{"id":19165,"date":"2025-01-01T12:14:39","date_gmt":"2025-01-01T13:14:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/medexperts.pro\/?p=19165"},"modified":"2025-01-01T13:27:18","modified_gmt":"2025-01-01T13:27:18","slug":"sync-your-calendar-with-the-solar-system","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/medexperts.pro\/?p=19165","title":{"rendered":"Sync Your Calendar With the Solar System"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"explainer-post css-14ikq2f\" data-source-id=\"100000009894292\">\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">The New York Times has offered this calendar to readers since 2017. It\u2019s a collection of newsworthy events in spaceflight and astronomy curated by the paper\u2019s journalists.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">The entries below these instructions will be updated regularly to adjust dates and revise information. New events will be added and entries will be removed after they conclude or are indefinitely postponed.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">The easiest way to use this calendar is to <strong class=\"css-8qgvsz ebyp5n10\">add this page to your web browser\u2019s bookmarks or favorites, and revisit it regularly<\/strong>. Instructions for common web browsers are below, along with additional instructions and answers to common questions.<\/p>\n<hr class=\"css-loc1ub e1mu4ftr0\" \/>\n<h2 class=\"css-un6bds eoo0vm40\" id=\"link-7958d3f1\">Answers to common questions we\u2019ve received<\/h2>\n<div class=\"css-1dv1kvn\">\n<h3 class=\"css-gcv50g e1gnsphs0\" id=\"link-5d83076b\"><span>How do I bookmark this calendar on my browser?<\/span><\/h3>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">Here are bookmarking instructions for four of the most common browsers:<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"css-gcv50g e1gnsphs0\" id=\"link-53f9a3a\"><span>What happened to the Google Calendar, Apple Calendar and Outlook calendar feeds?<\/span><\/h3>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">The Times has paused the use of the feed that puts the events from this calendar on your personal digital calendar.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">If we resume use of such a feed, we will post instructions for it at this page.<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"css-gcv50g e1gnsphs0\" id=\"link-132e00f8\"><span>How do I unsubscribe from the digital calendar feed?<\/span><\/h3>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">You can <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/explain\/2024\/science\/astronomy-space-calendar#how-to-use-this-calendar\" title>follow the instructions<\/a> included in last year\u2019s edition of the calendar.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"explainer-post css-14ikq2f\" data-source-id=\"100000009886105\">\n<div data-testid=\"imageblock-wrapper\">\n<figure class=\"css-15t9y93 sizeLarge layoutHorizontal\" aria-label=\"media\" role=\"group\">\n<div class=\"css-1xb94ky\" data-testid=\"imageContainer-children-Image\"><\/div><figcaption data-testid=\"photoviewer-children-ImageCaption\" class=\"css-ktho12 e3rygrp0\"><span class=\"css-jevhma e13ogyst0\">The Dream Chaser, built by Sierra Space, undergoing testing at NASA\u2019s Neil Armstrong Test Facility in Sandusky, Ohio. The company hopes it will carry cargo to the International Space Station for the first time this year.<\/span><span class=\"css-14fe1uy e1z0qqy90\"><span><span aria-hidden=\"false\">Jef Janis\/NASA<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">Our species called <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/02\/27\/style\/leap-day-leap-year-february-29-respect.html\" title>this latest 366-day journey<\/a> around the sun \u201c2024\u201d and packed into it a ton of astronomical and spaceflight excitement.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\"><a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/live\/2024\/04\/08\/science\/total-solar-eclipse\" title>A solar eclipse<\/a> crossed North America. <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/03\/04\/science\/moon-landing-sideways-gravity.html\" title>Two robotic landers reached the lunar surface<\/a>, largely intact. The most powerful rocket booster ever built was <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/10\/13\/science\/space-starship-launch-landing.html\" title>caught by a pair of mechanical arms nicknamed \u201cchopsticks.\u201d<\/a> A journey began to Jupiter\u2019s <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/10\/14\/science\/nasa-europa-clipper-jupiter.html\" title>icy ocean moon Europa<\/a>. And private astronauts conducted <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/09\/11\/science\/spacex-polaris-dawn-astronauts-spacewalk.html\" title>a daring spacewalk<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">Can this revolution around the sun we name \u201c2025\u201d compare? We\u2019ll let you be the judge of how enthusiastic to get about the events you can expect on the launchpads and in the night sky.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"css-177cjim eoo0vm40\" id=\"link-3fd59bb9\">Jeff Bezos enters the arena<\/h2>\n<div data-testid=\"imageblock-wrapper\">\n<figure class=\"img-sz-large css-hxpw2c e1g7ppur0\" aria-label=\"media\" role=\"group\"><figcaption data-testid=\"photoviewer-children-caption\" class=\"css-1g9ic6e ewdxa0s0\"><span class=\"css-jevhma e13ogyst0\">The New Glenn vehicle was rolled out at Cape Canaveral, Fla., in February to undergo a series of tanking and mechanical system tests.<\/span><span class=\"css-14fe1uy e1z0qqy90\"><span><span aria-hidden=\"false\">Blue Origin<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"css-1dv1kvn\">\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">Through SpaceX, Elon Musk has dominated spaceflight around the planet in recent years. But the extraplanetary ambitions of the Amazon founder <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/12\/17\/technology\/jeff-bezos-blue-origin-elon-musk.html\" title>Jeff Bezos could present a challenge<\/a> to Mr. Musk soon.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">The space company started by Mr. Bezos, Blue Origin, has a <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/02\/21\/science\/bezos-blue-origin-rocket.html\" title>powerful rocket called New Glenn<\/a> that may at last <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/12\/27\/science\/new-glenn-blue-origin.html\" title>get off the ground in 2025<\/a>. Like <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2022\/12\/29\/science\/spacex-launch-mission-control.html\" title>SpaceX\u2019s Falcon 9<\/a>, the booster stage is designed to be fully reusable so it can fly again and again and reduce the cost of launches. The rocket could launch national security satellites for the U.S. military and spacecraft for NASA, including orbiters to Mars and <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2023\/05\/19\/science\/nasa-artemis-moon-bezos-blue-origin.html\" title>moon landers<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">Another thing New Glenn will carry is satellites for Amazon, where Mr. Bezos is still executive chair. The company\u2019s <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2023\/10\/06\/science\/amazon-project-kuiper-launch.html\" title>Project Kuiper<\/a> involves plans to build a mega-constellation of satellites beaming internet down from space, in competition with <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/interactive\/2023\/07\/28\/business\/starlink.html\" title>SpaceX\u2019s Starlink<\/a> constellation. Amazon also plans to launch Kuiper satellites using rockets from many of Blue Origin\u2019s competitors, including <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/01\/08\/science\/vulcan-rocket-launch-moon.html\" title>United Launch Alliance<\/a>, <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/07\/09\/science\/europe-ariane-6-rocket-launch.html\" title>Arianespace of France<\/a> and even SpaceX.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"css-177cjim eoo0vm40\" id=\"link-7be5aa99\">Rubin\u2019s first light<\/h2>\n<div data-testid=\"imageblock-wrapper\">\n<figure class=\"img-sz-large css-hxpw2c e1g7ppur0\" aria-label=\"media\" role=\"group\"><figcaption data-testid=\"photoviewer-children-caption\" class=\"css-1g9ic6e ewdxa0s0\"><span class=\"css-jevhma e13ogyst0\">The Vera C. Rubin Observatory, in the Coquimbo region of Chile, in January 2024.<\/span><span class=\"css-14fe1uy e1z0qqy90\"><span><span aria-hidden=\"false\">Javier Torres\/Agence France-Presse \u2014 Getty Images<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">Astronomers atop a mountain in central Chile are wrapping up construction of the Vera C. Rubin Observatory, which might capture its first views of the night sky this year, as early as July 4.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">Formerly the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope, the observatory was renamed in 2020 <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2020\/01\/11\/science\/vera-rubin-telescope-astronomy.html\" title>to honor Vera Rubin<\/a>, who <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2016\/12\/27\/science\/vera-rubin-astronomist-who-made-the-case-for-dark-matter-dies-at-88.html\" title>died at 88 in 2016<\/a>. Dr. Rubin\u2019s work persuaded astronomers of the existence of dark matter, which makes up a vast majority of mass in the universe, but no one knows what it is.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">The name is fitting. With the largest digital camera in the world, scientists will use the Rubin Observatory to create a time-lapse motion picture of the Southern sky. Such images would help researchers understand the nature of dark matter, as well as dark energy, the unknown force pushing the cosmos apart. The trove of data will also help reveal the story of our galaxy\u2019s birth and catalog asteroids and comets in our solar system, including those that could slam into Earth one day.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"css-177cjim eoo0vm40\" id=\"link-e507ca7\">The moon, and Trump, come back around<\/h2>\n<div data-testid=\"imageblock-wrapper\">\n<figure class=\"img-sz-large css-hxpw2c e1g7ppur0\" aria-label=\"media\" role=\"group\"><figcaption data-testid=\"photoviewer-children-caption\" class=\"css-1g9ic6e ewdxa0s0\"><span class=\"css-jevhma e13ogyst0\">The core stage of NASA\u2019s Space Launch System, the rocket that will be used for the Artemis II moon mission, at Cape Canaveral, Fla., in July.<\/span><span class=\"css-14fe1uy e1z0qqy90\"><span><span aria-hidden=\"false\">Chandan Khanna\/Agence France-Presse \u2014 Getty Images<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">During the first administration of Donald J. Trump, American space policy refocused on lunar exploration. <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/10\/30\/science\/kamala-harris-space-nasa-moon.html\" title>President Biden\u2019s administration sustained that direction<\/a>. But as Mr. Trump returns to the White House in January, the country\u2019s existing space plans could be upended by canceling the <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2022\/11\/16\/science\/nasa-launch-artemis-1.html\" title>expensive rocket NASA has been developing<\/a> for more than a decade. Alternatively, Mr. Trump could more radically shift NASA\u2019s focus to <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/12\/04\/science\/jared-isaacman-trump-nasa.html\" title>sending people to Mars<\/a>. Getting to the Red Planet is the <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/live\/2024\/10\/13\/science\/spacex-starship-launch\/trump-says-spacex-will-reach-mars-if-hes-elected-could-that-really-happen?smid=url-share\" title>primary goal of Mr. Musk<\/a>, who has been advising the president-elect.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">For all that potential uncertainty, a series of robotic space missions are planned to the moon early in the year. The first two, a pair of landers from the American company Firefly Aerospace and the Japanese company Ispace, will launch <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/ispace_inc\/status\/1869226432293183882\" title rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">on the same SpaceX rocket<\/a> as soon as mid-January. The mission by Firefly will be the first trip of its Blue Ghost lander and will carry cargo paid for by NASA. The lunar trip by Ispace will be its second attempt <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2023\/05\/26\/science\/moon-crash-japan-ispace.html\" title>after the company\u2019s first lander crashed<\/a> into the moon\u2019s surface in 2023.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">Later in the year\u2019s first quarter, Intuitive Machines may try to put another robotic lander on the moon after the company\u2019s Odysseus lander <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/02\/22\/science\/intuitive-machines-lander-history.html\" title>reached the surface<\/a> <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/02\/23\/science\/moon-lander-intuitive-nasa.html\" title>intact, but tilted over<\/a>, last February. The company\u2019s second lander, named Athena, also will carry NASA-financed instruments, including a drill that will try to find samples of ice. Athena will share a SpaceX launcher with Lunar Trailblazer, a NASA orbiter that will study water on the moon.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"css-177cjim eoo0vm40\" id=\"link-7bf6c9f5\">Vigils for Voyagers 1 and 2<\/h2>\n<div class=\"css-13c2kz1 exp-grid-size-large\"><figcaption class=\"css-fpbvhh ewdxa0s0\"><span class=\"css-jevhma e13ogyst0\">Clockwise from top left: Uranus, seen by Voyager 2 on its way to visit Neptune in 1986; the \u201cPale Blue Dot\u201d of Earth as seen by Voyager 1 in 1990; Jupiter, Io and Europa seen by Voyager 1 in 1979; Voyager 2 in a clean room of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., in 1977.<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">Voyagers 1 and 2, twin spacecraft that inspired a generation of cosmic wonderers, were launched <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2017\/08\/21\/science\/voyager-nasa-40th-anniversary.html\" title>in 1977<\/a>. After decades of exploring the outer solar system before charting the unknown frontier of interstellar space, the two spacecraft are showing signs of age.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">Early in their journey, the pair swooped past Jupiter and Saturn, and Voyager 2 later visited Uranus and Neptune. But perhaps the mission\u2019s most iconic gift to the world was a photo taken of Earth, a tiny pixel against the expanse of space, leading the famed astronomer Carl Sagan to coin the image \u201c<a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/science.nasa.gov\/mission\/voyager\/voyager-1s-pale-blue-dot\/\" title rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">Pale Blue Dot<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">In recent years, <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2023\/08\/04\/science\/nasa-voyager-2-contact.html\" title>the robotic explorers have each blinked<\/a> in and out of contact <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/06\/15\/science\/space\/nasa-voyager-one-fixed.html\" title>with NASA<\/a>. Communication with Voyager 2 <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2021\/02\/12\/science\/nasa-voyager-deep-space-network.html\" title>was purposefully shut down<\/a> in 2020 for months, <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2023\/08\/04\/science\/nasa-voyager-2-contact.html\" title>then lost<\/a> by accident for a couple of weeks in 2023 before it was restored.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">Voyager 1, on the other hand, <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/06\/15\/science\/space\/nasa-voyager-one-fixed.html\" title>gave mission specialists a scare this year<\/a> when it stopped sending data back to Earth. Instruments on both spacecraft have been shut down to conserve power.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">But NASA isn\u2019t giving up on them yet. When they are eventually interred in the space between the stars, it would be an apt resting place given how the duo has ventured where no other spacecraft had gone before.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"css-177cjim eoo0vm40\" id=\"link-4ea4ca37\">India\u2019s orbital objective<\/h2>\n<div data-testid=\"imageblock-wrapper\">\n<figure class=\"img-sz-large css-hxpw2c e1g7ppur0\" aria-label=\"media\" role=\"group\"><figcaption data-testid=\"photoviewer-children-caption\" class=\"css-1g9ic6e ewdxa0s0\"><span class=\"css-jevhma e13ogyst0\">Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India in February shaking hands with members of the planned Gaganyaan mission: from left, Prasanth Nair, Ajit Krishnan, Angad Pratap and Shubhanshu Shukla.<\/span><span class=\"css-14fe1uy e1z0qqy90\"><span><span aria-hidden=\"false\">Press Information Bureau Handout\/EPA-EFE, via Shutterstock<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">India\u2019s space program has <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2023\/08\/23\/science\/chandrayaan-3-india-moon-landing.html\" title>landed a robot on the moon<\/a> and put <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2014\/09\/25\/world\/asia\/on-a-shoestring-india-sends-orbiter-to-mars.html\" title>a spacecraft into orbit around Mars<\/a>. The country\u2019s most immediate priorities are much closer to Earth, but that doesn\u2019t mean they are less ambitious.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">India is focusing on human spaceflight. A member of the nation\u2019s astronaut corps, Shubhanshu Shukla, is to spend <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.axiomspace.com\/missions\/ax4\" title rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">up to 14 days this spring<\/a> aboard the International Space Station during a commercial mission with the company Axiom Space.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">Mr. Shukla and his fellow Indian astronauts are hoping to be the first to launch to low Earth orbit on its homegrown rockets. <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.isro.gov.in\/LVM3_first_uncrewed_flight_Gaganyaan.html\" title rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">India said<\/a> in December that an orbital vehicle from that program, known as Gaganyaan, was being prepared for a test launch with no astronauts aboard. A successful flight could lead the way to a crewed Indian astronaut launch as early as 2026.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"css-177cjim eoo0vm40\" id=\"link-23862338\">New milestones and new spacecraft<\/h2>\n<div data-testid=\"imageblock-wrapper\">\n<figure class=\"img-sz-large css-hxpw2c e1g7ppur0\" aria-label=\"media\" role=\"group\"><figcaption data-testid=\"photoviewer-children-caption\" class=\"css-1g9ic6e ewdxa0s0\"><span class=\"css-jevhma e13ogyst0\">SpaceX\u2019s large rocket booster returning to the launchpad for a \u201cchopsticks\u201d catch in Boca Chica, Texas, after a test flight in October.<\/span><span class=\"css-14fe1uy e1z0qqy90\"><span><span aria-hidden=\"false\">Eric Gay\/Associated Press<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">SpaceX wowed the world in November during Flight 5 of Starship, the most powerful rocket ever built. Expect the company to try to repeat the stunning \u201cchopsticks\u201d catch of its massive Super Heavy booster. SpaceX may also attempt to catch the upper-stage Starship vehicle after it completes an orbit of Earth and returns to the launch site in South Texas for the first time. SpaceX said it was aiming <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/payloadspace.com\/spacex-leadership-map-out-the-future-of-the-starship-program\/\" title rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">for 25 launches<\/a> of Starship in 2025 as it prepares the spacecraft <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2021\/04\/16\/science\/spacex-moon-nasa.html\" title>to land astronauts on the moon<\/a> under the company\u2019s contract with NASA.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">Other new rockets and spacecraft may take flight in 2025.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">One is <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/05\/28\/us\/politics\/elon-musk-space-launch-competition.html\" title>Neutron, a reusable rocket<\/a> being developed by Rocket Lab, which was founded in New Zealand. The company routinely carries satellites to orbit aboard its <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2018\/11\/10\/science\/rocket-lab-launch.html\" title>small Electron rocket<\/a>, and could conduct a first flight of the new vehicle from a launch site in Virginia.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">Another is <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2017\/11\/13\/science\/dream-chaser-test-flight.html\" title>Dream Chaser, a space plane<\/a> built by Sierra Space. After delays in 2024, the company hopes it will carry cargo to the I.S.S. for the first time this year.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"explainer-post css-14ikq2f\" data-source-id=\"100000009889193\">\n<div data-testid=\"imageblock-wrapper\">\n<figure class=\"css-15t9y93 sizeMedium layoutHorizontal\" aria-label=\"media\" role=\"group\">\n<div class=\"css-1xb94ky\" data-testid=\"imageContainer-children-Image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Streaks of light fly through a dark sky over a shadowed structure.\" class=\"css-rq4mmj\" src=\"http:\/\/medexperts.pro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/01sci-spacecalendar-quadrantids-1-031d-articleLarge.jpg\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" \/><\/div><figcaption data-testid=\"photoviewer-children-ImageCaption\" class=\"css-ktho12 e3rygrp0\"><span class=\"css-jevhma e13ogyst0\">The Quadrantids seen above northern Spain in January 2022.<\/span><span class=\"css-14fe1uy e1z0qqy90\"><span><span aria-hidden=\"false\">Pedro Puente Hoyos\/EPA, via Shutterstock<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"css-1jca1rm etfikam0\"><em class=\"css-2fg4z9 e1gzwzxm0\">Active from Dec. 26, 2024, to Jan. 16. Peak night: Jan. 2 to 3.<\/em><\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">The Quadrantids, which the International Meteor Organization says could be one of the strongest meteor showers this year, are also one of the few caused by debris from an asteroid. Best viewed from the Northern Hemisphere, the shower is one of the toughest to catch.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">The Quadrantids have one of the shortest peak periods, lasting only six hours. And the time of year might mean cloudy skies and frigid temperatures. The moon will be about 11 percent full, which may also make meteors harder to spot.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"explainer-post css-14ikq2f\" data-source-id=\"100000009889199\">\n<div data-testid=\"imageblock-wrapper\">\n<figure class=\"css-15t9y93 sizeMedium layoutHorizontal\" aria-label=\"media\" role=\"group\">\n<div class=\"css-1xb94ky\" data-testid=\"imageContainer-children-Image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Several people, in shadow, watch a sunset. Two on the right take a selfie with a smartphone.\" class=\"css-rq4mmj\" src=\"http:\/\/medexperts.pro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/01sci-spacecalendar-perihelion-articleLarge.jpg\" width=\"600\" height=\"401\" \/><\/div><figcaption data-testid=\"photoviewer-children-ImageCaption\" class=\"css-ktho12 e3rygrp0\"><span class=\"css-jevhma e13ogyst0\">The setting sun, at perihelion, in Ankara, Turkey, on Jan. 4, 2022.<\/span><span class=\"css-14fe1uy e1z0qqy90\"><span><span aria-hidden=\"false\">Cagla Gurdogan\/Reuters<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">Even as the Northern Hemisphere experiences winter\u2019s chill, our planet on Saturday will be at perihelion, the closest it gets to the sun during its elliptical orbit. <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2019\/01\/02\/science\/perihelion-earth-sun.html\" title>Learn more about planetary orbits and the search for life around the galaxy<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"explainer-post css-14ikq2f\" data-source-id=\"100000009889203\">\n<div data-testid=\"imageblock-wrapper\">\n<figure class=\"css-15t9y93 sizeMedium layoutHorizontal\" aria-label=\"media\" role=\"group\">\n<div class=\"css-1xb94ky\" data-testid=\"imageContainer-children-Image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"A person crouching at the entrance of a cave, in silhouette, to watch a comet in the night sky.\" class=\"css-rq4mmj\" src=\"http:\/\/medexperts.pro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/01space-calendar-comet-g3-atlas-lvfq-articleLarge.jpg\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" \/><\/div><figcaption data-testid=\"photoviewer-children-ImageCaption\" class=\"css-ktho12 e3rygrp0\"><span class=\"css-jevhma e13ogyst0\">Comet C\/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS), no relation, seen from the Spanish island of Gran Canaria in October 2024.<\/span><span class=\"css-14fe1uy e1z0qqy90\"><span><span aria-hidden=\"false\">Borja Suarez\/Reuters<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">Discovered last year, Comet ATLAS, known as C\/2024 G3 to astronomers, may burn brightly enough to be seen without a telescope when it reaches perihelion, the closest it will get to the sun.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">Many comets burn up when they get too close to the sun\u2019s heat. If this one survives the solar encounter, it could be the most vibrant comet visible from Earth all year. But the full moon this night might make it more difficult to spot.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"explainer-post css-14ikq2f\" data-source-id=\"100000009889204\">\n<div data-testid=\"imageblock-wrapper\">\n<figure class=\"css-15t9y93 sizeMedium layoutHorizontal\" aria-label=\"media\" role=\"group\">\n<div class=\"css-1xb94ky\" data-testid=\"imageContainer-children-Image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"A crescent moon in the night sky with a bright dot at its edge.\" class=\"css-rq4mmj\" src=\"http:\/\/medexperts.pro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/01space-calendar-mars-and-moon-jplq-articleLarge.jpg\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" \/><\/div><figcaption data-testid=\"photoviewer-children-ImageCaption\" class=\"css-ktho12 e3rygrp0\"><span class=\"css-jevhma e13ogyst0\">A lunar occultation of Venus over Bangkok in March 2023.<\/span><span class=\"css-14fe1uy e1z0qqy90\"><span><span aria-hidden=\"false\">Jack Taylor\/Agence France-Presse \u2014 Getty Images<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">As the full moon travels through the sky this evening, it will pass in front of Mars for stargazers in Africa and the Americas.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">The event, known as a lunar occultation, occurs as the Red Planet appears bigger and brighter than usual. That\u2019s because two days later, Earth will be oriented directly between Mars and the sun, the closest the pair will get for two years, in an event known as opposition.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"explainer-post css-14ikq2f\" data-source-id=\"100000009889206\">\n<div data-testid=\"imageblock-wrapper\">\n<figure class=\"css-15t9y93 sizeMedium layoutHorizontal\" aria-label=\"media\" role=\"group\">\n<div class=\"css-1xb94ky\" data-testid=\"imageContainer-children-Image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"A computer-generated illustration of a squat lunar lander on the moon\u2019s surface.\" class=\"css-rq4mmj\" src=\"http:\/\/medexperts.pro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/01space-calendar-double-moon-launch-articleLarge.jpg\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" \/><\/div><figcaption data-testid=\"photoviewer-children-ImageCaption\" class=\"css-ktho12 e3rygrp0\"><span class=\"css-jevhma e13ogyst0\">An artist\u2019s concept of Firefly Aerospace\u2019s Blue Ghost lander.<\/span><span class=\"css-14fe1uy e1z0qqy90\"><span><span aria-hidden=\"false\">Firefly Aerospace<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">A pair of landers, from the American company Firefly Aerospace and the Japanese company Ispace, will head to the moon using the same SpaceX rocket.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">The Firefly mission, which is carrying cargo paid for by NASA, will be the first trip of its Blue Ghost lander. The lunar trip by Ispace will be the company\u2019s second attempt after its <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2023\/05\/26\/science\/moon-crash-japan-ispace.html\" title>first lander crashed into the moon\u2019s surface<\/a> in 2023.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">We will provide a more precise launch date for this mission when SpaceX announces it.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"explainer-post css-14ikq2f\" data-source-id=\"100000009889211\">\n<div data-testid=\"imageblock-wrapper\">\n<figure class=\"css-15t9y93 sizeMedium layoutHorizontal\" aria-label=\"media\" role=\"group\">\n<div class=\"css-1xb94ky\" data-testid=\"imageContainer-children-Image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"A view from a spacecraft as it kicks up lunar dust on the moon.\" class=\"css-rq4mmj\" src=\"http:\/\/medexperts.pro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/01space-calendar-im-2-lunar-trailblazer-articleLarge.jpg\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" \/><\/div><figcaption data-testid=\"photoviewer-children-ImageCaption\" class=\"css-ktho12 e3rygrp0\"><span class=\"css-jevhma e13ogyst0\">A view of the Odysseus lander during the final moments of its landing on the moon in February 2024.<\/span><span class=\"css-14fe1uy e1z0qqy90\"><span><span aria-hidden=\"false\">Intuitive Machines<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">The company Intuitive Machines put its robotic <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/02\/22\/science\/intuitive-machines-lander-history.html\" title>Odysseus lander on the moon\u2019s surface<\/a> intact, but <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/02\/23\/science\/moon-lander-intuitive-nasa.html\" title>tilted over<\/a>, last February. It was the first American vehicle to make a soft landing on the moon in more than 50 years.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">Its second lunar lander, named Athena, will head there carrying NASA-financed instruments including a drill that will try to find samples of ice. Athena will share a SpaceX launcher with Lunar Trailblazer, a NASA orbiter that will study water on the moon.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">We will provide a more precise launch date for this mission when SpaceX announces it.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"explainer-post css-14ikq2f\" data-source-id=\"100000009889212\">\n<div data-testid=\"imageblock-wrapper\">\n<figure class=\"css-15t9y93 sizeMedium layoutHorizontal\" aria-label=\"media\" role=\"group\">\n<div class=\"css-1xb94ky\" data-testid=\"imageContainer-children-Image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"A large metal device made up of three concentric cones sits in a blue- and red-lit testing room.\" class=\"css-rq4mmj\" src=\"http:\/\/medexperts.pro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/01space-calendar-spherex-articleLarge.jpg\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" \/><\/div><figcaption data-testid=\"photoviewer-children-ImageCaption\" class=\"css-ktho12 e3rygrp0\"><span class=\"css-jevhma e13ogyst0\">NASA\u2019s SPHEREx space observatory at BAE Systems in Boulder, Colo., in November 2024, after completing environmental testing.<\/span><span class=\"css-14fe1uy e1z0qqy90\"><span><span aria-hidden=\"false\">BAE Systems<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">If astronomers could study space in more colors, they\u2019d gain a better understanding of cosmic physics and planetary science. That\u2019s the goal of NASA\u2019s SPHEREx mission, imaging the sky in 102 colors, many of which are infrared and aren\u2019t visible to humans. SPHEREx stands for Spectro-Photometer for the History of the Universe, Epoch of Reionization and Ices Explorer. We will provide a more precise launch date for this mission when NASA and SpaceX announce one.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"explainer-post css-14ikq2f\" data-source-id=\"100000009889215\">\n<div data-testid=\"imageblock-wrapper\">\n<figure class=\"css-15t9y93 sizeMedium layoutHorizontal\" aria-label=\"media\" role=\"group\">\n<div class=\"css-1xb94ky\" data-testid=\"imageContainer-children-Image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"A diagram of the sun and the planets Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars and Jupiter, labeled, in a line.\" class=\"css-rq4mmj\" src=\"http:\/\/medexperts.pro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/01space-calendar-planetary-parade-qfkw-articleLarge.jpg\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" \/><\/div><figcaption data-testid=\"photoviewer-children-ImageCaption\" class=\"css-ktho12 e3rygrp0\"><span class=\"css-jevhma e13ogyst0\">You\u2019ll need binoculars or a telescope to find Saturn, Uranus and Neptune.<\/span><span class=\"css-14fe1uy e1z0qqy90\"><span><span aria-hidden=\"false\">Martin Kornmesser\/I.A.U., via European Pressphoto Agency<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">Some stargazers are calling it a planetary parade: Every other planet in our solar system can be seen in the sky tonight. Mercury, Venus, Mars and Jupiter will be visible with the unaided eye. Saturn, Uranus and Neptune will be up there, too, but require binoculars or a telescope to find.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"explainer-post css-14ikq2f\" data-source-id=\"100000009889216\">\n<div data-testid=\"imageblock-wrapper\">\n<figure class=\"css-15t9y93 sizeMedium layoutHorizontal\" aria-label=\"media\" role=\"group\">\n<div class=\"css-1xb94ky\" data-testid=\"imageContainer-children-Image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"A red moon over some mountains on a dark day.\" class=\"css-rq4mmj\" src=\"http:\/\/medexperts.pro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/01space-calendar-lunar-eclipse01-chmg-articleLarge.jpg\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" \/><\/div><figcaption data-testid=\"photoviewer-children-ImageCaption\" class=\"css-ktho12 e3rygrp0\"><span class=\"css-jevhma e13ogyst0\">A lunar eclipse over the Tatra Mountains in southern Poland in September 2024.<\/span><span class=\"css-14fe1uy e1z0qqy90\"><span><span aria-hidden=\"false\">Grzegorz Momot\/EPA, via Shutterstock<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">Earth\u2019s shadow will cross over the moon, creating the effect that some call a blood moon. The eclipse will be most visible across parts of the Americas and the Pacific, but also experienced in Europe and western Africa.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"explainer-post css-14ikq2f\" data-source-id=\"100000009889217\">\n<div data-testid=\"imageblock-wrapper\">\n<figure class=\"css-15t9y93 sizeMedium layoutHorizontal\" aria-label=\"media\" role=\"group\">\n<div class=\"css-1xb94ky\" data-testid=\"imageContainer-children-Image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Half of Earth is visible in black and white on the right, with the rest of the planet in shadow.\" class=\"css-rq4mmj\" src=\"http:\/\/medexperts.pro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/01space-calendar-spring-equinox-articleLarge.jpg\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" \/><\/div><figcaption data-testid=\"photoviewer-children-ImageCaption\" class=\"css-ktho12 e3rygrp0\"><span class=\"css-jevhma e13ogyst0\">Earth at the vernal equinox.<\/span><span class=\"css-14fe1uy e1z0qqy90\"><span><span aria-hidden=\"false\">Robert Simmon\/NASA Earth Observatory <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">The vernal equinox is one of two points in Earth\u2019s orbit where the sun creates equal periods of daytime and nighttime across the globe. Many people mark it as the first day of the spring. <strong class=\"css-8qgvsz ebyp5n10\"><a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2016\/03\/22\/science\/what-spring-looks-like-from-space.html\" title>See what it looks like from space<\/a><\/strong><strong class=\"css-8qgvsz ebyp5n10\">.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"explainer-post css-14ikq2f\" data-source-id=\"100000009889220\">\n<div data-testid=\"imageblock-wrapper\">\n<figure class=\"css-15t9y93 sizeMedium layoutHorizontal\" aria-label=\"media\" role=\"group\">\n<div class=\"css-1xb94ky\" data-testid=\"imageContainer-children-Image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"A crowd of young people with eclipse glasses sit and watch the sky.\" class=\"css-rq4mmj\" src=\"http:\/\/medexperts.pro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/01space-calendar-solar-eclipse-jvlc-articleLarge.jpg\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" \/><\/div><figcaption data-testid=\"photoviewer-children-ImageCaption\" class=\"css-ktho12 e3rygrp0\"><span class=\"css-jevhma e13ogyst0\">People gathered to watch the total solar eclipse from Washington Square Park in Manhattan in April 2024.<\/span><span class=\"css-14fe1uy e1z0qqy90\"><span><span aria-hidden=\"false\">Amir Hamja\/The New York Times<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">If you saved your <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/wirecutter\/reviews\/how-to-safely-view-solar-eclipse\/\" title>eclipse glasses<\/a> from last <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/interactive\/2024\/04\/08\/us\/total-solar-eclipse-photos.html\" title>April\u2019s Great North American Eclipse<\/a>, you might get a chance to use them again for this partial solar eclipse. But you\u2019ll have to wake up early and hope for clear skies not long after sunrise for this one. <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/04\/07\/science\/eclipse-glasses-alternatives-watch.html\" title>Do not look directly at a partial eclipse<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">Along many parts of the East Coast, the eclipse\u2019s effect will be modest. There will be only about a 20 percent bite out of the sun in New York City. You\u2019ll have to venture high into Canada\u2019s Maritime Provinces to find a place where the sun nears a total eclipse.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"explainer-post css-14ikq2f\" data-source-id=\"100000009889229\">\n<div data-testid=\"imageblock-wrapper\">\n<figure class=\"css-15t9y93 sizeMedium layoutHorizontal\" aria-label=\"media\" role=\"group\">\n<div class=\"css-1xb94ky\" data-testid=\"imageContainer-children-Image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Several scientists or technicians in white lab coats and masks and hairnets tend to a large metallic spacecraft in a clean room.\" class=\"css-rq4mmj\" src=\"http:\/\/medexperts.pro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/01space-calendar-nisar-vgbf-articleLarge.jpg\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" \/><\/div><figcaption data-testid=\"photoviewer-children-ImageCaption\" class=\"css-ktho12 e3rygrp0\"><span class=\"css-jevhma e13ogyst0\">The scientific core of the NASA-ISRO synthetic aperture radar, or NISAR, satellite inside a clean room at NASA\u2019s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., in 2023.<\/span><span class=\"css-14fe1uy e1z0qqy90\"><span><span aria-hidden=\"false\">Mario Tama\/Getty Images<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">The NASA-ISRO SAR mission, or NISAR, is a collaborative project between the American and Indian space agencies. Launching from an Indian rocket, the spacecraft will carry a variety of sensors, some provided by NASA, to study shifts in Earth\u2019s land- and ice-covered surfaces using synthetic aperture radar.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">NASA says the launch will most likely <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/blogs.nasa.gov\/nisar\/2024\/12\/20\/nasa-isro-aiming-to-launch-nisar-mission-in-march-2025\/\" title rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">occur in March<\/a>. The flight was delayed last year after additional work on its instruments. We will provide a more precise launch date for this mission when NASA and India\u2019s space agency, ISRO, announce one.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"explainer-post css-14ikq2f\" data-source-id=\"100000009889228\">\n<div data-testid=\"imageblock-wrapper\">\n<figure class=\"css-15t9y93 sizeMedium layoutHorizontal\" aria-label=\"media\" role=\"group\">\n<div class=\"css-1xb94ky\" data-testid=\"imageContainer-children-Image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"A rocket lifts off near a SpaceX facility with SpaceX branding on its side.\" class=\"css-rq4mmj\" src=\"http:\/\/medexperts.pro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/01space-calendar-ax-4-tzhf-articleLarge.jpg\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" \/><\/div><figcaption data-testid=\"photoviewer-children-ImageCaption\" class=\"css-ktho12 e3rygrp0\"><span class=\"css-jevhma e13ogyst0\">The Axiom-2 mission heading to the International Space Station from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida in 2023.<\/span><span class=\"css-14fe1uy e1z0qqy90\"><span><span aria-hidden=\"false\">Joe Skipper\/Reuters<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">Visits to the International Space Station are valuable, and would-be astronauts and their countries can wait a long time for the opportunity. Now an American company, Axiom Space, is organizing trips there for <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2022\/04\/08\/science\/axiom-launch-nasa-spacex.html\" title>wealthy adventurers<\/a> and for people from <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2024\/01\/18\/science\/axiom-launch-astronauts-spacex.html\" title>countries that have seldom or never had astronauts<\/a> aboard the orbital outpost.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">Most notable among the crew of the company\u2019s Ax-4 flight is the Indian astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla, who has been tapped to fly to orbit on his country\u2019s first crewed spaceflight mission, called Gaganyaan. He will share a SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule with Slawosz Uznanski of Poland and Tibor Kapu of Hungary.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"explainer-post css-14ikq2f\" data-source-id=\"100000009889230\">\n<div data-testid=\"imageblock-wrapper\">\n<figure class=\"css-15t9y93 sizeMedium layoutHorizontal\" aria-label=\"media\" role=\"group\">\n<div class=\"css-1xb94ky\" data-testid=\"imageContainer-children-Image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"A setting sun, a night sky and a streaking meteor.\" class=\"css-rq4mmj\" src=\"http:\/\/medexperts.pro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/01space-calendar-lyrids-kfwq-articleLarge.jpg\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" \/><\/div><figcaption data-testid=\"photoviewer-children-ImageCaption\" class=\"css-ktho12 e3rygrp0\"><span class=\"css-jevhma e13ogyst0\">The Lyrid meteor shower over Burg on the Baltic Sea island of Fehmarn off Germany in 2018.<\/span><span class=\"css-14fe1uy e1z0qqy90\"><span><span aria-hidden=\"false\">Daniel Reinhardt\/DPA, via Associated Press<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"css-1jca1rm etfikam0\"><em class=\"css-2fg4z9 e1gzwzxm0\">Active from April 15 to April 30. Peak night: April 21 to 22.<\/em><\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">Best seen from the Northern Hemisphere, the Lyrids are caused by the dusty debris from a comet named Thatcher and spring from the constellation Lyra.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">During this year\u2019s period of peak activity, viewers may have a more difficult time seeing meteors from this shower because the moon will be 40 percent full.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"explainer-post css-14ikq2f\" data-source-id=\"100000009889231\">\n<div data-testid=\"imageblock-wrapper\">\n<figure class=\"css-15t9y93 sizeMedium layoutHorizontal\" aria-label=\"media\" role=\"group\">\n<div class=\"css-1xb94ky\" data-testid=\"imageContainer-children-Image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"A comet and its trail streak across a starry sky.\" class=\"css-rq4mmj\" src=\"http:\/\/medexperts.pro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/2021SPACECALENDAR-etaaquariids-articleLarge.jpg\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" \/><\/div><figcaption data-testid=\"photoviewer-children-ImageCaption\" class=\"css-ktho12 e3rygrp0\"><span class=\"css-jevhma e13ogyst0\">Halley\u2019s comet over Easter Island in 1986. The Eta Aquarids meteor shower is the result of debris from Halley\u2019s tail.<\/span><span class=\"css-14fe1uy e1z0qqy90\"><span><span aria-hidden=\"false\">W. Liller\/NASA<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"css-1jca1rm etfikam0\"><em class=\"css-2fg4z9 e1gzwzxm0\">Active from April 20 to May 21. Peak night: May 3 to 4.<\/em><\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">The Eta Aquarid meteor shower is known for its fast fireballs, which occur as Earth passes through the rubble left by Halley\u2019s comet.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">Sometimes spelled Eta Aquariid, this shower is most easily seen from the southern tropics. But a lower rate of meteors will also be visible in the Northern Hemisphere close to sunrise. The moon will be nearly half full on the night of the show.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"explainer-post css-14ikq2f\" data-source-id=\"100000009889235\">\n<div data-testid=\"imageblock-wrapper\">\n<figure class=\"css-15t9y93 sizeMedium layoutHorizontal\" aria-label=\"media\" role=\"group\">\n<div class=\"css-1xb94ky\" data-testid=\"imageContainer-children-Image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"The Earth in black and white on the right side gives way to the planet in shadow on the left.\" class=\"css-rq4mmj\" src=\"http:\/\/medexperts.pro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/01space-calendar-summer-solstice-articleLarge.jpg\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" \/><\/div><figcaption data-testid=\"photoviewer-children-ImageCaption\" class=\"css-ktho12 e3rygrp0\"><span class=\"css-jevhma e13ogyst0\">Earth at the summer solstice.<\/span><span class=\"css-14fe1uy e1z0qqy90\"><span><span aria-hidden=\"false\">Robert Simmon\/NASA Earth Observatory <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">It\u2019s the scientific start to summer in the Northern Hemisphere, when this half of the world tilts toward the sun. <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/article\/summer-solstice-2024.html\" title>Read more about the solstice and why it happens<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"explainer-post css-14ikq2f\" data-source-id=\"100000009889238\">\n<div data-testid=\"imageblock-wrapper\">\n<figure class=\"css-15t9y93 sizeMedium layoutHorizontal\" aria-label=\"media\" role=\"group\">\n<div class=\"css-1xb94ky\" data-testid=\"imageContainer-children-Image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"A view from the International Space Station showing the Earth below with the sun setting in the distance, with yellow-orange light reflecting from the oceans below.\" class=\"css-rq4mmj\" src=\"http:\/\/medexperts.pro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/04aphelion-qbwc-articleLarge.jpg\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" \/><\/div><figcaption data-testid=\"photoviewer-children-ImageCaption\" class=\"css-ktho12 e3rygrp0\"><span class=\"css-jevhma e13ogyst0\">How much the Earth\u2019s orbit deviates from a perfect circle is measured by its eccentricity. The higher the eccentricity, the more elliptical the orbit.<\/span><span class=\"css-14fe1uy e1z0qqy90\"><span><span aria-hidden=\"false\">Terry Virts\/Johnson Space Center, via NASA<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">Even as the Northern Hemisphere experiences the heat of summer, our planet is at aphelion, the farthest it will get from the sun during its elliptical orbit. <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/article\/aphelion-earth-sun-distance.html\" title>Read more about aphelion, why it happens and why it\u2019s decreasing.<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"explainer-post css-14ikq2f\" data-source-id=\"100000009889240\">\n<div data-testid=\"imageblock-wrapper\">\n<figure class=\"css-15t9y93 sizeMedium layoutHorizontal\" aria-label=\"media\" role=\"group\">\n<div class=\"css-1xb94ky\" data-testid=\"imageContainer-children-Image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"An observatory perched on a mountain peak at sunset.\" class=\"css-rq4mmj\" src=\"http:\/\/medexperts.pro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/01space-calendar-rubin-telescope-gzvj-articleLarge.jpg\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" \/><\/div><figcaption data-testid=\"photoviewer-children-ImageCaption\" class=\"css-ktho12 e3rygrp0\"><span class=\"css-jevhma e13ogyst0\">The Vera C. Rubin Observatory in Chile.<\/span><span class=\"css-14fe1uy e1z0qqy90\"><span><span aria-hidden=\"false\">Olivier Bonin\/SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, via Reuters<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">In Chile, an American-funded telescope is coming into operation that will use the largest digital camera in the world.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">Scientists will use the Rubin Observatory to create a motion picture of the southern sky, helping them understand the nature of dark matter, the invisible glue holding our universe together, as well as dark energy, the unknown force pulling the cosmos apart. That trove of data will also reveal the story of our galaxy\u2019s birth and become <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2023\/08\/05\/science\/space-asteroids-rubin-heliolinc3d.html\" title>a catalog of asteroids and comets<\/a> in our solar system that could one day be hazardous to Earth.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">Originally named the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope, the observatory was <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2020\/01\/11\/science\/vera-rubin-telescope-astronomy.html\" title>renamed in 2020<\/a> to honor Vera C. Rubin, whose work convinced astronomers of the existence of dark matter. Dr. Rubin <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2016\/12\/27\/science\/vera-rubin-astronomist-who-made-the-case-for-dark-matter-dies-at-88.html\" title>died in 2016 at 88<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"explainer-post css-14ikq2f\" data-source-id=\"100000009889243\">\n<div data-testid=\"imageblock-wrapper\">\n<figure class=\"css-15t9y93 sizeMedium layoutHorizontal\" aria-label=\"media\" role=\"group\">\n<div class=\"css-1xb94ky\" data-testid=\"imageContainer-children-Image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"A meteor in the sky with a blurry foreground from a long exposure.\" class=\"css-rq4mmj\" src=\"http:\/\/medexperts.pro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/29sci-meteor-shower-01-articleLarge.jpg\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" \/><\/div><figcaption data-testid=\"photoviewer-children-ImageCaption\" class=\"css-ktho12 e3rygrp0\"><span class=\"css-jevhma e13ogyst0\">A meteor streaking across the night sky in Sydney, Australia, in late July 2022, during the peaks of the Southern Delta Aquarids and the Alpha Capricornids showers.<\/span><span class=\"css-14fe1uy e1z0qqy90\"><span><span aria-hidden=\"false\">Saverio Marfia\/Getty Images<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"css-1jca1rm etfikam0\"><em class=\"css-2fg4z9 e1gzwzxm0\">Southern Delta Aquarids active from July 18 to Aug. 12.<\/em><\/p>\n<p class=\"css-1jca1rm etfikam0\"><em class=\"css-2fg4z9 e1gzwzxm0\">Alpha Capricornids active from July 12 to Aug. 12.<\/em><\/p>\n<p class=\"css-1jca1rm etfikam0\"><em class=\"css-2fg4z9 e1gzwzxm0\">Peak night for both: July 29 to 30.<\/em><\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">Two meteor showers peak at the end of July: the Southern Delta Aquarids, best seen in the Southern Hemisphere in the constellation Aquarius, and the Alpha Capricornids, which are visible from both hemispheres in Capricorn.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">With the moon around 27 percent full, viewing opportunities could be favorable. But the Southern Delta Aquarids, sometimes spelled Aquariids, tend to be faint, and the Alpha Capricornids rarely create more than five meteors an hour.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"explainer-post css-14ikq2f\" data-source-id=\"100000009889248\">\n<div data-testid=\"imageblock-wrapper\">\n<figure class=\"css-15t9y93 sizeMedium layoutHorizontal\" aria-label=\"media\" role=\"group\">\n<div class=\"css-1xb94ky\" data-testid=\"imageContainer-children-Image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"A person with a head lamp and fancy telescope\/camera sits in a camping chair and looks up at the night sky with the Milky Way visible.\" class=\"css-rq4mmj\" src=\"http:\/\/medexperts.pro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/01space-calendar-perseids-vgbk-articleLarge.jpg\" width=\"600\" height=\"392\" \/><\/div><figcaption data-testid=\"photoviewer-children-ImageCaption\" class=\"css-ktho12 e3rygrp0\"><span class=\"css-jevhma e13ogyst0\">Hunting the night sky for meteors during the Perseid shower at Kozjak Lake, North Macedonia, in August 2024.<\/span><span class=\"css-14fe1uy e1z0qqy90\"><span><span aria-hidden=\"false\">Georgi Licovski\/EPA, via Shutterstock<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"css-1jca1rm etfikam0\"><em class=\"css-2fg4z9 e1gzwzxm0\">Active from July 17 to Aug. 23. Peak night: Aug. 12 to 13.<\/em><\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">A favorite among skywatchers, the Perseids are one of the strongest showers each year, with as many as 100 long, colorful streaks an hour.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">It is a show best viewed from the Northern Hemisphere. This year, observers may have to contend with light from the moon, which will be nearly 84 percent full on the night the Perseids peak.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"explainer-post css-14ikq2f\" data-source-id=\"100000009889249\">\n<div data-testid=\"imageblock-wrapper\">\n<figure class=\"css-15t9y93 sizeMedium layoutHorizontal\" aria-label=\"media\" role=\"group\">\n<div class=\"css-1xb94ky\" data-testid=\"imageContainer-children-Image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"A blood moon in a black sky.\" class=\"css-rq4mmj\" src=\"http:\/\/medexperts.pro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/01space-calendar-lunar-eclipse02-zhvf-articleLarge.jpg\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" \/><\/div><figcaption data-testid=\"photoviewer-children-ImageCaption\" class=\"css-ktho12 e3rygrp0\"><span class=\"css-jevhma e13ogyst0\">The blood moon of a total lunar eclipse outside Melbourne, Australia, in November 2022.<\/span><span class=\"css-14fe1uy e1z0qqy90\"><span><span aria-hidden=\"false\">William West\/Agence France-Presse \u2014 Getty Images<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">Earth\u2019s shadow will cross over the moon, creating the effect that some call a blood moon. The eclipse will be most visible in Asia and parts of Australia, but also experienced in Africa and Europe.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"explainer-post css-14ikq2f\" data-source-id=\"100000009889250\">\n<div data-testid=\"imageblock-wrapper\">\n<figure class=\"css-15t9y93 sizeMedium layoutHorizontal\" aria-label=\"media\" role=\"group\">\n<div class=\"css-1xb94ky\" data-testid=\"imageContainer-children-Image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"A black-and-white satellite view of the Earth at equinox.\" class=\"css-rq4mmj\" src=\"http:\/\/medexperts.pro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/01space-calendar-autumnal-equinox-articleLarge.jpg\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" \/><\/div><figcaption data-testid=\"photoviewer-children-ImageCaption\" class=\"css-ktho12 e3rygrp0\"><span class=\"css-jevhma e13ogyst0\">Equinoxes occur twice each year, in March and September, when Earth reaches a point in its orbit where the sun shines directly on the Equator.<\/span><span class=\"css-14fe1uy e1z0qqy90\"><span><span aria-hidden=\"false\">NASA<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">The autumnal equinox is one of two points in Earth\u2019s orbit where the sun creates equal periods of daytime and nighttime across the globe. Many mark it as the first day of the fall. <strong class=\"css-8qgvsz ebyp5n10\"><a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/article\/fall-equinox-autumn.html\" title>Learn five facts about the autumnal equinox here<\/a><\/strong><strong class=\"css-8qgvsz ebyp5n10\">.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"explainer-post css-14ikq2f\" data-source-id=\"100000009889251\">\n<div data-testid=\"imageblock-wrapper\">\n<figure class=\"css-15t9y93 sizeMedium layoutHorizontal\" aria-label=\"media\" role=\"group\">\n<div class=\"css-1xb94ky\" data-testid=\"imageContainer-children-Image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"A meteor shower at night with a layer of clouds reflecting light below in a long exposure photograph.\" class=\"css-rq4mmj\" src=\"http:\/\/medexperts.pro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/01space-calendar-orionids-articleLarge.jpg\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" \/><\/div><figcaption data-testid=\"photoviewer-children-ImageCaption\" class=\"css-ktho12 e3rygrp0\"><span class=\"css-jevhma e13ogyst0\">The Orionids meteor shower as seen from Sofia, Bulgaria, in 2009.<\/span><span class=\"css-14fe1uy e1z0qqy90\"><span><span aria-hidden=\"false\">Petar Petrov\/Associated Press<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"css-1jca1rm etfikam0\"><em class=\"css-2fg4z9 e1gzwzxm0\">Active from Oct. 2 to Nov. 12. Peak night: Oct. 22 to 23.<\/em><\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">The Orionids are well loved by meteor shower aficionados because of the bright, speedy streaks they make near the group of stars known as Orion\u2019s Belt. Like the Eta Aquarids meteor shower, which peaked in early May, the Orionids result when Earth passes through debris from Halley\u2019s comet.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">This shower can be seen from both hemispheres. Viewing conditions may be excellent this year because the moon will be only about 2 percent full.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"explainer-post css-14ikq2f\" data-source-id=\"100000009889257\">\n<div data-testid=\"imageblock-wrapper\">\n<figure class=\"css-15t9y93 sizeMedium layoutHorizontal\" aria-label=\"media\" role=\"group\">\n<div class=\"css-1xb94ky\" data-testid=\"imageContainer-children-Image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"A streak of light flies through a starry sky over blue-green rock formations.\" class=\"css-rq4mmj\" src=\"http:\/\/medexperts.pro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/01sci-spacecalendar-leonids-articleLarge-v2.jpg\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" \/><\/div><figcaption data-testid=\"photoviewer-children-ImageCaption\" class=\"css-ktho12 e3rygrp0\"><span class=\"css-jevhma e13ogyst0\">The Leonid meteor shower viewed from North Macedonia in November 2020.<\/span><span class=\"css-14fe1uy e1z0qqy90\"><span><span aria-hidden=\"false\">Georgi Licovski\/EPA, via Shutterstock<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"css-1jca1rm etfikam0\"><em class=\"css-2fg4z9 e1gzwzxm0\">Active from Nov. 3 to Dec. 2. Peak night: Nov. 16 to 17.<\/em><\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">The Leonids produce some of the fastest meteors each year, at 44 miles per second, with bright, long tails.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">Meteors from the Leonids can be spotted in the constellation Leo, and will be visible from both the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. This year, the moon will be 9 percent full, which is good news for those trying to spot the Leonids.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"explainer-post css-14ikq2f\" data-source-id=\"100000009889261\">\n<div data-testid=\"imageblock-wrapper\">\n<figure class=\"css-15t9y93 sizeMedium layoutHorizontal\" aria-label=\"media\" role=\"group\">\n<div class=\"css-1xb94ky\" data-testid=\"imageContainer-children-Image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"A meteor streaking over a silhouetted cactus in a desert landscape at dusk.\" class=\"css-rq4mmj\" src=\"http:\/\/medexperts.pro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/01space-calendar-geminids-pzwk-articleLarge.jpg\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" \/><\/div><figcaption data-testid=\"photoviewer-children-ImageCaption\" class=\"css-ktho12 e3rygrp0\"><span class=\"css-jevhma e13ogyst0\">A meteor over Lukeville, Ariz., during the Geminids meteor shower in December 2023.<\/span><span class=\"css-14fe1uy e1z0qqy90\"><span><span aria-hidden=\"false\">Go Nakamura\/Reuters<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"css-1jca1rm etfikam0\"><em class=\"css-2fg4z9 e1gzwzxm0\">Active from Dec. 1 to Dec. 21. Peak night: Dec. 12 to 13.<\/em><\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">Caused by debris from an asteroid, the Geminids are one of the strongest and most popular meteor showers each year. This shower is best viewed from the Northern Hemisphere, but observers south of the Equator can also witness the show.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">The Geminids peak when the moon is nearly 40 percent full.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"explainer-post css-14ikq2f\" data-source-id=\"100000009889264\">\n<div data-testid=\"imageblock-wrapper\">\n<figure class=\"css-15t9y93 sizeMedium layoutHorizontal\" aria-label=\"media\" role=\"group\">\n<div class=\"css-1xb94ky\" data-testid=\"imageContainer-children-Image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"A black and white Earth on the right gives way to a planet in shadow on the top left side.\" class=\"css-rq4mmj\" src=\"http:\/\/medexperts.pro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/01space-calendar-winter-solstice-articleLarge.jpg\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" \/><\/div><figcaption data-testid=\"photoviewer-children-ImageCaption\" class=\"css-ktho12 e3rygrp0\"><span class=\"css-jevhma e13ogyst0\">Earth at the winter solstice.<\/span><span class=\"css-14fe1uy e1z0qqy90\"><span><span aria-hidden=\"false\">Robert Simmon\/NASA Earth Observatory <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">It\u2019s the scientific start to winter in the Northern Hemisphere, when this half of the world tilts away from the sun. <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2017\/12\/20\/science\/winter-solstice-december-21.html\" title>Read more about the solstice<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"explainer-post css-14ikq2f\" data-source-id=\"100000009889265\">\n<div data-testid=\"imageblock-wrapper\">\n<figure class=\"css-15t9y93 sizeMedium layoutHorizontal\" aria-label=\"media\" role=\"group\">\n<div class=\"css-1xb94ky\" data-testid=\"imageContainer-children-Image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"An illustration depicts the path of a meteor shower in white over lines showing other planets orbiting the sun, including Mars in red and Earth in blue.\" class=\"css-rq4mmj\" src=\"http:\/\/medexperts.pro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/00SPACECALENDAR-ursids-articleLarge.jpg\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" \/><\/div><figcaption data-testid=\"photoviewer-children-ImageCaption\" class=\"css-ktho12 e3rygrp0\"><span class=\"css-jevhma e13ogyst0\">A rendering of the orbit followed by the Ursids meteor shower. The white line shows the shower\u2019s path, and the bright blue line in the middle represents the Earth\u2019s orbit.<\/span><span class=\"css-14fe1uy e1z0qqy90\"><span><span aria-hidden=\"false\">Ian Webster and Peter Jenniskens<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"css-1jca1rm etfikam0\"><em class=\"css-2fg4z9 e1gzwzxm0\">Active from Dec. 16 to Dec. 26. Peak night: Dec. 21 to 22.<\/em><\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">A winter solstice light show, meteors from the Ursids appear near the Little Dipper, which is part of the constellation Ursa Minor.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">Only skywatchers in the Northern Hemisphere will have a chance of seeing this shower. The moon will be 3 percent full.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"explainer-post css-14ikq2f\" data-source-id=\"100000009237744\">\n<div data-testid=\"imageblock-wrapper\">\n<figure class=\"css-15t9y93 sizeMedium layoutHorizontal\" aria-label=\"media\" role=\"group\">\n<div class=\"css-1xb94ky\" data-testid=\"imageContainer-children-Image\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Two people lying on a beach, staring up at a night sky full of stars.\" class=\"css-rq4mmj\" src=\"http:\/\/medexperts.pro\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/01sci-spacecalendar-meteor-showers-explainer-1-5243-articleLarge.jpg\" width=\"600\" height=\"400\" \/><\/div><figcaption data-testid=\"photoviewer-children-ImageCaption\" class=\"css-ktho12 e3rygrp0\"><span class=\"css-jevhma e13ogyst0\">Enjoying the Perseid meteor shower at Great Sand Dunes National Park in Colorado.<\/span><span class=\"css-14fe1uy e1z0qqy90\"><span><span aria-hidden=\"false\">Michael Ciaglo for The New York Times<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">Our universe might be chock-full of cosmic wonder, but you can observe only a fraction of astronomical phenomena with your naked eye. Meteor showers, natural fireworks that streak brightly across the night sky, are one of them.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"css-177cjim eoo0vm40\" id=\"link-43d0efdb\">Where meteor showers come from<\/h2>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">There is a chance you might see a meteor on any given night, but you are most likely to catch one during a shower. Meteor showers are caused by Earth passing through the rubble trailing a comet or asteroid as it swings around the sun. This debris, which can be as small as a grain of sand, leaves behind a glowing stream of light as it burns up in Earth\u2019s atmosphere.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">Meteor showers occur around the same time every year and can last for days or weeks. But there is only a small window when each shower is at its peak, which happens when Earth reaches the densest part of the cosmic debris. The peak is the best time to look for a shower. From our point of view on Earth, the meteors will appear to come from the same point in the sky.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">The <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2023\/08\/11\/science\/perseids-meteor-shower.html\" title>Perseid meteor shower<\/a>, for example, peaks in mid-August from the constellation Perseus. The <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2023\/12\/13\/science\/geminid-meteor-shower-how-to-watch.html\" title>Geminids<\/a>, which occur every December, radiate from the constellation Gemini.<\/p>\n<div class=\"css-1dv1kvn\">\n<h2 class=\"css-177cjim eoo0vm40\" id=\"link-e5c44d5\">How to watch a meteor shower<\/h2>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">Michelle Nichols, the director of public observing at the <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.adlerplanetarium.org\/\" title rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">Adler Planetarium<\/a> in Chicago, recommends forgoing the use of telescopes or binoculars while watching a meteor shower.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">\u201cYou just need your eyes and, ideally, a dark sky,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">That\u2019s because meteors can shoot across large swaths of the sky, so observing equipment can limit your field of view.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">Some showers are strong enough to produce up to 100 streaks an hour, <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/amsmeteors.org\/meteor-showers\/meteor-faq\/\" title rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">according to the American Meteor Society<\/a>, though you probably won\u2019t see that many.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">\u201cAlmost everybody is under a light-polluted sky,\u201d Ms. Nichols said. \u201cYou may think you\u2019re under a dark sky, but in reality, even in a small town, you can have bright lights nearby.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">Planetariums, local astronomy clubs or even maps like <a class=\"css-yywogo\" href=\"https:\/\/www.lightpollutionmap.info\/\" title rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">this one<\/a> can help you figure out where to get away from excessive light. The best conditions for catching a meteor shower are a clear sky with no moon or cloud cover, at sometime between midnight and sunrise. (Moonlight affects visibility in the same way light pollution does, washing out fainter sources of light in the sky.) Make sure to give your eyes at least 30 minutes to adjust to seeing in the dark.<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">Ms. Nichols also recommends wearing layers, even during the summer. \u201cYou\u2019re going to be sitting there for quite a while, watching,\u201d she said. \u201cIt\u2019s going to get chilly, even in August.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"css-daiqw4 evys1bk0\">Bring a cup of cocoa or tea for even more warmth. Then sit back, scan the sky and enjoy the show.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The New York Times has offered this calendar to readers since 2017. It\u2019s a collection of newsworthy events in spaceflight and astronomy curated by the paper\u2019s journalists.The entries below these instructions will be updated regularly to adjust dates and revise information. New events will be added and entries will be removed after they conclude or are indefinitely postponed.The easiest way to use this calendar is to add this page to your web browser\u2019s bookmarks or favorites, and revisit it regularly. Instructions for common web browsers are below, along with additional instructions and answers to common questions.Answers to common questions we\u2019ve receivedHow do I bookmark this calendar on my browser?Here are bookmarking instructions for four of the most common browsers:What happened to the Google Calendar, Apple Calendar and Outlook calendar feeds?The Times has paused the use of the feed that puts the events from this calendar on your personal digital calendar.If we resume use of such a feed, we will post instructions for it at this page.How do I unsubscribe from the digital calendar feed?You can follow the instructions included in last year\u2019s edition of the calendar.The Dream Chaser, built by Sierra Space, undergoing testing at NASA\u2019s Neil Armstrong Test Facility in Sandusky, Ohio. The company hopes it will carry cargo to the International Space Station for the first time this year.Jef Janis\/NASAOur species called this latest 366-day journey around the sun \u201c2024\u201d and packed into it a ton of astronomical and spaceflight excitement.A solar eclipse crossed North America. Two robotic landers reached the lunar surface, largely intact. The most powerful rocket booster ever built was caught by a pair of mechanical arms nicknamed \u201cchopsticks.\u201d A journey began to Jupiter\u2019s icy ocean moon Europa. And private astronauts conducted a daring spacewalk.Can this revolution around the sun we name \u201c2025\u201d compare? We\u2019ll let you be the judge of how enthusiastic to get about the events you can expect on the launchpads and in the night sky.Jeff Bezos enters the arenaThe New Glenn vehicle was rolled out at Cape Canaveral, Fla., in February to undergo a series of tanking and mechanical system tests.Blue OriginThrough SpaceX, Elon Musk has dominated spaceflight around the planet in recent years. But the extraplanetary ambitions of the Amazon founder Jeff Bezos could present a challenge to Mr. Musk soon.The space company started by Mr. Bezos, Blue Origin, has a powerful rocket called New Glenn that may at last get off the ground in 2025. Like SpaceX\u2019s Falcon 9, the booster stage is designed to be fully reusable so it can fly again and again and reduce the cost of launches. The rocket could launch national security satellites for the U.S. military and spacecraft for NASA, including orbiters to Mars and moon landers.Another thing New Glenn will carry is satellites for Amazon, where Mr. Bezos is still executive chair. The company\u2019s Project Kuiper involves plans to build a mega-constellation of satellites beaming internet down from space, in competition with SpaceX\u2019s Starlink constellation. Amazon also plans to launch Kuiper satellites using rockets from many of Blue Origin\u2019s competitors, including United Launch Alliance, Arianespace of France and even SpaceX.Rubin\u2019s first lightThe Vera C. Rubin Observatory, in the Coquimbo region of Chile, in January 2024.Javier Torres\/Agence France-Presse \u2014 Getty ImagesAstronomers atop a mountain in central Chile are wrapping up construction of the Vera C. Rubin Observatory, which might capture its first views of the night sky this year, as early as July 4.Formerly the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope, the observatory was renamed in 2020 to honor Vera Rubin, who died at 88 in 2016. Dr. Rubin\u2019s work persuaded astronomers of the existence of dark matter, which makes up a vast majority of mass in the universe, but no one knows what it is.The name is fitting. With the largest digital camera in the world, scientists will use the Rubin Observatory to create a time-lapse motion picture of the Southern sky. Such images would help researchers understand the nature of dark matter, as well as dark energy, the unknown force pushing the cosmos apart. The trove of data will also help reveal the story of our galaxy\u2019s birth and catalog asteroids and comets in our solar system, including those that could slam into Earth one day.The moon, and Trump, come back aroundThe core stage of NASA\u2019s Space Launch System, the rocket that will be used for the Artemis II moon mission, at Cape Canaveral, Fla., in July.Chandan Khanna\/Agence France-Presse \u2014 Getty ImagesDuring the first administration of Donald J. Trump, American space policy refocused on lunar exploration. President Biden\u2019s administration sustained that direction. But as Mr. Trump returns to the White House in January, the country\u2019s existing space plans could be upended by canceling the expensive rocket NASA has been developing for more than a decade. Alternatively, Mr. Trump could more radically shift NASA\u2019s focus to sending people to Mars. Getting to the Red Planet is the primary goal of Mr. Musk, who has been advising the president-elect.For all that potential uncertainty, a series of robotic space missions are planned to the moon early in the year. The first two, a pair of landers from the American company Firefly Aerospace and the Japanese company Ispace, will launch on the same SpaceX rocket as soon as mid-January. The mission by Firefly will be the first trip of its Blue Ghost lander and will carry cargo paid for by NASA. The lunar trip by Ispace will be its second attempt after the company\u2019s first lander crashed into the moon\u2019s surface in 2023.Later in the year\u2019s first quarter, Intuitive Machines may try to put another robotic lander on the moon after the company\u2019s Odysseus lander reached the surface intact, but tilted over, last February. The company\u2019s second lander, named Athena, also will carry NASA-financed instruments, including a drill that will try to find samples of ice. Athena will share a SpaceX launcher with Lunar Trailblazer, a NASA orbiter that will study water on the moon.Vigils for Voyagers 1 and 2Clockwise from top left: Uranus, seen by Voyager 2 on its way to visit Neptune in 1986; the \u201cPale Blue Dot\u201d of Earth as seen by Voyager 1 in 1990; Jupiter, Io and Europa seen by Voyager 1 in 1979; Voyager 2 in a clean room of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., in 1977.Voyagers 1 and 2, twin spacecraft that inspired a generation of cosmic wonderers, were launched in 1977. After decades of exploring the outer solar system before charting the unknown frontier of interstellar space, the two spacecraft are showing signs of age.Early in their journey, the pair swooped past Jupiter and Saturn, and Voyager 2 later visited Uranus and Neptune. But perhaps the mission\u2019s most iconic gift to the world was a photo taken of Earth, a tiny pixel against the expanse of space, leading the famed astronomer Carl Sagan to coin the image \u201cPale Blue Dot.\u201dIn recent years, the robotic explorers have each blinked in and out of contact with NASA. Communication with Voyager 2 was purposefully shut down in 2020 for months, then lost by accident for a couple of weeks in 2023 before it was restored.Voyager 1, on the other hand, gave mission specialists a scare this year when it stopped sending data back to Earth. Instruments on both spacecraft have been shut down to conserve power.But NASA isn\u2019t giving up on them yet. When they are eventually interred in the space between the stars, it would be an apt resting place given how the duo has ventured where no other spacecraft had gone before.India\u2019s orbital objectivePrime Minister Narendra Modi of India in February shaking hands with members of the planned Gaganyaan mission: from left, Prasanth Nair, Ajit Krishnan, Angad Pratap and Shubhanshu Shukla.Press Information Bureau Handout\/EPA-EFE, via ShutterstockIndia\u2019s space program has landed a robot on the moon and put a spacecraft into orbit around Mars. The country\u2019s most immediate priorities are much closer to Earth, but that doesn\u2019t mean they are less ambitious.India is focusing on human spaceflight. A member of the nation\u2019s astronaut corps, Shubhanshu Shukla, is to spend up to 14 days this spring aboard the International Space Station during a commercial mission with the company Axiom Space.Mr. Shukla and his fellow Indian astronauts are hoping to be the first to launch to low Earth orbit on its homegrown rockets. India said in December that an orbital vehicle from that program, known as Gaganyaan, was being prepared for a test launch with no astronauts aboard. A successful flight could lead the way to a crewed Indian astronaut launch as early as 2026.New milestones and new spacecraftSpaceX\u2019s large rocket booster returning to the launchpad for a \u201cchopsticks\u201d catch in Boca Chica, Texas, after a test flight in October.Eric Gay\/Associated PressSpaceX wowed the world in November during Flight 5 of Starship, the most powerful rocket ever built. Expect the company to try to repeat the stunning \u201cchopsticks\u201d catch of its massive Super Heavy booster. SpaceX may also attempt to catch the upper-stage Starship vehicle after it completes an orbit of Earth and returns to the launch site in South Texas for the first time. SpaceX said it was aiming for 25 launches of Starship in 2025 as it prepares the spacecraft to land astronauts on the moon under the company\u2019s contract with NASA.Other new rockets and spacecraft may take flight in 2025.One is Neutron, a reusable rocket being developed by Rocket Lab, which was founded in New Zealand. The company routinely carries satellites to orbit aboard its small Electron rocket, and could conduct a first flight of the new vehicle from a launch site in Virginia.Another is Dream Chaser, a space plane built by Sierra Space. After delays in 2024, the company hopes it will carry cargo to the I.S.S. for the first time this year.The Quadrantids seen above northern Spain in January 2022.Pedro Puente Hoyos\/EPA, via ShutterstockActive from Dec. 26, 2024, to Jan. 16. Peak night: Jan. 2 to 3.The Quadrantids, which the International Meteor Organization says could be one of the strongest meteor showers this year, are also one of the few caused by debris from an asteroid. Best viewed from the Northern Hemisphere, the shower is one of the toughest to catch.The Quadrantids have one of the shortest peak periods, lasting only six hours. And the time of year might mean cloudy skies and frigid temperatures. The moon will be about 11 percent full, which may also make meteors harder to spot.The setting sun, at perihelion, in Ankara, Turkey, on Jan. 4, 2022.Cagla Gurdogan\/ReutersEven as the Northern Hemisphere experiences winter\u2019s chill, our planet on Saturday will be at perihelion, the closest it gets to the sun during its elliptical orbit. Learn more about planetary orbits and the search for life around the galaxy.Comet C\/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS), no relation, seen from the Spanish island of Gran Canaria in October 2024.Borja Suarez\/ReutersDiscovered last year, Comet ATLAS, known as C\/2024 G3 to astronomers, may burn brightly enough to be seen without a telescope when it reaches perihelion, the closest it will get to the sun.Many comets burn up when they get too close to the sun\u2019s heat. If this one survives the solar encounter, it could be the most vibrant comet visible from Earth all year. But the full moon this night might make it more difficult to spot.A lunar occultation of Venus over Bangkok in March 2023.Jack Taylor\/Agence France-Presse \u2014 Getty ImagesAs the full moon travels through the sky this evening, it will pass in front of Mars for stargazers in Africa and the Americas.The event, known as a lunar occultation, occurs as the Red Planet appears bigger and brighter than usual. That\u2019s because two days later, Earth will be oriented directly between Mars and the sun, the closest the pair will get for two years, in an event known as opposition.An artist\u2019s concept of Firefly Aerospace\u2019s Blue Ghost lander.Firefly AerospaceA pair of landers, from the American company Firefly Aerospace and the Japanese company Ispace, will head to the moon using the same SpaceX rocket.The Firefly mission, which is carrying cargo paid for by NASA, will be the first trip of its Blue Ghost lander. The lunar trip by Ispace will be the company\u2019s second attempt after its first lander crashed into the moon\u2019s surface in 2023.We will provide a more precise launch date for this mission when SpaceX announces it.A view of the Odysseus lander during the final moments of its landing on the moon in February 2024.Intuitive MachinesThe company Intuitive Machines put its robotic Odysseus lander on the moon\u2019s surface intact, but tilted over, last February. It was the first American vehicle to make a soft landing on the moon in more than 50 years.Its second lunar lander, named Athena, will head there carrying NASA-financed instruments including a drill that will try to find samples of ice. Athena will share a SpaceX launcher with Lunar Trailblazer, a NASA orbiter that will study water on the moon.We will provide a more precise launch date for this mission when SpaceX announces it.NASA\u2019s SPHEREx space observatory at BAE Systems in Boulder, Colo., in November 2024, after completing environmental testing.BAE SystemsIf astronomers could study space in more colors, they\u2019d gain a better understanding of cosmic physics and planetary science. That\u2019s the goal of NASA\u2019s SPHEREx mission, imaging the sky in 102 colors, many of which are infrared and aren\u2019t visible to humans. SPHEREx stands for Spectro-Photometer for the History of the Universe, Epoch of Reionization and Ices Explorer. We will provide a more precise launch date for this mission when NASA and SpaceX announce one.You\u2019ll need binoculars or a telescope to find Saturn, Uranus and Neptune.Martin Kornmesser\/I.A.U., via European Pressphoto AgencySome stargazers are calling it a planetary parade: Every other planet in our solar system can be seen in the sky tonight. Mercury, Venus, Mars and Jupiter will be visible with the unaided eye. Saturn, Uranus and Neptune will be up there, too, but require binoculars or a telescope to find.A lunar eclipse over the Tatra Mountains in southern Poland in September 2024.Grzegorz Momot\/EPA, via ShutterstockEarth\u2019s shadow will cross over the moon, creating the effect that some call a blood moon. The eclipse will be most visible across parts of the Americas and the Pacific, but also experienced in Europe and western Africa.Earth at the vernal equinox.Robert Simmon\/NASA Earth Observatory The vernal equinox is one of two points in Earth\u2019s orbit where the sun creates equal periods of daytime and nighttime across the globe. Many people mark it as the first day of the spring. See what it looks like from space.People gathered to watch the total solar eclipse from Washington Square Park in Manhattan in April 2024.Amir Hamja\/The New York TimesIf you saved your eclipse glasses from last April\u2019s Great North American Eclipse, you might get a chance to use them again for this partial solar eclipse. But you\u2019ll have to wake up early and hope for clear skies not long after sunrise for this one. Do not look directly at a partial eclipse.Along many parts of the East Coast, the eclipse\u2019s effect will be modest. There will be only about a 20 percent bite out of the sun in New York City. You\u2019ll have to venture high into Canada\u2019s Maritime Provinces to find a place where the sun nears a total eclipse.The scientific core of the NASA-ISRO synthetic aperture radar, or NISAR, satellite inside a clean room at NASA\u2019s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., in 2023.Mario Tama\/Getty ImagesThe NASA-ISRO SAR mission, or NISAR, is a collaborative project between the American and Indian space agencies. Launching from an Indian rocket, the spacecraft will carry a variety of sensors, some provided by NASA, to study shifts in Earth\u2019s land- and ice-covered surfaces using synthetic aperture radar.NASA says the launch will most likely occur in March. The flight was delayed last year after additional work on its instruments. We will provide a more precise launch date for this mission when NASA and India\u2019s space agency, ISRO, announce one.The Axiom-2 mission heading to the International Space Station from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida in 2023.Joe Skipper\/ReutersVisits to the International Space Station are valuable, and would-be astronauts and their countries can wait a long time for the opportunity. Now an American company, Axiom Space, is organizing trips there for wealthy adventurers and for people from countries that have seldom or never had astronauts aboard the orbital outpost.Most notable among the crew of the company\u2019s Ax-4 flight is the Indian astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla, who has been tapped to fly to orbit on his country\u2019s first crewed spaceflight mission, called Gaganyaan. He will share a SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule with Slawosz Uznanski of Poland and Tibor Kapu of Hungary.The Lyrid meteor shower over Burg on the Baltic Sea island of Fehmarn off Germany in 2018.Daniel Reinhardt\/DPA, via Associated PressActive from April 15 to April 30. Peak night: April 21 to 22.Best seen from the Northern Hemisphere, the Lyrids are caused by the dusty debris from a comet named Thatcher and spring from the constellation Lyra.During this year\u2019s period of peak activity, viewers may have a more difficult time seeing meteors from this shower because the moon will be 40 percent full.Halley\u2019s comet over Easter Island in 1986. The Eta Aquarids meteor shower is the result of debris from Halley\u2019s tail.W. Liller\/NASAActive from April 20 to May 21. Peak night: May 3 to 4.The Eta Aquarid meteor shower is known for its fast fireballs, which occur as Earth passes through the rubble left by Halley\u2019s comet.Sometimes spelled Eta Aquariid, this shower is most easily seen from the southern tropics. But a lower rate of meteors will also be visible in the Northern Hemisphere close to sunrise. The moon will be nearly half full on the night of the show.Earth at the summer solstice.Robert Simmon\/NASA Earth Observatory It\u2019s the scientific start to summer in the Northern Hemisphere, when this half of the world tilts toward the sun. Read more about the solstice and why it happens.How much the Earth\u2019s orbit deviates from a perfect circle is measured by its eccentricity. The higher the eccentricity, the more elliptical the orbit.Terry Virts\/Johnson Space Center, via NASAEven as the Northern Hemisphere experiences the heat of summer, our planet is at aphelion, the farthest it will get from the sun during its elliptical orbit. Read more about aphelion, why it happens and why it\u2019s decreasing.The Vera C. Rubin Observatory in Chile.Olivier Bonin\/SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, via ReutersIn Chile, an American-funded telescope is coming into operation that will use the largest digital camera in the world.Scientists will use the Rubin Observatory to create a motion picture of the southern sky, helping them understand the nature of dark matter, the invisible glue holding our universe together, as well as dark energy, the unknown force pulling the cosmos apart. That trove of data will also reveal the story of our galaxy\u2019s birth and become a catalog of asteroids and comets in our solar system that could one day be hazardous to Earth.Originally named the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope, the observatory was renamed in 2020 to honor Vera C. Rubin, whose work convinced astronomers of the existence of dark matter. Dr. Rubin died in 2016 at 88.A meteor streaking across the night sky in Sydney, Australia, in late July 2022, during the peaks of the Southern Delta Aquarids and the Alpha Capricornids showers.Saverio Marfia\/Getty ImagesSouthern Delta Aquarids active from July 18 to Aug. 12.Alpha Capricornids active from July 12 to Aug. 12.Peak night for both: July 29 to 30.Two meteor showers peak at the end of July: the Southern Delta Aquarids, best seen in the Southern Hemisphere in the constellation Aquarius, and the Alpha Capricornids, which are visible from both hemispheres in Capricorn.With the moon around 27 percent full, viewing opportunities could be favorable. But the Southern Delta Aquarids, sometimes spelled Aquariids, tend to be faint, and the Alpha Capricornids rarely create more than five meteors an hour.Hunting the night sky for meteors during the Perseid shower at Kozjak Lake, North Macedonia, in August 2024.Georgi Licovski\/EPA, via ShutterstockActive from July 17 to Aug. 23. Peak night: Aug. 12 to 13.A favorite among skywatchers, the Perseids are one of the strongest showers each year, with as many as 100 long, colorful streaks an hour.It is a show best viewed from the Northern Hemisphere. This year, observers may have to contend with light from the moon, which will be nearly 84 percent full on the night the Perseids peak.The blood moon of a total lunar eclipse outside Melbourne, Australia, in November 2022.William West\/Agence France-Presse \u2014 Getty ImagesEarth\u2019s shadow will cross over the moon, creating the effect that some call a blood moon. The eclipse will be most visible in Asia and parts of Australia, but also experienced in Africa and Europe.Equinoxes occur twice each year, in March and September, when Earth reaches a point in its orbit where the sun shines directly on the Equator.NASAThe autumnal equinox is one of two points in Earth\u2019s orbit where the sun creates equal periods of daytime and nighttime across the globe. Many mark it as the first day of the fall. Learn five facts about the autumnal equinox here.The Orionids meteor shower as seen from Sofia, Bulgaria, in 2009.Petar Petrov\/Associated PressActive from Oct. 2 to Nov. 12. Peak night: Oct. 22 to 23.The Orionids are well loved by meteor shower aficionados because of the bright, speedy streaks they make near the group of stars known as Orion\u2019s Belt. Like the Eta Aquarids meteor shower, which peaked in early May, the Orionids result when Earth passes through debris from Halley\u2019s comet.This shower can be seen from both hemispheres. Viewing conditions may be excellent this year because the moon will be only about 2 percent full.The Leonid meteor shower viewed from North Macedonia in November 2020.Georgi Licovski\/EPA, via ShutterstockActive from Nov. 3 to Dec. 2. Peak night: Nov. 16 to 17.The Leonids produce some of the fastest meteors each year, at 44 miles per second, with bright, long tails.Meteors from the Leonids can be spotted in the constellation Leo, and will be visible from both the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. This year, the moon will be 9 percent full, which is good news for those trying to spot the Leonids.A meteor over Lukeville, Ariz., during the Geminids meteor shower in December 2023.Go Nakamura\/ReutersActive from Dec. 1 to Dec. 21. Peak night: Dec. 12 to 13.Caused by debris from an asteroid, the Geminids are one of the strongest and most popular meteor showers each year. This shower is best viewed from the Northern Hemisphere, but observers south of the Equator can also witness the show.The Geminids peak when the moon is nearly 40 percent full.Earth at the winter solstice.Robert Simmon\/NASA Earth Observatory It\u2019s the scientific start to winter in the Northern Hemisphere, when this half of the world tilts away from the sun. Read more about the solstice.A rendering of the orbit followed by the Ursids meteor shower. The white line shows the shower\u2019s path, and the bright blue line in the middle represents the Earth\u2019s orbit.Ian Webster and Peter JenniskensActive from Dec. 16 to Dec. 26. Peak night: Dec. 21 to 22.A winter solstice light show, meteors from the Ursids appear near the Little Dipper, which is part of the constellation Ursa Minor.Only skywatchers in the Northern Hemisphere will have a chance of seeing this shower. The moon will be 3 percent full.Enjoying the Perseid meteor shower at Great Sand Dunes National Park in Colorado.Michael Ciaglo for The New York TimesOur universe might be chock-full of cosmic wonder, but you can observe only a fraction of astronomical phenomena with your naked eye. Meteor showers, natural fireworks that streak brightly across the night sky, are one of them.Where meteor showers come fromThere is a chance you might see a meteor on any given night, but you are most likely to catch one during a shower. Meteor showers are caused by Earth passing through the rubble trailing a comet or asteroid as it swings around the sun. This debris, which can be as small as a grain of sand, leaves behind a glowing stream of light as it burns up in Earth\u2019s atmosphere.Meteor showers occur around the same time every year and can last for days or weeks. But there is only a small window when each shower is at its peak, which happens when Earth reaches the densest part of the cosmic debris. The peak is the best time to look for a shower. From our point of view on Earth, the meteors will appear to come from the same point in the sky.The Perseid meteor shower, for example, peaks in mid-August from the constellation Perseus. The Geminids, which occur every December, radiate from the constellation Gemini.How to watch a meteor showerMichelle Nichols, the director of public observing at the Adler Planetarium in Chicago, recommends forgoing the use of telescopes or binoculars while watching a meteor shower.\u201cYou just need your eyes and, ideally, a dark sky,\u201d she said.That\u2019s because meteors can shoot across large swaths of the sky, so observing equipment can limit your field of view.Some showers are strong enough to produce up to 100 streaks an hour, according to the American Meteor Society, though you probably won\u2019t see that many.\u201cAlmost everybody is under a light-polluted sky,\u201d Ms. Nichols said. \u201cYou may think you\u2019re under a dark sky, but in reality, even in a small town, you can have bright lights nearby.\u201dPlanetariums, local astronomy clubs or even maps like this one can help you figure out where to get away from excessive light. The best conditions for catching a meteor shower are a clear sky with no moon or cloud cover, at sometime between midnight and sunrise. (Moonlight affects visibility in the same way light pollution does, washing out fainter sources of light in the sky.) Make sure to give your eyes at least 30 minutes to adjust to seeing in the dark.Ms. Nichols also recommends wearing layers, even during the summer. \u201cYou\u2019re going to be sitting there for quite a while, watching,\u201d she said. \u201cIt\u2019s going to get chilly, even in August.\u201dBring a cup of cocoa or tea for even more warmth. Then sit back, scan the sky and enjoy the show.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":19167,"comment_status":"close","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[34],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-19165","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-science"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/medexperts.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19165","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/medexperts.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/medexperts.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/medexperts.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/medexperts.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=19165"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/medexperts.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19165\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":19197,"href":"https:\/\/medexperts.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19165\/revisions\/19197"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/medexperts.pro\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/19167"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/medexperts.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=19165"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/medexperts.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=19165"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/medexperts.pro\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=19165"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}