The Best Space Images of 2023

The Ring Nebula (Two-for-One!)

Image: ESA/Webb, NASA, CSA, M. Barlow, N. Cox, R. Wesson

This remarkable image published in August depicts views of the Ring Nebula (NGC 6720) taken by the space observatory’s NIRCam (left) and MIRI (right) instruments. This showcases how the Webb data is colorized—they are “representative color” images, in which certain filters were used to highlight particular aspects of the nebula.

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How the Combadge Became the Ultimate Wearable of the ‘Star Trek’ Universe

Communication has come a long way in 60 years of 'Star Trek'—and the combadge represents one of its biggest technological evolutions.

Gadgets James Whitbrook Apr 29

An image of the gas cloud around Sagittarius A*, the black hole at the center of our galaxy, with arrows showing the cone-shaped region where winds have blown gas away from the black hole

After Decades of Searching, Scientists Make a Major Breakthrough in the Mystery Surrounding Our Galaxy’s Black Hole

For 50 years, astronomers have been searching for evidence of winds emanating from the black hole Sagittarius A*. Now, they finally think they have an answer.

Space & Spaceflight Ellyn Lapointe Oct 11 '25

An Interstellar Comet Is Here, and Its Age Is Mind-Bending

The object appears to be older than our solar system itself.

Space & Spaceflight Ellyn Lapointe Jul 11 '25

The Milky Way Might Not Smash Into the Andromeda Galaxy After All, New Simulation Indicates

A recent paper reveals we're almost certainly going to collide with a galaxy in the next couple billion years, but it's not the one we thought.

Space & Spaceflight Margherita Bassi Jun 2 '25

The first-ever image of Sagittarius A*, the supermassive black hole at the center of our galaxy.

Scientists Are Creeping Closer to Colorized Black Hole Images

Using multiple wavelengths and some atmospheric jiu-jitsu, astronomers are changing how we see the universe.

Space & Spaceflight Isaac Schultz May 28 '25

The Phantom Galaxy (background) and a simulation of its turbulence.

Most Detailed Simulation of Magnetic Turbulence in Space Is Surprisingly Beautiful

A new model shows how magnetism shapes stars, cosmic rays, and even Earth’s space weather.

Space & Spaceflight Isaac Schultz May 23 '25