The deadline for NASA internships during summer 2026 is fast approaching and will be here on February 27^th! We have compiled an extensive listing of the latest information on astrophysics-related summer internships offered below! All links provided below will take you the corresponding internship opportunity on the master list (https://stemgateway.nasa.gov/public/s/explore-opportunities). We found them for you! Specific questions should be directed to the office/program given in the opportunity description.

Washington Space Grant Scholarship Program | Deadline: February 20^th, 2026

The Washington NASA Space Grant Consortium is a federally-funded workforce development program that supports students studying science, technology, engineering, or mathematics (STEM) in Washington State. Washington Space Grant opportunities are open and available to all STEM students. Our commitment stands to broaden and enhance access for all, including but not limited to first-generation college students, women, people of color, and those who wish to pursue careers in STEM fields. 

This Graduate Fellow opportunity is for University of Washington graduate students only. There are two Graduate Fellowship Opportunities: (1) Summer Fellowship and (2) Academic Year Fellowship. You can apply to one or both fellowship opportunities. 

This is a two-part application process. You must complete both steps to complete your application:

• Step 1: Apply to this opportunity listed in the NASA STEM Gateway System.
• Step 2: Complete the WASG Graduate Fellow Application Form, https://forms.gle/Pca5VzHuKEtJ2L4i8

Eligibility:

US Citizen Only.

Currently enrolled or admitted in a STEM graduate program at the University of Washington - Seattle.

Space Grant Scholars should be enrolled in an approved STEM major. 

Questions: email nasa@uw.edu

Numerical modeling of X-rays from accretion disks around black holes | Deadline: February 27th, 2026

https://stemgateway.nasa.gov/s/course-offering/a0BSJ000005WAqB2AW/numerical-modeling-of-xrays-from-accretion-disks-around-black-holes

Our lab is responsible for the production and maintenance of numerical codes that model the X-ray spectrum emitted by the material in the vicinity of black holes and other compact objects. This project envisions a series of possible modifications to existing codes to improve their physics and capabilities, as well as their application for the interpretation of real observational data from NASA missions such as NuSTAR, NICER, and XRISM.

Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA) | Deadline: February 27th, 2026

https://stemgateway.nasa.gov/s/course-offering/a0BSJ000005QfRF2A0/laser-interferometer-space-antenna-lisa

This is an on-site internship opportunity to work with the NASA team contributing to the Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA) mission. LISA is a collaboration of the European Space Agency and NASA to build the first space-based observatory for gravitational waves - ripples in spacetime created by extreme events in the cosmos. LISA is planned to launch in 2035 and NASA is responsible for a number of instrument technologies as well as elements of the engineering, data analysis, and science. The intern will be paired with one of our team members to mentor in an individual or small-group project that is matched to the student's skills and interests. Potential project areas include laboratory research on prototype flight hardware, data analysis development on simulated LISA data sets, theoretical or numerical studies of LISA-related astrophysics and cosmology, and communications-related efforts such as visualization or sonification of simulated LISA data. Interns will be matched with a primary mentor but will also be encouraged to engage with the broader research group.

Developing the Ames Coronagraph Testbed Vacuum Chamber for the Habitable Worlds | Deadline: February 27th, 2026

https://stemgateway.nasa.gov/s/course-offering/a0BSJ000005OSBZ2A4/developing-the-ames-coronagraph-testbed-vacuum-chamber-for-the-habitable-worlds

This intern project will be assisting with the design, modeling, construction, and functional testing of the Ames Coronagraph Testbed (ACT), a vacuum testbed for the Habitable Worlds Observatory. Specifically, this will involve assisting with computer aided design (CAD) modeling, load and vibration analysis, and manufacturing of support structures to be placed inside the vacuum chamber. Additionally, the intern will assist with collecting and analyzing vibration data from accelerometers to characterize the stability of the testbed and support structure. 

Experience with designing and manufacturing custom parts, as well as working in a mechanical shop environment is desired. The ideal candidate should also have experience with CAD tools (e.g. SolidWorks), structural modeling, and collecting and analyzing vibration data (e.g. accelerometers). Additionally, intern should be able to work in a team environment as well as conduct independent modeling and analysis tasks with limited supervision. 

Intern will participate in weekly team meetings (approximately 1hr/wk) as well as weekly one-on-one meetings with mentor and co-mentors (approximately 1-3hrs/wk), with additional communication via email, chat, or drop-in discussions. The work will primarily involve hands-on work in the ACT facility as well as the in the Ames Applied Manufacturing (Code RM) machine shop. Intern should expect to work on site at Ames most days with some limited opportunity to telework when performing computer-based modeling and analysis work. No off-site travel is anticipated.

Astrophysics Data Analysis for the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope | Deadline: February 27^th, 2026

https://stemgateway.nasa.gov/s/course-offering/a0BSJ000005Q74b2AC/astrophysics-data-analysis-for-the-nancy-grace-roman-space-telescope

The Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope, on track for launch in September 2026, will be a revolutionary probe for understanding the ingredients and evolution of the universe. A key component of mission success is the unprecedented characterization of the Wide Field Instrument’s systematics. The student will assist in analysis of ground-based data to quantify the impact of systematics associated with specific data analysis pipeline steps that include, for example, a linearity correction of the response of Roman’s detectors. To perform this analysis, the student will use a combination of data and existing tools: existing data collected, simulated data and the released versions of Roman’s calibration pipelines.

Open Science Impact | Deadline: February 27^th, 2026

https://stemgateway.nasa.gov/s/course-offering/a0BSJ000005Wb812AC/open-science-impact

Are you passionate about science and eager to be part of a groundbreaking initiative? Join NASA's Science Mission Directorate (SMD) for an exciting internship project measuring the impact of open science activities! This dynamic project is being run by Science Mission Directorate’s Office of the Chief Scientist Data Officer (OCSDO) and offers a unique opportunity to delve into the world of open science and its transformative effects on research and discovery. As an intern, you will work closely with a team of experienced scientists and data analysts to evaluate how open science activities, like data sharing, open source software, and collaborative research, are influencing scientific progress and innovation at NASA. You will gain hands-on experience with data analysis tools, learn to assess the reach and effectiveness of various initiatives, and contribute to reports that will help shape future policies. This internship is perfect for undergraduate or graduate students who are curious, eager to learn, and excited about contributing to the future of scientific research.

NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) Internship Opportunities. SG - Summer 26 | Deadline: February 27^th, 2026

We invite students majoring in the fields of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) to apply for internship opportunities to collaborate side-by-side with scientists and engineers in our creative and diverse research community. JPL’s technical competencies revolve around end-to-end implementation of unprecedented robotic space missions that study Earth, the solar system, and the universe beyond. Individual research projects may fall within the following and other general areas: Earth Science, Astrophysics and Space Sciences, Life Sciences (Biology, Chemistry, Geology, Physics, etc.), Planetary Sciences, Spacecraft and Robotic Technologies, Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Computer Science, Communications and Computing Software and Instrument Technologies. A minimum cumulative GPA of 3.00 is required. Opportunities are open to US citizens only.Students applying to this Engagement Opening also need to submit an application to one of the "JPL Programs" on the JPL Education portal: https://www.jpl.nasa.gov/edu/intern/apply/

Integrated Modeling for Roman Space Telescope | Deadline: February 27^th, 2026

https://stemgateway.nasa.gov/s/course-offering/a0BSJ0000051tZ32AI/integrated-modeling-for-roman-space-telescope

The Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope (Roman) is the highest-priority large space mission identified by the 2020 New Worlds, New Horizon Decadal Survey in Astronomy and Astrophysics. Its mission encompasses critical research in dark energy, dark matter, exoplanets, and infrared astrophysics. Additionally, Roman will feature a technology demonstration coronagraph with active wavefront control for exoplanet imaging. Scheduled to launch no later than spring 2027, Roman will operate in a Sun-Earth L2 orbit with a primary mission duration of 5 years.

Roman's Integrated Modeling team performs system level analyses that predict imaging performance and alignment errors stemming from a variety of sources, predominantly thermal distortion and jitter (micro-vibration) effects. The selected interns for this project will work with one of the Integrated modeling analysts on one or a combination of the following major tasks:

• Support development of software tools to automate the Structural-Thermal-Optical Performance (STOP) analysis process. STOP analysis requires a combination of several commercial and in-house (custom) software codes, run in sequence; the HWO IM team is developing a suite of tools to streamline each step of the process, and to automate the full “pipeline.” Specific tasks will include: automation of the process that feeds results from NASTRAN > SigFit > Code-V, and exports final results to PowerPoint; automation of “Run Log” to populate an Excel spreadsheet upon completion of various automated tasks; and development of various STOP post-processing tools using Thermal Desktop API, Femap API, and/or CODE V API.
• Support planning and preparation for on-orbit commissioning activities related to optical alignment and performance characterization. This includes, but is not limited to, planning ConOps for on-orbit characterization tests, performing analyses to predict observatory behavior during tests, and reviewing other commissioning activities to identify opportunities for test optimization and additional characterization. 

Candidates must be proficient in Python programming; preferred skills include coursework and/or experience in structural analysis (e.g. solid mechanics, finite element analysis), thermal analysis, and optics disciplines as well as experience with MATLAB, VBA programming, and FEMAP.

Modeling Detectors for Future Gamma-ray Burst Missions | Deadline: February 27^th, 2026

https://stemgateway.nasa.gov/s/course-offering/a0BSJ000005HrQ12AK/modeling-detectors-for-future-gammaray-burst-missions

Gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) are the brightest and most powerful explosions in the universe. As a result, they provide unique challenges when designing instrumentation for future astronomy missions. A good GRB detector must have a large effective area over a wide range of gamma-ray energies while also needing to handle high detection rates. As part of this internship, the student will use Geant4 simulations to model the energy response of different detector materials and geometries in an effort to assess their utility in future GRB science missions. They will validate these simulation against real gamma-ray detectors operated in a laboratory setting.

Please Note: Additional Skills 
C++ programming, Geant4, and ROOT analysis software experience required. Some background knowledge in astronomy, astrophysics, and electrical circuits is encouraged. 
Working in teams and independently, self-directed learning and troubleshooting.

Expanding the Reach of NASA Citizen Science | Deadline: February 27^th, 2026

https://stemgateway.nasa.gov/s/course-offering/a0BSJ000005Hbpt2AC/expanding-the-reach-of-nasa-citizen-science

NASA’s citizen science projects involve millions of members of the public in cutting-edge NASA science. Along the way, these projects teach participants about both NASA and science. However, not all of these projects benefit from the vast catalogs of educational materials NASA teams have developed over the years. 

During this internship, you will (1) work Citizen Science leadership at NASA Headquarters to help cross-match new NASA catalogs of educational materials with NASA’s 38+ active citizen science projects and (2) starting with astronomy, interface with Citizen Science project leaders to suggest what educational materials would enhance their projects and expand the reach of NASA Science. 

The project will require familiarity with data entry, and potential development of educational resources in conjunction with scientists. Experience or formal training in science education is strongly preferred. Good written an oral communication skills and ability to work independently are preferred.

Developing a Prompt Engineering Database in support of the Astrophysics Division | Deadline: February 27^th, 2026

https://stemgateway.nasa.gov/s/course-offering/a0BSJ000005Gc3F2AS/developing-a-prompt-engineering-database-in-support-of-the-astrophysics-division

The Astrophysics Division at NASA Headquarters manages and supports different science missions, both in development and currently active. It also manages grants and funds across many different avenues in support of the broad US Scientific Community.

In line with Presidential Priorities the Division is looking for one or more interns to incorporate Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools across different aspects of the day-to-day activities, to improve the decision making process and increase efficiency. 

The interns will utilize tools such as Copilot, Gemini Pro, and other NASA-developed LLMs and AI tools. They will collaborate closely with Program Executives and Program Scientists on various tasks. These tasks include, but are not limited to, Policy summarization, document creation, presentation preparation, data analysis, and panel reviews.

The ultimate goal is the creation of a Prompt Database that will represent a “one-stop shop” for Prompt creation and adoption across different use cases.

Interns will also develop and apply retrieval-augmented generation (RAG) approaches to enable AI-assisted querying and synthesis across mission, policy, and programmatic documents.

This is a unique opportunity for interns to gain hands-on experience in a high-impact role while contributing to cutting-edge projects in astrophysics. Interns are expected to be located at NASA Headquarters (HQ) in Washington, DC.

Deep Learning Classification of Kepler/TESS Transit Signals | Deadline: February 27^th, 2026

https://stemgateway.nasa.gov/s/course-offering/a0BSJ000005GI9N2AW/deep-learning-classification-of-keplertess-transit-signals

Kepler and TESS are critical missions to increase our understanding of how common earth-like planets and the chances of alien life are. These telescopes work based on transit photometry and their pipelines return a list of threshold crossing events (TCEs) whose light signature resemble a planet. However, not all TCEs are planet orbiting a star and they could be due instrument noise or other astrophysical phenomena. We have been exploring deep learning technology for automatic classification of TCEs and finding planets from non-TCEs. Using our in-house tools, we have been able to identify new planets (subject to confirmation). We also have identified multiple ways to improve the existing classifiers and we are looking for interns who can explore these new ways. This internship opportunity is very rewarding because the result will lead to the discovery of new exo-planets. We will also publish the results in prestigious journals. This is a great opportunity to get some visibility. Potential interns needs to know how to program in python and write deep learning codes. The intern is expected to help us developing parts of this project in Python. Tools we use for this project are scikit-learn and Keras (and TensorFlow). **** PLEASE DO NOT APPLY IF YOU DO NOT HAVE ANY EXPERIENCE WITH DEEP LEARNING MODELS AND THESE TOOLS. ****

**Please note, if you are selected for participation in an internship, you will be required to visit a NASA center or facility for fingerprinting and identity verification. Accommodations can be requested for selected candidates with disabilities. NASA Centers and Facilities - https://science.nasa.gov/about-us/nasa-centers**

New software/techniques for X-ray astrophysics in the cloud | Deadline: February 27^th, 2026

https://stemgateway.nasa.gov/s/course-offering/a0BSJ000005G0af2AC/new-softwaretechniques-for-xray-astrophysics-in-the-cloud

This project would be undertaken as part of the High Energy Astrophysics Science Archive Research Center (HEASARC https://heasarc.gsfc.nasa.gov) - the NASA astrophysics archive responsible for data taken by X-ray and Gamma-ray telescopes such as Chandra and XRISM. We, and the other astrophysics archives (IRSA and MAST), are currently developing the Fornax initiative (https://science.nasa.gov/astrophysics/programs/physics-of-the-cosmos/community/the-fornax-initiative/); a new cloud-based system designed to power the next generation of astrophysics research by bringing code and data closer together. 

This new system provides opportunities for the development of new ways of using high-energy astrophysics data. This project will focus on making contributions to software that allows us to analyze X-ray and Gamma-ray data in new ways, on the production of self-contained Jupyter notebooks that contain beginning-to-end demonstrations of real scientific analyses of high-energy data, or both. 

The exact details of this internship will vary depending on the state of the project at the time, as well as the skills and scientific interests of the applicant. Also if you visit the HEASARC website or the HEASARC-tutorials repository (https://github.com/HEASARC/heasarc-tutorials) and have an idea you wish to propose, we can take that into account.

Membrane-based Optics for Next Generation Telescopes | Deadline: February 27^th, 2026

https://stemgateway.nasa.gov/s/course-offering/a0BSJ000005KQwL2AW/membranebased-optics-for-next-generation-telescopes

The project is the development of membrane-based diffractive optics for use in the next generation of space telescopes for astrophysics, planetary science, and laser communication. We have unlocked the ability to fabricate large, thin film optics that are near massless and can be compactly stowed and deployed once they reach their ultimate destination (space). Deployable optics have the potential to improve the capability of the primary telescope while simultaneously reducing their cost to enable previously impossible missions with optics significantly larger than the host spacecraft. The work for this project will involve the characterization of prototype membrane optics, developing deployment methodologies, and contributing to system design concepts.

Roman Space Telescope simulation and data analysis | Deadline: February 27^th, 2026

https://stemgateway.nasa.gov/s/course-offering/a0BSJ000005TOGz2AO/roman-space-telescope-simulation-and-data-analysis

This internship will support software development in preparation for the launch of NASA’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope. Projects may span several areas depending on team needs and applicant interests: 

Developing cloud computing implementations of data processing pipelines 
Simulating observations for science and calibration fields 
Building analysis tools to support commissioning and calibration activities 

Applicants from any program year are welcome, pursuing degrees in physics, astrophysics, computer science, or related fields. Experience with Python is expected.

Deep Learning for Roman datasets | Deadline: February 27^th, 2026

https://stemgateway.nasa.gov/s/course-offering/a0BSJ000005RjB32AK/deep-learning-for-roman-datasets

The Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope is a wide-field survey telescope to be launched in Fall 2026. It will produce data by the terabytes daily, defying human capacity to classify and monitor. Artificial intelligence and machine learning are absolutely essential for this. We plan to start building and testing a training and classification system that finds outliers/anomalies in the photometry data of point sources, most of which are expected to be stars with predictable colors. Beyond finding anomalies, we will build a system that attempts to classify the outliers as known classes of objects, steady calibration drifts, or unexpected data anomalies.

Galaxy Cluster Cosmology with Roman | Deadline: February 27^th, 2026

https://stemgateway.nasa.gov/s/course-offering/a0BSJ000005RYnV2AW/galaxy-cluster-cosmology-with-roman

The Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope, on track for launch in September 2026, will be a revolutionary probe for understanding the ingredients and evolution of the universe. Its deep, high-resolution imaging of galaxy shapes will enable precise measurements of the mass profiles of galaxy clusters using weak gravitational lensing. Cluster lensing can be measured for both individual systems and stacks of many clusters (combining measurements to improve statistical precision). Individual profiles can be used to test a cluster’s dynamical state, substructure and gas physics. The form of stacked cluster profiles is sensitive to the underlying cosmology and provides a route to understanding the primary contents of our Universe: dark matter and dark energy.

The student will engage in preparatory studies, laying the groundwork for utilizing Roman cluster lensing profiles for cosmology and astrophysics. Using galaxy clusters from cosmological simulations, they will investigate the expected precision on individual and stacked Roman-like cluster lensing profiles. They will compare these to real profiles, created using existing and available weak-lensing and galaxy cluster catalogues. This comparison will allow the student to quantitatively assess how Roman will improve upon current surveys in the context of cluster lensing.

Finally, the student will forecast the cluster sample accessible to Roman using the anticipated survey strategy outlined in the Roman Observations Time Allocation Committee (ROTAC) report, which describes Roman’s planned observing program. By comparing this to existing cluster catalogues, they will predict the number of clusters in the Roman field of view and its evolution over time, providing a robust assessment of Roman’s prospects for cluster weak-lensing science. This will help direct the focus of early analyses toward specific science goals.