Galleries
Gallery | Pictures of Earth from space
Restored images of Earth captured during the Apollo missions cast new light on the fragility of our planet.
Gallery | Ring Nebula
Facts and images about the Ring Nebula, M57, a planetary nebula found 2,000 lightyears away in Lyra.
Gallery | The Crab Nebula
Images of Messier 1, the Crab Nebula, facts about this glowing cosmic cloud and the history of its observation by Chinese and European astronomers.
Gallery | Leo Triplet
The three galaxies that make up the Leo Triplet, M66, M65 and NGC 3628, are engaged in a gravitational tug of war, making this a fascinating deep-sky spectacle.
Gallery | Bode's Galaxy and Cigar Galaxy
Images of M81 and M82, the pair of interacting galaxies known as Bode's Galaxy and the Cigar Galaxy, including facts and the history of their discovery.
April 8 solar eclipse | Best photos, and how to submit yours
A selection of images captured during the April 8 2024 solar eclipse.
Gallery | Pinwheel Galaxy
The Pinwheel Galaxy M101 is a spiral galaxy 170,000 lightyears across, located 25 million lightyears away from Earth in the Ursa Major constellation.
Gallery | Markarian's Chain
Markarian’s Chain is a string of galaxies near the core of the Virgo Galaxy Cluster. Discover more about this galactic chain and images of the deep-sky target.
Astronomy Photographer of the Year 14 | See this year's winning images
See the winning images from the world's biggest astrophotography competition.
Gallery | Trifid Nebula
The Trifid Nebula is an iconic stellar nursery often paired with the Lagoon Nebula in astrophotos.
Gallery | Elephant's Trunk Nebula
Images and facts about the Elephant's Trunk Nebula, a dense pocket of gas and dust in IC 1396.
Gallery | Pacman Nebula
The Pacman Nebula, NGC 281, is located 6,500 lightyears from Earth and bears an uncanny resemblance to the iconic video game character.
Gallery | Dumbbell Nebula
Images of M27 the Dumbbell Nebula and facts about what makes this planetary nebula tick.
Gallery | Lagoon Nebula
Images of the Lagoon Nebula and facts about the stars embedded within the cosmic cloud that cause its spectacular glow.
Gallery | Saturn
Beautiful pictures of the ringed planet Saturn and facts about the gas giant, the second biggest planet in our Solar System.
Gallery | Fireworks Galaxy
Images and facts about NGC 6946, the Fireworks Galaxy, home to fierce star birth and regular stellar explosions known as supernovae.
Gallery | Needle Galaxy
NGC 4546, also known as the Needle Galaxy, is one of the most famous edge-on galaxies as seen from Earth, offering astronomers a unique perspective.
Gallery | Flaming Star Nebula
The Flaming Star Nebula, IC 405 is an emission and reflection nebula located about 1,500 lightyears from Earth and illuminated by star AE Aurigae.
Gallery | California Nebula
NGC 1499 is an emission nebula that looks rather like the US state of California. Discover facts about and images of the California Nebula.
Gallery | Cat's Paw Nebula
A guide to NGC 6334, known as the Cat's Paw Nebula, including information about the massive stars born in the region, and images captured by astrophotographers.
Gallery | Solar eclipse, 10 June 2021
On 10 June 2021 an annular solar eclipse was seen over Canada, Greenland and Siberia, while a partial solar eclipse appeared over the UK and other regions.
Gallery | Bubble Nebula
Beautiful images of the Bubble Nebula, NCG 7635, and facts about the massive star producing the expanding shell of material that gives the nebula its name.
Gallery | Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2020 shortlist
See the shortlisted images of the Insight Investment Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2020 competition.
Gallery | Comet NEOWISE blazes across the night sky
Comet C/2020 F3 NEOWISE is currently a beautiful sight in the northern night sky. Here are some of the best NEOWISE pics sent in by you.