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By NASA
4 Min Read Science Meets Art: NASA Astronaut Don Pettit Turns the Camera on Science
NASA astronaut Don Pettit is scheduled to return home in mid-April after a seven-month mission aboard the International Space Station as part of Expedition 72. Throughout his stay, Pettit contributed to research that benefits humanity and future space missions.
Pettit also shared what he calls “science of opportunity” to demonstrate how experimenting with our surroundings can help gain a better understanding of how things work. This understanding is perhaps enhanced when art, science, and microgravity come together.
Electrostatic Displays
NASA astronaut Don Pettit demonstrates electrostatic forces using charged water droplets and a knitting needle made of Teflon. This series of overlapping frames displays the unique attraction-repulsion properties of Teflon and charged droplets, similar to how charged particles from the Sun behave when they come in contact with Earth’s magnetic field. Highly energetic particles from space that collide with atoms and molecules in the atmosphere create the aurora borealis.
Specialized Equipment for Superb Science
NASA astronaut Don Pettit snaps an image of the hands of NASA astronauts Nick Hague, left, and Suni Williams inside the Life Science Glovebox, a facility at the International Space Station that separates the science from the scientists, thus protecting both from contamination.
The freezers on the International Space Station are as crucial as its experiment modules, preserving samples for further analysis on Earth. The Minus Eighty-Degree Laboratory Freezer for International Space Station stores samples at ultra-cold temperatures. NASA astronaut Don Pettit used it to freeze thin ice wafers, which he photographed with a polarizing filter to reveal unique crystal structures.
New Tech Roll-Out
NASA astronaut Don Pettit films a time-lapse sequence of Canadarm2 retrieving Materials International Space Station Experiment (MISSE-20-Commercial) samples at the International Space Station. This investigation exposed various experiments to the harsh space environment, such as vacuum, radiation, and extreme temperatures. Findings could help in many areas, from designing more durable materials to advancing quantum communications.
A surge in International Space Station research supports NASA’s exploration efforts at the Moon and beyond, requiring more energy to operate the orbiting laboratory. NASA astronaut Don Pettit photographs new and old solar arrays side by side. The technology used by the International Space Station Roll-Out Solar Arrays (IROSA) on the right was first tested aboard the station in 2017. By 2023, six IROSAs were deployed aboard station, providing a 20-30% increase in power for research and operations. Roll-Out Solar Arrays were also used on NASA’s DART asteroid mission and now are slated for the Gateway lunar outpost, a vital component of Artemis.
Squire for Spacewalks
I am the nameless boy who stays in the confines of the tent helping the Knights suit up for battle. I remain in the airlock, preparing these knights for a walk outside.
Don Pettit
"Space Squire" posted to X
NASA astronaut Don Pettit helped his colleagues suit up for two spacewalks in January. The first spacewalk involved patching the Neutron Star Interior Composition Explorer (NICER), a telescope that measures X-rays from neutron stars and other cosmic objects. Sunlight interference affected data collection, and the patches reduced this issue. On the second spacewalk, astronauts collected samples from the exterior of the International Space Station for ISS External Microorganisms. This investigation examines whether the orbiting laboratory releases microbes, how many, and how far these may travel. Findings could inform the design of future spacecraft, including spacesuits, to limit biocontamination during future space missions.
Photography with a Spin
NASA astronaut Don Pettit photographs “cosmic colors at sunrise.” From 250 miles above, the International Space Station’s orbital path covers most of Earth’s population, offering valuable data and a great opportunity for shooting breathtaking photography.
NASA astronaut Don Pettit leveraged his stay aboard the International Space Station to photograph our planet with an artistic twist.
NASA astronaut Don Pettit wrote on social media about his snapshot of the Mediterranean Sea from the International Space Station, “Sun glint off the Mediterranean Sea (infrared and converted to black and white). When the Sun reflects off the ocean, watery details unseen with normal lighting appear. Small centimeter differences in ocean height become visible, revealing hidden currents.”
NASA astronaut Don Pettit’s photography could contribute to the study of transient luminous events, colorful electrical discharges that occur above thunderstorms. His imagery can be paired with data from the Atmosphere-Space Interactions Monitor (ASIM) and Thor-Davis, a high-speed thunderstorm camera. The combined efforts of crew photography and instruments aboard the International Space Station help scientists better understand thunderstorms and their impacts on Earth’s upper atmosphere.
More of Pettit’s photography can be found on his X profile, @astro_Pettit.
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Last Updated Apr 17, 2025 Related Terms
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By European Space Agency
Video: 00:02:14 On 12 March 2025, ESA’s Hera spacecraft soared just 5000 km above Mars and passed within 300 km of its distant moon, Deimos. Captured by Hera’s 1020x1020 pixel Asteroid Framing Camera, this video sequence offers a rare view of the red planet and its enigmatic moon. The original greyscale images have been colour-enhanced based on known surface features.
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By USH
What are the chances of four iconic landmarks being struck by lightning on the same day?
On December 31, 2024, an extraordinary series of lightning strikes hit four major landmarks: the U.S. Capitol Building and the Washington Monument in Washington, D.C., along with the Empire State Building and One World Trade Center in New York City.
The lightning strikes occurred during intense rainstorms along the East Coast, coinciding with New Year's Eve celebrations. The rare phenomenon quickly ignited a flurry of speculation on social media, with many users interpreting the event as symbolic. Some called it a potential omen, asking: "Is this a sign? What could it mean?" View the full article
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By NASA
Earth (ESD) Earth Explore Climate Change Science in Action Multimedia Data For Researchers About Us 6 min read
NASA Flights Map Critical Minerals from Skies Above Western US
Various minerals are revealed in vibrant detail in this sample mineral map of Cuprite, Nevada, following processing of imaging spectrometer data. USGS On a crystal-clear afternoon above a desert ghost town, a NASA aircraft scoured the ground for minerals.
The plane, a high-altitude ER-2 research aircraft, had taken off early that morning from NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California. Below pilot Dean Neeley, the landscape looked barren and brown. But to the optical sensors installed on the plane’s belly and wing, it gleamed in hundreds of colors.
Neeley’s flight that day was part of GEMx, the Geological Earth Mapping Experiment led by NASA and the U.S. Geological Survey to map critical minerals across more than 190,000 square miles (500,000 square kilometers) of North American soil. Using airborne instruments, scientists are collecting these measurements over parts of California, Nevada, Arizona, and Oregon. That’s an area about the size of Spain.
An ER-2 science aircraft banks away during a flight over the southern Sierra Nevada. The high-altitude plane supports a wide variety of research missions, including the GEMx campaign, which is mapping critical minerals in the Western U.S. using advanced airborne imaging developed by NASA. Credit: NASA/Carla Thomas Lithium, aluminum, rare earth elements such as neodymium and cerium — these are a few of the 50 mineral commodities deemed essential to U.S. national security, to the tech industry, and to clean energy. They support a wide range of technologies from smartphones to steelmaking, from wind turbines to electric vehicle batteries. In 2023, the U.S. imported its entire supply of 12 of these minerals and imported at least 50% of its supply of another 29.
The GEMx team believes that undiscovered deposits of at least some of these minerals exist domestically, and modern mineral maps will support exploration by the private sector.
“We’ve been exploring the earth beneath our feet for hundreds of years, and we’re discovering that we’ve only just begun,” said Kevin Reath, NASA’s associate project manager for GEMx.
The View From 65,000 Feet
To jumpstart mineral exploration, USGS is leading a nationwide survey from the inside out, using tools like lidar and magnetic-radiometric sensors to probe ancient terrain in new detail.
The collaboration with NASA brings another tool to bear: imaging spectrometers. These advanced optical instruments need to stay cold as they fly high. From cryogenic vacuum chambers on planes or spacecraft, they detect hundreds of wavelengths of light — from the visible to shortwave infrared — reflected off planetary surfaces. The technology is now being used to help identify surface minerals across dry, treeless expanses of the Western U.S.
Every molecule reflects a unique pattern of light, like a fingerprint. Processed through a spectroscopic lens, a desert expanse can appear like an oil painting popping with different colorful minerals, including pale-green mica, blue kaolinite, and plummy gypsum.
“We’re not digging for gold. We’re revealing what’s hidden in plain sight,” said Robert Green, a researcher at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California, who helped pioneer spectroscopic imaging at NASA JPL in the late 1970s. Like many of the scientists involved with GEMx, he has spent years surveying other worlds, including the Moon and Mars.
A handful of such instruments exist on Earth, and Green is in charge of two of them. One, called EMIT (Earth Surface Mineral Dust Source Investigation) flies aboard the International Space Station. Surveying Earth’s surface from about 250 miles (410 kilometers) above, EMIT has captured thousands of images at a resolution of 50 by 50 miles (80 by 80 kilometers) in a wide belt around Earth’s mid-section.
The other instrument rides beneath the fuselage of the ER-2 aircraft. Called AVIRIS (Airborne Visible/Infrared Imaging Spectrometer), it’s helping guide geologists to critical minerals directly and indirectly, by spotting the types of rocks that often contain them. It’s joined by another instrument developed by NASA, the MODIS/ASTER Airborne Simulator (MASTER), which senses thermal infrared radiance. Both instruments provide finely detailed measurements of minerals that complement what EMIT sees on a broader scale.
A crew of life support staff prepare pilot Dean Neeley for an ER-2 flight. A specialized suit – similar to an astronaut’s – allows the pilot to work, breathe, and eat at altitudes almost twice as high as a cruising passenger jet. NASA/Carla Thomas Old Mines, New Finds
In and around the multimillion-year-old magmas of the Great Basin of the Western U.S., lithium takes several forms. The silvery metal is found in salty brines, in clay, and locked in more than 100 different types of crystals. It can also be detected in the tailings of abandoned prospects like Hector Mine, near Barstow, California.
Abandoned years before a magnitude 7.1 earthquake rocked the region in 1999, the mine is located on a lode of hectorite, a greasy, lithium-bearing clay. Geologists from USGS are taking a second look at legacy mines like Hector as demand for lithium rises, driven primarily by lithium-ion batteries. A typical battery pack in an electric vehicle uses about 17 pounds (eight kilograms) of the energy-dense metal.
Australia and Chile lead worldwide production of lithium, which exceeded 180,000 tons in 2023. The third largest producer is China, which also hosts about 50% of global lithium refining capacity. Total U.S. production was around 1,000 tons, sourced entirely from a deposit in northern Nevada. Known reserves in the state are estimated to contain more than a million metric tons of lithium, according to data collected by the Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology.
Mine wastes are also potential sources of lithium, said Bernard Hubbard, a remote sensing geologist at USGS, and many other byproduct commodities that are considered critical today but were discarded by previous generations.
“There are old copper and silver mines in the West that were abandoned long before anyone knew what lithium or rare earth element deposits were,” Hubbard said. “What has been a pollution source for communities could now be a resource.”
Following a winter pause, high-altitude GEMx flights over the American West will resume in the spring of 2025, after which USGS will process the raw data and release the first mineral maps. Already, the project has collected enough data to start producing a complete hyperspectral map of California — the first of its kind.
The value of these observations extends beyond identifying minerals. Scientists expect they’ll provide new insight into invasive plant species, waste from mines that can contaminate surrounding environments, and natural hazards such as earthquakes, landslides, and wildfires.
“We are just beginning to scratch the surface in applying these measurements to help the nation’s economy, security, and health,” said Raymond Kokaly, USGS research geophysicist and lead of the GEMx survey.
More About GEMx
The GEMx research project will last four years and is funded by the USGS Earth Mapping Resources Initiative (EarthMRI), through investments from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. The initiative will capitalize on both the technology developed by NASA for spectroscopic imaging as well as the expertise in analyzing the datasets and extracting critical mineral information from them.
Data collected by GEMx is available here.
By Sally Younger
NASA’s Earth Science News Team
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Last Updated Dec 05, 2024 Contact Sally Younger Related Terms
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