perihelion

ESA’s Solar Orbiter Takes a Ludicrously High Resolution Image of the Sun

The European Space Agency’s Solar Orbiter snaps an amazing image, en route to its first close pass near the Sun.

2 years ago

Earth at Aphelion 2016

Our guide to earth at aphelion for July 4th, 2016.

8 years ago

Spectacular Celestial Fireworks Commemorate Perihelion Passage of Rosetta’s Comet

Sequence of OSIRIS narrow-angle camera images from 12 August 2015, just a few hours before the comet reached perihelion. Credits:…

9 years ago

How Long Does It Take to Get to Pluto?

It's a long way out to the dwarf planet Pluto. So, just how fast could we get there? Pluto, the…

9 years ago

How Did We Find the Distance to the Sun?

How far is the Sun? It seems as if one could hardly ask a more straightforward question. Yet this very…

9 years ago

The Orbit of Earth. How Long is a Year on Earth?

Ever since the 16th century when Nicolaus Copernicus demonstrated that the Earth revolved around in the Sun, scientists have worked…

9 years ago

NASA’s STEREO Spacecraft Spots Comets ISON and Encke

As comets ISON and Encke continue toward their respective rendezvous with the Sun, they have now both been captured on…

10 years ago

This is Comet ISON Seen From Mars

It's not much to look at, but there it is: the incoming comet ISON (aka C/2012 S1) as seen by the…

10 years ago

New Comet Discovered: Lovejoy Will Add to “Comet Lineup” in Winter Skies

Move over Comet ISON. You've got company.  Australian amateur astronomer Terry Lovejoy, discoverer of three previous comets, including the famous,…

11 years ago

Happy (or is it Merry?) Aphelion This Friday

This 4th of July weekend brings us one more reason to celebrate. On July 5th at approximately 11:00 AM EDT/15:00…

11 years ago