Tonight is a great night to look up at the sky, because you're likely to catch a glimpse of the annual Quadrantids meteor shower. "This annual shower has one of the highest predicted hourly rates of all the major showers," explains Spacedex. more ›

A ball of light that flew through the sky last night was neither bird nor plane nor UFO; rather, experts at NASA believe that the object was a firey asteroid, reports NBC Los Angeles. The fireball made its speedy journey at about 7:30 p.m., and was visible to residents across the southwest -- sightings were reported not just in California but in Nevada and Arizona as well. more ›

NASA's Pasadena-based (Caltech) Jet Propulsion Lab (JPL) left us all a little gift this week -- the first batch of data and images collected by an infrared satellite that captured the most detailed scan of the whole sky. more ›

The OC Register's Science Dude was hit with reports of readers spotting a "weird rainbow" in the skies above the region. He explains what people saw today is an " unusual atmospheric phenomenon" known as a parhelia or "sundog." more ›

Sometimes all you have to do to get the best view in Los Angeles is look up. more ›

If the weather cooperates, it's going to be a good night for looking into the skies. "The annual Leonid Meteor Shower reaches its traditional peak between midnight at 5:00 a.m. on Tuesday, November 17 as seen from the west coast," explained Anthony Cook at the Griffith Observatory's weekly Sky Report. "About one Leonid every two or three minutes is expected. The earth may pass through enhanced streams of particles during the following afternoon, possibly providing Asia with an even better show, and may make the shower worthwhile to watch again from here between midnight and 5 a.m. on Wednesday morning, the 18th." more ›

The annual Perseid meteor showers has been around since July, but tonight and early tomorrow morning is its expected peak for visual gratification. Los Angeles' light pollution and the moon will distract somewhat, but there are some solutions if you can't travel afar to the likes of Joshua Tree or the Channel Islands. more ›

If you've had your eye on our skies the past couple of dawns and dusks, you may have paused to appreciate what have been some pretty spectacular sunrises and sunsets. These LAist Featured Photos pool contributors shared with us their shots from this week. more ›

">you should be able to see a "brilliant moving point of light" between 6:33 and 6:39 a.m. Enjoy, you early birds. more ›

Starting at 5:21 p.m., you should be able to see the International Space Shuttle passing above Los Angeles. "The Space Station moves from northwest to southeast between 5:21 p.m. and 5:27 p.m., appearing nearly overhead at 5:24 p.m.," says Anthony Cook at Griffith Observatory's Sky Report. "The ISS should rival brilliant Venus on both passes." Kevin Roderick at LA Observed finds good info on the station's passing on the LBReport. more ›

Since Thanksgiving night, Jupiter and Venus have been in our skies for our viewing pleasure. Tonight will be the "most attractive," says Anthony Cook of the Griffith Observatory Sky Report. The two planets will appear close together--about the width of your finger when you stretch your arm out--with the moon 4 degrees--or about two finger widths--to the upper right. The planets will set around 7:40 p.m. more ›

If you're into planet watching, the next time this will happen is on Nov. 18, 2052. So best to take advantage this weekend: more ›

A tipster sends this over about what you might see and hear tonight: "There's a Vandenberg Air Force Base missile launch tonight at 7:28 PM. With south trajectory, should be very visible in and around Los Angeles." The base, located south of San Luis Obispo, is delivering an Italian satellite into space. If you see it, the vapor trails should be good for some photo fodder (hint, hint, join our LAist Featured Photos pool on Flickr!) more ›

The LAist tipster who saw something from his Beverly Hills office window wasn't the only person to see the fireball. While few reports came in the Los Angeles area (the LAFD told LAist there were zero 911 calls), most calls came in from Riverside and San Bernardino counties. A San Bernardino County dispatch supervisor told the LA Times that "fire crews in Barstow and on I-15 near Stateline came up on the radio and reported an object in the sky moving very fast across the northern sky and described it as yellowish green in color with streaks of debris. It looked like it burned up before it hit the ground." The FAA reports no planes missing and officials searching for any sign of impact are not finding anything yet. more ›

Ducks 4, Red Wings 3 - Everybody thought hockey in Orange County was like a snowball in hell: Funny to say, totally unrealistic, and full of cliche (remember those "Mighty" days?). Well, it's starting to get a little chilly down south. The Ducks knocked of the "Mighty" Red Wings in six games, surviving a three goal scoring barrage by Detroit in the third period. Anaheim will host the Ottawa Senators in game one of the... more ›