Astrophotography
Whether you’re an astrophotography expert or beginner, our guides and galleries will inspire and help you get the most out of imaging the night sky.
The solar eclipse over Big Ben. Photographer captures the Moon passing in front of the Sun over London
A photographer has captured the stages of the solar eclipse over the UK capital
August 2026 solar eclipse | In pictures
A selection of images of the August 2026 solar eclipse
How to make and use a pinhole camera
Try our DIY pinhole camera project for a low-effort way to trace the path of the Sun across the sky.
How to photograph the August 2026 solar eclipse
Capture the August eclipse with our photography guide
Gallery | Solar eclipses
What is a solar eclipse and how do you view one safely? Find out about the celestial mechanics behind these spectacular astronomical events.
What's new?
The Buck Moon as you've never seen it. Photographer's clever trick exposes the full Moon's motion across the sky
A 15-minute long exposure produces an image showing the apparent motion of the 2026 Buck Moon across the night sky
This week's low-lying Buck Moon is the perfect chance to photograph a full Moon with your smartphone. Here's how to do it
The low-lying Buck Moon at the height of summer makes for a great chance to capture a full Moon with your smartphone
This is the only solar eclipse photograph guide you need. How to capture the perfect eclipse image
Capture totality with our solar eclipse photography guide
These are among the best space images we've ever seen. The world's biggest astro-imaging competition has just released its shortlisted photos
See the shortlisted images of the 2026 competition
A student sent a camera into space to photograph the invisible energy of the Universe. This is what he captured
Experiment involved launching film negatives more than 121,000 feet into the stratosphere
Astrophotography guides
Follow our astrophotography guides for in-depth tutorials on photographing the night sky, plus image processing advice to help fine-tune your astro images.
There are strange, shining clouds visible in the sky at the moment. Here's how to photograph them with your smartphone
Coax your phone’s camera into low-light mode and catch ethereal noctilucent clouds.
Photograph a full Moon as it rises and capture one of nature's greatest spectacles. Here's how to do it
How to photograph the Moon with a smartphone
Tips and tricks to help you succeed in lunar astrophotography using a smartphone.
Comets
Facts about and images of comets, the rocky, icy celestial bodies that orbit the Sun and can sometimes briefly be seen with the naked eye in the night sky above Earth
Eclipses
Beautiful images of lunar and solar eclipses.
Galaxies
There are many types of galaxy, from spiral galaxies to ellipticals, dwarfs and strange-looking irregular galaxies. These are images of some of the most beautiful galaxies in the Universe, captured by astrophotographers on planet Earth.
Gallery | Caldwell 7
Images of and facts about Caldwell 7, a spiral galaxy in Camelopardalis.
Gallery | Leo Triplet
The three galaxies that make up the Leo Triplet, M66, M65 and NGC 3628, are engaged in a gravitational tug of war, making this a fascinating deep-sky spectacle.
Gallery | Bode's Galaxy and Cigar Galaxy
Images of M81 and M82, the pair of interacting galaxies known as Bode's Galaxy and the Cigar Galaxy, including facts and the history of their discovery.
Meteors
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The Moon
Beautiful images of the Moon, including images of lunar craters, clair obscur effects, lunar maria and astrophotos showing the terminator creeping across the Moon's jagged surface.
Gallery | Planes in front of the Sun and Moon
A gallery of images of planes passing in front of the solar or lunar disc.
Gallery | Harvest Moon
What is a Harvest Moon, and and are they really worth the hype?
Gallery | Crescent Moon
A crescent Moon is a spectacular sight. Here are some of the top features to see on a waxing and waning crescent.
The Moon
Images of the Moon, including the crescent Moon, gibbous Moon and the full Moon. Photos of its famous craters and lunar maria or seas, and its tallest mountains.
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Nebulae
Beautiful images of glowing cosmic clouds known as nebulae. These regions of space are filled with gas and dust, out of which new stars will be born. These are some of the most well-known, captured by astrophotographers from around the globe.
Gallery | Eagle Nebula
Images of the Eagle Nebula and its famous feature the Pillars of Creation.
Gallery | Ring Nebula
Facts and images about the Ring Nebula, M57, a planetary nebula found 2,000 lightyears away in Lyra.
Gallery | Tadpole Nebula
Images of the Tadpole Nebula, IC 410, and facts about this star-forming region.
Planets
Beautiful images of the planets of our Solar System and their moons, captured by amateur and professional astrophotographers from around the world.
Gallery | Uranus
A guide to the icy ringed giant
Gallery | Venus
Facts about Venus and images of the hellish planet captured by astrophotographers.
![Frosty white water ice clouds and swirling orange dust storms above a vivid rusty landscape reveal Mars as a dynamic planet in this sharpest view ever obtained by an Earth-based telescope. The Earth-orbiting Hubble telescope snapped this picture on June 26, when Mars was approximately 43 million miles (68 million km) from Earth - its closest approach to our planet since 1988. Hubble can see details as small as 10 miles (16 km) across. Especially striking is the large amount of seasonal dust storm activity seen in this image. One large storm system is churning high above the northern polar cap [top of image], and a smaller dust storm cloud can be seen nearby. Another large duststorm is spilling out of the giant Hellas impact basin in the Southern Hemisphere [lower right]. Acknowledgements: J. Bell (Cornell U.), P. James (U. Toledo), M. Wolff (Space Science Institute), A. Lubenow (STScI), J. Neubert (MIT/Cornell)](https://c02.purpledshub.com/uploads/sites/48/2021/05/Mars-d1e4afb.jpg?w=1200&webp=1 "Frosty white water ice clouds and swirling orange dust storms above a vivid rusty landscape reveal Mars as a dynamic planet in this sharpest view ever obtained by an Earth-based telescope. The Earth-orbiting Hubble telescope snapped this picture on June 26, when Mars was approximately 43 million miles (68 million km) from Earth – its closest approach to our planet since 1988. Hubble can see details as small as 10 miles (16 km) across. Especially striking is the large amount of seasonal dust storm activity seen in this image. One large storm system is churning high above the northern polar cap [top of image], and a smaller dust storm cloud can be seen nearby. Another large duststorm is spilling out of the giant Hellas impact basin in the Southern Hemisphere [lower right]. Acknowledgements: J. Bell (Cornell U.), P. James (U. Toledo), M. Wolff (Space Science Institute), A. Lubenow (STScI), J. Neubert (MIT/Cornell)")
Facts about Mars
Mars is one of the most explored bodies of our Solar System. Our spacecraft and rovers are revealing its secrets bit by bit, including whether it could have hosted life…
Skyscapes
Astro images showing the beautiful astronomical phenomena that can be seen in Earth's night sky, including stars, conjunctions, star trails and the aurora.
Stars
Pictures of stars, including starscapes, star trails, bright stars in the sky, photos of constellations and images of the starry band of the Millky Way stretching across the night sky.
Gallery | Kemble's Cascade
Advice on how to observe Kemble's Cascade, and images of the asterism.
Beehive Cluster
Facts about and images of M44, also known as the Beehive Cluster.
Observing guide | Globular clusters
Globular clusters are some of the most beautiful objects to observe through a telescope. Discover the science of globulars and the best to see in the night sky.
The Sun
Images of the Sun, Earth's host star at the centre of the Solar System, including sunspots, solar flares, solar prominences and solar eclipses.
Gallery | Sunspots
Facts about sunspots and images of the Sun's surface.
Two more strong flares erupted from the Sun this week, as seen by NASA's orbiting solar observatory
More solar flares have been recorded by the Solar Dynamics Observatory.
Gallery | The Sun
A guide to our host star the Sun, and pictures of the solar disc captured by astrophotographers.
