jsc2026e014318

Preflight image of the SM-3X module as part of the Cold Atom Lab (CAL). NASA’s CAL hosts multiple experiments that explore the fundamental nature of atoms by cooling them down to nearly absolute zero (the coldest temperature matter can reach). The pink-colored coated mirrors on the front and sides reflect five sets of laser beams to pre-cool atoms before they are loaded into a magnetic trap. Radio frequencies from an internal antenna lower the temperature of the trapped atoms to the extreme cold needed to observe quantum phenomena. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech.

jsc2026e014318 (March 23, 2026) --- Preflight image of the SM-3X module as part of the Cold Atom Lab (CAL). NASA’s CAL hosts multiple experiments that explore the fundamental nature of atoms by cooling them down to nearly absolute zero (the coldest temperature matter can reach). The pink-colored coated mirrors on the front and sides reflect five sets of laser beams to pre-cool atoms before they are loaded into a magnetic trap. Radio frequencies from an internal antenna lower the temperature of the trapped atoms to the extreme cold needed to observe quantum phenomena. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech.

Photographer Dan Goods
Album Northrop_Grumman_CRS-24_Science