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Analyzing the metaphors we use to talk about ChatGPT can reveal how we’re thinking about the new tech

A personal quest and progress in brain science finally put a name on baffling behaviors

Play this crossword inspired by the April 2025 issue of Scientific American

Finish the cycle of numbers in this math puzzle

As a complex picture of schizophrenia emerges, so do new ways to treat the disorder

Dark matter could be an entire dark sector of the universe, with its own particles and forces

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has uncharacteristically been working with nature instead of bulldozing it into submission. Will this enlightened approach prevail?

Studies of the horns, spikes, plates and clubs of dinosaurs could help settle a long-standing debate over their function

It was the opening scene of "Apollo 13" and was recreated for the Neil Armstrong biopic "First Man." It was also included in director Mark Craig's "Last Man on the Moon," inspiring "Apollo 1."

Scientists say that officials from the National Institutes of Health urged them to remove references to mRNA vaccine technology

New findings from China's Chang'e 6 lunar farside samples offer insights into the moon's volcanic past and mantle evolution.

Proposed cuts to Medicaid could undo advances in treatment for opioid use disorders, risking more overdoses, deaths and stress on the U.S. health system

For years, Egyptologists have assumed pyramid tombs were just for the rich – but the burials at a site called Tombos don’t fit this pattern

For years, Egyptologists have assumed pyramid tombs were just for the rich – but the burials at a site called Tombos don’t fit this pattern

A new way of estimating rural populations has found that we may be undercounting people who live in these areas, potentially inflating the global population beyond the official count of 8.2 billion – but not everyone agrees

A new way of estimating rural populations has found that we may be undercounting people who live in these areas, potentially inflating the global population beyond the official count of 8.2 billion – but not everyone agrees

NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams are on their way home from a nine-month space mission that was supposed to last just 10 days. Here's a rundown of their eventful time off Earth.

Depending on where you stand at the lunar South Pole, you may experience temperatures of 130°F (54°C) during sunlit periods, or as low as -334°F (-203°C) in a permanently shadowed region. Keeping crews comfortable and tools and vehicles operational in such extreme temperatures is a key challenge for engineers at Johnson Space Center working on elements of NASA’s Artemis campaign.

Abigail Howard is part of that innovative team. Since joining Johnson in 2019, she has conducted thermal analysis for projects including the lunar terrain vehicle (LTV), pressurized rover, VIPER (Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration Rover), and Gateway – humanity’s first lunar space station. Her work explores how different materials and components respond to different temperatures and how to manage heat transfer in products and structures.

She currently serves as the passive thermal system manager for the Extravehicular Activity and Human Surface Mobility Program, leading a small team of thermal analysts. Together, they provide expertise on passive thermal design, hardware, modeling, and testing to vendors and international partners that are developing rovers and tools for human exploration of the lunar surface.

Abigail Howard posing in front of a mockup of VIPER (Volatiles Investigating Polar Exploration Rover), which she worked on as a thermal analyst for three years. Image courtesy of Abigail Howard

Howard said her sudden shift from thermal analysis engineer to thermal system manager involved a steep learning curve. “Every day was like drinking through a firehose. I had to learn very quickly about systems engineering tasks, project phases, and leadership, while also learning about many new thermal approaches and designs so that I could provide good insight to project leadership and program vendors and partners,” she said. “Having a good group of senior engineers and friends to lean on and building up my team helped me get through it, but the single most important thing was not giving up. It gets easier and persistence pays off!”

Abigail Howard (left) and Brittany Spivey (right) after presenting their poster at the 2022 International Symposium for Materials in the Space Environment in Leiden, the Netherlands. Image courtesy of Abigail Howard

Howard feels fortunate to have worked on many interesting projects at NASA and presented her work at several conferences. Top achievements include watching her first NASA project launch successfully on Artemis I and supporting the LTV Source Evaluation Board as the thermal representative. “Something I’m really proud of is obtaining funding for and managing a test that looked at thermal performance of dust mitigation for spacecraft radiators,” she added.

Abigail Howard removes lunar dust simulant from a tray holding radiator test coupons during a test to evaluate thermal performance of radiators with integrated Electrodynamic Dust Shield for dust mitigation. Image courtesy of Abigail Howard

She believes interesting and challenging work is important but says the biggest determinant to professional success and satisfaction is your team and your team lead. “Having a really great team and team lead on Gateway thermal taught me the kind of leader and teammate I want to be,” she said.

Howard encourages fellow members of the Artemis Generation to not let imposter syndrome get in their way. “Focus on the evidence of your abilities and remember that no one is in this alone,” she said. “It’s okay to ask for help.”

ESA Impact: Top 2025 space photos so far

SpaceX is poised to land its Crew Dragon Freedom with the two ISS crewmates who launched on it and two astronauts who arrived at the space station in June on Boeing's Starliner. Here's how to see it.