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By Space Force
U.S. Space Force senior leaders discussed the Personnel Management Act during a panel at the Air and Space Force’s Air, Space and Cyber Conference at National Harbor, Maryland, Sept. 18.
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By NASA
Earth ObserverEarth Home Earth Observer Home Editor’s Corner Feature Articles Meeting Summaries NewsScience in the News Calendars In Memoriam MoreArchives 16 min read
ICESat-2 Hosts Third Applications Workshop
Introduction
The NASA Ice, Cloud, and land Elevation Satellite-2 mission (ICESat-2), launched September 15, 2018, continues the first ICESat mission, delivering invaluable global altimetry data. Notwithstanding its icy acronym, ICESat-2 can do more than measure ice – in fact, the expanded acronym hints at these wider applications. From vegetation to inland surface water to bathymetry, ICESat-2 has emerged as a more versatile mission than originally planned, thanks in part to the ingenuity of research scientists, the Science Team (ST), and users of the data – see Figure 1.
Figure 1. A word cloud designed to highlight terms that occur most frequently in all ICESat-2 publications since 2018. The larger the word, the more often it is used.Figure credit: Aimee Neeley ICESat-2 was among the first NASA missions to develop an applications program that engages both scientists and potential users of the science data to accelerate user uptake. Throughout this program, ICESat-2 has demonstrated the value of Earth Observation data to end users, stakeholders, and decision makers. The ICESat-2 Early Adopter (EA; pre-launch) program, now the Applied User program (post-launch), was created to “promote applications research to provide a fundamental understanding of how ICESat-2 data products can be scaled and integrated into organizations, policy, business, and management activities to improve decision making efforts.” This article summarizes the workshop objectives met through plenary talks, lightning talks, an applied user panel, and a breakout session. The ICESat-2 Applications page contains more about the ICESat-2 Applications Program.
Motivation and Objectives
To meet Applications Program initiatives, the ICESat-2 Applications Team hosted its third Applications workshop June 3–4, 2024 at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) in a hybrid environment. A total of 113 participants registered for the workshop, representing multiple government agencies, including NASA Centers, non-profit organizations, and academic organizations – see Figure 2. Approximately 20 individuals attended the workshop in person with the majority participating online through the Webex platform. This workshop provided the space to foster collaboration and to encourage the conceptualization of applications not yet exploited.
Figure 2. A ‘donut’ plot showing the proportion of ICESat-2 Applications Workshop attendees identified by institution. This information was provided during the online registration process.Figure credit: Aimee Neeley The objectives of the Applications workshop were to:
provide an overview of the mission status, data products, and support services from the National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC); build partnerships among applied users, data producers, and end users; foster synergies with all participants, decision makers, and satellite operators; identify new potential applications or products from ICESat-2; review available tools for extracting ICESat-2 data; and understand the challenges faced by applied users, data users, and end users, and identify solutions. The remainder of this article will summarize the meeting highlights. Rather than give a strict chronological survey, the report is organized around the meeting objectives listed above. Readers interested in more details can find the full agenda and slide decks from individual presentations mentioned in this summary on the ICESat-2 Workshop website.
Workshop Overview and Structure
The agenda of the 2024 ICESat-2 Applications workshop was intended to bring together end-users, including ICESat-2 applications developers, satellite operators, and decision makers from government and nongovernmental entities to discuss the current state and future needs of the community – see Figure 3.
On the morning of the first day, the workshop participants contributed to a plenary session and ICESat-2 data tool demonstrations. These presentations were intended to provide a broad overview of the ICESat-2 mission, data, science, and applications. Plenary talks during the afternoon session provided an overview of the Earth Science-to-Action initiative and measuring impacts of science. The afternoon also included lightning talks from participants and an Applied User Panel. The second day consisted of a plenary presentation and more lightning talks from participants. The workshop ended with a thematic breakout session with pre-constructed topics and a report out to create a forum for direct interaction between participants.
Figure 3. Graphic showing the different levels of data available from the NASA Ice, Cloud, and land Elevation Satellite-2 (ICESat-2) mission.Figure credit: NASA, adapted from the National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC) Distributed Active Archive Center’s ICESat-2 page Objective 1: Provide an overview of the status of the mission and current data products and support services from the NSIDC.
To fulfill the first meeting objective, the workshop included a series of overview presentations given by ICESat-2 team members about the status of the ICESat-2 mission and its data products, as well as a review of the NASA Applied Sciences Program.
Aimee Neeley [NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC)/Science Systems and Applications Inc. (SSAI)—ICESat-2 Mission Applications Lead] and Molly Brown [GSFC/University of Maryland—ICESat-2 Mission Applications Scientist] served as cohosts for the event. Neeley opened the first day with a brief overview of workshop goals, logistics, and the agenda. On the second day she gave a brief overview of the agenda for the day and opened it up for questions.
Thomas Neumann [GSFC—ICESat-2 Project Scientist and Deputy Director of Earth Sciences Division] provided an overview of the ICESat-2 measurement concepts, which includes activity of GPS positioning, pointing angle, altimetry measurements, and ground processing. He continued with an overview of the Advanced Topographic Laser Altimeter System (ATLAS) instrument, the wavelength and spatial resolution of the lasers, and the distributed data products. Neumann presented the mission outlook, with an expected lifespan until December 2035.
Walter Meier [University of Colorado, Boulder (UC, Boulder)—NSIDC DAAC Scientist] provided an overview of ICESat-2 data tools and services. He walked the audience through the ICESat-2 data website, as well as the instructional guides that are available for all the tools and services. Meier provided an overview of ICESat-2 standard data products – see Figure 3. Most of the products have a ~45-day latency while quick look data sets have an ~3-day latency. Future data sets include ATL24 and ATL25 and quick look data sets for ATL03, ATL20, and ATL25. Next, he described webinars and tutorials, access tools, and customization services for different users and workflows, including graphical user interfaces and programmatic tools in Earthaccess and the NSIDC website.
Helen Amanda Fricker [Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California (UC), San Diego—ICESat-2 ST Leader and Professor] provided an overview of the ST members and ST goals. Fricker described the ST goals to: 1) provide coordination between the team, project science office, and NASA headquarters; 2) use science talks, posters, and social events to stimulate collaboration within the ST and across disciplines; and 3) maintain the visibility of the ICESat-2 mission through publications, press releases, white papers, open science, and synergies with other missions. Next, Fricker shared the list of ST members that can be found on the ICESat-2 website. She concluded with an overview of a recent publication by Lori Magruder [University of Texas, Austin] and coauthors published in Nature Reviews.
Stephanie Schollaert Uz [NASA GSFC—Applied Sciences Manager] provided an overview of the NASA Applied Science Program, including the current NASA Earth Science Satellite missions that are monitoring Earth systems. The NASA Applied Science Programs “tackle challenges on our home planet in areas for which Earth science information can respond to the urgent needs of our time.” Earth science data products are used to “inform decisions and actions on management, policy and business.” Uz provided examples of applications using Earth science data, including economic activity, active fire mapping, food security, and monitoring air quality – see Figure 4.
Figure 4. Near real-time active fire mapping as well as air quality monitoring and forecasting are available via NASA’s Fire Information for Resource Management System (FIRMS).Figure credit: FIRMS U.S./Canada Molly E. Brown [University of Maryland—ICESat-2 Mission Applications Scientist] began her presentation by defining the term application in the context of this workshop, which includes “innovative uses of mission data products in decision-making activities for societal benefit.” Brown stated that the ICESat-2 Mission Applications program “works to bring our data products into areas where they can help inform policy or decisions that benefit the public.” End users include the private sector, academia, and government agencies. Brown described the benefits of the program and strategies to extend ICESat-2 to new communities – see Figure 5. Brown concluded with an overview of recent publications and new research efforts to assess the impact of ICESat-2 data.
Figure 5. Strategies to extend ICESat-2 to new communities through activities and trainings such as those hosted by the Applied Remote Sensing Training (ARSET) program.Figure credit: Molly Brown Mike Jasinski [NASA GSFC, Hydrological Sciences Laboratory—Assistant Chief for Science] provided an overview of ICESat-2 inland water standard and quick look data products, ATL13QL and ATL22QL. ICESat-2 covers approximately one million lakes each year. Jasinski also listed application areas for water resources decision support, including river elevation and discharge, lake and reservoir water balance and management, and validation of Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT) data. He provided metrics for each data product and quick look product and the advantages and disadvantages of ATL13 and ATL22 data products.
Mary D. Ari [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Office of Science—Senior Advisor for Science] provided an overview of the Science Impact Framework (SIF). Ari explained that our partners and public need “evidence to support practice or policy or decision making, accountability for public finds, and research focus to advocate for research priority.” A major goal is to translate findings into practice or action. Next, she presented ways by which impact can be measured, including bibliometrics (quantitative) and value (qualitative). Ari further explained the Science Impact Framework (SIF), which includes five domains of scientific influence: disseminating science, creating awareness, catalyzing action, effecting change, and shaping the future – see Figure 6.
Figure 6. The Science Impact Framework, which allows the impact of scientific work to be quantified and to determine if the science we produce is being put into action.Figure credit: Mary Ari Woody Turner [NASA Headquarters—ICESat-2 Program Applications Lead] provided an overview of NASA’s Earth Science to Action Strategy. Turner explained that NASA’s Earth Science to Action strategy is integral to the Earth Science Division’s 2024–2034 strategic plan. The overall strategy has two objectives: 1) observe, monitor, and understand the Earth System and 2) deliver trusted information to drive Earth resilience activities. He also summarized the “three key pillars” for this new Earth Action paradigm to 1) be user centered, 2) build bridges between research, technology, flight, data, and Earth Action elements, and 3) scale up existing efforts to get NASA data into the hands of end users. Lastly, Turner listed NASA’s core values, including safety, integrity, inclusion, teamwork, excellence, trustworthiness, innovation, and collaboration.
Objective 2: Review available tools for extracting ICESat-2 data for a diverse community.
To achieve this objective, the meeting included a series of presentations in which each speaker described a different tool that is being used to download and analyze ICESat-2 data.
Jessica Scheick [University of New Hampshire] provided an overview of a set of Python tools, named icepyx, that can be used to obtain and manipulate ICESat-2 data. Scheick, who developed icepyx, described how the tools address challenges with ICESat-2 data. Lastly, she performed a live demonstration of icepyx.
Tyler Sutterley [Applied Physics Laboratory/University of Washington] presented a live demonstration of Sliderule, an ICESat-2 plugin module that uses an application programming interface (API) to “query a set of ATL03 input granules for photon heights and locations based on a set of photon-input parameters that select the geographic and temporal extent of the request.”
Joanna D. Millstein [Colorado School of Mines] provided an overview of CryoCloud, which is a “JupyterHub built for NASA cryosphere communities in collaboration with 2i2c.” The goal of CryoCloud is to create a “simple and cost-effective managed cloud environment for training and transitioning new users to cloud workflows and determining community best practices.” CryoCloud makes it possible to “process data faster, minimize downloading and democratize science.” The CryoCloud GitHub provides access to a Slack channel, trainings and tutorials, and community office hours.
Mikala Beig [UC, Boulder—NSIDC User Services] provided and overview of OpenAltimetry, a platform for visualizing and downloading surface elevation data from ICESat and ICESat-2. OpenAltimetry was developed to alleviate the challenges faced by researchers, including the “steep learning curves and heavy demands on computational resources” necessary to download and manipulate large volumes of data. The strengths of OpenAltimetry include fostering user engagement, lowering technical hurdles for visualizing data, and allowing deeper data exploration. Lastly, Beig demonstrated the platform for the audience – see Figure 7.
Figure 7. Searching ICESat-2 tracks in OpenAltimetry, a map-based data visualization and discovery tool for altimetry data.Figure credit: Mikala Beig Objectives 3 and 4: Foster synergies between all participants; Identify new potential applications or products from ATLAS data not currently under investigation.
To meet these two meeting objectives, workshop organizers scheduled a round of lightning talks, where a series of presenters gave five-minute presentations on their research or activities. The talks are distilled below. The reader is directed online to find formal presentation titles and additional information. There was also an applied user panel and a breakout session to facilitate synergies between participants and identify new applications.
Younghyun Koo [Lehigh University/ Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Science (CIRES)] described a method to filter landfast ice (or sea ice “fastened” to the coastline) for accurate examination of thermodynamic and dynamic sea ice features using the ICESat-2 ATL10 data product – see Figure 8.
Chandana Gangodagamage [OeilSat—Principal Investigator] described the company’s efforts to track freshwater in the Congo River for the purposes of water resources management and other water-related applications that require river bathymetry data.
Daniel Scherer [Technischen Universität München (TUM), Germany] provided an overview of the ICESat-2 River Surface Slope (IRIS), a global reach-scale water surface slope dataset that provides average and extreme water slopes from ICESat-2 observations. The data can be dowloaded from Zenodo.
Louise Croneborg-Jones [Water In Sight—Chief Executive Officer] described her company’s effort to use satellite data and mobile and cloud technology to digitize river and rainfall observation at scale in Malawi. Water In Sight has emphasized getting local communities involved in monitoring water resources to increase observations of water levels for conservation.
Ravindra Duddu [Vanderbilt University] provided an overview on a project called Modeling Antarctic Iceshelf Calving and Stability (MAGICS), which involves using computation, data, and machine learning to map the rift and crevasse configurations of ice shelves in Antarctica to better understand calving events.
Shawn Serbin [GSFC] discussed use of harmonized above ground products from ICESat-2 and other earth observing platforms, including Global Ecosystem Dynamics Investigation (GEDI), Soil Moisture Active Passive (SMAP), and Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS), for terrestrial ecosystem carbon cycle reanalysis and near-term, iterative forecasting for North America and the globe.
Wengi Ni-Meister [Hunter College of the City University of New York—ICESat-2 Early Adopter] summarized an effort to retrieve canopy and background reflectivity ratio from ICESat-2 data and use it for the retrieval of vegetation cover and snow distribution in boreal forests.
Morgaine McKibben [GSFC–Plankton, Aerosol, Clouds, ocean Ecosystem (PACE) Applications Lead] provided an overview of NASA’s PACE mission, suggesting possible synergies between ICESat-2 and PACE with the intent of opening the door for further discussion on collaboration between the two missions. (To learn more about planned applications for PACE, see Preparing for Launch and Assessing User Readiness: The 2023 PACE Applications Workshop. (Also published in The Earth Observer, Nov–Dec 2023, 35:6, 25–32.)
Anthony Campbell [GSFC/ University of Maryland, Baltimore County] discussed his group’s research into using ICESat-2 data to monitor changes in coastal wetland migration, including coastal elevation and canopy height.
Brian A Campbell [NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility (WFF)—ICESat-2 Mission Education Lead] described the Global Learning and Observations to Benefit the Environment (GLOBE) program’s network of citizen scientists who collect several different kinds of data using the GLOBE Observer app. He highlighted one data type with particular relevance to ICESat-2. GLOBE Trees – see Figure 8 – equips citizen scientists with the tools to take tree height measurements using their mobile devices. These observations could then be compared to data from NASA satellite missions.
Figure 8. NASA’s Global Learning and Observations to Benefit the Environment (GLOBE) has developed an app called GLOBE Trees that allows users take measurements of tree height data using a mobile device. Those data can then be uploaded, and scientists can use them to validate satellite tree height measurement (e.g., from ICESat-2/ATLAS).Figure credit: Brian Campbell Caio Hamamura [University of Florida/School of Forest, Fisheries & Geomatics Sciences—Postdoctoral Associate] summarized a literature review his team had conducted of studies using ICESat-2 data for land and vegetation applications as well as results of an assessment of the current capability and limitations of ICESat-2 data for land and vegetation applications – see Figure 9.
Figure 9. Illustration of the ATL18 canopy height product at 1 km (~0.6 mi) spatial resolution at the global scale. The height values represent the median of all ATL18 height estimates within a given grid size of 1 km.Figure credit: Jordan Borak and Ciao Hamamura Jacob Comer [Cultural Site Research and Management Foundation] summarized results from an evaluation of the use of ICESat-2 data for archaeological prospection and documentation of archaeological sites – particularly in the Federal States of Micronesia.
Juradana M. Iqrah [University of Texas at San Antonio] described her group’s effort to obtain high resolution sea ice classification and freeboard information from ICESat-2 ATL03 observations to understand the impact of global warming on the melting and retreat of polar sea ice cover.
Michael MacFerrin [National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI)—Coastal Digital Elevation (DEM) Model Team] provided an overview of the NOAA/CIRES ICESat-2 Validation of Elevations Reporting Tool (IVERT) tool, which is used to generate land-based validation statistics of digital elevation models (DEM) anywhere in the word using the ATL03 and ATL08 datasets – see Figure 10.
Figure 10. Digital Elevation Model output before and after Hurricane Michael in Florida, October 2018.Figure credit: Michael MacFerrin Gretchen Imahori [NOAA National Geodetic Survey, Remote Sensing Division] presented an overview of satellite derived bathymetry using ICESat-2 data, including the new Level 3 (L3) bathymetry data product (ATL24) that will be available later in 2024 – see Figure 11.
Figure 11. Bathymetry data from ICESat-2 have been used across a wide variety of morphologies [some of which are illustrated in the photos above] and disciplines. Figure credit: Gretchen Imahori and the ICESat-2 bathymetry working group Objectives 5 and 6: Understand the challenges faced by applied, data users, and end users and identify solutions. Build partnerships between applied users, data producers, and end users.
To achieve these two objectives, planners organized an applied user panel and a breakout session as means to foster conversation among participants. The applied user panel consisted of five panelists– three participating virtually and two in-person. The presenters in the session shared their responses to three prepared discussion prompts: 1) an introduction of ICESat-2 data products; 2) use of ICESat-2 data products for their application; and 3) potential data latency impacts. The conversation was brief, but it provided a unique opportunity to hear from experienced applied users.
A breakout session consisted of pre-planned discussion prompts through two virtual breakout groups and one in-person group. Group One discussed questions that covered examination of ice crevassing and rifting, community tools for shallow water mapping, and slope measurement bias and uncertainties. Group Two discussed a variety of current and potential surface water applications, identified challenges using ICEat-2 data, and developed suggestions to increase the accessibility and usability of ICESat-2 data products. Group Three covered a gamut of topics, including potential products for Alaskan and Canadian communities, increased accessibility to products, and applications through central cloud storage systems, central repositories and detailed documentation, and the desire for future topic-specific workshops and focus sessions.
Conclusion
The 2024 NASA ICESat-2 Applications Workshop was the third in a series of workshops – with the first workshop occurring in 2012, six years prior to launch. The EA program was transitioned to the Applied User program, which deployed a post-launch program per the NASA Early Adopter Handbook “that acts as a continuation of the Early Adopter program to engage with Communities of Practice and Potential.” This workshop provided the space to foster collaboration and conceptualization of applications not yet exploited that may be developed using ICESat-2 data products. The workshop met its objectives and created an environment that fostered collaboration between participants. The workshop was a success, and participants requested another one focused on a thematic topic. Updates, future workshops, and other events will be posted on the ICESat-2 ‘Get Involved’ page.
Aimee Renee Neeley
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center/Science Systems and Applications, Inc.
aimee.neeley@nasa.gov
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Earth Science View the full article
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By NASA
Skywatching Skywatching Home Eclipses What’s Up Explore the Night Sky Night Sky Network More Tips and Guides FAQ 23 Min Read The Next Full Moon is a Partial Lunar Eclipse; a Supermoon; the Corn Moon; and the Harvest Moon
The Next Full Moon is a Partial Lunar Eclipse; a SuperMoon; the Corn Moon; the Harvest Moon; the Fruit or Barley Moon; the end of Ganesh Chaturthi and the start of Pitru Paksha; Madhu Purnima; the Mid-Autumn, Mooncake, or Reunion Festival Moon; Chuseok; and Imomeigetsu or the Potato Harvest Moon.
The full Moon will be Tuesday night, September 17, 2024, at 10:35 PM EDT. This will be on Wednesday from Newfoundland and Greenland Time eastward across Eurasia, Africa, and Australia to the International Date Line. Most commercial calendars will show this full Moon on Wednesday based on Greenwich or Universal Time. The Moon will appear full for about three days, from Monday evening through Thursday morning.
This will be a partial lunar eclipse. The Moon will start entering the Earth’s partial shadow at 8:41 PM EDT. The slight dimming of the Moon will be difficult to notice until the top edge of the Moon starts entering the full shadow at 10:13 PM. The peak of the eclipse will be at 10:44 PM with only the top 8 percent of the Moon in full shadow. The Moon will finish exiting the full shadow at 11:16 PM and the partial shadow on Wednesday morning at 12:47 AM.
The phases of the Moon for September 2024. NASA/JPL-Caltech This will be a supermoon. The term “supermoon” was coined by astrologer Richard Nolle in 1979 as either a new or full Moon that occurs when the Moon is within 90% of its closest to Earth. Since we can’t see new Moons, what has the public’s attention are full supermoons, the biggest and brightest Moons of the year. Although different publications use different thresholds for deciding which full Moons qualify, most agree this will be the second of four consecutive supermoons (effectively tied with the full Moon in October for the closest of the year).
The Maine Farmer’s Almanac first published “Indian” names for the full Moons in the 1930s and these names have become widely known and used. According to this almanac, as the full Moon in September the Algonquin tribes in what is now the northeastern USA called this the Corn Moon, as this was the time for gathering their main staple crops of corn, pumpkins, squash, beans, and wild rice.
As the full Moon closest to the autumnal equinox, this is the Harvest Moon. The first known written use of this name in the English language (per the Oxford English Dictionary) was in 1706. During the fall harvest season farmers sometimes need to work late into the night by moonlight. On average moonrise is about 50 minutes later each night. Around the Harvest Moon this time is shorter, about 25 minutes for the latitude of Washington, DC, and only 10 to 20 minutes farther north in Canada and Europe.
Other European names for this full Moon are the Fruit Moon, as a number of fruits ripen as the end of summer approaches, and the Barley Moon, from the harvesting and threshing of barley.
For Hindus, this full Moon marks the end of Ganesh Chaturthi and the start of Pitru Paksha. Ganesh Chaturthi (also called Vinayaka Chaturthi or Vinayaka Chavithi) is a 10 or 11 day festival honoring the god Ganesha that ends with this full Moon. Ganesha is easily recognized by his elephant head and is worshiped as the god of beginnings, wisdom, arts and sciences, and as the remover of obstacles. Throughout the festival celebrants offer food, sweets, and prayers to clay statues of Ganesha at home and on public stages. Traditions include chanting of Vedic hymns and Hindu texts, prayers, and fasting. On the last day (near the full Moon), people carry the statues to a nearby river or ocean and immerse them. As the clay dissolves, Ganesha is believed to return to his parents, the god Shiva and goddess Parvati, on Mount Kailash.
Pitru Paksha (fortnight of the ancestors) is a 15 days long festival that ends with the new Moon. During this time, Hindus honor their ancestors (pitrs) with rituals, food offerings, and scripture reading. Pitru Paksha is also known by a number of other names.
For some Buddhists in Bangladesh and Thailand this full Moon is Madhu Purnima, the Honey Full Moon Festival or the Honey-offering Festival. The legend is that when the Buddha was trying to bring peace between two factions in a forest, an elephant and a monkey fed him, with the elephant offering fruit and the monkey offering a honeycomb.
In China, Vietnam, and some other Asian countries, this full Moon corresponds with the Mid-Autumn Festival, a traditional harvest festival. In China, other names for this festival include the Moon Festival, the Mooncake Festival, and the Reunion Festival (with wives visiting their parents then returning to celebrate with their husbands and his parents). Part of the festival includes offerings to the Moon Goddess Chang’e (the name the China National Space Agency gives their lunar missions).
In Korea, this full Moon corresponds with the harvest festival Chuseok, during which Koreans return to their traditional hometowns to pay respect to the spirits of their ancestors.
This full Moon corresponds with the first of two Japanese Tsukimi or “Moon-Viewing” festivals, also called Imomeigetsu (which translates as “potato harvest Moon”) because of the tradition of offering sweet potatoes to the Moon. These festivities have become so popular that they are often extended for several days after the full Moon.
In many traditional Moon-based calendars the full Moons fall on or near the middle of each month. This full Moon is near the middle of the eighth month of the Chinese year of the Dragon and Rabi’ al-Awwal in the Islamic calendar, the month in which many Muslims celebrate Mawlid, the birth of the Prophet Muhammad. This full Moon is near the middle of Elul in the Hebrew calendar. Elul is a time of preparation for the High Holy Days of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. Customs include granting and asking others for forgiveness as well as beginning or ending all letters with the wish that the recipient will have a good year.
As usual, the wearing of suitably celebratory celestial attire is encouraged in honor of the full Moon. Go out and observe the Moon, enjoy this harvest season (including corn, fruit, and sweet potatoes, and honey), remember your ancestors, stay in touch with your parents, and forgive and ask forgiveness. Here’s wishing you a good year!
Comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS)
Pay attention to the news about Comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS)! There are a number of “ifs” so we don’t like to raise expectations. Similar visitors from the Oort Cloud have broken apart and fizzled out as they passed close to the Sun. If this comet survives its passage by the Sun (closest approach on September 27, 2024) and if the amount of gas and dust it gives off does not decrease significantly, this might be one of the best comets in a long time. If it strongly scatters sunlight towards the Earth it might even be visible in the glow of dusk just after its closest approach to Earth on October 12.
From the Washington, DC area and similar latitudes, this comet will be above the horizon before morning twilight begins from September 22 through October 4, with the current brightness curve predicting a steady increase in brightness from about visual magnitude 4 to near 3 (the smaller the number, the brighter the object). As it brightens it may be visible under dark sky conditions and even more impressive through binoculars or a telescope, although towards the start and end of this period it may be too low on the horizon to see when the sky is completely dark.
Between about October 4 and October 11 the Sun’s glare will mask visibility from the Northern Hemisphere. Check your local news or web sites for viewing information for your latitude. For example, Sky and Telescope reports that Southern Hemisphere skywatchers should fare better.
Comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS) will be at its closest to Earth on October 12 at 11:10 AM EDT. Around closest approach the comet’s brightness is predicted to peak at about visual magnitude 3 (similar to many stars). Forward scattering might increase the brightness significantly, possibly as high as -1 (brighter than every star except Sirius). How bright the comet actually appears will depend upon how much gas and dust it is giving off, which can change quickly. Also, brightness comparisons between comets and stars can be misleading as the light of the comet is spread out making it less distinct than a star with the same brightness.
The best time to look should be the evenings on and shortly after October 12 with the comet above the western horizon after sunset. The evening of October 12 the comet will be 4 degrees above the western horizon as evening twilight ends, similar in altitude and to the right of Venus. The comet is expected to dim as it moves away from the Earth, but will appear higher in a darker sky and set later each evening, which could make it easier to see. As evening twilight ends on October 13 it will be 10 degrees above the western horizon, 12 degrees on October 14, 16 degrees on October 15, etc. The brightness will decrease to about magnitude 6 by the end of October.
Meteor Showers
During this lunar cycle four minor meteors showers are predicted to peak at 5 or fewer visible meteors per hour (under ideal viewing conditions), making them basically not visible from our light-polluted urban areas.
Evening Sky Highlights
On the evening of Tuesday, September 17 (the evening of the full Moon), as twilight ends (at 8:10 PM EDT), the rising Moon will be 11 degrees above the east-southeastern horizon with Saturn to the upper right at 14 degrees above the horizon. Later in the evening the partial shadow of the Earth will cover a small upper part of the Moon. Bright Venus will be 2 degrees above the west-southwestern horizon with the star Spica on the horizon to the lower left. The bright star closest to overhead will be Vega, the brightest star in the constellation Lyra the lyre, at 87 degrees above the western horizon. Vega is part of the Summer Triangle along with Deneb and Altair. It is the 5th brightest star in our night sky, about 25 light-years from Earth, has twice the mass of our Sun, and shines 40 times brighter than our Sun.
As this lunar cycle progresses, Saturn and the background of stars will appear to shift westward each evening (as the Earth moves around the Sun). Bright Venus will shift to the left along the west-southwestern horizon, appearing slightly higher each evening. The waxing Moon will pass by Venus on October 5, Antares on October 7, and Saturn on October 14. Comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS) will be at its closest to Earth on October 12 at 11:10 AM. Assuming it survives its pass by the Sun on September 27 and depending upon how much gas and dust it gives off, it could be a good show in the evenings on and after October 12. See the comet summary above and keep an eye on the news for updates on this comet.
By the evening of Thursday, October 17 (the evening of the full Moon after next), as twilight ends (at 7:24 PM EDT), the rising Moon will be 9 degrees above the eastern horizon. Saturn will be 27 degrees above the southeastern horizon. Bright Venus will be 6 degrees above the west-southwestern horizon. Comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS) will be 22 degrees above the western horizon. The bright star closest to overhead will be Deneb at 80 degrees above the northeastern horizon. Deneb is the 19th brightest star in our night sky and is the brightest star in the constellation Cygnus the swan. Deneb is one of the three bright stars of the “Summer Triangle” (along with Vega and Altair). Deneb is about 20 times more massive than our Sun but has used up its hydrogen, becoming a blue-white supergiant about 200 times the diameter of the Sun. If Deneb were where our Sun is, it would extend to about the orbit of the Earth. Deneb is about 2,600 light years from us.
Morning Sky Highlights
On the morning of Wednesday, September 18 (the morning of the night of the full Moon), as twilight begins (at 5:55 AM EDT), the setting full Moon will be 15 degrees above the west-southwestern horizon. The brightest planet in the sky will be Jupiter at 71 degrees above the south-south eastern horizon. Near Jupiter will be Mars at 61 degrees above the east-southeastern horizon. Saturn will be below the Moon at 1 degree above the western horizon. The bright star appearing closest to overhead will be Capella, the brightest star in the constellation Auriga the charioteer, at 80 degrees above the northeastern horizon. Although we see Capella as a single star (the 6th brightest in our night sky), it is actually four stars (two pairs of stars orbiting each other). Capella is about 43 lightyears from us.
As this lunar cycle progresses, Jupiter, Mars, Saturn, and the background of stars will appear to shift westward each evening. After September 19 Saturn set before morning twilight begins. The waning Moon will pass by the Pleiades star cluster on September 22, Mars on September 25, Pollux on September 26, and Regulus on September 29. Comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS) will be above the horizon before morning twilight begins from September 22 through October 4. Comets are notoriously difficult to predict, but if the amount of gas and dust it gives off remains constant it should increase in brightness each morning. See the comet summary above and keep an eye on the news for updates on this comet.
By the morning of Thursday, October 17 (the morning of the full Moon after next), as twilight begins (at 6:22 AM EDT), the setting full Moon will be 11 degrees above the western horizon. The brightest planet in the sky will be Jupiter at 63 degrees above the west-southwestern horizon. Mars will be at 72 degrees above the south-southeastern horizon. The bright star appearing closest to overhead will be Pollux, the 17th brightest star in our night sky and the brighter of the twin stars in the constellation Gemini, at 75 degrees above the southeastern horizon. Pollux is an orange tinted star about 34 lightyears from Earth. It is not quite twice the mass of our Sun but about 9 times the diameter and 33 times the brightness.
Detailed Daily Guide
Here for your reference is a day-by-day listing of celestial events between now and the full Moon on October 17, 2024. The times and angles are based on the location of NASA Headquarters in Washington, DC, and some of these details may differ for where you are (I use parentheses to indicate times specific to the DC area). If your latitude is significantly different than 39 degrees north (and especially for my Southern Hemisphere readers), I recommend using an astronomy app or a star-watching guide from a local observatory, news outlet, or astronomy club.
Saturday night, September 14, is International Observe the Moon Night! See https://moon.nasa.gov/observe-the-moon-night/about/overview/ for more information.
Our 24 hour clock is based on the average length of the solar day. Solar noon on Sunday, September 15 to solar noon on Monday, September 16, will be the shortest solar day of the year, 23 hours, 59 minutes, and 38.6 seconds long.
Monday night into Tuesday morning, September 16 to 17, Saturn will appear near the full Moon. As evening twilight ends (at 8:12 PM EDT) Saturn will be 6 degrees to the left of the Moon. When the Moon reaches its highest for the night (at 12:17 AM) Saturn will be 4 degrees to the upper left. By the time morning twilight begins (at 5:54 AM) the Moon will be 1 degree above the west-southwestern horizon with Saturn 1 degree above the Moon. For parts of western North America and across the Pacific Ocean towards Australia the Moon will pass in front of Saturn. See http://lunar-occultations.com/iota/planets/0917saturn.htm for a map and information on the areas that will see this occultation.
Tuesday morning, September 17, will be the last morning that Mercury will be above the horizon as morning twilight begins (at 5:54 AM EDT).
As mentioned above, the full Moon will be Tuesday night, September 17, at 10:35 PM EDT. This will be on Wednesday from Newfoundland and Greenland Time eastward across Eurasia, Africa, and Australia to the International Date Line. Most commercial calendars are based on Greenwich or Universal Time and will show this full Moon on Wednesday. The Moon will appear full for about three days from Monday evening through Thursday morning.
This will be a partial lunar eclipse. The Moon will start entering the partial shadow of the Earth at 8:41 PM EDT. The slight dimming of the Moon will be difficult to notice until the top edge of the Moon starts entering the full shadow at 10:13 PM. The peak of the eclipse will be at 10:44 PM with just the top 8.4% of the Moon in full shadow. The Moon will finish exiting the full shadow at 11:16 PM and the partial shadow on Wednesday morning at 12:47 AM.
This will be the second of four consecutive supermoons, appearing larger than last month’s supermoon and effectively tied with the full Moon in October for the closest full Moon of the year.
Tuesday and Wednesday evenings, September 17 and 18, the star Spica will appear a little over 2 degrees from the bright planet Venus. On Tuesday evening as evening twilight ends (at 8:10 PM EDT) Spica will be to the lower left of Venus and on the verge of setting on the west-southwestern horizon. Wednesday evening Spica will be a few hundredths of a degree closer and will appear below Venus, but will set about 2 minutes before evening twilight ends.
Wednesday morning September 18, at 9:29 AM EDT, the Moon will be at perigee, its closest to the Earth for this orbit.
Thursday morning, September 19, will be the last morning the planet Saturn will be above the western horizon as morning twilight begins.
If you are interested in spotting the planet Neptune through a telescope, Friday evening, September 20, will be when it will be at its closest and brightest for the year. Neptune will reach its highest in the sky early Saturday morning (at 1:02 AM EDT).
Saturday night into Sunday morning, September 21 to 22, the Pleiades star cluster will appear near the waning gibbous Moon. The Pleiades will be 5 degrees to the lower left as they rise on the east-northeastern horizon (at 9:23 PM EDT), 1.5 degrees to the upper left by the time the Moon reaches its highest for the night (at 4:44 AM), and less than 1 degree to the upper left as morning twilight begins (at 5:59 AM). The Moon will actually pass through the Pleiades (at about 8 AM) when daylight will mask these stars from view.
Sunday morning, September 22, will be the first morning Comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS) will be above the horizon before morning twilight begins, with the current brightness curve predicting it at visual magnitude 4. Unless it breaks apart, this comet is likely to brighten each morning until October 4 (after which it will no longer be above the horizon before twilight begins).
Sunday morning, September 22, at 8:44 AM EDT, will be the autumnal equinox, the astronomical end of summer and start of fall.
Monday night into Tuesday morning, September 23 to 24, the bright planet Jupiter will appear to the lower right of the waning half-full Moon. Jupiter will be 6 degrees to the lower right as it rises on the east-northeastern horizon (at 10:54 PM EDT). Jupiter will shift slightly clockwise as it moves away from the Moon.
Thursday afternoon, September 24, the waning Moon will appear half-full as it reaches its last quarter at 2:50 PM EDT (when we can’t see it).
Wednesday morning, September 25, the planet Mars will appear below the waning crescent Moon. Mars will be 6 degrees below the Moon as it rises on the east-northeastern horizon (at 12:16 AM EDT). Mars will be 5 degrees to the lower right as morning twilight begins (at 6:01 AM).
Thursday morning, September 26, the star Pollux (the brighter of the twin stars in the constellation Gemini the twins) will appear near the waning crescent Moon. Pollux will be 3 degrees to the lower left as it rises on the northeastern horizon (at 12:47 AM EDT) and will be 2 degrees to the upper left by the time morning twilight begins (at 6:02 AM).
Friday afternoon, September 27, at around 2 PM EDT, Comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS) will be at its closest to the Sun. This comet has an inbound orbital period of millions of years and may gain enough energy from this flyby of the Sun to leave the solar system forever.
Sunday morning, September 29, the star Regulus will appear near the waning crescent Moon. As Regulus rises on the east-northeastern horizon (at 4:01 AM EDT) it will be 2.5 degrees to the lower right of the Moon. Morning twilight will begin 2 hours later (at 6:05 AM) with Regulus 3 degrees to the right.
Monday afternoon, September 30, the planet Mercury will be passing on the far side of the Sun as seen from the Earth, called superior conjunction. Because Mercury orbits inside of the orbit of Earth, it will be shifting from the morning sky to the evening sky and will begin emerging from the glow of twilight on the west-southwestern horizon towards the end of October (depending upon viewing conditions).
Wednesday, October 2, at 2:46 PM EDT, will be the new Moon, when the Moon passes between the Earth and the Sun and is usually not visible. For much of the Pacific Ocean as well as the southern part of South America, part of Antarctica, and a thin slice of the southwestern Atlantic, the Moon will block some of the Sun in a partial eclipse. For a narrow strip from the Pacific south of the Hawaiian Islands across the Pacific, part of Chile and Argentina, and into the southwestern Atlantic Ocean, the Moon will actually pass in front of the Sun, blocking most of it from view in an annular solar eclipse. Because the Moon will be at apogee (its farthest from the Earth) just 70 minutes later (at 3:56 PM) it will not block the entire Sun from view and this will not be a total solar eclipse.
The day of or the day after the New Moon marks the start of the new month for most lunisolar calendars. Sundown on Wednesday, October 2, will be the start of Rosh Hashanah (the Head of the Year), the two-day Jewish New Year celebration that will end at sundown on Friday, October 4. Rosh Hashanah is the first of a series of holidays in Tishrei, the first month of the Hebrew calendar. The tenth day of Tishrei is Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. The 10 days from Rosh Hashanah to Yom Kippur, called the Days of Awe, are a time to reflect on the mistakes of the past year and make resolutions for the new year. The fifteenth day of Tishrei (close to the full Moon after next) is the start of the 7-day Sukkot holiday.
The ninth month of the Chinese year of the Dragon starts on Thursday, October 3.
In the Islamic calendar the months traditionally start with the first sighting of the waxing crescent Moon. Many Muslim communities now follow the Umm al-Qura Calendar of Saudi Arabia, which uses astronomical calculations to start months in a more predictable way. Using this calendar, sundown on Thursday evening, October 3, will probably mark the beginning of Rabiʽ al-Thani, also known as Rabi’ al-Akhirah.
Friday, October 4, will be the last morning Comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS) will be above the horizon before morning twilight begins, with the current brightness curve predicting a visual magnitude near 3, similar in brightness to many visible stars. It may be visible to the naked eye under dark sky conditions and even more impressive through binoculars or a telescope.
Saturday evening, October 5, you may be able to see the thin waxing crescent Moon 4.5 degrees to the lower left of the bright planet Venus. As evening twilight ends (at 7:41 PM EDT) the Moon will be a degree above the west-southwestern horizon. The Moon will set first 14 minutes later (at 7:55 PM).
Monday evening, October 7, the bright star Antares will appear 2 degrees to the right of the waxing crescent Moon. As evening twilight ends (at 7:38 PM EDT) the Moon will be 11 degrees above the southwestern horizon. Antares will set first about 20 minutes later (at 9 PM).
Thursday afternoon, October 10, the Moon will appear half-full as it reaches its first quarter at 2:55 PM EDT.
Saturday morning, October 12, at 11:10 AM, Comet C/2023 A3 (Tsuchinshan-ATLAS) will be at its closest to Earth. If it survives its pass by the Sun this will likely be when it will be near its brightest. Although it will be on the horizon as evening twilight ends on Friday, our first chance to see it above the horizon as it emerges from the glow of dusk likely will be Saturday evening, when the comet will be 4 degrees above the western horizon as evening twilight ends (at 7:31 PM EDT), similar in altitude and to the right of Venus. Over the next few nights the comet will likely dim as it moves away from the Earth, but also appear higher in the sky and set later each evening, giving us more time and darker skies to look for this comet. As evening twilight ends on October 13 it will be 10 degrees above the western horizon, 12 degrees on October 14, 16 degrees on October 15, etc. Current brightness curves predict it will dim quickly and will be below magnitude 6 by the end of October. How bright the comet will be and how quickly it actually dims will depend upon the gas and dust it is giving off, which can vary quickly and unpredictably, but it could be a good show in the evenings after October 12.
Monday evening, October 14, the planet Saturn will appear near the waxing gibbous Moon. As evening twilight ends (at 7:28 PM EDT) Saturn will be 4 degrees to the upper right. The Moon will reach its highest for the night about 3.5 hours later (at 10:53 PM) with Saturn 5 degrees to the lower right. The pair will continue to separate, with Saturn setting first 5 hours after that (at 4:09 AM). For parts of Southern Asia and Africa the Moon will block Saturn from view, see http://lunar-occultations.com/iota/planets/1014saturn.htm for a map and information on the areas that will acually see this occultation.
Wednesday evening, October 16, at 8:57 PM EDT, the Moon will be at perigee, its closest to the Earth for this orbit.
The full Moon after next will be Thursday morning, October 17, 2024, at 7:26 AM EDT. This will be late Wednesday night in the International Date Line West time zone and early Friday morning from New Zealand Time eastwards to the International Date Line. This will be the third of four consecutive supermoons (and the brightest by a tiny margin). The Moon will appear full for about 3 days around this time, from Tuesday evening through Friday morning.
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Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)
In a series of baseline flights beginning on June 24, 2024, the G-IV aircraft flew over the Antelope Valley to analyze aircraft performance. To accommodate a new radar instrument developed by JPL, NASA’s Airborne Science Program has selected the Gulfstream-IV aircraft to be modified and operated by Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California and will accommodate new instrumentation on board in support of the agency’s science mission directorate. Baseline flights began at NASA Armstrong in June 2024NASA/Carla Thomas In June 2024, a new tail number swept the sky above NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California. Pilots conducted flights of a Gulfstream IV (G-IV) to evaluate its handling characteristics and to familiarize pilots with it before it begins structural modifications. The research plane is joining the center’s fleet serving NASA’s Airborne Science program.
The G-IV will carry the Next Generation Airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (AIRSAR-NG), which sends and receives microwave signals to collect information about Earth’s topographic features and how they change over time. The goal for the team at NASA Armstrong is to modify the G-IV to accommodate three radars simultaneously.
“The AIRSAR-NG will be composed of three different Synthetic Aperture Radar antennas in one instrument to provide new insight into Earth’s surface more efficiently,” said Yunling Lou, principal investigator for the instrument at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California. “The capabilities of this new instrument will facilitate new techniques, such as three-dimensional imaging, that will be useful for future space-borne missions.”
With those and other modifications being made, the G-IV will also be able to accommodate an increased load of science instruments, which could enable NASA to support more dynamic airborne science missions.
“This aircraft will aid Armstrong in continuing our long history of supporting airborne science for the agency and maintain the expertise in conducting successful science missions for years to come,” said Franzeska Becker, the G-IV project manager at NASA Armstrong.
Transferred in February from NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia, the G-IV will undergo additional modifications overseen by NASA Armstrong’s team. Their goal is to enrich the agency’s airborne science program by outfitting the aircraft to function as a more capable and versatile research platform.
The knowledge and expertise of professionals at NASA centers like Armstrong (G-IV, ER-2, C-20) and Langley (777, G-III) will help enable the agency to produce a well-defined and airworthy platform for science instruments and airborne science missions.
Learn more about NASA’s Airborne Science program Learn more about NASA’s AirSar project Share
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Last Updated Aug 29, 2024 EditorDede DiniusContactErica HeimLocationArmstrong Flight Research Center Related Terms
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Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)
A mirror that was later installed inside the telescope for NASA’s Near-Earth Object Surveyor shows a reflection of principal optical engineer Brian Monacelli during an inspection of the mirror’s surface at the agency’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory on July 17.NASA/JPL-Caltech A technician operates articulating equipment to rotate NEO Surveyor’s aluminum optical bench — part of the spacecraft’s telescope — in a clean room at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California on July 17.NASA/JPL-Caltech The mirrors for NASA’s Near-Earth Object Surveyor space telescope are being installed and aligned, and work on other spacecraft components is accelerating.
NASA’s new asteroid-hunting spacecraft is taking shape at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California. Called NEO Surveyor (Near-Earth Object Surveyor), this cutting-edge infrared space telescope will seek out the hardest-to-find asteroids and comets that might pose a hazard to our planet. In fact, it is the agency’s first space telescope designed specifically for planetary defense.
Targeting launch in late 2027, the spacecraft will travel a million miles to a region of gravitational stability — called the L1 Lagrange point — between Earth and the Sun. From there, its large sunshade will block the glare and heat of sunlight, allowing the mission to discover and track near-Earth objects as they approach Earth from the direction of the Sun, which is difficult for other observatories to do. The space telescope also may reveal asteroids called Earth Trojans, which lead and trail our planet’s orbit and are difficult to see from the ground or from Earth orbit.
NEO Surveyor relies on cutting-edge detectors that observe two bands of infrared light, which is invisible to the human eye. Near-Earth objects, no matter how dark, glow brightly in infrared as the Sun heats them. Because of this, the telescope will be able to find dark asteroids and comets, which don’t reflect much visible light. It also will measure those objects, a challenging task for visible-light telescopes that have a hard time distinguishing between small, highly reflective objects and large, dark ones.
This artist’s concept depicts NASA’s NEO Surveyor in deep space. The black-paneled angular structure in the belly of the spacecraft is the instrument enclosure that is being built at JPL. The mission’s infrared telescope will be installed inside the enclosure.NASA/JPL-Caltech “NEO Surveyor is optimized to help us to do one specific thing: enable humanity to find the most hazardous asteroids and comets far enough in advance so we can do something about them,” said Amy Mainzer, principal investigator for NEO Surveyor and a professor at the University of California, Los Angeles. “We aim to build a spacecraft that can find, track, and characterize the objects with the greatest chance of hitting Earth. In the process, we will learn a lot about their origins and evolution.”
Coming Into Focus
The spacecraft’s only instrument is its telescope. About the size of a washer-and-dryer set, the telescope’s blocky aluminum body, called the optical bench, was built in a JPL clean room. Known as a three-mirror anastigmat telescope, it will rely on curved mirrors to focus light onto its infrared detectors in such a way that minimizes optical aberrations.
“We have been carefully managing the fabrication of the spacecraft’s telescope mirrors, all of which were received in the JPL clean room by July,” said Brian Monacelli, principal optical engineer at JPL. “Its mirrors were shaped and polished from solid aluminum using a diamond-turning machine. Each exceeds the mission’s performance requirements.”
Monacelli inspected the mirror surfaces for debris and damage, then JPL’s team of optomechanical technicians and engineers attached the mirrors to the telescope’s optical bench in August. Next, they will measure the telescope’s performance and align its mirrors.
Complementing the mirror assembly are the telescope’s mercury-cadmium-telluride detectors, which are similar to the detectors used by NASA’s recently retired NEOWISE (short for Near-Earth Object Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer) mission. An advantage of these detectors is that they don’t necessarily require cryogenic coolers or cryogens to lower their operational temperatures in order to detect infrared wavelengths. Cryocoolers and cryogens can limit the lifespan of a spacecraft. NEO Surveyor will instead keep its cool by using its large sunshade to block sunlight from heating the telescope and by occupying an orbit beyond that of the Moon, minimizing heating from Earth.
The telescope will eventually be installed inside the spacecraft’s instrument enclosure, which is being assembled in JPL’s historic High Bay 1 clean room where NASA missions such as Voyager, Cassini, and Perseverance were constructed. Fabricated from dark composite material that allows heat to escape, the enclosure will help keep the telescope cool and prevent its own heat from obscuring observations.
Once it is completed in coming weeks, the enclosure will be tested to make sure it can withstand the rigors of space exploration. Then it will be mounted on the back of the sunshade and atop the electronic systems that will power and control the spacecraft.
“The entire team has been working hard for a long time to get to this point, and we are excited to see the hardware coming together with contributions from our institutional and industrial collaborators from across the country,” said Tom Hoffman, NEO Surveyor’s project manager at JPL. “From the panels and cables for the instrument enclosure to the detectors and mirrors for the telescope — as well as components to build the spacecraft — hardware is being fabricated, delivered, and assembled to build this incredible observatory.”
Assembly of NEO Surveyor can be viewed 24 hours a day, seven days a week, via JPL’s live cam.
More About NEO Surveyor
The NEO Surveyor mission marks a major step for NASA toward reaching its U.S. Congress-mandated goal to discover and characterize at least 90% of the near-Earth objects more than 460 feet (140 meters) across that come within 30 million miles (48 million kilometers) of our planet’s orbit. Objects of this size can cause significant regional damage, or worse, should they impact the Earth.
The mission is tasked by NASA’s Planetary Science Division within the Science Mission Directorate; program oversight is provided by the Planetary Defense Coordination Office, which was established in 2016 to manage the agency’s ongoing efforts in planetary defense. NASA’s Planetary Missions Program Office at the agency’s Marshall Space Flight Center provides program management for NEO Surveyor.
The project is being developed by JPL and is led by principal investigator Amy Mainzer at UCLA. Established aerospace and engineering companies have been contracted to build the spacecraft and its instrumentation, including BAE Systems, Space Dynamics Laboratory, and Teledyne. The Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics at the University of Colorado, Boulder will support operations, and IPAC-Caltech in Pasadena, California, is responsible for processing survey data and producing the mission’s data products. Caltech manages JPL for NASA.
More information about NEO Surveyor is available at:
https://science.nasa.gov/mission/neo-surveyor
News Media Contacts
Ian J. O’Neill
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
818-354-2649
ian.j.oneill@jpl.nasa.gov
Karen Fox / Alana Johnson
NASA Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1600 / 202-358-1501
karen.c.fox@nasa.gov / alana.r.johnson@nasa.gov
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Last Updated Aug 28, 2024 Related Terms
NEO Surveyor (Near-Earth Object Surveyor Space Telescope) Comets Jet Propulsion Laboratory Near-Earth Asteroid (NEA) Planetary Defense Planetary Defense Coordination Office Explore More
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