Astronomy

Take a look at the sun through our historic Zeiss refracting telescope and learn more about telescopes and astronomy
(Weather Permitting)

The night sky is available to everyone, everywhere, without special equipment. Learn how!

Curious about what the weather is like in space? Discover the current conditions in the Solar System.

Can you imagine being able to remotely measure seismic activity on another planet? NASA’s InSight mission launched this weekend to do just that! 

Learn More

See what NASA's rovers on the surface of Mars are looking at with the daily download of raw imagery from the Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

See what the world looks like live from the International Space Station.

View current conditions on our local star straight from NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory.

Explore the night sky with cutting-edge astronomical presentations in our awe-inspiring planetarium.

Discover amazing works of Astrophotography with NASA's Astronomy Picture of the Day project.

Hale's research made enlightening discoveries about sun spots and what causes them.

Look to the sky and discover the wonders of outer space in The Franklin Institute's Space Command exhibit!

Hubble spent much of his career scouring the cosmos and indeed made some expansive discoveries.

For many Philadelphians, Derrick Pitts is The Franklin Institute. Since 1978, Derrick has been teaching us to look up—and to wonder about what we see up there.

Join us for Night Skies at Home!

On the first Thursday of the month, explore the night skies with everyone's favorite astronomer!
Check our calendar for upcoming opportunities.

Shapley helped us better realize the Milky Way's size and where we fit in this infinite universe.

Einstein revolutionized how we think of space and definitely made waves in the field of theoretical physics.

Learn about five foods that astronauts can't eat in space. Make sure you know what foods not to pack when you go on your space expedition!

Learn about solar and lunar eclipses straight from The Franklin Institute and Chief Astronomer Derrick Pitts through our Eclipse portal. Learn More

After 20 years in space, NASA's Cassini Mission to Saturn has come to a close. Learn about the spacecraft and its impact on astronomy from The Franklin Institute's Chief Astronomer, Derrick Pitts.

Scientists first detected Gravitational Waves in 2016. Read this article from The Franklin Institute’s Chief Astronomer, Derrick Pitts, to understand why this discovery matters to you.

Gaze at the sky and see the stars right from the middle of Philadelphia! Weather permitting.

Find out when you can catch a glimpse of the International Space Station as it orbits above the planet Earth.

The Perseid meteor shower peaks each year in early to mid-August.

An engineering model of the Lunar Module used by the Apollo astronauts has resided in The Franklin Institute's Science Park since 1976.