Welcome to the OSIRIS-REx blog. Here you will find updates on NASA's first mission to collect an asteroid sample for analysis in labs around the globe. NASA's OSIRIS-REx spacecraft is cruising back to Earth now with samples it collected at the rocky surface of asteroid Bennu on Oct. 20, 2020. The spacecraft will deliver …
NASA's Parker Solar Probe completed its 15th close approach to the Sun on March 17, coming within 5.3 million miles of the scorching solar surface.
After more than 15 years of scientific discoveries, NASA's Aeronomy of Ice in the Mesosphere, or AIM, spacecraft is no longer supporting operations after experiencing issues with its battery. AIM's batteries initially started to decline in 2019, but the Earth-studying spacecraft continued to return a significant amount of data. Now, with further decline in the …
A massive eruption of solar material, known as a coronal mass ejection or CME, was detected escaping from the Sun at 11:36 p.m. EDT on March 12, 2023. The CME erupted from the side of the Sun opposite Earth. While resarchers are still gathering data to determine the source of the eruption, it is currently …
NASA's Atmospheric Waves Experiment, or AWE, is set to launch in November 2023. From its perch aboard the International Space Station 250 miles above Earth, AWE will study atmospheric gravity waves to better understand how they transport energy into Earth's upper atmosphere and affect space weather.
NASA's Interstellar Boundary Explorer (IBEX) is fully operational after the mission team successfully reset the spacecraft on March 2. To take the spacecraft out of a contingency mode it entered last month, the mission team performed a firecode reset (which is an external reset of the spacecraft) instead of waiting for the spacecraft to perform …
NASA's Interstellar Boundary Explorer (IBEX) experienced a flight computer reset during a planned contact and the spacecraft went into contingency mode on Feb. 18. While fight computer resets have happened before, this time the team lost the ability to command the spacecraft during the subsequent reset recovery. The team also was unsuccessful in regaining command …
An instrument on NASA's Parker Solar Probe was powered off by the spacecraft autonomy system on Feb. 12, 2023.
On Feb. 15, 2013, the people of Chelyabinsk, Russia, experienced a shocking event, and yet it was a small fraction of the devastation an asteroid on a collision course with Earth could yield. As NASA's Planetary Defense experts reflect on the Chelyabinsk impact 10 years ago, they also look forward to the future and all …
NASA's Atmospheric Waves Experiment (AWE) has successfully completed its critical space environment tests. Planned for launch to the International Space Station, AWE will study gravity waves in Earth's atmosphere to gain a deeper knowledge of the connections caused by climate systems throughout our atmosphere and between the atmosphere and space.