Planet Mars Images: April 24-26, 2025 | NASA's Curiosity Rover
Friends of NASA (FoN) is an independent non-governmental organization (NGO) dedicated to building international support for peaceful space exploration, commerce, scientific discovery, and STEM education.
Sunday, April 27, 2025
Planet Mars Images: April 24-26, 2025 | NASA's Curiosity Rover
China's Shenzhou-19 Astronauts Complete Handover, Returning to Earth Tuesday
China's Shenzhou-19 Astronauts Complete Handover, Returning to Earth Tuesday
The crew of China's Shenzhou-19 spacecraft held a handover ceremony with the Shenzhou-20 crew and transferred the keys of the country's space station to the latter on Sunday, April 27, 2025.
"This key symbolizes not only the handover between our two crew groups, but also a heavy mission and responsibility. Now, I'm handing the key into your hands, and you will be responsible for managing, caring for, and maintaining the space station," said Cai Xuzhe, commander of the Shenzhou-19 crew, with the other two members being Song Lingdong and Wang Haoze.
Chen Dong, commander of the Shenzhou-20 crew, thanked the Shenzhou-19 trio for their diligent care of the space station.
"Thank you, the Shenzhou-19 crew, for your taking such good care of our space home. During these few days of handover, we have learned a lot of valuable experience and practices. We assure you and our country and the people that we will, just like you, carefully and meticulously complete every task and do our part well," said Chen.
The Shenzhou-20 spacecraft, atop a Long March-2F carrier rocket, blasted off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China on Thursday, sending astronauts Chen Dong, Chen Zhongrui and Wang Jie to space.
The Shenzhou-19 crew has now completed all the planned tasks. The three astronauts will take the Shenzhou-19 spacecraft and return to the Dongfeng landing site in north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region on April 29, according to the China Manned Space Agency.
At present, final preparations are in full swing across all participating systems and the landing site is in readiness to welcome the trio back.
Duration: 1 minute, 31 seconds
Release Date: April 27, 2025
Saturday, April 26, 2025
Landing Site Ready for Return of Shenzhou-19 Astronauts | China Space Station
Landing Site Ready for Return of Shenzhou-19 Astronauts | China Space Station
The Dongfeng landing site in north China's Autonomous Region is ready to welcome the return of the Shenzhou-19 crew upon completion of a six-month mission aboard China's space station Tiangong in orbit.
To ensure search and rescue readiness, a final comprehensive drill was conducted at the Dongfeng landing site earlier Friday, April 25, 2025.
The return capsule of the Shenzhou-19 manned spacecraft, carrying three astronauts Cai Xuzhe, Song Lingdong, and Wang Haoze, is scheduled to touch down at the Dongfeng landing site on April 29.
At around 10:00 on Friday, nearly 100 vehicles were deployed to support the ground search and rescue operations.
By 14:30, after receiving information on the landing location of the return capsule from the Beijing Aerospace Control Center, five helicopters from the air unit executed precision landings around the location and promptly carried out operations following established procedures.
At 14:45, upon the arrival of the ground search and rescue team, operations including simulating the opening of the hatch and lifting the astronauts out of the capsule were carried out.
The search and rescue team members responded swiftly and executed the tasks meticulously, ensuring that all operations, from the timing of the astronauts exiting the capsule to their adaptation to the external environment and the transfer process, were conducted with absolute safety.
According to the plan, the entire return and landing process of the Shenzhou-19 manned spacecraft is expected to take about 50 minutes.
At present, all personnel and equipment at the Dongfeng landing site are ready to be deployed to support the search and rescue operations.
On Thursday, a Long March 2F rocket carrying the Shenzhou-20 manned spacecraft lifted off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China.
The three astronauts on Shenzhou-20 entered the Tiangong space station and met with the Shenzhou-19 crew later on, beginning a new round of in-orbit crew handover. The six crew members then had group pictures taken for the sixth space get-together in China's aerospace history. They will live and work together for about five days to complete planned tasks and handover work.
Shenzhou-19 Crew:
Commander Cai Xuzhe (蔡旭哲)
Mission Specialist Wang Haoze (王浩泽)
Mission Specialist Song Lingdong (宋令东)
Wang Haoze is the country's first female space engineer and astronaut.
Video Credit: CCTV
Duration: 1 minute
Release Date: April 26, 2025
NASA Armstrong Flight Research Center World Pilots’ Day 2025
NASA Armstrong Flight Research Center World Pilots’ Day 2025
In honor of World Pilots’ Day 2025, NASA pilots from Armstrong Flight Research Center in Edwards, California, share their stories, passion for flight, and words of inspiration for the next generation of aviators. World Pilots’ Day is observed annually on April 26th to acknowledge the contributions of pilots around the globe and to highlight the importance of safety.
Duration: 4 minutes
Release Date: April 26, 2025
Celebrating The Hubble Space Telescope's 35th Anniversary (1990-2025) | ESA
Celebrating The Hubble Space Telescope's 35th Anniversary (1990-2025) | ESA
This Space Sparks episode celebrates the 35th anniversary of the NASA/European Space Agency Hubble Space Telescope by showcasing four beautiful new images.
Mars: These are a combination of Hubble Space Telescope images of Mars taken from December 28th to 30th, 2024. At the midpoint of the observations, Mars was approximately 98 million kilometres from Earth. Thin water-ice clouds that are apparent in ultraviolet light give the Red Planet a frosty appearance. The icy northern polar cap was experiencing the start of Martian spring.
Planetary Nebula NGC 2899: This object has a diagonal, bipolar, cylindrical outflow of gas. This is propelled by radiation and stellar winds from a nearly 22,000 degree Celsius white dwarf at the center. In fact, there may be two companion stars that are interacting and sculpting the nebula, which is pinched in the middle by a fragmented ring or torus—looking like a half-eaten donut. It has a forest of gaseous “pillars” that point back to the source of radiation and stellar winds. The colors are from glowing hydrogen and oxygen. The nebula lies approximately 4,500 light-years away in the southern constellation Vela.
Rosette Nebula: This is a Hubble Space Telescope photo of a small portion of the Rosette Nebula, a huge star-forming region spanning 100 light-years across and located 5,200 light-years away. Hubble zooms into a small portion of the nebula that is only 4 light-years across (the approximate distance between our Sun and the neighboring Alpha Centauri star system.) Dark clouds of hydrogen gas laced with dust are silhouetted across the image. The clouds are being eroded and shaped by the seething radiation from the cluster of larger stars in the center of the nebula (NGC 2440).
Barred Spiral Galaxy NGC 5335: This object is categorized as a flocculent spiral galaxy with patchy streamers of star formation across its disk. There is a striking lack of well-defined spiral arms that are commonly found among galaxies, including our Milky Way. A notable bar structure slices across the center of the galaxy. The bar channels gas inwards toward the galactic center, fueling star formation. Such bars are dynamic in galaxies and may come and go over two-billion-year intervals. They appear in about 30 percent of observed galaxies, including our Milky Way.
Directed by: Bethany Downer and Nico Bartmann
Editing: Nico Bartmann
Written by: Bethany Downer
Footage and photos: NASA, ESA, STScI, NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, N. Bartmann (ESA/Hubble)
Duration: 3 minutes, 16 seconds
Release Date: April 23, 2025
#NASA #ESA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Hubble #Hubble35 #Planet #Mars #PlanetaryNebula #NGC2899 #RosetteNebula #Caldwell49 #NGC5335 #BarredSpiralGalaxy #Universe #HubbleSpaceTelescope #HST #GSFC #STScI #UnitedStates #Europe #STEM #Education #HD #Video
Close-up: A Portion of The Rosette Nebula in Monoceros | Hubble Space Telescope
Close-up: A Portion of The Rosette Nebula in Monoceros | Hubble Space Telescope
Image Description: A tiny portion of the Rosette Nebula. Very dark gray material shaped like a V extends from just below top left all the way down to the lower right corner and back up toward the top right. It looks like thick smoke that has billowed out irregularly, thicker along the line from top left to bottom right, and looser on the piece that goes toward the top right. Behind the dark gray on the left side, from the bottom left to top center, there is dust that looks like arced claw marks that appears in light orange and yellow. The background at top left is hazier and blues are covered in semi-transparent orange wisps. This makes sections take on green hues. In the bottom right, the background is bluer. There are a few bright red and purple stars scattered along the right half, most toward the bottom. The largest star is at right-center, just at the edge. It is red and has four diffraction spikes.
#NASA #ESA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Hubble #Hubble35 #RosetteNebula #Caldwell49 #Stars #StarCluster #NGC2440 #Monoceros #Constellation #Cosmos #Universe #HubbleSpaceTelescope #HST #GSFC #STScI #DSS #UnitedStates #Europe #STEM #Education #HD #Video
A Portion of The Rosette Nebula in Monoceros | Hubble Space Telescope
A Portion of The Rosette Nebula in Monoceros | Hubble Space Telescope
Image Description: A tiny portion of the Rosette Nebula. Very dark gray material shaped like a V extends from just below top left all the way down to the lower right corner and back up toward the top right. It looks like thick smoke that has billowed out irregularly, thicker along the line from top left to bottom right, and looser on the piece that goes toward the top right. Behind the dark gray on the left side, from the bottom left to top center, there is dust that looks like arced claw marks that appears in light orange and yellow. The background at top left is hazier and blues are covered in semi-transparent orange wisps. This makes sections take on green hues. In the bottom right, the background is bluer. There are a few bright red and purple stars scattered along the right half, most toward the bottom. The largest star is at right-center, just at the edge. It is red and has four diffraction spikes.
#NASA #ESA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Hubble #Hubble35 #RosetteNebula #Caldwell49 #Stars #StarCluster #NGC2440 #Monoceros #Constellation #Cosmos #Universe #HubbleSpaceTelescope #HST #GSFC #STScI #DSS #UnitedStates #Europe #STEM #Education
China Mars Sample Return Mission Planned for 2028: International Partners Welcome
China Mars Sample Return Mission Planned for 2028: International Partners Welcome
This is the Tianwen-3 official promotional video released at the main event of "China Space Day", April 24, 2025, announcing the China National Space Administration's Mars sample return mission, scheduled to depart around 2028, consisting of a lander, ascender, rover combination, orbiter, and returner combination, equipped with a total of 6 scientific payloads.
https://www.cnsa.gov.cn/english/n6465645/n6465648/c10652198/part/10652214.pdf
Duration: 1 minute, 22 seconds
Release Date: April 24, 2025
Friday, April 25, 2025
Planet Mars: December 2024 | Hubble Space Telescope
Planet Mars: December 2024 | Hubble Space Telescope
Release Date: April 23, 2025
#NASA #ESA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Hubble #Hubble35 #Planet #Mars #SolarSystem #Universe #HubbleSpaceTelescope #HST #GSFC #STScI #UnitedStates #Europe #STEM #Education
NASA Astronaut Don Pettit Returns to Houston | Johnson Space Center
NASA Astronaut Don Pettit Returns to Houston | Johnson Space Center
NASA astronaut Don Pettit returned to Earth on Saturday, April 19, 2025, concluding a seven-month science mission aboard the International Space Station. After the Soyuz MS-26 spacecraft landed in Kazakhstan, Pettit boarded a NASA Gulfstream V that took him back to Ellington Field in Houston, Texas. His flight landed in Houston on April 20, his 70th birthday. As he stepped off the plane, he was greeted by a chorus of “Happy Birthday,” sung by his fellow astronauts. Pettit spent 220 days in space, earning him a total of 590 days in space over the course of his four spaceflights. He orbited the Earth 3,520 times, traveling 93.3 million miles in low-Earth orbit.
https://www.nasa.gov/people/donald-r-pettit/
https://www.nasa.gov/humans-in-space/astronauts/donald-r-pettit/
Duration: 2 minutes
Release Date: April 25, 2025
#NASA #Space #ISS #Science #SoyuzMS26Spacecraft #Astronauts #DonPettit #HappyBirthday #Japan #日本 #JAXA #Cosmonauts #AlexeyOvchinin #IvanVagner #Russia #Россия #Roscosmos #Роскосмос #HumanSpaceflight #SpaceLaboratory #InternationalCooperation #Expedition72 #Houston #Texas #JSC #UnitedStates #STEM #Education #HD #Video
Circinus West Stellar Nursery: Herbig-Haro Objects & More | Victor Blanco Telescope
Circinus West Stellar Nursery: Herbig-Haro Objects & More | Victor Blanco Telescope
DECam is mounted on the U.S. National Science Foundation Víctor M. Blanco 4-meter telescope at Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory in Chile, a Program of NSF NOIRLab.
Image Processing: T.A. Rector (University of Alaska Anchorage/NSF NOIRLab), D. de Martin & M. Kosari (NSF NOIRLab)
Release Date: April 24, 2025
#NASA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Nebulae #Nebula #CircinusWestMolecularCloud #StellarNursery #Circinus #Constellation #Cosmos #Universe #VictorBlancoTelescope #CTIO #CerroTololo #Chile #NOIRLab #NSF #DECam #DOE #AURA #UnitedStates #Infographics #STEM #Education
Journey to Circinus West Molecular Cloud | Victor Blanco Telescope
Journey to Circinus West Molecular Cloud | Victor Blanco Telescope
This winding, shadowy form, accentuated by a densely-packed starry background, is the Circinus West molecular cloud—a region rich in gas and dust and known for its host of newly formed stars. Molecular Clouds, the cradles of star formation, are interstellar clouds that are so dense and cold that atoms within them bond with each other to form molecules. Circinus West, for example, is so dense that light cannot pass through, giving it a dark, mottled appearance, earning its designation as a dark nebula. The cloud’s flourishing population of young stars offers astronomers insight into the processes driving star formation and molecular cloud evolution.
Another signpost of star formation is the presence of Herbig-Haro (HH) objects. HH objects are glowing red patches of nebulosity commonly found near newborn stars. They form when fast-moving gas thrown out by stars smashes into slower-moving gas in the surrounding molecular cloud or interstellar medium. Visually scanning Circinus West will reveal countless HH objects.
DECam is mounted on the U.S. National Science Foundation Víctor M. Blanco 4-meter telescope at Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory in Chile, a Program of the National Science Foundation's NOIRLab.
Image Processing: T.A. Rector (University of Alaska Anchorage/NSF NOIRLab), D. de Martin & M. Kosari (NSF NOIRLab)
Release Date: April 24, 2025
#NASA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Nebulae #Nebula #CircinusWestMolecularCloud #StellarNursery #Circinus #Constellation #Cosmos #Universe #VictorBlancoTelescope #CTIO #CerroTololo #Chile #NOIRLab #NSF #DECam #DOE #AURA #UnitedStates #STEM #Education #HD #Video
Close-up: Circinus West Molecular Cloud | Victor Blanco Telescope
Close-up: Circinus West Molecular Cloud | Victor Blanco Telescope
This winding, shadowy form, accentuated by a densely-packed starry background, is the Circinus West molecular cloud—a region rich in gas and dust and known for its host of newly formed stars. Molecular Clouds, the cradles of star formation, are interstellar clouds that are so dense and cold that atoms within them bond with each other to form molecules. Circinus West, for example, is so dense that light cannot pass through, giving it a dark, mottled appearance, earning its designation as a dark nebula. The cloud’s flourishing population of young stars offers astronomers insight into the processes driving star formation and molecular cloud evolution.
Another signpost of star formation is the presence of Herbig-Haro (HH) objects. HH objects are glowing red patches of nebulosity commonly found near newborn stars. They form when fast-moving gas thrown out by stars smashes into slower-moving gas in the surrounding molecular cloud or interstellar medium. Visually scanning Circinus West will reveal countless HH objects.
DECam is mounted on the U.S. National Science Foundation Víctor M. Blanco 4-meter telescope at Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory in Chile, a Program of the National Science Foundation's NOIRLab.
Image Processing: T.A. Rector (University of Alaska Anchorage/NSF NOIRLab), D. de Martin & M. Kosari (NSF NOIRLab)
Release Date: April 24, 2025
#NASA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Nebulae #Nebula #CircinusWestMolecularCloud #StellarNursery #Circinus #Constellation #Cosmos #Universe #VictorBlancoTelescope #CTIO #CerroTololo #Chile #NOIRLab #NSF #DECam #DOE #AURA #UnitedStates #STEM #Education #HD #Video
Circinus West Molecular Cloud: A Vast Stellar Nursery | Victor Blanco Telescope
Circinus West Molecular Cloud: A Vast Stellar Nursery | Victor Blanco Telescope
A celestial shadow known as the Circinus West molecular cloud creeps across this image taken with the Department of Energy-fabricated 570-megapixel Dark Energy Camera (DECam)—one of the most powerful digital cameras in the world. Within this stellar nursery's opaque boundaries, infant stars ignite from cold, dense gas and dust, while outflows hurtle leftover material into space. It is located about 2,500 light-years from Earth in the constellation Circinus. It stretches 180 light-years across and boasts a mass 250,000 times that of the Sun.
This winding, shadowy form, accentuated by a densely-packed starry background, is the Circinus West molecular cloud—a region rich in gas and dust and known for its host of newly formed stars. Molecular Clouds, the cradles of star formation, are interstellar clouds that are so dense and cold that atoms within them bond with each other to form molecules. Circinus West, for example, is so dense that light cannot pass through, giving it a dark, mottled appearance, earning its designation as a dark nebula. The cloud’s flourishing population of young stars offers astronomers insight into the processes driving star formation and molecular cloud evolution.
Another signpost of star formation is the presence of Herbig-Haro (HH) objects. HH objects are glowing red patches of nebulosity commonly found near newborn stars. They form when fast-moving gas thrown out by stars smashes into slower-moving gas in the surrounding molecular cloud or interstellar medium. Visually scanning Circinus West will reveal countless HH objects.
DECam is mounted on the U.S. National Science Foundation Víctor M. Blanco 4-meter telescope at Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory in Chile, a Program of the National Science Foundation's NOIRLab.
Image Processing: T.A. Rector (University of Alaska Anchorage/NSF NOIRLab), D. de Martin & M. Kosari (NSF NOIRLab)
Release Date: April 24, 2025
#NASA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Nebulae #Nebula #CircinusWestMolecularCloud #StellarNursery #Circinus #Constellation #Cosmos #Universe #VictorBlancoTelescope #CTIO #CerroTololo #Chile #NOIRLab #NSF #DECam #DOE #AURA #UnitedStates #STEM #Education
Shenzhou-20 Astronauts Welcomed by Shenzhou-19 Crew | China Space Station
Shenzhou-20 Astronauts Welcomed by Shenzhou-19 Crew | China Space Station
Astronauts aboard the Shenzhou-20 crewed spacecraft were greeted by the Shenzhou-19 crew that they will be replacing, after successfully docking with China's Tiangong Space Station in orbit on Friday, April 25, 2025, to begin the handover of duties.
The Shenzhou-20 spacecraft, with Commander Chen Dong and crew members Chen Zhongrui and Wang Jie aboard, docked with the space station's core Tianhe module at 23:49 Thursday (Beijing Time).
At 01:17 Friday (Beijing Time), the Shenzhou-19 crew opened the hatch and greeted the new arrivals. The two teams took group photos and sent messages to ground staff, while the commanders of the two space missions exchanged greetings.
"On behalf of the Shenzhou-19 crew, I welcome all of you to the Chinese space station. Chen Dong and I previously conducted the Shenzhou-14 mission together. This time, we can work together on the space station again, I feel really happy and very lucky. Congratulations to Chen Dong on his return to the Chinese space station and to [Chen] Zhongrui and Wang Jie on fulfilling their space dream. Let's build our space home together in the coming days," said Cai Xuzhe, commander of the Shenzhou-19 crew.
"I feel very warm in my heart coming to our space home again. It feels like I'm back to the familiar scene where I carried out the Shenzhou-14 mission with Cai Xuzhe. And I also feel very warm seeing [Song] Lingdong and [Wang] Haoze again. [The distance between us] used to be as far as 400 kilometers, but today we are face to face. I'm very happy. We were launched on China Space Day to meet with you, so we are very lucky and proud. We will have a very short time together on the station, so let's cherish it and work hard together to complete the subsequent tasks well," said Chen Dong, commander of the Shenzhou-20 mission.
Space station newcomers in the Shenzhou-20 crew thanked their predecessors for their hard work over the past six months and said they were looking forward to the handover.
"I'm really happy that we are reunited again in Tiangong now. Your performance in all aspects has been excellent, and all the work you have done has been very successful and perfect. We will learn from you to maintain, operate and develop Tiangong well," said Chen Zhongrui, a Shenzhou-20 astronaut.
"You have been working and living in orbit for half a year, thanks for your hard efforts. Seeing that you have taken care of our space home so well, I give you a sincere thumbs up. In the next few days, let's do a good job in the handover together. We will quickly adjust our state, adapt to the work and life in space as soon as possible, and do our best to run our leg well," said Wang Jie, another member of the new crew.
The Shenzhou-19 crew members warmly welcomed the new arrivals, saying they had prepared them some food to restore their energy after the long journey in to space.
"Congratulations on coming to our own space station. You have worked so hard. We have prepared steaming hot dumplings for you so that you can replenish your energy and have a good rest. In the following days, let's work hard to learn from each other, communicate with each other, and complete the entire handover task together well," said Song Lingdong, a Shenzhou-19 astronaut.
"It's really exciting to see the three of you. With your arrival, our space station is bustling again. In the next few days, let's work and live well together, and hand in hand create a brilliant future together," said Wang Haoze, another member of the Shenzhou-19 mission.
"Building our dreams in Tiangong and continuing to work hard! China's space station is always worth looking forward to!" the six astronauts chorused, before sharing a group hug.
The six astronauts will live and work together for about five days to complete planned tasks and handover work, according to the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA).
The Shenzhou-20 manned spaceship blasted off atop a Long March-2F carrier rocket at 17:17 (Beijing Time) Thursday from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China.
Duration: 3 minutes, 39 seconds
Release Date: April 25, 2025
NASA's Space to Ground: Birthday Homecoming | Week of April 25, 2025
NASA's Space to Ground: Birthday Homecoming | Week of April 25, 2025
NASA's Space to Ground is your weekly update on what's happening aboard the International Space Station. The SpaceX Dragon cargo spacecraft delivered 6,700 pounds of science and supplies to the orbital residents after docking to the Harmony module’s space-facing port at 8:40 a.m. EDT on Tuesday, April 22, 2025. McClain and Ayers are also getting ready for a May 1 spacewalk when they will prepare the station for a new rollout solar array and relocate an antenna that communicates with commercial vehicles.
Roscosmos (Russia) Flight Engineers: Kirill Peskov, Sergey Ryzhikov, Alexey Zubritskiy
https://www.nasa.gov/iss-science
Science, Technology, Engineering, Math (STEM)
Duration: 4 minutes
Release Date: April 25, 2025
















