NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is an independent agency of the U.S. federal government responsible for the civilian space program, as well as aeronautics and space research.
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Portrait of retired NASA astronaut Joe Engle wearing flight suit in front of an X-15 fighter circa 1963. Retired NASA astronaut and U.S. Air Force Maj. Gen. Joe Engle died July 10, surrounded by his family at home in Houston. Among his many honors, he is the only astronaut to pilot both the X-15 and space shuttle. He was 91. Engle became an astronaut at age 32 while flying the X-15 for the U.S. Air Force, becoming the youngest pilot ever to qualify as an astronaut. When selected as a NASA astronaut candidate in 1966, he was the only person selected that was already engaged in spaceflight operations. He was the last surviving X-15 pilot. “A natural pilot, Gen. Jo…
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A few days before they left Skylab on Feb. 8, 1974, the final crew to occupy the station raised its altitude, hoping to keep it in orbit until a future space shuttle could revisit it. But higher than predicted solar activity caused the Earth’s atmosphere to expand, increasing drag on the large vehicle, causing its orbit to decay faster than expected. In 1978, controllers reactivated the station and changed its attitude, hoping to keep it in orbit as long as possible by reducing atmospheric drag. In the meantime, delays in the space shuttle’s development eventually made it impossible for a shuttle to revisit Skylab before it reentered the Earth’s atmosphere. On July 11, 19…
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“We have a group photo of my first project here, ASTRO-H, and that one means a lot to me because I came [to that NASA project] fresh off the street. I was super scared and intimidated. It was me and three other [technicians], who were also all new, and a handful of very seasoned scientists and engineers. And we came together. “And we actually came in — I believe — under budget, ahead of schedule, and exceeded all expectations for our test results. That’s kind of unheard of, you know what I mean? We had such a good environment in the lab. Everybody got along so well. It was all teamwork. And everything just gelled. “So when I look back on that photo from 14 years…
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NASA/Eric Bordelon Team members are installing pedestals aboard NASA’s Pegasus barge to hold and secure the massive core stage of NASA’s SLS (Space Launch System) rocket, indicating NASA barge crews are nearly ready for its first delivery to support the Artemis II test flight around the Moon. The barge will ferry the core stage on a 900-mile journey from the agency’s Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans to its Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The Pegasus crew began installing the pedestals July 10.The barge, which previously was used to ferry space shuttle external tanks, was modified and refurbished to compensate for the much larger and heavier core stage for t…
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Cosmic Road Trip: four distinct composite images from NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory and the James Webb Space Telescope, presented in a two-by-two grid, Rho Ophiuchi at lower right, the heart of the Orion Nebula at upper right, the galaxy NGC 3627 at lower left and the galaxy cluster MACS J0416.X-ray: NASA/CXC/SAO; Optical/Infrared: (Hubble) NASA/ESA/STScI; IR: (JWST) NASA/ESA/CSA/STScI It’s time to take a cosmic road trip using light as the highway and visit four stunning destinations across space. The vehicles for this space get-away are NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory and James Webb Space Telescope. The first stop on this tour is the closest, Rho Ophiuchi, at …
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“I did not know that NASA Langley was right here in my own backyard. I was born and raised in Portsmouth, Virginia, and NASA Langley is in Hampton, about 45 minutes away. All throughout elementary school, I didn’t know that NASA was here. I always thought NASA was in Florida or Texas or somewhere. “I was in this summer program [in eighth grade], learning physics at the university. I vividly remember we had a guest speaker. He was an African American mechanical engineer and he had on the blue flight suit. And he said he worked at NASA, and it just blew my mind. “And at that point, I saw myself in him. I didn’t even know that NASA was here, so close to me, and I hadn’t se…
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When the first humans travel to the Red Planet, they will need to know how to repair and maintain equipment, grow their own food, and stay healthy, all while contending with Earth-to-Mars communication delays. They must also find ways to build comradery and have fun. The first all-volunteer CHAPEA (Crew Health and Performance Exploration Analog) crew accomplished all of that and more during their 378-day analog mission on the surface of Mars. Living in the isolated Mars Dune Alpha, a 3D-printed, 1,700-square-foot habitat, crew members Kelly Haston, Ross Brockwell, Nathan Jones, and Anca Selariu faced the rigors of a simulated Mars expedition, enduring…
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5 Min Read NASA’s Hubble Traces Dark Matter in Dwarf Galaxy Using Stellar Motions This NASA Hubble Space Telescope image reveals a section of the Draco dwarf galaxy. Credits: NASA, ESA, Eduardo Vitral, Roeland van der Marel, and Sangmo Tony Sohn (STScI); Image processing: Joseph DePasquale (STScI) The qualities and behavior of dark matter, the invisible “glue” of the universe, continue to be shrouded in mystery. Though galaxies are mostly made of dark matter, understanding how it is distributed within a galaxy offers clues to what this substance is, and how it’s relevant to a galaxy’s evolution. While computer simulatio…
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1 min read Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) NASA’s Glenn Research Center civil servant retirees are invited to attend the 2024 Summerfest! Wednesday, Aug. 7, 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Along Taylor Road at Lewis Field For more information or to RSVP, contact Kathy Clark at 216–433–8354 or kathy.m.clark@nasa.gov Registration closes: July 26 Credit: NASA Return to Newsletter View the full article
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The Office of the General Counsel provides functional leadership regarding legal services and issues related to all aspects of NASA activities for Center Chief and Patent Counsel and, for Agency-wide issues, the Administrator. These services and issues include establishing and disseminating legal policy and interpreting new statutes and cases. The Office of the General Counsel is also responsible for developing the ethics and patent program requirements, establishing metrics, and developing quality standards. As a functional office Associate Administrator, the General Counsel serves in an advisory capacity to the Administrator, and works with Enterprise Associate Adm…
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ESA’s (European Space Agency) Ariane 6 rocket launches NASA’s CURIE CubeSat from Europe’s Spacesport, the Guiana Space Center in Kourou, French Guiana on Tuesday, July 9, 2024. Photo credit: ESA/S. Corvaja NASA launched CURIE (CubeSat Radio Interferometry Experiment) as a rideshare payload on the inaugural flight of ESA’s (European Space Agency) Ariane 6 rocket, which launched at 4 p.m. GFT on July 9 from Europe’s Spaceport, the Guiana Space Center in Kourou, in French Guiana. Designed by a team from the University of California, Berkeley, CURIE will use radio interferometry to study the primary drivers of space weather. CubeSats are built using standardized un…
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15 Min Read The Marshall Star for July 10, 2024 NASA Moon Rocket Stage for Artemis II Moved, Prepped for Shipment NASA is preparing the SLS (Space Launch System) rocket core stage that will help power the first crewed mission of NASA’s Artemis campaign for shipment. On July 6, NASA and Boeing, the core stage lead contractor, moved the Artemis II rocket stage to another part of the agency’s Michoud Assembly Facility. The move comes as teams prepare to roll the massive rocket stage to the agency’s Pegasus barge for delivery to NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in mid-July. On July 6, NASA…
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5 min read Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) An aerial view of Palmyra Atoll, where animal tracking data now being studied by NASA’s Internet of Animals project was collected using wildlife tags by partners at The Nature Conservancy, the U.S. Geological Survey, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and several universities.The Nature Conservancy/Kydd Pollock Anchoring the boat in a sandbar, research scientist Morgan Gilmour steps into the shallows and is immediately surrounded by sharks. The warm waters around the tropical island act as a reef shark nursery, and these baby biters are curious about the newcomer. They zoo…
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Several transient luminous events illuminate pockets of Earth’s upper atmosphere. A line of thunderstorms off the coast of South Africa powers the rare phenomena. NASA/Matthew Dominick NASA astronaut Matthew Dominick photographed red sprites in Earth’s upper atmosphere from the International Space Station on June 3, 2024. The bright red flashes (more easily seen by clicking on the photo to see a larger version) are a less understood phenomena associated with powerful lightning events and appear high above the clouds in the mesosphere. Transient Luminous Events (TLEs), including red sprites, are colorful bursts of energy that appear above storms as a result of lightning …
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NASA Deputy Administrator Pam Melroy gives keynote remarks during the 37th Space Symposium, April 5, 2022, in Colorado Springs, Colorado.Credits: NASA/Bill Ingalls NASA Deputy Administrator Pam Melroy will visit Japan and the Republic of Korea beginning Thursday, July 11, to underscore the critical role of international cooperation in advancing space exploration and technology development. During her week-long visit to the region, Melroy will engage with ministers and other senior government officials in both countries, including leaders from JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) and KASA (Korea AeroSpace Administration) to strengthen partnerships and highlight …
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Curiosity Navigation Curiosity Mission Overview Where is Curiosity? Mission Updates Science Overview Instruments Highlights Exploration Goals News and Features Multimedia Curiosity Raw Images Mars Resources Mars Missions Mars Sample Return Mars Perseverance Rover Mars Curiosity Rover MAVEN Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter Mars Odyssey More Mars Missions All Planets Mercury Venus Earth Mars Jupiter Saturn Uranus Neptune Pluto & Dwarf Planets 2 min read Sols 4239-4240: ‘Vuggin’ Out’ NASA’s Mars rover Curiosity acquired this image of a target named “Glacier Notch” on July 6, 2024, Sol 4236 of the Mars Science Laboratory Mission, at 16:55:0…
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4 Min Read NASA’s Hubble Finds Strong Evidence for Intermediate-Mass Black Hole in Omega Centauri This NASA Hubble Space Telescope image features the globular star cluster, Omega Centauri. Credits: ESA/Hubble, NASA, Maximilian Häberle (MPIA) Most known black holes are either extremely massive, like the supermassive black holes that lie at the cores of large galaxies, or relatively lightweight, with a mass of under 100 times that of the Sun. Intermediate-mass black holes (IMBHs) are scarce, however, and are considered rare “missing links” in black hole evolution. Now, an international team of astronomers has used more t…
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NASA Administrator Bill Nelson delivers remarks during an event with Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra to highlight how the agencies are making progress toward the Biden Cancer Moonshot on March 21 in the Earth Information Center at the Mary W. Jackson NASA Headquarters building in Washington. NASA is working with agencies and researchers across the federal government to help cut the nation’s cancer death rate by at least 50% in the next 25 years, a goal of the Cancer Moonshot Initiative.Credits: NASA/Keegan Barber As part of the Biden Cancer Moonshot, NASA will virtually host an event at 2 p.m. EDT Thursday, July 11, to highlight how the …
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The inaugural CHAPEA (Crew Health and Performance Exploration Analog) crew is “back on Earth” after walking out of their simulated Martian habitat at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston on July 6. The first of three simulated missions, CHAPEA Mission 1 was designed to help scientists, engineers, and mission planners better understand how living on another world could affect human health and performance. Kelly Haston, commander, Ross Brockwell, flight engineer, Nathan Jones, medical officer, and Anca Selariu, science officer, lived and worked in an isolated 1,700-square-foot, 3D-printed habitat to support human health and performance research to prepare for future m…
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On July 8, 1994, space shuttle Columbia took to the skies on its 17th trip into space, on the second International Microgravity Laboratory (IML-2) mission. Six space agencies sponsored 82 life and microgravity science experiments. The seven-person crew consisted of Commander Robert D. Cabana, Pilot James D. Halsell, Payload Commander Richard J. Hieb, Mission Specialists Carl E. Walz, Leroy Chiao, and Donald A. Thomas, and Payload Specialist Chiaki Mukai representing the National Space Development Agency (NASDA) of Japan, now the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency. Jean-Jacques H. Favier of the French space agency CNES served as a backup payload specialist. During their th…
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4 min read Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) The biofilm mitigation research team at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center assembled its own test stand to undertake a multi-month assessment of a variety of natural and chemical compounds and strategies for eradicating biofilm accretion caused by bacteria and fungi in the wastewater tank assembly on the International Space Station. Testing will help NASA extend the lifecycle of water reclamation and recycling hardware and ensure astronauts can sustain clean, healthy water supplies on long-duration missions in space and on other worlds.NASA/Eric Beitle A small group of scientists on the bi…
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View of Gateway’s Habitation and Logistics Outpost (HALO) at a Thales Alenia Space facility in Turin, Italy.Thales Alenia Space An interplay of light and shadows cast the docking ports for Gateway, humanity’s first space station around the Moon, into sharp relief. Built by NASA commercial partner Northrup Grumman, HALO (Habitation and Logistics Outpost), is one of four modules where international teams of astronauts will live, conduct science, and prepare for missions to the lunar South Pole region. The module’s main structure is currently undergoing testing in Turin, Italy. One docking port seen inside HALO, image right, is where a cargo spacecraft and Gateway’s L…
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Girls United co-founder Rechelle Dennis, left, continues a conversation about how to become a shining star in the face of adversity with NASA Assistant Deputy Associate Administrator for the Moon to Mars Program Office Lakiesha Hawkins, center, and NASA Director of Engagement Aya Collins at the Take Up Space (Literally) panel conversation during the 30th annual ESSENCE Fest in New Orleans on July 5. NASA/Danny Nowlin NASA joined the self-designated “party with a purpose” to let participants in the 30th ESSENCE Festival of Culture in New Orleans know there is space for everybody at the space agency. NASA representatives from the agency’s Headquarters in Washington pa…
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2 min read Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) In Orbiter Processing Facility-2 at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, Michael Williams of United Space Alliance paints the NASA logo — known as the “meatball” — on the left wing of space shuttle Endeavour in 2012.Credit: NASA/Dimitri Gerondidakis NASA’s logo turns 65 on Monday, July 15, and media are invited to its birthday celebration in Cleveland, the city where the iconic symbol was designed. To mark the logo’s birthday, NASA’s Glenn Research Center in Cleveland will host a series of activities celebrating the city’s connection to one of the most recognized logos in the world f…
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1 min read Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) Tim Campbell, a NASA solar system ambassador, shares highlights of a moon rock with visitors inside the Journey to Tomorrow traveling exhibit. Credit: NASA/Christopher Hartenstine NASA’s Glenn Research Center staff traveled to Michigan for the Selfridge Air National Guard Base air show, open house, and STEAM Expo, June 8 and 9. NASA’s Journey to Tomorrow, a 53-foot traveling exhibit, was a popular feature that showcased exploration in air and space. Additionally, experts from NASA’s Fission Surface Power project shared information on the agency’s current and future work in this area. L…
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