NASA Celebrates ‘Hidden Figure’ Mary W. Jackson With Building Naming Ceremony
On Friday, NASA celebrated the agency’s first African American female engineer, Mary W. Jackson, with a ceremony formally naming the agency’s headquarters building in Washington in her honor. Jackson began working at the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) – the forerunner of NASA – in April 1951. From her initial role as a […]
2020 Tied for Warmest Year on Record, NASA Analysis Shows (video)
Earth’s global average surface temperature in 2020 tied with 2016 as the warmest year on record, according to an analysis by NASA. Continuing the planet’s long-term warming trend, the year’s globally averaged temperature was 1.84 degrees Fahrenheit (1.02 degrees Celsius) warmer than the baseline 1951-1980 mean, according to scientists at NASA’s Goddard Institute […]
NASA Approves Heliophysics Missions to Explore Sun, Earth’s Aurora
NASA has approved two heliophysics missions to explore the Sun and the system that drives space weather near Earth. Together, NASA’s contribution to the Extreme Ultraviolet High-Throughput Spectroscopic Telescope Epsilon Mission, or EUVST, and the Electrojet Zeeman Imaging Explorer, or EZIE, will help us understand the Sun and Earth as an interconnected system. Understanding the […]
NASA Releases Best Practices Handbook to Help Improve Space Safety
NASA has released the first iteration of its Spacecraft Conjunction Assessment and Collision Avoidance Best Practices Handbook to share information on best practices for coordinating in-orbit activity in a safe and responsible manner. The agency aims for these best practices to bolster stability, reduce current and future operational risks, and contribute to a sustainable space […]
Spinoff Highlights NASA Technology Paying Dividends in the US Economy
Whether upgrading air traffic control software or honing the food safety practices that keep our dinner tables safe, NASA has worked for more than six decades to ensure its innovations benefit people on Earth. One of the agency’s most important benefits is the way investment in NASA pays dividends throughout the U.S. economy. The […]
NASA, ESA Choose Astronauts for SpaceX Crew-3 Mission to Space Station
NASA and ESA (European Space Agency) have selected three astronauts to serve as crew members for NASA’s SpaceX Crew-3 mission to the International Space Station, which is expected to launch in the fall of 2021. The trio will consist of NASA astronauts Raja Chari and Tom Marshburn, who will serve as commander and […]
NASA Science, New Airlock Heads to Space Station on SpaceX Cargo Spacecraft
The latest SpaceX Dragon resupply spacecraft is on its way to the International Space Station with more than 6,400 pounds of science investigations, a new airlock, and other cargo after launching at 11:17 a.m. EST Sunday from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The spacecraft launched on a Falcon 9 rocket from Launch Pad 39A […]
NASA Receives 10th Consecutive Clean Financial Audit Opinion
NASA has received an unmodified audit opinion on its Fiscal Year 2020 financial statements, marking the 10th consecutive “clean” opinion from an external auditor – the highest opinion that may be received. The auditor’s unmodified opinion is that NASA’s financial statements fairly present the agency’s financial position and results of operations. “Our prudent […]
NASA’s OSIRIS-REx Successfully Stows Sample of Asteroid Bennu
NASA’s Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, Security, Regolith Explorer (OSIRIS-REx) mission has successfully stowed the spacecraft’s Sample Return Capsule (SRC) and its abundant sample of asteroid Bennu. On Wednesday, Oct. 28, the mission team sent commands to the spacecraft, instructing it to close the capsule – marking the end of one of the […]
NASA’s OSIRIS-REx Spacecraft Collects Significant Amount of Asteroid
Two days after touching down on asteroid Bennu, NASA’s OSIRIS-REx mission team received on Thursday, Oct. 22, images that confirm the spacecraft has collected more than enough material to meet one of its main mission requirements – acquiring at least 2 ounces (60 grams) of the asteroid’s surface material. The spacecraft captured images of the sample […]