| When 3200 Phaethon sweeps past Earth | | | This mysterious rock-comet is the parent body of this week's Geminid meteor shower. It'll brush closely past Earth on December 16, just a few nights after the Geminids' peak. Will 2017 be a fantastic year for the Geminids? | | |
| Don't miss the Geminids in 2017 | | | Meteor showers are part of nature and so inherently unpredictable. But - because 3200 Phaethon is nearby - the 2017 Geminids might be awesome! Peak mornings December 13 and 14. | | |
California in flames | | | A compilation of images from space, a map, and links to more stories about California's wildfires, December 2017. | | |
| Star of the week: Menkar | | | It's not the most famous star in Cetus the Whale, or the brightest. But Menkar has its own claims to fame. | | |
| Tonight … See a celestial Chariot | | | The constellation Auriga the Charioteer also has several easy-to-find and very famous star clusters that you can spot with binoculars. | | |
