🔥The 9th Round of Easy Loan, Earn $40 Reward is in progress❗️ ⏰ Promotion Period: January 15th - Feburary 15th, 2025 👉 Register now and check more details at gate.io/campaigns/358

#Groundhog Day happens every year on February 2. According to legend, a groundhog leaves its burrow. If it’s sunny and he sees his #shadow, it’s said we’ll see 6 more weeks of #winter. Did Phil see his shadow? Find out! earthsky.org/astronomy-esse… 📸 Steve-Wrzeszczynski/ Unsplash.

What kind of recent geological activity might have happened on the moon? When we say recent, we mean geologically. Find out what's up, up there: earthsky.org/space/is-the-m…

Do you like #polarbears? If you worry about them staying warm in the frozen #Arctic, don't. They have adapted to live comfortably in cold environments. How? Polar bears' greasy hair prevents ice from sticking to their fur. 🐻‍❄️🥶 earthsky.org/earth/polar-be… 🎥 Video via EarthSky

Rui Santos in Leiria, Portugal, captured this beautiful view of the #moon, #Venus and #Saturn on Sunday. Thank you, Rui! 🌕🌌🪐📸 ecp.earthsky.org/community-phot… See more great images, and submit your own recent #photos, at EarthSky Community Photos: ecp.earthsky.org

The #sun's active today, with a bunch of M flares from a #sunspot region now crossing the sun's face. One of them neared the X flare level! Keep yourself updated on the sun's current and predicted activity here: earthsky.org/sun/sun-news-a…

Roberto Ortu in Cabras, Sardinia, Italy, captured this great view of #Jupiter on January 24. Thank you, Roberto! 📸🔭 #space ecp.earthsky.org/community-phot… See more great images, and submit your own recent #photos, at EarthSky Community Photos: ecp.earthsky.org

Lorraine Boyd in Delmar, #New York, shared this lovely scene of #winter in the #woods on Saturday. Thank you, Lorraine! ❄️🌲📸 ecp.earthsky.org/community-phot… Go to EarthSky Community Photos to see more, and submit your own recent #photos: ecp.earthsky.org

Dolores Moreno in Highland, California, captured this view of the crescent #moon peeking through thin clouds on Saturday. And if you look carefully, #Saturn is there to the right, too! Thank you, Dolores! 🌒🪐📸 #photos ecp.earthsky.org/community-phot…

Can we use #lightsails to reach the #stars? The concept is to use #lasers to propel miniature #space probes attached to lightsails to reach ultrafast speeds and eventually our nearest star system, #AlphaCentauri. 🚀🌌 earthsky.org/space/lightsai… 📸 Breakthrough Starshot.

The chaos triggered last week by President #DonaldTrump’s executive orders banning #federalfunding for #diversity and other topics continues to shake the National Institutes of Health (#NIH) and other #health agencies. Read more: science.org/content/articl… 📸 NIH. Wikipedia.

Action on the #sun in a big #sunspot region! Is there more to come? Sunspot region AR3981produced the most flares and the biggest #flares over the past 2 days. The largest flare was an M6.1. Read about it and the forecast: earthsky.org/sun/sun-news-a… 📸 SDO.

Do you like #volcanoes? Then this video is for you. Amid ongoing #eruptions, EarthSky's Kelly Kizer Whitt visited the #Hawaii Volcanoes National Park in January, exploring the trails, petroglyphs, #lava tubes, smoking #craters and more. 🌋 youtube.com/watch?v=KcwHFq… 📸 EarthSky.

What a great month for #planets in the #evening sky! Are we going to see another #alignment? Well ... Join EarthSky's Deborah Byrd and John Goss at 12:15 p.m. CST (18:15 UTC) for the answer and a preview of February 2025's planet parade. 🪐🔭 youtube.com/watch?v=SHWqXD… 📸 EarthSky.

Are you a #February baby? February babies have #amethyst - a lovely purple #gemstone - as their #birthstone. Amethysts contain the 2nd most abundant mineral found in Earth’s crust: #quartz. Find out more about this gemstone: earthsky.org/human-world/fe… 📸 J.J. Harrison/ Wikipedia.

This month, #Mars will shine near the bright stars #Castor and #Pollux, the "twin" stars of #Gemini. The #moon will lie near the trio on February 9. Mars will remain visible in the evening sky through November 2025. Visit our night sky guide: earthsky.org/astronomy-esse…

Bob Rich in College Station, Texas, captured this sequence on Sunday and wrote: "The International Space Station (#ISS) transits the crescent #moon." Thanks! ecp.earthsky.org/community-phot… Have a recent photo of your own you would like to share? Submit it here: ecp.earthsky.org/submit-a-photo/

Is #science in #danger? From yesterday's Today Explained podcast … #Funding cuts and #research censorship have shaken the foundations of America’s #health and #science agencies, leaving #researchers shocked, confused, and afraid. Listen here: iheart.com/podcast/1319-t… 📸 Vox.

You might be interested … Science.org’s Trump Tracker. Science.org is maintaining a page of #news related to the ongoing #chaos in U.S. #science. #TrumpTracker is updated daily, or more often: buff.ly/3Qpbahs 📸 Image via E. Stokstad/ Science.

From February 17 in The Conversation: America has already lost its #global competitive edge in #science and funding #cuts proposed in early 2025 "may further a precipitous #decline," according to Arizona astronomer Chris Impey: buff.ly/433OuuD 📸 AP Photo/ Andrew Harnik.

This week, Stand Up For Science. Click in for more details: standupforscience2025.org And for an explainer as to why science needs defending, watch our recent video: youtube.com/watch?v=tzH_fA…