NASA / JPL / GSFC / Arizona State University

Supervolcanoes on Mars

October 2, 2013                                                                | A new analysis of data from spacecraft orbiting the Red Planet suggests that gigantic calderas lie disguised on the planet’s surface. If the features are volcanoes, they could help explain the mysterious, fine-grain debris that coats Mars. > read more

Uranus’s Unlikely Companion

September 30, 2013                                                                | Astronomers have discovered a sizable object sharing the orbit of Uranus. Its existence defies the odds — and within 1,000,000 years it’ll slip from the planet’s grasp. > read more

To Catch a Comet

September 30, 2013                                                                | A balloon-borne mission launching from the Southwest will aim a telescope at the approaching Comet ISON. While it won’t observe the comet at its best, the mission might reveal details about the composition of the icy body and the family it comes from. > read more

ESO / Y. Beletsky

The Quest for Zodiacal Light

October 3, 2013                                                                | The first half of October 2013 is a good chance for early risers to catch the zodiacal light, the faint eastern glow preceding dawn. > read more

Tour October’s Sky by Eye and Ear!

September 27, 2013                                                                  | Venus blazes low in the west at sunset, while Jupiter rules the late-night sky. This month also features a penumbral lunar eclipse, a minor meteor shower, and the Great Worldwide Star Count. > read more

Chuck Ruehle / Astronomers Without Borders

Donations Needed for Eclipse-Glasses Effort

October 4, 2013                                                                | Astronomers Without Borders is raising funds to get 40,000 sets of eye-saving viewers into the hands of African schoolchildren for next month’s solar eclipse. > read more

Sky-High Adventures at Scout Jamboree

October 1, 2013                                                                  | An astronomy program at this summer’s massive National Scout Jamboree gave thousands of Boy Scouts a taste for sky-gazing. > read more

Sky & Telescope

This Week’s Sky at a Glance

October 4, 2013                                                                  | Venus approaches Antares, Mars approaches Regulus, and there’s a rare triple shadow-transit on Jupiter. > read more