Skywatching

New moon of March 2026 brings stunning views of Jupiter, Venus, zodiacal light and more this week

By Anthony Wood last updated

Winter constellations shine defiantly in the face of spring as galaxy season and zodiacal light beckon.

Stargazing
graphic with night sky in large font and silhouettes of people below looking up at the night sky.

Night sky tonight (March 19): Challenge yourself to find the whisper-thin crescent moon with Venus

By Jamie Carter last updated

Find out what you can see in the night sky for tonight, from planets and stars to dazzling meteor showers.

Stargazing

Aurora forecast March 19 — Northern lights may surge overnight if solar storm arrives

By Daisy Dobrijevic last updated

The latest aurora forecast for tonight helps you make sure you're in the right place at the right time to see the northern lights.

Auroras
VIEW MORE

Spaceflight

A Rocket Lab Electron rocket launches on the "Insight at Speed is a Friend Indeed" mission from New Zealand on March 5, 2026.

Watch Rocket Lab launch private Japanese 'Strix' satellite to orbit on March 20

By Mike Wall published

Rocket Lab will launch an Earth-observing radar satellite for the Japanese company Synspective on Friday (March 20), and you can watch it live.

Launches & Spacecraft
Technicians work on NASA's Beacon Explorer-A before its ill-fated launch.

On this day in space: March 19, 1964: Ionospheric satellite fails to reach orbit

By Hanneke Weitering last updated

On March 19, 1964, NASA unsuccessfully attempted to launch a satellite called Beacon Explorer-A on a mission to study the ionosphere.

Space Exploration
Graphic illustration with 'space calendar' in large blue neon letters and 2023 below it in smaller white letters. Below the title are four neon images depicting a meteor or comet, a telescope, a rocket launch and an astronaut's helmet. There is a starry background to the entire image.

Space calendar 2026: Rocket launches, skywatching events, missions & more!

By Space.com last updated

Reference Keep up with all the rocket launches, astronomical events and mission milestones for 2026 with our space calendar.

Reference
a triple-core rocket blasts off under a sunny, partly cloudy blue sky. smoke expands below next to an obscured launch tower, near a long white hanger with SPACEX written on the side. To the left, a bird flies away.

Rocket launch today: Is there a rocket launch and what time?

By Josh Dinner, Tariq Malik last updated

Follow Space.com's rocket launch blog for the latest on when the next rocket launch will be and how to follow it live.

Launches & Spacecraft
An orange rocket sits on a mobile scaffold as it rolls out of a large white building with the American flag and NASA meatball logo on the side.

NASA will roll Artemis 2 moon rocket out to the launch pad on March 19

By Josh Dinner last updated

NASA plans to roll its Artemis 2 moon rocket to the pad on Thursday (March 19) and is still targeting April 1 for the launch of its first crewed mission to the moon in more than half a century.

Artemis
VIEW MORE

Science & Astronomy

What is the moon phase today? Lunar phases 2026

By Tariq Malik, Daisy Dobrijevic last updated

Reference See what moon phase it is tonight and find out when you can see the rest of the moon phases for 2026.

Reference
An illustration of the supermassive black hole IRAS 05189-2524 which the XRISM spacecraft watched spring back to life

X-ray spacecraft watches monster black hole wake up and fire cosmic bullets at starburst galaxy

By Robert Lea published

The research could shed light on how black holes vomit out matter and how this influences their home galaxies.

Black Holes
VIEW MORE

Space Photo of the Day

SpaceX's Ship 39 looks cool as it undergoes cryosystem checks on Sunday March 8

SpaceX's Ship 39 is so cool in Starship V3 test | Space photo of the day for March 9, 2026

By Robert Lea published

SpaceX engineers tested Ship 39's propellant system, leading to some stunning images.

Space Exploration
An image of RCW 36 in which the Milky Way nebula appears like a vast cosmic bird of prey

Cosmic Hawk spreads its wings| Space photo of the day for March 6, 2026

By Robert Lea published

The Milky Way nebula RCW 36 resembles a stunning cosmic bird of prey in an incredible Very Large Telescope image.

Galaxies
an impressive red spiral structure with a bright point of light at the very center.

Spectacular spiral galaxy revealed by James Webb Space Telescope | Space photo of the day for March 4, 2026

By Daisy Dobrijevic published

The James Webb Space Telescope captured a stunning spiral galaxy 65 million light-years away, revealing glowing dust clouds and stellar nurseries.

James Webb Space Telescope
VIEW MORE IMAGES

Entertainment

two female animated superheroes in a fist fight

How to watch 'Invincible' Season 4 online and from anywhere

By Jeff Spry published

Prime Video's brutally brilliant animated superhero series returns today!

Space Movies & Shows
Screenshot from Starfield, showcasing the Terran Armada and Free Lanes updates

'Starfield' is finally coming to PS5, alongside DLC that adds new quests and the ability to fly between planets

By Ian Stokes published

Rejoice, PlayStation gamers! "Starfield" is finally making the hyperspace journey to PS5 alongside some major game updates for everyone.

Space Games
VIEW MORE

What's Up In Space Today

Search For Life

The SETI Institute's Allen Telescope Array in Northern California searches for radio signals that could have been generated by intelligent alien life.

Where are all the aliens? Maybe they just don't want to talk to us

By Leonard David published

A civilization capable of interstellar travel may also be one that has moved beyond conquest, excess and ecological self-destruction — and it therefore may not want to talk to us.

Search for Life
Artist's illustration of a free-floating "rogue" planet and its Earth-like moon.

No sun, no problem? How life could thrive on moons of starless 'rogue' planets

By Sharmila Kuthunur published

Exomoons orbiting rogue planets could host liquid water for billions of years, offering potential habitats for life deep in interstellar space.

Search for Life
The SETI Institute's Allen Telescope Array in Northern California searches for radio signals that could have been generated by intelligent alien life.

Where are all the aliens? Maybe space weather is scrambling their transmissions

By Keith Cooper published

We may be missing alien radio signals because they have become smeared beyond the narrowband detectors that SETI utilizes, a new study suggests.

Search for Life
VIEW MORE

Technology

Four people are stood looking around an object as an elderly man in the center holds it, all in black and white.

You can stream the two 'missing' Doctor Who episodes when travelling, save 73% and claim a free $50 voucher when you sign up for two years of NordVPN

By Alexander Cox published

Deals Two 'missing' episodes of Doctor Who are coming to BBC iPlayer in the UK, so if you have an account, you can stream them, save 73% and claim a voucher with NordVPN.

Deals
an elongated jet emblazoned with nasa logos sits on a tarmac at sunrise with the silhouettes of mountains visible in the distance

X-59 gets ready for 2nd test flight | Space photo of the day for March 18, 2026

By Brett Tingley published

NASA's X-59 jet looks ready to fly into the sunset in this new image taken before its second test flight.

Aerospace
A YACHANCE Night Light Star Projector, with box and remote.

Yachance Night Light star projector review

By Kim Snaith published

The Yachance Night Light star projector is a geared firmly towards children.

Technology
VIEW MORE