With thanks from the New Scientist website, here are ten great space stories of the past year:

1. Spooky deep space images recall Halloween at its finest.
2. Speculation that the "big bang" was really a "big bounce"
3. Life found in extreme conditions on Earth suggests where to look elsewhere in the Solar System
4. Phoenix lander finds water ice on Mars
5. New insights into what makes a planet habitable expands our search for extraterrestrial life
6. Scientists spot asteroid on collision course with Earth
7. Largest black hole discovered (so far)
8. Did Earth have other moons?
9. What new particle did physicists discover at the Tevatron?
10. What's so special about the Earth's cosmic neighborhood?

Enjoy!

Is this cool or what? (Give the gray box a minute to load the movie, it's a long way from the moon to your computer...)

A few days ago Comet Holmes was a dim blip in the night sky, registering a paltry magnitude 18 invisible to the naked eye. However, on October 24 this object suddenly brightened considerably to a 2.8 magnitude, easily visible in the constellation Perseus.

This is not the first time Comet Holmes, aka 17P, has pulled this mysterious brightening act. Back in November 1892 its sudden brightening helped amateur astronomer Edwin Holmes discover it.

Experts expect Comet Holmes to remain bright for the next several nights. Look for it to grow from a star-like point to a more familiar comet shape as it moves slowly westward across Perseus. (Just look under his sword elbow as seen in our Perseus illustration.)

(For astronomy buffs, that should be right ascension 3h 53m, declination +50.1 degrees.)