest approach is at 10h UT. Use binoculars if available. 🔭
#stargazing #space
Image taken with an Askar SQA55: skymaps.com/ir0/
The Vernal Equinox occurs at 14:45 UT on March 20th (now). This is the moment when the Sun, moving along the ecliptic, passes into the northern celestial hemisphere signifying the onset of Spring in the Northern Hemisphere and the start of Autumn in the Southern Hemisphere. 🔭
The 1.3 day old waxing crescent Moon (2.0% illuminated) appears near Venus (mag –3.9) at 10h UT (now) on 20 March 2026. Near impossible to observe at only 18° from the Sun, the event nevertheless marks the return of the Moon to the evening sky. 🔭
#stargazing #moon
New Moon occurs at 1:25 UT (now) on 19 March 2026. Start of lunation 1277.
🌟 The next few days remain a great time for evening stargazing. Download The Evening Sky Map (PDF) (skymaps.com/tesm/) and enjoy exploring the Universe with your eyes, binoculars or a telescope! 🔭
#stargazing #space
A simulated image of the Moon created with SkySafari 6 Pro.
The Moon will be at its southernmost declination (–28.4°) in 2026 on March 11th at 21h UT (now). Two weeks ago on February 25th, the Moon was at its northernmost declination (+28.4°) in 2026. 🔭
#astronomy #Moon
March 2026 Events: skymaps.com/skycalendar/
🌗 The Last Quarter Moon occurs on March 11th at 9:40 UT (now) marking the onset of moonless evening skies. This is an ideal time for stargazing over the next week or so. Download The Evening Sky Map (PDF) from skymaps.com/tesm/ and go outside to explore the Universe! 🔭
#stargazing
The Moon will reach apogee (farthest from Earth) at 14h UT (now) on 10 March. At this time the Moon's distance from Earth will be 404,384 km or 251,273 miles and span an angular size of 29.5 arc-minutes.🔭
#stargazing #moon
March 2026 events: skymaps.com/skycalendar/
7 March: Mercury at inferior conjunction with the Sun at 11h UT (now). The innermost planet passes into the morning sky. 🔭
#stargazing
🌖 🌟 Over the next few hours, the Moon will appear near Spica, the brightest star in Virgo. Best seen in the morning sky with closest approach at 17h UT on 6 March. Spica's location near the ecliptic makes for regular close encounters with the Moon.🔭
Sky Lore Books: skymaps.com/myths/
Taken a few minutes ago during the Total Lunar Eclipse of 3 March 2026... 🔭
During totality, when the Moon is fully within the Earth’s shadow, the Moon will appear red-orange in colour. This is the colour of all the sunsets and sunrises in Earth’s atmosphere being projected onto the Moon's Earth-facing side.
More info: eclipse.gsfc.nasa.gov/LEplot/LEplo...
A Total Lunar Eclipse will occur between 11:04 UT to 12:03 UT on 3 March 2026, with greatest eclipse at 11:34 UT. Partial phases begin at 9:50 UT and end at 13:17 UT. 🔭
The total eclipse will be widely visible from east Asia, Australia, Pacific Ocean and the Americas.
⭐ Over the next few hours, the Moon will once again pass near the bright star Regulus. Closest approach is at 11h UT on 2 March 2026, with an occultation visible from eastern Russia, eastern China, Mongolia and Japan. 🔭
in-the-sky.org/news.php?id=...
#stargazing #moon
The Evening Sky Map is a 2-page monthly publication in the PDF format that features an all-sky map of the night sky, a calendar of celestial events, and a list of celestial objects visible to the naked eye, binoculars and telescopes.
🌟 The March 2026 edition of The Evening Sky Map (PDF) is now available for download at skymaps.com/tesm/. The PDF features easy-to-use sky maps for the northern & southern hemispheres, and for the equatorial regions. Please share, and enjoy exploring the Universe! 🔭
#stargazing #space
A simulated image of the Moon created with SkySafari 6 Pro.
The Moon will be at its northernmost declination (+28.4°) in 2026 on March 25th at 23h UT (now). Then, in 2 weeks time, the Moon will be at its southernmost declination (–28.4°) in 2026. 🔭
#astronomy #Moon
February 2026 Events: skymaps.com/skycalendar/
A telescopic photograph of a First Quarter Moon showing well defined craters along the terminator.
🌓 24 February: First Quarter Moon at 12:28 UT (now).
The days around First Quarter are a great time to explore and view craters and many other lunar features. A telescope will provide spectacular views. 🔭
📖 NG Moon Map (Amazon): skymaps.com/a1/1566959535/
#stargazing #moon
A simulated image showing the close pairing of the planets Saturn and Neptune as they would appear through a 120mm f/5 refractor fitted with a 24mm eyepiece. Saturn has a distinct yellow colour and appears much brighter than blue-coloured Neptune. Image created with SkySafari 6 Pro.
The ringed-planet Saturn is in a close conjunction with Neptune at the moment. The planetary pairing will be located in the evening sky for several days, but requires a low-power telescope to view both planets at the same time. Good luck! 🔭
#stargazing
The Large Magellanic Cloud (dwarf galaxy) imaged from a Bortle 7 site. Many nebulae are visible in and around the galaxy. The largest and brightest is the Tarantula Nebula -- the most active region of star formation in the Local Group of galaxies. 🔭
Imaging rig: skymaps.com/ir0/
17 Feb: New Moon at 12:02 UT (now). Start of lunation 1276
🌟 The next few days remain a great time for evening #stargazing. Download The Evening Sky Map (PDF) (skymaps.com/tesm/) and enjoy exploring the Universe with just your eyes, binoculars or a telescope! 🔭
#space
A photograph of a black telescope on a white equatorial mount, with a red camera and a guide scope attached to the telescope.
The image was taken with the assistance of students from a local school who used an iPad to direct the telescope to the faint distant galaxy -- the barred spiral galaxy NGC 3660.
#astronomy #SuperNova #outreach
A monochrome telescopic image showing a star field with a faint spiral galaxy at the centre. The location of the supernova in an inner spiral arm of the galaxy is marked with a pair of lines. The supernova has the same appearance as other faint stars in the image, but is much, much brighter than the indistinguishable stars which form the faint spiral structure of the galaxy.
🌟 206 million years ago in a galaxy far, far away, a star exploded. The light from the Type II (core collapse) supernova 2026cff eventually reached Earth last week and was discovered on 6 February by the Zwicky Transient Facility. 🔭 🧪
Imaging rig details: skymaps.com/ir2/
🌘 The Moon will reach apogee (farthest from Earth) at 17h UT (now) on 10 February 2026. At this time the Moon's distance from Earth will be 404,576 km or 251,392 miles and span an angular size of 29.5 arc-minutes. 🔭
#stargazing
February 2026 Sky Calendar: skymaps.com/skycalendar/
The Evening Sky Map is a 2-page monthly publication that features an all-sky map of the night sky, a calendar of celestial events, and a list of celestial objects visible to the naked eye, binoculars and telescopes.
🌗 The Last Quarter Moon occurs on February 9th at 12:44 UT (now) marking the onset of moonless evening skies. This is an ideal time for stargazing over the next week or so. Download The Evening Sky Map (PDF) from skymaps.com/tesm/ and enjoy a night under the stars! 🔭
#stargazing
An illustration from an 1822 star atlas highlighting the constellation Virgo depicted as a winged female figure against a background of stars and constellations all of which are shown as line drawings. Brighter stars are indicated with larger star symbols. The more prominent stars are labelled with Greek letters, and a few are also labelled with star names. The position of the ecliptic is shown passing through the constellation Virgo. Image source: Plate 18, A Celestial Atlas by Alexander Jamieson (1822).
🌖 🌟 Over the next few hours, the Moon will appear near Spica, the brightest star in Virgo. Best seen in the morning sky with closest approach at 8h UT on 7 February. Spica's location near the ecliptic makes for regular close encounters with the Moon.🔭
Sky Lore Books: skymaps.com/myths/