News Articles
Sun
Aug 13, 2018
Hours before the rise of the very star it will study, NASA’s Parker Solar Probe launched from Florida Sunday to begin its journey to the Sun, where it will undertake a landmark mission. The spacecraft will transmit its first science observations in December, beginning a revolution in our... Read More
Sky Watching, Meteor Showers
Aug 10, 2018
The fireworks show you watched in July most likely lasted 20 minutes. But in August, you can watch some celestial fireworks that will last hours and hours. This is the Perseid Meteor Shower. With a clear sky, observers will be able to see up to 60 meteors per hour at its peak.
Sun, Our Sun
Aug 8, 2018
People around the world look up and see our Sun every day. But through a space telescope, it looks nothing like it does from down on the ground. The surface dances with arches of solar material that reach up into the solar atmosphere – an environment of charged particles and magnetic fields unlike... Read More
Solar System
Aug 1, 2018
Dark moonless nights for the summer Perseid Meteor Shower!
Sky Watching
Jul 26, 2018
Go outside on a clear night, look up, and consider the following. Standing on Earth’s surface, we are part of the universe’s perpetual symphony of heavenly bodies rotating on their axes and revolving around one another in an intricate rhythm. As far as we know, we’re the only ones “listening” and... Read More
Earth
Jul 20, 2018
Oceans cover over 70% percent of Earth’s surface and profoundly influence our planet’s atmosphere, weather, and climate. However, uncovering the many secrets hidden beneath the ocean’s waves presents unique challenges for researchers, and requires specific technology to observe what humans can’t... Read More
ISS
Jul 16, 2018
Large and powerful telescopes have delivered stunning images of our Galaxy and the universe. A little closer to home, my colleagues have taken some equally stunning photographs of our own planet from the International Space Station.
Solar System
Jul 11, 2018
New research from NASA’s Cassini spacecraft’s up-close Grand Finale orbits shows a surprisingly powerful and dynamic interaction of plasma waves moving from Saturn to its rings and its moon Enceladus. The observations show for the first time that the waves travel on magnetic field lines connecting... Read More
Solar System, Mars, Planets of Our Solar System
Jul 6, 2018
July's night skies feature Mars opposition on the 27th, when Mars, Earth, and the Sun all line up, and Mars' closest approach to Earth since 2003 on the 31st. That means great Mars viewing, though the planet-wide Martian dust storm will make seeing details more difficult.
Solar System
Jun 30, 2018
On February 15, 2013, a house-sized meteor entered into Earth’s atmosphere at over 40,000 mph and exploded 14 miles above Chelyabinsk, Russia. The blast – wielding more than 30 times the energy of the Hiroshima atom bomb – generated a shock wave that shattered windows and damaged buildings in... Read More
Earth, Climate Change
Jun 29, 2018
NASA's Ecosystem Spaceborne Thermal Radiometer Experiment on Space Station (ECOSTRESS) is designed to study how plants respond to heat and water stress by measuring the temperature of Earth's vegetation at all times of day with an accuracy of a few tenths of a degree.
Universe
Jun 27, 2018
The Independent Review Board (IRB) established by NASA to assess progress on its James Webb Space Telescope has unanimously recommended that development on the world’s premier science observatory should continue; NASA has established a new launch date for Webb of March 30, 2021.
Solar System, Mars
Jun 21, 2018
This is a story more than 4.5 billion years in the making. We’ve always referred to Mars as the red planet because of its surface color. But what’s below that dusty crust? We don’t know.
Solar System, Sky Watching
Jun 14, 2018
What's up in the night sky this month? Enjoy a ringside seat for Saturn, plus a night long parade featuring Venus, Jupiter, Mars and Vesta!
Solar System
Jun 12, 2018
NASA’s Science Mission Directorate (SMD) is taking a giant leap focusing the agency’s exploration of the Moon, Mars and our Solar System.
