Neutron star photobombs baby star | Space photo of the day for Feb. 3, 2026

When young stars mix with neutron stars, things get messy.

NASA’s skywatching tips for February include a planetary parade and a moon mission

NASA has released its monthly skywatching update on what to look out for over the coming weeks, and you can probably guess which event tops the list. That’s right: the Artemis II mission. NASA is about to launch a crew on a voyage around the moon in wh…

A mystery object is holding this 120 million-mile-wide cloud of vaporized metal together

“Stars like the sun don’t just stop shining for no reason.”

Journey to Center of Milky Way With Upcoming NASA Roman Core Survey
Journey to Center of Milky Way With Upcoming NASA Roman Core Survey

At the heart of our own galaxy, there is a dense thicket of stars with a supermassive black hole at the very center. NASA’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope will provide the deepest-ever view of this zone, revealing stars, planets, and unique objects that resist definition. Based on the input of astronomers from across the […]

TESS Status Updates

Jan. 23, 2026 NASA’s TESS Returns to Science Observations NASA’s TESS (Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite) entered safe mode Jan. 15 and returned to normal science operations Jan. 18.  The operations team determined the issue arose when TESS slewed to point at a target, but its solar panels did not rotate to remain pointed at the […]

James Webb Space Telescope discovers what remains after two stars collide and explode as a red nova

“Until now, it was unknown what type of star would remain after the merger.”

Searching for newborn stars with CAFFEINE | Space photo of the day for Jan. 22, 2026

The Core And Filament Formation/Evolution In Natal Environments (CAFFEINE) survey is an “astronomer’s best friend,” according to the European Southern Observatory.

NASA Webb Finds Young Sun-Like Star Forging, Spewing Common Crystals
NASA Webb Finds Young Sun-Like Star Forging, Spewing Common Crystals

Astronomers have long sought evidence to explain why comets at the outskirts of our own solar system contain crystalline silicates, since crystals require intense heat to form and these “dirty snowballs” spend most of their time in the ultracold Kuiper Belt and Oort Cloud. Now, looking outside our solar system, NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope […]

Hubble Nets Menagerie of Young Stellar Objects
Hubble Nets Menagerie of Young Stellar Objects

A disparate collection of young stellar objects bejewels a cosmic panorama in the star-forming region NGC 1333 in this new image from NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope. To the left, an actively forming star called a protostar casts its glow on the surrounding gas and dust, creating a reflection nebula. Two dark stripes on opposite sides of […]

Astronomers discover an enormous iron bar in the famous Ring Nebula: ‘We definitely need to know more’

“One thing popped out as clear as anything, this previously unknown ‘bar’ of ionized iron atoms, in the middle of the familiar and iconic ring.”