Skywatching

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

Night sky tonight: Catch the mighty hunter Orion shine in the southeast on Dec. 17

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 for Dec. 17 - Northern lights limited despite fast solar wind

By Daisy Dobrijevic last updated

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.

Auroras

Geminid meteor shower 2025 thrills skywatchers with an end-of-year celestial firework show (photos)

By Anthony Wood published

The Geminid meteor shower peaked overnight on Dec. 13.

Meteors & Meteor Showers
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Spaceflight

a white and black rocket launches into a clear blue sky from its ocean side launch pad

SpaceX launches Starlink missions in dual-coast spaceflight doubleheader (videos)

By Robert Z. Pearlman published

SpaceX launched two Falcon 9 rockets, each carrying Starlink satellites, from Kennedy Space Cener in Florida and Vandenberg Space Force Base in California on Dec. 17, 2025.

Launches & Spacecraft
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
A gray spacecraft is seen floating above the ocean on Earth

Crewed Russian spacecraft meets up with ISS | Space photo of the day for Dec. 17, 2025

By Kenna Hughes-Castleberry published

The Soyuz launched on Nov. 27, 2025 from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.

International Space Station
Graphic illustration with 'space calendar' in large blue neon letters and 2025 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 2025: 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 2025 with our space calendar.

Reference
A mockup of a private space shuttle with different compartments for key areas in the overall round structure

Experiments on a private space station: Vast asks scientists for research proposals

By Andrew Jones published

The California startup Vast has opened a call for scientific research aboard its Haven-1 private space station, which is set to launch atop a SpaceX rocket next year.

Human Spaceflight
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Science & Astronomy

This view of a region called Syrtis Major is from the 100,000th image captured by NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter using its HiRISE camera. The image was snapped on Oct. 7, 2025. Over nearly 20 years, HiRISE has helped scientists understand how the Red Planet’s surface is constantly changing.

Camera on NASA Mars probe snaps its 100,000th photo of the Red Planet

By Mike Wall published

The HiRISE camera on NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter just notched a big milestone, snapping its 100,000th photo of the Red Planet.

Mars
graphic showing comet 3I/ATLAS on a laptop screen against a background of stars

Watch interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS make its closest approach to Earth in free livestream on Dec. 18

By Daisy Dobrijevic published

The livestream will begin at 11 p.m. EST Dec. 18 (0400 GMT on Dec. 19), weather permitting.

Comets
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Space Photo of the Day

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Entertainment

10 years later, 'The Force Awakens' stands as the blueprint for a 'Star Wars' that never was

By Sergio Pereira published

Back in December 2015, the Force awakened in Star Wars, but it quickly went back to sleep.

Space Movies & Shows
Promo image for Fallout Season 2

Best Fallout gifts to spend your caps on

By Alexander Cox published

We've rounded up the best Fallout gifts across the wasteland ahead of season two of the hit TV show, available to stream this month.

Space Movies & Shows
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What's Up In Space Today

Search For Life

Saturn's moon Titan looks a bit like Earth, but is, in fact, very different.

Surprise! Saturn's huge moon Titan may not have a buried ocean after all

By Charles Q. Choi published

"We're not certain if having widespread liquid pockets instead of a global ocean makes Titan more or less habitable."

Search for Life
A silhouette of a planet is in front of a giant sun with a small planet to the right of the image

Which exoplanet in the TRAPPIST-1 system could be habitable? Scientists are modeling the star to find out

By Samantha Mathewson published

Frequent flares from the nearby star TRAPPIST-1 could offer new clues in the search for habitable planets beyond Earth.

Search for Life
A reddish dusty surface is seen with an orange sun in the background

Beyond the habitable zone: Exoplanet atmospheres are the next clue to finding life on planets orbiting distant stars

By Morgan Underwood published

But being in this sweet spot doesn't automatically mean a planet is hospitable to life.

Search for Life
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Technology

A man wearing a red hoodie and tan pants points to a nearby drone hovering over rippling sand dunes

NASA tests drones in Death Valley | Space photo of the day for Dec. 15, 2025

By Kenna Hughes-Castleberry published

To develop more robust next-generation aerial explorers, NASA's Mars Exploration program is turning to drones.

Technology
An illustration showing a data center in space with various white modules of servers

Data centers in space: Will 2027 really be the year AI goes to orbit?

By Domenico Vicinanza published

Assuming Google does manage to launch a prototype in 2027, will it simply be a high-stakes technical experiment – or the dawning of a new era?

Technology
A SpaceX rocket lifts off in the background behind the sign for Cape Canaveral Space Force Station

US Space Force to get 'next level' tech to combat drones near Cape Canaveral launch sites

By Brett Tingley published

The U.S. Space Force is boosting its ability to deter and defeat drones and other uncrewed aerial systems near Cape Canaveral Space Force Station and the Eastern Range.

Aerospace
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