Yeah, Sky Candy Friday is on Saturday this week. I was sick. Getting old ain't for sissies. In the meantime, let's look west for today's soundtrack.
I absolutely refuse to go for the obvious joke. But I certainly invite commenters to make up for my lapse.
Uranus as seen by NASA's James Webb Space Telescope
— Nature is Amazing ☘️ (@AMAZlNGNATURE) June 8, 2026
The image reveals Uranus' faint rings and icy atmosphere in remarkable detail, while dozens of distant galaxies shine in the background pic.twitter.com/ntbuJrdWLv
This is actually two images, wide and narrow. The caption in the post doesn't make that clear, at least to my decongestant-fogged mind. This next is an artist's interpretation, but interesting.
The moons of Uranus may preserve evidence of one of the most unstable periods in the early Solar System. Long before the giant planets settled into their present orbits, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune probably migrated through a crowded outer Solar System filled with icy… pic.twitter.com/0jcCPEXeT2
— Erika (@ExploreCosmos_) June 7, 2026
This one is pretty cool. One of the big puzzles that the Webb telescope revealed has been the "little red dots" — too young to be galaxies, they're out at the fringe of the observable universe, and from very close to the time of the Big Bang. The current best explanation is that they're "black hole stars": black holes that formed in the very first matter in the universe, with clouds of other matter surrounding them. But there are a lot of other hypotheses, so watch this space.
Webb has delivered the strongest evidence yet that its discovery of mysterious Little Red Dots (LRD) are “black hole stars.” They appear starting ~600 million years after the big bang, and scientists are still working out exactly what they are. https://t.co/MIEwfifyzi pic.twitter.com/UEN7tLJzlF
— NASA Webb Telescope (@NASAWebb) June 10, 2026
I really am so jealous of the ISS astronauts being able to see this live.
A timelapse view from our @SpaceX Dragon of the spectacular southern aurora seen in yesterday’s post, a result of a recent solar event. As opposed to the previous aurora I’ve seen, this one danced and snaked its way directly below us, putting on quite a show. I am in awe of this… pic.twitter.com/ReztjH3x9H
— Jessica Meir (@Astro_Jessica) June 7, 2026
Always in the last place you look.
Lose your keys? That’s nothing! Astronomers misplaced an exploded star for 800 years. In 1181 skywatchers recorded a “guest star” in Cassiopeia that shone as bright as Saturn. After it faded, astronomers didn't find the remnant until 2013. #MondayMotivation pic.twitter.com/9nLqsrBZ5t
— NASA Universe (@NASAUniverse) June 8, 2026
It's hard to imagine New Horizons passed by Pluto (which is a planet, I don't care) eleven years ago. But Alan Stern and the guys are still exploring the data.
A darkened and mysterious north polar region known to some as Mordor Macula caps this premier view of Charon, Pluto's largest moon.
— NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day (@apod) June 6, 2026
The high-resolution image was captured by the interplanetary space probe New Horizons near its closest approach to distant Pluto on July 14, 2015.… pic.twitter.com/79ud7rvujt
That fuzzy smudge is billions or trillions of stars.
Hold my hand?
— Hubble (@NASAHubble) June 8, 2026
In this Hubble view, two galaxies known collectively as NGC 5331 are seen just beginning to "link" their spiral arms.
This galactic interaction is unfolding about 450 million light-years away, in the constellation Virgo.
Read more: https://t.co/V0qJECHPZ7 pic.twitter.com/Z47EjurutF
Andrew McCarthy has appeared frequently in this column. This one is a little special: pictures of the Moon combining images from Earth and from the Artemis II flyby. It's worth a look, and if you're so inclined, a purchase. It's toward a good cause.
Long post, but this one is important to me so I hope you stick it out!
— Andrew McCarthy (@AJamesMcCarthy) June 11, 2026
In January I reached out to Artemis II Commander @astro_reid with a simple ask- was he open to capturing the moon like I do for my colorful moon photos during the flyby?
He humbly agreed, and we worked out… pic.twitter.com/bGNNxpemmo
And now for a little space history. Extra-vehicular activity is almost an everyday thing now, just the maintenance folks going to work.
Sixty years ago it was something else.
Celebrating my good friend Ed White’s historic first spacewalk on Gemini IV for #ThrowbackThursday! It was 21 glorious minutes in the vacuum of space – 60 years ago this week! Remembering you today, Ed – we appreciate your service to and sacrifice for our nation. pic.twitter.com/TdycBesiJF
— Dr. Buzz Aldrin (@TheRealBuzz) June 5, 2025
A year later.
"Boy, is it beautiful out there, Tom, and what a beautiful spacecraft."
— NASA History Office (@NASAhistory) June 5, 2025
Gemini IX astronaut Gene Cernan conducts the second American spacewalk #OTD in 1966, one year and two days after the first.
It was nearly disastrous: https://t.co/AT6oEjAH0S pic.twitter.com/ZCPKk79PDX
And in closing...
My daughter was just screaming in her bedroom and I thought someone died.. or at least a big spider. But no, @NASA just dropped this banger trailer.
— Natalie F Danelishen (@Chesschick01) June 7, 2026
Kids are excited about space again 🚀 pic.twitter.com/YH6FdYxDHW
See you next week, probably but not certainly on Friday. Don't forget to comment with your off-color jokes.
