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Mars is well known as a static, frozen desert. We tend to think of the only thing changing on the surface of the Red Planet is due to the occasional dust storm. But if you look closely - and are willing to wait decades - you’ll see the planet is very much alive - at least in the environmental sense. The European Space Agency just released some spectacular new images from the High Resolution Stereo Camera (HRSC) on its Mars Express Orbiter, one of which shows a surprisingly “fast” geological change happening in Utopia Planitia. A dark, ominous-looking blanket of volcanic ash is actively creeping across the bright red sands - and it's moving (relatively) fast.

How a few unique traits helped modern-style birds—the last living dinosaurs—survive the asteroid apocalypse that took out T. rex and other mighty beasts

The waxing Moon this week visits Venus, the Pleiades, and the Jupiter-Pollux-Castor triangle, then occults Regulus in a bright sky.

The post This Week's Sky at a Glance, April 17 – 26 appeared first on Sky & Telescope.

Changing your opinion can be difficult, and it’s sometimes even seen as a flaw. But research shows being open-minded has a host of benefits. Columnist David Robson finds there are a few simple ways to encourage yourself to withstand the discomfort that gets in the way of mental flexibility

Changing your opinion can be difficult, and it’s sometimes even seen as a flaw. But research shows being open-minded has a host of benefits. Columnist David Robson finds there are a few simple ways to encourage yourself to withstand the discomfort that gets in the way of mental flexibility

Cyclic cosmology, or the big bounce, is the idea that the universe will eventually crunch back together and then go through another big bang. Columnist Leah Crane finds that, appropriately, it’s coming back

Cyclic cosmology, or the big bounce, is the idea that the universe will eventually crunch back together and then go through another big bang. Columnist Leah Crane finds that, appropriately, it’s coming back

Image: This image from the Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission captures the coast of Gabon in striking colours.

Earth Observatory

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Earth Observatory

1. Science
2. Earth Observatory
3. Spring Rains Saturate Michigan

• Earth
• Earth Observatory
• Image of the Day
• EO Explorer
• Topics
• More Content
• About

Before Brad Bradington can sprint down the red carpet, we need to understand the crowd. Specifically, we need to understand why a crowd of atoms and molecules slows down light — and why that creates a loophole that changes everything.

Astronomers using data from the Hobby–Eberly Telescope Dark Energy Experiment (HETDEX) have discovered tens of thousands of gigantic hydrogen gas halos, called “Lyman-alpha nebulae,” surrounding galaxies 10 billion to 12 billion years ago.

The White House has nominated Erica Schwartz to replace NIH director Jay Bhattacharya as CDC chief. Bhattacharya has been leading the CDC on an acting basis since February, after the public health agency’s director was fired in 2025

Astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch and Jeremy Hansen reflected on the highs and lows of their moon mission—the first of its kind in more than 50 years

The HHS secretary defended proposed budget cuts to science, his vaccine moves and health care costs on Capitol Hill on Thursday

A new study suggests a proto–Colorado River filled a large basin before spilling westward to set the Grand Canyon’s modern path

A new map of the cosmos, including more than 47 million galaxies and other cosmic objects, represents one of the most extensive surveys of our universe ever conducted

Engineers love a good practical challenge, especially when it comes to spaceflight. But there’s one particular challenge facing the crewed missions of the near future that scares mission planners above almost all others - fire. For decades, we’ve relied on a NASA test known as NASA-STD-6001B to screen material flammability for flight. But space is much more complicated than an Earth-bound test provides for. A new paper from researchers at NASA’s Glenn Research Center and Johnson Space Center and Case Western Reserve University details a planned mission to test the flammability of materials on the Moon’s surface - where they expect flame to act much differently than it does here on Earth.

Credit: NASA

The Republic of Latvia will sign the Artemis Accords during a ceremony at 9 a.m. EDT Monday, April 20, at NASA Headquarters in Washington.

NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman will host Dace Melbārde, Latvia’s minister for education and science; Jānis Beķeris, chargé d’affaires at the Embassy of the Republic of Latvia to the United States; and Jacob Helberg, under secretary of state for economic affairs at the U.S. Department of State.

This event is in person only. Media interested in attending must RSVP no later than 3 p.m. on Friday, April 17, to: hq-media@mail.nasa.gov. NASA’s media accreditation policy is online.

The signing ceremony will take place in the James E. Webb Memorial Auditorium at NASA Headquarters in the Mary W. Jackson building, 300 E Street SW.

In 2020, during the first Trump Administration, the United States, led by NASA and the State Department, joined with seven other founding nations to establish the Artemis Accords, responding to the growing interest in lunar activities by both governments and private companies.

The accords introduced the first set of practical principles aimed at enhancing the safety, transparency, and coordination of civil space exploration on the Moon, Mars, and beyond. Latvia will be the 62nd country to sign the Artemis Accords.

Learn more about the Artemis Accords at:

https://www.nasa.gov/artemis-accords

-end-

Camille Gallo / Elizabeth Shaw
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1600
camille.m.gallo@nasa.gov / elizabeth.a.shaw@nasa.gov

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Details Last Updated Apr 16, 2026 LocationNASA Headquarters Related Terms

• Artemis
• Artemis Accords
• Leadership
• Office of International and Interagency Relations (OIIR)

Credit: NASA

The Republic of Latvia will sign the Artemis Accords during a ceremony at 9 a.m. EDT Monday, April 20, at NASA Headquarters in Washington.

NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman will host Dace Melbārde, Latvia’s minister for education and science; Jānis Beķeris, chargé d’affaires at the Embassy of the Republic of Latvia to the United States; and Jacob Helberg, under secretary of state for economic affairs at the U.S. Department of State.

This event is in person only. Media interested in attending must RSVP no later than 3 p.m. on Friday, April 17, to: hq-media@mail.nasa.gov. NASA’s media accreditation policy is online.

The signing ceremony will take place in the James E. Webb Memorial Auditorium at NASA Headquarters in the Mary W. Jackson building, 300 E Street SW.

In 2020, during the first Trump Administration, the United States, led by NASA and the State Department, joined with seven other founding nations to establish the Artemis Accords, responding to the growing interest in lunar activities by both governments and private companies.

The accords introduced the first set of practical principles aimed at enhancing the safety, transparency, and coordination of civil space exploration on the Moon, Mars, and beyond. Latvia will be the 62nd country to sign the Artemis Accords.

Learn more about the Artemis Accords at:

https://www.nasa.gov/artemis-accords

-end-

Camille Gallo / Elizabeth Shaw
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1600
camille.m.gallo@nasa.gov / elizabeth.a.shaw@nasa.gov

Share

Details Last Updated Apr 16, 2026 LocationNASA Headquarters Related Terms

• Artemis
• Artemis Accords
• Leadership
• Office of International and Interagency Relations (OIIR)