Contributor Posts

My mind is racing,
my tongue stuck in neutral.
Good thing, for who knows
what will spill from this old mind.

NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day:

In 1716, English astronomer Edmond Halley noted, "This is but a little Patch, but it shows itself to the naked Eye, when the Sky is serene and the Moon absent." Of course, M13 is now less modestly recognized as the Great Globular Cluster in Hercules, one of the brightest globular star clusters in the northern sky. Sharp telescopic views like this one reveal the spectacular cluster's hundreds of thousands of stars. At a distance of 25,000 light-years, the cluster stars crowd into a region 150 light-years in diameter. Approaching the cluster core, upwards of 100 stars could be contained in a cube just 3 light-years on a side. For comparison, the closest star to the Sun is over 4 light-years away. The remarkable range of brightness recorded in this image follows stars into the dense cluster core.

Photo by Serge Brunier, Jean-François Bax, David Vernet

September has long been shaped by decisions and events that redefine nations and ideas. In 1787, delegates signed the U.S. Constitution. In 1862, Lincoln issued the Preliminary Emancipation Proclamation. More than a century later, Google was founded in 1998, helping launch the modern digital era.

Some Septembers bring political transformation. Others bring scientific advancement or cultural change. Across continents and centuries, the month reflects pivotal decisions, emerging technologies, and events that continue to influence global society.

Explore the full collection of Today in History events that occurred in September, or navigate directly to a specific day—from September 1 through September 30—to see what happened on this day in history.

Trace the timeline to uncover how September’s defining events continue to shape the world today.

NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day:

Not the James Webb Space Telescope's latest view of a distant galactic nebula, this illuminated cloud of gas and dust dazzled early morning spacecoast skygazers on August 26. The snapshot was taken about 2 minutes after the launch of of a Falcon 9 rocket on the SpaceX Crew-7 mission, the seventh commercial crew rotation mission for the International Space Station. It captures drifting plumes and exhaust from the separated first and second stage illuminated against the still dark skies. Near the center of the image, within the ragged blueish ring, are two bright points of light. The lower one is the second stage of the rocket carrying 4 humans to space in a Crew Dragon spacecraft. The bright point above is the Falcon 9 first stage booster orienting itself for the trip back to Landing Zone-1 at Cape Canaveral, planet Earth.

Photo by Michael Seeley

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I'm lost,
not alone,
somewhere in space,
between my ears,
behind my face.

So, this is what it's like
living alone.
Solo at Starbucks, at the
Crossroad Mall.
Dinner at a Chinese Restaurant,
no one else at the table.

So many people, moving about,
makes me want to stand up
and yell, "Can I get a hug?"
Crazy? Sure, it is, but also,
the reality of this new life, mine.

Running up hill, breathing hard,
short steps with sighs.
Salty sweat gets
in his eyes.

When running I would carry
a small sponge, wet.
I would use this to keep the
sweat from getting in my eyes.

When you were at a water station
I would drink, then rinse the sponge.
Learned to do this after running
my first marathon.

Desert stories
of blowing sand,
telling of a love mystery,
of the desert and

saying who we were,
whence we came.
Why would these stories
be considered lame?

No time for love.
No time for hate.
Lost in this mucked up life,
as I worry about my beloved.

When will she no longer smile,
when she sees me?
I want to know....but then I don't.