John and Adrienne Mars Director of the National Air and Space Museum Ellen Stofan gives opening remarks during the premiere of "Apollo 11: First Steps Edition", Tuesday, May 14, 2019 at the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum in Washington. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)

John and Adrienne Mars Director of the National Air and Space Museum Ellen Stofan, moderates a panel discussion after the premiere of the film "Apollo 11: First Steps Edition", Tuesday, May 14, 2019 at the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum in Washington. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)

John and Adrienne Mars Director of the National Air and Space Museum Ellen Stofan gives opening remarks during the premiere of "Apollo 11: First Steps Edition", Tuesday, May 14, 2019 at the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum in Washington. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)

Ellen Stofan, director, Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, speaks on a panel after a showing of the Project Mars Competition's short films and the Mars series, Monday, November 5, 2018 at National Geographic Society Headquarters in Washington. Photo Credit: (NASA/Aubrey Gemignani)

Ellen Stofan, director, Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, speaks on a panel after a showing of the Project Mars Competition's short films and the Mars series, Monday, November 5, 2018 at National Geographic Society Headquarters in Washington. Photo Credit: (NASA/Aubrey Gemignani)

John and Adrienne Mars Director of the National Air and Space Museum Ellen Stofan gives remarks during an event were Neil Armstrong's Apollo 11 spacesuit was unveiled for the first time in 13 years, Tuesday, July 16, 2019 at the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum in Washington. The unveiling of the crowd funded spacesuit conservation marks the 50th anniversary of the launch of the Apollo 11 mission.Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)

Ellen Stofan, director of the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum, speaks about NASA's Apollo program during the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum's Spirit of Apollo event commemorating the 50th anniversary of Apollo 8, Tuesday, Dec. 11, 2018 at the Washington National Cathedral in Washington, DC. Apollo 8 was humanity's first journey to another world, taking astronauts Frank Borman, Jim Lovell, and William Anders to the Moon and back in December of 1968. Photo Credit: (NASA/Joel Kowsky)

John and Adrienne Mars Director of the National Air and Space Museum Ellen Stofan delivers remarks during the sixth meeting of the National Space Council, Tuesday, Aug. 20, 2019 at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum's Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, Va. Chaired by the Vice President, the council's role is to advise the President regarding national space policy and strategy, and review the nation's long-range goals for space activities. Photo Credit: (NASA/Aubrey Gemignani)

Ellen Stofan, director of the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum, speaks about NASA's Apollo program during the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum's Spirit of Apollo event commemorating the 50th anniversary of Apollo 8, Tuesday, Dec. 11, 2018 at the Washington National Cathedral in Washington, DC. Apollo 8 was humanity's first journey to another world, taking astronauts Frank Borman, Jim Lovell, and William Anders to the Moon and back in December of 1968. Photo Credit: (NASA/Joel Kowsky)

Ellen Stofan, director of the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum, speaks about NASA's Apollo program during the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum's Spirit of Apollo event commemorating the 50th anniversary of Apollo 8, Tuesday, Dec. 11, 2018 at the Washington National Cathedral in Washington, DC. Apollo 8 was humanity's first journey to another world, taking astronauts Frank Borman, Jim Lovell, and William Anders to the Moon and back in December of 1968. Photo Credit: (NASA/Joel Kowsky)

John and Adrienne Mars Director of the National Air and Space Museum Ellen Stofan gives remarks during an event were Neil Armstrong's Apollo 11 spacesuit was unveiled for the first time in 13 years, Tuesday, July 16, 2019 at the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum in Washington. The unveiling of the crowd funded spacesuit conservation marks the 50th anniversary of the launch of the Apollo 11 mission.Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)

Ellen Stofan, NASA Chief Scientist, left, and David Miller, NASA Chief Technologist, right, participate in a panel discussion during an Exploration Forum showcasing NASA's human exploration path to Mars in the James E. Webb Auditorium at NASA Headquarters on Tuesday, April 29, 2014. Photo Credit: (NASA/Joel Kowsky)

Ellen Stofan, under secretary for Science and Research at the Smithsonian Institution, speaks during a briefing on NASA’s TEMPO (Tropospheric Emissions: Monitoring of Pollution) instrument, Tuesday, March 14, 2023 at the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum in Washington. NASA’s TEMPO instrument, the first Earth Venture Instrument mission, will measure air pollution across North America from Mexico City to the Canadian oil sands and from the Atlantic to the Pacific hourly and at a high spatial resolution. A partnership between NASA and the Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian, TEMPO will launch on a commercial satellite to geostationary orbit as early as April. Photo Credit: (NASA/Joel Kowsky)

Apollo 8 astronaut Jim Lovell, left, Andrew Johnston, Vice President for Astronomy and Collections at Chicago's Adler Planetarium, center, and Ellen Stofan, Director of the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum, right, look at Lovell's Apollo 8 flight plan during the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum's Spirit of Apollo event commemorating the 50th anniversary of Apollo 8, Tuesday, Dec. 11, 2018 at the Washington National Cathedral in Washington, DC. Apollo 8 was humanity's first journey to another world, taking astronauts Frank Borman, Jim Lovell, and William Anders to the Moon and back in December of 1968. Photo Credit: (NASA/Joel Kowsky)

Ellen Stofan, under secretary for Science and Research at the Smithsonian Institution, speaks during a briefing on NASA’s TEMPO (Tropospheric Emissions: Monitoring of Pollution) instrument, Tuesday, March 14, 2023 at the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum in Washington. NASA’s TEMPO instrument, the first Earth Venture Instrument mission, will measure air pollution across North America from Mexico City to the Canadian oil sands and from the Atlantic to the Pacific hourly and at a high spatial resolution. A partnership between NASA and the Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian, TEMPO will launch on a commercial satellite to geostationary orbit as early as April. Photo Credit: (NASA/Joel Kowsky)

Smithsonian Under Secretary for Science and Research Ellen Stofan delivers remarks during an event to unveil the first public display of a sample from asteroid Bennu, Friday, Nov. 3, 2023, at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History in Washington. The sample was collected from the carbon rich near Earth asteroid Bennu in October 2020 by NASA’s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft. Photo Credit: (NASA/Keegan Barber)

Ellen Stofan, Director of Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum, left, and NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine look at Jim Lovell's Apollo 8 flight plan with Andrew Johnston, Vice President for Astronomy and Collections at Chicago's Adler Planetarium, during the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum's Spirit of Apollo event commemorating the 50th anniversary of Apollo 8, Tuesday, Dec. 11, 2018 at the Washington National Cathedral in Washington, DC. Apollo 8 was humanity's first journey to another world, taking astronauts Frank Borman, Jim Lovell, and William Anders to the Moon and back in December of 1968. Photo Credit: (NASA/Joel Kowsky)

From left to right, Smithsonian Under Secretary for Science and Research Ellen Stofan, National Museum of Natural History curator of meteorites Tim McCoy, and NASA Administrator Bill Nelson unveil the first public display of a sample from asteroid Bennu, Friday, Nov. 3, 2023, at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History in Washington. The sample was collected from the carbon rich near Earth asteroid Bennu in October 2020 by NASA’s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft. Photo Credit: (NASA/Keegan Barber)

Apollo 8 astronaut Jim Lovell, left, NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine, second from left, Ellen Stofan, Director of the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum, second from right, and the Very Reverend Randy Hollerith, Dean of the Washington National Cathedral, are seen as they watch a video on the Apollo 8 mission during the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum's Spirit of Apollo event commemorating the 50th anniversary of Apollo 8, Tuesday, Dec. 11, 2018 at the Washington National Cathedral in Washington, DC. Apollo 8 was humanity's first journey to another world, taking astronauts Frank Borman, Jim Lovell, and William Anders to the Moon and back in December of 1968. Photo Credit: (NASA/Joel Kowsky)

Smithsonian Institution Under Secretary for Service and Research, Ellen Stofan, provides remarks at the first-day-of-issue event for the United States Postal Service’s new stamp celebrating NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) on Thursday, Sept. 8, 2022, at the Smithsonian’s National Postal Museum in Washington. The stamp, which features an illustration of the observatory, honors Webb’s mission to explore the unknown in our universe – solving mysteries in our solar system, looking beyond to distant worlds around other stars, and probing the structures and origins of our universe and our place in it. Photo Credit: (NASA/Aubrey Gemignani)

From left to right, Christyl Johnson, deputy director for technology and research investments, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center; NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine; Gary Knell, CEO, National Geographic Partners; Ellen Stofan, director, Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum; Eric Fanning, AIA President and CEO; and Jeff DeWitt, NASA Chief Financial Officer, pose for a photo before a showing of the Project Mars Competition's short films winners and the Mars series, Monday, November 5, 2018 at National Geographic Society Headquarters in Washington. Photo Credit: (NASA/Aubrey Gemignani)

From left to right, Eric Fanning, AIA President and CEO; Christyl Johnson, deputy director for technology and research investments, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center; Dr. Stephen Petranek, MARS scientific advisor and co-executive producer; Ellen Stofan, director, Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum; Gareth Edwards, film director, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story; and Chris Davenport, Washington Post space reporter pose for a photo before a showing of the Project Mars Competition's short films winners and the Mars series, Monday, November 5, 2018 at National Geographic Society Headquarters in Washington. Photo Credit: (NASA/Aubrey Gemignani)

Smithsonian Institution Under Secretary for Service and Research, Ellen Stofan, provides remarks at the first-day-of-issue event for the United States Postal Service’s new stamp celebrating NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) on Thursday, Sept. 8, 2022, at the Smithsonian’s National Postal Museum in Washington. The stamp, which features an illustration of the observatory, honors Webb’s mission to explore the unknown in our universe – solving mysteries in our solar system, looking beyond to distant worlds around other stars, and probing the structures and origins of our universe and our place in it. Photo Credit: (NASA/Aubrey Gemignani)

Smithsonian Institution Under Secretary for Service and Research, Ellen Stofan, autographs a piece of mail with the United States Postal Service’s new stamp celebrating NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) on it, at the first-day-of-issue event, Thursday, Sept. 8, 2022, at the Smithsonian’s National Postal Museum in Washington. The stamp, which features an illustration of the observatory, honors Webb’s mission to explore the unknown in our universe – solving mysteries in our solar system, looking beyond to distant worlds around other stars, and probing the structures and origins of our universe and our place in it. Photo Credit: (NASA/Aubrey Gemignani)

From left to right, Dr. Stephen Petranek, MARS scientific advisor and co-executive producer; Gareth Edwards, film director, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story; Jeff DeWitt, NASA chief financial officer; Christyl Johnson, deputy director for technology and research investments, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center; NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine; Ellen Stofan, director, Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum; Gary Knell, CEO, National Geographic Partners; Eric Fanning, AIA President and CEO; and Chris Davenport, Washington Post space reporter, pose for a photo before a showing of the Project Mars Competition's short films winners and the Mars series, Monday, November 5, 2018 at National Geographic Society Headquarters in Washington. Photo Credit: (NASA/Aubrey Gemignani)

NASA Associate Administrator and former astronaut, Bob Cabana, second from left, and Smithsonian Institution Under Secretary for Service and Research, Ellen Stofan, third from left, are seen during the singing of the national anthem at the first-day-of-issue event for the United States Postal Service’s new stamp celebrating NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) on Thursday, Sept. 8, 2022, at the Smithsonian’s National Postal Museum in Washington. The stamp, which features an illustration of the observatory, honors Webb’s mission to explore the unknown in our universe – solving mysteries in our solar system, looking beyond to distant worlds around other stars, and probing the structures and origins of our universe and our place in it. Photo Credit: (NASA/Aubrey Gemignani)

Panelists (from left) Ellen Stofan, NASA Chief Scientist, left; John Grunsfeld, Associate Administrator for NASA's Science Mission DIrectorate, second from left; John Mather, Nobel Laureate and Senior Project Scientist for the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, third from left; Sara Seager, MacArthur Fellow and Professor of Planetary Science and Physics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, third from right; Dave Gallagher, Director for Astronomy and Physics at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, second from right; and Matt Mountain, Director of the Space Telescope Science Institute and Telescope Scientist for the JWST, right; are seen during a panel discussion on the search for life beyond Earth in the James E. Webb Auditorium at NASA Headquarters on Monday, July 14, 2014 in Washington, DC. The panel discussed how NASA's space-based observatories are making new discoveries and how the agency's new telescope, the James Webb Space Telescope, will continue this path of discovery after its schedule launch in 2018. Photo Credit: (NASA/Joel Kowsky)

NASA Chief Scientist Ellen Stofan, far left, introduces members of the panel prior to a discussion of the search for life beyond Earth in the James E. Webb Auditorium at NASA Headquarters on Monday, July 14, 2014 in Washington, DC. The panel discussed how NASA's space-based observatories are making new discoveries and how the agency's new telescope, the James Webb Space Telescope, will continue this path of discovery after its schedule launch in 2018. Photo Credit: (NASA/Joel Kowsky)

NASA Chief Scientist Ellen Stofan, far left, asks the members of the panel a question during a discussion of the search for life beyond Earth in the James E. Webb Auditorium at NASA Headquarters on Monday, July 14, 2014 in Washington, DC. The panel discussed how NASA's space-based observatories are making new discoveries and how the agency's new telescope, the James Webb Space Telescope, will continue this path of discovery after its schedule launch in 2018. Photo Credit: (NASA/Joel Kowsky)

In celebration of the 50th anniversary of Apollo 11, NASA Astronaut Neil Armstrong's spacesuit was unveiled today in The Wright Brothers and The Invention of the Aerial Age Gallery of the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum, in Washington, DC, July 16, 2019. Unveiling the spacesuit, from left, Rick Armstrong, son of Neil Armstrong, Vice President Mike Pence, Dr. Ellen Stofan, The John and Adrienne Mars Director of the National Air and Space Museum, and James Bridenstine, Administrator of NASA. (Smithsonian Air and Space photo by Jim Preston)

In celebration of the 50th anniversary of Apollo 11, NASA Astronaut Neil Armstrong's spacesuit was unveiled today in The Wright Brothers and The Invention of the Aerial Age Gallery of the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum, in Washington, DC, July 16, 2019. Unveiling the spacesuit, from left, Rick Armstrong, son of Neil Armstrong, Vice President Mike Pence, Dr. Ellen Stofan, The John and Adrienne Mars Director of the National Air and Space Museum, and James Bridenstine, Administrator of NASA. (Smithsonian Air and Space photo by Jim Preston)

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- In the conference room of Operations Support Building II at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, social media participants listen to a briefing on the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution, or MAVEN, mission by, Ellen Stofan, the agency's chief scientist. The social media participants gathered at the Florida spaceport for the launch of the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution, or MAVEN, spacecraft. Their visit included tours of key facilities and participating in presentations by key NASA leaders who updated the space agency's current efforts. Photo credit: NASA/Jim Grossman

In celebration of the 50th anniversary of Apollo 11, NASA Astronaut Neil Armstrong's spacesuit was unveiled today in The Wright Brothers and The Invention of the Aerial Age Gallery of the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum, in Washington, DC, July 16, 2019. Unveiling the spacesuit, from left, Rick Armstrong, son of Neil Armstrong, Vice President Mike Pence, Dr. Ellen Stofan, The John and Adrienne Mars Director of the National Air and Space Museum, and James Bridenstine, Administrator of NASA. (Smithsonian Air and Space photo by Jim Preston)

From left to right, NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center Webb Deputy Observatory Project Scientist, Erin Smith, NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center Webb Optical Telescope Element Manager, Lee Feinberg, Smithsonian Institution Under Secretary for Service and Research, Ellen Stofan, NASA Associate Administrator and former astronaut Bob Cabana, United States Postal Service Vice Chairman, Board of Governors, Anton Hajjar, NASA public affairs specialist Alice Fisher, National Postal Museum Deputy Director, Toby Mensforth, and Lisa Whitehead, USPS, unveil the United States Postal Service’s new stamp celebrating NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) at the first-day-of-issue event on Thursday, Sept. 8, 2022, at the Smithsonian’s National Postal Museum in Washington. The stamp, which features an illustration of the observatory, honors Webb’s mission to explore the unknown in our universe – solving mysteries in our solar system, looking beyond to distant worlds around other stars, and probing the structures and origins of our universe and our place in it. Photo Credit: (NASA/Aubrey Gemignani)

From left to right, NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center Webb Optical Telescope Element Manager, Lee Feinberg, NASA Associate Administrator and former astronaut Bob Cabana, Smithsonian Institution Under Secretary for Service and Research, Ellen Stofan, United States Postal Service Vice Chairman, Board of Governors, Anton Hajjar, National Postal Museum Deputy Director Toby Mensforth, Lisa Whitehead, USPS, NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center Webb Deputy Observatory Project Scientist, Erin Smith, and NASA public affairs specialist, Alice Fisher, pose for a photo at the conclusion of the first-day-of-issue event for the United States Postal Service’s new stamp celebrating NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) on Thursday, Sept. 8, 2022, at the Smithsonian’s National Postal Museum in Washington. The stamp, which features an illustration of the observatory, honors Webb’s mission to explore the unknown in our universe – solving mysteries in our solar system, looking beyond to distant worlds around other stars, and probing the structures and origins of our universe and our place in it. Photo Credit: (NASA/Aubrey Gemignani)

From left to right, NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center Webb Deputy Observatory Project Scientist, Erin Smith, NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center Webb Optical Telescope Element Manager, Lee Feinberg, Smithsonian Institution Under Secretary for Service and Research, Ellen Stofan, NASA Associate Administrator and former astronaut Bob Cabana, United States Postal Service Vice Chairman, Board of Governors, Anton Hajjar, NASA public affairs specialist Alice Fisher, National Postal Museum Deputy Director, Toby Mensforth, and Lisa Whitehead, USPS, unveil the United States Postal Service’s new stamp celebrating NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) at the first-day-of-issue event on Thursday, Sept. 8, 2022, at the Smithsonian’s National Postal Museum in Washington. The stamp, which features an illustration of the observatory, honors Webb’s mission to explore the unknown in our universe – solving mysteries in our solar system, looking beyond to distant worlds around other stars, and probing the structures and origins of our universe and our place in it. Photo Credit: (NASA/Aubrey Gemignani)

From left to right, NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center Webb Deputy Observatory Project Scientist, Erin Smith, NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center Webb Optical Telescope Element Manager, Lee Feinberg, Smithsonian Institution Under Secretary for Service and Research, Ellen Stofan, NASA Associate Administrator and former astronaut Bob Cabana, United States Postal Service Vice Chairman, Board of Governors, Anton Hajjar, NASA public affairs specialist Alice Fisher, National Postal Museum Deputy Director, Toby Mensforth, and Lisa Whitehead, USPS, applaud after unveiling the United States Postal Service’s new stamp celebrating NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) at the first-day-of-issue event on Thursday, Sept. 8, 2022, at the Smithsonian’s National Postal Museum in Washington. The stamp, which features an illustration of the observatory, honors Webb’s mission to explore the unknown in our universe – solving mysteries in our solar system, looking beyond to distant worlds around other stars, and probing the structures and origins of our universe and our place in it. Photo Credit: (NASA/Aubrey Gemignani)

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – Dr. Ellen Stofan, NASA's chief scientist. In the background inside the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida is the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution, or MAVEN, spacecraft following encapsulation in its payload fairing. MAVEN is being prepared for its scheduled launch on Nov 18, 2013 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla. atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket. Positioned in an orbit above the Red Planet, MAVEN will study the upper atmosphere of Mars in unprecedented detail. For more information, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/maven/main/index.html Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett

At NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, NASA leaders spoke to social media participants as the Orion spacecraft and its Delta IV Heavy rocket were being prepared for launch. Speakers included, from the left, NASA Associate Administrator Human Exploration and Operations Bill Gerstenmaier, Associate Administrator for the agency's Science Mission Directorate John Grunsfeld, Associate Administrator for the Space Technology Directorate Michael Gazaria, NASA Chief Scientist Ellen Stofan, and Chief Technologist David Miller. Moderator for the panel session was John Yembrick, with the microphone on the far right, who is NASA's social media lead at the agency's Headquarters in Washington.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – Inside the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, Dr. Ellen Stofan, NASA's chief scientist, speaks to members of the news media. The Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution, or MAVEN, spacecraft is in the background following encapsulation in its payload fairing. MAVEN is being prepared for its scheduled launch on Nov 18, 2013 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla. atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket. Positioned in an orbit above the Red Planet, MAVEN will study the upper atmosphere of Mars in unprecedented detail. For more information, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/maven/main/index.html Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett

In a panel discussion in the Kennedy Space Center’s Operations Support Building II, social media followers were briefed by NASA scientists on asteroids, how they relate to the origins of our solar system and the search for life beyond Earth. The discussion took place before launch of the agency’s Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, Security-Regolith Explorer, or OSIRIS-REx spacecraft. Panelists for this conversation are, from the left, Ellen Stofan, NASA chief scientist; Michelle Thaller, deputy director of science communications for NASA’s Science Mission Directorate; Felicia Chou, NASA Communications; Alex Young, associate director for science in the Heliophysics Science Division at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland; and Lindley Johnson, director of the Planetary Defense Coordination Office in NASA’s Science Mission Directorate.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – Inside the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, Dr. Ellen Stofan, NASA's chief scientist, talks with Bruck Jakosky, left, of the University of Colorado’s Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics. He is the principal investigator for the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution, or MAVEN, mission. On the right is Chuck Tatro of NASA's Launch Services Program who is the MAVEN mission manager. The MAVEN spacecraft can be seen through the window following encapsulation in its payload fairing. MAVEN is being prepared for its scheduled launch on Nov 18, 2013 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla. atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket. Positioned in an orbit above the Red Planet, MAVEN will study the upper atmosphere of Mars in unprecedented detail. For more information, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/maven/main/index.html Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett

In a panel discussion in the Kennedy Space Center’s Operations Support Building II, social media followers were briefed by NASA scientists on asteroids, how they relate to the origins of our solar system and the search for life beyond Earth. The discussion took place before launch of the agency’s Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, Security-Regolith Explorer, or OSIRIS-REx spacecraft. Panelists in view are, from the left, Felicia Chou, NASA Communications; Alex Young, associate director for science in the Heliophysics Science Division at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland; and Lindley Johnson, director of the Planetary Defense Coordination Office in NASA’s Science Mission Directorate. Also participating in the panel discussion are Ellen Stofan, NASA chief scientist and Michelle Thaller, deputy director of science communications for NASA’s Science Mission Directorate.

In a panel discussion in the Kennedy Space Center’s Operations Support Building II, social media followers were briefed by NASA scientists on asteroids, how they relate to the origins of our solar system and the search for life beyond Earth. The discussion took place before launch of the agency’s Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, Security-Regolith Explorer, or OSIRIS-REx spacecraft. Panelists for this conversation are, from the left, Ellen Stofan, NASA chief scientist; Michelle Thaller, deputy director of science communications for NASA’s Science Mission Directorate; Felicia Chou, NASA Communications; Alex Young, associate director for science in the Heliophysics Science Division at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland; and Lindley Johnson, director of the Planetary Defense Coordination Office in NASA’s Science Mission Directorate.

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – Inside the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, Dr. Ellen Stofan, NASA's chief scientist, poses with Bruck Jakosky of the University of Colorado’s Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics. He is the principal investigator for the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution, or MAVEN, mission. The MAVEN spacecraft can be seen through the window following encapsulation in its payload fairing. MAVEN is being prepared for its scheduled launch on Nov 18, 2013 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla. atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket. Positioned in an orbit above the Red Planet, MAVEN will study the upper atmosphere of Mars in unprecedented detail. For more information, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/maven/main/index.html Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – At NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, NASA leaders spoke to social media participants as the Orion spacecraft and its Delta IV Heavy rocket were being prepared for launch. Speakers included, from the left, NASA Associate Administrator Human Exploration and Operations Bill Gerstenmaier, Associate Administrator for the agency's Science Mission Directorate John Grunsfeld, Associate Administrator for the Space Technology Directorate Michael Gazaria, NASA Chief Scientist Ellen Stofan, and Chief Technologist David Miller. Moderator for the panel session was John Yembrick, with the microphone on the far right, who is NASA's social media lead at the agency's Headquarters in Washington. For more information, visit www.nasa.gov/orion Photo credit: NASA/Jim Grossman

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – Inside the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, Dr. Ellen Stofan, NASA's chief scientist, talks with Chuck Tatro of NASA's Launch Services Program. Tatro is mission manager for the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution, or MAVEN, mission. The MAVEN spacecraft can be seen through the window following encapsulation in its payload fairing. MAVEN is being prepared for its scheduled launch on Nov 18, 2013 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla. atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket. Positioned in an orbit above the Red Planet, MAVEN will study the upper atmosphere of Mars in unprecedented detail. For more information, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/maven/main/index.html Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – Inside the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, Dr. Ellen Stofan, NASA's chief scientist, speaks to members of the news media. The Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution, or MAVEN, spacecraft is in the background following encapsulation in its payload fairing. MAVEN is being prepared for its scheduled launch on Nov 18, 2013 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla. atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket. Positioned in an orbit above the Red Planet, MAVEN will study the upper atmosphere of Mars in unprecedented detail. For more information, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/maven/main/index.html Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – During a news conference at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, officials outlined the agency’s plans for future human spaceflight, including an expedition to Mars. Participating in the briefing was Ellen Stofan, NASA chief scientist. The briefing took place the day prior to launch of the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN, or MAVEN, mission. MAVEN is being prepared for its scheduled launch on Nov 18, 2013 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla. atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket. Positioned in an orbit above the Red Planet, MAVEN will study the upper atmosphere of Mars in unprecedented detail. For information on the MAVEN mission, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/maven/main/index.html. For more on NASA Human Spaceflight, visit: http://www.spaceflight.nasa.gov/home/index.html. For information on the international Space Station, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/main/index.html Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – Inside the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, Dr. Ellen Stofan, NASA's chief scientist, talks with Bruck Jakosky, left, of the University of Colorado’s Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics. He is the principal investigator for the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution, or MAVEN, mission. On the right is Chuck Tatro of NASA's Launch Services Program who is the MAVEN mission manager. The MAVEN spacecraft can be seen through the window following encapsulation in its payload fairing. MAVEN is being prepared for its scheduled launch on Nov 18, 2013 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla. atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket. Positioned in an orbit above the Red Planet, MAVEN will study the upper atmosphere of Mars in unprecedented detail. For more information, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/maven/main/index.html Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – Members of NASA’s International Space Station science team brief news media representatives in the Kennedy Space Center’s Press Site auditorium in preparation for the launch of the SpaceX CRS-4 mission to resupply the International Space Station. Ellen Stofan, NASA’s Chief Scientist, participated in the briefing. Jeff Sheehy, senior technologist for the Space Technology Mission Directorate, looks on from the left. The mission is the fourth of 12 SpaceX flights NASA contracted with the company to resupply the space station. It will be the fifth trip by a Dragon spacecraft to the orbiting laboratory. The spacecraft’s 2.5 tons of supplies, science experiments, and technology demonstrations include critical materials to support 255 science and research investigations that will occur during the station's Expeditions 41 and 42. Liftoff is targeted for an instantaneous window at 2:14 a.m. EDT. To learn more about the mission, visit http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/structure/launch/index.html Photo credit: NASA/Jim Grossmann

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – Inside the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, Dr. Ellen Stofan, NASA's chief scientist, speaks to members of the news media. The Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution, or MAVEN, spacecraft is in the background following encapsulation in its payload fairing. MAVEN is being prepared for its scheduled launch on Nov 18, 2013 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla. atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket. Positioned in an orbit above the Red Planet, MAVEN will study the upper atmosphere of Mars in unprecedented detail. For more information, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/maven/main/index.html Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – Members of NASA’s International Space Station science team brief news media representatives in the Kennedy Space Center’s Press Site auditorium in preparation for the launch of the SpaceX CRS-4 mission to resupply the International Space Station. Ellen Stofan, NASA’s Chief Scientist, participated in the briefing. The mission is the fourth of 12 SpaceX flights NASA contracted with the company to resupply the space station. It will be the fifth trip by a Dragon spacecraft to the orbiting laboratory. The spacecraft’s 2.5 tons of supplies, science experiments, and technology demonstrations include critical materials to support 255 science and research investigations that will occur during the station's Expeditions 41 and 42. Liftoff is targeted for an instantaneous window at 2:14 a.m. EDT. To learn more about the mission, visit http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/structure/launch/index.html Photo credit: NASA/Jim Grossmann

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – Inside the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, Dr. Ellen Stofan, NASA's chief scientist, talks with Bruck Jakosky of the University of Colorado’s Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics is the principal investigator for the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution, or MAVEN, mission. The MAVEN spacecraft can be seen through the window following encapsulation in its payload fairing. MAVEN is being prepared for its scheduled launch on Nov 18, 2013 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla. atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket. Positioned in an orbit above the Red Planet, MAVEN will study the upper atmosphere of Mars in unprecedented detail. For more information, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/maven/main/index.html Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – Members of NASA’s International Space Station science team brief news media representatives in the Kennedy Space Center’s Press Site auditorium in preparation for the launch of the SpaceX CRS-4 mission to resupply the International Space Station. From left are Sam Scimemi, International Space Station Division director of Human Exploration and Operation Mission Directorate, Jeff Sheehy, senior technologist for the Space Technology Mission Directorate, and Ellen Stofan, NASA’s Chief Scientist. The mission is the fourth of 12 SpaceX flights NASA contracted with the company to resupply the space station. It will be the fifth trip by a Dragon spacecraft to the orbiting laboratory. The spacecraft’s 2.5 tons of supplies, science experiments, and technology demonstrations include critical materials to support 255 science and research investigations that will occur during the station's Expeditions 41 and 42. Liftoff is targeted for an instantaneous window at 2:14 a.m. EDT. To learn more about the mission, visit http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/structure/launch/index.html Photo credit: NASA/Jim Grossmann

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – During a news conference at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, officials outlined the agency’s plans for future human spaceflight, including an expedition to Mars. Participating in the briefing, from the left are, Dwayne Brown, NASA Public Affairs, John Grunsfeld, NASA associate administrator for the Science Mission Directorate, Michael Gazarik, associate administrator for the Space Technology Mission Directorate and Ellen Stofan, NASA chief scientist. William Gerstenmaier, associate administrator for Human Exploration and Operations participated via television from NASA Headquarters. The briefing took place the day prior to launch of the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN, or MAVEN, mission. MAVEN is being prepared for its scheduled launch on Nov 18, 2013 from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla. atop a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket. Positioned in an orbit above the Red Planet, MAVEN will study the upper atmosphere of Mars in unprecedented detail. For information on the MAVEN mission, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/maven/main/index.html. For more on NASA Human Spaceflight, visit: http://www.spaceflight.nasa.gov/home/index.html. For information on the international Space Station, visit: http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/main/index.html Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – Members of NASA’s International Space Station science team brief news media representatives in the Kennedy Space Center’s Press Site auditorium in preparation for the launch of the SpaceX CRS-4 mission to resupply the International Space Station. From left are Stephanie Schierholz, NASA Headquarters Office of Communications, Sam Scimemi, International Space Station Division director of Human Exploration and Operation Mission Directorate, Jeff Sheehy, senior technologist for the Space Technology Mission Directorate, and Ellen Stofan, NASA’s Chief Scientist. The mission is the fourth of 12 SpaceX flights NASA contracted with the company to resupply the space station. It will be the fifth trip by a Dragon spacecraft to the orbiting laboratory. The spacecraft’s 2.5 tons of supplies, science experiments, and technology demonstrations include critical materials to support 255 science and research investigations that will occur during the station's Expeditions 41 and 42. Liftoff is targeted for an instantaneous window at 2:14 a.m. EDT. To learn more about the mission, visit http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/structure/launch/index.html Photo credit: NASA/Jim Grossmann

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – Members of NASA’s International Space Station science team brief news media representatives in the Kennedy Space Center’s Press Site auditorium in preparation for the launch of the SpaceX CRS-4 mission to resupply the International Space Station. From left are Stephanie Schierholz, NASA Headquarters Office of Communications, Sam Scimemi, International Space Station Division director of Human Exploration and Operation Mission Directorate, Jeff Sheehy, senior technologist for the Space Technology Mission Directorate, and Ellen Stofan, NASA’s Chief Scientist. The mission is the fourth of 12 SpaceX flights NASA contracted with the company to resupply the space station. It will be the fifth trip by a Dragon spacecraft to the orbiting laboratory. The spacecraft’s 2.5 tons of supplies, science experiments, and technology demonstrations include critical materials to support 255 science and research investigations that will occur during the station's Expeditions 41 and 42. Liftoff is targeted for an instantaneous window at 2:14 a.m. EDT. To learn more about the mission, visit http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/structure/launch/index.html Photo credit: NASA/Jim Grossmann

NASA Administrator Bill Nelson speaks to members of the press after unveiling the first public display of a sample from asteroid Bennu, Friday, Nov. 3, 2023, at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History in Washington. The sample was collected from the carbon rich near Earth asteroid Bennu in October 2020 by NASA’s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft. Photo Credit: (NASA/Keegan Barber)

NASA Administrator Bill Nelson speaks to members of the press after unveiling the first public display of a sample from asteroid Bennu, Friday, Nov. 3, 2023, at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History in Washington. The sample was collected from the carbon rich near Earth asteroid Bennu in October 2020 by NASA’s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft. Photo Credit: (NASA/Keegan Barber)

Speakers at the first-day-of-issue event for the United States Postal Service’s new stamp celebrating NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), autograph a piece of mail with the stamp on it, Thursday, Sept. 8, 2022, at the Smithsonian’s National Postal Museum in Washington. The stamp, which features an illustration of the observatory, honors Webb’s mission to explore the unknown in our universe – solving mysteries in our solar system, looking beyond to distant worlds around other stars, and probing the structures and origins of our universe and our place in it. Photo Credit: (NASA/Aubrey Gemignani)