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By NASA
Pandora, NASA’s newest exoplanet mission, is one step closer to launch with the completion of the spacecraft bus, which provides the structure, power, and other systems that will enable the mission to carry out its work.
Watch to learn more about NASA’s Pandora mission, which will revolutionize the study of exoplanet atmospheres.
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center “This is a huge milestone for us and keeps us on track for a launch in the fall,” said Elisa Quintana, Pandora’s principal investigator at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. “The bus holds our instruments and handles navigation, data acquisition, and communication with Earth — it’s the brains of the spacecraft.”
Pandora, a small satellite, will provide in-depth study of at least 20 known planets orbiting distant stars in order to determine the composition of their atmospheres — especially the presence of hazes, clouds, and water. This data will establish a firm foundation for interpreting measurements by NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope and future missions that will search for habitable worlds.
Pandora’s spacecraft bus was photographed Jan. 10 within a thermal-vacuum testing chamber at Blue Canyon Technologies in Lafayette, Colorado. The bus provides the structure, power, and other systems that will enable the mission to help astronomers better separate stellar features from the spectra of transiting planets. NASA/Weston Maughan, BCT “We see the presence of water as a critical aspect of habitability because water is essential to life as we know it,” said Goddard’s Ben Hord, a NASA Postdoctoral Program Fellow who discussed the mission at the 245th meeting of the American Astronomical Society in National Harbor, Maryland. “The problem with confirming its presence in exoplanet atmospheres is that variations in light from the host star can mask or mimic the signal of water. Separating these sources is where Pandora will shine.”
Funded by NASA’s Astrophysics Pioneers program for small, ambitious missions, Pandora is a joint effort between Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California and NASA Goddard.
“Pandora’s near-infrared detector is actually a spare developed for the Webb telescope, which right now is the observatory most sensitive to exoplanet atmospheres,” Hord added. “In turn, our observations will improve Webb’s ability to separate the star’s signals from those of the planet’s atmosphere, enabling Webb to make more precise atmospheric measurements.”
Astronomers can sample an exoplanet’s atmosphere when it passes in front of its star as seen from our perspective, an event called a transit. Part of the star’s light skims the atmosphere before making its way to us. This interaction allows the light to interact with atmospheric substances, and their chemical fingerprints — dips in brightness at characteristic wavelengths — become imprinted in the light.
But our telescopes see light from the entire star as well, not just what’s grazing the planet. Stellar surfaces aren’t uniform. They sport hotter, unusually bright regions called faculae and cooler, darker regions similar to sunspots, both of which grow, shrink, and change position as the star rotates.
An artist’s concept of the Pandora mission, seen here without the thermal blanketing that will protect the spacecraft, observing a star and its transiting exoplanet. NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center/Conceptual Image Lab Using a novel all-aluminum, 45-centimeter-wide (17 inches) telescope, jointly developed by Livermore and Corning Specialty Materials in Keene, New Hampshire, Pandora’s detectors will capture each star’s visible brightness and near-infrared spectrum at the same time, while also obtaining the transiting planet’s near-infrared spectrum. This combined data will enable the science team to determine the properties of stellar surfaces and cleanly separate star and planetary signals.
The observing strategy takes advantage of the mission’s ability to continuously observe its targets for extended periods, something flagship missions like Webb, which are in high demand, cannot regularly do.
Over the course of its year-long prime mission, Pandora will observe at least 20 exoplanets 10 times, with each stare lasting a total of 24 hours. Each observation will include a transit, which is when the mission will capture the planet’s spectrum.
Pandora is led by NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center. Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory provides the mission’s project management and engineering. Pandora’s telescope was manufactured by Corning and developed collaboratively with Livermore, which also developed the imaging detector assemblies, the mission’s control electronics, and all supporting thermal and mechanical subsystems. The infrared sensor was provided by NASA Goddard. Blue Canyon Technologies provided the bus and is performing spacecraft assembly, integration, and environmental testing. NASA’s Ames Research Center in California’s Silicon Valley will perform the mission’s data processing. Pandora’s mission operations center is located at the University of Arizona, and a host of additional universities support the science team.
Download high-resolution video and images from NASA’s Scientific Visualization Studio
By Francis Reddy
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md.
Media Contact:
Claire Andreoli
301-286-1940
claire.andreoli@nasa.gov
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md.
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Last Updated Jan 16, 2025 Related Terms
Astrophysics Astrophysics Division Exoplanet Atmosphere Exoplanet Exploration Program Exoplanet Science Exoplanet Transits Exoplanets Goddard Space Flight Center Studying Exoplanets The Universe View the full article
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By NASA
On Jan. 9, 1990, space shuttle Columbia took off on its ninth flight, STS-32, from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in Florida. Its five-person crew of Commander Daniel Brandenstein, Pilot James Wetherbee, and Mission Specialists Bonnie Dunbar, Marsha Ivins, and David Low flew a then record-breaking 11-day mission to deploy the Syncom IV-F5 communications satellite for the U.S. Navy and retrieve the Long-Duration Exposure Facility (LDEF). Astronauts aboard a shuttle mission in 1984 deployed the LDEF and scientists eagerly awaited the return of their 57 experiments to study the effects of nearly six years exposure to the low Earth orbit environment. The crew also conducted several middeck experiments in biotechnology and materials processing and used an echocardiograph to study changes in their hearts.
The STS-32 crew of Mission Specialist Bonnie Dunbar, left, Commander Daniel Brandenstein, Pilot James Wetherbee, and Mission Specialists Marsha Ivins and David Low. The STS-32 crew patch. The Long Duration Exposure Facility during its deployment on the STS-41C mission in 1984. In November 1988, NASA announced Brandenstein, Wetherbee, Dunbar, Ivins, and Low as the STS-32 crew for the flight then planned for November 1989. Brandenstein, from the Class of 1978, had flown twice before, as pilot on STS-8 in August-September 1983 and commander of STS-51G in June 1985. Dunbar, selected in 1980, had flown once before on STS-61A in October-November 1985. For Wetherbee, Ivins, and Low, all selected in 1984, STS-32 marked their first spaceflight. During the second day of their planned 10-day mission, the astronauts would deploy the Syncom IV-F5, also known as Leasat-5, communications satellite for the U.S. Navy. The main focus of the flight involved the retrieval of LDEF, deployed by the STS-41C crew in April 1984. The original plan had LDEF, containing 57 science and technology experiments, retrieved by the STS-51D crew in February 1985. Delays in the shuttle program first pushed the retrieval to STS-61I in September 1986, and then the Challenger accident delayed it to STS-32. The facility ended up staying in orbit nearly six years instead of the originally intended 10 months. The crew rounded out the mission by conducting a series of middeck science and medical experiments.
Space shuttle Columbia rolls out to its launch pad on a foggy morning. NASA scientist John Charles, at rear, trains astronauts David Low, left, and Bonnie Dunbar, supine, in the operation of a cardiovascular experiment. The STS-32 crew exits crew quarters for the ride to Launch Pad 39A. Columbia returned to KSC on Aug. 21, 1989, following STS-28’s landing at Edwards Air Force Base (AFB) in California, and workers towed it to the Orbiter Processing Facility (OPF) the next day. They made 26 modifications to the orbiter, including the installation of the Remote Manipulator System (RMS), or robotic arm, and a fifth set of liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen tanks to extend the vehicle’s duration in space. Rollover to the nearby Vehicle Assembly Building took place on Nov. 16, where Columbia joined its External Tank and twin Solid Rocket Boosters (SRB) on refurbished Mobile Launch Platform 3, last used in 1975. Rollout took place on Nov. 28 to Launch Pad 39A, newly refurbished since its previous launch in 1986.
On Dec. 1, engineers and the astronaut crew completed the Terminal Countdown Demonstration Test, a dress rehearsal for the planned Dec. 18 launch. Based on that date and the mission’s planned 10-day duration, the STS-32 crew would have spent Christmas in space, only the third American crew and the first space shuttle crew to do so. However, unfinished work on Pad 39A delayed the launch into January 1990. Trajectory specialists had estimated that due to orbital decay, LDEF would reenter the Earth’s atmosphere by March 1990, so a timely launch remained crucial for mission success. The countdown began on Jan. 4 for an expected Jan. 8 launch, with the crew arriving at KSC on Jan. 5.
Liftoff of space shuttle Columbia on STS-32. The deployment of the Syncom IV-F5 satellite. Syncom following deployment. Cloudy skies scrubbed the first launch attempt on Jan. 8. Liftoff took place the next day at 7:35 a.m. EST from Launch Pad 39A, with LDEF 1,500 miles ahead of Columbia. The powered ride to space took 8.5 minutes, placing Columbia into a 215-by-38-mile orbit. A burn of the two Orbiter Maneuvering System (OMS) engines 40 minutes later changed the orbit to the desired 222-by-180-mile altitude. The crew opened the shuttle’s payload bay doors and deployed its radiators. The major activities for the first day in space involved the checkout of the RMS and the first rendezvous maneuver in preparation for the LDEF grapple three days later. The astronauts also activated four of the middeck experiments. On the mission’s second day, Low deployed the 15,000-pound Syncom satellite, releasing it in a frisbee motion out of the payload bay. The satellite extended its antenna, stabilized itself, and 40 minutes after deployment, fired its engine for the first burn to send it to its geostationary orbit.
The Long Duration Exposure Facility (LDEF) during the rendezvous. STS-32 astronaut Bonnie Dunbar has grappled LDEF with the Remote Manipulator System. Dunbar lowers LDEF into the payload bay. Following the Syncom deploy, the crew turned its attention to the rendezvous with LDEF while also continuing the middeck experiments. On Flight Day 3, they completed three rendezvous burns as they steadily continued their approach to LDEF. Soon after awakening on Flight Day 4, the astronauts spotted LDEF appearing as a bright star. After the first of four rendezvous burns, Columbia’s radar locked onto the satellite. As they continued the approach, with three more burns carried out successfully, Dunbar activated the RMS in preparation for the upcoming grapple. Brandenstein took over manual control of Columbia for the final approach and parked the shuttle close enough to LDEF for Dunbar to reach out with the 50-foot arm and grapple the satellite. Brandenstein reported, “We have LDEF.”
For the next four hours, with Wetherbee flying the orbiter and Dunbar operating the arm, Ivins performed a comprehensive photo survey of LDEF, documenting the effects of nearly six years of space exposure on the various experiments. The survey completed, Dunbar slowly and carefully lowered LDEF into the payload bay, and five latches secured it in place for the ride back to Earth. With the two major goals of their mission completed, the astronauts settled down for the remainder of their 10-day mission conducting science experiments.
With astronaut David Low acting as an operator, astronaut Bonnie Dunbar serves as a subject for a cardiovascular experiment. Astronaut Marsha Ivins with several cameras testing the effects of spaceflight on different types of film. During the mission, the STS-32 crew conducted several middeck experiments. The Protein Crystal Growth experiment used vapor diffusion to grow 120 crystals of 24 different proteins, for study by scientists following their return to Earth. The Characterization of Neurospora Circadian Rhythm experiment studied whether spaceflight affected the daily cycles of pink bread mold. The Fluid Experiment Apparatus performed materials processing research in the microgravity environment. The astronauts used the American Flight Echocardiograph (AFE) to study changes in their hearts as a result of weightlessness. The crew used the large format IMAX camera to film scenes inside the cabin as well as through the windows, such as the capture of LDEF.
Astronaut Daniel Brandenstein holds an inflatable plastic cake given to him by his crew mates in honor of his birthday. The STS-32 crew poses in Columbia’s middeck. On Jan. 17, Brandenstein celebrated his 47th birthday, the fifth American astronaut to do so in space. His crew presented him with an inflatable plastic cake including candles while controllers in Mission Control passed on their birthday wishes as did his wife and teenage daughter. On the same day, NASA announced the selection of its 13th group of astronauts. Among them, engineer Ronald Sega, Dunbar’s husband, as well as the first female shuttle pilot, Eileen Collins, and the first Hispanic woman astronaut, Ellen Ochoa.
Columbia touches down at Edwards Air Force Base in California. At the welcome home ceremony at Ellington Field in Houston, director of NASA’s Johnson Space Center Aaron Cohen addresses the crowd as the STS-32 astronauts and their families listen. On Jan. 19, the astronauts awakened for their planned final day in space. However, due to fog at their landing site, Edwards AFB in California, Mission Control first informed them that they would have to spend an extra orbit in space, and finally decided to delay the landing by an entire day. With their experiments already packed, the crew spent a quiet day, looking at the Earth and using up what film still remained. As they slept that night, they passed the record for the longest space shuttle mission, set by STS-9 in 1983.
In preparation for reentry, the astronauts donned their orange spacesuits and closed the payload bay doors. A last-minute computer problem delayed reentry by one orbit, then Brandenstein and Wetherbee oriented Columbia into the deorbit attitude, with the OMS engines facing in the direction of travel. Over the Indian Ocean, they fired the two engines for 2 minutes 48 seconds to bring the spacecraft out of orbit. They reoriented the orbiter to fly with its heat shield exposed to the direction of flight as it encountered Earth’s atmosphere at 419,000 feet. The buildup of ionized gases caused by the heat of reentry prevented communications for about 15 minutes but provided the astronauts a great light show. After completing the Heading Alignment Circle turn, Brandenstein aligned Columbia with the runway, and Wetherbee lowered the landing gear. Columbia touched down and rolled to a stop, making the third night landing of the shuttle program and ending a 10-day 21-hour 1-minute flight, the longest shuttle flight up to that time, having completed 172 orbits of the Earth.
Other records set by the astronauts on this mission included Brandenstein as the new record holder for most time spent in space by a shuttle crew member – 24 days – and Dunbar accumulating the most time in space by a woman – 18 days – up to that time. Following eight hours of postflight medical testing, the astronauts boarded a jet bound for Houston’s Ellington Field, where they reunited with their families and took part in a welcome home ceremony led by Aaron Cohen, director of NASA’s Johnson Space Center.
Columbia returns to NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida atop the Shuttle Carrier Aircraft. Workers lift the Long Duration Exposure Facility from Columbia’s payload bay. Following postlanding inspections, workers placed Columbia, with LDEF still cradled in its payload bay, atop a Shuttle Carrier Aircraft, a modified Boeing-747, and the combination left Edwards on Jan. 25. Following a refueling stop at Monthan Davis AFB in Tucson, an overnight stay at Kelly AFB in San Antonio, and another refueling stop at Eglin AFB in Fort Walton Beach, Florida, Columbia and LDEF arrived back at KSC on Jan. 26. The next day, workers towed Columbia to the OPF and on Jan. 30 lifted LDEF out of its payload bay, in preparation for the detailed study of the effects of nearly six years in space on the 57 experiments it carried. Meanwhile, workers began to prepare Columbia for its next flight, STS-35 in December 1990.
Enjoy the crew narrate a video of the STS-32 mission. Read Brandenstein‘s and Dunbar‘s recollections of the STS-32 mission in their oral histories with the JSC History Office. For an overview of the LDEF project, enjoy this video. For detailed information on the results of the LDEF experiments, follow this link.
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By NASA
NASA White Sands Test Facility
Las Cruces, New Mexico
Soil Remediation at the 600 Area Off-Site Pile
Origins of the 600 Area Off-Site Pile
The NASA White Sands Test Facility (WSTF) is crucial for supporting space exploration and technology development. Located in New Mexico, it provides a controlled environment for testing and evaluating spacecraft, propulsion systems, and other aerospace technologies. The facility is instrumental in conducting critical tests such as engine firings, thermal and environmental testing, and materials research. Its role in ensuring the safety, reliability, and performance of spacecraft and systems makes it a key asset in NASA’s mission to explore space and advance scientific knowledge. Unfortunately, past practices associated with the execution of its mission adversely impacted soil and groundwater resources.
From June 1974 to December 1979, sludge and soil removed from a domestic and industrial wastewater lagoon was stockpiled on Bureau of Land Management land west of the NASA White Sands Test Facility (WSTF) facility boundary, less than a mile from the lagoon. When accumulation of material ceased, the sludge/soil debris pile lay dormant with no boundary identification. In 1993, during a Resource Conservation and Recovery Act field investigation the debris pile was identified and reported to the New Mexico Environment Department (NMED) and designated as Solid Waste Management Unit (SWMU) 16.
Investigation Summary
Initial investigations were completed at SWMU 16 in 2015 and 2018 to characterize the stockpiled sludge/soil and native soils beneath the stockpile to a depth of 30 feet. Analysis of soil sample data indicated the contaminants in the pile posed a risk to human health and the environment due to identified concentrations of nitrates, metals, volatile and semi-volatile organics, pesticides, polychlorinated biphenyls, and dioxins and furans. The NMED agreed to the removal and off-site disposal of New Mexico Special Waste in 2021.
Removal, Disposal, Confirmation Sampling
Excavation of the stockpile and the upper 6 inches of native soil was completed in January 2024. Excavation of native soils extended approximately 10 ft beyond the extent of the pile. A total of 1,072.7 tons of sludge and soil were disposed at the Corralitos Landfill. In February 2024, confirmatory soil samples were collected from 38 locations on a 30-foot grid established across SWMU 16, encompassing the location of the removed stockpile and all areas potentially affected by site operations. These samples were submitted for laboratory chemical analyses to determine if NASA had met is remedial objectives and eliminated the exposure risk to human health and the environment.
Risk Assessment
The results showed that NASA had succeeded. The site was restored. Results of soil sample analyses did not identify site contaminants remain at the site, and a risk assessment did not identify elevated risk to receptors or to groundwater beneath the site. NASA concluded that site contaminants have been removed, the risk to human health and the environment are below regulatory targets. NASA recommended a change in site status from “Requiring Corrective Action” to “Corrective Action Complete without Controls”. The report of results is currently under review by the NMED.
Visit nasa.gov/emd to learn more about NASA’s Environmental Management Division (EMD)!
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By USH
Despite the MSM at the moment keeps a low profile in informing the public about the unidentified drones, the 'drone mystery' is still going on with hundreds of drones spotted across the US, especially the eastern United States.
Check out the size of this high-tech drone, estimated to be around 25-30 feet in length, possibly even larger. It was recently filmed flying low over New Jersey. (Watch the video of the craft at the bottom of the article.)
The mystery surrounding unidentified drones continues to capture attention, particularly across the eastern United States. While mainstream media (MSM) maintains a low profile in reporting on these occurrences, sightings persist, with hundreds of drones reported in various regions.
Officials have repeatedly assured the public that these drones pose no threat to national security. However, skepticism remains high, as the government has yet to provide a comprehensive explanation, leaving many feeling left in the dark.
Dr. Steven Greer recently made a prediction during an interview with Newsmax's Rob Finnerty. He claimed that the drone crisis is likely to escalate "within the next 30 days." According to Greer, the notion of a supposed "alien invasion" is a deliberate distraction designed to obscure the true nature of extraterrestrial encounters, which he asserts have been ongoing for decades. This statement has sparked further speculation among those following developments in the UFO community.
Adding to the anticipation, investigative journalist Ross Coulthart has forecasted that 2025 will mark a turning point in public awareness about extraterrestrial matters. Describing the current period as “the calm before the storm,” Coulthart envisions transformative revelations in the coming year.
Michael Salla, Ph.D., another figure in the disclosure movement, has reported information from a retired U.S. Army serviceman, identified as JP. According to JP, factions within the U.S. military, referred to as "White Hats," along with an international coalition known as the “Earth Alliance,” are preparing to disclose advanced alien technology to the public. This advanced technology, allegedly hidden for decades by shadowy "deep state" organizations and defense contractors, includes three medium-sized cigar-shaped spacecraft and numerous unidentified aerial phenomena (UAPs) stored in an underground facility in Tampa, Florida. These alleged alien-tech craft are said to possess advanced stealth capabilities, allowing them to blend seamlessly with their surroundings.
As part of a broader disclosure strategy, the unveiling of these craft is intended to prepare the public for even larger extraterrestrial revelations in the months ahead.
It seems as two opposing forces are at play:
The Deep State: Allegedly leveraging drones and orbs sightings as part of a staged operation to manipulate public perception to fabricate the illusion of an alien invasion in an attempt to hide the real truth about extraterrestrial encounters and maintain the secrecy around covert programs and maintain control over advanced technologies acquired over the past 70 years.
The Earth Alliance: Seeking to reveal genuine alien technology obtained from real UFO crashes, confirming the existence of extraterrestrial life and promoting transparency.
Whether these predictions will materialize remains to be seen, but they have undeniably heightened public interest in what lies ahead. View the full article
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By NASA
NASA’s uncrewed Artemis I mission launched from KSC on November 16, 2022. After a successful mission that included orbiting the Moon, the Orion spacecraft returned to Earth splashing down in the Pacific Ocean on December 11, 2022. While the spacecraft made a safe return to Earth, postflight inspection of Orion’s thermal protection indicated that the base heatshield did not perform as expected. The heatshield is composed of Avcoat, an ablative material designed to protect the crew module during the nearly 5000ºF temperatures experienced during atmospheric entry upon return from the Moon. Specifically, inspection revealed more than 100 locations where the charred Avcoat material chipped away from the heatshield.
The NESC formed a team of subject matter experts from across and outside of the Agency to assist the Orion Program team in the overall investigation. NESC team members are supporting or leading efforts in multi-physics analysis, material testing, fault tree and root cause analysis, aeroscience review, analysis peer review, nondestructive evaluation (NDE), as well as investigation of alternative heatshield concepts.
The NESC works closely with the Artemis I Char Loss Team to ensure the observed material loss is thoroughly understood so that decisions may be made regarding use for upcoming crewed missions. To date, NESC contributions have included pathfinding NDE techniques for postflight heatshield inspection, investigation of key Avcoat material properties and behavior, and providing key inputs to the fault tree development and disposition to guide a thorough investigation of possible causes.
View from Artemis I crew cabin window showing material loss during entry (foreground). An artist’s illustration of Orion crew module entering the Earth’s atmosphere.View the full article
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