Image of the Week

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placeholder="Search Images of the Week..." name="search" class="form-control input-sm" /><span class="input-group-btn"><button aria-label="Search" class="btn btn-default btn-sm" type="submit"><span class="fa fa-search"></span></button></span></div></div></form></div> </div> </div> <div class="row no-page" style="padding-bottom: 1rem"> <div class="col-md-12"> <h1>Image of the Week <a href="/public/images/iotw/feed/" class="listviewrsslink" data-toggle="tooltip" data-placement="right" title="RSS feed"><span class="fa fa-rss"></span></a> </h1> </div> </div> <div class="row no-page"> <div class="col-md-12"> <a href="/public/subscribe/" class="esonews_link">Subscribe to receive news from NOIRLab!</a> <div class="row news-list news-list-overflow"> <div class="col-md-3 col-sm-6 col-xs-12"> <a href="/public/images/iotw2514a/" aria-label="iotw2514 — Image of the Week"> <div class="news-wrapper"> <div class="news-image"> <img class="img-responsive" src="/public/media/archives/images/thumb350x/iotw2514a.jpg" alt="Cascading Meteors Over KPNO"> </div> <div class="news-description"> <div class="news-id">iotw2514 — Image of the Week</div> <div class="news-title">Cascading Meteors Over KPNO</div> <div class="news-teaser"><strong>2 April 2025</strong>: This Image of the Week captures the mesmerizing Geminids meteor shower above the NSF McMath Pierce Solar Telescope at U.S. National Science Foundation Kitt Peak National Observatory (KPNO), a Program of NSF NOIRLab, as the Milky Way rises high into the sky. The annual Geminids shower happens when Earth passes through the debris trail of asteroid 3200 Phaethon in December and this debris collides with our atmosphere to then explode into fiery streaks of light. The Geminids is unusual among meteor showers because it is one of two major showers not caused by a comet. Two telescopes at KPNO are used to study asteroids: the UArizona 0.9-meter and 1.8-meter Spacewatch telescopes. The University of Arizona’s Spacewatch Program was founded to explore the various populations of small objects in the Solar System and study the statistics of asteroids and comets to investigate the dynamical evolution of the Solar System. The decommissioned …</div> </div> <div class="news-readmore">Read more</div> </div>  </a> </div> <div class="col-md-3 col-sm-6 col-xs-12"> <a href="/public/images/iotw2513a/" aria-label="iotw2513 — Image of the Week"> <div class="news-wrapper"> <div class="news-image"> <img class="img-responsive" src="/public/media/archives/images/thumb350x/iotw2513a.jpg" alt="Occultation of Mars from Kitt Peak National Observatory"> </div> <div class="news-description"> <div class="news-id">iotw2513 — Image of the Week</div> <div class="news-title">Occultation of Mars from Kitt Peak National Observatory</div> <div class="news-teaser"><strong>26 March 2025</strong>: In an alignment of celestial bodies, Mars was captured here rising out of a lunar occultation on 13 January 2025 using the new Visitor Center 0.6-meter Shreve Telescope at the U.S. National Science Foundation Kitt Peak National Observatory (KPNO), a Program of NSF NOIRLab, near Tucson, Arizona. An occultation is when an object becomes hidden from an observer’s view by another object passing between them. The passing object must be larger than the hidden object. Otherwise the event is a transit, such as the transit of Mercury in front of the Sun in 2019, as photographed from NSF Cerro Tololo International Observatory (CTIO), another Program of NSF NOIRLab. Three days after this photo was taken, Mars was in opposition to the Sun from our point of view on Earth, so coming out of occultation the red planet was almost fully sunlit and appeared brighter and bigger than usual. Two evening …</div> </div> <div class="news-readmore">Read more</div> </div>  </a> </div> <div class="col-md-3 col-sm-6 col-xs-12"> <a href="/public/images/iotw2512a/" aria-label="iotw2512 — Image of the Week"> <div class="news-wrapper"> <div class="news-image"> <img class="img-responsive" src="/public/media/archives/images/thumb350x/iotw2512a.jpg" alt="Total Lunar Eclipse Seen from Cerro Tololo"> </div> <div class="news-description"> <div class="news-id">iotw2512 — Image of the Week</div> <div class="news-title">Total Lunar Eclipse Seen from Cerro Tololo</div> <div class="news-teaser"><strong>19 March 2025</strong>: During the night of 13 to 14 March 2025, the sky was embellished by this total lunar eclipse. Lunar eclipses occur when Earth is positioned between the Sun and the Moon. In this position, the Moon enters Earth’s shadow as Earth prevents the Sun’s light from reaching the Moon directly. In this alignment, the Moon isn’t completely dark — instead, it is drenched in a red glow, as some sunlight passes through Earth’s atmosphere to reach the Moon. Rayleigh scattering of the sunlight in Earth’s atmosphere causes this ‘bloody’ color by scattering the light with shorter, bluer wavelengths more from their path than light of longer, redder wavelengths. NOIRLab's photo ambassador, Petr Horálek, captured the phenomenon at NSF Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CTIO) in Chile. This composite image — which was selected as Astronomy Picture of the Day 15 March 2025 — records the progression of the eclipse. Another photographer …</div> </div> <div class="news-readmore">Read more</div> </div>  </a> </div> <div class="col-md-3 col-sm-6 col-xs-12"> <a href="/public/images/iotw2511a/" aria-label="iotw2511 — Image of the Week"> <div class="news-wrapper"> <div class="news-image"> <img class="img-responsive" src="/public/media/archives/images/thumb350x/iotw2511a.jpg" alt="Hurry, Make a Wish!"> </div> <div class="news-description"> <div class="news-id">iotw2511 — Image of the Week</div> <div class="news-title">Hurry, Make a Wish!</div> <div class="news-teaser"><strong>12 March 2025</strong>: Have you ever wished upon a shooting star? Shooting stars are not actually stars at all, but are seen when small rocks from space, called meteoroids, smash through the Earth’s atmosphere. The rocks as they pass through the atmosphere cause a streak of light and become a meteor. This photographer was lucky enough to capture a meteor here in this image of Gemini North, one half of the International Gemini Observatory, supported in part by the U.S. National Science Foundation and operated by NSF NOIRLab. Easily visible meteors are often part of large showers that occur when Earth passes through the trail of debris left by a comet and appear in rapid succession in the night sky. These meteor showers happen at specific times of the year and last for predictable periods of time. Lone meteors, like the green streak in the upper center of this image, are random events …</div> </div> <div class="news-readmore">Read more</div> </div>  </a> </div> </div> <div class="row news-list news-list-overflow"> <div class="col-md-3 col-sm-6 col-xs-12"> <a href="/public/images/iotw2510b/" aria-label="iotw2510 — Image of the Week"> <div class="news-wrapper"> <div class="news-image"> <img class="img-responsive" src="/public/media/archives/images/thumb350x/iotw2510b.jpg" alt="Renewal and Discovery at Kitt Peak"> </div> <div class="news-description"> <div class="news-id">iotw2510 — Image of the Week</div> <div class="news-title">Renewal and Discovery at Kitt Peak</div> <div class="news-teaser"><strong>5 March 2025</strong>: Arizona’s night skies are perfect for stargazing, thanks to infrequent clouds, high elevation, and strict light pollution controls. This breathtaking shot shows the Milky Way above U.S. National Science Foundation Kitt Peak National Observatory (KPNO), a Program of NSF NOIRLab. KPNO is the largest assembly of optical instruments in the northern hemisphere and is a leading site for astronomical research. The Burrell Schmidt telescope on the left was relocated to KPNO from Case Western Reserve University to escape the increasing light pollution in Cleveland, Ohio. In the middle is the 0.9-meter SARA Kitt Peak Telescope. It was originally known as the No. 1 36-inch telescope of the predecessor of NOIRLab, National Optical Astronomy Observatories (NOAO), but today the telescope is operated by the Southeastern Association for Research in Astronomy, a consortium of universities throughout the southeast United States. This group combines their resources to support astronomical research by their faculty …</div> </div> <div class="news-readmore">Read more</div> </div>  </a> </div> <div class="col-md-3 col-sm-6 col-xs-12"> <a href="/public/images/iotw2509a/" aria-label="iotw2509 — Image of the Week"> <div class="news-wrapper"> <div class="news-image"> <img class="img-responsive" src="/public/media/archives/images/thumb350x/iotw2509a.jpg" alt="Gemini North Under a Blanket of Airglow"> </div> <div class="news-description"> <div class="news-id">iotw2509 — Image of the Week</div> <div class="news-title">Gemini North Under a Blanket of Airglow</div> <div class="news-teaser"><strong>26 February 2025</strong>: The Milky Way shares the stage with a luminous bubble of green and orange airglow in this panoramic image of Gemini North, one half of the International Gemini Observatory, supported in part by the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) and operated by NSF NOIRLab. Gemini North (right) is accompanied here by the Canada-France-Hawai‘i Telescope (CFHT) (left). In this image, you could remove all of the stars, the brilliant stripe of the Milky Way, and the nearby city lights of Hilo, Hawai‘i (far left), and you would still be left with a picture that isn’t completely dark. This is thanks to the persistent light of airglow. Airglow is primarily caused by sunlight interacting with atoms and molecules in Earth’s upper atmosphere, which allows them to gain excess energy. This excess energy is then released as a particle of light called a photon. The frequencies of the photons determine the captivating colors …</div> </div> <div class="news-readmore">Read more</div> </div>  </a> </div> <div class="col-md-3 col-sm-6 col-xs-12"> <a href="/public/images/iotw2508a/" aria-label="iotw2508 — Image of the Week"> <div class="news-wrapper"> <div class="news-image"> <img class="img-responsive" src="/public/media/archives/images/thumb350x/iotw2508a.jpg" alt="The Value of Being Metal-Poor"> </div> <div class="news-description"> <div class="news-id">iotw2508 — Image of the Week</div> <div class="news-title">The Value of Being Metal-Poor</div> <div class="news-teaser"><strong>19 February 2025</strong>: This galaxy, NGC 3109, is a somewhat nondescript — but fascinating — member of our Local Group of galaxies. Located around four million light-years from Earth in the constellation Hydra, it’s about 40,000 light-years across. Despite its beautiful blue hues, this irregular dwarf galaxy appears featureless with no central bulge or picturesque arms. However, spectroscopic analysis has shown that NGC 3109 is one of the most metal-poor galaxies in the Local Group. For most of us, metals are conductive, malleable elements like aluminum or copper, but to astronomers metals are all elements other than hydrogen and helium — such as carbon, nitrogen and oxygen. Stars consume hydrogen and helium to produce heavier elements. These metals are released into the interstellar medium when a star dies and are found in successive generations of stars. Metal-poor galaxies like NGC 3109 have a similar composition to the stars — and therefore the galaxies …</div> </div> <div class="news-readmore">Read more</div> </div>  </a> </div> <div class="col-md-3 col-sm-6 col-xs-12"> <a href="/public/images/iotw2507a/" aria-label="iotw2507 — Image of the Week"> <div class="news-wrapper"> <div class="news-image"> <img class="img-responsive" src="/public/media/archives/images/thumb350x/iotw2507a.jpg" alt="Comet C/2024 G3 (ATLAS) in the Chilean Skies"> </div> <div class="news-description"> <div class="news-id">iotw2507 — Image of the Week</div> <div class="news-title">Comet C/2024 G3 (ATLAS) in the Chilean Skies</div> <div class="news-teaser"><strong>12 February 2025</strong>: Comet C/2024 G3 (ATLAS) is captured here in all its beauty by Cesar Briceño, Director of the Southern Astrophysical Research Telescope (SOAR), a part of the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CTIO), a Program of NSF NOIRLab. Comets form from a nucleus of dust, water, and gas in the farthest-known regions of our Solar System. This close-up of the Comet C/2024 G3 (ATLAS) cleanly shows the vaporized material of the nucleus creating the iconic cometary shape. In the lower left corner, the diffuse coma shines bright white as it obscures the nucleus. Emanating from the nucleus are the twin tails. The upper stream is the dust tail made of the heavier dust particles, illuminated by reflected sunlight. The lower stream is composed of gases, glowing as a result of ionization of the gas atoms. This tail is affected by the Sun’s magnetic field, and so is …</div> </div> <div class="news-readmore">Read more</div> </div>  </a> </div> </div> <div class="row news-list news-list-overflow"> <div class="col-md-3 col-sm-6 col-xs-12"> <a href="/public/images/iotw2506a/" aria-label="iotw2506 — Image of the Week"> <div class="news-wrapper"> <div class="news-image"> <img class="img-responsive" src="/public/media/archives/images/thumb350x/iotw2506a.jpg" alt="Star Trails Above Gemini North"> </div> <div class="news-description"> <div class="news-id">iotw2506 — Image of the Week</div> <div class="news-title">Star Trails Above Gemini North</div> <div class="news-teaser"><strong>5 February 2025</strong>: Gemini North, one half of the International Gemini Observatory, supported in part by the U.S. National Science Foundation and operated by NSF NOIRLab, sits atop Maunakea under a hypnotic sky filled with circular star trails in this Image of the Week. Stars appear to move across the sky during the night as a result of Earth’s rotation. This effect is captured beautifully here using long-exposure photography, a photographic technique where stationary objects appear defined while moving objects appear blurred. In this image, these dizzying arcs of light trace the apparent motion of stars in the sky. Stars that are far away from the celestial poles appear to move more over time and thus display longer star trails compared to stars near the celestial poles. At the center of these arcs is the star Polaris, which appears to stay fixed in one spot because it’s located almost directly above Earth’s North …</div> </div> <div class="news-readmore">Read more</div> </div>  </a> </div> <div class="col-md-3 col-sm-6 col-xs-12"> <a href="/public/images/iotw2505a/" aria-label="iotw2505 — Image of the Week"> <div class="news-wrapper"> <div class="news-image"> <img class="img-responsive" src="/public/media/archives/images/thumb350x/iotw2505a.jpg" alt="Comet C/2024 G3 (ATLAS) Gleams Above Cerro Pachón"> </div> <div class="news-description"> <div class="news-id">iotw2505 — Image of the Week</div> <div class="news-title">Comet C/2024 G3 (ATLAS) Gleams Above Cerro Pachón</div> <div class="news-teaser"><strong>29 January 2025</strong>: Comet C/2024 G3 (ATLAS) gleams against the January sky above three NOIRLab-supported telescopes in this Image of the Week. This is the first time that humans have observed this comet, which was last visible from Earth about 600,000 years ago. At perihelion, this comet reached an apparent magnitude of -3.8. This is about the same brightness as Venus, on the right side of the image, and potentially makes it the brightest comet of 2025. The straight lines across the sky are satellites, more prominently visible in this close-up. This image was taken atop Cerro Pachón, in the foothills of the Chilean Andes, next to the Southern Astrophysical Research Telescope (SOAR), a part of the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CTIO), a Program of NSF NOIRLab. In the distance are two other observatories supported by NSF NOIRLab (left to right): Gemini South, one half of the International …</div> </div> <div class="news-readmore">Read more</div> </div>  </a> </div> <div class="col-md-3 col-sm-6 col-xs-12"> <a href="/public/images/iotw2504a/" aria-label="iotw2504 — Image of the Week"> <div class="news-wrapper"> <div class="news-image"> <img class="img-responsive" src="/public/media/archives/images/thumb350x/iotw2504a.jpg" alt="Dust and Dark Energy above CTIO"> </div> <div class="news-description"> <div class="news-id">iotw2504 — Image of the Week</div> <div class="news-title">Dust and Dark Energy above CTIO</div> <div class="news-teaser"><strong>22 January 2025</strong>: This Image of the Week showcases the stunning Milky Way gracefully arcing over the NSF Víctor M. Blanco 4-meter Telescope at the U.S. National Science Foundation Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CTIO), a Program of NSF NOIRLab in Chile. CTIO is located at an altitude of 2200 meters (7200 feet) in the remote mountains of Chile. This location, high in the sky and far from city light pollution, allows telescopes like the Blanco Telescope to study the sky in breathtaking clarity. This image encapsulates the beauty of the cosmos and the sophisticated efforts undertaken by astronomers to unravel its mysteries. One such effort in which this telescope has played a major role is the Dark Energy Survey (DES). The survey examined the origin of the accelerating Universe to uncover the nature of dark energy by measuring the 14-billion-year history of cosmic expansion. Over a six-year period, this telescope, armed with the …</div> </div> <div class="news-readmore">Read more</div> </div>  </a> </div> <div class="col-md-3 col-sm-6 col-xs-12"> <a href="/public/images/iotw2503a/" aria-label="iotw2503 — Image of the Week"> <div class="news-wrapper"> <div class="news-image"> <img class="img-responsive" src="/public/media/archives/images/thumb350x/iotw2503a.jpg" alt="Research on the Ridge"> </div> <div class="news-description"> <div class="news-id">iotw2503 — Image of the Week</div> <div class="news-title">Research on the Ridge</div> <div class="news-teaser"><strong>15 January 2025</strong>: NSF–DOE Vera C. Rubin Observatory, jointly funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) and the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science, is seen here on the low ridge of Cerro Pachón in Chile with snow-dusted mountains in the background. With an altitude of more than 2600 meters (8600 feet) at Rubin Observatory, Cerro Pachón is an ideal location for astronomical research with its dry, stable air. The 8.4-meter Simonyi Survey Telescope at Rubin Observatory, equipped with the LSST Camera — the largest digital camera in the world — will survey the entire southern hemisphere every few nights for a decade to create an ultra-wide ultra-high-definition time-lapse record of our Universe. This unique ‘movie’ will bring the night sky to life, yielding a treasure trove of discoveries. Rubin is positioned near two other observatories in the foothills of the Chilean Andes: the Gemini South telescope, seen at upper-right, …</div> </div> <div class="news-readmore">Read more</div> </div>  </a> </div> </div> <div class="row news-list news-list-overflow"> <div class="col-md-3 col-sm-6 col-xs-12"> <a href="/public/images/iotw2502a/" aria-label="iotw2502 — Image of the Week"> <div class="news-wrapper"> <div class="news-image"> <img class="img-responsive" src="/public/media/archives/images/thumb350x/iotw2502a.jpg" alt="A Global Epicenter for Astronomy"> </div> <div class="news-description"> <div class="news-id">iotw2502 — Image of the Week</div> <div class="news-title">A Global Epicenter for Astronomy</div> <div class="news-teaser"><strong>8 January 2025</strong>: A pivotal hub for astronomy sits in the Sonoran Desert, surrounded by the mountains of southern Arizona. Southwest of Tucson, the Quinlan Mountains majestically rise to an altitude of 2100 meters (7000 feet) in the Schuk Toak District of the Tohono O’odham Nation. Atop the central peak in this image sits the U.S. National Science Foundation Kitt Peak National Observatory (KPNO), a Program of NSF NOIRLab and the largest collection of optical and radio telescopes in the northern hemisphere. Kitt Peak’s ideal vantage point, combined with the dark, dry environment of the desert, allows astronomers to make discoveries in many areas of astronomy including exoplanets, galaxies, and dark energy. KPNO is just one of several observatories in the area, including the Mount Graham international Observatory and the Mount Lemmon Observatory, operated by the University of Arizona. In addition, Pima County, in which Tucson resides, is also a hub for space …</div> </div> <div class="news-readmore">Read more</div> </div>  </a> </div> <div class="col-md-3 col-sm-6 col-xs-12"> <a href="/public/images/iotw2501a/" aria-label="iotw2501 — Image of the Week"> <div class="news-wrapper"> <div class="news-image"> <img class="img-responsive" src="/public/media/archives/images/thumb350x/iotw2501a.jpg" alt="A Stream of Anticrepuscular Rays"> </div> <div class="news-description"> <div class="news-id">iotw2501 — Image of the Week</div> <div class="news-title">A Stream of Anticrepuscular Rays</div> <div class="news-teaser"><strong>1 January 2025</strong>: On top of observing astronomical events in the northern skies, Gemini North — one half of the International Gemini Observatory, supported in part by the U.S. National Science Foundation and operated by NSF NOIRLab— is also set in an environment of gorgeous sunsets near the summit of Maunakea, Hawai‘i. Every so often, though, Gemini North is the site of something special. Upon closer inspection, a stream of shadow can be seen streaking across the right side of the image, outlined by parallel beams of light known as anticrepuscular rays. These rays are caused by clouds obscuring the dim, backscattered sunlight and appear to converge on a point directly opposite the Sun, known as the antisolar point. If these rays originated directly from the Sun, they would be called crepuscular rays. Anticrepuscular rays require the right environment to be created so they are difficult to glimpse.</div> </div> <div class="news-readmore">Read more</div> </div>  </a> </div> <div class="col-md-3 col-sm-6 col-xs-12"> <a href="/public/images/iotw2452a/" aria-label="iotw2452 — Image of the Week"> <div class="news-wrapper"> <div class="news-image"> <img class="img-responsive" src="/public/media/archives/images/thumb350x/iotw2452a.jpg" alt="Navigating the Milky Way"> </div> <div class="news-description"> <div class="news-id">iotw2452 — Image of the Week</div> <div class="news-title">Navigating the Milky Way</div> <div class="news-teaser"><strong>25 December 2024</strong>: The Milky Way, looking like a river of stars and dust, stretches between the Víctor M. Blanco 4-meter Telescope (left) and the SMARTS–GSU 1.5-meter Telescope (right) over the U.S. National Science Foundation Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CTIO), a Program of NSF NOIRLab. And, like a vast river, the Milky Way can be hard to navigate without some stellar guides: constellations. Among them, Sagittarius (left of center) is particularly important as it has an iconic asterism, called the Teapot, that points toward the center of our galaxy, where the supermassive black hole known as Sagittarius A* resides. Nearby, Scorpius (right of center) is a standout feature in the sky with its bright red supergiant star Antares. Often called the ‘heart’ of the scorpion, Antares can point the way to the Galactic core as well. This image is part of a fulldome photo. You can also see it as a panorama. This …</div> </div> <div class="news-readmore">Read more</div> </div>  </a> </div> <div class="col-md-3 col-sm-6 col-xs-12"> <a href="/public/images/iotw2451a/" aria-label="iotw2451 — Image of the Week"> <div class="news-wrapper"> <div class="news-image"> <img class="img-responsive" src="/public/media/archives/images/thumb350x/iotw2451a.jpg" alt="The Milky Way’s Unusual Twin in Pegasus"> </div> <div class="news-description"> <div class="news-id">iotw2451 — Image of the Week</div> <div class="news-title">The Milky Way’s Unusual Twin in Pegasus</div> <div class="news-teaser"><strong>18 December 2024</strong>: The magnificent spiral galaxy NGC 7331, located approximately 40 million light-years away in the constellation Pegasus, is the brightest and closest galaxy in the visual galaxy group that bears its name, the NGC 7331 Group. Revealed in the details of this image are populations of hot stars and dark dust lanes winding throughout the spiral arms. Also known as Caldwell 30, this galaxy is often thought of as a twin to the Milky Way owing to its similar size and spiral structure. However, there are a couple of features of its core that set it apart from our home galaxy. For instance, astronomers have found evidence that the Milky Way has a central bar of stars and dust cutting through its center, a feature common to many spiral galaxies. But NGC 7331 lacks this feature. Additionally, NGC 7331’s central bulge rotates in the opposite direction to its galactic disk — …</div> </div> <div class="news-readmore">Read more</div> </div>  </a> </div> </div> <div class="row news-list news-list-overflow"> <div class="col-md-3 col-sm-6 col-xs-12"> <a href="/public/images/iotw2450a/" aria-label="iotw2450 — Image of the Week"> <div class="news-wrapper"> <div class="news-image"> <img class="img-responsive" src="/public/media/archives/images/thumb350x/iotw2450a.jpg" alt="Happy Holidays 2024"> </div> <div class="news-description"> <div class="news-id">iotw2450 — Image of the Week</div> <div class="news-title">Happy Holidays 2024</div> <div class="news-teaser"><strong>11 December 2024</strong>: We at NOIRLab, funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF), would like to wish you the best this holiday season, and a successful and prosperous 2025! This background image reveals the bright, young stars surrounded by billowing clouds of dust and gas inside the star-forming nebula NGC 6357, known as the Lobster Nebula, located in the constellation Scorpius. It was captured by the U.S. Department of Energy-built Dark Energy Camera (DECam) on the Víctor M. Blanco 4-meter Telescope at NSF Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory, a Program of NSF NOIRLab. You can print and share your own copy of this card to wish others a happy holiday season. Check out our animated holiday card here and download the image without text here. Happy Holidays, Felices Fiestas, and Mele Kalikimaka and Hau‘oli Makahiki Hou!</div> </div> <div class="news-readmore">Read more</div> </div>  </a> </div> <div class="col-md-3 col-sm-6 col-xs-12"> <a href="/public/images/iotw2449a/" aria-label="iotw2449 — Image of the Week"> <div class="news-wrapper"> <div class="news-image"> <img class="img-responsive" src="/public/media/archives/images/thumb350x/iotw2449a.jpg" alt="Mountaintop Neighbors"> </div> <div class="news-description"> <div class="news-id">iotw2449 — Image of the Week</div> <div class="news-title">Mountaintop Neighbors</div> <div class="news-teaser"><strong>4 December 2024</strong>: Two world-class astronomical sites are seen in this aerial sunset image captured in northern Chile. In the foreground is NSF–DOE Vera C. Rubin Observatory, jointly funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) and the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science. Rubin Observatory is located on Cerro Pachón at an altitude of 2600 meters (8600 feet). In the distance to the right of Rubin Observatory is the mountaintop Cerro Tololo, home to the NSF Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CTIO), a Program of NSF NOIRLab. The structure at the top of Cerro Tololo is the Víctor M. Blanco 4-meter Telescope, located at an altitude of approximately 2200 meters (7200 feet). Together Cerro Pachón and Cerro Tololo form a major astronomical observation hub. Their high-altitude locations provide astronomers with an abundance of cloud-free nights with dry, stable air — when the occasional clouds do form, they contribute to beautiful sunsets …</div> </div> <div class="news-readmore">Read more</div> </div>  </a> </div> <div class="col-md-3 col-sm-6 col-xs-12"> <a href="/public/images/iotw2448a/" aria-label="iotw2448 — Image of the Week"> <div class="news-wrapper"> <div class="news-image"> <img class="img-responsive" src="/public/media/archives/images/thumb350x/iotw2448a.jpg" alt="The Path to Observation"> </div> <div class="news-description"> <div class="news-id">iotw2448 — Image of the Week</div> <div class="news-title">The Path to Observation</div> <div class="news-teaser"><strong>27 November 2024</strong>: Star trails streak across the sky above the summit of Maunakea in this image, which shows the surroundings of the Gemini North telescope, one half of the International Gemini Observatory, supported in part by the U.S. National Science Foundation and operated by NSF NOIRLab. The long exposure time of this photograph, coupled with the rotation of Earth, has caused the stars to streak into a multitude of graceful arcs. To the right of the image a much more earthly trail is visible; hikers with head torches have illuminated the final stretch of the Humuʻula Trail which winds up to the summit of Maunakea. One of the streaks of light in the skies above Maunakea didn’t originate from a distant star, but rather from something much closer to home. A passing airplane has left a dashed trail at the lower left of this image, pointing the way to the glowing patch …</div> </div> <div class="news-readmore">Read more</div> </div>  </a> </div> <div class="col-md-3 col-sm-6 col-xs-12"> <a href="/public/images/iotw2447a/" aria-label="iotw2447 — Image of the Week"> <div class="news-wrapper"> <div class="news-image"> <img class="img-responsive" src="/public/media/archives/images/thumb350x/iotw2447a.jpg" alt="The Global Reach of Las Cumbres Observatory"> </div> <div class="news-description"> <div class="news-id">iotw2447 — Image of the Week</div> <div class="news-title">The Global Reach of Las Cumbres Observatory</div> <div class="news-teaser"><strong>20 November 2024</strong>: The Milky Way dominates the sky as it stretches over U.S. National Science Foundation Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CTIO), a Program of NSF NOIRLab, which is located high in the mountains of Chile, at an altitude of 2200 meters (7200 feet). CTIO is a complex of astronomical telescopes and instruments that has long served as the principal platform for American astronomical investigation of the southern skies. In addition to the many telescopes it operates, CTIO provides space for others to access the southern sky — almost a dozen tenant observatories are hosted at the site. Pictured here are telescopes operated by Las Cumbres Observatory (LCO). LCO operates a network of telescopes spread out longitudinally across the northern and southern hemispheres. The strategic positioning of its telescopes means that LCO always has a telescope in darkness and it can coordinate its telescopes to quickly collect data that would be missed by …</div> </div> <div class="news-readmore">Read more</div> </div>  </a> </div> </div> <div class="row statusbar"><div class="col-md-3"> Showing 1 to 20 of 282 </div><div class="col-md-6"><div class="text-center"><ul class="pagination"><li class="active"><a href="/public/images/iotw/page/1/">1</a></li><li><a href="/public/images/iotw/page/2/">2</a></li><li><a href="/public/images/iotw/page/3/">3</a></li><li><a href="/public/images/iotw/page/4/">4</a></li><li><a href="#">...</a></li><li><a href="/public/images/iotw/page/15/">15</a></li><li><a class="prev-next" href="/public/images/iotw/page/2/">Next</a></li></ul></div></div></div><div class="row"><div class="col-md-12"></div></div> <div class="copyright"> <a href="/public/copyright/">Usage of NOIRLab Images and Videos</a><br /> <a href="/public/subscribe-media/">Are you a journalist? 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