Space in your hand – 10 amazing iPhone, Android apps from NASA, JPL

Get your space on with these 10 amazing apps from the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. They will amaze you with their material from visiting a comet, to being on the surface of Mars, or joining an astronomy society.   **All content from NASA/JPL   Space Images V2! – Discover, share and explore stunning images and videos of …

It happens once in a blue moon (and that’s this Friday)

The moon orbits around the earth every 29.5 days and since our months typically have 30-31 days that leaves some leftover time (0.5-1.5 days). Eventually that adds up and we get an extra cycle in one month, and that means an extra full moon. Typically, months only get one full moon and so having two …

Astronomers discover a star-creating galaxy that sheds light on the galactic cooling problem

Massive galaxy cluster spawns more than 700 stars a year A newly discovered cluster of galaxies, more than 5 billion light years from Earth…is among the most massive clusters of galaxies in the universe, and produces X-rays at a rate faster than any other known cluster. It also creates new stars at an “unmatched” pace of more …

Biggest full moon of the year – this Saturday night!

The largest full moon of 2012 happens this Saturday, but it’s OK if you don’t really notice. The moon doesn’t really get bigger, it just gets closer to Earth. At 8:40 p.m. Pacific Time on Saturday, according to the Griffith Observatory Sky Report, the moon will be at its closest point in its orbit to the …

Watch 15+ meteors/hour this Saturday during the Lyrid meteor shower

The peak of the Lyrid meteor shower will be viewable all over the world this Saturday night. With the best rates seen just before dawn. The Lyrids can offer a shower of activity, with peak meteor rates between 10-100 per hour. This year Dr. Cooke estimates that the rate will be around 15 per hour, …

A new energy form unknown to science, Dark Energy, is expanding the Universe

The year was 1998 and two highly competitive groups of astronomers were each rushing toward the same goal: they hoped to hunt down the effects of gravitational braking in the universe. Ever since astronomers had accepted the idea of the Big Bang, they had been out hunting for its subsequent cosmic deceleration. While the Big Bang …

Happy Leap Day! – Here’s some little-known facts about leap years

You probably know that 2012 is a leap year. And that means that this year we get an extra day on February 29th. Well, leaplings (people born on Leap Year Day of a previous year) finally get to celebrate their actual birthday. Epipheo shows you how, based on astronomy, the Gregorian Calendar uses leap year …