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NSTA Hyperwall Schedule
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NSTA Hyperwall ScheduleNational Science Teaching Association (NSTA) Annual Conference, March 26-29, 2025
Join NASA in the Exhibit Hall (Booth #779) for Hyperwall Storytelling by NASA experts. Full Hyperwall Agenda below.
THURSDAY, MARCH 27
- 11:00 – 11:15 AM —— Do NASA Science in Your Classroom —— Marc Kuchner
- 11:15 – 11:30 AM —— My NASA Data Satellite Data for All —— Angie Rizzi
- 11:30 – 11:45 AM —— Lunar and Meteorite Sample Disk Program —— Suzanne Foxworth
- 11:45 – 12:00 PM —— DIY Digital Tools: Creating Smart Assets —— Jessica Swann
- 1:00 – 1:15 PM —— DIY: Immersive Virtual Field Trips —— Jessica Swann
- 1:15 – 1:30 PM —— Kahoot- Weather Terms —— Erin McKinley
- 1:30 – 1:45 PM —— Digital Plug and Play Lessons for Your Middle or High School Classroom —— Jessica Swann
- 1:45 – 2:00 PM —— Soar to New Heights with the NASA TechRise Student Challenge —— Marisa Cleghorn
- 2:00 – 2:15 PM —— GLOBE Clouds: Connecting Satellite Data to Your Classroom —— Jessica Taylor
- 2:15 – 2:30 PM —— Step Up to Remote Sensing with STELLA (Science and Technology Education for Land/Life Assessment) —— Mike Taylor
- 2:30 – 2:45 PM —— My NASA Data’s New Earth System Data Explorer —— Angie Rizzi
- 2:45 – 3:00 PM —— Apollo to Artemis: Sample Collection and Curation —— Kim Willis
- 3:30 – 3:45 PM —— Interactive Ways for Learners to Explore NASA Content & Assets —— Astro Materials Docent
- 4:00 – 4:15 PM —— Soar to New Heights with the NASA TechRise Student Challenge —— Marisa Cleghorn
- 4:15 – 4:30 PM —— Lunar and Meteorite Sample Disk Program —— Suzanne Foxworth
- 4:30 – 4:45 PM —— Step Up to Remote Sensing with STELLA (Science and Technology Education for Land/Life Assessment) —— Mike Taylor
FRIDAY, MARCH 28
- 9:15 – 9:30 AM —— Soar to New Heights with the NASA TechRise Student Challenge —— Marisa Cleghorn
- 9:45 – 10:00 AM —— Interactive Ways for Learners to Explore NASA Content & Assets —— Astro Materials Docent
- 10:00 – 10:15 AM —— Digital Plug and Play Lessons for Your Middle or High School Classroom —— Jessica Swann
- 10:15 – 10:30 AM —— GLOBE Clouds: Connecting Satellite Data to Your Classroom —— Jessica Taylor
- 10:30 – 10:45 AM —— Do NASA Science in Your Classroom —— Marc Kuchner
- 10:45 – 11:00 AM —— DIY: Immersive Virtual Field Trips —— Jessica Swann
- 11:00 – 11:15 AM —— Apollo to Artemis: Sample Collection and Curation —— Kim Willis
- 11:15 – 11:30 AM —— My NASA Data’s New Earth System Data Explorer —— Angie Rizzi
- 11:30 – 11:45 AM —— Step Up to Remote Sensing with STELLA —— Mike Taylor
- 11:45 – 12:00 PM —— DIY Digital Tools: Creating Smart Assets —— Jessica Swann
- 1:00 – 1:15 PM —— Lunar and Meteorite Sample Disk Program —— Suzanne Foxworth
- 1:15 – 1:30 PM —— Soar to New Heights with the NASA TechRise Student Challenge —— Marisa Cleghorn
- 1:30 – 1:45 PM —— Kahoot
- 1:45 – 2:00 PM —— Apollo to Artemis: Sample Collection and Curation —— Kim Willis
- 2:00 – 2:15 PM —— Step Up to Remote Sensing with STELLA —— Mike Taylor
- 2:15 – 2:30 PM —— SpacePhys Lab: A Heliophysics VR Experience for Education and Outreach —— Stephen Zaffke
- 2:30 – 2:45 PM —— Do NASA Science in Your Classroom —— Marc Kuchner
- 2:45 – 3:00 PM —— GLOBE Clouds: Connecting Satellite Data to Your Classroom —— Jessica Talyor
- 3:30 – 3:45 PM —— Interactive Ways for Learners to Explore NASA Content & Assets —— Astro Materials Docent
- 3:45 – 4:00 PM —— Lunar and Meteorite Sample Disk Program —— Suzanne Foxworth
- 4:00 – 4:15 PM —— My NASA Data Satellite Data for All —— Angie Rizzi
- 4:15 – 4:30 PM —— Kahoot
SATURDAY, MARCH 29
- 9:15 – 9:30 AM —— Apollo to Artemis: Sample Collection and Curation —— Kim Willis
- 9:45 – 10:00 AM —— DIY: Immersive Virtual Field Trips —— Jessica Swann
- 10:00 – 10:15 AM —— Lunar and Meteorite Sample Disk Program —— Suzanne Foxworth
- 10:15 – 10:30 AM —— Do NASA Science in Your Classroom —— Marc Kuchner
- 10:30 – 10:45 AM —— Digital Plug and Play Lessons for Your Middle or High School Classroom —— Jessica Swann
- 10:45 – 11:00 AM —— Step Up to Remote Sensing with STELLA (Science and Technology Education for Land/Life Assessment) —— Mike Taylor
- 11:15 – 11:30 AM —— DIY Digital Tools: Creating Smart Assets —— Jessica Swann
- 11:30 – 11:45 AM —— Kahoot
- 11:45 – 12:00 PM —— My NASA Data’s New Earth System Data Explorer —— Angie Rizzi
How NASA’s Perseverance Is Helping Prepare Astronauts for Mars
6 min read
Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) At left is NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover, with a circle indicating the location of the calibration target for the rover’s SHERLOC instrument. At right is a close-up of the calibration target. Along the bottom row are five swatches of spacesuit materials that scientists are studying as they de-grade.NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSSThe rover carries several swatches of spacesuit materials, and scientists are assessing how they’ve held up after four years on the Red Planet.
NASA’s Perseverance rover landed on Mars in 2021 to search for signs of ancient microbial life and to help scientists understand the planet’s climate and geography. But another key objective is to pave the way for human exploration of Mars, and as part of that effort, the rover carries a set of five spacesuit material samples. Now, after those samples have endured four years of exposure on Mars’ dusty, radiation-soaked surface, scientists are beginning the next phase of studying them.
The end goal is to predict accurately the usable lifetime of a Mars spacesuit. What the agency learns about how the materials perform on Mars will inform the design of future spacesuits for the first astronauts on the Red Planet.
This graphic shows an illustration of a prototype astronaut suit, left, along with suit samples included aboard NASA’s Perseverance rover. They are the first spacesuit materials ever sent to Mars. NASA“This is one of the forward-looking aspects of the rover’s mission — not just thinking about its current science, but also about what comes next,” said planetary scientist Marc Fries of NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, who helped provide the spacesuit materials. “We’re preparing for people to eventually go and explore Mars.”
The swatches, each three-quarters of an inch square (20 millimeters square), are part of a calibration target used to test the settings of SHERLOC (Scanning Habitable Environments with Raman & Luminescence for Organics and Chemicals), an instrument on the end of Perseverance’s arm.
The samples include a piece of polycarbonate helmet visor; Vectran, a cut-resistant material used for the palms of astronaut gloves; two kinds of Teflon, which has dust-repelling nonstick properties; and a commonly used spacesuit material called Ortho-Fabric. This last fabric features multiple layers, including Nomex, a flame-resistant material found in firefighter outfits; Gore-Tex, which is waterproof but breathable; and Kevlar, a strong material used in bulletproof vests that makes spacesuits more rip-resistant.
Martian Wear and TearMars is far from hospitable. It has freezing temperatures, fine dust that can stick to solar panels and spacesuits (causing wear and tear on the latter), and a surface rife with perchlorates, a kind of corrosive salt that can be toxic to humans.
There’s also lots of solar radiation. Unlike Earth, which has a magnetic field that deflects much of the Sun’s radiation, Mars lost its magnetic field billions of years ago, followed by much of its atmosphere. Its surface has little protection from the Sun’s ultraviolet light (which is why researchers have looked into how rock formations and caves could provide astronauts some shielding).
“Mars is a really harsh, tough place,” said SHERLOC science team member Joby Razzell Hollis of the Natural History Museum in London. “Don’t underestimate that — the radiation in particular is pretty nasty.”
Razzell Hollis was a postdoctoral fellow at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California from 2018 to 2021, where he helped prepare SHERLOC for arrival on Mars and took part in science operations once the rover landed. A materials scientist, Razzell Hollis has previously studied the chemical effects of sunlight on a new kind of solar panel made from plastic, as well as on plastic pollution floating in the Earth’s oceans.
He likened those effects to how white plastic lawn chairs become yellow and brittle after years in sunlight. Roughly the same thing happens on Mars, but the weathering likely happens faster because of the high exposure to ultraviolet light there.
The key to developing safer spacesuit materials will be understanding how quickly they would wear down on the Martian surface. About 50% of the changes SHERLOC witnessed in the samples happened within Perseverance’s first 200 days on Mars, with the Vectran appearing to change first.
Another nuance will be figuring out how much solar radiation different parts of a spacesuit will have to withstand. For example, an astronaut’s shoulders will be more exposed — and likely encounter more radiation — than his or her palms.
Next StepsThe SHERLOC team is working on a science paper detailing initial data on how the samples have fared on Mars. Meanwhile, scientists at NASA Johnson are eager to simulate that weathering in special chambers that mimic the carbon dioxide atmosphere, air pressure, and ultraviolet light on the Martian surface. They could then compare the results generated on Earth while putting the materials to the test with those seen in the SHERLOC data. For example, the researchers could stretch the materials until they break to check if they become more brittle over time.
“The fabric materials are designed to be tough but flexible, so they protect astronauts but can bend freely,” Fries said. “We want to know the extent to which the fabrics lose their strength and flexibility over time. As the fabrics weaken, they can fray and tear, allowing a spacesuit to leak both heat and air.”
More About PerseveranceA key objective for Perseverance’s mission on Mars is astrobiology, including the search for signs of ancient microbial life. The rover is characterizing the planet’s geology and past climate, to help pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and is the first mission to collect and cache Martian rock and regolith.
NASA’s Mars Sample Return Program, in cooperation with ESA (European Space Agency), is designed to send spacecraft to Mars to collect these sealed samples from the surface and return them to Earth for in-depth analysis.
The Mars 2020 Perseverance mission is part of NASA’s Mars Exploration Program (MEP) portfolio and the agency’s Moon to Mars exploration approach, which includes Artemis missions to the Moon that will help prepare for human exploration of the Red Planet.
NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, which is managed for the agency by Caltech in Pasadena, California, built and manages operations of the Perseverance rover.
For more about Perseverance:
News Media ContactsAndrew Good
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
818-393-2433
andrew.c.good@jpl.nasa.gov
Karen Fox / Molly Wasser
NASA Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1600
karen.c.fox@nasa.gov / molly.l.wasser@nasa.gov
Researchers analyzing pulverized rock onboard NASA’s Curiosity rover have found the largest organic compounds on…
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NASA’s Webb Captures Neptune’s Auroras For First Time
NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, Heidi Hammel (AURA), Henrik Melin (Northumbria University), Leigh Fletcher (University of Leicester), Stefanie Milam (NASA-GSFC)
Long-sought auroral glow finally emerges under Webb’s powerful gaze
For the first time, NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope has captured bright auroral activity on Neptune. Auroras occur when energetic particles, often originating from the Sun, become trapped in a planet’s magnetic field and eventually strike the upper atmosphere. The energy released during these collisions creates the signature glow.
In the past, astronomers have seen tantalizing hints of auroral activity on Neptune, for example, in the flyby of NASA’s Voyager 2 in 1989. However, imaging and confirming the auroras on Neptune has long evaded astronomers despite successful detections on Jupiter, Saturn, and Uranus. Neptune was the missing piece of the puzzle when it came to detecting auroras on the giant planets of our solar system.
“Turns out, actually imaging the auroral activity on Neptune was only possible with Webb’s near-infrared sensitivity,” said lead author Henrik Melin of Northumbria University, who conducted the research while at the University of Leicester. “It was so stunning to not just see the auroras, but the detail and clarity of the signature really shocked me.”
The data was obtained in June 2023 using Webb’s Near-Infrared Spectrograph. In addition to the image of the planet, astronomers obtained a spectrum to characterize the composition and measure the temperature of the planet’s upper atmosphere (the ionosphere). For the first time, they found an extremely prominent emission line signifying the presence of the trihydrogen cation (H3+), which can be created in auroras. In the Webb images of Neptune, the glowing aurora appears as splotches represented in cyan.
Image A:Neptune’s Auroras – Hubble and Webb At the left, an enhanced-color image of Neptune from NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope. At the right, that image is combined with data from NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope. The cyan splotches, which represent auroral activity, and white clouds, are data from Webb’s Near-Infrared Spectrograph (NIRSpec), overlayed on top of the full image of the planet from Hubble’s Wide Field Camera 3. NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, Heidi Hammel (AURA), Henrik Melin (Northumbria University), Leigh Fletcher (University of Leicester), Stefanie Milam (NASA-GSFC)
“H3+ has a been a clear signifier on all the gas giants — Jupiter, Saturn, and Uranus — of auroral activity, and we expected to see the same on Neptune as we investigated the planet over the years with the best ground-based facilities available,” explained Heidi Hammel of the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, Webb interdisciplinary scientist and leader of the Guaranteed Time Observation program for the Solar System in which the data were obtained. “Only with a machine like Webb have we finally gotten that confirmation.”
The auroral activity seen on Neptune is also noticeably different from what we are accustomed to seeing here on Earth, or even Jupiter or Saturn. Instead of being confined to the planet’s northern and southern poles, Neptune’s auroras are located at the planet’s geographic mid-latitudes — think where South America is located on Earth.
This is due to the strange nature of Neptune’s magnetic field, originally discovered by Voyager 2 in 1989 which is tilted by 47 degrees from the planet’s rotation axis. Since auroral activity is based where the magnetic fields converge into the planet’s atmosphere, Neptune’s auroras are far from its rotational poles.
The ground-breaking detection of Neptune’s auroras will help us understand how Neptune’s magnetic field interacts with particles that stream out from the Sun to the distant reaches of our solar system, a totally new window in ice giant atmospheric science.
From the Webb observations, the team also measured the temperature of the top of Neptune’s atmosphere for the first time since Voyager 2’s flyby. The results hint at why Neptune’s auroras remained hidden from astronomers for so long.
“I was astonished — Neptune’s upper atmosphere has cooled by several hundreds of degrees,” Melin said. “In fact, the temperature in 2023 was just over half of that in 1989.”
Through the years, astronomers have predicted the intensity of Neptune’s auroras based on the temperature recorded by Voyager 2. A substantially colder temperature would result in much fainter auroras. This cold temperature is likely the reason that Neptune’s auroras have remained undetected for so long. The dramatic cooling also suggests that this region of the atmosphere can change greatly even though the planet sits over 30 times farther from the Sun compared to Earth.
Equipped with these new findings, astronomers now hope to study Neptune with Webb over a full solar cycle, an 11-year period of activity driven by the Sun’s magnetic field. Results could provide insights into the origin of Neptune’s bizarre magnetic field, and even explain why it’s so tilted.
“As we look ahead and dream of future missions to Uranus and Neptune, we now know how important it will be to have instruments tuned to the wavelengths of infrared light to continue to study the auroras,” added Leigh Fletcher of Leicester University, co-author on the paper. “This observatory has finally opened the window onto this last, previously hidden ionosphere of the giant planets.”
These observations, led by Fletcher, were taken as part of Hammel’s Guaranteed Time Observation program 1249. The team’s results have been published in Nature Astronomy.
The James Webb Space Telescope is the world’s premier space science observatory. Webb is solving mysteries in our solar system, looking beyond to distant worlds around other stars, and probing the mysterious structures and origins of our universe and our place in it. Webb is an international program led by NASA with its partners, ESA (European Space Agency) and CSA (Canadian Space Agency).
DownloadsClick any image to open a larger version.
View/Download all image products at all resolutions for this article from the Space Telescope Science Institute.
Read the research results published in Nature Astronomy.
Media ContactsLaura Betz – laura.e.betz@nasa.gov
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md.
Hannah Braun- hbraun@stsci.edu
Space Telescope Science Institute, Baltimore, Maryland
Christine Pulliam – cpulliam@stsci.edu
Space Telescope Science Institute, Baltimore, Md.
Henrik Melin (Northumbria University)
Related InformationView more: Webb images of Neptune
Watch: Visualization of Neptune’s tilted magnetic axis
Learn more : about Neptune
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NASA Statement on Nomination of Greg Autry for Agency CFO
The following is a statement from NASA acting Administrator Janet Petro regarding the nomination by President Donald Trump of Greg Autry on March 24 to serve as the agency’s chief financial officer (CFO):
“The NASA CFO is responsible for executing more than $25 billion in agency funding across a variety of missions, including the Moon and Mars, for the benefit of humanity. With his previous experience as the White House liaison during President Trump’s first administration, as well as his extensive experience in space policy, I look forward to welcoming Greg as our next CFO. If confirmed, we will work together with the current Trump Administration to ensure NASA’s success in maximizing efficiencies, refining our processes, and remaining effective stewards of every tax dollar invested in our agency.”
In addition to his previous experience on the agency review team and as White House liaison at NASA, he also has served on the Commercial Space Transportation Advisory Committee (COMSTAC) at the FAA and is the vice president of the National Space Society.
Autry is the associate provost for Space Commercialization and Strategy at the University of Central Florida, a published author, and entrepreneur. He also serves as a visiting professor at Imperial College London. He formerly served as the director of Space Leadership, Policy, and Business in the Thunderbird School of Global Management and a professor at Arizona State University. He also has taught technology entrepreneurship at the University of Southern California and macroeconomics at the University of California, Irvine.
For more about NASA’s mission, visit:
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Bethany Stevens/Amber Jacobson
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1600
bethany.c.stevens@nasa.gov / amber.c.jacobson@nasa.gov
NASA Cloud Software Helps Companies Find their Place in Space
2 min read
Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) The Double Asteroid Redirection Test required extreme precision in mission planning to achieve its mission of impacting an asteroid. The founders of Continuum Space worked on astrodynamics relating to this mission, which they used to inform their product.NASAPlanning space missions is a very involved process, ensuring orbits are lined up and spacecraft have enough fuel is imperative to the long-term survival of orbital assets. Continuum Space Systems Inc. of Pasadena, California, produces a cloud-based platform that gives mission planners everything they need to certify that their space resources can accomplish their goals.
Continuum’s story begins at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California. Loic Chappaz, the company’s co-founder, started at JPL as an intern working on astrodynamics related to NASA’s Double Asteroid Redirection Test. There he met Leon Alkalai, a JPL technical fellow who spent his 30-year career at the center planning deep space missions. After Alkalai retired from NASA, he founded Mandala Space Ventures, a startup that explored several avenues of commercial space development. Chappaz soon became Mandala’s first employee, but to plan their future, Mandala’s leadership began thinking about the act of planning itself.
Because the staff had decades of combined experience at JPL, they knew the center had the building blocks for the software they needed. After licensing several pieces of software from JPL, the company began building planning systems that were highly adaptable to any space mission they could come up with. Mandala eventually evolved into a venture firm that incubated space-related startups. However, because Mandala had invested considerably in developing mission-planning tools, further development could be performed by a new company, and Continuum was fully spun off from Mandala in 2021.
Continuum’s tools are designed to take a space mission from concept to completion. There are three different components to their “mission in a box” — design, build and test, and mission operations. The base of these tools are several pieces of software developed at NASA. As of 2024, several space startups have begun planning missions with Continuum’s NASA-inspired software, as well as established operators of satellite constellations. From Continuum to several startups, NASA technologies continue to prove a valuable foundation for the nation’s space economy.
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NASA’s Spirit Rover Gets Looked Over
Technicians do final checks on NASA’s Spirit rover in this image from March 28, 2003. The rover – and its twin, Opportunity – studied the history of climate and water at sites on Mars where conditions may once have been favorable to life. Each rover is about the size of a golf cart and seven times heavier (about 405 pounds or 185 kilograms) than the Sojourner rover launched on the Mars Pathfinder to Mars mission in 1996.
Spirit and Opportunity were sent to opposite sides of Mars to locations that were suspected of having been affected by liquid water in the past. Spirit was launched first, on June 10, 2003. Spirit landed on the Martian surface on Jan. 3, 2004, about 8 miles (13.4 kilometers) from the planned target and inside the Gusev crater. The site became known as Columbia Memorial Station to honor the seven astronauts killed when the space shuttle Columbia broke apart Feb. 1, 2003, as it returned to Earth. The plaque commemorating the STS-107 Space Shuttle Columbia crew can be seen in the image above.
Spirit operated for 6 years, 2 months, and 19 days, more than 25 times its original intended lifetime, traveling 4.8 miles (7.73 kilometers) across the Martian plains.
Image credit: NASA
NASA Invites Media to Learn About Artemis Moon Mission Recovery
NASA and the Department of Defense will host a media event on the recovery operations that will bring the Artemis II astronauts and the agency’s Orion spacecraft home at the conclusion of next year’s mission around the Moon. The in-person event will take place at 3 p.m. PDT on Monday, March 31, at Naval Base San Diego in California.
A team of NASA and Department of Defense personnel are at sea in the Pacific Ocean where splashdown will take place. The team currently is practicing the procedures it will use to recover the astronauts after their more than 600,000 mile journey from Earth and back on the first crewed mission under the Artemis campaign. A test version of Orion and other hardware also will be on-hand for media representatives to view.
Interested media must RSVP no later than 4 p.m. PDT Friday, March 28, to Naval Base San Diego Public Affairs at nbsd.pao@us.navy.mil or 619-556-7359. The start time of the event may change based on the conclusion of testing activities.
Participants include:
- Liliana Villarreal, NASA’s Artemis II landing and recovery director, Exploration Ground Systems Program, NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida
- Capt. Andrew “Andy” Koy, commanding officer of USS Somerset (LPD 25), U.S. Navy
- Lt. Col. David Mahan, commander, U.S. Air Force’s 1st Air Force, Detachment 3, Patrick Space Force Base, Florida
Several astronauts participating in the testing will be available for interviews.
Artemis II will be the first test flight of the SLS (Space Launch System) rocket, Orion spacecraft, and supporting ground system with crew aboard. NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Koch, and CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen will venture around the Moon and back. The mission is another step toward missions on the lunar surface and helping the agency prepare for future astronaut missions to Mars.
Learn more about Artemis II at:
https://www.nasa.gov/mission/artemis-ii/
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Jim Wilson
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1100
jim.wilson@nasa.gov
Madison Tuttle/Allison Tankersley
Kennedy Space Center, Florida
321-298-5968/321-867-2468
madison.e.tuttle@nasa.gov / allison.p.tankersley@nasa.gov
NASA’s Parker Solar Probe Team Wins 2024 Collier Trophy
The innovative team of engineers and scientists from NASA, the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory in Laurel, Maryland, and more than 40 other partner organizations across the country that created the Parker Solar Probe mission has been awarded the 2024 Robert J. Collier Trophy by the National Aeronautic Association (NAA). This annual award recognizes the most exceptional achievement in aeronautics and astronautics in America with respect to improving the performance, efficiency, and safety of air or space vehicles in the previous year.
“Congratulations to the entire Parker Solar Probe team for this well-earned recognition,” said NASA acting Administrator Janet Petro. “This mission’s trailblazing research is rewriting the textbooks on solar science by going to a place no human-made object has ever been and advancing NASA’s efforts to better understand our solar system and the Sun’s influence, with lasting benefits for us all. As the first to touch the Sun and fastest human-made object ever built, Parker Solar Probe is a testament to human ingenuity and discovery.”
An artist’s concept of NASA’s Parker Solar Probe. NASAOn Dec. 24, 2024, Parker Solar Probe made its closest approach to the Sun, passing deep within the Sun’s corona, just 3.8 million miles above the Sun’s surface and at a top speed of close to 430,000 mph, ushering in a new era of scientific discovery and space exploration.
“This award is a recognition of the unrelenting dedication and hard work of the Parker Solar Probe team. I am so proud of this team and honored to have been a part of it,” said Nicky Fox, associate administrator, Science Mission Directorate, NASA Headquarters in Washington. “By studying the Sun closer than ever before, we continue to advance our understanding of not only our closest star, but also stars across our universe. Parker Solar Probe’s historic close approaches to the Sun are a testament to the incredible engineering that made this record-breaking journey possible.”
Three novel aerospace technology advancements were critical to enabling this record performance: The first is the Thermal Protection System, or heat shield, that protects the spacecraft and is built to withstand brutal temperatures as high as 2,500 degrees Fahrenheit. The Thermal Protection System allows Parker’s electronics and instruments to operate close to room temperature.
Additional Parker innovations included first-of-their-kind actively cooled solar arrays that protect themselves from overexposure to intense solar energy while powering the spacecraft, and a fully autonomous spacecraft system that can manage its own flight behavior, orientation, and configuration for months at a time. Parker has relied upon all of these vital technologies every day since its launch almost seven years ago, in August 2018.
“I am thrilled for the Parker Solar Probe team on receiving this well-deserved award,” said Joe Westlake, director of the Heliophysics Division at NASA Headquarters. “The new information about the Sun made available through this mission will improve our ability to prepare for space weather events across the solar system, as well as better understand the very star that makes life possible for us on Earth.”
Parker’s close-up observations of solar events, such as coronal mass ejections and solar particle events, are critical to advancing our understanding of the science of our Sun and the phenomena that drive high-energy space weather events that pose risks to satellites, air travel, astronauts, and even power grids on Earth. Understanding the fundamental physics behind events which drive space weather will enable more reliable predictions and lower astronaut exposure to hazardous radiation during future deep space missions to the Moon and Mars.
“This amazing team brought to life an incredibly difficult space science mission that had been studied, and determined to be impossible, for more than 60 years. They did so by solving numerous long-standing technology challenges and dramatically advancing our nation’s spaceflight capabilities,” said APL Director Ralph Semmel. “The Collier Trophy is well-earned recognition for this phenomenal group of innovators from NASA, APL, and our industry and research partners from across the nation.”
First awarded in 1911, the Robert J. Collier Trophy winner is selected by a group of aviation leaders chosen by the NAA. The Collier Trophy is housed in the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum in Washington.
“Traveling three times closer to the Sun and seven times faster than any spacecraft before, Parker’s technology innovations enabled humanity to reach inside the Sun’s atmosphere for the first time,” said Bobby Braun, head of APL’s Space Exploration Sector. “We are all immensely proud that the Parker Solar Probe team will join a long legacy of prestigious aerospace endeavors that redefined technology and changed history.”
“The Parker Solar Probe team’s achievement in earning the 2024 Collier is a shining example of determination, genius, and teamwork,” said NAA President and CEO Amy Spowart. “It’s a distinct honor for the NAA to acknowledge and celebrate the remarkable team that turned the impossible into reality.”
Parker Solar Probe was developed as part of NASA’s Living With a Star program to explore aspects of the Sun-Earth system that directly affect life and society. The Living With a Star program is managed by the agency’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, for NASA’s Science Mission Directorate in Washington. The Applied Physics Laboratory designed, built, and operates the spacecraft and manages the mission for NASA.
By Geoff Brown
Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory
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A major milestone and new results from NASA’s Parker Solar Probe were announced on Dec.…
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NASA Demonstrates New Wildland Fire Airspace Management System
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Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) Advanced Capabilities for Emergency Response Operations (ACERO) researchers Lynne Martin, left, and Connie Brasil use the Portable Airspace Management System (PAMS) to view a simulated fire zone and set a drone flight plan during a flight test the week of March 17, 2025.NASA/Brandon Torres-NavarreteNASA researchers conducted initial validation of a new airspace management system designed to enable crews to use aircraft to fight and monitor wildland fires 24 hours a day, even during low-visibility conditions.
From March 17-28, NASA’s Advanced Capabilities for Emergency Response Operations (ACERO) project stationed researchers at multiple strategic locations across the foothills of the Sierra de Salinas mountains in Monterey County, California. Their mission: to test and validate a new, portable system that can provide reliable airspace management under poor visual conditions, one of the biggest barriers for aerial wildland firefighting support.
The mission was a success.
“At NASA, we have decades of experience leveraging our aviation expertise in ways that improve everyday life for Americans,” said Carol Carroll, deputy associate administrator for NASA’s Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate at agency headquarters in Washington. “We need every advantage possible when it comes to saving lives and property when wildfires affect our communities, and ACERO technology will give responders critical new tools to monitor and fight fires.”
NASA ACERO researchers Samuel Zuniga,left, and Jonathan La Plain prepare for a drone flight test using the PAMS in Salinas on March 19, 2025.NASA/Brandon Torres-NavarreteOne of the barriers for continued monitoring, suppression, and logistics support in wildland fire situations is a lack of tools for managing airspace and air traffic that can support operations under all visibility conditions. Current aerial firefighting operations are limited to times with clear visibility when a Tactical Air Group Supervisor or “air boss” in a piloted aircraft can provide direction. Otherwise, pilots may risk collisions.
The ACERO technology will provide that air boss capability for remotely piloted aircraft operations – and users will be able to do it from the ground. The project’s Portable Airspace Management System (PAMS) is a suitcase-sized solution that builds on decades of NASA air traffic and airspace management research. The PAMS units will allow pilots to view the locations and operational intents of other aircraft, even in thick smoke or at night.
During the testing in Salinas, researchers evaluated the PAMS’ core airspace management functions, including strategic coordination and the ability to automatically alert pilots once their aircrafts exit their preapproved paths or the simulated preapproved fire operation zone.
Using the PAMS prototype, researchers were able to safely conduct flight operations of a vertical takeoff and landing aircraft operated by Overwatch Aero, LLC, of Solvang, California, and two small NASA drones.
Flying as if responding to a wildfire scenario, the Overwatch aircraft connected with two PAMS units in different locations. Though the systems were separated by mountains and valleys with weak cellular service, the PAMS units were able to successfully share and display a simulated fire zone, aircraft location, flight plans, and flight intent, thanks to a radio communications relay established by the Overwatch aircraft.
Operating in a rural mountain range validated that PAMS could work successfully in an actual wildland fire environment.
“Testing in real mountainous environments presents numerous challenges, but it offers significantly more value than lab-based testing,” said Dr. Min Xue, ACERO project manager at NASA’s Ames Research Center in California’s Silicon Valley. “The tests were successful, providing valuable insights and highlighting areas for future improvement.”
NASA ACERO researchers fly a drone to test the PAMS during a flight test on March 19, 2025.NASA/Brandon Torres-NavarretePilots on the ground used PAMS to coordinate the drones, which performed flights simulating aerial ignition – the practice of setting controlled, intentional fires to manage vegetation, helping to control fires and reduce wildland fire risk.
As a part of the testing, Joby Aviation of Santa Cruz, California, flew its remotely piloted aircraft, similar in size to a Cessna Grand Caravan, over the testing site. The PAMS system successfully exchanged aircraft location and flight intent with Joby’s mission management system. The test marked the first successful interaction between PAMS and an optionally piloted aircraft.
Fire chiefs from the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE) attended the testing and provided feedback on the system’s functionality, features that could improve wildland fire air traffic coordination, and potential for integration into operations.
“We appreciate the work being done by the NASA ACERO program in relation to portable airspace management capabilities,” said Marcus Hernandez, deputy chief for CAL FIRE’s Office of Wildfire Technology. “It’s great to see federal, state, and local agencies, as it is important to address safety and regulatory challenges alongside technological advancements.”
ACERO chief engineer Joey Mercer, right, shows the Portable Airspace Management System (PAMS) to Cal Fire representatives Scott Eckman, center, and Pete York, left, in preparation for the launch of the Overwatch Aero FVR90 Vertical Take Off and Landing (VTOL) test “fire” information sharing, airspace management, communication relay, and aircraft deconfliction capabilities during the Advanced Capabilities for Emergency Response Operations (ACERO) test in Salinas, California.NASA/Brandon Torres-NavarreteThese latest flights build on successful PAMS testing in Watsonville, California, in November 2024. ACERO will use flight test data and feedback from wildland fire agencies to continue building out PAMS capabilities and will showcase more robust information-sharing capabilities in the coming years.
NASA’s goal for ACERO is to validate this technology, so it can be developed for wildland fire crews to use in the field, saving lives and property. The project is managed by NASA’s Airspace Operations and Safety Program and supports the agency’s Advanced Air Mobility mission.
ACERO’s PAMS unit shown during a flight test on March 19, 2025NASA/Brandon Torres-Navarrette Share Details Last Updated Mar 25, 2025 Related Terms Explore More 3 min read New Aircraft Wing Undergoes Crucial NASA Icing Testing Article 8 hours ago 3 min read Engineering Reality: Lee Bingham Leads Lunar Surface Simulation Support for Artemis Campaign Article 1 day ago 3 min read Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) Services Article 1 day ago Keep Exploring Discover More Topics From NASAMissions
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Investigaciones de la NASA en la estación espacial ayudan a impulsar la ciencia lunar
La Estación Espacial Internacional sustenta una amplia gama de actividades científicas, desde la observación de nuestro universo hasta el logro de avances en investigaciones médicas, y es un campo de pruebas activo en la tecnología para futuras misiones de exploración en la Luna y más allá. La misión Blue Ghost 1 de Firefly Aerospace aterrizó en la Luna el 2 de marzo de 2025, dando inicio a las operaciones científicas y tecnológicas en su superficie, las cuales incluyen tres experimentos que fueron evaluados o habilitados con las investigaciones de la estación espacial. Estos proyectos están ayudando a los científicos a estudiar la meteorología espacial, la navegación, y el desempeño de las computadoras en el espacio, los cuales son conocimientos cruciales para futuras misiones a la Luna.
Uno de los experimentos, el Generador de imágenes de rayos X heliosférico para el entorno lunar (LEXI, por sus siglas en inglés), es un pequeño telescopio diseñado para estudiar el entorno magnético de la Tierra y su interacción con el viento solar. Al igual que el telescopio Explorador de la composición interior de las estrellas de neutrones (NICER, por sus siglas en inglés) que está montado fuera de la estación espacial, LEXI observa las fuentes de rayos X. LEXI y NICER observaron la misma estrella en rayos X para calibrar el instrumento de LEXI y analizar mejor los rayos X emitidos desde la atmósfera superior de la Tierra, que es el objetivo principal de LEXI. El estudio de LEXI sobre la interacción entre el viento solar y la magnetosfera protectora de la Tierra podría ayudar a los investigadores a desarrollar métodos para salvaguardar la futura infraestructura espacial y comprender cómo responde esta frontera a las condiciones meteorológicas en el espacio.
Otros investigadores enviaron a la Luna el Sistema informático tolerante a la radiación (RadPC, por sus siglas en inglés) para realizar pruebas sobre cómo las computadoras pueden recuperarse de fallas relacionadas con la radiación. Antes de que RadPC volara a bordo de Blue Ghost, los investigadores hicieron pruebas con una computadora tolerante a la radiación en la estación espacial y desarrollaron un algoritmo para detectar posibles desperfectos en el hardware y evitar fallas críticas. RadPC tiene como objetivo demostrar la resistencia de las computadoras en el entorno de radiación de la Luna. La computadora puede medir su propia salud en tiempo real, y RadPC puede identificar un punto defectuoso y repararlo en segundo plano, según sea necesario. Los conocimientos adquiridos con esta investigación podrían mejorar el hardware informático para futuras misiones en el espacio profundo.
Además, el Experimento del receptor lunar de GNSS (LuGRE, por sus siglas en inglés) situado en la superficie de la Luna ha recibido oficialmente una señal del Sistema Global de Navegación por Satélite (GNSS, por sus siglas en inglés) a la distancia más lejana de la Tierra. Estas son las mismas señales para la navegación que se utilizan en la Tierra en todo, desde teléfonos inteligentes hasta aviones. A bordo de la Estación Espacial Internacional, el Banco de Pruebas de Navegación y Comunicaciones (NAVCOM, por sus siglas en inglés) ha llevado a cabo pruebas de un sistema de respaldo para el GNSS de la Tierra utilizando estaciones terrestres como un método alternativo para la navegación lunar cuando las señales del GNSS puedan tener limitaciones. Unir los sistemas existentes con soluciones emergentes específicas para la navegación lunar podría ayudar a dar forma al modo en que las naves espaciales navegan por la Luna en futuras misiones.
La Estación Espacial Internacional funciona como un importante banco de pruebas para las investigaciones que se llevan a cabo en misiones como Blue Ghost y continúa sentando las bases para las tecnologías del futuro.
Destiny Doran
Equipo de Comunicaciones de Investigaciones en la Estación Espacial Internacional
Read this story in English here.
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New Aircraft Wing Undergoes Crucial NASA Icing Testing
In the future, aircraft with long, thin wings supported by aerodynamic braces could help airlines save on fuel costs. But those same wings could be susceptible to ice buildup. NASA researchers are currently working to determine if such an issue exists, and how it could be addressed.
In the historic Icing Research Tunnel at NASA’s Glenn Research Center in Cleveland, scientists and engineers are testing a concept for a transonic truss-braced wing. Their goal: to collect important data to inform the design of these potential efficient aircraft of the future.
This artist’s concept shows the transonic truss-braced wing concept. NASA’s Advanced Air Transport Technology project is exploring the design, which involves a longer, thinner wing structure with struts to enhance aerodynamic efficiency and reduce fuel consumption.Credit: NASAA transonic truss-braced wing generates less drag in flight compared to today’s aircraft wings, requiring an aircraft to burn less fuel. This revolutionary design could make the wing more prone to ice buildup, so it must undergo a series of rigorous tests to predict its safety and performance. The data the research team has collected so far suggests large sections of the frontmost part of the wing (also known as the leading edge) will require an ice protection system, similar to those found on some commercial aircraft.
NASA Glenn can simulate icing conditions in its Icing Research Tunnel to identify potential challenges for new aircraft designs. These tests provide important information about how ice builds up on wings and can help identify the most critical icing conditions for safety. All commercial aircraft must be approved by the Federal Aviation Administration to operate in all kinds of weather.
Because of the thinness of transonic truss-braced wing design, ice tends to build up during cold conditions, as seen during a test in October 2024. Researchers at NASA’s Glenn Research Center in Cleveland conducted another test campaign in March 2025, collecting important data to ensure safety. Credit: NASA/Jordan CochranThis research is part of NASA’s work to mature transonic truss-braced technology by looking at issues including safety and how future aircraft could be integrated into U.S. aviation infrastructure. Boeing is also working with NASA to build, test, and fly the X-66, a full-sized demonstrator aircraft with transonic truss-braced wings. Because the experimental aircraft will not be flown in icy conditions, tests in the Icing Research Tunnel are providing answers to questions about ice buildup.
This work advances NASA’s role in developing ultra-efficient airliner technologies that are economically, operationally, and environmentally sustainable. For about two decades, NASA has invested in research aimed at advancing transonic truss-braced wing technology to the point where private sector aeronautics companies can integrate it into commercial aircraft configurations. NASA invests in this research through initiatives including its Advanced Air Transport Technology project, which investigates specific performance aspects of transonic truss-braced wing concepts, such as icing. The Advanced Air Transport Technology project is part of NASA’s Advanced Air Vehicles Program.
Explore More 5 min read NASA Demonstrates New Wildland Fire Airspace Management System Article 5 hours ago 3 min read Finalists Selected in NASA Aeronautics Agriculture-Themed Competition Article 2 weeks ago 5 min read NASA’s Chevron Technology Quiets the Skies Article 2 weeks agoNASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Views Blue Ghost on Moon’s Surface
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Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)NASA’s LRO (Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter) imaged Firefly Aerospace’s Blue Ghost Mission 1 lunar lander on the Moon’s surface the afternoon of March 2, not quite 10 hours after the spacecraft landed.
Firefly Aerospace’s Blue Ghost Mission 1 lunar lander, which appears in this image from NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter as a bright pixel casting a shadow in the middle of the white box, reached the surface of the Moon on March 2 at 3:34 a.m. EST.NASA/Goddard/Arizona State UniversityThe delivery is part of NASA’s CLPS (Commercial Lunar Payload Services) initiative and Artemis campaign. This is the first CLPS delivery for Firefly, and their first Moon landing.
LRO is managed by NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, for the Science Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington. Launched on June 18, 2009, LRO has collected a treasure trove of data with its seven powerful instruments, making an invaluable contribution to our knowledge about the Moon. NASA is returning to the Moon with commercial and international partners to expand human presence in space and bring back new knowledge and opportunities.
More on this story from Arizona State University’s LRO Camera website
Media Contact:
Nancy N. Jones
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md.
NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Views IM-2 on Moon’s Surface
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Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)NASA’s LRO (Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter) imaged Intuitive Machines’ IM-2 on the Moon’s surface on March 7, just under 24 hours after the spacecraft landed.
Later that day Intuitive Machines called an early end of mission for IM-2, which carried NASA technology demonstrations as part of the agency’s CLPS (Commercial Lunar Payload Services) initiative and Artemis campaign.
The Intuitive Machines IM-2 Athena lander, indicated here with a white arrow, reached the surface of the Moon on March 6, 2025, near the center of Mons Mouton. NASA’s Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) imaged the site at 12:54 p.m. EST on March 7.NASA/Goddard/Arizona State UniversityThe IM-2 mission lander is located closer to the Moon’s South Pole than any previous lunar lander.
LRO is managed by NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, for the Science Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington. Launched on June 18, 2009, LRO has collected a treasure trove of data with its seven powerful instruments, making an invaluable contribution to our knowledge about the Moon. NASA is returning to the Moon with commercial and international partners to expand human presence in space and bring back new knowledge and opportunities.
More on this story from Arizona State University’s LRO Camera website
Media Contact:
Nancy N. Jones
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md.
Sols 4488-4490: Progress Through the Ankle-Breaking Terrain (West of Texoli Butte, Climbing Southward)
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Sols 4488-4490: Progress Through the Ankle-Breaking Terrain (West of Texoli Butte, Climbing Southward) NASA’s Mars rover Curiosity captured this image showing its robotic arm in action; the view also illustrates bedding on a light-toned bedrock block of the layered sulfate-bearing unit. Curiosity acquired the image using its Right Navigation Camera on March 20, 2025 — sol 4486, or Martian day 4,486 of the Mars Science Laboratory mission — at 15:18:42 UTC. NASA/JPL-CaltechWritten by Lucy Lim, Planetary Scientist at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center
Earth planning date: Friday, March 21, 2025
It’s the start of spring here in the Northern Hemisphere on Earth, but in Gale Crater on Mars our rover is still heading into the depths of Martian winter. We’re just a few weeks away from Mars’ aphelion — the time when it’s farthest from the Sun. The Mars-Sun distance varies more significantly than the Earth-Sun distance because of the greater eccentricity of Mars’ orbit, and its effect on the Martian weather is correspondingly more important.
As my colleague mentioned in the previous blog post, the layered sulfate bedrock in this region is broken up into large blocks that often make the driving tough going. The drive in the sol 4486 plan went very well, however, moving Curiosity nearly 35 meters (about 115 feet) southward and upward. Our new workspace is in one of the “light-toned” stripes that can be seen in the orbital imagery and is correspondingly full of light-toned laminated blocks typical of what we’ve seen before in this geologic unit.
For the second plan in a row we were also able to use the rover arm, due to the rover having parked in a stable position — not always a given in this terrain! This enabled us to plan a pair of compositional measurements by the APXS on a bedrock target (“Solstice Canyon”) to assess both the bedrock composition after dust removal and the effect of the ubiquitous dust on the instrument at other locations where the rock cannot be brushed. Our other compositional measurement tool, the LIBS, was also recruited for a co-targeted measurement on Solstice Canyon.
The second LIBS measurement and a MAHLI observation went to the one distinctive, potentially diagenetic, feature visible among all of the light-toned workspace blocks, a small grayish patch that looks like a vein or a coating in the images available at planning (“Black Oak”). The planned observations will give us both the composition and morphology of it in much greater detail.
A long-distance RMI imaging mosaic was planned to investigate some ridges on an as-yet-unnamed butte off to the west. The ridges may be evidence of the same type of diagenetic activity that produced the boxwork structures that are the next major science target for Curiosity. A passive spectral raster was also planned for a potential boxwork region. As we won’t be able to rove to every potential boxwork on Aeolis Mons, longer-distance views such as these can give us a sense of how widespread the boxwork-forming activity may have been.
Mastcam imaging included some follow-up on a hummocky sedimentary feature (“Pino Alto”) and documentation of textures in the nearby local bedrock (“Piedra Blanca”) as well as documentation imagery for the two LIBS targets.
Finally, the modern Martian atmosphere was investigated with measurements by APXS and the ChemCam passive imager to track abundances of argon and oxygen, respectively, as they vary with the Martian seasons.
Share Details Last Updated Mar 24, 2025 Related Terms Explore More 3 min read Sols 4486-4487: Ankle-Breaking Kind of Terrain!Article
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Engineering Reality: Lee Bingham Leads Lunar Surface Simulation Support for Artemis Campaign
If you design a new tool for use on Earth, it is easy to test and practice using that tool in its intended environment. But what if that tool is destined for lunar orbit or will be used by astronauts on the surface of the Moon?
NASA’s Simulation and Graphics Branch can help with that. Based at Johnson Space Center in Houston, the branch’s high-fidelity, real-time graphical simulations support in-depth engineering analyses and crew training, ensuring the safety, efficiency, and success of complex space endeavors before execution. The team manages multiple facilities that provide these simulations, including the Prototype Immersive Technologies (PIT) Lab, Virtual Reality Training Lab, and the Systems Engineering Simulator (SES).
Lee Bingham is an aerospace engineer on the simulation and graphics team. His work includes developing simulations and visualizations for the NASA Exploration Systems Simulations team and providing technical guidance on simulation and graphics integration for branch-managed facilities. He also leads the branch’s human-in-the-loop Test Sim and Graphics Team, the Digital Lunar Exploration Sites Unreal Simulation Tool (DUST), and the Lunar Surface Mixed-Reality with the Active Response Gravity Offload System (ARGOS) projects.
Lee Bingham demonstrates a spacewalk simulator for the Gateway lunar space station during NASA’s Tech Day on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. Image courtesy of Lee BinghamBingham is particularly proud of his contributions to DUST, which provides a 3D visualization of the Moon’s South Pole and received Johnson’s Exceptional Software of the Year Award in 2024. “It was designed for use as an early reference to enable candidate vendors to perform initial studies of the lunar terrain and lighting in support of the Strategy and Architecture Office, human landing system, and the Extravehicular Activity and Human Surface Mobility Program,” Bingham explained. DUST has supported several human-in-the-loop studies for NASA. It has also been shared with external collaborators and made available to the public through the NASA Software Catalog.
Bingham has kept busy during his nearly nine years at Johnson and said learning to manage and balance support for multiple projects and customers was very challenging at first. “I would say ‘yes’ to pretty much anything anyone asked me to do and would end up burning myself out by working extra-long hours to meet milestones and deliverables,” he said. “It has been important to maintain a good work-life balance and avoid overcommitting myself while meeting demanding expectations.”
Lee Bingham tests the Lunar Surface Mixed Reality and Active Response Gravity Offload System trainer at Johnson Space Center. Image courtesy of Lee BinghamBingham has also learned the importance of teamwork and collaboration. “You can’t be an expert at everything or do everything yourself,” he said. “Develop your skills, practice them regularly, and master them over time but be willing to ask for help and advice. And be sure to recognize and acknowledge your coworkers and teammates when they go above and beyond or achieve something remarkable.”
Lee Bingham (left) demonstrates a lunar rover simulator for Apollo 16 Lunar Module Pilot Charlie Duke. Image courtesy of Lee BinghamHe hopes that the Artemis Generation will be motivated to tackle difficult challenges and further NASA’s mission to benefit humanity. “Be sure to learn from those who came before you, but be bold and unafraid to innovate,” he advised.
NASA’s Curiosity Rover Detects Largest Organic Molecules Found on Mars
Researchers analyzing pulverized rock onboard NASA’s Curiosity rover have found the largest organic compounds on the Red Planet to date. The finding, published Monday in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, suggests prebiotic chemistry may have advanced further on Mars than previously observed.
Scientists probed an existing rock sample inside Curiosity’s Sample Analysis at Mars (SAM) mini-lab and found the molecules decane, undecane, and dodecane. These compounds, which are made up of 10, 11, and 12 carbons, respectively, are thought to be the fragments of fatty acids that were preserved in the sample. Fatty acids are among the organic molecules that on Earth are chemical building blocks of life.
Living things produce fatty acids to help form cell membranes and perform various other functions. But fatty acids also can be made without life, through chemical reactions triggered by various geological processes, including the interaction of water with minerals in hydrothermal vents.
While there’s no way to confirm the source of the molecules identified, finding them at all is exciting for Curiosity’s science team for a couple of reasons.
Curiosity scientists had previously discovered small, simple organic molecules on Mars, but finding these larger compounds provides the first evidence that organic chemistry advanced toward the kind of complexity required for an origin of life on Mars.
This graphic shows the long-chain organic molecules decane, undecane, and dodecane. These are the largest organic molecules discovered on Mars to date. They were detected in a drilled rock sample called “Cumberland” that was analyzed by the Sample Analysis at Mars lab inside the belly of NASA’s Curiosity rover. The rover, whose selfie is on the right side of the image, has been exploring Gale Crater since 2012. An image of the Cumberland drill hole is faintly visible in the background of the molecule chains. NASA/Dan GallagherThe new study also increases the chances that large organic molecules that can be made only in the presence of life, known as “biosignatures,” could be preserved on Mars, allaying concerns that such compounds get destroyed after tens of millions of years of exposure to intense radiation and oxidation.
This finding bodes well for plans to bring samples from Mars to Earth to analyze them with the most sophisticated instruments available here, the scientists say.
“Our study proves that, even today, by analyzing Mars samples we could detect chemical signatures of past life, if it ever existed on Mars,” said Caroline Freissinet, the lead study author and research scientist at the French National Centre for Scientific Research in the Laboratory for Atmospheres and Space Observations in Guyancourt, France
In 2015, Freissinet co-led a team that, in a first, conclusively identified Martian organic molecules in the same sample that was used for the current study. Nicknamed “Cumberland,” the sample has been analyzed many times with SAM using different techniques.
NASA’s Curiosity rover drilled into this rock target, “Cumberland,” during the 279th Martian day, or sol, of the rover’s work on Mars (May 19, 2013) and collected a powdered sample of material from the rock’s interior. Curiosity used the Mars Hand Lens Imager camera on the rover’s arm to capture this view of the hole in Cumberland on the same sol as the hole was drilled. The diameter of the hole is about 0.6 inches. The depth of the hole is about 2.6 inches. NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS
Curiosity drilled the Cumberland sample in May 2013 from an area in Mars’ Gale Crater called “Yellowknife Bay.” Scientists were so intrigued by Yellowknife Bay, which looked like an ancient lakebed, they sent the rover there before heading in the opposite direction to its primary destination of Mount Sharp, which rises from the floor of the crater.
The detour was worth it: Cumberland turns out to be jam-packed with tantalizing chemical clues to Gale Crater’s 3.7-billion-year past. Scientists have previously found the sample to be rich in clay minerals, which form in water. It has abundant sulfur, which can help preserve organic molecules. Cumberland also has lots of nitrates, which on Earth are essential to the health of plants and animals, and methane made with a type of carbon that on Earth is associated with biological processes.
Perhaps most important, scientists determined that Yellowknife Bay was indeed the site of an ancient lake, providing an environment that could concentrate organic molecules and preserve them in fine-grained sedimentary rock called mudstone.
“There is evidence that liquid water existed in Gale Crater for millions of years and probably much longer, which means there was enough time for life-forming chemistry to happen in these crater-lake environments on Mars,” said Daniel Glavin, senior scientist for sample return at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, and a study co-author.
The recent organic compounds discovery was a side effect of an unrelated experiment to probe Cumberland for signs of amino acids, which are the building blocks of proteins. After heating the sample twice in SAM’s oven and then measuring the mass of the molecules released, the team saw no evidence of amino acids. But they noticed that the sample released small amounts of decane, undecane, and dodecane.
Because these compounds could have broken off from larger molecules during heating, scientists worked backward to figure out what structures they may have come from. They hypothesized these molecules were remnants of the fatty acids undecanoic acid, dodecanoic acid, and tridecanoic acid, respectively.
The scientists tested their prediction in the lab, mixing undecanoic acid into a Mars-like clay and conducting a SAM-like experiment. After being heated, the undecanoic acid released decane, as predicted. The researchers then referenced experiments already published by other scientists to show that the undecane could have broken off from dodecanoic acid and dodecane from tridecanoic acid.
The authors found an additional intriguing detail in their study related to the number of carbon atoms that make up the presumed fatty acids in the sample. The backbone of each fatty acid is a long, straight chain of 11 to 13 carbons, depending on the molecule. Notably, non-biological processes typically make shorter fatty acids, with less than 12 carbons.
It’s possible that the Cumberland sample has longer-chain fatty acids, the scientists say, but SAM is not optimized to detect longer chains.
Scientists say that, ultimately, there’s a limit to how much they can infer from molecule-hunting instruments that can be sent to Mars. “We are ready to take the next big step and bring Mars samples home to our labs to settle the debate about life on Mars,” said Glavin.
This research was funded by NASA’s Mars Exploration Program. Curiosity’s Mars Science Laboratory mission is led by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California; JPL is managed by Caltech for NASA. SAM (Sample Analysis at Mars) was built and tested at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. CNES (the French Space Agency) funded and provided the gas chromatograph subsystem on SAM. Charles Malespin is SAM’s principal investigator.
By Lonnie Shekhtman
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md.
Like Sands Through the Hourglass…
Two actively forming stars are responsible for the shimmering hourglass-shaped ejections of gas and dust that gleam in orange, blue, and purple in this representative color image captured by NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope. This star system, called Lynds 483, is named for American astronomer Beverly T. Lynds, who published extensive catalogs of “dark” and “bright” nebulae in the early 1960s.
The two protostars are at the center of the hourglass shape, in an opaque horizontal disk of cold gas and dust that fits within a single pixel. Much farther out, above and below the flattened disk where dust is thinner, the bright light from the stars shines through the gas and dust, forming large semi-transparent orange cones.
Learn what the incredibly fine details in this image reveal.
Image credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI
Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) Services
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Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) OverviewWelcome to the Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) services page. Provided here are different resources to support informed steps toward a new career opportunity in the public or private sector.
Transition AssistanceNASA is partnering with OPM to offer a 1-day workshop covering multiple areas associated with career transitions. The workshop will be offered virtually on pre-scheduled dates and will include:
- Career Exploration (1 Hour)
- Job Search Strategy (1 Hour)
- Resume Writing (2 Hours)
- Interview Techniques (2 Hours)
- One-On-One Counseling
NASA will follow-up with employees eligible for CTAP to enroll them in the workshop and share participation details.
Below are links to guidance, resources, and tools that are helpful during a career move, including resume preparation, interview preparation, networking strategies, job search assistance, and more.
Resume PreparationResources to help craft strong professional resumes that showcase personal skills and experience, including specialized training and tools.
General
Resume Tips Brochure to Launch Your Career
Federal/State/Local Government
What Should You Include in Your Resume
How to Indicate Your CTAP/ICTAP Eligibility
How to Make Your Resume and Profile Searchable
Private Sector
Creating A Successful Private Sector Resume from Your Federal Resume
Beyond Federal Service: How to Transition to the Private Sector
Interview Coaching
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Share Details Last Updated Mar 24, 2025 Related TermsNASA Invites Media to SpaceX’s 32nd Resupply Launch to Space Station
Media accreditation is open for the next launch to deliver NASA science investigations, supplies, and equipment to the International Space Station.
NASA and SpaceX are targeting no earlier than Monday, April 21, to launch the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft on the company’s Falcon 9 rocket from Launch Complex 39A at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. This launch is the 32nd SpaceX commercial resupply services mission to the orbital laboratory for the agency.
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, Friday, April 4. All accreditation requests must be submitted online at:
Credentialed media will receive a confirmation email after 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 Kennedy’s newsroom at: 321-867-2468.
Para obtener información sobre cobertura en español en el Centro Espacial Kennedy o si desea solicitor entrevistas en español, comuníquese con Antonia Jaramillo o Messod Bendayan a: antonia.jaramillobotero@nasa.gov o messod.c.bendayan@nasa.gov.
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, significantly increasing NASA’s ability to conduct new investigations aboard humanity’s laboratory in space.
Along with food and essential equipment for the crew, Dragon is delivering a variety of experiments, including a demonstration of refined maneuvers for free-floating robots. Dragon also carries an enhanced air quality monitoring system that could protect crew members on exploration missions to the Moon and Mars, and two atomic clocks to examine fundamental physics concepts, such as relativity, and test worldwide synchronization of precision timepieces.
Astronauts have occupied the space station continuously since November 2000. In that time, 283 people from 23 countries have visited the orbital outpost. The space station is a springboard to NASA’s next great leap in exploration, including future missions to the Moon under the Artemis campaign, and human exploration of Mars.
Learn more about NASA’s commercial resupply missions at:
-end-
Julian Coltre / Josh Finch
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1100
julian.n.coltre@nasa.gov / joshua.a.finch@nasa.gov
Stephanie Plucinsky / Steven Siceloff
Kennedy Space Center, Florida
321-876-2468
stephanie.n.plucinsky@nasa.gov / steven.p.siceloff@nasa.gov
Sandra Jones
Johnson Space Center, Houston
281-483-5111
sandra.p.jones@nasa.gov
NASA Takes to the Air to Study Wildflowers
5 min read
Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) Researcher Ann Raiho measures sunlight interacting with yellow Coreopsis gigantea flowers during field work in the Jack and Laura Dangermond Preserve in California’s Santa Barbara County in 2022.NASA/Yoseline AngelFor many plant species, flowering is biologically synced with the seasons. Scientists are clocking blooms to understand our ever-changing planet.
NASA research is revealing there’s more to flowers than meets the human eye. A recent analysis of wildflowers in California shows how aircraft- and space-based instruments can use color to track seasonal flower cycles. The results suggest a potential new tool for farmers and natural-resource managers who rely on flowering plants.
In their study, the scientists surveyed thousands of acres of nature preserve using a technology built by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California. The instrument — an imaging spectrometer — mapped the landscape in hundreds of wavelengths of light, capturing flowers as they blossomed and aged over the course of months.
It was the first time the instrument had been deployed to track vegetation steadily through the growing season, making this a “first-of-a-kind study,” said David Schimel, a research scientist at JPL.
In this illustration, an imaging spectrometer aboard a research plane measures sunlight reflecting off California coastal scrub. In the data cube below, the top panel shows the true-color view of the area. Lower panels depict the spectral fingerprint for every point in the image, capturing the visible range of light (blue, green, and red wavelengths) to the near-infrared (NIR) and beyond. Spatial resolution is around 16 feet (5 meters).NASAFor many plant species from crops to cacti, flowering is timed to seasonal swings in temperature, daylight, and precipitation. Scientists are taking a closer look at the relationship between plant life and seasons — known as vegetation phenology — to understand how rising temperatures and changing rainfall patterns may be impacting ecosystems.
Typically, wildflower surveys rely on boots-on-the-ground observations and tools such as time-lapse photography. But these approaches cannot capture broader changes that may be happening in different ecosystems around the globe, said lead author Yoseline Angel, a scientist at the University of Maryland-College Park and NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland.
“One challenge is that compared to leaves or other parts of a plant, flowers can be pretty ephemeral,” she said. “They may last only a few weeks.”
To track blooms on a large scale, Angel and other NASA scientists are looking to one of the signature qualities of flowers: color.
NASA’s AVIRIS sensors have been used to study wildfires, World Trade Center wreckage, and critical minerals, among numerous airborne missions over the years. AVIRIS-3 is seen here on a field campaign in Panama, where it helped analyze vegetation in many wavelengths of light not visible to human eyes.NASA/Shawn Serbin Mapping Native ShrubsFlower pigments fall into three major groups: carotenoids and betalains (associated with yellow, orange, and red colors), and anthocyanins (responsible for many deep reds, violets, and blues). The different chemical structures of the pigments reflect and absorb light in unique patterns.
Spectrometers allow scientists to analyze the patterns and catalog plant species by their chemical “fingerprint.” As all molecules reflect and absorb a unique pattern of light, spectrometers can identify a wide range of biological substances, minerals, and gases.
Handheld devices are used to analyze samples in the field or lab. To survey moons and planets, including Earth, NASA has developed increasingly powerful imaging spectrometers over the past 45 years.
One such instrument is called AVIRIS-NG (short for Airborne Visible/InfraRed Imaging Spectrometer-Next Generation), which was built by JPL to fly on aircraft. In 2022 it was used in a large ecology field campaign to survey vegetation in the Jack and Laura Dangermond Preserve and the Sedgwick Reserve, both in Santa Barbara County. Among the plants observed were two native shrub species — Coreopsis gigantea and Artemisia californica — from February to June.
The scientists developed a method to tease out the spectral fingerprint of the flowers from other landscape features that crowded their image pixels. In fact, they were able to capture 97% of the subtle spectral differences among flowers, leaves, and background cover (soil and shadows) and identify different flowering stages with 80% certainty.
Predicting SuperbloomsThe results open the door to more air- and space-based studies of flowering plants, which represent about 90% of all plant species on land. One of the ultimate goals, Angel said, would be to support farmers and natural resource managers who depend on these species along with insects and other pollinators in their midst. Fruit, nuts, many medicines, and cotton are a few of the commodities produced from flowering plants.
Angel is working with new data collected by AVIRIS’ sister spectrometer that orbits on the International Space Station. Called EMIT (Earth Surface Mineral Dust Source Investigation), it was designed to map minerals around Earth’s arid regions. Combining its data with other environmental observations could help scientists study superblooms, a phenomenon where vast patches of desert flowers bloom after heavy rains.
One of the delights of researching flowers, Angel said, is the enthusiasm from citizen scientists. “I have social media alerts on my phone,” she added, noting one way she stays on top of wildflower activity around the world.
The wildflower study was supported as part of the Surface Biology and Geology High-Frequency Time Series (SHIFT) campaign. An airborne and field research effort, SHIFT was jointly led by the Nature Conservancy, the University of California, Santa Barbara, and JPL. Caltech, in Pasadena, manages JPL for NASA.
The AVIRIS instrument was originally developed through funding from NASA’s Earth Science Technology Office.
News Media ContactsAndrew 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
Written by Sally Younger
NASA’s Earth Science News Team
2025-041
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