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Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) NASA / Lillian Gipson/Getty Images

THIS PAGE WAS UPDATED ON MARCH 6, 2026

This Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate (ARMD) solicitations page compiles the opportunities to collaborate with NASA’s aeronautical innovators and/or contribute to their research to enable new and improved air transportation systems.

Most opportunities to participate in research are officially announced through the Web-based NASA Solicitation and Proposal Integrated Review and Evaluation System, better known as NSPIRES. You are encouraged to visit the NSPIRES web site, create an account, and sign up for automated email announcements.

Other types of collaborative opportunities, such as those involving Requests for Information or academic research contests, also are included on this page.

This ARMD Solicitations page has four major sections:

• Quick list of open solicitations with key dates listed.
• Current open solicitations with more details and helpful links.
• Closed solicitations in case it is helpful to see other examples of the kind of research opportunities NASA Aeronautics makes available.
• Summary of NASA’s Research Opportunities in Aeronautics (ROA) NASA Research Announcement (NRA) selection process.

Upcoming Key Dates

March 12, 2026
Deadline to respond to Call for Peer Reviewers for NASA Aerospace Skilled Technical Workforce Hubs proposals.

March 23, 2026
NASA Aerospace Skilled Technical Workforce Hubs Proposal deadline.

Currently Open Solicitations High school students visit the Glenn Research Center Manufacturing Facility and learn about careers in the STEM manufacturing field.NASA/Marvin Smith Call for Peer Reviewers of NAS_Hub Proposals

NASA Research and Education Support Services is seeking persons willing to serve as peer reviewers for the NASA Aerospace Skilled Technical Workforce Hubs (NAS_Hub) opportunity.

Information about this opportunity, proposal requirements and evaluation criteria can be found on the NAS_Hub landing page in the NASA Solicitation and Proposal Integrated Review and Evaluation System (NSPIRES).

Peer review is a critical component of the decision-making process for awarding projects. By engaging individuals with different backgrounds, perspectives, and areas of expertise in the review process, your participation will assist in identifying high-quality projects.

The peer review process is completed in two stages. The proposals are first reviewed individually and anonymously online. When the online review period ends, a panel will convene to discuss the proposals and identify those recommended for funding.

• The Online Review Period is scheduled for March 30-April 10, 2026. Proposal narratives are 15 pages and every effort will be made to assign no more than 8 proposals. Non-civil servant online reviewers will receive $75 for each proposal review completed and submitted in NSPIRES prior to the close of the review period.

Note: If selected as an online reviewer, a mandatory training will be held on March 30, 2026.

• The Virtual Panel Review is scheduled to take place between the dates of April 20-29, 2026. Specific days have not yet been selected. Non-civil servant panelists will receive a $200/per day honorarium.

Note: If selected as a Virtual Panelist, a mandatory training will be held on April 16, 2026.

Willingness to serve as a peer review does not guarantee selection. Reviewer selection is based on the subject matter of the proposals received. If selected, you will be notified via email, with detailed instructions on the process.

If you are interested in participating in the peer review process, please click here to complete the NAS_Hub Reviewer Response Form, no later than March 12, 2026

Inquiries regarding this request should be submitted via email to NAS_Hub@nasaprs.com

FY26 NASA Aerospace Skilled Technical Workforce Hubs (NAS_Hub)

This opportunity seeks proposals to establish state or regionally focused Skilled Technical Workforce Hubs (NAS_Hubs) that will serve as strategic centers for developing and sustaining a skilled technical workforce aligned with aerospace industry and NASA mission needs. The NAS_Hub Notice of Funding Opportunity has been released and may be found in NASA’s Solicitation and Proposal Integrated Review and Evaluation System (NSPIRES) on the NAS_Hub landing page.

Key Dates

• Pre-Proposal Webinar: February 18, 2026, 2:00 to 3:00 p.m. ET
• Office Hours Session: March 3, 2026, 2:00 to 3:00 p.m. ET
• Proposal Deadline: March 23, 2026, at 11:59 p.m. ET
• Anticipated Award Notification: June 2026

About the Opportunity

The rapid expansion of the space economy and renewed national priorities in human space exploration have created an urgent demand for a robust skilled technical workforce—individuals in critical science- and engineering-based roles who do not require a bachelor’s degree. To address nationwide shortages and ensure U.S. competitiveness in aerospace and defense, NASA’s Office of STEM Engagement is launching the NASA Aerospace Skilled Technical Workforce Hubs (NAS_Hub) initiative.

Through this notice NASA seeks lead organizations to establish hubs that:

• Collaborate with aerospace employers to align education and training with industry-defined workforce needs.
• Partner with community colleges and high school Career and Technical Education programs to deliver hands-on, industry-aligned learning experiences.
• Coordinate with state or regional workforce development system.
• Build clear and sustainable employment pathways into high-demand aerospace technical careers.

NAS_Hubs will serve as focal points for aligning education, workforce, industry, and government partners to accelerate workforce readiness over a three-year period of performance.

Eligibility

Eligible applicants include:

• State, county, city, township, special district, and tribal governments
• Public and private institutions of higher education
• Nonprofit organizations
• For-profit organizations and small businesses

Proposals must include partnerships with, at a minimum:

• Three aerospace industry collaborators supporting NASA’s work
• Community college career and technical education program
• High school career and technical education program
• State or regional workforce development system
• NASA Center or other NASA facility

Award Information

• Maximum Annual Award: $500,000
• Maximum Total Award: $1,500,000 over three years
• Cost Sharing: Not required

How to Apply

Proposals must be submitted electronically via NSPIRES. Registration in NSPIRES and an active SAM.gov registration are required.

Pre-Proposal Webinar and Technical Assistance

NASA will host an interactive pre-proposal webinar for the NAS_Hub opportunity on Feb. 18, 2026, from 2:00 to 3:00 p.m. ET. This session will provide an in-depth overview of this funding opportunity, including program goals, eligibility requirements, proposal preparation guidance, and submission tips. Proposers will also have the opportunity to receive technical assistance and clarification from NASA staff. Prior to attending a webinar, proposers are strongly encouraged to review the full NAS_Hub notice and to check the NAS_Hub landing page in NSPIRES regularly for updates and additional guidance.

Please note that registration is required for the webinar. Connection details will be provided upon completion of registration. Webinar dates, times, registration links, and connection information will be posted on the NAS_Hub landing page in NSPIRES, which also will feature recordings and presentation materials from the webinar after the event for those unable to attend.

Office Hours Session

March 3, 2026, 2:00 to 3:00 p.m. ET

Last opportunity for questions prior to the proposal deadline. Join the office hours session here.

Contact Information

For technical assistance with NSPIRES
NSPIRES Help Desk available Monday–Friday, 8:00 AM–6:00 PM ET
(202) 479-9376
nspires-help@nasaprs.com 

Program Contact

Maria Arredondo
Next Gen STEM Program Manager
NASA Office of STEM Engagement
Mary W. Jackson NASA Headquarters

Email: NAS_Hub@nasaprs.com

The Project F.I.R.E. team receives their “Future Game-Changer” award during the 2024 Gateways to Blue Skies forum held at NASA’s Ames Research Center in California. Gateways to Blue Skies is one of several Aeronautics Innovation Challenges open to the academic community.NASA / Brandon Torres Aeronautics Innovation Challenges – OPEN

NASA’s nationwide team of aeronautical innovators are committed to giving students of all ages opportunities to solve some of the biggest technical challenges facing the aviation community today. Through NASA-sponsored challenges and competitions, students representing multiple disciplines will put their skills to work by designing and building solutions to real-world problems.

See the Complete List of Challenges Currently Closed Solicitations Advanced Capabilities for Emergency Response Operations RFI – CLOSED

View the full ACERO RFI announcement here.

NASA’s Advanced Capabilities for Emergency Response Operations (ACERO) project used this request for information to identify technologies that addressed current challenges facing the wildland firefighting community. NASA was seeking information on data collection, airborne connectivity and communications solutions, unmanned aircraft systems traffic management, aircraft operations and autonomy, and more. This would support development of a partnership strategy for future collaborative demonstrations.

Interested parties were requested to respond to this notice with an information package submitted via https://nari.arc.nasa.gov/acero-rfi no later than 4 pm ET, October 15, 2023. Submissions were accepted only from U.S. companies.

Advanced Air Mobility Mission RFI – CLOSED

View the full AAM RFI announcement here.

This request for information is being used to gather market research for NASA to make informed decisions regarding potential partnership strategies and future research to enable Advanced Air Mobility (AAM). NASA is seeking information from public, private, and academic organizations to determine technical needs and community interests that may lead to future solicitations regarding AAM research and development.

This particular RFI is just one avenue of multiple planned opportunities for formal feedback on or participation in NASA’s AAM Mission-related efforts to develop these requirements and help enable AAM. 

The respond by date for this RFI closed on Feb. 1, 2025, at 6 p.m. EST.

ROA-2025 NRA Amendment 1 – CLOSED

Advanced Air Vehicles Program Fellowship Opportunities

(View the full ROA-2025 NRA Amendment 1 text here.)

This announcement solicits proposals from accredited U.S. institutions for research training grants to begin the academic year. This Notice of Funding Opportunity is designed to support independently conceived research projects by highly qualified graduate students in disciplines needed to help advance NASA’s mission, thus affording these students the opportunity to directly contribute to advancements in STEM-related areas of study. These opportunities are focused on innovation and the generation of measurable research results that contribute to NASA’s current and future science and technology goals.

Research proposals are sought to address the key challenges summarized in the Elements section at the end of the Amendment 1 document, and which reference NASA’s Hypersonic Technology project.

Reflecting the Fiscal Year 2026 budget changes, the Transformational Tools & Technologies project opportunities originally described in this announcement were cancelled. Proposals citing this project will not be evaluated.

Notices of Intent are not required.

A budget breakdown for each proposal is required, detailing the allocation of the award funds by year. The budget document may adhere to any format or template provided by the applicant’s institution. Two pre-proposal teleconferences for potential proposers will be held and meeting links will be posted on NSPIRES.

Proposals were due by 5 p.m. EDT on June 11, 2025.

NASA Research Opportunities in Aeronautics

Competition for NRA awards is open to both academia and industry.

The current open solicitations for ARMD Research Opportunities are ROA-2024 and ROA-2025.

Here is some general information to know about the NRA process.

• NRA solicitations are released by NASA Headquarters through the Web-based NASA Solicitation and Proposal Integrated Review and Evaluation System (NSPIRES).
• All NRA technical work is defined and managed by project teams within these four programs: Advanced Air Vehicles Program, Airspace Operations and Safety Program, Integrated Aviation Systems Program, and Transformative Aeronautics Concepts Program.
• NRA awards originate from NASA’s Langley Research Center in Virginia, Ames Research Center in California, Glenn Research Center in Cleveland, and Armstrong Flight Research Center in California.
• Competition for NRA awards is full and open.
• Participation is open to all categories of organizations, including educational institutions, industry, and nonprofits.
• Any updates or amendments to an NRA is posted on the appropriate NSPIRES web pages as noted in the Amendments detailed below.
• ARMD sends notifications of NRA updates through the NSPIRES email system. In order to receive these email notifications, you must be a Registered User of NSPIRES. However, note that NASA is not responsible for inadvertently failing to provide notification of a future NRA. Parties are responsible for regularly checking the NSPIRES website for updated NRAs.

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Details Last Updated Mar 06, 2026 EditorJim BankeContactJim Bankejim.banke@nasa.gov Related Terms

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Northrop Grumman’s Cygnus XL cargo craft, carrying over 11,000 pounds of new science and supplies for the Expedition 73 crew, is pictured moments before its capture with the International Space Station’s Canadarm2 robotic arm. Both spacecraft were orbiting 257 miles above Namibia. Cygnus XL is Northrop Grumman’s expanded version of its previous Cygnus cargo craft increasing its payload capacity and pressurized cargo volume.NASA

Media accreditation is open for the next launch to deliver NASA science investigations, supplies, and equipment to the International Space Station. A Northrop Grumman Cygnus XL spacecraft will launch in April to the orbital laboratory on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket for NASA.

The mission is known as NASA’s Northrop Grumman Commercial Resupply Services 24 (NASA’s Northrop Grumman CRS-24). Liftoff is targeted for no earlier than Wednesday, April 8, from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida.

Following launch, astronauts aboard the space station will use the Canadarm2 robotic arm to capture Cygnus and install the spacecraft to the Unity module’s Earth-facing port for cargo unloading. The spacecraft will remain at the space station until October. This is the company’s 24th spacecraft built to deliver supplies to the International Space Station under contract with NASA.

Credentialing to cover prelaunch and launch activities is open to U.S. media. The application deadline for U.S. citizens is 11:59 p.m. EDT, Wednesday, March 18. All accreditation requests must be submitted online at:

https://media.ksc.nasa.gov

Credentialed media will receive a confirmation email following approval. NASA’s media accreditation policy is available online. For questions about accreditation, or to request special logistical support, email: ksc-media-accreditat@mail.nasa.gov. For other questions, please contact NASA’s Kennedy Space Center newsroom at: 321-867-2468.

In addition to food, supplies, and equipment for the crew, Cygnus will deliver research to the space station, including a new module to advance quantum science that could improve computing technology and aid in the search for dark matter and hardware to produce a greater number of therapeutic stem cells for blood diseases and cancer. Cygnus also will carry model organisms to study the gut microbiome and a receiver that could enhance space weather models that protect critical space infrastructure, such as GPS and radar.

Each resupply mission to the station delivers scientific investigations in the areas of biology and biotechnology, Earth and space science, physical sciences, and technology development and demonstrations. Cargo resupply from U.S. companies ensures a national capability to deliver scientific research to the space station, increasing NASA’s ability to conduct new investigations aboard humanity’s laboratory in space.

For more than 25 years, people have lived and worked continuously aboard the International Space Station, advancing scientific knowledge and making research breakthroughs that are not possible on Earth. The station is an important testbed for NASA to understand and overcome the challenges of long-duration spaceflight and to expand commercial opportunities in low Earth orbit. As commercial companies concentrate on providing human space transportation services and destinations as part of a strong low Earth orbit economy, NASA is focusing its resources on deep space missions to the Moon as part of the Artemis program to build on our foundation for the first crewed missions to Mars.

Learn more about International Space Station research and operations at:

https://www.nasa.gov/station

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Josh Finch / Jimi Russell
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1100
joshua.a.finch@nasa.gov / james.j.russell@nasa.gov

Steven Siceloff
Kennedy Space Center, Fla.
321-876-2468
steven.p.siceloff@nasa.gov

Sandra Jones / Leah Cheshier
Johnson Space Center, Houston
281-483-5111
sandra.p.jones@nasa.gov / leah.d.cheshier@nasa.gov

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Details Last Updated Mar 06, 2026 LocationNASA Headquarters Related Terms

• Northrop Grumman Commercial Resupply
• Commercial Resupply
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The Italian Space Agency’s LICIACube traveled alongside NASA’s DART to capture the spacecraft’s collision with Dimorphos. In this LICIACube image, taken moments after impact on Sept. 26, 2022, rocky debris can be seen fanning out from the smaller asteroid below its larger binary partner, Didymos.ASI/NASA This image of asteroids Didymos, left, and Dimorphos was captured by NASA’s DART mission a few seconds before the spacecraft smashed into Dimorphos on Sept. 26, 2022. The impact on the smaller asteroid had a measurable effect on the orbit of its larger partner.NASA/Johns Hopkins APL

New research reveals that when NASA’s DART (Double Asteroid Redirection Test) spacecraft intentionally impacted the asteroid moonlet Dimorphos in September 2022, it didn’t just change the motion of Dimorphos around its larger companion, Didymos; the crash also shifted the orbit of both asteroids around the Sun. Linked together by gravity, Didymos and Dimorphos orbit each other around a shared center of mass in a configuration known as a binary system, so changes to one asteroid affect the other.

As detailed in a study published on Friday in the journal Science Advances, observations of the pair’s motion revealed that the 770-day orbital period around the Sun changed by a fraction of a second after the DART spacecraft’s impact on Dimorphos. That change marks the first time a human-made object has measurably altered the path of a celestial body around the Sun.

The Hubble Space Telescope observed two tails of dust ejected from the Didymos-Dimorphos asteroid system several days after NASA’s DART spacecraft impacted the smaller asteroid.NASA, ESA, Jian-Yang Li (PSI), Joe Depasquale (STScI)

“This is a tiny change to the orbit, but given enough time, even a tiny change can grow to a significant deflection,” said Thomas Statler, lead scientist for solar system small bodies at NASA Headquarters in Washington. “The team’s amazingly precise measurement again validates kinetic impact as a technique for defending Earth against asteroid hazards and shows how a binary asteroid might be deflected by impacting just one member of the pair.”

High impact

When DART struck Dimorphos, the impact blasted a huge cloud of rocky debris into space, altering the shape of the asteroid, which measures 560 feet (170 meters) wide. Because the debris carried its own momentum away from the asteroid, it gave Dimorphos an explosive thrust — what scientists call the momentum enhancement factor. More debris being kicked out means more oomph. According to the new research, the momentum enhancement factor for DART’s impact was about two, meaning that the debris loss doubled the punch created by the spacecraft alone.

Earlier research showed that the smaller asteroid’s 12-hour orbital period around the nearly half-mile-wide (805-meter-wide) Didymos shortened by 33 minutes. The new study shows the impact ejected so much material from the binary system that it also changed the binary’s orbital period around the Sun by 0.15 seconds.

“The change in the binary system’s orbital speed was about 11.7 microns per second, or 1.7 inches per hour,” said Rahil Makadia, the study’s lead author at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. “Over time, such a small change in an asteroid’s motion can make the difference between a hazardous object hitting or missing our planet.”

Although Didymos was not on an impact trajectory with Earth and it was impossible for the DART mission to put it on one, that change in orbital speed underscores the role spacecraft — aka kinetic impactors in this context — could play if a potentially hazardous asteroid is found to be on a collision course in the future. The key is detecting near-Earth objects far enough in advance to send a kinetic impactor.

To that end, NASA is building the Near-Earth Object (NEO) Surveyor mission. Managed by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California, this next-generation space survey telescope is the first to be built for planetary defense. The mission will seek out some of the hardest-to-find near-Earth objects, such as dark asteroids and comets that don’t reflect much visible light.

How they did it

To prove DART had a detectable influence on both asteroids — not just on the smaller Dimorphos — the researchers needed to measure Didymos’ orbit around the Sun to exquisite precision. So, in addition to making radar and other ground-based observations of the asteroid, they tracked stellar occultations, which occur when the asteroid passes exactly in front of a star, causing the pinpoint of light to blink out for a fraction of a second. This technique provides extremely precise measurements of the asteroid’s speed, shape, and position.

Measuring stellar occultations is challenging: Astronomers have to be in the right place at the right time with several observing stations, sometimes miles apart, to track the predicted path of the asteroid in front of a specific star. The team relied on volunteer astronomers around the globe who recorded 22 stellar occultations between October 2022 and March 2025.

“When combined with years of existing ground-based observations, these stellar occultation observations became key in helping us calculate how DART had changed Didymos’ orbit,” said study co-lead Steve Chesley, a senior research scientist at JPL. “This work is highly weather dependent and often requires travel to remote regions with no guarantee of success. This result would not have been possible without the dedication of dozens of volunteer occultation observers around the world.”

Studying changes in Didymos’ motion also helped the researchers calculate the densities of both asteroids. Dimorphos is slightly less dense than previously thought, supporting the theory that it formed from rocky debris shed by a rapidly spinning Didymos. This loose material eventually clumped together to form Dimorphos, a “rubble pile” asteroid.

More about DART

The DART spacecraft was designed, built, and operated by the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory in Laurel, Maryland, for NASA’s Planetary Defense Coordination Office, which oversees the agency’s ongoing efforts in planetary defense. It was humanity’s first mission to intentionally move a celestial object.

For more information about the DART mission visit:

https://science.nasa.gov/mission/dart/

Media Contacts

Ian J. O’Neill
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
818-354-2649
ian.j.oneill@jpl.nasa.gov

Karen Fox / Molly Wasser
NASA Headquarters, Washington
240-285-5155 / 240-419-1732
karen.c.fox@nasa.gov / molly.l.wasser@nasa.gov

2025-015

Explore More 1 min read Near-Earth Asteroids as of December 2025

Each month, NASA’s Planetary Defense Coordination Office releases a monthly update featuring the most recent…

Article 3 months ago 8 min read Sugars, ‘Gum,’ Stardust Found in NASA’s Asteroid Bennu Samples Article 3 months ago 3 min read Regions on Asteroid Explored by NASA’s Lucy Mission Get Official Names

The IAU (International Astronomical Union), a global naming authority for celestial objects, has approved official…

Article 6 months ago Keep Exploring Discover More Topics From NASA Planetary Defense – DART

NASA’s Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART), built and managed by the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) for NASA’s Planetary…

Asteroids

Introduction Asteroids, sometimes called minor planets, are rocky, airless remnants left over from the early formation of our solar system…

Didymos & Dimorphos

Overview Asteroid Didymos and its small moonlet Dimorphos make up what’s called a binary asteroid system – meaning the small…

NEO Surveyor

Overview Building on the success of NASA’s NEOWISE space telescope, the agency’s NEO Surveyor will be the first spacecraft built…

As NASA invites the public to follow the Artemis II mission as a crew of four astronauts venture around the Moon inside the agency’s Orion spacecraft, people around the world can pinpoint Orion during its journey using the Artemis Real-time Orbit Website (AROW).

During the approximately 10-day mission, NASA will test how the spacecraft’s systems operate as designed with crew aboard in the deep space environment. Using AROW, anyone with internet access can track where Orion and the crew are, including their distance from Earth, distance from the Moon, mission duration, and more. Access to AROW is available on:

• NASA’s website (www.nasa.gov/trackartemis)
• The NASA app (www.nasa.gov/nasa-app)

Using AROW, the public can visualize data that is collected by sensors on Orion and then sent to the Mission Control Center at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston during its flight. It will provide constant information using this real-time data beginning about one minute after liftoff through Orion’s atmospheric reentry to Earth at the end of the mission.

Online, users can follow AROW to see where Orion and the Artemis II crew are in relation to the Earth and the Moon and follow Orion’s path during the mission.Credit: NASA

Online, users can follow AROW to see where Orion and the crew are in relation to the Earth and the Moon and follow Orion’s path during the mission. Users can view key mission milestones and characteristics on the Moon, including information about landing sites from the Apollo program.

The mobile app includes similar features to the website, with the addition of augmented reality tracker. After a brief calibration sequence, on-screen indicators will direct users where to move their phone to see where Orion currently is relative to their position on Earth. Mobile app tracking will be available once Orion separates from the rocket’s upper stage, approximately three hours into the mission.

The AROW mobile app includes similar features to the website, with the addition of augmented reality tracker that will direct users where to move their phone to see where Orion currently is relative to their position on Earth.Credit: NASA

State vectors, or data that describes precisely where Orion is located and how it moves, also will be provided by AROW, following a proximity operations demonstration to evaluate the manual handling qualities of Orion. 

These vectors can be used for data lovers, artists, and creatives to make their own tracking app or data visualization. Also available for download will be trajectory data from the flight, called an ephemeris, found at the bottom of this page, after the mission begins. The ephemeris data can be used to track Orion with your own spaceflight software application or telescope, or to create projects such as a physics model, animation, visualization, or tracking application.

Artemis II, the agency’s first crewed mission in the Artemis campaign, is a key step in NASA’s path toward establishing a long-term presence at the Moon and confirming the systems needed to support future lunar surface exploration and paving the way for the first crewed mission to Mars.

To learn more about NASA’s Artemis campaign, visit:

https://www.nasa.gov/artemis

Download Artemis II ephemeris data here after the mission begins. Explore More 3 min read I Am Artemis: Paul Boehm Article 2 days ago 6 min read La NASA refuerza Artemis: añade una misión y perfecciona su arquitectura general Article 3 days ago 4 min read NASA Strengthens Artemis: Adds Mission, Refines Overall Architecture  Article 3 days ago Keep Exploring Discover More Topics From NASA

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NASA astronaut Jessica Meir trims the hair of fellow NASA astronaut Jack Hathaway in this March 1, 2026, image. Meir uses an electric razor attached to a vacuum that collects loose clippings to keep the station’s atmosphere clean in microgravity. Crew on the International Space Station also use weekends to complete housekeeping tasks.

Learn more about life on the International Space Station.

Image credit: NASA/Chris Williams

Northrop Grumman’s Cygnus XL cargo spacecraft, loaded with more than 11,000 pounds of science and supplies for Expedition 73, is seen grasped by the International Space Station’s Canadarm2 after its capture on Sept. 18, 2025, as both spacecraft orbited 257 miles above Tanzania.Credit: NASA

After delivering more than 11,000 pounds of supplies, science investigations, hardware, and other cargo to the International Space Station for NASA and its international partners, the Cygnus XL spacecraft supporting Northrop Grumman’s 23rd Commercial Resupply Services mission is scheduled to depart the orbiting laboratory Thursday, March 12.

Watch NASA’s live coverage of undocking and departure beginning at 6:45 a.m. EDT on NASA+, Amazon Prime, and the agency’s YouTube channel. Learn how to watch NASA content through a variety of online platforms, including social media.

Flight controllers on the ground will send commands for the space station’s Canadarm2 robotic arm to detach the Cygnus XL spacecraft from the Unity module’s Earth‑facing port and maneuver it into position for release at 7 a.m. ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Sophie Adenot will monitor Cygnus’ systems as it departs.

Cygnus XL will be commanded to deorbit on Saturday, March 14, to dispose of several thousand pounds of trash during its reentry into Earth’s atmosphere, where it will harmlessly burn up.

The Northrop Grumman spacecraft launched in September 2025 atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. This mission is the first flight of the larger, more cargo-capable version of the solar-powered spacecraft.

Learn more about this NASA commercial resupply mission at:

https://www.nasa.gov/mission/nasas-northrop-grumman-crs-23/

-end-

Josh Finch / Jimi Russell
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1100
joshua.a.finch@nasa.gov / james.j.russell@nasa.gov

Sandra Jones
Johnson Space Center, Houston
281-483-5111
sandra.p.jones@nasa.gov

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Details Last Updated Mar 06, 2026 LocationNASA Headquarters Related Terms

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Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) Computer simulation showing how aircraft and other vehicles of all types can safely navigate through the National Air Space.NASA / Kyle Jenkins

The Air Traffic Management and Safety (ATMS) project defines, validates, and transfers advanced requirements and technologies to shift air traffic management from tactical to strategic. 

This change enables efficient, productive, and resilient operations while reducing safety assurance and compliance costs for highly automated systems.  

ATMS researches and develops technologies that safely integrate new air vehicles with traditional aviation operations to meet growing demand. Through close collaboration with the FAA, ATMS delivers actionable automation solutions, advanced operational concepts, and proactive safety management frameworks that accelerate airspace modernization. 

ATMS strengthens system resilience and expands human capacity by reducing cognitive workload, minimizing airline delays, and lowering operating costs while enhancing terminal safety and optimizing operational performance. 

ATMS tackles barriers in the increasingly complex and diverse airspace by focusing its research on three areas: 

Strategic Harmonization for Integrated Flows and Trajectories

The National Airspace System (NAS) is evolving toward greater complexity and demand. Current tactical approaches limit scalability, efficiency, and predictability. ATMS research represents a paradigm change—from reactive, tactical decision-making to proactive, strategic management of traffic flows and trajectories. 

Safely Enable Routine Autonomous Operations 

Advancements in automation can reduce human workload, mitigate hazards, and enable new entrants across advanced air mobility. Critical gaps—in hazard perception and avoidance, seamless ATC integration, and flight procedures—still pose safety and operational risks. Without ATMS’ targeted research, autonomous taxi, approach, and landing will remain fragmented and heavily human-dependent, limiting efficiency and innovation. 

Assurance Methods for Aircraft Automation

The aviation community is converging on assurance approaches that balance trust, evidence, and scalability. To ensure innovation and adoption of key automation capabilities, ATMS helps to define explicit safety objectives and meaningful notions of traceability across development and operations. Scaled adoption requires assurance processes that integrate design and operational assurance, so that requirements flow down to models, scenarios, analysis, test cases and metrics—and that these generate traceable, reusable evidence and operational outcomes. 

ATMS delivers practical solutions that benefit every stakeholder in the aviation ecosystem—from air traffic controllers and pilots to passengers and operators—ensuring America ‘s skies remain the safest and most efficient in the world.  

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Details Last Updated Mar 05, 2026 EditorJim BankeContactMegan Ritter Related Terms

• Air Traffic Management and Safety

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Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) NASA / Kyle Jenkins

The Advanced Air Mobility Pathfinders (AAMP) project accelerates advanced air mobility technologies for wildfire response and urban transportation through real-world demonstrations and strategic partnerships.

AAMP researches emerging technologies, establishes aircraft strategic deconfliction frameworks, and validates solutions in metropolitan areas to enable larger-scale urban air mobility.

The project enhances Unmanned Aircraft Systems capabilities for wildfire mitigation and disaster response by transferring Portable Airspace Management System technologies to enable routine, safe, and efficient Beyond Visual Line of Sight operations.

AAMP delivers scalable technologies, integration standards, and coordination tools that drive industry adoption and improve multi-agency collaboration for emergency response. 

More AAMP details

The project is dedicated to demonstrating and validating the safe and practical integration of advanced air mobility technologies. We focus on developing, evaluating, and transferring performance requirements for:  

Portable Airspace Management System — To enable safe, scalable, and continuous (24/7) aerial operations, especially in challenging degraded visual environments. 

Airspace Service Providers — Managing medium-density advanced air mobility operations, aligning with the AAM National Strategy.  

 Our goal is to ensure these systems are ready for real-world use in emergency operations as well as urban transportation. AAMP actively collaborates with government agencies, academia, and industry stakeholders. These partnerships are vital for validating the safe and effective performance of these new technologies. 

This, in turn, enables safe, practical, and resilient urban air mobility operations. AAMP bridges the gap between research and implementation, making Advanced Air Mobility a trusted solution for everyday transportation and life-saving missions across the United States.  

Facebook logo @NASA@NASAaero@NASAes @NASA@NASAaero@NASA_es Instagram logo @NASA@NASAaero@NASA_es Linkedin logo @NASA Explore More 2 min read NASA Demonstrates Safer Skies for Future Urban Air Travel  Article 3 months ago 4 min read NASA Tests 5G-Based Aviation Network to Boost Air Taxi Connectivity Article 8 months ago 3 min read NASA Intern Took Career from Car Engines to Cockpits Article 9 months ago Keep Exploring Discover More Topics From NASA

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Details Last Updated Mar 05, 2026 EditorJim BankeContactMegan Ritter Related Terms

• Air Mobility Pathfinders project

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Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) NASA TACP Benefits

Foundation for disruptive technologies: Placing emphasis on transformative concepts lays the groundwork for revolutionary advancements in aviation.

Accelerated innovation in aerospace: Developing next-generation engineering methodologies and digital tools enables faster, more efficient design, testing, and certification processes.

Strong collaborative ecosystem: TACP fosters partnerships among NASA, academia, industry, and government, creating a powerful network for innovation. These collaborations lead to shared knowledge and joint research, accelerating breakthroughs.

Workforce development and leadership: Engaging students and academic institutions in cutting-edge research inspires and prepares the next generation of aeronautics experts. Continuous investment in talent and emerging technologies helps keep the U.S. a global leader in aviation.

TACP Projects

Transformational Tools and Technologies (TTT)

University Innovation (UI)

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Details Last Updated Mar 06, 2026 EditorLillian GipsonContactJim Bankejim.banke@nasa.gov Related Terms

• Transformative Aeronautics Concepts Program

A Rocket Lab HASTE rocket launches into the night sky from Launch Complex 2 at NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia on Feb. 27, 2026NASA/Danielle Johnson

NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility supported a Rocket Lab HASTE suborbital launch from the company’s Launch Complex 2 in Virginia on Feb. 27, 2026. The mission, called Cassowary Vex, supported a flight of a hypersonic test platform for the Department of War’s Defense Innovation Unit. 

The NASA Wallops launch range supported by providing services such as tracking, telemetry, and range safety to ensure a safe and successful mission. NASA Wallops plays a key role in enabling national security missions at its launch range for commercial partners and other government agencies. 

Image Credit: NASA/ Danielle Johnson

A February 27, 2026 nighttime launch of a Rocket Lab HASTE rocket from NASA’s Wallops Island.NASA/Danielle Johnson

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Details Last Updated Mar 05, 2026 Related Terms

• Goddard Space Flight Center
• Wallops Flight Facility

NASA/Michael DeMocker

The Moon appears red during a total lunar eclipse over New Orleans, home of NASA’s Michoud Assembly Facility, on March 3, 2026. This “blood moon” occurs during a total lunar eclipse, as Earth lines up between the Moon and the Sun. When this happens, the only light that reaches the Moon’s surface is from the edges of Earth’s atmosphere. The air molecules from Earth’s atmosphere scatter out most of the blue light. The remaining light reflects onto the Moon’s surface with a red glow, making the Moon appear red in the night sky. This is the same effect that turns the sky pink, orange, and red at sunrise and sunset.

Image credit: NASA/Michael DeMocker

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Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) Artist concept of a high-speed point-to-point vehicle.NASA Langley What We do

The High-Speed Flight (HSF) project develops technologies that make high-speed, airbreathing, commercial flight possible from Mach 1 to Mach 5 and above.

HSF creates tools, technologies, and knowledge that will help eliminate today’s technical barriers to practical supersonic flight, most notably sonic boom. The project supports the X-59 quiet supersonic vehicle testing by gathering acoustic data and validating tools that predict in-flight sonic booms.

HSF conducts fundamental and applied research that explores key challenges in reusable, hypersonic flight technology.

Future Applications

The project evaluates the potential for future commercial hypersonic vehicles, including reusable access to space and commercial point-to-point missions.

Unique Hypersonic Facilities and Expertise

NASA maintains unique facilities, laboratories, and subject matter experts who investigate fundamental and applied research areas to solve the challenges of hypersonic flight. The High-Speed Flight project coordinates closely with partners in industry, academia, and other government agencies to leverage relevant data sets to validate computational models. These partners also utilize NASA expertise, facilities, and computational tools. Partnerships are critical to advancing the state of the art in hypersonic flight.

Read More about the High-Speed Flight Project

Contact the High-Speed Flight Project by email at larc-htp-inquiries@mail.nasa.gov

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Details Last Updated Mar 04, 2026 EditorJim BankeContactShannon Eichornshannon.eichorn@nasa.gov Related Terms

• High-Speed Flight

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Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) NASA

NASA’s Advanced Air Vehicles Program (AAVP) studies, evaluates, and develops technologies and capabilities for new aircraft systems and explores far-future concepts for revolutionary air travel improvements. AAVP develops technologies for all flight regimes from hover to hypersonic to enable safe, new aircraft that are faster, quieter, and more fuel efficient.

AAVP develops a broad range of technologies that maintain U.S. leadership in aerospace, benefitting the nation’s economy and quality of life. AAVP’s research primes the technology pipeline, bolstering U.S. competitiveness.

For subsonic transport aircraft, AAVP accelerates development of key technologies to ensure they will be ready by the late 2020s to transition into U.S. industry’s next-generation single-aisle transport aircraft. AAVP also explores high-risk, high-payoff concepts for future generations of aircraft. The program engages with partners from industry, academia, and other government agencies to maintain a broad perspective on technology solutions to aviation’s challenges, to pursue mutually beneficial collaborations, and to leverage opportunities for effective technology transition.

AAVP Projects

High Speed Flight (HSF)

Hi-Rate Composite Aircraft Manufacturing (HiCAM)

Subsonic Vehicles Technologies and Tools (SVTT)

Legacy AAVP Projects

Advanced Composites (ACP)

Advanced Air Transport Technology (AATT)

Commercial Supersonic Technology (CST)

Hybrid Thermally Efficient Core (HyTEC)

Hypersonic Technology (HT)

Revolutionary Vertical Lift Technology (RVLT)

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Details Last Updated Mar 05, 2026 EditorJim BankeContactShannon Eichornshannon.eichorn@nasa.gov Related Terms

• Advanced Air Vehicles Program

X-ray: NASA/CXC/John Hopkins Univ./C.M. Lisse et al.; Infrared: NASA/ESA/STIS; Image Processing: NASA/CXC/SAO/N. Wolk

For the first time, a young, Sun-like star has been caught red-handed blowing bubbles in the galaxy, by astronomers using NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory.

The bubble – called an “astrosphere” – completely surrounds the juvenile star in this image released on Feb. 23, 2026. Winds from the star’s surface are blowing up the bubble and filling it with hot gas as it expands into much cooler galactic gas and dust surrounding the star. The Sun has a similar bubble around it, which scientists call the heliosphere, created by the solar wind. It extends far beyond the planets in our solar system and protects Earth from cosmic radiation.

This is the first image of an astrosphere astronomers have obtained around a star similar to the Sun. It shows slightly extended emission, rather than a single point of light as seen for other such stars.

Read more about this discovery.

Text credit: Lee Mohon

Image credit: X-ray: NASA/CXC/John Hopkins Univ./C.M. Lisse et al.; Infrared: NASA/ESA/STIS; Image Processing: NASA/CXC/SAO/N. Wolk

3 Min Read I Am Artemis: Paul Boehm Paul Boehm, Orion crew support and thermal systems functional area manager, stands in the Orion Life Support Integration Facility (OLIF) at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston. Credits: NASA/Rad Sinyak

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As the Artemis II astronauts fly around the Moon, they’ll rely on systems inside the Orion spacecraft to live, work, and keep them safe during their mission. At NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, Paul Boehm, crew support and thermal systems functional area manager in the Orion Crew and Service Module Office, leads this work.

Boehm oversees life support systems, flight equipment, and Orion Crew Survival System suits worn during launch and re-entry. Developed, designed, and built by Boehm’s team, these systems are set to fly for the first time with crew aboard Orion on Artemis II.

Sustaining the crew in the harsh environment of deep space is no simple task, especially when it comes to a complex system like the environmental control and life support system (ECLSS).

Think about things that you do every day for 24 hours — those are the things the ECLSS has to support. We have to support all the crew’s human bodily functions, from breathing, to eating, going to bathroom, and temperature control.

Paul Boehm

Orion Crew Support and Thermal Systems Functional Area Manager

Developing these systems for Orion’s deep space missions to the Moon poses special challenges, such as mass and volume requirements faced when launching heavy spacecraft, and a need for systems that operate reliably without resupply.

“Orion’s ECLSS is unique for Artemis missions because we’re going into deep space,” said Boehm. “It’s a lot longer of a trip that you cannot return quickly from, like a mission on the International Space Station, which is only a couple hours away. Therefore, we try to make a lot of the life support systems regenerative, so you don’t have to carry a lot of consumables, and we also try to make them simpler.”

Paul Boehm, Orion crew support and thermal systems functional area manager, stands in the Orion Life Support Integration Facility (OLIF) at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston. Teams have conducted integrated testing of Orion’s environmental control and life support system (ECLSS) and the Orion Crew Survival System Suit (OCSS) in the OLIF to validate the performance of these systems in preparation for the crewed Artemis II mission.NASA/Rad Sinyak

The system also needs hardware to handle a range of variables that may come its way during the mission, according to Boehm.

“You’re dealing with fluids, you’re dealing with electrical, electronic, and electromechanical components — and you’re also dealing with the human variable of different metabolic situations. Everybody’s different. The ECLSS takes all that into account.”

It’s a challenge that Boehm welcomes and has worked toward throughout his career at NASA. Since starting at NASA Johnson 37 years ago, he has served in disciplines that work directly with crew members, including supporting the astronaut office, extravehicular activities for the space shuttle and space station, and the Orion Program since 2011.

I've always loved being able to be with systems that work with the crew.

Paul Boehm

Orion Crew Support and Thermal Systems Functional Area Manager

“And so, when I had the opportunity to work on Orion, ECLSS, and crew systems, I said that’s where I want to go, because that way I’ll still be able to help and be directly involved with supporting the crew,” Boehm said. “I’ve thoroughly enjoyed that.”

As NASA prepares to send crew members around the Moon on Artemis II, seeing Orion and its systems carry the crew will be the marker of a career that’s contributed to moving the future of human spaceflight forward.

“I think that’s why everybody is here working toward this mission — we know it’s for the betterment of humanity,” Boehm said. “Moving things forward for the next generation is something that we all take to heart, and that’s what we’re trying to really do here. We are taking the first step in making history with sending the crew back to the Moon.”

About the AuthorErika Peters

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Details Last Updated Mar 04, 2026 Related Terms

• I Am Artemis
• Artemis 2
• Orion Multi-Purpose Crew Vehicle
• Orion Program

Explore More 6 min read La NASA refuerza Artemis: añade una misión y perfecciona su arquitectura general Article 2 days ago 4 min read NASA Strengthens Artemis: Adds Mission, Refines Overall Architecture  Article 2 days ago 4 min read Artemis II: What’s on the Menu? Article 2 days ago Keep Exploring Discover More Topics From NASA

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The U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) and NASA announced NASA Force on Wednesday, a dedicated talent track within the US Tech Force initiative designed to recruit and deploy the nation’s top engineers and technologists to support America’s space program.

NASA Force will identify and place high-impact technical talent into mission-critical roles supporting NASA’s exploration, research, and advanced technology priorities, ensuring the agency has the cutting-edge expertise needed to maintain U.S. leadership in space.

Tech Force, led by OPM, was established to recruit elite technical professionals into federal service, embed them at partner agencies to modernize systems, accelerate innovation, and strengthen mission delivery. NASA Force represents a focused expansion of that effort, tailored to the unique technical demands of space exploration and aerospace research.

“America’s leadership in space depends on extraordinary talent,” said NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman. “NASA Force will help us attract the next generation of innovators and technical experts who are ready to solve the toughest challenges in exploration, science, and aerospace technology. This partnership strengthens our workforce and helps ensure the United States remains the global leader in space.”

“NASA represents the pinnacle of American innovation,” said OPM Director Scott Kupor. “Through NASA Force, we are ensuring the world’s premier space agency has access to the very best engineers and technologists in the country. If you want to work on the most consequential technical challenges anywhere in the world, this is your call to serve.”

The launch of NASA Force builds on the growing momentum of the US Tech Force initiative, which has attracted strong interest from early- and mid-career technologists eager to apply their skills to public service.

Applications will be live soon and those interested are encouraged to follow @USTechForce on X for updates.

To learn more about NASA’s mission, visit:

https://www.nasa.gov

-end-

Bethany Stevens / Cheryl Warner 
Headquarters, Washington 
202-358-1600 
bethany.c.stevens@nasa.gov / cheryl.m.warner@nasa.gov  

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Details Last Updated Mar 04, 2026 LocationNASA Headquarters Related Terms

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Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) Sunlight glints off one of the solar panels of the SWOT satellite in this artist’s concept. The antennas of the mission’s key instrument — the Ka-band Radar Interferometer (KaRIn) — collect data along a swath 30 miles (50 kilometers) wide on either side of the satellite.CNES

In a first, a space mission led by NASA and France has tracked Earth’s rivers swelling and shrinking from month to month over the course of a year and found significantly less of a swing than previous model-based estimates. A record drought in the Amazon likely influenced the tally made by the Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT) satellite. The findings also reveal new details about the underwater topography of the world’s river channels.

Launched in 2022, SWOT is a collaboration between NASA and the French space agency CNES (Centre National d’Études Spatiales). It is the first satellite capable of surveying not only the ocean, but also nearly all the world’s lakes and rivers with ultraprecision. While SWOT does not measure the absolute volume of rivers, it can track their width, surface height, and slope changing over time.

Traditionally, hydrologists have relied on models to calculate river storage changes, or they multiplied altimeter estimates of height by optical or radar estimates of width. In contrast, SWOT measures both dimensions, height and width, at the same time using its sensitive Ka-band Radar Interferometer (KaRIn) instrument to bounce microwaves off the water’s surface and time how long the signal takes to return. The new study, published Wednesday in Nature, analyzed nearly 1.6 million such observations.

The analysis paints a picture of some 127,000 river segments rising and falling between October 2023 and September 2024. In aggregate, river volumes varied by almost 83 trillion gallons (313 cubic kilometers). That’s about 28% less of a swing than the lowest previous estimates, a result likely skewed by extremely dry conditions during that period in the Amazon, home to Earth’s largest river by volume.

Earth’s rivers pulse like capilleries in this visualization using data from the SWOT mission. The world tour zooms in on iconic rivers including the Amazon, which in the span of a year gained and lost enough water to fill 68 million Olympic-size swimming pools.
NASA’s Scientific Visualization Studio New way to map river channels 

Even gripped by drought, the Amazon River varied more than any other during the year, gaining and losing more than 45 trillion gallons (172 cubic kilometers) — enough to cover the entire state of California in more than a foot of water.

More surprisingly, the world’s longest river, the Nile, varied less than expected, with volumes changing by only 2.2 trillion gallons (8.5 cubic kilometers). Possible explanations include upstream damming and severe drought, along with challenges that come with learning to work with a new satellite instrument.

Cedric David, who leads the SWOT research team that conducted the work at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California, said the findings are a first look and the role of large floodplain dynamics remain to be fully determined. Still, such an accounting has been elusive until now. River gauges are sparse in areas, and some channels too remote for boat and ground surveys. Longstanding questions, such as how fast do rivers flow and how much rainwater and snowmelt runs into them, have added to the uncertainty.

“We’re starting to untangle some of the really tough questions SWOT was built for,” David said. “This is just the beginning.”

Tracking rivers as they swell and shrink is also helping scientists visualize something that can be challenging to survey in person: the underlying shape of riverbanks and beds. Such contours influence everything from shipping to flooding but have remained largely unmapped in many places, noted Arnaud Cerbelaud, a postdoctoral research fellow at JPL who co-led the study.

The new SWOT data provides a window into river channels ranging from concave to convex, steep to gentle, and stable to highly variable. In the Amazon, Mississippi, Orinoco, Yangtze, Ganges, Mekong and Yenisei rivers, for example, observed water levels vary by more than 32 feet (10 meters) from peak to trough.

“The implications go far beyond hydrology and will help us understand how water moves through the global Earth system,” Cerbelaud said.

More about SWOT

Launched in December 2022 from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California, SWOT is now in its operations phase, collecting data that will be used for research and other purposes.

The SWOT satellite was jointly developed by NASA and CNES, with contributions from the CSA (Canadian Space Agency), and the UK Space Agency. NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, managed for the agency by Caltech in Pasadena, California, leads the U.S. component of the project. For the flight system payload, NASA provided the KaRIn instrument, a GPS science receiver, a laser retroreflector, a two-beam microwave radiometer, and NASA instrument operations. NASA partners at CNES provided the Doppler Orbitography and Radioposition Integrated by Satellite system, the dual frequency Poseidon altimeter (developed by Thales Alenia Space), the KaRIn radio-frequency subsystem (together with Thales Alenia Space and with support from the UK Space Agency), the satellite platform, and ground operations. The KaRIn high-power transmitter assembly was provided by CSA. NASA provided the launch vehicle and the agency’s Launch Services Program, based at Kennedy Space Center in Florida, managed the associated launch services.

To learn more about SWOT, visit:

https://swot.jpl.nasa.gov

SWOT Spots Planet-Rumbling Tsunami in Greenland Next-Generation Water Satellite Maps Seafloor From Space How SWOT Can Improve Flood Prediction

News Media Contacts

Andrew Wang / Andrew Good 
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
626-379-6874 / 818-393-2433
andrew.wang@jpl.nasa.gov / andrew.c.good@jpl.nasa.gov 

Written by Sally Younger 

2026-014

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Details Last Updated Mar 04, 2026 Related Terms

• Earth
• Earth Science
• Jet Propulsion Laboratory
• SWOT (Surface Water and Ocean Topography)
• Water on Earth

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