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EarthSky
@earthskyscience.bsky.social
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Updates on your cosmos and world.
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earthskyscience.bsky.social
This evening, the 1st quarter #moon will lie near the famous #Pleiades star cluster, also called the 7 Sisters. The Pleiades is in the constellation Taurus the Bull. And #Aldebaran, the brightest star in Taurus, will also be nearby. They’ll be visible past midnight.
buff.ly/rhOpyl4

📸 EarthSky.org.
Chart showing a half moon lying to the right of a tight grouping of 5 small dots, the Pleiades. On the next evening, the moon sits just left of the 5 small dots. They are to the upper right of an orange dot, the star Aldebaran.
January 26, 2026 at 6:02 PM
earthskyscience.bsky.social
Jarrod Lyman in Damascus, Oregon, took this wonderful photo and wrote: "While driving to work I noticed that there was one of the most pronounced #sundogs I had ever seen. I stopped at a tree farm I know that makes for a perfect #sunrise viewpoint." Thank you, Jarrod!
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The sun in low on the horizon. There's a faint circle around it. At the top and left side of the circle, there are 2 areas that look yellow and orange. Many small trees below and a mountain in the distance.
January 26, 2026 at 4:30 PM
earthskyscience.bsky.social
For the 1st time, researchers have identified a #tigershark mating site off Maui. Their findings reveal a predictable annual gathering, challenging long-held view that these creatures live alone and reproduce mainly through random encounters. 🦈
buff.ly/CstBhV4

📸 Cory Fults/Univ. of Hawaii at Manoa.
A large tiger shark with a dark gray back and white underside. The back has dark stripes. A person is diving next to the shark.
January 26, 2026 at 2:30 PM
earthskyscience.bsky.social
Check out this image from the James Webb Space Telescope (#JWST). Most of the specks you see are distant galaxies. At the center are elliptical galaxies whose immense gravity dominates the scene.

Find out more here: buff.ly/1rCMxgs

📸 ESA/ Webb/ NASA/ CSA/ C. Willott/ R. Tripodi.
Golden, red and orange galaxy blobs swirl around the center of the image. A handful of bright blue stars dot around.
January 25, 2026 at 5:33 PM
earthskyscience.bsky.social
Our friend Sheryl R Garrison in Southern Alberta, Canada, saw these beautiful, natural winter formations last week. Very interesting! Thank you, Sheryl!
Blue ice surface sculpted into suncups, shallow hollows formed by melting patterns under sunlight.
January 25, 2026 at 5:03 PM
earthskyscience.bsky.social
The #moon’s terminator is the boundary between day and night on the moon, sometimes called the twilight zone because it marks where the sun is rising or setting on the moon. Got binocs? Look for more distinct features along the terminator line. Read more at: buff.ly/XmcjeHu
📸 David Hawkes.
A moon who near side - the side facing Earth - is nearly half illuminated.
January 25, 2026 at 4:35 PM
earthskyscience.bsky.social
Oceans on Mars: older research indicated a long-lost ocean on ancient #Mars. Now a new study bolsters the idea, based on evidence of river deltas in the giant Valles Marineris canyon. Read about the new evidence at: buff.ly/Oi10w2w

📸 Kevin Gill/ Flickr (CC BY 2.0).
Huge canyon system on a brownish-red planet viewed from space, with a bright sun in the distance.
January 25, 2026 at 4:03 PM
earthskyscience.bsky.social
The orbiting #Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) is now in its twice-yearly eclipse season, when its view of the #sun is occasionally blocked by Earth. For more about the Earth eclipses, read the sun news at: buff.ly/DYgkBtm

📸 NASA/ SDO/ JHelioviewer.
4 images of the sun, with part of each hidden behind Earth. The images are different colors and show different types of features.
January 25, 2026 at 3:18 PM
earthskyscience.bsky.social
Mario Rana in Hampton, Virginia, captured this image of the #OrionNebula (M42). Thank you, Mario!
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Have a photo of your own to share? Submit it here!
buff.ly/30wTujX
Vast stellar space clouds glowing with swirling red, blue, and gold gas, cradling dozens of newborn stars.
January 24, 2026 at 5:03 PM
earthskyscience.bsky.social
Irwan Kamarulzaman in Port Dickson, Malaysia, caught this one-of-a-kind image of a jet plane, its #contrail and shadow on a cloud layer. Wow! Thank you, Irwan!
buff.ly/V3iioCL

Have a photo of your own to share? Submit it here!
buff.ly/30wTujX
A jet aircraft flies high in the clouds, its silhouette framed by a bright contrail slicing through misty sky, with its fuzzy dark shadow on another cloud layer.
January 24, 2026 at 4:33 PM
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Jeremy Likness captured this image on Tuesday night from Oregon, showcasing an "all-sky" camera imaging #aurora and star trails.
buff.ly/ePvNfSz

Have a photo of your own to share? Submit it here!
buff.ly/30wTujX
Many thin, concentric streaks curve across the night sky above rooftops, with a bright pink-purple aurora glow on the horizon.
January 24, 2026 at 4:03 PM
earthskyscience.bsky.social
NOAA's most recent #sunspot numbers for #SolarCycle25 saw a drop last November to a monthly value of 91.8, while December showed an increase to 124. August 2024 remains highest at 216. We’re still at Solar Max.

Read the #sun news at: buff.ly/DYgkBtm

📸 NOAA.
Graph: A jagged bell-shaped graph with highest point in 2024 and more (lower) high points in 2025.
January 24, 2026 at 2:48 PM
earthskyscience.bsky.social
Christoph Stopka in Wet Mountain Valley, Colorado, shared this stunning image and wrote: "A few rays of the rising #sun found their way through an opening in the clouds and a beam of light perfectly illuminated a beautiful #buck, grazing quietly at the edge of the #forest." Thanks!
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A lone buck stands in golden grass at the edge of a forest, its antlers catching the light. Dark evergreen trees frame the scene, contrasting with patches of snow on the ground. In the background, a dramatic snow-capped mountain rises beneath a moody gray sky.
January 24, 2026 at 2:30 PM
earthskyscience.bsky.social
Tonight, the lighted part of the waxing crescent #moon will point at #Saturn. Saturn is one of just 2 planets in our night sky right now. For more sky events, visit EarthSky’s night sky guide at: buff.ly/rhOpyl4

Or watch this video.
buff.ly/p97Aevn
January 23, 2026 at 5:33 PM
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EarthSky founder Deborah Byrd shares how our view of #Jupiter has transformed over history, from a bright dot in the skies of our ancestors to the stunning planet we can explore today.

Watch this 4-minute video here!
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January 23, 2026 at 5:04 PM
earthskyscience.bsky.social
On January 24, 1986, the #Voyager2 spacecraft swept past Uranus, the solar system’s remote 7th planet, coming within 50,640 miles (81,500 km) of its icy blue-green cloud tops. Read more at: buff.ly/nsv3Ux7

📸 NASA/ JPL.
A blue-green crescent along horizon of Uranus against a black sky.
January 23, 2026 at 4:33 PM
earthskyscience.bsky.social
#Astronomers watched a giant gas cloud dim its star for nearly 9 months. They analyzed the cloud's light to find out more about a mysterious object within the cloud. Read more here: buff.ly/XV3tXMH

📸 International Gemini Observatory/ NOIRLab/ NSF/ AURA/ P. Marenfeld & M. Zamani.
At left is a star with a debris disk and at center is more debris, a lot of rocks inside a dusty cloud surrounding a small orbiting object.
January 23, 2026 at 4:03 PM
earthskyscience.bsky.social
A #winterstorm is coming! Areas from Texas across the Deep South and up into the Mid-Atlantic and New England should be on alert for #snow, ice, and extreme temperatures. Find out how long it will last and how to prepare: buff.ly/VUBIdTi

📸 NOAA.
Map of US with large area from Texas to Maine covered in orange, red, and yellow.
January 23, 2026 at 3:33 PM
earthskyscience.bsky.social
Earlier this week we had #geomagnetic storming and #auroras thanks to an X flare on the sun. Now, Earth's magnetic field is disturbed again, this time due to fast solar wind from a large coronal hole on the #sun.

Read the sun news at: buff.ly/DGUm6TE

📸 NOAA.
The mottled sun, with two dark areas on its face labeled Coronal hole.
January 23, 2026 at 3:23 PM
earthskyscience.bsky.social
Danielle Leef captured this impressive view from New York on Tuesday and wrote: "This is an #aurora borealis I was lucky enough to capture at the right time. Beautiful to see these pink pillars of light shining about." Thank you!
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See more images and submit your own:
buff.ly/mOWUIK1
Pink pillars stretch across the sky. The horizon glows with an orange hue. In the foreground, a wooden bridge leads across some water.
January 23, 2026 at 1:00 AM
earthskyscience.bsky.social
Have you wondered where the #sun is in our #MilkyWay galaxy? Our sun is approximately halfway from the center of the galaxy's disk to the visible edge. We lie on the edge of a relatively minor spiral arm: the #OrionArm, which is probably 3,500 light-years wide. ☀️🌌🔭
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📹 EarthSky.org.
January 22, 2026 at 11:01 PM
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Paul C. Peh in Mokuleia, #Hawaii, shared this wonderful image and wrote: "Hiking around the rim of Makua #valley. Incredible views of the west #coast and Waianae range." Thank you!
buff.ly/dKehDTo

Is there an image you took that you would like to share with us? Submit it here:
buff.ly/30wTujX
A vast coastal landscape where green valleys meet rugged mountain ridges. Wide plains descend gently to the coast, washed by calm blue waters. Above it all, dramatic clouds drift across a bright, open sky.
January 22, 2026 at 9:01 PM
earthskyscience.bsky.social
See #Jupiter's moons! Yesterday, EarthSky’s Deborah Byrd went live to show you how to see Jupiter's 4 largest #moons with just #binoculars. She also gave an update on where the other bright #planets have gone and when they'll be back in our skies. Find out more here:
buff.ly/TxzqrXd

📸 EarthSky.org.
Planet with horizontal bands; some are whitish and others are brown. There are 2 little spheres in front of the planet; they are casting their shadows on the planet's surface.
January 22, 2026 at 5:30 PM
earthskyscience.bsky.social
Hi stargazers! Tonight, the waxing crescent #moon will pay a visit to the steady golden light of the planet #Saturn. It will be there the next night, too! They’ll set before midnight. 🌒🪐🔭

Watch this video for more information:
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📹 EarthSky.org.
January 22, 2026 at 4:31 PM
earthskyscience.bsky.social
Did you hear? There’s a new #comet headed into the inner solar system, named C/2026 A1 (MAPS). It’s the 1st comet found in 2026. It will make an extremely close pass by the #sun on April 4-5, about half the sun’s diameter away from our star. ☄️☀️🔭
buff.ly/kO6V9CR

📸 Gerald Rhemann/ Michael Jäger.
A bluish fuzzy dot, a comet, among a field of stars, including 1 reddish star.
January 22, 2026 at 3:30 PM