News Articles
Sun, Earth’s Space Environment
Apr 14, 2019
Constantly shielding us from the Sun’s high energy particles is the Earth’s magnetic field. Many imagine this field as a circle, slightly larger than our planet. But, it’s actually shaped like this. And near our north and south poles, there is a cusp – a point where two branches of a curve meet. It... Read More
Sun, Our Sun
Mar 27, 2019
When sea-faring nations began to explore new regions of the world, one of their biggest concerns in making the journey safely was how to cope with weather. They could harness the wind for power. They could rely on the Sun and the stars for navigation. They could build sturdy ships. But if a storm... Read More
Sun
Nov 7, 2018
Editor's note: The Nov. 7 launch attempt has been scrubbed. The next launch opportunity will be Thursday, Nov. 8.
Earth, Sun, ISS
Aug 16, 2018
The Sun. It inspires songs, warms us, and grows our food. Life on land and in the oceans, the daily weather, and long-term climate patterns happen primarily because of energy we receive from our closest star. Even tiny variations in that energy can affect the workings of our planet’s atmosphere.... Read More
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
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
Sun, Earth’s Space Environment
Mar 30, 2018
Up above the clouds, Earth’s atmosphere gives way to space. This interface is called the ionosphere. Changes in the ionosphere – in reaction to space weather above and Earth’s weather below -- can disrupt communications and GPS signals and could potentially harm astronauts. So it is important to... Read More
Sun, Earth’s Space Environment
Mar 25, 2018
Enveloping our planet and protecting us from the fury of the Sun is a giant bubble of magnetism called the magnetosphere. It deflects most of the solar material sweeping towards us from our star at 1 million miles per hour or more. Without the magnetosphere, the relentless action of these solar... Read More
Earth, Sun
Mar 16, 2018
NASA has powered on its latest space payload to continue long-term measurements of the Sun's incoming energy. Total and Spectral solar Irradiance Sensor (TSIS-1), installed on the International Space Station, became fully operational with all instruments collecting science data as of this March.
Universe, Earth, Sun
Feb 12, 2018
In collaboration with NASA, the National Informal STEM Education Network (NISE Net) is pleased to offer eligible institutions the opportunity to apply for a free Sun, Earth, Universe exhibition.
Universe, Earth, Sun, Solar System
Jan 30, 2018
Sixty years ago, on January 31, 1958, the United States joined the "space race" with the successful launch of the Explorer 1 satellite. But the event was much more than a rocket launch.
Sun, Earth’s Space Environment
Jan 24, 2018
Like Earth, space has weather. Except instead of swirling winds and downpours of precipitation, space weather is defined by shifting electric and magnetic fields and rains of charged particles. At the very beginning of space, starting just 60 miles above Earth’s surface, there’s a layer of the... Read More
Sun
Sep 26, 2017
In the summer of 2018, we’re launching Parker Solar Probe, a spacecraft that will get closer to the Sun than any other in human history.
Sun
Aug 24, 2017
Now that the Aug. 21 total solar eclipse across America is over, you may be wondering: Can I reuse or recycle my eclipse glasses?
Sun, Sky Watching, Eclipses
Aug 18, 2017
On August 21, 2017, the shadow of the Moon will sweep across the U.S. landscape, transforming day to twilight. In the surreal gloaming of an eclipse, the temperature drops, birds go silent, crickets begin to chirp, and blossoms start to close. As this scene plays out across a 70-mile wide path of... Read More
