Best Space Photos of the Week - April 19, 2014

Milky Way Above the New Technology Telescope

ESO/B.Tafreshi

Choose your language: La Silla Poses for an Ultra HD Shoot La Silla Poses for an Ultra HD Shoot Click to Enlarge A curtain of stars surrounds the 3.58-metre New Technology Telescope (NTT) in this new Ultra High Definition photograph from the ESO Ultra HD Expedition. Image released April 14, 2014. [See More Amazing Space Stories]

Found! First Earth-Size Planet That Could Support Life

NASA Ames/SETI Institute/JPL-CalTech

For the first time, scientists have discovered an Earth-size alien planet in the habitable zone of its host star, an "Earth cousin" that just might have liquid water and the right conditions for life. [Read the story.]

SpaceX Launches Robotic Cargo Mission to Space Station

SpaceX

SpaceX launched a robotic capsule into orbit today (April 18), kicking off the company's third contracted cargo mission to the International Space Station for NASA, along with an ambitious rocket reusability test. [Read the story.]

Total Lunar Eclipse from Florida

Ben Cooper

Photographer Ben Cooper captured the phases of the total lunar eclipse on April 15, 2014 from Florida. [See More Amazing Photos of the April 15 Total Lunar Eclipse]

NASA Spacecraft Spies Mars Rover Curiosity at 'Mount Remarkable' from Space

NASA/JPL-Caltech/Univ. of Arizona

A spacecraft circling the Red Planet has spotted NASA's Mars rover Curiosity hard at work on the Martian surface. [Read the story.]

Rosy Cosmic Cloud Glows with Stars in New Telescope View

ESO

A distant group of hot, young stars cause a cloud of hydrogen gas to glow a rosy red 7,300 light-years from Earth in the latest amazing view from a telescope in Chile. [Read the story.]

Self-Portrait by Freshly Cleaned Opportunity Mars Rover, False Color

NASA/JPL-Caltech/Cornell Univ./Arizona State Univ.

A self-portrait of NASA's Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity taken by the rover's panoramic camera (Pancam) shows effects of recent winds removing much of the dust from the solar arrays. This version of the image is presented in false color to make differences in surface materials easier to see. Image released April 17, 2014. [See more photos.]

SpaceX's Falcon 9 Rocket and Rainbow

collectSPACE.com/Robert Z. Pearlman

A rainbow extends from the horizon behind SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket poised to launch a Dragon capsule to the International Space Station from Launch Complex 40 at the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida on April 14, 2014. [See More SpaceX Launch and Mission Photos Here]

Total Lunar Eclipse from Grant's Grove: Ryan Watamura

Ryan Watamura

Photographer Ryan Watamura captured this amazing photo of the total lunar eclipse on April 15, 2014 from Grant's Grove in Kings Canyon National Park in California using a Canon EOS 1dx camera, 70-200 2.8L IS II, Canon 600EX-RT flash with a CTO gel. [See More Amazing Photos of the April 15 Total Lunar Eclipse]

Kepler-186f Artist Illustration

Danielle Futselaar

This artist illustration shows what it might be like to stand on the surface of the planet Kepler-186f, the first-ever Earth-size planet to be found in the habitable zone of its star. [Read the story.]

A Cross-Section of the Universe

NASA/ESA

An image of a galaxy cluster taken by the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope gives a remarkable cross-section of the Universe, showing objects at different distances and stages in cosmic history. They range from cosmic near neighbours to objects seen in the early years of the Universe. The 14-hour exposure shows objects around a billion times fainter than can be seen with the naked eye. [See more photos.]

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Space.com is the premier source of space exploration, innovation and astronomy news, chronicling (and celebrating) humanity's ongoing expansion across the final frontier. Originally founded in 1999, Space.com is, and always has been, the passion of writers and editors who are space fans and also trained journalists. Our current news team consists of Editor-in-Chief Tariq Malik; Editor Hanneke Weitering, Senior Space Writer Mike Wall; Senior Writer Meghan Bartels; Senior Writer Chelsea Gohd, Senior Writer Tereza Pultarova and Staff Writer Alexander Cox, focusing on e-commerce. Senior Producer Steve Spaleta oversees our space videos, with Diana Whitcroft as our Social Media Editor.