Leonds peak, Uranus shines and the sun threatens your nuts

Beginner stargazing advice and a surprising solar storm warning Created for znamenski.spacecom@blogger.com | Web Version   November 17, 2025 FOLLOW US FOLLOW US   Just Look Up! SIGN UP ⋅   SHARE   What's Up This Week? Hello skywatchers! This week brings one of November's best sky shows: the Leonid meteor shower peaks under dark skies, offering up to 15 shooting stars per hour before dawn. A few days later, the new moon gives us ideal dark skies for trying to find Uranus as it reaches opposition on Friday (Nov. 21) and shines bright enough to spot with binoculars just beneath the Pleiades.  Beyond the night sky highlights, we've also got some excellent reads for you. Don't miss our piece on how solar storms threaten your nuts, a look into what geomagnetic activity means for GPS, agriculture and even your peanut butter sandwich. If you're new to astronomy, we've put together a comprehensive beginner's guide with top tips from experts to help you get started under the stars.  Here's what to watch for this week,  Clear skies, Daisy Dobrijevic Reference Editor (Starry Night) Monday, Nov. 17: Leonid meteor shower peaks The Leonids reach their peak with up to 15 meteors per hour as Earth plows through Comet 55P/Tempel-Tuttle's debris. Best viewing comes before dawn on Nov. 18 when Leo is high in the southeast. Full Story: Space (10/1) (Starry Night) Thursday, Nov. 20: New moon The new moon brings the darkest skies of the month, perfect for spotting faint nebulas and galaxies. The moon will then return to the evening sky later this week as a delicate crescent.  Full Story: Space (10/1) (Starry Night) Friday, Nov. 21: Uranus at opposition Uranus reaches its closest point to Earth this year, shining at magnitude 5.6 and visible in binoculars or small telescopes. Look just below the Pleiades in Taurus to spot its tiny blue-green glow. Full Story: Space (10/1) (Starry Night) Sunday, Nov. 23: Mare Crisium The Mare Crisium, a dark oval near the moon's eastern edge, stands out beautifully in the young lunar crescent. Binoculars will reveal its distinct oval basin. Full Story: Space (10/1) Moon Calendar Notable moon phase: New moon The new moon on Nov. 20 marks the darkest nights of the month, ideal for stargazing and astrophotography. With no moonlight to wash out fainter objects, it's a perfect window for observing the Milky Way, open clusters and galaxies through binoculars or a small telescope.  Full Story: Space (2/22) Meteor Shower Alert! The Leonid meteor shower peaks this week. Here's what to expect For North America, the best time to look will be before dawn on Tuesday, Nov. 18. Read More In The News How the sun threatens your nuts: Inside the $100 million solar storm peanut problem Solar storms don't just trigger impressive auroras; they can scramble the GPS systems U.S. farmers rely on. Read More Expert advice for new stargazers: How to begin your amateur astronomy journey Astronomers and expert stargazers share their top skywatching tips for beginners. Read More Northern Lights Forecast Northern lights forecasts, alerts, and geomagnetic storm warnings - live updates The latest aurora forecast for tonight help you make sure you're in the right place at the right time to see the northern lights. Read More Your Amazing Astrophotos Astrophotographer spies a spiral galaxy bursting with starbirth (photo) "This is one of my favourite galaxies for testing new equipment." Read More Astronomy Kit and Accessories "The Celestron Inspire 100AZ telescope has more to get excited about than many of its cut-price rivals" — it just hit the best price of the year in this early Black Friday deal The 100AZ is our best telescope for beginners and kids, with a host of user-friendly features that make viewing the moon and planets a breeze. Now, with $106 off, it's also a bargain telescope buy. Read More Kenko VC Smart Cellarto 10x30 WP binoculars review We put the Kenko VC Smart Cellarto 10x30 WP through their paces to find out if these image-stabilized smart binoculars live up to their name. Read More Stay up-to-date on all things space science, news, and entertainment by subscribing to our newsletters. Sign Up   Follow Night Sky This Week Contact Us: Feedback | Advertise Sign Up | Update Profile | Unsubscribe Privacy Policy | Cookies Policy | Terms and Conditions Future US LLC © Full 7th Floor, 130 West 42nd Street, New York, NY, 10036.

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Blue Origin aces ESCAPADE launch and landing | ISS astronauts evade solar radiation | A dive into 'Kitten Space Agency'

A comet breaks into 3 pieces | Could life be in exoplanet clouds? Created for znamenski.spacecom@blogger.com | Web Version   November 14, 2025 FOLLOW US FOLLOW US   Something amazing every day SIGN UP ⋅   WEBSITE   The Launchpad It's Friday space fans! Perhaps you're just as stunned as we were in the newsroom watching Blue Origin launch and nail the landing of their New Glenn rocket that sent NASA's ESCAPADE mission to Mars. ESCAPADE is NASA's first Mars-bound mission in five years, and will be collecting all sorts of interesting data that could help reveal what happened to the Red Planet's atmosphere. Stay tuned as we'll no doubt keep you updated on all things ESCAPADE.  Other headlines for today include comet C/2025 K1 (ATLAS) breaking into three separate pieces after its close encounter with the sun in October, new findings suggesting alien life could live in exoplanet clouds and ISS astronauts taking shelter to avoid radiation from a recent giant solar storm.  It's also Friday, so as we head into the weekend we have your weekly staff recommendations of "what we're reading/playing/watching." You'll find those suggestions from our team at the bottom of your newsletter.  We have all that and more for your daily read.  Keep looking up, Kenna Content Manager, Space.com New Glenn booster lands after NASA ESCAPADE launch "A landed orbital rocket! What an incredible day for Blue Origin." Read More Comet ATLAS splits into 3 pieces after solar flyby C/2025 K1 (ATLAS) has broken into three distinct pieces following its closest approach to the sun on Oct. 8. Read More Space quiz! What is the name of China's first mission to Mars? Click here for the answer! Shenzhou-1 Tianwen-1 Tianwen-7 Tiangong-2 Space Deal of the Day Star Wars vs. Marvel: Which Lego logo should you buy? Two of the biggest franchises go head-to-head with these unique Lego sets -- From cinematic history to lines of Lego, Star Wars and Marvel battle it out. Read More Spaceflight ISS crew shelters as solar storm hits Earth Out of an "abundance of caution," the station's three Russian cosmonauts were instructed to spend a night in the ISS laboratory module. Read More 5 reasons why Blue Origin's Mars launch was a big deal We just saw a rocket land on a ship at sea -- and this time, it wasn't SpaceX pulling off the epic feat. Read More Science & Astronomy Could alien life be found in clouds of an exoplanet? "We thought clouds would hide life from us, but surprisingly, they could help us find life." Read More DARPA seeks tech to track objects in cislunar space The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency is seeking optical signal processing technology to track objects in cislunar space. The initiative aims to address the gap in monitoring spacecraft near the moon as part of a broader effort by the U.S. military to enhance situational awareness in lunar space amid a new space race with China. Read More Entertainment Kitten Space Agency follows in Kerbal's footsteps DayZ and Kerbal Space Program's creators have joined forces with an ex-SpaceX engineer to create the ultimate spaceflight simulator. Read More What's the deal with alien 'happy' virus in 'Pluribus'? Puzzled about Apple TV's new sci-fi series from Vince Gilligan? We just want to help! Read More Today in Space On this day: Nov. 14, 1969: Apollo 12 launches to moon On Nov. 14, 1969, the Apollo 12 mission launched to the moon. Read More Photo of day: NOAA satellite sees glowing auroras A powerful geomagnetic storm created a series of brilliant auroras recently for observers across North America. Read More Editor's Note What we're reading/playing/watching Whether you're looking to unwind with a mind-bending sci-fi series or lose yourself in a video game during the coming weekend, we've got you covered. Here's what the Space.com team is enjoying at the moment:  Tariq Malik, Editor-in-Chief: "I am having a blast playing the Simpsons season of Fortnite right now, with Professor Frink now in the game, excited for a new season of Marvel Rivals this weekend. I'm also super surprised how long 'Project Hail Mary' by Andy Weir actually is, but it certainly is a fun read." Kenna Hughes-Castleberry, Content Manager: "I'm currently reading 'Go to Hell: A Traveler's Guide to Earth's Most Otherworldly Destinations' by Erika Engelhaupt, which is all about the history of hell and extreme places around the world. Highly recommend!"  Stay up-to-date on all things space science, news, and entertainment by subscribing to our newsletters. Sign Up Follow SPACE Contact Us: Feedback | Advertise Sign Up | Update Profile | Unsubscribe Privacy Policy | Cookies Policy | Terms and Conditions Future US LLC © Full 7th Floor, 130 West 42nd Street, New York, NY, 10036