2012: The year in space

24 December 2012

News image — A seagull captured in shadow as the planet Venus crossed in front of the Sun in June. The next transit of Venus isn’t expected until December 2117. (Copyright: AFP/Getty Images)

AFP/Getty Images A seagull captured in shadow as the planet Venus crossed in front of the Sun in June. The next transit of Venus isn’t expected until December 2117. (Copyright: AFP/Getty Images) — A seagull captured in shadow as the planet Venus crossed in front of the Sun in June. The next transit of Venus isn’t expected until December 2117. (Copyright: AFP/Getty Images)

A collection of some of the year's best space images, from Curiosity Rover's mission to Mars to the swansong for a space exploration legend.

More amazing image galleries of the year:

The year in technology

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The life-or-death plan to evacuate a space station

Astronauts orbiting the Earth are drilled to deal with the worst possible scenarios. That includes having to leave a doomed space station – quickly.

4 days ago

28 Dec 2025

A black-and-white image of Mercury partly in shadow captured by the Messenger spacecraft (Credit: Nasa)

The planet that shouldn't exist

Mercury has long baffled astronomers because it defies much of what we know about planet formation. A new space mission arriving in 2026 might solve the mystery.

28 Dec 2025

24 Dec 2025

The Pacific Ocean seen from the ISS in orbit (Credit: Don Pettit/ Nasa)

The ISS: 25 years in 25 numbers

The International Space Station (ISS) is humanity's most expensive object and has been in orbit for 25 years. Read its fascinating history, told in 25 numbers.

24 Dec 2025

21 Dec 2025

The ancient monuments saluting the winter solstice

Dozens of mysterious structures across the Northern Hemisphere – some nearly 5,000 years old – align precisely to frame the rising and setting Sun on midwinter's shortest day.

21 Dec 2025

28 Nov 2025

The photograph is a high-resolution 3D close-up view of the planet Mars showing its rugged surface, reddish terrain, and detailed geological features

Lightning detected on Mars for the first time, scientists say

Researchers heard electric crackles on 28 hours of recordings made over two Martian years.

28 Nov 2025

2012: The year in space

Listen to the Sun like never before

Astronaut Peggy Whitson: How space changed my body

See Nasa's spectacular new images of Jupiter

The science behind the 'mini moon' entering Earth's orbit

New Nasa sonifications: Listen to the sound of the Universe

Are inflatable habitats the future of life in space?

We're about to witness a once-in-a-lifetime star explosion

This is why Venus is bone dry

Why space isn't as colourful as photos make it seem

Eclipse 2024: What makes it so special?

The eclipse that proved Einstein right

Three unsolved mysteries of the Moon

The age of the Universe might be drastically wrong

Fermi Paradox: Are we alone in the Universe?

Vladimir Komarov: The cosmonaut who fell to Earth

The 'Great Moon Hoax' that fooled the world

Why Mars-bound astronauts may go to Iceland first

Three women who changed the way we see the Universe

The man who 'killed' Pluto

The objects that show physics we don't understand

The life-or-death plan to evacuate a space station

The planet that shouldn't exist

The ISS: 25 years in 25 numbers

The ancient monuments saluting the winter solstice

Lightning detected on Mars for the first time, scientists say