Best Space Pictures of the Week - Sept. 29, 2012

Saturn's Glorious Rings Dazzle in NASA Photo

A View of Saturn's Southern Reaches — NASA/JPL-Caltech/Space Science Institute

A spectacular photo by NASA’s Cassini spacecraft shows Saturn’s southern reaches, with the planet’s iconic rings tilted at a dramatic angle. [Full Story]

Mercury's Surface Resembles Rare Meteorites

These image of Mercury by NASA's Messenger probe show the distinctive color of the planet's northern plains and their surrounding terrain. — NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/Carnegie Institution of Washington

Mercury has a surface unlike any other in the solar system, resembling a rare type of meteorite, researchers say. [Full Story]

Photographer Captures Rocket Launch as Amazing Arc of Light

RBSP Atlas V Launch Skywatching — Mike Killian/www.MikeKillianPhotography.com

Astrophotographer Mike Killian took this stunning photo from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida Aug. 24, 2012. [Full Story]

Amazing 3D Moon Photos Created from NASA Lunar Orbiter Imagery

This new 3D image of the moon was created by using images of the same spot of the lunar surface taken from different angles by NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter. — NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University

Scientists have found a way to transform photos from a powerful NASA spacecraft orbiting the moon into amazing 3D lunar views. [Full Story]

Hubble Telescope Reveals Farthest View Into Universe Ever

Hubble eXtreme Deep Field (XDF) — NASA, ESA, G. Illingworth, D. Magee, and P. Oesch (University of California, Santa Cruz), R. Bouwens (Leiden University), and the HUDF09 Team

The Hubble Space Telescope has captured the farthest-ever view of the universe, a photo that reveals thousands of galaxies billions of light-years away. [Full Story]

Stunning Nebula Photo Shows Head of 'Cosmic Seagull'

The European Southern Observatory’s La Silla observatory has captured an amazing view of part of the Seagull Nebula which is 3,700 light-years from Earth. [Full Story]

Best Photo of Pluto from Earth Snapped by Hawaii Telescope

This photo of Pluto (right) and its largest moon Charon is the best visible-light photo of the dwarf planet ever taken from Earth. — Gemini Observatory/NSF/NASA/AURA

A ground-based telescope has snapped the sharpest image yet of Pluto and its moon Charon taken in visible light from Earth. [Full Story]

Brightest Star Explosion in History Reveals Lonely Supernova

This is a composite image of the SN 1006 supernova remnant, which is located about 7,000 light-years from Earth. — X-ray: NASA/CXC/Rutgers/G.Cassam-Chenaï, J.Hughes et al.; Radio: NRAO/AUI/NSF/GBT/VLA/Dyer, Maddalena & Cornwell; Optical: Middlebury College/F.Winkler, NOAO/AURA/NSF/CTIO Schmidt & DSS

The quick, violent death of a white dwarf is now revealing these kinds of stars can give off powerful explosions by themselves, researchers say. [Full Story]

Mars Rover Curiosity Photo Reveals Crescent Moon Phobos

Martian Moon Phobos Seen by Curiosity Rover — NASA/JPL

NASA's Mars rover Curiosity has been doing more than just driving around the Red Planet and taking pictures of rocks. It's been doing a bit of Martian moon-gazing too. The rover captured the planet's largest Martian moon, Phobos, as a faint crescent moon. [Full Story]

Mars Water Mystery: NASA Rover's Ancient Streambed Discovery Is the Latest Clue

Ancient Mars Streambed — NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS

The Curiosity rover’s discovery of an ancient streambed on Mars is exciting, but it’s not the first solid evidence that the Red Planet was once a warmer and wetter place. [Full Story]

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