NASA’s Astronomy Picture of the Day
These podcasts are my discussion of NASA's Astronomy Picture of the Day. These are brief (3-5 minute) audio summaries of the picture posted on NASA's Picture of the Day website: APOD. Video versions of these are available on YouTube. I use these as the introduction to each of my introductory astronomy classes. Students will be able to access them here to review what was discussed in class. I appreciate any comments or suggestions which can be sent to: wagnerastronomy@gmail.com.
2025 October 21 - IC 1805: The Heart Nebula
In today's image, we see the emission nebula known as the Heart Nebula. This is a star forming region in the process of forming a new cluster of stars.
My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel.
This Podcast is an authorized New Media Mirror Site for APOD. You can access the image and website directly at: Astronomy Picture of the Day. You can use the archive link below the image to select the photo corresponding to the date of this podcast.
2025 October 20 - Finding Comet Lemmon
In today's image, we see Comet Lemmon which is currently visible near the Big Dipper in the Northern sky. It may be easier to find using your camera phone to take a picture of the area as that will be more sensitive than your eye.
My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel.
This Podcast is an authorized New Media Mirror Site for APOD. You can access the image and website directly at: Astronomy Picture of the Day. You can use the archive link below the...
2025 October 19 - Comet Churyumov-Gerasimenko Creates Its Tails
In today's image, we see comet Churyumov-Gerasimenko as imaged by the Rosetta spacecraft. This shows jets of materials being expelled from the comet which are what helps to form the coma and tails of a comet.
My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel.
This Podcast is an authorized New Media Mirror Site for APOD. You can access the image and website directly at: Astronomy Picture of the Day. You can use the archive link below the image to select the photo corresponding to the date...
2025 October 18 - 3D Bennu
In today's image, we see the asteroid named Bennu. This asteroid was visited by the ORIRIS-REx spacecraft and returned a sample of this asteroid to Earth in 2023 for more detailed laboratory study.
My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel.
This Podcast is an authorized New Media Mirror Site for APOD. You can access the image and website directly at: Astronomy Picture of the Day. You can use the archive link below the image to select the photo corresponding to the date of this podcast.
<...2025 October 17 - Ida and Dactyl: Asteroid and Moon
In today's image, we see the second asteroid to be visited by a spacecraft which was the asteroid Ida which was visited by the Galileo spacecraft on its way to Jupiter in 1993. It was found to have a small moon orbiting it, which has been named Dactyl.
My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel.
This Podcast is an authorized New Media Mirror Site for APOD. You can access the image and website directly at: Astronomy Picture of the Day. You can use the archive link...
2025 October 16 - Young Suns of NGC 7129
In today's image, we see the seat forming region known as NGC 7129. This may be much like the region where our own Sun formed five billion or so years ago.
My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel.
This Podcast is an authorized New Media Mirror Site for APOD. You can access the image and website directly at: Astronomy Picture of the Day. You can use the archive link below the image to select the photo corresponding to the date of this podcast.
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2025 October 15 - Rocket Launch Plume over Tucson
In today's image, we see the plume from the launch of a Falcon 9 rocket which was delivering multiple Starling communications satellites to low Earth orbit.
My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel.
This Podcast is an authorized New Media Mirror Site for APOD. You can access the image and website directly at: Astronomy Picture of the Day. You can use the archive link below the image to select the photo corresponding to the date of this podcast.
I welcome comments...
2025 October 14 - AN Unusual Globule in IC 1396
In today's image, we see a part of the Elephant Trunk Nebula which is also known by its catalog designations of IC 1396. This is also considered a cometary globule for its resemblance to a comet with a head and tail.
My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel.
This Podcast is an authorized New Media Mirror Site for APOD. You can access the image and website directly at: Astronomy Picture of the Day. You can use the archive link below the image to select the photo...
2025 October 13 - Lemmon Tree
In today's image, we see Comet Lemmon positioned above a tree here on Earth. Comet Lemmon has reached its closest approach to our Sun and is now approaching Earth - although it is not passing close enough to be a danger - It is expected to brighten and may become visible to the unaided eye over the next few weeks.
My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel.
This Podcast is an authorized New Media Mirror Site for APOD. You can access the image and website...
2025 October 12 - All the Water on Europa
In today's image, we see a comparison of the water on Earth versus the water on Jupiter's moon, Europa. Despite its smaller size, Europa is expected to have more water than the much larger Earth.
My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel.
This Podcast is an authorized New Media Mirror Site for APOD. You can access the image and website directly at: Astronomy Picture of the Day. You can use the archive link below the image to select the photo corresponding to the date of...
2025 October 11 - Manicouagan Impact Crater from Space
In today's image, we see the Manicouagan impact crater in Quebec, Canada as imaged from the International Space Station back in 2019.
My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel.
This Podcast is an authorized New Media Mirror Site for APOD. You can access the image and website directly at: Astronomy Picture of the Day. You can use the archive link below the image to select the photo corresponding to the date of this podcast.
I welcome comments and suggestions about these...
2025 October 10 - 50 Light Years to 51 Pegasi
In today's image, we see the sky above the telescope dome where the exoplanet 51 Pegasi b was discovered - this was the first discovery of a planet around a star like our Sun and the fist discovery of the type of planet which become known as a "Hot Jupiter".
My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel.
This Podcast is an authorized New Media Mirror Site for APOD. You can access the image and website directly at: Astronomy Picture of the Day. You can use the...
2025 October 09 - The Jenga Moon
In today's image, we see the Moon as it rises over a building in New York City. This was the full moon from a few days ago and is also known as the Harvest Moon and a Supermoon since it occurred at the Moon's closest approach to Earth in its orbit.
My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel.
This Podcast is an authorized New Media Mirror Site for APOD. You can access the image and website directly at: Astronomy Picture of the Day. You can...
2025 October 08 - NGC 7380: The Wizard Nebula
In today's image, we see the star forming region known as the Wizard Nebula. Here, newly forming stars are creating the patterns and colors that we see.
My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel.
This Podcast is an authorized New Media Mirror Site for APOD. You can access the image and website directly at: Astronomy Picture of the Day. You can use the archive link below the image to select the photo corresponding to the date of this podcast.
I...
2025 October 07 - SN Encore: A Second Supernova Seen Several Times
In today's image, we see multiple images of a supernova occurring in a distant galaxy. Multiple images are possible because of gravitational lensing cause by the gravitational field of the intervening galaxy cluster.
My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel.
This Podcast is an authorized New Media Mirror Site for APOD. You can access the image and website directly at: Astronomy Picture of the Day. You can use the archive link below the image to select the photo corresponding to the date of this podcast.<...
2025 October 06 - The Changing Ion Tail of Comet Lemmon
In today's image, we see five images of Comet Lemmon taken of the period of about a week. Here we can see the distinct changes that occur in the ion tail of a comet.
My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel.
This Podcast is an authorized New Media Mirror Site for APOD. You can access the image and website directly at: Astronomy Picture of the Day. You can use the archive link below the image to select the photo corresponding to the date of this...
2025 October 05 - A Long Storm System on Saturn
In today's image, we see a storm on Saturn from 2010 as images by the Cassini spacecraft. The storm lasted for six months and stretched all the way around the planet.
My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel.
This Podcast is an authorized New Media Mirror Site for APOD. You can access the image and website directly at: Astronomy Picture of the Day. You can use the archive link below the image to select the photo corresponding to the date of this podcast.
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2025 October 04 - The Rotating Moon
In today's image, we see a video composed of images from the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter showing what it would look like if we could see the Moon as it rotates on its axis.
My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel.
This Podcast is an authorized New Media Mirror Site for APOD. You can access the image and website directly at: Astronomy Picture of the Day. You can use the archive link below the image to select the photo corresponding to the date of this podcast.<...
2025 October 03 - Pandora's Cluster of Galaxies
In today's image, we see the cluster sometime known as Pandora's Cluster. This is a large galaxy cluster which appears to be three clusters merging together.
My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel.
This Podcast is an authorized New Media Mirror Site for APOD. You can access the image and website directly at: Astronomy Picture of the Day. You can use the archive link below the image to select the photo corresponding to the date of this podcast.
I welcome...
2025 October 02 - Pluto at Night
In today's image, we see an image of Pluto as taken by the New Horizons spacecraft over a decade ago. This image was taken shortly after New Horizons passed by Pluto so we can see it from behind looking back toward the Sun.
My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel.
This Podcast is an authorized New Media Mirror Site for APOD. You can access the image and website directly at: Astronomy Picture of the Day. You can use the archive link below the image to...
2025 October 01 - NGC 6960: The Witch's Broom Nebula
In today's image, we see the supernova remnant known as the Witch's Broom Nebula. This is the remnant of a star that would have been seen to explode here on Earth about ten thousand years ago.
My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel.
This Podcast is an authorized New Media Mirror Site for APOD. You can access the image and website directly at: Astronomy Picture of the Day. You can use the archive link below the image to select the photo corresponding to the date...
2025 September 30 - Comet Lemmon Brightens
In today's image, we see an image of Comet Lemmon, the third comet currently visible in the sky with the aid of binoculars. The comet will make its closes approach to Εarth on October 21 and its closest approach to the Sun a couple of weeks later.
My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel.
This Podcast is an authorized New Media Mirror Site for APOD. You can access the image and website directly at: Astronomy Picture of the Day. You can use the archive link below t...
2025 September 29 - Two Camera Comets in One Sky
In today's image, we see Comet SWAN and Comet ATLAS as they appear close to one another in the sky.
My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel.
This Podcast is an authorized New Media Mirror Site for APOD. You can access the image and website directly at: Astronomy Picture of the Day. You can use the archive link below the image to select the photo corresponding to the date of this podcast.
I welcome comments and suggestions about these podcasts...
2025 September 28 - Leopard Spots on Martian Rocks
In today's image, we see a close-up of spots on Martian rocks as discovered by the Perseverance Rover. There is a possibility that such spots could have a biological origin although there are other possibilities for the origin of these.
My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel.
This Podcast is an authorized New Media Mirror Site for APOD. You can access the image and website directly at: Astronomy Picture of the Day. You can use the archive link below the image to select the photo...
2025 September 27 - A Rocket in the Sun
In today's image, we see a rocket imaged as it passed across the face of the Sun in the sky.
My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel.
This Podcast is an authorized New Media Mirror Site for APOD. You can access the image and website directly at: Astronomy Picture of the Day. You can use the archive link below the image to select the photo corresponding to the date of this podcast.
I welcome comments and suggestions about these podcasts...
2025 September 26 - A SWAN, an ATLAS, and Mars
In today's image, we see two comets: Comet SWAN and Comet ATLAS as well as the planet Mars in this image.
My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel.
This Podcast is an authorized New Media Mirror Site for APOD. You can access the image and website directly at: Astronomy Picture of the Day. You can use the archive link below the image to select the photo corresponding to the date of this podcast.
I welcome comments and suggestions about these...
2025 September 25 - Saturn Opposite the Sun
In today's image, we see Saturn on the day of opposition when it was directly opposite to the Sun in the sky a few days ago. Here it is wishing the gegenschein, a glow caused by light back scattered off of dust in the solar system.
My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel.
This Podcast is an authorized New Media Mirror Site for APOD. You can access the image and website directly at: Astronomy Picture of the Day. You can use the archive link below...
2025 September 24 - GW250114: Rotating Black Holes Collide
In today's image, we see an illustration showing the area around colliding black holes. This is meant to illustrate the collision detected earlier this year of two black holes - A collision which occurred a billion years ago, but is just being detected as the gravitational waves finally reach Earth.
My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel.
This Podcast is an authorized New Media Mirror Site for APOD. You can access the image and website directly at: Astronomy Picture of the Day. You can use...
2025 September 23 - NGC 6357: Cathedral to Massive Stars
In today's image, we see NGC 6357 which contains some of the most massive stars known, pushing toward 100 times the mass of our own Sun.
My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel.
This Podcast is an authorized New Media Mirror Site for APOD. You can access the image and website directly at: Astronomy Picture of the Day. You can use the archive link below the image to select the photo corresponding to the date of this podcast.
I welcome comments and...
2025 September 22 - Equinox at Saturn
In today's image, we see images of Saturn showing the changing position of the rings as its equinox approaches.
My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel.
This Podcast is an authorized New Media Mirror Site for APOD. You can access the image and website directly at: Astronomy Picture of the Day. You can use the archive link below the image to select the photo corresponding to the date of this podcast.
I welcome comments and suggestions about these podcasts. I...
2025 September 21 - Equinox Sunset
In today's image, we see different paths of the Sun as it sets at different times of year. As the equinox approaches, the view will be like the center line where the Sun sets due West.
My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel.
This Podcast is an authorized New Media Mirror Site for APOD. You can access the image and website directly at: Astronomy Picture of the Day. You can use the archive link below the image to select the photo corresponding to the date...
2025 September 20 - Gibbous vs Crescent
In today's image, we see the waning crescent Moon as well as the planet Venus in its gibbous phase as they passed relatively near to one another recently.
My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel.
This Podcast is an authorized New Media Mirror Site for APOD. You can access the image and website directly at: Astronomy Picture of the Day. You can use the archive link below the image to select the photo corresponding to the date of this podcast.
...
2025 September 19 - The NGC 6914 Complex
In today's image, we see the nebulae around NGC 6914. These include red emission nebulae as well as blue reflection nebulae.
My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel.
This Podcast is an authorized New Media Mirror Site for APOD. You can access the image and website directly at: Astronomy Picture of the Day. You can use the archive link below the image to select the photo corresponding to the date of this podcast.
I welcome comments and suggestions about these podcasts...
2025 September 18 - Comet C/2025 R2 (SWAN)
In today's image, we see the comet known as SWAN25B. This comet made its closest approach to the Sun shortly after it was discovered a week ago. It is currently moving closer to Earth although it will not come near striking Earth.
My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel.
This Podcast is an authorized New Media Mirror Site for APOD. You can access the image and website directly at: Astronomy Picture of the Day. You can use the archive link below the image to...
2025 September 17 - Nebulae and Clusters in Sagittarius
In today's image, we see various nebulae and star clusters located in the direction of the constellations of Sagittarius which is located near the plane of the Milky Way Galaxy.
My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel.
This Podcast is an authorized New Media Mirror Site for APOD. You can access the image and website directly at: Astronomy Picture of the Day. You can use the archive link below the image to select the photo corresponding to the date of this podcast.
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2015 September 16 - New Comet SWAN25B over Mexico
In today's image, we see a newly discovered comet known as SWAN25B. The comet is currently moving closer to Earth and will likely brighten over the next month. How bright it will get is still a good question.
My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel.
This Podcast is an authorized New Media Mirror Site for APOD. You can access the image and website directly at: Astronomy Picture of the Day. You can use the archive link below the image to select the photo corresponding...
2025 September 15 - Earth During a Powerful Solar Storm
In today's image, we see a computer simulator of a powerful coronal mass ejection striking Earth's magnetic field. A strong enough CME could push the Earth's magnetic field below the orbits of communications satellites leaving them open to potential damage.
My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel.
This Podcast is an authorized New Media Mirror Site for APOD. You can access the image and website directly at: Astronomy Picture of the Day. You can use the archive link below the image to select the photo...
2025 September 14 - Planets of the Solar System: Tilts and Spins
In today's image, we see a video which demonstrates the tilt and rotational spin of each of the eight planets in the solar system.
My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel.
This Podcast is an authorized New Media Mirror Site for APOD. You can access the image and website directly at: Astronomy Picture of the Day. You can use the archive link below the image to select the photo corresponding to the date of this podcast.
I welcome comments and...
2025 September 13 - Star Trails Over One Mile Radio Telescope
In today's image, we see star trails in the sky over the One-Mile Radio Telescope in the United Kingdom.
My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel.
This Podcast is an authorized New Media Mirror Site for APOD. You can access the image and website directly at: Astronomy Picture of the Day. You can use the archive link below the image to select the photo corresponding to the date of this podcast.
I welcome comments and suggestions about these podcasts. I...
2025 September 12 - Lunar Eclipse in Two Hemispheres
In today's image, we see images of the lunar eclipse as viewed in both the Northern and Southern Hemispheres of Earth. This shows the different perspectives from different positions on the spherical Earth.
My podcasts are available in video form through this YouTube Channel.
This Podcast is an authorized New Media Mirror Site for APOD. You can access the image and website directly at: Astronomy Picture of the Day. You can use the archive link below the image to select the photo corresponding to the date of this podcast.<...