NASA
Golden Lake
Golden sunglint highlights Lake Balkhash in this May 31, 2016, photo taken from the International Space Station. The large lake in Kazakhstan is one of the largest lakes in Asia and is the 15th largest lake in the world.
Since the space station became operational in November 2000, crew members have produced hundreds of thousands of images of the land, oceans, and atmosphere of Earth, and even of the Moon through Crew Earth Observations. Their photographs of Earth record how the planet changes over time due to human activity and natural events. This allows scientists to monitor disasters and direct response on the ground and study a number of phenomena, from the movement of glaciers to urban wildlife.
In addition, other activity aboard the space station helps inform long-duration missions like Artemis and future human expeditions to Mars.
Image credit: NASA/Tim Kopra
Golden Lake
Golden sunglint highlights Lake Balkhash in this May 31, 2016, photo taken from the International Space Station. The large lake in Kazakhstan is one of the largest lakes in Asia and is the 15th largest lake in the world.
Since the space station became operational in November 2000, crew members have produced hundreds of thousands of images of the land, oceans, and atmosphere of Earth, and even of the Moon through Crew Earth Observations. Their photographs of Earth record how the planet changes over time due to human activity and natural events. This allows scientists to monitor disasters and direct response on the ground and study a number of phenomena, from the movement of glaciers to urban wildlife.
In addition, other activity aboard the space station helps inform long-duration missions like Artemis and future human expeditions to Mars.
Image credit: NASA/Tim Kopra
Join NASA on Oct. 4 in Looking Up, Celebrating Moon
2 min read
Join NASA on Oct. 4 in Looking Up, Celebrating Moon A view of the Moon through the clouds in a photo taken in Italy during the 2024 International Observe the Moon Night.Copyright Astrofili Ceriana, used with permission.Join observers from around the world on Saturday, Oct. 4, for NASA’s International Observe the Moon Night. This annual event offers an opportunity for earthlings to celebrate the inspiring bond between Earth and the Moon, and, this year, to share in the excitement of NASA’s preparations for Artemis II. Launching in early 2026, the mission will send four astronauts on a nearly 10-day flight past the Moon and back.
On Saturday, the Moon will be in a waxing gibbous phase, with most of its face lit up by the Sun. Given these lighting conditions, viewers will be able to see many interesting sites with the unaided eye, binoculars, or telescopes — depending on local weather. Moon observers will see large, dark patches on the Moon called “maria,” or “seas” in Latin. Thought to be seas of water for much of recorded human history, maria are large, flat plains of solidified ancient lava. This lava erupted from now-inactive volcanoes possibly for billions of years, starting about 4.4 billion years ago when the Moon formed.
Researchers at the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station view the Moon through a 12-inch telescope during the 2024 International Observe the Moon Night.Copyright Connor Duffy, used with permissionDepending on the type of viewing equipment used, some observers will be able to see geologic features such as craters, volcanic domes, and bright swirls on the surface thought to have formed in areas of local magnetic fields. This interactive map, designed specifically for the Moon’s phase on Oct. 4, highlights areas of interest and offers tips for viewing.
From backyard viewing, to lunar art projects, to touching your way around the Moon’s surface through 3D prints, there are many ways to participate in International Observe the Moon Night, which drew an estimated 1.3 million participants from 127 countries in 2024.
Observers in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, wait their turn to peek at the Moon through a telescope during the 2023 International Observe the Moon Night.Copyright Nguyen Thi Kha Ly, used with permissionJoin the global community:
- Register your event, or yourself, and get added to the map of observers.
- Attend an event near you, or host an event in your community.
- Check out a NASA video compilation, available on Oct. 4, to learn about Moon science and exploration plans and to hear from global Moon fans, including NASA astronauts.
- Connect online to share your experience using the hashtag #ObserveTheMoon.
- Learn about NASA’s Artemis II mission.
Media Contact:
Alise Fisher / Molly Wasser
Headquarters, Washington
202-617-4977 / 240-419-1732
alise.m.fisher@nasa.gov / molly.l.wasser@nasa.gov
Lonnie Shekhtman
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md.
301-286-8955
lonnie.shekhtman@nasa.gov
When wildfires scorch a landscape, the flames are just the beginning. NASA is helping U.S.…
Article 2 days ago Keep Exploring Discover More Topics From NASAMissions
Humans in Space
Climate Change
Solar System
Join NASA on Oct. 4 in Looking Up, Celebrating Moon
2 min read
Join NASA on Oct. 4 in Looking Up, Celebrating Moon A view of the Moon through the clouds in a photo taken in Italy during the 2024 International Observe the Moon Night.Copyright Astrofili Ceriana, used with permission.Join observers from around the world on Saturday, Oct. 4, for NASA’s International Observe the Moon Night. This annual event offers an opportunity for earthlings to celebrate the inspiring bond between Earth and the Moon, and, this year, to share in the excitement of NASA’s preparations for Artemis II. Launching in early 2026, the mission will send four astronauts on a nearly 10-day flight past the Moon and back.
On Saturday, the Moon will be in a waxing gibbous phase, with most of its face lit up by the Sun. Given these lighting conditions, viewers will be able to see many interesting sites with the unaided eye, binoculars, or telescopes — depending on local weather. Moon observers will see large, dark patches on the Moon called “maria,” or “seas” in Latin. Thought to be seas of water for much of recorded human history, maria are large, flat plains of solidified ancient lava. This lava erupted from now-inactive volcanoes possibly for billions of years, starting about 4.4 billion years ago when the Moon formed.
Researchers at the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station view the Moon through a 12-inch telescope during the 2024 International Observe the Moon Night.Copyright Connor Duffy, used with permissionDepending on the type of viewing equipment used, some observers will be able to see geologic features such as craters, volcanic domes, and bright swirls on the surface thought to have formed in areas of local magnetic fields. This interactive map, designed specifically for the Moon’s phase on Oct. 4, highlights areas of interest and offers tips for viewing.
From backyard viewing, to lunar art projects, to touching your way around the Moon’s surface through 3D prints, there are many ways to participate in International Observe the Moon Night, which drew an estimated 1.3 million participants from 127 countries in 2024.
Observers in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, wait their turn to peek at the Moon through a telescope during the 2023 International Observe the Moon Night.Copyright Nguyen Thi Kha Ly, used with permissionJoin the global community:
- Register your event, or yourself, and get added to the map of observers.
- Attend an event near you, or host an event in your community.
- Check out a NASA video compilation, available on Oct. 4, to learn about Moon science and exploration plans and to hear from global Moon fans, including NASA astronauts.
- Connect online to share your experience using the hashtag #ObserveTheMoon.
- Learn about NASA’s Artemis II mission.
Media Contact:
Alise Fisher / Molly Wasser
Headquarters, Washington
202-617-4977 / 240-419-1732
alise.m.fisher@nasa.gov / molly.l.wasser@nasa.gov
Lonnie Shekhtman
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md.
301-286-8955
lonnie.shekhtman@nasa.gov
When wildfires scorch a landscape, the flames are just the beginning. NASA is helping U.S.…
Article 2 days ago Keep Exploring Discover More Topics From NASAMissions
Humans in Space
Climate Change
Solar System
I Am Artemis: Diamond St. John
Listen to this audio excerpt from Diamond St. John, engineer working on the Artemis III heat shield for the Orion Program at Lockheed Martin:
0:00 / 0:00
Your browser does not support the audio element.For four-generations, Diamond St. John’s family has been supporting human spaceflight at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Now, she’s continuing the family legacy that reaches back to Apollo —helping return humanity to the Moon with the agency’s Artemis campaign.
St. John is an engineer with Lockheed Martin supporting Orion, NASA’s spacecraft built to carry crew to the Moon and return them safely to Earth on Artemis missions. She specializes in the production of Orion’s heat shield at Lockheed’s Spacecraft, Test, Assembly and Resource Center, in Titusville, Florida. As one of the most important elements of the spacecraft, the heat shield is responsible for protecting the astronauts from the nearly 5,000 degrees Fahrenheit temperatures as they re-enter Earth’s atmosphere at the end of the mission.
From start to finish, St. John is responsible for establishing a production workflow for the Orion heat shield — the largest of its kind in the world — and ensures each step is executed in the correct order along the way.
Her team recognizes the criticality of their work and knows that their mission is to make sure astronauts come home safe. When it comes to quality of production, St. John embraces that mindset.
“We always want to make sure that we're doing things right. We have to slow down and make sure that our product is quality — because the slightest thing can be a make or break. We definitely want to make sure that our crew is safe.”Diamond St. John
Engineer on the Orion Program with Lockheed Martin
St. John and her team are working on the Orion heat shield for the Artemis III mission that will land astronauts on the lunar surface. The team is in the process of bonding 186 tiles made of a material called Avcoat to the heat shield’s underlying structure. “Once we start bonding operations, we first sand the blocks, to make sure that we minimize any gaps between them. Then we get into bonding, and we fill the gaps, and we test. After that’s complete, we then paint and tape the heat shield.”
“Seeing a final product finished, it warms your heart. So, I’m looking forward to that finished heat shield and knowing that we put our heart and soul into it.”Diamond St. John
Engineer on the Orion Program with Lockheed Martin
Though she is currently working on the heat shield for Artemis III, her journey with Orion began with the Artemis I spacecraft. St. John started on the clean room floor as a technician intern with subcontractor ASRC Federal. She then moved into a full-time role with the company for four years in quality inspection while earning her bachelor’s degree in engineering. After that, St. John joined Lockheed Martin as a manufacturing engineer.
“Everything has been Artemis from the beginning,” she said, in reflection of her career. “Knowing that my great grandparents worked on the Apollo missions — it’s cool to follow down that same path. I think they would be pretty proud.”
Join observers from around the world on Saturday, Oct. 4, for NASA’s International Observe the…
Article 10 hours ago 3 min read NASA Opens 2026 Human Lander Challenge for Life Support Systems, More Article 1 day ago Keep Exploring Discover More Topics From NASAMissions
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I Am Artemis: Diamond St. John
Listen to this audio excerpt from Diamond St. John, engineer working on the Artemis III heat shield for the Orion Program at Lockheed Martin:
0:00 / 0:00
Your browser does not support the audio element.For four-generations, Diamond St. John’s family has been supporting human spaceflight at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Now, she’s continuing the family legacy that reaches back to Apollo —helping return humanity to the Moon with the agency’s Artemis campaign.
St. John is an engineer with Lockheed Martin supporting Orion, NASA’s spacecraft built to carry crew to the Moon and return them safely to Earth on Artemis missions. She specializes in the production of Orion’s heat shield at Lockheed’s Spacecraft, Test, Assembly and Resource Center, in Titusville, Florida. As one of the most important elements of the spacecraft, the heat shield is responsible for protecting the astronauts from the nearly 5,000 degrees Fahrenheit temperatures as they re-enter Earth’s atmosphere at the end of the mission.
From start to finish, St. John is responsible for establishing a production workflow for the Orion heat shield — the largest of its kind in the world — and ensures each step is executed in the correct order along the way.
Her team recognizes the criticality of their work and knows that their mission is to make sure astronauts come home safe. When it comes to quality of production, St. John embraces that mindset.
“We always want to make sure that we're doing things right. We have to slow down and make sure that our product is quality — because the slightest thing can be a make or break. We definitely want to make sure that our crew is safe.”Diamond St. John
Engineer on the Orion Program with Lockheed Martin
St. John and her team are working on the Orion heat shield for the Artemis III mission that will land astronauts on the lunar surface. The team is in the process of bonding 186 tiles made of a material called Avcoat to the heat shield’s underlying structure. “Once we start bonding operations, we first sand the blocks, to make sure that we minimize any gaps between them. Then we get into bonding, and we fill the gaps, and we test. After that’s complete, we then paint and tape the heat shield.”
“Seeing a final product finished, it warms your heart. So, I’m looking forward to that finished heat shield and knowing that we put our heart and soul into it.”Diamond St. John
Engineer on the Orion Program with Lockheed Martin
Though she is currently working on the heat shield for Artemis III, her journey with Orion began with the Artemis I spacecraft. St. John started on the clean room floor as a technician intern with subcontractor ASRC Federal. She then moved into a full-time role with the company for four years in quality inspection while earning her bachelor’s degree in engineering. After that, St. John joined Lockheed Martin as a manufacturing engineer.
“Everything has been Artemis from the beginning,” she said, in reflection of her career. “Knowing that my great grandparents worked on the Apollo missions — it’s cool to follow down that same path. I think they would be pretty proud.”
Join observers from around the world on Saturday, Oct. 4, for NASA’s International Observe the…
Article 8 hours ago 3 min read NASA Opens 2026 Human Lander Challenge for Life Support Systems, More Article 1 day ago Keep Exploring Discover More Topics From NASAMissions
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Hubble Captures Puzzling Galaxy
- Hubble Home
- Overview
- Impact & Benefits
- Science
- Observatory
- Team
- Multimedia
- News
- More
2 min read
Hubble Captures Puzzling Galaxy This NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope image features the galaxy NGC 2775.ESA/Hubble & NASA, F. Belfiore, J. Lee and the PHANGS-HST TeamThis NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope image features a galaxy that’s hard to categorize. The galaxy in question is NGC 2775, which lies 67 million light-years away in the constellation Cancer (the Crab). NGC 2775 sports a smooth, featureless center that is devoid of gas, resembling an elliptical galaxy. It also has a dusty ring with patchy star clusters, like a spiral galaxy. Which is it: spiral or elliptical — or neither?
Because we can only view NGC 2775 from one angle, it’s difficult to say for sure. Some researchers classify NGC 2775 as a spiral galaxy because of its feathery ring of stars and dust, while others classify it as a lenticular galaxy. Lenticular galaxies have features common to both spiral and elliptical galaxies.
Astronomers aren’t certain of exactly how lenticular galaxies come to be, and they might form in a variety of ways. Lenticular galaxies might be spiral galaxies that merged with other galaxies, or that have mostly run out of star-forming gas and lost their prominent spiral arms. They also might have started out more like elliptical galaxies, then collected gas into a disk around them.
Some evidence suggests that NGC 2775 merged with other galaxies in the past. Invisible in this Hubble image, NGC 2775 has a tail of hydrogen gas that stretches almost 100,000 light-years around the galaxy. This faint tail could be the remnant of one or more galaxies that wandered too close to NGC 2775 before being stretched apart and absorbed. If NGC 2775 merged with other galaxies in the past, it could explain the galaxy’s strange appearance today.
Most astronomers classify NGC 2775 as a flocculent spiral galaxy. Flocculent spirals have poorly defined, discontinuous arms that are often described as “feathery” or as “tufts” of stars that loosely form spiral arms.
Hubble previously released an image of NGC 2775 in 2020. This new version adds observations of a specific wavelength of red light emitted by clouds of hydrogen gas surrounding massive young stars, visible as bright, pinkish clumps in the image. This additional wavelength of light helps astronomers better define where new stars are forming in the galaxy.
Facebook logo @NASAHubble @NASAHubble Instagram logo @NASAHubbleMedia Contact:
Claire Andreoli (claire.andreoli@nasa.gov)
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD
Since its 1990 launch, the Hubble Space Telescope has changed our fundamental understanding of the universe.
Hubble News
Hubble Science Highlights
Hubble Online Activities
Hubble Captures Puzzling Galaxy
- Hubble Home
- Overview
- Impact & Benefits
- Science
- Observatory
- Team
- Multimedia
- News
- More
2 min read
Hubble Captures Puzzling Galaxy This NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope image features the galaxy NGC 2775.ESA/Hubble & NASA, F. Belfiore, J. Lee and the PHANGS-HST TeamThis NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope image features a galaxy that’s hard to categorize. The galaxy in question is NGC 2775, which lies 67 million light-years away in the constellation Cancer (the Crab). NGC 2775 sports a smooth, featureless center that is devoid of gas, resembling an elliptical galaxy. It also has a dusty ring with patchy star clusters, like a spiral galaxy. Which is it: spiral or elliptical — or neither?
Because we can only view NGC 2775 from one angle, it’s difficult to say for sure. Some researchers classify NGC 2775 as a spiral galaxy because of its feathery ring of stars and dust, while others classify it as a lenticular galaxy. Lenticular galaxies have features common to both spiral and elliptical galaxies.
Astronomers aren’t certain of exactly how lenticular galaxies come to be, and they might form in a variety of ways. Lenticular galaxies might be spiral galaxies that merged with other galaxies, or that have mostly run out of star-forming gas and lost their prominent spiral arms. They also might have started out more like elliptical galaxies, then collected gas into a disk around them.
Some evidence suggests that NGC 2775 merged with other galaxies in the past. Invisible in this Hubble image, NGC 2775 has a tail of hydrogen gas that stretches almost 100,000 light-years around the galaxy. This faint tail could be the remnant of one or more galaxies that wandered too close to NGC 2775 before being stretched apart and absorbed. If NGC 2775 merged with other galaxies in the past, it could explain the galaxy’s strange appearance today.
Most astronomers classify NGC 2775 as a flocculent spiral galaxy. Flocculent spirals have poorly defined, discontinuous arms that are often described as “feathery” or as “tufts” of stars that loosely form spiral arms.
Hubble previously released an image of NGC 2775 in 2020. This new version adds observations of a specific wavelength of red light emitted by clouds of hydrogen gas surrounding massive young stars, visible as bright, pinkish clumps in the image. This additional wavelength of light helps astronomers better define where new stars are forming in the galaxy.
Facebook logo @NASAHubble @NASAHubble Instagram logo @NASAHubbleMedia Contact:
Claire Andreoli (claire.andreoli@nasa.gov)
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD
Since its 1990 launch, the Hubble Space Telescope has changed our fundamental understanding of the universe.
Hubble News
Hubble Science Highlights
Hubble Online Activities
NASA Flights Study Cosmic Ray Effects for Air, Future Space Travelers
4 min read
Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)Recent airborne science flights to Greenland are improving NASA’s understanding of space weather by measuring radiation exposure to air travelers and validating global radiation maps used in flight path planning. This unique data also has value beyond the Earth as a celestial roadmap for using the same instrumentation to monitor radiation levels for travelers entering Mars’ atmosphere and for upcoming lunar exploration.
NASA’s Space Weather Aviation Radiation (SWXRAD) aircraft flight campaign took place August 25-28 and conducted two five-hour flights in Nuuk, Greenland. Based out of NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia, the mission gathered dosimetry measurements, or the radiation dose level, to air travelers from cosmic radiation. Cosmic radiation is caused by high-energy particles from outer space that originate from our Sun during eruptive events like solar flares and from events farther away, like supernovae in our Milky Way galaxy and beyond.
Science team partners from Honeywell reviewing dosimeter data on board NASA’s B200 King Air during a flight over Nuuk, Greenland. NASA/Guillaume Gronoff“With NASA spacecraft and astronauts exploring the Moon, Mars, and beyond, we support critical research to understand – and ultimately predict – the impacts of space weather across the solar system,” said Jamie Favors, director of NASA’s Space Weather Program at NASA Headquarters in Washington. “Though this project is focused on aviation applications on Earth, NAIRAS could be part of the next generation of tools supporting Artemis missions to the Moon and eventually human missions to Mars.”
Jamie Favors, NASA Space Weather Program director, and Chris Mertens, SWXRAD principal investigator, discussing a dosimeter at NASA’s Langley Research Center as specialized instruments are integrated onto NASA’s B200 King Air aircraft before deploying to Greenland.NASA/Mark KnoppNASA’s Nowcast of Aerospace Ionizing Radiation System, or NAIRAS, is the modeling system being enhanced by the SWXRAD airborne science flights. The model features real-time global maps of the hazardous radiation in the atmosphere and creates exposure predictions for aircraft and spacecraft.
“The radiation exposure is maximum at the poles and minimum at the equator because of the effect of Earth’s magnetic field. In the polar regions, the magnetic field lines are directed into or out of the Earth, so there’s no deflection or shielding by the fields of the radiation environment that you see everywhere else.” explained Chris Mertens, principal investigator of SWXRAD at NASA Langley. “Greenland is a region where the shielding of cosmic radiation by Earth’s magnetic field is zero.”
That means flight crews and travelers on polar flights from the U.S. to Asia or from the U.S. to Europe are exposed to higher levels of radiation.
Frozen and rocky terrain in the Polar region observed from above Nuuk, Greenland during NASA’s SWXRAD science flights.NASA/Guillaume GronoffThe data gathered in Greenland will be compared to the NAIRAS modeling, which bases its computation on sources around the globe that include neutron monitors and instruments that measure solar wind parameters and the magnetic field along with spaceborne data from instruments like the NOAA GOES series of satellites.
“If the new data doesn’t agree, we have to go back and look at why that is,” said Mertens. “In the radiation environment, one of the biggest uncertainties is the effect of Earth’s magnetic field. So, this mission eliminates that variable in the model and enables us to concentrate on other areas, like characterizing the particles that are coming in from space into the atmosphere, and then the transport and interactions with the atmosphere.”
An aerial view of Nuuk, Greenland.NASA/Guillaume GronoffThe SWXRAD science team flew aboard NASA’s B200 King Air with five researchers and crew members. In the coming months, the team will focus on measurement data quality checks, quantitative modeling comparisons, and a validation study between current NAIRAS data and the new aircraft dosimeter measurements.
All of this information is endeavoring to protect pilots and passengers on Earth from the health risks associated with radiation exposure while using NASA’s existing science capabilities to safely bring astronauts to the Moon and Mars.
Northern Lights, or auroras, seen over the city of Nuuk, Greenland. Auroras are considered space weather and are easily visible effects of activity from the Sun interacting with the magnetosphere and Earth’s atmosphere.NASA/Guillaume Gronoff“Once you get to Mars and even the transit out to Mars, there would be times where we don’t have any data sets to really understand what the environment is out there,” said Favors. “So we’re starting to think about not only how do we get ready for those humans on Mars, but also what data do we need to bring with them? So we’re feeding this data into models exactly like NAIRAS. This model is thinking about Mars in the same way it’s thinking about Earth.”
The SWXRAD flight mission is funded through NASA’s Science Mission Directorate Heliophysics Division. NASA’s Space Weather Program Office is hosted at NASA Langley and facilitates researchers in the creation of new tools to predict space weather and to understand space weather effects on Earth’s infrastructure, technology, and society.
For more information on NASA Heliophysics and NAIRAS modeling visit:
NASA’s Nowcast of Aerospace Ionizing Radiation System
About the AuthorCharles G. HatfieldScience Public Affairs Officer, NASA Langley Research Center Share Details Last Updated Sep 25, 2025 ContactCharles G. Hatfieldcharles.g.hatfield@nasa.gov Related Terms Explore More 4 min read NASA Aircraft Coordinate Science Flights to Measure Air QualityMagic is in the air. No wait… MAGEQ is in the air, featuring scientists from…
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Article 1 day agoNASA Flights Study Cosmic Ray Effects for Air, Future Space Travelers
4 min read
Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)Recent airborne science flights to Greenland are improving NASA’s understanding of space weather by measuring radiation exposure to air travelers and validating global radiation maps used in flight path planning. This unique data also has value beyond the Earth as a celestial roadmap for using the same instrumentation to monitor radiation levels for travelers entering Mars’ atmosphere and for upcoming lunar exploration.
NASA’s Space Weather Aviation Radiation (SWXRAD) aircraft flight campaign took place August 25-28 and conducted two five-hour flights in Nuuk, Greenland. Based out of NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia, the mission gathered dosimetry measurements, or the radiation dose level, to air travelers from cosmic radiation. Cosmic radiation is caused by high-energy particles from outer space that originate from our Sun during eruptive events like solar flares and from events farther away, like supernovae in our Milky Way galaxy and beyond.
Science team partners from Honeywell reviewing dosimeter data on board NASA’s B200 King Air during a flight over Nuuk, Greenland. NASA/Guillaume Gronoff“With NASA spacecraft and astronauts exploring the Moon, Mars, and beyond, we support critical research to understand – and ultimately predict – the impacts of space weather across the solar system,” said Jamie Favors, director of NASA’s Space Weather Program at NASA Headquarters in Washington. “Though this project is focused on aviation applications on Earth, NAIRAS could be part of the next generation of tools supporting Artemis missions to the Moon and eventually human missions to Mars.”
Jamie Favors, NASA Space Weather Program director, and Chris Mertens, SWXRAD principal investigator, discussing a dosimeter at NASA’s Langley Research Center as specialized instruments are integrated onto NASA’s B200 King Air aircraft before deploying to Greenland.NASA/Mark KnoppNASA’s Nowcast of Aerospace Ionizing Radiation System, or NAIRAS, is the modeling system being enhanced by the SWXRAD airborne science flights. The model features real-time global maps of the hazardous radiation in the atmosphere and creates exposure predictions for aircraft and spacecraft.
“The radiation exposure is maximum at the poles and minimum at the equator because of the effect of Earth’s magnetic field. In the polar regions, the magnetic field lines are directed into or out of the Earth, so there’s no deflection or shielding by the fields of the radiation environment that you see everywhere else.” explained Chris Mertens, principal investigator of SWXRAD at NASA Langley. “Greenland is a region where the shielding of cosmic radiation by Earth’s magnetic field is zero.”
That means flight crews and travelers on polar flights from the U.S. to Asia or from the U.S. to Europe are exposed to higher levels of radiation.
Frozen and rocky terrain in the Polar region observed from above Nuuk, Greenland during NASA’s SWXRAD science flights.NASA/Guillaume GronoffThe data gathered in Greenland will be compared to the NAIRAS modeling, which bases its computation on sources around the globe that include neutron monitors and instruments that measure solar wind parameters and the magnetic field along with spaceborne data from instruments like the NOAA GOES series of satellites.
“If the new data doesn’t agree, we have to go back and look at why that is,” said Mertens. “In the radiation environment, one of the biggest uncertainties is the effect of Earth’s magnetic field. So, this mission eliminates that variable in the model and enables us to concentrate on other areas, like characterizing the particles that are coming in from space into the atmosphere, and then the transport and interactions with the atmosphere.”
An aerial view of Nuuk, Greenland.NASA/Guillaume GronoffThe SWXRAD science team flew aboard NASA’s B200 King Air with five researchers and crew members. In the coming months, the team will focus on measurement data quality checks, quantitative modeling comparisons, and a validation study between current NAIRAS data and the new aircraft dosimeter measurements.
All of this information is endeavoring to protect pilots and passengers on Earth from the health risks associated with radiation exposure while using NASA’s existing science capabilities to safely bring astronauts to the Moon and Mars.
Northern Lights, or auroras, seen over the city of Nuuk, Greenland. Auroras are considered space weather and are easily visible effects of activity from the Sun interacting with the magnetosphere and Earth’s atmosphere.NASA/Guillaume Gronoff“Once you get to Mars and even the transit out to Mars, there would be times where we don’t have any data sets to really understand what the environment is out there,” said Favors. “So we’re starting to think about not only how do we get ready for those humans on Mars, but also what data do we need to bring with them? So we’re feeding this data into models exactly like NAIRAS. This model is thinking about Mars in the same way it’s thinking about Earth.”
The SWXRAD flight mission is funded through NASA’s Science Mission Directorate Heliophysics Division. NASA’s Space Weather Program Office is hosted at NASA Langley and facilitates researchers in the creation of new tools to predict space weather and to understand space weather effects on Earth’s infrastructure, technology, and society.
For more information on NASA Heliophysics and NAIRAS modeling visit:
NASA’s Nowcast of Aerospace Ionizing Radiation System
About the AuthorCharles G. HatfieldScience Public Affairs Officer, NASA Langley Research Center Share Details Last Updated Sep 25, 2025 ContactCharles G. Hatfieldcharles.g.hatfield@nasa.gov Related Terms Explore More 4 min read NASA Aircraft Coordinate Science Flights to Measure Air QualityMagic is in the air. No wait… MAGEQ is in the air, featuring scientists from…
Article 1 day ago 6 min read NASA Data Powers New Tool to Protect Water Supply After FiresWhen wildfires scorch a landscape, the flames are just the beginning. NASA is helping U.S.…
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Article 1 day agoNASA Opens 2026 Human Lander Challenge for Life Support Systems, More
NASA’s 2026 Human Lander Challenge is seeking ideas from college and university students to help evolve and transform technologies for life support and environmental control systems. These systems are critical for sustainable, long-duration human spaceflight missions to the Moon, Mars, and beyond.
The Human Lander Challenge supports NASA’s efforts to foster innovative solutions to a variety of areas for NASA’s long-duration human spaceflight plans at the Moon under the Artemis campaign. The Human Lander Challenge is sponsored by the Human Landing System Program within the Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate.
The 2026 competition invites undergraduate and graduate-level teams based in the U.S., along with their faculty advisors, to develop innovative, systems-level solutions to improve aspects for a lander’s ECLSS (Environmental Control and Life Support System) performance. These air, water, and waste systems provide vital life support so future Artemis astronauts can live and work safely and effectively on the Moon during crewed missions.
Each proposed solution should focus on one of the following long-duration ECLSS subtopics:
- Noise suppression and control
- Sensor reduction in hardware health monitoring systems
- Potable water dispenser
- Fluid transfer between surface assets on the Moon and Mars
“A robust ECLSS transforms a spacecraft like a lander from just hardware into a livable environment, providing breathable air, clean water, and safe conditions for astronauts as they explore the Moon,” said Kevin Gutierrez, acting office manager for the Human Landing Systems Missions Systems Management Office at NASA Marshall. “Without ECLSS we can’t sustain human presence on the Moon or take the next steps toward Mars. The subtopics in the 2026 Human Lander Challenge reflect opportunities for students to support the future of human spaceflight.”
2026 CompetitionTeams should submit a non-binding notice of intent by Monday, Oct. 20, if they intend to participate. Proposal packages are due March 4, 2026.
Based on proposal package evaluations in Phase 1, up to 12 finalist teams will be selected to receive a $9,000 stipend and advance to Phase 2 of the competition, which includes a final design review near NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, June 23-25, 2026. The top three placing teams from Phase 2 will share a total prize of $18,000.
Landers are in development by SpaceX and Blue Origin as transportation systems that will safely ferry astronauts from lunar orbit to the Moon’s surface and back for the agency’s Artemis campaign. NASA Marshall manages the Human Landing System Program.
The challenge is administered by the National Institute of Aerospace on behalf of the agency.
Through the agency’s Artemis campaign, NASA will send astronauts to explore the Moon for scientific discovery, economic benefits, and to build the foundation for the first crewed missions to Mars – for the benefit of all.
For more information on NASA’s Human Lander Challenge and how to participate, visit:
Share Details Last Updated Sep 25, 2025 EditorLee MohonContactCorinne M. Beckingercorinne.m.beckinger@nasa.govLocationMarshall Space Flight Center Related Terms Explore More 2 min read NASA, Sierra Space Modify Commercial Resupply Services Contract Article 9 hours ago 5 min read From Supercomputers to Wind Tunnels: NASA’s Road to Artemis II Article 1 week ago 6 min read NASA’s Chandra Finds Black Hole With Tremendous Growth Article 1 week ago Keep Exploring Discover More Topics From NASAHuman Landing System
Artemis
Climate Change
Solar System
NASA Opens 2026 Human Lander Challenge for Life Support Systems, More
NASA’s 2026 Human Lander Challenge is seeking ideas from college and university students to help evolve and transform technologies for life support and environmental control systems. These systems are critical for sustainable, long-duration human spaceflight missions to the Moon, Mars, and beyond.
The Human Lander Challenge supports NASA’s efforts to foster innovative solutions to a variety of areas for NASA’s long-duration human spaceflight plans at the Moon under the Artemis campaign. The Human Lander Challenge is sponsored by the Human Landing System Program within the Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate.
The 2026 competition invites undergraduate and graduate-level teams based in the U.S., along with their faculty advisors, to develop innovative, systems-level solutions to improve aspects for a lander’s ECLSS (Environmental Control and Life Support System) performance. These air, water, and waste systems provide vital life support so future Artemis astronauts can live and work safely and effectively on the Moon during crewed missions.
Each proposed solution should focus on one of the following long-duration ECLSS subtopics:
- Noise suppression and control
- Sensor reduction in hardware health monitoring systems
- Potable water dispenser
- Fluid transfer between surface assets on the Moon and Mars
“A robust ECLSS transforms a spacecraft like a lander from just hardware into a livable environment, providing breathable air, clean water, and safe conditions for astronauts as they explore the Moon,” said Kevin Gutierrez, acting office manager for the Human Landing Systems Missions Systems Management Office at NASA Marshall. “Without ECLSS we can’t sustain human presence on the Moon or take the next steps toward Mars. The subtopics in the 2026 Human Lander Challenge reflect opportunities for students to support the future of human spaceflight.”
2026 CompetitionTeams should submit a non-binding notice of intent by Monday, Oct. 20, if they intend to participate. Proposal packages are due March 4, 2026.
Based on proposal package evaluations in Phase 1, up to 12 finalist teams will be selected to receive a $9,000 stipend and advance to Phase 2 of the competition, which includes a final design review near NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, June 23-25, 2026. The top three placing teams from Phase 2 will share a total prize of $18,000.
Landers are in development by SpaceX and Blue Origin as transportation systems that will safely ferry astronauts from lunar orbit to the Moon’s surface and back for the agency’s Artemis campaign. NASA Marshall manages the Human Landing System Program.
The challenge is administered by the National Institute of Aerospace on behalf of the agency.
Through the agency’s Artemis campaign, NASA will send astronauts to explore the Moon for scientific discovery, economic benefits, and to build the foundation for the first crewed missions to Mars – for the benefit of all.
For more information on NASA’s Human Lander Challenge and how to participate, visit:
Share Details Last Updated Sep 25, 2025 EditorLee MohonContactCorinne M. Beckingercorinne.m.beckinger@nasa.govLocationMarshall Space Flight Center Related Terms Explore More 2 min read NASA, Sierra Space Modify Commercial Resupply Services Contract Article 6 hours ago 5 min read From Supercomputers to Wind Tunnels: NASA’s Road to Artemis II Article 1 week ago 6 min read NASA’s Chandra Finds Black Hole With Tremendous Growth Article 1 week ago Keep Exploring Discover More Topics From NASAHuman Landing System
Artemis
Climate Change
Solar System
NASA, Sierra Space Modify Commercial Resupply Services Contract
In 2016, NASA awarded a Commercial Resupply Services-2 contract to Sierra Space, formerly part of Sierra Nevada Corporation, to resupply the International Space Station with its Dream Chaser spaceplane and companion Shooting Star cargo module. As part of its contract, Sierra Space was awarded a minimum seven flights, and the agency previously issued firm-fixed price task orders for four Dream Chaser resupply missions based on the needs of the space station.
After a thorough evaluation, NASA and Sierra Space have mutually agreed to modify the contract as the company determined Dream Chaser development is best served by a free flight demonstration, targeted in late 2026. Sierra Space will continue providing insight to NASA into the development of Dream Chaser, including through the flight demonstration. NASA will provide minimal support through the remainder of the development and the flight demonstration. As part of the modification, NASA is no longer obligated for a specific number of resupply missions, however, the agency may order Dream Chaser resupply flights to the space station from Sierra Space following a successful free flight as part of its current contract.
“Development of new space transportation systems is difficult and can take longer than what’s originally planned. The ability to perform a flight demonstration can be a key enabler in a spacecraft’s development and readiness, as well as offering greater flexibility for NASA and Sierra Space,” said Dana Weigel, manager of NASA’s International Space Station Program. “As NASA and its partners look toward space station deorbit in 2030, this mutually agreed to decision enables testing and verification to continue on Dream Chaser, as well as demonstrating the capabilities of the spaceplane for future resupply missions in low Earth orbit.”
NASA, and its commercial and international partners, will continue to supply the orbital complex with critical science, supplies, and hardware as the agency prepares to transition to commercial space stations in low Earth orbit. NASA continues to work with a variety of private companies to develop a competitive, space industrial base for cargo services, which will be needed for future commercial space stations. With a strong economy in low Earth orbit, NASA will be one of many customers of private industry as the agency explores the Moon under the Artemis campaign and Mars along with commercial and international partners.
NASA, Sierra Space Modify Commercial Resupply Services Contract
In 2016, NASA awarded a Commercial Resupply Services-2 contract to Sierra Space, formerly part of Sierra Nevada Corporation, to resupply the International Space Station with its Dream Chaser spaceplane and companion Shooting Star cargo module. As part of its contract, Sierra Space was awarded a minimum seven flights, and the agency previously issued firm-fixed price task orders for four Dream Chaser resupply missions based on the needs of the space station.
After a thorough evaluation, NASA and Sierra Space have mutually agreed to modify the contract as the company determined Dream Chaser development is best served by a free flight demonstration, targeted in late 2026. Sierra Space will continue providing insight to NASA into the development of Dream Chaser, including through the flight demonstration. NASA will provide minimal support through the remainder of the development and the flight demonstration. As part of the modification, NASA is no longer obligated for a specific number of resupply missions, however, the agency may order Dream Chaser resupply flights to the space station from Sierra Space following a successful free flight as part of its current contract.
“Development of new space transportation systems is difficult and can take longer than what’s originally planned. The ability to perform a flight demonstration can be a key enabler in a spacecraft’s development and readiness, as well as offering greater flexibility for NASA and Sierra Space,” said Dana Weigel, manager of NASA’s International Space Station Program. “As NASA and its partners look toward space station deorbit in 2030, this mutually agreed to decision enables testing and verification to continue on Dream Chaser, as well as demonstrating the capabilities of the spaceplane for future resupply missions in low Earth orbit.”
NASA, and its commercial and international partners, will continue to supply the orbital complex with critical science, supplies, and hardware as the agency prepares to transition to commercial space stations in low Earth orbit. NASA continues to work with a variety of private companies to develop a competitive, space industrial base for cargo services, which will be needed for future commercial space stations. With a strong economy in low Earth orbit, NASA will be one of many customers of private industry as the agency explores the Moon under the Artemis campaign and Mars along with commercial and international partners.
3-in-1 Launch
3-in-1 Launch
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifts off from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Sept. 24, 2025, carrying three missions that will investigate the Sun’s influence across the solar system.
NASA’s IMAP (Interstellar Mapping and Acceleration Probe), the agency’s Carruthers Geocorona Observatory, and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) Space Weather Follow On–Lagrange 1 (SWFO-L1) spacecraft will each focus on different effects of the solar wind – the continuous stream of particles emitted by the Sun – and space weather – the changing conditions in space driven by the Sun – from their origins at the Sun to their farthest reaches billions of miles away at the edge of our solar system.
Image credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett
3-in-1 Launch
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifts off from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Sept. 24, 2025, carrying three missions that will investigate the Sun’s influence across the solar system.
NASA’s IMAP (Interstellar Mapping and Acceleration Probe), the agency’s Carruthers Geocorona Observatory, and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) Space Weather Follow On–Lagrange 1 (SWFO-L1) spacecraft will each focus on different effects of the solar wind – the continuous stream of particles emitted by the Sun – and space weather – the changing conditions in space driven by the Sun – from their origins at the Sun to their farthest reaches billions of miles away at the edge of our solar system.
Image credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett
NASA-ISRO Satellite Sends First Radar Images of Earth’s Surface
The NISAR (NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar) Earth-observing radar satellite’s first images of our planet’s surface are in, and they offer a glimpse of things to come as the joint mission between NASA and ISRO (Indian Space Research Organisation) approaches full science operations later this year.
“Launched under President Trump in conjunction with India, NISAR’s first images are a testament to what can be achieved when we unite around a shared vision of innovation and discovery,” said acting NASA Administrator Sean Duffy. “This is only the beginning. NASA will continue to build upon the incredible scientific advancements of the past and present as we pursue our goal to maintain our nation’s space dominance through Gold Standard Science.”
Images from the spacecraft, which was launched by ISRO on July 30, display the level of detail with which NISAR scans Earth to provide unique, actionable information to decision-makers in a diverse range of areas, including disaster response, infrastructure monitoring, and agricultural management.
“By understanding how our home planet works, we can produce models and analysis of how other planets in our solar system and beyond work as we prepare to send humanity on an epic journey back to the Moon and onward to Mars,” said NASA Associate Administrator Amit Kshatriya. “The successful capture of these first images from NISAR is a remarkable example of how partnership and collaboration between two nations, on opposite sides of the world, can achieve great things together for the benefit of all.”
On Aug. 21, the satellite’s L-band synthetic aperture radar (SAR) system, which was provided by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California, captured Mount Desert Island on the Maine coast. Dark areas represent water, while green areas are forest, and magenta areas are hard or regular surfaces, such as bare ground and buildings. The L-band radar system can resolve objects as small as 15 feet (5 meters), enabling the image to display narrow waterways cutting across the island, as well as the islets dotting the waters around it.
Then, on Aug. 23, the L-band SAR captured data of a portion of northeastern North Dakota straddling Grand Forks and Walsh counties. The image shows forests and wetlands on the banks of the Forest River passing through the center of the frame from west to east and farmland to the north and south. The dark agricultural plots show fallow fields, while the lighter colors represent the presence of pasture or crops, such as soybean and corn. Circular patterns indicate the use of center-pivot irrigation.
On Aug. 23, NISAR imaged land adjacent to northeastern North Dakota’s Forest River. Light-colored wetlands and forests line the river’s banks, while circular and rectangular plots throughout the image appear in shades that indicate the land may be pasture or cropland with corn or soy.Credit: NASA/JPL-CaltechThe images demonstrate how the L-band SAR can discern what type of land cover — low-lying vegetation, trees, and human structures — is present in each area. This capability is vital both for monitoring the gain and loss of forest and wetland ecosystems, as well as for tracking the progress of crops through growing seasons around the world.
“These initial images are just a preview of the hard-hitting science that NISAR will produce — data and insights that will enable scientists to study Earth’s changing land and ice surfaces in unprecedented detail while equipping decision-makers to respond to natural disasters and other challenges,” said Nicky Fox, associate administrator, Science Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington. “They are also a testament to the years of hard work of hundreds of scientists and engineers from both sides of the world to build an observatory with the most advanced radar system ever launched by NASA and ISRO.”
The L-band system uses a 10-inch (25-centimeter) wavelength that enables its signal to penetrate forest canopies and measure soil moisture and motion of ice surfaces and land down to fractions of an inch, which is a key measurement in understanding how the land surface moves before, during, and after earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, and landslides.
The preliminary L-band images are an example of what the mission team will be able to produce when the science phase begins in November. The satellite was raised into its operational 464-mile (747-kilometer) orbit in mid-September.
The NISAR mission also includes an S-band radar, provided by ISRO’s Space Applications Centre, that uses a 4-inch (10-centimeter) microwave signal that is more sensitive to small vegetation, making it effective at monitoring certain types of agriculture and grassland ecosystems.
The spacecraft is the first to carry both L- and S-band radars. The satellite will monitor Earth’s land and ice surfaces twice every 12 days, collecting data using the spacecraft’s drum-shaped antenna reflector, which measures 39 feet (12 meters) wide — the largest NASA has ever sent into space.
The NISAR mission is a partnership between NASA and ISRO spanning years of technical and programmatic collaboration. The successful launch and deployment of NISAR builds on a strong heritage of cooperation between the United States and India in space.
The Space Applications Centre provided the mission’s S-band SAR. The U R Rao Satellite Centre provided the spacecraft bus. The launch vehicle was provided by Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre, and launch services were through Satish Dhawan Space Centre. Key operations, including boom and radar antenna reflector deployment, are now being executed and monitored by the ISRO Telemetry, Tracking and Command Network’s global system of ground stations.
Managed by Caltech in Pasadena, NASA JPL leads the U.S. component of the project. In addition to the L-band SAR, reflector, and boom, JPL also provided the high-rate communication subsystem for science data, a solid-state data recorder, and payload data subsystem. NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, manages the Near Space Network, which receives NISAR’s L-band data.
To learn more about NISAR, visit:
-end-
Liz Vlock
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1600
elizabeth.a.vlock@nasa.gov
Andrew Wang / Jane J. Lee
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
626-379-6874 / 818-354-0307
andrew.wang@jpl.nasa.gov / jane.j.lee@jpl.nasa.gov
