Environmental portrait of Renee Weber, commemorating her recent transition to the MSFC Chief Scientist position. Pictured with lunar lander models in the lander lab building 4747.

Larry Kepko - Lead scientist for Dellingr CubeSat

As part of the Arctic Boreal Vulnerability Experiment (ABoVE), NASA scientists are flying over Alaska and Canada, measuring the elevation of rivers and lakes to study how thawing permafrost affects hydrology in the landscape. This view of was taken from NASA’s DC-8 “flying laboratory” as part of the Active Sensing of CO2 Emissions over Nights, Days and Seasons (ASCENDS) experiment. Scientists on NASA’s Air Surface, Water and Ocean Topography (AirSWOT) mission have been flying over the same location, investigating how water levels in the Arctic landscape change as permafrost thaws. Under typical conditions, the frozen layer of soil keeps water from sinking into the ground and percolating away. As permafrost thaws, the water has new ways to move between rivers and lakes, which can raise or lower the elevation of the bodies of water. These changes in water levels will have effects on Arctic life— plants, animals, and humans—in the near future. Credit: NASA/Peter Griffith <a href="http://www.nasa.gov/audience/formedia/features/MP_Photo_Guidelines.html" rel="nofollow">NASA image use policy.</a> <a href="http://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/home/index.html" rel="nofollow">NASA Goddard Space Flight Center</a> enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission. Follow us on <a href="http://twitter.com/NASAGoddardPix" rel="nofollow">Twitter</a> Like us on <a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/Greenbelt-MD/NASA-Goddard/395013845897?ref=tsd" rel="nofollow">Facebook</a> Find us on <a href="http://instagrid.me/nasagoddard/?vm=grid" rel="nofollow">Instagram</a>

The Trench Throws a Dirt Clod at Scientists

Titan Odd Spot Baffles Scientists

MSFC Chief Scientist Renee Weber with Lunar Lander Models

Scientists Uncover Origins of the Sun’s Swirling Spicules

At any given moment, as many as 10 million wild jets of solar material burst from the sun’s surface. They erupt as fast as 60 miles per second, and can reach lengths of 6,000 miles before collapsing. These are spicules, and despite their grass-like abundance, scientists didn’t understand how they form. Now, for the first time, a computer simulation — so detailed it took a full year to run — shows how spicules form, helping scientists understand how spicules can break free of the sun’s surface and surge upward so quickly. Watch here and more at: <a href="https://go.nasa.gov/2t3toMx" rel="nofollow">go.nasa.gov/2t3toMx</a> Credits: NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center/Joy Ng, producer <a href="http://www.nasa.gov/audience/formedia/features/MP_Photo_Guidelines.html" rel="nofollow">NASA image use policy.</a> <a href="http://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/home/index.html" rel="nofollow">NASA Goddard Space Flight Center</a> enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission. Follow us on <a href="http://twitter.com/NASAGoddardPix" rel="nofollow">Twitter</a> Like us on <a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/Greenbelt-MD/NASA-Goddard/395013845897?ref=tsd" rel="nofollow">Facebook</a> Find us on <a href="http://instagrid.me/nasagoddard/?vm=grid" rel="nofollow">Instagram</a>

Dr. Jason Dworkin, Project Scientist

Dr. Jason Dworkin, Project Scientist for NASA's OSIRIS-Rex mission is seen hear sealing a glass test tube with a sample of Allende meteorite dust which is 4.567 BILLION years old. Jason is the Chief of NASA Goddard's Astrochemistry Lab. Read more about the mission here: <a href="http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/osiris-rex" rel="nofollow">www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/osiris-rex</a> Credit: NASA/Goddard/Debbie Mccallum <a href="http://www.nasa.gov/audience/formedia/features/MP_Photo_Guidelines.html" rel="nofollow">NASA image use policy.</a> <a href="http://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/home/index.html" rel="nofollow">NASA Goddard Space Flight Center</a> enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission. Follow us on <a href="http://twitter.com/NASAGoddardPix" rel="nofollow">Twitter</a> Like us on <a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/Greenbelt-MD/NASA-Goddard/395013845897?ref=tsd" rel="nofollow">Facebook</a> Find us on <a href="http://instagram.com/nasagoddard?vm=grid" rel="nofollow">Instagram</a>

Scientists Contemplate Tilting of Rock Layers on Mars

Russian Scientists Visitors

Russian Scientists from the Commission of Interplanetary Travel of the Soviet Academy of Science November 21,1959 Left to right: Front row: Yury S. Galkin, Anatoly A. Blagonravov, and Prof. Leonid I. Sedov (Chair of the Commission for Interplanetary Travel)-Soviet Academy of Science, Leninski Gory, Moscow, Russia Dr. H.J. E. Reid and Floyd L. Thompson Langley Research Center. Second row: Boris Kit Translator, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. Eugene C. Draley and Laurence K. Loftin, Jr. -Langley Research Center Arnold W. Frutkin and Harold R. Lawrence NASA Headquarters. Back row: T.Melvin Butler-Langley Research Center John W. Townsend Goddard Space Flight Center, NASA, Washington D.C., and George M. Low NASA Headquarters.

Solar Scientist Confirm Existence of Flux Ropes on the Sun

Caption: This is an image of magnetic loops on the sun, captured by NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO). It has been processed to highlight the edges of each loop to make the structure more clear. A series of loops such as this is known as a flux rope, and these lie at the heart of eruptions on the sun known as coronal mass ejections (CMEs.) This is the first time scientists were able to discern the timing of a flux rope's formation. (Blended 131 Angstrom and 171 Angstrom images of July 19, 2012 flare and CME.) Credit: NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center/SDO ---- On July 18, 2012, a fairly small explosion of light burst off the lower right limb of the sun. Such flares often come with an associated eruption of solar material, known as a coronal mass ejection or CME – but this one did not. Something interesting did happen, however. Magnetic field lines in this area of the sun's atmosphere, the corona, began to twist and kink, generating the hottest solar material – a charged gas called plasma – to trace out the newly-formed slinky shape. The plasma glowed brightly in extreme ultraviolet images from the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA) aboard NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) and scientists were able to watch for the first time the very formation of something they had long theorized was at the heart of many eruptive events on the sun: a flux rope. Eight hours later, on July 19, the same region flared again. This time the flux rope's connection to the sun was severed, and the magnetic fields escaped into space, dragging billions of tons of solar material along for the ride -- a classic CME. "Seeing this structure was amazing," says Angelos Vourlidas, a solar scientist at the Naval Research Laboratory in Washington, D.C. "It looks exactly like the cartoon sketches theorists have been drawing of flux ropes since the 1970s. It was a series of figure eights lined up to look like a giant slinky on the sun." To read more about this new discovery go to: <a href="http://1.usa.gov/14UHsTt" rel="nofollow">1.usa.gov/14UHsTt</a> <a href="http://www.nasa.gov/audience/formedia/features/MP_Photo_Guidelines.html" rel="nofollow">NASA image use policy.</a> <a href="http://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/home/index.html" rel="nofollow">NASA Goddard Space Flight Center</a> enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission. Follow us on <a href="http://twitter.com/NASA_GoddardPix" rel="nofollow">Twitter</a> Like us on <a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/Greenbelt-MD/NASA-Goddard/395013845897?ref=tsd" rel="nofollow">Facebook</a> Find us on <a href="http://instagram.com/nasagoddard?vm=grid" rel="nofollow">Instagram</a>

Chief Scientist and Senior Climate Advisor Dr. Kate Calvin held a meet and greet with some of the Summer 2024 interns on June 17, 2024 at Glenn Research Center.

Intern Meet with Chief Scientist and Senior Climate Advisor Dr. Kate Calvin

Young Scientist Challenge YSC was held at Goddard on October 5, 2008 sponsored by 3M company. It gave students the opportunity to demonstrate their scientific and engineering skills with challenges.

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Women Scientists

Women Scientists: Lucille Coltrane, Jean Clark Keating, Katherine Cullie Speegle, Doris 'Dot' Lee, Ruth Whitman, and Emily Stephens Mueller,Lucille Coltrane is at the far left. She was a computer and worked for Norm Crabill who provided positive identification. Lucille authored a NACA Research Memorandum, Investigation of Two Bluff Shapes in Axial Free Flight Over a Mach Number Range From 0.35 to 2.15 in 1958. Next to Lucille is Jean Clark Keating. Jean was identified by Mary Woerner who said that both Jean and her husband Jerry are now deceased. The third woman from the left is Katherine Cullie Speegle. Katherine co-authored two research papers: Preliminary Results From a Free-Flight Investigation of Boundary-Layer Transition and Heat Transfer on a Highly Polished 8-Inch-Diameter Hemisphere-Cylinder at Mach Numbers up to 3 and Reynolds Numbers Based on a Length of 1 Foot up to 17.7 x 10 to the 6th and Heat Transfer For Mach Numbers Up to 2.2 and Pressure Distributions for Mach Numbers Up to 4.7 From Flight Investigations of a Flat-Face Cone and a Hemisphere-Cone. Norm remembered the woman standing as Doris. Mary Alice identified her as Doris 'Dot' Lee, who worked with Katherine Speegle. Dot was married to a NASA engineer named John Lee. Next to Doris is Ruth Whitman. Norm remembered she and her husband owned a Howard DGA 15 at the airport in WEst Point. That prompted Mary Alice to remember her name and that her husband was Jim. The woman seated on the right is Emily Stephens Mueller. Norm remembers that Emily went to Houston as part of the Space Task Group, but retired back here on the peninsula. In 2008, Emily attended the NACA Reunion X11. She walked over to a table of books about the history of NACA, former NACA facilities and the organization's aviation pioneers and saw a book about women of flight from the Dryden Research Center and paused, then pointed somewhat in amazement. "That’s me," she said of a picture on the cover of her on the far left of a li

Women Scientists

Women Scientists: Lucille Coltrane, Jean Clark Keating, Katherine Cullie Speegle, Doris 'Dot' Lee, Ruth Whitman, and Emily Stephens Mueller,Lucille Coltrane is at the far left. She was a computer and worked for Norm Crabill who provided positive identification. Lucille authored a NACA Research Memorandum, Investigation of Two Bluff Shapes in Axial Free Flight Over a Mach Number Range From 0.35 to 2.15 in 1958. Next to Lucille is Jean Clark Keating. Jean was identified by Mary Woerner who said that both Jean and her husband Jerry are now deceased. The third woman from the left is Katherine Cullie Speegle. Katherine co-authored two research papers: Preliminary Results From a Free-Flight Investigation of Boundary-Layer Transition and Heat Transfer on a Highly Polished 8-Inch-Diameter Hemisphere-Cylinder at Mach Numbers up to 3 and Reynolds Numbers Based on a Length of 1 Foot up to 17.7 x 10 to the 6th and Heat Transfer For Mach Numbers Up to 2.2 and Pressure Distributions for Mach Numbers Up to 4.7 From Flight Investigations of a Flat-Face Cone and a Hemisphere-Cone. Norm remembered the woman standing as Doris. Mary Alice identified her as Doris 'Dot' Lee, who worked with Katherine Speegle. Dot was married to a NASA engineer named John Lee. Next to Doris is Ruth Whitman. Norm remembered she and her husband owned a Howard DGA 15 at the airport in WEst Point. That prompted Mary Alice to remember her name and that her husband was Jim. The woman seated on the right is Emily Stephens Mueller. Norm remembers that Emily went to Houston as part of the Space Task Group, but retired back here on the peninsula. In 2008, Emily attended the NACA Reunion X11. She walked over to a table of books about the history of NACA, former NACA facilities and the organization's aviation pioneers and saw a book about women of flight from the Dryden Research Center and paused, then pointed somewhat in amazement. "That’s me," she said of a picture on the cover of her on the far left of a li

Women Scientists

Women Scientists: Lucille Coltrane, Jean Clark Keating, Katherine Cullie Speegle, Doris "Dot" Lee, Ruth Whitman, and Emily Stephens Mueller,Lucille Coltrane is at the far left. She was a computer and worked for Norm Crabill who provided positive identification. Lucille authored a NACA Research Memorandum, Investigation of Two Bluff Shapes in Axial Free Flight Over a Mach Number Range From 0.35 to 2.15 in 1958. Next to Lucille is Jean Clark Keating. Jean was identified by Mary Woerner who said that both Jean and her husband Jerry are now deceased. The third woman from the left is Katherine Cullie Speegle. Katherine co-authored two research papers: Preliminary Results From a Free-Flight Investigation of Boundary-Layer Transition and Heat Transfer on a Highly Polished 8-Inch-Diameter Hemisphere-Cylinder at Mach Numbers up to 3 and Reynolds Numbers Based on a Length of 1 Foot up to 17.7 x 10 to the 6th and Heat Transfer For Mach Numbers Up to 2.2 and Pressure Distributions for Mach Numbers Up to 4.7 From Flight Investigations of a Flat-Face Cone and a Hemisphere-Cone. Norm remembered the woman standing as Doris. Mary Alice identified her as Doris 'Dot' Lee, who worked with Katherine Speegle. Dot was married to a NASA engineer named John Lee. Next to Doris is Ruth Whitman. Norm remembered she and her husband owned a Howard DGA 15 at the airport in WEst Point. That prompted Mary Alice to remember her name and that her husband was Jim. The woman seated on the right is Emily Stephens Mueller. Norm remembers that Emily went to Houston as part of the Space Task Group, but retired back here on the peninsula. In 2008, Emily attended the NACA Reunion X11. She walked over to a table of books about the history of NACA, former NACA facilities and the organization's aviation pioneers and saw a book about women of flight from the Dryden Research Center and paused, then pointed somewhat in amazement. "ThatÕs me," she said of a picture on the cover of her on the far left of a line of women. She was at Dryden from 1948-49.

Solar Scientist Confirm Existence of Flux Ropes on the Sun

Caption: This is an image of magnetic loops on the sun, captured by NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO). It has been processed to highlight the edges of each loop to make the structure more clear. A series of loops such as this is known as a flux rope, and these lie at the heart of eruptions on the sun known as coronal mass ejections (CMEs.) This is the first time scientists were able to discern the timing of a flux rope's formation. (SDO AIA 131 and 171 difference blended image of flux ropes during CME.) Credit: NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center/SDO ---- On July 18, 2012, a fairly small explosion of light burst off the lower right limb of the sun. Such flares often come with an associated eruption of solar material, known as a coronal mass ejection or CME – but this one did not. Something interesting did happen, however. Magnetic field lines in this area of the sun's atmosphere, the corona, began to twist and kink, generating the hottest solar material – a charged gas called plasma – to trace out the newly-formed slinky shape. The plasma glowed brightly in extreme ultraviolet images from the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA) aboard NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) and scientists were able to watch for the first time the very formation of something they had long theorized was at the heart of many eruptive events on the sun: a flux rope. Eight hours later, on July 19, the same region flared again. This time the flux rope's connection to the sun was severed, and the magnetic fields escaped into space, dragging billions of tons of solar material along for the ride -- a classic CME. "Seeing this structure was amazing," says Angelos Vourlidas, a solar scientist at the Naval Research Laboratory in Washington, D.C. "It looks exactly like the cartoon sketches theorists have been drawing of flux ropes since the 1970s. It was a series of figure eights lined up to look like a giant slinky on the sun." To read more about this new discovery go to: <a href="http://1.usa.gov/14UHsTt" rel="nofollow">1.usa.gov/14UHsTt</a>

Solar Scientist Confirm Existence of Flux Ropes on the Sun

Caption: This is an image of magnetic loops on the sun, captured by NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO). It has been processed to highlight the edges of each loop to make the structure more clear. A series of loops such as this is known as a flux rope, and these lie at the heart of eruptions on the sun known as coronal mass ejections (CMEs.) This is the first time scientists were able to discern the timing of a flux rope's formation. (SDO AIA 131 and 171 difference blended image of flux ropes during CME.) Credit: NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center/SDO ---- On July 18, 2012, a fairly small explosion of light burst off the lower right limb of the sun. Such flares often come with an associated eruption of solar material, known as a coronal mass ejection or CME – but this one did not. Something interesting did happen, however. Magnetic field lines in this area of the sun's atmosphere, the corona, began to twist and kink, generating the hottest solar material – a charged gas called plasma – to trace out the newly-formed slinky shape. The plasma glowed brightly in extreme ultraviolet images from the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA) aboard NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) and scientists were able to watch for the first time the very formation of something they had long theorized was at the heart of many eruptive events on the sun: a flux rope. Eight hours later, on July 19, the same region flared again. This time the flux rope's connection to the sun was severed, and the magnetic fields escaped into space, dragging billions of tons of solar material along for the ride -- a classic CME. "Seeing this structure was amazing," says Angelos Vourlidas, a solar scientist at the Naval Research Laboratory in Washington, D.C. "It looks exactly like the cartoon sketches theorists have been drawing of flux ropes since the 1970s. It was a series of figure eights lined up to look like a giant slinky on the sun." To read more about this new discovery go to: <a href="http://1.usa.gov/14UHsTt" rel="nofollow">1.usa.gov/14UHsTt</a>

Young Scientist Challenge YSC was held at Goddard on October 5-6, 2008 sponsored by 3M. It gave students the opportunity to demonstrate their scientific and engineering skills by participating in live demonstrations. Melissa Rey (Center) was the grand prize winner.

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281578main_ysc_winners_HI

Young Scientist Challenge YSC was held on October 6, 2008 at Goddard sponsored by 3M. It gave students opportunity to demonstrate their scientific/engineering skills by participating in live demonstrations.

Goddard scientist Jennifer Eigenbrode

On Saturday, November 26, NASA is scheduled to launch the Mars Science Laboratory (MSL) mission featuring Curiosity, the largest and most advanced rover ever sent to the Red Planet. The Curiosity rover bristles with multiple cameras and instruments, including Goddard's Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM) instrument suite. By looking for evidence of water, carbon, and other important building blocks of life in the Martian soil and atmosphere, SAM will help discover whether Mars ever had the potential to support life. Curiosity will be delivered to Gale crater, a 96-mile-wide crater that contains a record of environmental changes in its sedimentary rock, in August 2012. ----- Goddard scientist Jennifer Eigenbrode injected a chemical into a rock sample and then heated the test tube to determine whether the sample-preparation method preserved the sample's molecular structure. Her testing proved successful, ultimately leading to the experiment's inclusion on the Sample Analysis at Mars instrument. Credit: NASA/GSFC/Chris Gunn <a href="http://www.nasa.gov/audience/formedia/features/MP_Photo_Guidelines.html" rel="nofollow">NASA image use policy.</a> <a href="http://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/home/index.html" rel="nofollow">NASA Goddard Space Flight Center</a> enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission. Follow us on <a href="http://twitter.com/NASA_GoddardPix" rel="nofollow">Twitter</a> Like us on <a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/Greenbelt-MD/NASA-Goddard/395013845897?ref=tsd" rel="nofollow">Facebook</a> Find us on <a href="http://instagrid.me/nasagoddard/?vm=grid" rel="nofollow">Instagram</a>

Solar Scientist Confirm Existence of Flux Ropes on the Sun

Caption: This is an image of magnetic loops on the sun, captured by NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory on July 18, 2012. It has been processed to highlight the edges of each loop to make the structure more clear. A series of loops such as this is known as a flux rope, and these lie at the heart of eruptions on the sun known as coronal mass ejections (CMEs.) This is the first time scientists were able to discern the timing of a flux rope's formation. Credit: NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center/SDO ---- On July 18, 2012, a fairly small explosion of light burst off the lower right limb of the sun. Such flares often come with an associated eruption of solar material, known as a coronal mass ejection or CME – but this one did not. Something interesting did happen, however. Magnetic field lines in this area of the sun's atmosphere, the corona, began to twist and kink, generating the hottest solar material – a charged gas called plasma – to trace out the newly-formed slinky shape. The plasma glowed brightly in extreme ultraviolet images from the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA) aboard NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO) and scientists were able to watch for the first time the very formation of something they had long theorized was at the heart of many eruptive events on the sun: a flux rope. Eight hours later, on July 19, the same region flared again. This time the flux rope's connection to the sun was severed, and the magnetic fields escaped into space, dragging billions of tons of solar material along for the ride -- a classic CME. "Seeing this structure was amazing," says Angelos Vourlidas, a solar scientist at the Naval Research Laboratory in Washington, D.C. "It looks exactly like the cartoon sketches theorists have been drawing of flux ropes since the 1970s. It was a series of figure eights lined up to look like a giant slinky on the sun." To read more about this new discovery go to: <a href="http://1.usa.gov/14UHsTt" rel="nofollow">1.usa.gov/14UHsTt</a> <a href="http://www.nasa.gov/audience/formedia/features/MP_Photo_Guidelines.html" rel="nofollow">NASA image use policy.</a> <a href="http://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/home/index.html" rel="nofollow">NASA Goddard Space Flight Center</a> enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission. Follow us on <a href="http://twitter.com/NASA_GoddardPix" rel="nofollow">Twitter</a> Like us on <a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/Greenbelt-MD/NASA-Goddard/395013845897?ref=tsd" rel="nofollow">Facebook</a> Find us on <a href="http://instagram.com/nasagoddard?vm=grid" rel="nofollow">Instagram</a>

Scientists find ‘impossible’ cloud could be forming on Saturn's moon Titan

The puzzling appearance of an ice cloud seemingly out of thin air has prompted NASA scientists to suggest that a different process than previously thought -- possibly similar to one seen over Earth's poles -- could be forming clouds on Saturn's moon Titan. Located in Titan's stratosphere, the cloud is made of a compound of carbon and nitrogen known as dicyanoacetylene (C4N2), an ingredient in the chemical cocktail that colors the giant moon's hazy, brownish-orange atmosphere. Read more: <a href="http://go.nasa.gov/2crVEPM" rel="nofollow">go.nasa.gov/2crVEPM</a> <a href="http://www.nasa.gov/audience/formedia/features/MP_Photo_Guidelines.html" rel="nofollow">NASA image use policy.</a> <a href="http://www.nasa.gov/centers/goddard/home/index.html" rel="nofollow">NASA Goddard Space Flight Center</a> enables NASA’s mission through four scientific endeavors: Earth Science, Heliophysics, Solar System Exploration, and Astrophysics. Goddard plays a leading role in NASA’s accomplishments by contributing compelling scientific knowledge to advance the Agency’s mission. Follow us on <a href="http://twitter.com/NASAGoddardPix" rel="nofollow">Twitter</a> Like us on <a href="http://www.facebook.com/pages/Greenbelt-MD/NASA-Goddard/395013845897?ref=tsd" rel="nofollow">Facebook</a> Find us on <a href="http://instagrid.me/nasagoddard/?vm=grid" rel="nofollow">Instagram</a>

Comet Scientists Honor Colleagues

Scientists from the European Space Agency Rosetta team have honored two late team members by naming comet features after them. The comet is 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko, where the mission successfully landed a probe. One of the features is shown here in these Rosetta images, with the picture on the right being a close-up view. The "C. Alexander Gate" is found on the comet's smaller lobe, and is dedicated to Claudia Alexander, the U.S. project scientist from NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, California, who passed away in July of this year. Image credit left: ESA's comet viewer http://sci.esa.int/comet-viewer. http://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA19838

Scientists Track Perfect

Scientists at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory participate in a training exercise in February 2020. They reviewed images and data sent by a field team in the Nevada desert, discussing where to send their simulated "rover" next. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA23780

Scientists Training for Mars Rover Operations

High-Altitude Jovian Clouds

This image captures a high-altitude cloud formation surrounded by swirling patterns in the atmosphere of Jupiter's North North Temperate Belt region. The North North Temperate Belt is one of Jupiter's many colorful, swirling cloud bands. Scientists have wondered for decades how deep these bands extend. Gravity measurements collected by Juno during its close flybys of the planet have now provided an answer. Juno discovered that these bands of flowing atmosphere actually penetrate deep into the planet, to a depth of about 1,900 miles (3,000 kilometers). NASA's Juno spacecraft took this color-enhanced image at 10:11 p.m. PDT on July 15, 2018 (1:11 a.m. EDT on July 16), as the spacecraft performed its 14th close flyby of Jupiter. At the time, Juno was about 3,900 miles (6,200 kilometers) from the planet's cloud tops, above a latitude of 36 degrees. Citizen scientist Jason Major created this image using data from the spacecraft's JunoCam imager. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA22426 . - Enhanced image by Jason Major based on images provided courtesy of NASA/JPL-Caltech/SwRI/MSSS

Falling Away from Jupiter

This image of Jupiter's southern hemisphere was captured by NASA's Juno spacecraft as it performed a close flyby of the gas giant planet on Dec. 16, 2017. Juno captured this color-enhanced image at 10:24 a.m. PST (1:24 p.m. EST) when the spacecraft was about 19,244 miles (30,970 kilometers) from the tops of Jupiter's clouds at a latitude of 49.9 degrees south -- roughly halfway between the planet's equator and its south pole. Citizen scientist Gerald Eichstädt processed this image using data from the JunoCam imager. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA21977. - Enhanced image by Gerald Eichstädt based on images provided courtesy of NASA/JPL-Caltech/SwRI/MSSS

Jupiter's Swirling Cloud Formations

See swirling cloud formations in the northern area of Jupiter's north temperate belt in this new view taken by NASA's Juno spacecraft. The color-enhanced image was taken on Feb. 7 at 5:42 a.m. PST (8:42 a.m. EST), as Juno performed its eleventh close flyby of Jupiter. At the time the image was taken, the spacecraft was about 5,086 miles (8,186 kilometers) from the tops of the clouds of the planet at a latitude of 39.9 degrees. Citizen scientist Kevin M. Gill processed this image using data from the JunoCam imager. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA21978 . - Enhanced image by Kevin M. Gill (CC-BY) based on images provided courtesy of NASA/JPL-Caltech/SwRI/MSSS

Jupiter's Swirling South Pole

This image of Jupiter's swirling south polar region was captured by NASA's Juno spacecraft as it neared completion of its tenth close flyby of the gas giant planet. The "empty" space above and below Jupiter in this color-enhanced image can trick the mind, causing the viewer to perceive our solar system's largest planet as less colossal than it is. In reality, Jupiter is wide enough to fit 11 Earths across its clouded disk. The spacecraft captured this image on Dec. 16, 2017, at 11:07 PST (2:07 p.m. EST) when the spacecraft was about 64,899 miles (104,446 kilometers) from the tops of the clouds of the planet at a latitude of 83.9 degrees south -- almost directly over Jupiter's south pole. The spatial scale in this image is 43.6 miles/pixel (70.2 kilometers/pixel). Citizen scientist Gerald Eichstädt processed this image using data from the JunoCam imager. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA21975

Outbound View of Jupiter

This image of Jupiter's southern hemisphere was captured by NASA's Juno spacecraft on the outbound leg of a close flyby of the gas-giant planet. The color-enhanced image was taken at 11:31 p.m. PDT on May 23, 2018 (2:31 a.m. EDT on May 24), as the spacecraft performed its 13th close flyby of Jupiter. At the time, Juno was about 44,300 miles (71,400 kilometers) from the planet's cloud tops, above a southern latitude of 71 degrees. JunoCam takes advantage of Juno's unique polar orbit, studying the atmospheric dynamics and clouds right up to Jupiter's poles, which no spacecraft has ever done before. Citizen scientist Kevin M. Gill created this image using data from the spacecraft's JunoCam imager. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA22425 . - Enhanced image by Kevin M. Gill (CC-BY) based on images provided courtesy of NASA/JPL-Caltech/SwRI/MSSS

Jovian Jet Stream

See a jet stream speeding through Jupiter's atmosphere in this new view taken by NASA's Juno spacecraft. The jet stream, called Jet N2, was captured along the dynamic northern temperate belts of the gas giant planet. It is the white stream visible from top left to bottom right in the image. The color-enhanced image was taken at 10:34 p.m. PST on May 23 (1:34 a.m. EST on May 24), as Juno performed its 13th close flyby of Jupiter. At the time the image was taken, the spacecraft was about 3,516 miles (5,659 kilometers) from the tops of the clouds of the planet at a northern latitude of 32.9 degrees. Citizen scientists Gerald Eichstädt and Seán Doran created this image using data from the spacecraft's JunoCam imager. The view is a composite of several separate JunoCam images that were re-projected, blended, and healed. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA22422

Jovian Tapestry

The easternmost edge of Jupiter's Great Red Spot and surrounding south tropical disturbance are captured in this image from NASA's Juno spacecraft. At left, wispy tendrils from the Red Spot give the atmosphere a layered appearance as they partially obscure cloud features below. Jupiter's appearance is a tapestry of vivid colors and swirling atmospheric vortices. Many aspects of the planet's atmosphere are still a mystery. For example, the origin of individual storms or churning cloud features is unknown. By studying Jupiter's weather up close for the first time, Juno is helping researchers better understand how atmospheres work in general -- including our own. What we learn about Jupiter's atmosphere will also help scientists understand how gas-giant planets work in general, including those now being discovered beyond our solar system. This color-enhanced image was taken at 3:01 a.m. PDT on April 1, 2018 (6:01 a.m. EDT), as the spacecraft performed its 12th close flyby of Jupiter. At the time, Juno was about 7,900 miles (12,750 kilometers) from the planet's cloud tops, above a southern latitude of approximately 26 degrees. Citizen scientist Kevin M. Gill created this image using data from the spacecraft's JunoCam imager. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA22429 . - Enhanced image by Kevin M. Gill (CC-BY) based on images provided courtesy of NASA/JPL-Caltech/SwRI/MSSS

Material Science

Dr. Richard Grugel, a materials scientist at NASA's Marshall Space Flight in Huntsville, Ala., examines the furnace used to conduct his Pore Formation and Mobility Investigation -- one of the first two materials science experiments to be conducted on the International Space Station. This experiment studies materials processes similar to those used to make components used in jet engines. Grugel's furnace was installed in the Microgravity Science Glovebox through the circular port on the side. In space, crewmembers are able to change out samples using the gloves on the front of the facility's work area.

PIA22428

Tumultuous tempests in Jupiter's northern hemisphere are seen in this portrait taken by NASA's Juno spacecraft. Like our home planet, Jupiter has cyclones and anticyclones, along with fast-moving jet streams that circle its globe. This image captures a jet stream, called Jet N6, located on the far right of the image. It is next to an anticyclonic white oval that is the brighter circular feature in the top right corner. The North North Little Red Spot is also visible in this view. The image was taken at 10 p.m. PDT on July 15, 2018 (1 a.m. EDT on July 16), as the spacecraft performed its 14th close flyby of Jupiter. At the time, Juno was about 10,600 miles (17,000 kilometers) from the planet's cloud tops, above a latitude of 59 degrees. Citizen scientists Brian Swift and Seán Doran created this image using data from the spacecraft's JunoCam imager. The image has been rotated clockwise so that north is to the right. The stars were artfully added to the background for effect. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA22428

Jupiter's Stormy North

See Jupiter's northern polar belt region in this view taken by NASA's Juno spacecraft. This color-enhanced image was taken on Dec. 16, 2017 at 9:47 a.m. PST (12:47 p.m. EST), as Juno performed its tenth close flyby of Jupiter. At the time the image was taken, the spacecraft was about 5,600 miles (8,787 kilometers) from the tops of the clouds of the planet at a latitude of 38.4 degrees north. Citizen scientist Björn Jónsson processed this image using data from the JunoCam imager. This image has been processed from the raw JunoCam framelets by removing the effects of global illumination. Jónsson then increased the contrast and color and sharpened smallscale features. The image has also been cropped. While at first glance the view may appear to be in Jupiter's south, the raw source images were obtained when Juno was above the planet's northern hemisphere looking south, potentially causing a sense of disorientation to the viewer. The geometry of the scene can be explored using the time of the image and the Juno mission module of NASA's Eyes on the Solar System. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA21976. - Enhanced image by Björn Jónsson (CC-NC-SA) based on images provided courtesy of NASA/JPL-Caltech/SwRI/MSSS

Swirling Jovian Storm (Natural Color)

A swirling storm somersaults through Jupiter's South Equatorial Belt in this view taken by NASA's Juno spacecraft. This feature -- not to be confused with the planet's iconic Great Red Spot -- is escorted by several smaller, reddish vortices above and to the left. This natural color view offers an approximation of what Jupiter would look like to human eyes from Juno's vantage point near the time of closest approach in its orbit. Jupiter's stunning appearance is due to its atmosphere of colorful cloud bands and spots. The vivid red and orange hues are created by chemicals of uncertain composition called "chromophores." The image was taken at 10:28 p.m. PDT on July 15, 2018 (1:28 a.m. EDT on July 16), as the spacecraft performed its 14th close flyby of Jupiter. At the time, Juno was about 4,900 miles (8,000 kilometers) from the planet's cloud tops, above a southern latitude of 36 degrees. Citizen scientist Björn Jónsson created this image using data from the spacecraft's JunoCam imager. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA22427. - Enhanced image by Björn Jónsson (CC-NC-SA) based on images provided courtesy of NASA/JPL-Caltech/SwRI/MSSS

Jupiter's Colorful Cloud Belts

Colorful swirling cloud belts dominate Jupiter's southern hemisphere in this image captured by NASA's Juno spacecraft. Jupiter appears in this color-enhanced image as a tapestry of vibrant cloud bands and storms. The dark region in the far left is called the South Temperate Belt. Intersecting the belt is a ghost-like feature of slithering white clouds. This is the largest feature in Jupiter's low latitudes that's a cyclone (rotating with clockwise motion). This image was taken on Dec. 16, 2017 at 10:12 PST (1:12 p.m. EST), as Juno performed its tenth close flyby of Jupiter. At the time the image was taken, the spacecraft was about 8,453 miles (13,604 kilometers) from the tops of the clouds of the planet at a latitude of 27.9 degrees south. The spatial scale in this image is 5.6 miles/pixel (9.1 kilometers/pixel). Citizen scientist Kevin M. Gill processed this image using data from the JunoCam imager. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA21974 . - Enhanced image by Kevin M. Gill (CC-BY) based on images provided courtesy of NASA/JPL-Caltech/SwRI/MSSS

Jovian 'Twilight Zone'

This image captures the swirling cloud formations around the south pole of Jupiter, looking up toward the equatorial region. NASA's Juno spacecraft took the color-enhanced image during its eleventh close flyby of the gas giant planet on Feb. 7 at 7:11 a.m. PST (10:11 a.m. EST). At the time, the spacecraft was 74,896 miles (120,533 kilometers) from the tops of Jupiter's clouds at 84.9 degrees south latitude. Citizen scientist Gerald Gerald Eichstädt processed this image using data from the JunoCam imager. This image was created by reprocessing raw JunoCam data using trajectory and pointing data from the spacecraft. This image is one in a series of images taken in an experiment to capture the best results for illuminated parts of Jupiter's polar region. To make features more visible in Jupiter's terminator -- the region where day meets night -- the Juno team adjusted JunoCam so that it would perform like a portrait photographer taking multiple photos at different exposures, hoping to capture one image with the intended light balance. For JunoCam to collect enough light to reveal features in Jupiter's dark twilight zone, the much brighter illuminated day-side of Jupiter becomes overexposed with the higher exposure. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA21980. - Enhanced image by Gerald Eichstädt based on images provided courtesy of NASA/JPL-Caltech/SwRI/MSSS

Dr. Jacob Cohen Director Office of Chief Scientist with Dr. Anthony Colaprete recipient of the H. Julian Allen Award In recognition as co-author of the outstanding scientific paper entitled "Detection of Water in the LCROSS Ejecta Pluma." Shown here Dr. Jacob Cohen presents the H. Julian Allen award to Anthony Colaprete.

Dr. Jacob Cohen presents the H. Julian Allen award to Anthony Colaprete.

NASA chief scientist visit

NASA Chief Scientist Dr. Waleed Abdalati visited Stennis Space Center on July 19, to learn about the extensive science capabilities onsite. Shown at right are: (seated, l to r), Stennis Center Director Patrick Scheuermann; Dr. Abdalati; U.S. Navy Rear Adm. Jonathan White; NOAA National Data Buoy Center Program Manager Shannon McArthur; (standing, l to r) Stennis Project Directorate Assistant Director Anne Peek; Stennis Applied Science & Technology Project Office Chief Duane Armstrong; and Stennis Project Directorate Director Keith Brock.

Dr. Kate Calvin, NASA's chief scientist and senior climate advisor, speaks at the 37th Space Symposium, Tuesday, April 5, 2022, in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Photo Credit: (NASA/Bill Ingalls)

NASA Chief Scientist Talk at 37th Space Symposium

SHERLOC Cal Target With Scientist Trevor Graff

NASA scientist Trevor Graff peers at a calibration target, which will help fine-tune settings on the Scanning Habitable Environments with Raman & Luminescence for Organics and Chemicals (SHERLOC) instrument carried aboard NASA's Perseverance Mars rover. The calibration target is housed inside a special environmental chamber that was used to ship it from NASA's Johnson Space Center, Houston, to the agency's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California, where the target was added to the rover. There are 10 kinds of materials on SHERLOC's calibration target, including a fragment of a Martian meteorite and five of the first spacesuit materials sent to Mars. They'll be observed to see how they hold up in the intense radiation on the Martian surface. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA23979

Portrait - Scientist/Astronaut Group - MSC

S66-65248 (November 1966) --- Five scientist-astronauts whose selection was announced by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration on June 29, 1969. Front row, left to right, are P. Curtis Michel,(physicist); Harrison H. Schmitt (astrogeologist); and Joseph F. Kerwin (physician). Back row, left to right, are Owen K. Garriott (physicist); and Edward G. Gibson (physicist). Photo credit: NASA or National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Tours with Chief Scientist and Senior Climate Advisor Dr. Kate Calvin

Dr. Katherine Calvin listens to a harmful algal bloom presentation on June 17, 2024. NASA Glenn Research Center conducts aerial remote sensing of harmful algal blooms to warn water filtration plants to enact more stringent filtering when harmful blooms are present. Aerial remote sensing is advantageous to satellite remote sensing that is limited by factors of resolution, on demand performance, cloud cover, and upgrades to instrumentation. Photo Credit: (NASA/Sara Lowthian-Hanna)

Tours with Chief Scientist and Senior Climate Advisor Dr. Kate Calvin

Tour of the Electrified Powertrain Flight Demonstration in the HyPER lab on June 17th, 2024 at Glenn Research Center. NASA’s Electrified Powertrain Flight Demonstration (EPFD) project focuses advancing the future of sustainable aviation by turning hybrid electric flight into a reality. HyPER is a hardware-in-the-loop laboratory that was designed specifically to investigate the dynamic interactions between turbomachinery, the electric power system, and the constantly varying loads of electrified aircraft. It is a small-scale lab capable of rapid reconfiguration through software. This allows the emulation of new engines using simulation models that are easily replaced and then appropriately scaled for power and inertia to the test hardware. Photo Credit: (NASA/Sara Lowthian-Hanna)

Ancient Earth, Alien Earths Event

Dr. Shawn Domagal-Goldman, Research Space Scientist, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, speaks on a panel at the “Ancient Earth, Alien Earths” Event at NASA Headquarters in Washington, DC Wednesday, August 20, 2014. The event was sponsored by NASA, the National Science Foundation (NSF), and the Smithsonian Institution and was moderated by Dr. David H. Grinspoon, Senior Scientist at the Planetary Science Institute. Six scientists discussed how research on early Earth could help guide our search for habitable planets orbiting other stars. Photo Credit: (NASA/Aubrey Gemignani)

Ancient Earth, Alien Earths Event

Dr. Shawn Domagal-Goldman, Research Space Scientist, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, speaks on a panel at the “Ancient Earth, Alien Earths” Event at NASA Headquarters in Washington, DC Wednesday, August 20, 2014. The event was sponsored by NASA, the National Science Foundation (NSF), and the Smithsonian Institution and was moderated by Dr. David H. Grinspoon, Senior Scientist at the Planetary Science Institute. Six scientists discussed how research on early Earth could help guide our search for habitable planets orbiting other stars. Photo Credit: (NASA/Aubrey Gemignani)

NASA Chief Scientist Shannon Lucid, a former astronaut, introduces Northern Virginia students to the research that will be conducted on the STS-107 mission. The activity was part of the Space Research and You education event held by NASA's Office of Biological and Physical Research on June 25, 2002, in Arlington, VA, to highlight the research that will be conducted on STS-107.

Space Shuttle Projects

Alabama Governor Kay Ivey Recognized Retired NASA Scientist Jeanette Scissum-Mickens

Governor Kay Ivey recognized retired NASA Space Flight Center team member, Jeanette Scissum-Mickens on Sept. 27 at the Alabama HBCU Roundtable Discussion: Minority Women in STEM held at the Alabama A&M University. Scissum-Mickens was honored as the “Hidden Figure of Alabama A&M.” She was the first African American mathematician hired by Marshall in 1964. While at Marshall, she was a space scientist and helped improved forecast models of the sunspot cycle and led activities in Marshall’s Atmospheric, Magentospheric, and Plasmas in Space project.

Tours with Chief Scientist and Senior Climate Advisor Dr. Kate Calvin

Tour of the Hybrid Thermally Efficient Core (HyTEC) Facility on June 17th, 2024 at Glenn Research Center. The Hybrid Thermally Efficient Core (HyTEC) project is working with industry partners to develop small core engine technologies to enable fuel burn reductions, additional use of electric airplane systems through power extracted from the engine, and advance engine operability and compatibility with sustainable aviation fuels.

Time-lapse Sequence of Jupiter's South Pole

This series of images captures cloud patterns near Jupiter's south pole, looking up towards the planet's equator. NASA's Juno spacecraft took the color-enhanced time-lapse sequence of images during its eleventh close flyby of the gas giant planet on Feb. 7 between 7:21 a.m. and 8:01 a.m. PST (10:21 a.m. and 11:01 a.m. EST). At the time, the spacecraft was between 85,292 to 124,856 miles (137,264 to 200,937 kilometers) from the tops of the clouds of the planet with the images centered on latitudes from 84.1 to 75.5 degrees south. At first glance, the series might appear to be the same image repeated. But closer inspection reveals slight changes, which are most easily noticed by comparing the far left image with the far right image. Directly, the images show Jupiter. But, through slight variations in the images, they indirectly capture the motion of the Juno spacecraft itself, once again swinging around a giant planet hundreds of millions of miles from Earth. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA21979. - Enhanced image by Gerald Eichstädt based on images provided courtesy of NASA/JPL-Caltech/SwRI/MSSS

Ancient Earth, Alien Earths Event

Dr. Christopher House, Professor of Geosciences, Pennsylvania State University, speaks on a panel at the “Ancient Earth, Alien Earths” Event at NASA Headquarters in Washington, DC Wednesday, August 20, 2014. The event was sponsored by NASA, the National Science Foundation (NSF), and the Smithsonian Institution and was moderated by Dr. David H. Grinspoon, Senior Scientist at the Planetary Science Institute. Six scientists discussed how research on early Earth could help guide our search for habitable planets orbiting other stars. Photo Credit: (NASA/Aubrey Gemignani)

Ancient Earth, Alien Earths Event

Dr. Timothy Lyons, Professor of Biogeochemistry, UC Riverside, speaks on a panel at the “Ancient Earth, Alien Earths” Event at NASA Headquarters in Washington, DC Wednesday, August 20, 2014. The event was sponsored by NASA, the National Science Foundation (NSF), and the Smithsonian Institution and was moderated by Dr. David H. Grinspoon, Senior Scientist at the Planetary Science Institute. Six scientists discussed how research on early Earth could help guide our search for habitable planets orbiting other stars. Photo Credit: (NASA/Aubrey Gemignani)

Ancient Earth, Alien Earths Event

An audience member asks the panelists a question at the “Ancient Earth, Alien Earths” Event at NASA Headquarters in Washington, DC Wednesday, August 20, 2014. The event was sponsored by NASA, the National Science Foundation (NSF), and the Smithsonian Institution and was moderated by Dr. David H. Grinspoon, Senior Scientist at the Planetary Science Institute. Six scientists discussed how research on early Earth could help guide our search for habitable planets orbiting other stars. Photo Credit: (NASA/Aubrey Gemignani)

Lori Glaze, acting director of NASAâ€™s Planetary Science Divis

Lori Glaze, acting director of NASAâ€™s Planetary Science Division, right, visited NASAâ€™s Marshall Space Flight Center March 7 to see firsthand the work done by center scientists. Glaze, along with Marshall planetary scientists Renee Weber, left, and Debra Needham, center, and intern James Mavo, second from right, toured multiple facilities at Marshall â€“ including the Deep Space Habitat facility â€“ to discuss how Marshall is working to support astronauts on long-duration missions.

Ancient Earth, Alien Earths Event

Dr. Dawn Sumner, Professor of Geology, UC Davis, speaks on a panel at the “Ancient Earth, Alien Earths” Event at NASA Headquarters in Washington, DC Wednesday, August 20, 2014. The event was sponsored by NASA, the National Science Foundation (NSF), and the Smithsonian Institution and was moderated by Dr. David H. Grinspoon, Senior Scientist at the Planetary Science Institute. Six scientists discussed how research on early Earth could help guide our search for habitable planets orbiting other stars. Photo Credit: (NASA/Aubrey Gemignani)

Ancient Earth, Alien Earths Event

Dr. Phoebe Cohen, Professor of Geosciences, Williams College, speaks on a panel at the “Ancient Earth, Alien Earths” Event at NASA Headquarters in Washington, DC Wednesday, August 20, 2014. The event was sponsored by NASA, the National Science Foundation (NSF), and the Smithsonian Institution and was moderated by Dr. David H. Grinspoon, Senior Scientist at the Planetary Science Institute. Six scientists discussed how research on early Earth could help guide our search for habitable planets orbiting other stars. Photo Credit: (NASA/Aubrey Gemignani)

APEX-08 Experiment

The Science Verification Test for NASA’s Advanced Plant Experiment-08 (APEX-08) testing Arabidopsis thaliana, a plant scientists routinely use for research, takes place inside the Veggie growth chamber at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Nov. 6, 2020. The test is part of the process for demonstrating readiness for space research ahead of its flight on SpaceX’s 23rd Commercial Resupply Services mission to the International Space Station. The APEX-08 study includes making genetic alterations that elicit a response in a group of organic compounds that modulate plant responses to environmental stress.

APEX-08 Experiment

The Science Verification Test for NASA’s Advanced Plant Experiment-08 (APEX-08) testing Arabidopsis thaliana, a plant scientists routinely use for research, takes place inside the Veggie growth chamber at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Nov. 6, 2020. The test is part of the process for demonstrating readiness for space research ahead of its flight on SpaceX’s 23rd Commercial Resupply Services mission to the International Space Station. The APEX-08 study includes making genetic alterations that elicit a response in a group of organic compounds that modulate plant responses to environmental stress.

A world whose mysteries are just coming to light, Enceladus has enchanted scientists and non-scientists alike. With its potential for near-surface liquid water, the icy moon may be the latest addition to the list of possible abodes for life

Half-lit Enceladus

Ancient Earth, Alien Earths Event

Dr. David H. Grinspoon, Senior Scientist, Planetary Science Institute, moderates a panel at the “Ancient Earth, Alien Earths” Event at NASA Headquarters in Washington, DC Wednesday, August 20, 2014. The event was sponsored by NASA, the National Science Foundation (NSF), and the Smithsonian Institution and highlighted how research on early Earth could help guide our search for habitable planets orbiting other stars. Photo Credit: (NASA/Aubrey Gemignani)

Citizen Scientist Finds Ancient White Dwarf Star Encircled by Puzzling Rings

In this illustration, an asteroid (bottom left) breaks apart under the powerful gravity of LSPM J0207+3331, the oldest, coldest white dwarf known to be surrounded by a ring of dusty debris. Scientists think the system’s infrared signal is best explained by two distinct rings composed of dust supplied by crumbling asteroids. Credit: NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center/Scott Wiessinger https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/13147

The Peenemunde Rocket Team reunited on the steps of Marshall Space Flight Center's (MSFC) Headquarter Building 4200 for a reunion. The Peenemunde Rocket team were first assembled in Germany prior to World War II. They came to the United States at the end of the War and became the nucleus of the United States Army's rocket program.

Around Marshall

Uranus Magnetosphere Mystery Unlocked (Artist's Concept)

When NASA's Voyager 2 spacecraft flew by Uranus in 1986, it provided scientists' first – and, so far, only – close glimpse of this outer planet. Scientists were confronted by a mystery: The energized particles around the planet defied their understanding of how magnetic fields work to trap particle radiation. The first panel of this artist's concept depicts how Uranus's magnetosphere (its protective bubble) was behaving before Voyager 2's flyby. The second panel shows that an unusual kind of solar weather was happening at the same time as the spacecraft's flyby, giving scientists a skewed view of Uranus's magnetosphere. The work, led by a scientist at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory and described in a paper published in Nature Astronomy in November 2024, contributes to scientists' understanding of this enigmatic planet. It also opens the door to the possibility that Uranus' five major moons may be active. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA26069

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)

NASA Exploration Forum: Human Path to Mars

Scientists carefully examine data being received during nighttime line operations testing of the SOFIA airborne observatory's 2.5-meter infrared telescope

Scientists believe a large number of the meteorites that are found on Earth originate from the protoplanet Vesta. This image is from NASA Dawn spacecraft.

Possible Piece of Vesta

Scientists have found evidence of plate tectonics on Jupiter moon Europa. This conceptual illustration of the subduction process.

Plate Tectonics on Europa

Hedgehog

This detailed map of the oldest light in our universe allowed scientists to take the most precise inventory of the universe ingredients to date.

Refining the Ingredients of Our Universe

The Atmospheric Infrared Sounder AIRS instrument on NASA Aqua spacecraft is also being used by scientists to observe atmospheric carbon dioxide.

AIRS Global Map of Carbon Dioxide from Space

Mirror Mount

School children from Punta Arenas, Chile, talk with Dr. David Imel, an AirSAR scientist from NASA JPL, during AirSAR 2004

School children from Punta Arenas, Chile, talk with Dr. David Imel, an AirSAR scientist from NASA JPL, during AirSAR 2004. AirSAR 2004 is a three-week expedition by an international team of scientists that uses an all-weather imaging tool, called the Airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (AirSAR) which is located onboard NASA's DC-8 airborne laboratory. Scientists from many parts of the world including NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory are combining ground research done in several areas in Central and South America with NASA's AirSAR technology to improve and expand on the quality of research they are able to conduct. In South America and Antarctica, AirSAR collected imagery and data to help determine the contribution of Southern Hemisphere glaciers to sea level rise due to climate change. In Patagonia, researchers found this contribution had more than doubled from 1995 to 2000, compared to the previous 25 years. AirSAR data will make it possible to determine whether that trend is continuing or accelerating. AirSAR will also provide reliable information on ice shelf thickness to measure the contribution of the glaciers to sea level.

APOLLO XVII EXTRAVEHICULAR ACTIVITY (EVA) - SCIENTIST-ASTRONAUT HARRISON H. SCHMITT - MOON

S73-22871 (13 Dec. 1972) --- Scientist-astronaut Harrison H. Schmitt is photographed standing next to a huge, split lunar boulder during the third Apollo 17 extravehicular activity (EVA) at the Taurus-Littrow landing site. The Lunar Roving Vehicle (LRV), which transported Schmitt and Eugene A. Cernan to this extravehicular station from their Lunar Module (LM), is seen in the background. The mosaic is made from two frames from Apollo 17 Hasselblad magazine 140. The two frames were photographed by Cernan.

Reflectors used to calibrate the DC-8's AirSAR seen here setup in the Costa Rican rain forest by scientist Paul Siqueira from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Lab

Reflectors setup in the La Selva region of the Costa Rican rain forest by scientist Paul Siqueira from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Lab. These reflectors are used by JPL scientists onboard Dryden's DC-8 aircraft to calibrate the Airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (AirSAR) system. Scientists place these reflectors at known points on the ground, allowing researchers onboard the aircraft to verify their data. AirSAR 2004 Mesoamerica is a three-week expedition by an international team of scientists that uses an all-weather imaging tool, called the Airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (AirSAR) which is located onboard NASA's DC-8 airborne laboratory. Scientists from many parts of the world including NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory are combining ground research done in several areas in Central America with NASA's AirSAR technology to improve and expand on the quality of research they are able to conduct. The radar, developed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, can penetrate clouds and also collect data at night. Its high-resolution sensors operate at multiple wavelengths and modes, allowing AirSAR to see beneath treetops, through thin sand, and dry snow pack. AirSAR's 2004 campaign is a collaboration of many U.S. and Central American institutions and scientists, including NASA; the National Science Foundation; the Smithsonian Institution; National Geographic; Conservation International; the Organization of Tropical Studies; the Central American Commission for Environment and Development; and the Inter-American Development Bank.

Reflectors used to calibrate the DC-8's AirSAR seen here setup in the Costa Rican rain forest by scientist Paul Siqueira from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Lab

Reflectors setup in the La Selva region of the Costa Rican rain forest by scientist Paul Siqueira from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Lab. These reflectors are used by JPL scientists onboard Dryden's DC-8 aircraft to calibrate the Airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (AirSAR) system. Scientists place these reflectors at known points on the ground, allowing researchers onboard the aircraft to verify their data. AirSAR 2004 Mesoamerica is a three-week expedition by an international team of scientists that uses an all-weather imaging tool, called the Airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (AirSAR) which is located onboard NASA's DC-8 airborne laboratory. Scientists from many parts of the world including NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory are combining ground research done in several areas in Central America with NASA's AirSAR technology to improve and expand on the quality of research they are able to conduct. The radar, developed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, can penetrate clouds and also collect data at night. Its high-resolution sensors operate at multiple wavelengths and modes, allowing AirSAR to see beneath treetops, through thin sand, and dry snow pack. AirSAR's 2004 campaign is a collaboration of many U.S. and Central American institutions and scientists, including NASA; the National Science Foundation; the Smithsonian Institution; National Geographic; Conservation International; the Organization of Tropical Studies; the Central American Commission for Environment and Development; and the Inter-American Development Bank.

Scientists and technicians ready an instrument rack for mounting in NASA's DC-8 flying laboratory in preparation for a complex mission to study how air pollution and natural emissions affect climate change

ED13-0225-023

NASA JPL scientists Yunling Lou and Dr. Eric Rignot work on line selection while flying AirSAR missions over the Antarctic Peninsula

NASA JPL scientists Yunling Lou and Dr. Eric Rignot work on line selection while flying AirSAR missions over the Antarctic Peninsula. AirSAR 2004 is a three-week expedition in Central and South America by an international team of scientists that is using an all-weather imaging tool, called the Airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar (AirSAR), located onboard NASA's DC-8 airborne laboratory. Scientists from many parts of the world are combining ground research with NASA's AirSAR technology to improve and expand on the quality of research they are able to conduct. These photos are from the DC-8 aircraft while flying an AirSAR mission over Antarctica. The Antarctic Peninsula is more similar to Alaska and Patagonia than to the rest of the Antarctic continent. It is drained by fast glaciers, receives abundant precipitation, and melts significantly in the summer months. In recent decades, the Peninsula has experienced significant atmospheric warming (about 2 degrees C since 1950), which has triggered a vast and spectacular retreat of its floating ice shelves, glacier reduction, a decrease in permanent snow cover and a lengthening of the melt season. As a result, the contribution to sea level from this region could be rapid and substantial. With an area of 120,000 km, or ten times the Patagonia ice fields, the Peninsula could contribute as much as 0.4mm/yr sea level rise, which would be the largest single contribution to sea level from anywhere in the world. This region is being studied by NASA using a DC-8 equipped with the Airborne Synthetic Aperture Radar developed by scientists from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory. AirSAR will provide a baseline model and unprecedented mapping of the region. This data will make it possible to determine whether the warming trend is slowing, continuing or accelerating. AirSAR will also provide reliable information on ice shelf thickness to measure the contribution of the glaciers to sea level.

Roman Coronagraph on View in a JPL Clean Room

In a clean room at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California in October 2023, scientist Vanessa Bailey stands behind the Roman Coronagraph, which has been undergoing testing at the lab. Designed to block starlight and allow scientists to see the faint light from planets outside our solar system, the Coronagraph is a technology demonstration that will be part of NASA's Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope. https://photojournal.jpl.nasa.gov/catalog/PIA26272