Ax-4 Mission | Science Briefing | International Space Station

Ax-4 Mission | Science Briefing | International Space Station

The International Space Station serves as a vital microgravity laboratory. The Ax-4 crew and Axiom Space's Chief Scientist Dr. Lucie Low discuss their research projects. Former NASA astronaut Peggy Whitson, Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla, European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski of Poland, and astronaut Tibor Kapu of Hungary have been aboard the International Space Station after launching June 25, 2025 on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida for Axiom Mission 4.

The private astronauts are spending about two weeks aboard the orbiting laboratory, conducting a mission of science, outreach, and commercial activities.

The Ax-4 Mission “realizes the return” to human spaceflight for India, Poland, and Hungary, with each nation’s first government-sponsored flight in more than 40 years. While Ax-4 marks these countries' second human spaceflight mission in history, it is the first time all three nations will execute a mission on board the International Space Station.

The Ax-4 research complement includes around 60 scientific studies and activities representing 31 countries, including the U.S., India, Poland, Hungary, Saudi Arabia, Brazil, Nigeria, UAE, and nations across Europe.

Learn more about Ax-4: 
https://www.axiomspace.com/missions/ax4

An international partnership of space agencies provides and operates the elements of the International Space Station (ISS). The principals are the space agencies of the United States, Russia, Europe, Japan, and Canada.

Video Credit: Axiom Space
Duration: 12 minutes
Release Date: July 8, 2025

#NASA #Space #Earth #ISS #Science #AxiomSpace #Ax4Mission #Ax4 #Astronauts  #CommercialAstronauts #PeggyWhitson #UnitedStates #ShubhanshuShukla #India #BhāratGaṇarājya #SławoszUznańskiWiśniewski #Poland #Polska #TiborKapu #Hungary #Magyarország #Expedition73 #CommercialSpace #MicrogravityResearch #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Rocket Lab Tests Archimedes Engine for Neutron Rocket | NASA Stennis

Rocket Lab Tests Archimedes Engine for Neutron Rocket | NASA Stennis

Rocket Lab recently performed hot-fire tests of its Archimedes engine through its rocket test stand at NASA’s historic Stennis Space Center in Mississippi. Rocket Lab’s new Neutron medium-lift reusable launch vehicle will use Archimedes engines to provide government and commercial customers with an alternative launch service capable of deploying 13,000 kg to low Earth orbit (LEO). Significant progress continues to be made at the rocket’s launch pad on Wallops Island, Virginia. Production, infrastructure scaling, and Archimedes engine and full-scale components testing is continuing across Rocket Lab’s production and test facilities in the United States. Neutron’s debut remains on track for first launch in the second half of 2025.

The advanced design of the Neutron rocket includes carbon composite for all of the rocket’s major structures and an upper stage that enables high-performance for complex satellite deployments, including the deployment of satellite mega-constellations.

The Archimedes engine is an oxidizer rich staged combustion cycle engine that will power the reusable first stage of Neutron and the new rocket’s second stage that is designed to carry up to 13,000 kilograms of payload to space. Capable of producing up to 165,000 (733 kilonewtons) pounds of thrust per engine, Archimedes operates at lower stress levels than other rocket engines to enable rapid and reliable reusability. The combined thrust of nine Archimedes engines for Neutron’s first stage is designed to reach 1,450,000 lbf total. Archimedes uses a cryogenic propellant mix of liquid oxygen and liquefied natural gas (LNG) to enable higher reusability and performance. Furthermore, many of its critical components are 3D printed including Archimedes’ turbo pump housings, pre-burner and main chamber components, valve housings, and engine structural components. Production of the Archimedes engines takes place at Rocket Lab’s Engine Development Complex at its headquarters in Long Beach, California.

Rocket Lab's new Neutron rocket will feature the new Archimedes Engine.

First Stage

9 Archimedes Engines

Lox/Methane Oxidizer Rich Closed Cycle

Total Lift-off Thrust: 1,485,000 lbf

Second Stage

Single Vacuum Archimedes Engine

Lox/Methane Oxidizer Rich Closed Cycle

Vacuum Thrust: 890 kN (200,000 lbf)

Learn more: 

https://rocketlabcorp.com/launch/neutron/

Image Credit: Rocket Lab

Release Date: July 8, 2025

#NASA #Space #Aerospace #Earth #LEO #Satellites #Spacecraft #RocketLab #NeutronRocket #ArchimedesEngines #EngineTesting #CommercialSpace #PeterBeck #NASAStennis #StennisSpaceCenter #Mississippi #UnitedStates #SpaceExploration #STEM #Education

Close-up: Barred Spiral Galaxy NGC 685 in Eridanus | Hubble

Close-up: Barred Spiral Galaxy NGC 685 in Eridanus | Hubble

A galaxy ablaze with young stars is the subject of this NASA/European Space Agency Hubble Space Telescope picture. This galaxy is called NGC 685 and is situated about 64 million light-years away in the constellation Eridanus (The River). NGC 685 is classified as a barred spiral because its feathery spiral arms sprout from the ends of a bar of stars at the galaxy’s center. The Milky Way is also a barred spiral, but our galaxy is a little less than twice the size of NGC 685. 

Astronomers used Hubble to study NGC 685 for two observing programs that focus on star formation. It is no surprise that NGC 685 was chosen for these programs: numerous patches of young blue stars highlight the galaxy’s spiral arms. Many of these star clusters are cocooned in pink gas clouds that are called H II (pronounced ‘H-two’) regions. An H II region is a gas cloud that glows for a short time when particularly hot and massive stars are born. An especially eye-catching H II region peeks out at the bottom edge of the image. Despite the dozens of star-forming regions evident in this image, NGC 685 converts an amount of gas equivalent to less than half the mass of the Sun into stars each year. 

The Hubble data collected for the two observing programs will allow astronomers to catalogue 50,000 H II regions and 100,000 star clusters in nearby galaxies. By combining Hubble’s sensitive visible and ultraviolet observations with infrared data from the NASA/European Space Agency/Canadian Space Agency James Webb Space Telescope and radio data from the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array, researchers will peer into the depths of dusty stellar nurseries and illuminate the stars forming there.

Image Description: A spiral galaxy seen directly on. It glows strongly at its center and has a short horizontal bar. Two spiral arms extend from this bar, but they are broad and irregularly-shaped. They are filled with tiny blue dots—stars—and glowing pink clouds—star-forming nebulae. The arms break apart into many strands at the edge of the disc. Beyond this is a dark background.

Credit: ESA/Hubble & NASA, J. Lee, F. Belfiore

Duration: 30 seconds
Release Date: June 2, 2025

#NASA #ESA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Hubble #Hubble35 #Galaxies #Galaxy #NGC685 #BarredGalaxy #SpiralGalaxy #HIIRegions #StarFormation #Eridanus #Constellation #Cosmos #Universe #HubbleSpaceTelescope #HST #GSFC #STScI #UnitedStates #Europe #STEM #Education #HD #Video

China's Tianzhou-8 Cargo Spacecraft Undocking | China Space Station

China's Tianzhou-8 Cargo Spacecraft Undocking | China Space Station

The Tianzhou-8 cargo spacecraft, tasked with carrying supplies for China's space station, separated from the station combination at 15:09 on Tuesday, July 8, 2025, according to the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA). The cargo craft will re-enter the atmosphere in a controlled manner, the CMSA said. Most of the components of the cargo craft will be ablated and destroyed during re-entry into the atmosphere, and a small amount of debris will fall into the designated safe sea area, the CMSA said.

Tianzhou-8 was launched into space atop a Long March-7 Y9 carrier rocket at 23:13 Beijing Time (15:13 GMT) on Nov 15, 2024 from the Wenchang Spacecraft Launch Site in the southern island province of Hainan. About three hours later, the Tianzhou-8 cargo craft docked at the rear docking port of Tianhe, the core module of the Tiangong space station.

At 08:26 Beijing Time (0026 GMT) on Nov 16, astronaut Cai Xuzhe opened the hatch and entered the Tianzhou-8 cargo spacecraft. Tianzhou-8 carried about six tons of materials, including consumables for the astronauts' in-orbit residency, propellants, experiment equipment, and 458 kilograms of scientific research supplies.

"It is mainly used to support scientific experiments in the fields of space life and biotechnology, space materials science, microgravity fluid physics and combustion, as well as our new space application technologies. In total, it can support 36 scientific experiments," said Jin Xuena, researcher of the Technology and Engineering Center for Space Utilization under the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

For the first time, a brick made of synthetic lunar soil was brought aboard the space station and subject to an exposure experiment to test their mechanical, thermal and radiation resistance properties, accumulating scientific research data for future construction on the Moon.

Video Credit: CCTV
Duration: 1 minute
Release Date: July 9, 2025

#NASA #Space #Science #China #中国 #ChinaSpaceStation #中国空间站 #TiangongSpaceStation #SpaceLaboratory #Tianzhou8 #CargoSpacecraft #Shenzhou20Mission #神舟二十号 #Shenzhou20Crew #Taikonauts #ChenDong #ChenZhongrui #WangJie #Astronauts #CMSA #中国载人航天工程办公室 #LongDurationMissions #HumanSpaceflight #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Commercial Astronaut Koichi Wakata Tests Artemis AxEMU Spacesuit | Axiom Space

Commercial Astronaut Koichi Wakata Tests Artemis AxEMU Spacesuit | Axiom Space

In June 2025, Koichi Wakata, Axiom Space astronaut and Chief Technology Officer, was the first to test the next-gen Axiom Extravehicular Mobility Unit (AxEMU) in NASA’s Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory (NBL). The NBL is one of the world's largest indoor pools, used for astronaut training and mission preparation, allowing astronauts to simulate lunar surface tasks in partial gravity or spacewalks in zero gravity. The AxEMU continues to make strides in testing, showcasing its performance in a range of environments. 

Koichi Wakata's Profile:
https://www.axiomspace.com/team/koichi-wakata

The tests were first conducted with Wakata, followed by NASA spacesuit engineers Kristine Davis and Richard Rhodes and focused on the integration of the AxEMU into the NBL facility. 

The Axiom Space Extravehicular Activity (EVA) program team tested the operations and capabilities of the communications, breathing, and cooling systems of the spacesuit in the pool. Moreover, the team worked to familiarize the NBL divers with the AxEMU’s operations and support systems.  

The Axiom Space-developed spacesuit will enable astronauts to explore the Moon for the first time in over 50 years as part of the Artemis III mission to the lunar south pole.

The AxEMU continues to undergo extensive testing to ensure it will be ready to support Artemis III. This year, the EVA program team accomplished several key achievements, including completing its first three crewed tests in the NBL; 23 tests in NASA’s Active Response Gravity Offload System (ARGOS) that provides a simulated reduced gravity environment; multiple field evaluations using lunar tools; and lunar regolith challenge testing demonstrating that the suit exceeds its mission requirements in this area. The spacesuit will undergo further integrated tests with the Lunar Terrain Vehicles (LTVs) and is scheduled to enter the Critical Design Review (CDR) stage later this year.

Axiom Space remains laser-focused on the development of this next-generation spacesuit providing astronauts with increased flexibility, mobility, and safety capabilities.

Learn more: axiomspace.com/axiom-suit

Video Credit: Axiom Space
Duration: 36 seconds
Release Date: July 8, 2025

#NASA #Space #Moon #ArtemisProgram #ArtemisIII #Astronauts #KoichiWakata #Spacesuit #EVA #AxEMU #AxiomSpace #DeepSpace #MoonToMars #Science #Engineering #SpaceTechnology #SpaceExploration #HumanSpaceflight #NBL #JPL #UnitedStates #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Moon Science: Sunrise over a 10-km crater | NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter

Moon Science: Sunrise over a 10-km crater  | NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter

Early morning Sun illuminates the steep western wall of an unnamed 10-kilometer diameter crater. North is to the right, image 3.5 kilometers across in the center.

Deep shadows pattern the ground around Bailly O crater and the fresh, not-yet-named crater in the foreground (10-kilometer diameter, 2200 meters deep, 70.00°S, 302.46°E). Very few impact craters superpose this crater, its walls are often at the angle-of-repose (36°), and small-scale features are crisp and sharp, indicating a very young age, possibly as young as Giordano Bruno, perhaps two million years or less. The view is looking east-to-west, acquired 2023-08-30, incidence angle 82°, slew angle 67°, phase angle 74°, slew angle 67°, spacecraft altitude 100 kilometers, image is 12 kilometers wide in the center, M1448073607LR

Enjoy these dramatic sunrise views of a possibly two-million-year-old unnamed crater 10 kilometers (6.2 miles) in diameter. This year, NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) celebrates its 16th anniversary orbiting the Moon (2009-2026). This mission has given scientists the largest volume of data ever collected by a planetary science mission at NASA. Considering that success and the continuing functionality of the spacecraft and its instruments, NASA awarded the mission an extended mission phase to continue operations. LRO continues to be one of NASA's most valuable tools for advancing lunar science.

Learn more about NASA's LRO:
https://science.nasa.gov/mission/lro/

Image Credit: NASA/GSFC/Intuitive Machines
Release Date: October 22, 2024

#NASA #Space #Astronomy #Science #Earth #Moon #Geology #Geoscience #Craters #ImpactCraters #Sunrise #Shadows #ArtemisProgram #LRO #LunarOrbiter #LROC #NAC #SpaceRobotics #SpaceTechnology #IntuitiveMachines #GSFC #UnitedStates #SolarSystem #SpaceExploration #STEM #Education

Sprite over North America: Labeled version | International Space Station

Sprite over North America: Labeled version | International Space Station

Expedition 73 flight engineer and NASA astronaut Nichole Ayers: "Just. Wow. As we went over Mexico and the U.S. this morning, I caught this sprite. Sprites are TLEs or Transient Luminous Events, that happen above the clouds and are triggered by intense electrical activity in the thunderstorms below. We have a great view above the clouds, so scientists can use these types of pictures to better understand the formation, characteristics, and relationship of TLEs to thunderstorms."

Red Sprites: These mysterious bursts of light in the upper atmosphere momentarily resemble gigantic jellyfish. One unusual feature of sprites is that they are relatively cold. They operate more like long fluorescent light tubes than hot compact light bulbs. In general, red sprites take only a fraction of a second to occur and are best seen when powerful thunderstorms are visible from the side.

Learn more here: https://uhu.epss.hu/en/tle-phenomena/

Follow Expedition 73:

https://blogs.nasa.gov/spacestation/

Expedition 73 Crew

Station Commander: JAXA Flight Engineer Takuya Onishi
Roscosmos (Russia) Flight Engineers: Kirill Peskov, Sergey Ryzhikov, Alexey Zubritskiy

NASA Flight Engineers: Anne McClain, Nichole Ayers, Jonny Kim

An international partnership of space agencies provides and operates the elements of the International Space Station (ISS). The principals are the space agencies of the United States, Russia, Europe, Japan, and Canada.

Learn more about the important research being operated on Station:
https://www.nasa.gov/iss-science

For more information about STEM on Station:

https://www.nasa.gov/stemonstation
Science, Technology, Engineering, Math (STEM)

Image Credit: NASA/JSC/Nichole Ayers
Release Date: July 7, 2025

#NASA #Space #ISS #Science #Planet #Earth #Atmosphere #Thunderstorms #Sprites #TLE #Sprite #NorthAmerica #Astronauts #NicholeAyers #AstronautPhotography #UnitedStates #Japan #日本 #JAXA #Cosmonauts #Russia #Россия #Roscosmos #Роскосмос #HumanSpaceflight #SpaceLaboratory #InternationalCooperation #Expedition73 #Infographics #STEM #Education

NOAA FY2026 Budget Request Cuts Most US Weather, Ocean & Climate Research

NOAA FY2026 Budget Request Cuts Most US Weather, Ocean & Climate Research

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has revealed more specifics on its plan for significant funding cuts. NOAA's submission to Congress requests $4.5 billion for the coming budget year—27% less than current spending levels. As in previous White House proposals, the most dramatic changes are planned for NOAA's Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research. OAR currently operates 10 research labs and funds a network of 16 cooperative institutes and six regional climate centers. It also backs millions of dollars in research at many universities. The proposed budget would "eliminate" OAR, zeroing out over $700 million of spending and firing several hundred scientists and staff. Many more university research positions would also be cut without federal funding. Affected research would include work on tornadoes, hail, flash flooding, hurricanes, wildfires, tsunamis, El Nino and La Nina, water quality, air pollution, and more. 

The budget proposal retains a few research programs, but moves them to other parts of NOAA. For example, the National Severe Storms Laboratory in Oklahoma would be shut down. The only remaining severe weather research would come from specific projects like the U.S. Weather Research Program, the Phased Array Radar program, and the Joint Technology Transfer Initiative. These programs, totaling approximately $60 million and about 30 federal positions, would be transferred to the National Weather Service. Meteorologists around the country use something called the Applied Climate Information System to look up weather data from past years. ACIS is maintained by NOAA’s regional climate centers. This would be defunded. Most U.S. weather data is still housed at NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information, but it also faces a proposed 26% budget cut.

Funding toward the eventual replacement of NOAA's aging aircraft is also eliminated in the 2026 proposal. The agency currently operates 10 planes, including three that fly into hurricanes and carry out various other missions. According to the budget document, "Aircraft recapitalization is necessary for NOAA to keep its fleet of aircraft operational, and continue to provide essential services to the Nation, including accurate flood planning, hurricane and atmospheric rivers forecast, and data used by the Nation's emergency managers. The Budget does not provide funding for this program."

You can read the full 2026 NOAA budget (PDF) proposal here:
https://www.noaa.gov/sites/default/files/2025-06/NOAA%20FY26%20Congressional%20Justification.pdf

All of these budget changes are subject to congressional approval.

Contact your representatives in the United States Congress, House and Senate, to express your concerns about NOAA's drastic research budget cuts: https://www.usa.gov/elected-officials/

Video Credit: NOAA
Text Credit: KCCI/Zane Satre/Meteorologist

Duration: 2 minutes, 33 seconds
Release Date: July 7-8, 2025

#NASA #NOAA #Space #Satellites #Planet #Earth #EarthScience #NOAABudget #NOAAFY2026Budget #Weather #Meteorology #OAR #OceanResearch #Oceanography #OceanScience #Scientists #Environment #Climate #ClimateChange #GlobalHeating #GlobalWarming #EarthObservation #RemoteSensing #UnitedStates #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Globular Star Cluster Palomar 8 in Sagittarius | Hubble Space Telescope

Globular Star Cluster Palomar 8 in Sagittarius | Hubble Space Telescope

A previously unexplored globular cluster glitters with multicolored stars in this Hubble Space Telescope image. Globular clusters like this one, called ESO 591-12 or Palomar 8, are spherical collections of tens of thousands to millions of stars tightly bound together by gravity. Globular clusters generally form early in the galaxies’ histories in regions rich in gas and dust. Since the stars form from the same cloud of gas as it collapses, they typically hover around the same age. Strewn across this image of ESO 591-12 are a number of red and blue stars. The colors indicate their temperatures; red stars are cooler, while the blue stars are hotter.

Hubble captured the data used to create this image of ESO 591-12 as part of a study intended to resolve individual stars of the entire globular cluster system of the Milky Way. Hubble revolutionized the study of globular clusters since earthbound telescopes are generally unable to distinguish individual stars in the compact clusters. The study is part of the Hubble Missing Globular Clusters Survey. It targets 34 confirmed Milky Way globular clusters that Hubble has yet to observe.

The program aims to provide complete observations of ages and distances for all of the Milky Way’s globular clusters and investigate fundamental properties of still-unexplored clusters in the galactic bulge or halo. The observations will provide key information on the early stages of our galaxy, when globular clusters formed.

Image Description: Bright stars cluster against a black background. The stars are more densely concentrated in the center of the image. The stars appear mostly white, but bright red and blue stars are also visible sprinkled throughout the image.

Image Credit: NASA, European Space Agency , and D. Massari (INAF — Osservatorio di Astrofisica e Scienza dello Spazio); Processing: Gladys Kober (NASA/Catholic University of America)

Text Credit: European Space Agency
Release Date: July 3, 2025

#NASA #ESA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Hubble #Stars #StarClusters #GlobularStarClusters #Palomar8 #ESO59112 #Sagittarius #Constellation #Cosmos #Universe #HST #HubbleSpaceTelescope #GSFC #STScI #UnitedStates #Europe #STEM #Education

Ex-NASA Astronaut & Ax-4 Commander Peggy Whitson | International Space Station

Ex-NASA Astronaut & Ax-4 Commander Peggy Whitson | International Space Station

"Every moment in the cupola feels like a gift. It's hands down the most stunning view in the universe!"

Peggy Whitson is the commander of the the fourth private astronaut mission to the orbiting laboratory, Axiom Mission 4. She is also a scientist, specializing in biochemistry. Whitson has performed a total of ten career spacewalks, adding up to 60 hours and 21 minutes. 

Astronauts use the International Space Station's seven-windowed cupola to monitor the arrival of spacecraft and to view the Earth below. The European-built cupola is a 1.6-tonne aluminium structure about 2 meters in diameter and 1.5 meters high. Its dome is a single forged unit with no welding. 

Learn more about the cupola:

https://www.esa.int/Science_Exploration/Human_and_Robotic_Exploration/Node-3_Cupola/Cupola

Peggy Whitson (United States) Biography
https://www.axiomspace.com/astronaut/peggy-whitson

https://www.nasa.gov/people/peggy-a-whitson/

Former NASA astronaut Peggy Whitson, Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla, European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski of Poland, and astronaut Tibor Kapu of Hungary have been aboard the International Space Station after launching June 25, 2025 on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida for Axiom Mission 4.

The private astronauts are spending about two weeks aboard the orbiting laboratory, conducting a mission of science, outreach, and commercial activities.

The Ax-4 Mission “realizes the return” to human spaceflight for India, Poland, and Hungary, with each nation’s first government-sponsored flight in more than 40 years. While Ax-4 marks these countries' second human spaceflight mission in history, it is the first time all three nations will execute a mission on board the International Space Station.

The Ax-4 research complement includes around 60 scientific studies and activities representing 31 countries.

Learn more about Ax-4: 
https://www.axiomspace.com/missions/ax4

An international partnership of space agencies provides and operates the elements of the International Space Station (ISS). The principals are the space agencies of the United States, Russia, Europe, Japan, and Canada.

Image Credit: Axiom Space/Peggy Whitson

Release Date: July 7, 2025

#NASA #Space #Earth #ISS #Cupola #AxiomSpace #Ax4Mission #Ax4 #PeggyWhitson #Ax4Commander #Scientist #Biochemist #Astronauts #CommercialAstronauts #Expedition73 #UnitedStates #CommercialSpace #InternationalCooperation #STEM #Education

Extragalactic Open Star Clusters NGC 460 & NGC 456 in Tucana | Webb+Hubble

Extragalactic Open Star Clusters NGC 460 & NGC 456 in Tucana | Webb+Hubble

A vast network of stars, gas, and dust is strung among a duo of star clusters in this combined image from NASA’s Hubble and Webb space telescopes. Open star clusters NGC 460 and NGC 456 reside in the Small Magellanic Cloud, a dwarf galaxy orbiting the Milky Way. This highly detailed 527 megapixel mosaic consists of 12 overlapping observations and includes visible and infrared wavelengths. Bluish clouds of gas are wound through with red-glowing lanes and filaments of dust. The clouds contain cavities filled with stars and many more stars are visible in the background and scattered throughout the clouds. Tiny background galaxies are also sprinkled throughout the image.

On the left is a Hubble image of NGC 460, a round, bubble-shaped bluish cloud of gas and dust. On the right is a Webb telescope image of NGC 460, showing a cavern-like outline of red filaments of dust. Both are studded with stars.

A riotous expanse of gas, dust, and stars stake out the dazzling territory of a duo of star clusters in these images from NASA’s Hubble and Webb space telescopes.

Open clusters NGC 460 and NGC 456 reside in the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC), a dwarf galaxy orbiting the Milky Way. Open clusters consist of anywhere from a few dozen to a few thousand young stars loosely bound together by gravity. These particular clusters are part of an extensive complex of star clusters and nebulae that are likely linked to one another. As clouds of gas collapse, stars are born. These young, hot stars expel intense stellar winds that shape the nebulae around them, carving out the clouds and triggering other collapses, which in turn give rise to more stars.

The nodules visible in these images are scenes of active star formation, with stars ranging from just one to 10 million years old. In contrast, our Sun is 4.5 billion years old. The region that holds these clusters, known as the N83-84-85 complex, is home to multiple, rare O-type stars, hot and extremely massive stars that burn hydrogen like our Sun. Astronomers estimate there are only around 20,000 O-type stars among the approximately 400 billion stars in the Milky Way.

The Small Magellanic Cloud is of great interest to researchers because it is less enriched in metals than the Milky Way. Astronomers call all elements heavier than hydrogen and helium—that is, with more than two protons in the atom's nucleus—"metals." This state mimics conditions in the early universe, so the Small Magellanic Cloud provides a relatively nearby laboratory to explore theories about star formation and the interstellar medium at early stages of cosmic history. With these observations of NGC 460 and NGC 456, researchers intend to study how gas flows in the region converge or divide; refine the collision history between the Small Magellanic Cloud and its fellow dwarf galaxy, the Large Magellanic Cloud; examine how bursts of star formation occur in such gravitational interactions between galaxies; and better understand the interstellar medium.

Image Credit: NASA, European Space Agency, and C. Lindberg (The Johns Hopkins University)

Image Processing: Gladys Kober (NASA/Catholic University of America)
Release Date: July 7, 2025

#NASA #Astronomy #Space #Science #NASAWebb #Stars #StarClusters #NGC460 #NGC456 #StellarNurseries #Galaxies #SMC #DwarfGalaxies #Tucana #Constellation #Universe #UnfoldTheUniverse #JWST #InfraredAstronomy #Hubble #HST #SpaceTelescopes #ESA #Europe #CSA #Canada #GSFC #STScI #UnitedStates #STEM #Education

3I/ATLAS: A New Interstellar Object Visiting Our Solar System | ESO

3I/ATLAS: A New Interstellar Object Visiting Our Solar System | ESO

The European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope (VLT) has obtained new images of 3I/ATLAS, an interstellar object discovered last week. Identified as a comet, 3I/ATLAS is only the third visitor from outside the Solar System ever found, after 1I/ʻOumuamua and 2I/Borisov. Its highly eccentric hyperbolic orbit, unlike that of objects in the Solar System, gave away its interstellar origin. 

This VLT image is the result of stacking several observations obtained on the night of July 3, 2025. When combining the different frames, the background stars were removed, showing only a deep image of the interstellar comet. The data were obtained with the FORS2 instrument, and are available in the ESO archive. 

Image Description: An image of a white smudge against a black background. The smudge has a short faint tail extending to the right.

When discovered it was about 410 million miles (670 million kilometers) away from the Sun, within the orbit of Jupiter. Projected to pass near Mars and Jupiter, 3I/ATLAS is not expected to pass close to the Earth. The origin of Comet 3I/ATLAS remains unknown. Since this is the third interstellar object ever discovered, its name begins with the number 3 and the letter I. Comet 3I/ATLAS poses no known threat to Earth. Meanwhile, it provides a fascinating and rare opportunity for scientists to study these interstellar interlopers.

Credit: ESO/O. Hainaut
Release Date: July 8, 2025

#NASA #ESO #Space #Astronomy #Science #SolarSystem #InterstellarObjects #InterplanetaryBodies #InterstellarComet3I #Planets #Jupiter #Earth #ATLAS #RioHurtado #VLT #FORS2 #ParanalObservatory #Chile #Europe #PlanetaryDefense #STEM #Education

Timelapse View of Interstellar Object 3I/ATLAS Visiting Our Solar System | ESO

Timelapse View of Interstellar Object 3I/ATLAS Visiting Our Solar System | ESO

The European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope (VLT) has obtained new images of 3I/ATLAS, an interstellar object discovered last week. Identified as a comet, 3I/ATLAS is only the third visitor from outside the Solar System ever found, after 1I/ʻOumuamua and 2I/Borisov. Its highly eccentric hyperbolic orbit, unlike that of objects in the Solar System, gave away its interstellar origin. 

In this VLT timelapse, 3I/ATLAS is seen moving to the right over the course of about 13 minutes. These data were obtained with the FORS2 instrument on the VLT on the night of July 3, 2025, just two days after the comet was first discovered. The data were made immediately public through the ESO archive.

At the end of the video, we see all frames stacked into a single image: the deepest and best to date we have of this foreign object. However, this record will not hold for long as the comet is getting closer to Earth and becoming less faint. Currently more than 600 million kilometers away from the Sun, 3I/ATLAS is travelling towards the inner Solar System and is expected to make its closest approach to Earth in late October 2025. While 3I/ATLAS will be hiding behind the Sun at that point, it will become observable again in December 2025, as it makes its way back to interstellar space. 

Telescopes around the world, including the VLT, will continue to observe this rare celestial visitor for as long as they can, to find out more about its shape, its composition and its origin. What surprises will these observations reveal? Stay tuned! 

When discovered it was about 410 million miles (670 million kilometers) away from the Sun, within the orbit of Jupiter. Projected to pass near Mars and Jupiter, 3I/ATLAS is not expected to pass close to the Earth. The origin of Comet 3I/ATLAS remains unknown. Since this is the third interstellar object ever discovered, its name begins with the number 3 and the letter I. Comet 3I/ATLAS poses no known threat to Earth. Meanwhile, it provides a fascinating and rare opportunity for scientists to study these interstellar interlopers.

Credit: ESO/O. Hainaut
Duration: 15 seconds
Release Date: July 8, 2025

#NASA #ESO #Space #Astronomy #Science #SolarSystem #InterstellarObjects #InterstellarComet3I #Planets #Jupiter #Earth #ATLAS #RioHurtado #VLT #FORS2 #ParanalObservatory #Chile #Europe #PlanetaryDefense #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Former NASA Science Chiefs Ask Congress to End 47% NASA Science Funding Cuts

Former NASA Science Chiefs Ask Congress to End 47% NASA Science Funding Cuts

For the first time in history, every living former NASA science chief united to sign a joint letter to Congress, urging members to reject a devastating 47% cut to NASA’s science budget. Read full letter here: https://bit.ly/4eyYtvA

NASA's Fiscal Year 2026 Budget Request is cutting NASA's total science budget by 47%, affecting many planetary and Earth science missions. These funding reductions will result in the cancellation of 19 active science missions (e.g., JUNO, New Horizons, Mars Express, Mars MAVEN, Mars Sample Return) and end several planned ones deemed crucial by the National Academy of Sciences, including Venus missions, and those involving partnerships with international space agencies.

NASA activities related to education, including its science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) programs are canceled.

NASA is deleting most of its social media accounts (including popular ones with millions of followers) and closing all public affairs offices at its 9+ field centers nationwide. NASA's overall communications budget will be reduced around 45% in total. Furthermore, NASA's headquarters may be moved from Washington, DC, while having the public affairs/social media budget reduced at its headquarters by ~15%. This means NASA will be far less able to inform taxpayers about its work on behalf of the American people and the scientific community as a civilian space agency.

Contact your representatives in the United States Congress, House and Senate, to express your concerns about NASA's severe budget cuts: 

https://www.usa.gov/elected-officials/

Review NASA's Fiscal Year 2026 Budget Request (PDF) Documents:
https://www.nasa.gov/fy-2026-budget-request/

Image Credits: The Planetary Society/NASA Watch

Release Date: July 7, 2025

#NASA #Space #Astronomy #Science #USCongress #NASABudgetFY2026 #NASABudget #NASAScienceMissions #AssociateAdministrators #SMD #Sun #Heliophysics #SolarSystem #Planets #PlanetaryScience #Earth #EarthScience #Moon #ArtemisProgram #Mars #Jupiter #KBO #Universe #UnitedStates #Infographics #STEM #Education

APACHE: Astronaut Spacewalks in Virtual Reality | NASA Johnson

APACHE: Astronaut Spacewalks in Virtual Reality | NASA Johnson

At NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas, one lab uses the virtual reality environment to study how astronauts perform on spacewalks. They use sandboxes, multi-directional treadmills, and even mockups of spacesuits to simulate the spacewalk environment in ways that other facilities cannot. The data they gather on human health and performance could have an impact on future deep space exploration by mitigating risk.

Video Credit: NASA's Johnson Space Center

Duration: 25 minutes
Release Date: July 7, 2025

#NASA #Space #Earth #Science #ISS #ArtemisProgram #Astronauts #AstronautTraining #SpacewalkTraining #EVA #APACHE #VirtualReality #HumanSpaceflight #JSC #Houston #Texas #UnitedStates #MicrogravityResearch #SpaceResearch #SpaceLaboratory #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Moon Science: Fences on the Moon? | NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter

Moon Science: Fences on the Moon? | NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter

Mysterious farside impact melt deposits, image width 12 kilometers at center, looking west-to-east, north is to the left, M1451669615LR.

Full-resolution view showing impact melt that ponded in the bottom of a 10-kilometer diameter crater. The dark lines (fences) formed as impact melt flow fronts solidified, not quite making it down to crater bottom. The flow fronts are so dark because they are very blocky and the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera (LROC) was looking back towards the Sun enhancing topographic shadows. The flat ponded impact melt rock deposit is 600 meters by 800 meters wide, north is to the left NAC M1451669615

This complete Narrow Angle Camera (NAC) oblique perspective shows a portion of the enigmatic highland pond area. Image width is approximately 72 kilometers in the center; north is to the left, NAC M1451669615LR

Fences on the Moon?

Early in the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) mission, Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera (LROC) images of the central farside revealed impact melt deposits with no prominent source crater. Very mysterious. Soon, scientists noticed that these enigmatic deposits were found at the Tycho crater antipode (opposite side of the Moon). Perhaps the Tycho forming event was so energetic that it ejected melt to the opposite side of the Moon, a distance of 5400 kilometers requiring a time-of-flight of 164 minutes. M1451669615, looking west-to-east, acquired 2023-10-11, incidence angle 60°, slew angle 47°, phase angle 110°, spacecraft altitude 112 kilometers, image width 12 kilometers.

Details in the first image highlight what appear to be "fences". Then, the full-resolution view (second image) shows impact melt that ponded in the bottom of a 10-kilometer diameter crater. The dark lines (fences) formed as impact melt flow fronts solidified, not quite making it down to crater bottom. The flow fronts are so dark because they are very blocky and LROC was looking back towards the Sun enhancing topographic shadows. The flat ponded impact melt rock deposit is 600 meters by 800 meters wide, north is to the left NAC M1451669615.

The third image is a complete Narrow Angle Camera (NAC) oblique view presenting a portion of the enigmatic highland pond area. Image width is approximately 72 kilometers in the center; north is to the left, NAC M1451669615LR. 

This year, NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) celebrates its 16th anniversary orbiting the Moon (2009-2026). This mission has given scientists the largest volume of data ever collected by a planetary science mission at NASA. Considering that success and the continuing functionality of the spacecraft and its instruments, NASA awarded the mission an extended mission phase to continue operations. LRO continues to be one of NASA's most valuable tools for advancing lunar science.

Image Credit: NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University

Text Credit: Mark Robinson

Release Date: April 25, 2025

#NASA #Space #Astronomy #Science #Earth #Moon #Geology #Geoscience #Craters #ImpactCraters #MeltDeposits #ArtemisProgram #LRO #LunarOrbiter #LROC #NAC #SpaceRobotics #SpaceTechnology #GSFC #UnitedStates #SolarSystem #SpaceExploration #STEM #Education