Friends of NASA

Thursday, September 03, 2026

Journey to N44 Nebula in Dorado—A Large Magellanic Cloud Superbubble | Hubble

Journey to N44 Nebula in Dorado—A Large Magellanic Cloud Superbubble | Hubble

This sprawling cosmic vista and subject of this Hubble picture comes from the Large Magellanic Cloud, or LMC. The LMC is the largest of the small galaxies that orbit our Milky Way galaxy. At just 160,000 light-years away, the LMC offers a close look at highly active stellar birthsites like the nebula shown here. This nebula is named LHA 120-N44, or N44 for short, and it is located in the constellation Dorado.

The appearance of this photogenic nebula is dominated by two features—a vast central void and a shell of dense, dusty gas. The central void is a ‘superbubble’ spanning roughly 210 by 140 light-years. The glittering stars at the center of the void are responsible for its creation. Through their powerful stellar winds and explosive supernovae, these stars have expelled much of the gas from which they were born.

When the stars of N44’s central star cluster swept away this gas, the expelled gas formed a shell around the superbubble. New stars are forming in this compressed gas shell, making N44 an interesting target for researchers studying the process of star formation. In particular, astronomers have turned to this nebula as an ideal place to time this process from start to finish. Their goal is to understand how long it takes from the collapse of cold gas clouds into dense knots to the moment nuclear fusion ignites in the heart of a newborn star.

Researchers used Hubble to survey N44 and take a census of its stars, cataloging nearly half a million stars within the cluster as well as interlopers drifting in front of it. Of the stars surveyed, nearly 30,000 are what astronomers call pre-main-sequence stars that have yet to begin fusing hydrogen into helium in their cores. This treasure trove of baby stars was discoverable thanks to the high sensitivity and fine spatial resolution of Hubble’s instruments that can pick out faint objects in crowded clusters.

The gas shell surrounding the superbubble is energized by ultraviolet radiation from massive stars, causing it to glow and highlighting several distinct features. Each feature within the broader N44 star-forming complex was catalogued by astronomer Karl Henize in the 1950s. One feature is a smaller bubble, cataloged as N44F, that is located near the upper-right corner of this image. N44F is an interstellar bubble blown by the intense stellar winds of a single hot and massive star. As this previously released Hubble closeup shows, the star’s furious winds and radiation have sculpted the surrounding bubble and created pillars of dusty gas.

The data used to create this image come from an observing program (#14689; PI: Gouliermis) that aimed to probe stars in the N44 complex that have not yet begun fusing hydrogen into heavier elements in their cores. These data help to determine how long the process of star formation takes, as well as what masses newborn stars typically have. Hubble's sensitive observations of the lowest-mass stars in this region open a new window onto star formation in regions that, like the LMC or the galaxies of the early Universe, are poor in elements heavier than helium.

Image Description: A dense field of stars fills the image, surrounded by wispy clouds of gas and dust. Pale blue and grey nebulosity forms an intricate web across the scene with darker clouds of dust concentrated towards the lower right. Numerous bright stars appear in shades of blue, white and orange.

Credit: ESA/Hubble & NASA, D. Gouliermis

Duration: 1 minute
Release Date: Sept. 3, 2026

#NASA #ESA #Hubble #Astronomy #Space #Science #Stars #Nebulae #LHA120N44 #N44 #N44F #Superbubble #DoradoConstellation #LMC #Cosmos #Universe #HST #HubbleSpaceTelescope #GSFC #STScI #UnitedStates #Europe #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Close-up: N44 Nebula in Dorado—A Large Magellanic Cloud Superbubble | Hubble

Close-up: N44 Nebula in Dorado—A Large Magellanic Cloud Superbubble | Hubble

Credit: ESA/Hubble & NASA, D. Gouliermis

Duration: 30 seconds
Release Date: Sept. 3, 2026

N44 Nebula in Dorado: A Large Magellanic Cloud Superbubble Scene | Hubble

N44 Nebula in Dorado: A Large Magellanic Cloud Superbubble Scene | Hubble

Credit: ESA/Hubble & NASA, D. Gouliermis
Release Date: Sept. 3, 2026

Close-up: NGC 6717—A Glittering Globular Cluster in Sagittarius | Hubble

Close-up: NGC 6717—A Glittering Globular Cluster in Sagittarius | Hubble

This star-studded image from the NASA/European Space Agency Hubble Space Telescope depicts NGC 6717. It lies more than 20,000 light-years from Earth in the constellation Sagittarius. NGC 6717 is a globular cluster, a roughly spherical collection of stars tightly bound together by gravity. Globular clusters contain more stars in their centers than their outer fringes, as this image aptly demonstrates. The sparsely populated edges of NGC 6717 are in stark contrast to the sparkling collection of stars at its center.

The center of the image also contains some interlopers from closer to home. Bright foreground stars close to Earth are surrounded by criss-cross diffraction spikes formed by starlight interacting with the structures supporting Hubble’s secondary mirror.

The area of the night sky that contains the constellation Sagittarius also has the center of the Milky Way galaxy. It is filled with light-absorbing gas and dust. This absorption of light is what astronomers refer to as extinction. It makes studying globular clusters near the Galactic center a challenging endeavor. To determine the properties of NGC 6717, astronomers relied on a combination of Hubble’s Wide Field Camera 3 and the Advanced Camera for Surveys.

Credit: ESA/Hubble and NASA, A. Sarajedini

Duration: 30 seconds
Release Date: Sept. 6, 2021

#NASA #ESA #Hubble #Astronomy #Space #Science #Stars #StarClusters #GlobularStarClusters #NGC6717 #SagittariusConstellation #MilkyWayGalaxy #Cosmos #Universe #HST #HubbleSpaceTelescope #HubbleWFC3 #HubbleACS #GSFC #STScI #UnitedStates #Europe #STEM #Education #HD #Video

NGC 6717: A Glittering Globular Cluster in Sagittarius | Hubble Space Telescope

NGC 6717: A Glittering Globular Cluster in Sagittarius | Hubble Space Telescope

Credit: ESA/Hubble and NASA, A. Sarajedini
Release Date: Sept. 6, 2021

Wednesday, September 02, 2026

China's Kinastra-1 Upper Stage expected to make first flight next year

China's Kinastra-1 Upper Stage expected to make first flight next year

The Kinastra-1 Upper Stage, independently developed by Chinese company CAS Space, is expected to make its maiden flight in Q1 next year, the country’s Science and Technology department reported recently.

As the upper stage, the Kinastra-1 will work like a transport vehicle for satellites. After it is launched into space along with the satellite payload, the rocket drops off, and the Kinastra-1 Upper Stage takes over, transfering satellites between orbits.

And now, after completing months of testing, the upper stage has accumulated over 5,200 seconds of engine ignition tests and is ready for flight tests.

The chief designer of the Kinastra-1 says in the future, it will be used in tandem with the Kinetica-2 rocket (also known as Lijian-2) for a number of scenarios.

Kinetica-2 is a Chinese medium-lift orbital launch vehicle developed by CAS Space. Kinetica-2 uses two liquid-propellant rocket stages. In its initial configuration, first stage propulsion uses a modular rocket design with three identical rockets strapped together side-by-side. It is capable of lifting 12 t (12 long tons; 13 short tons) to low Earth orbit (LEO) or 8.0 t (7.9 long tons; 8.8 short tons) to a 500 km (310 mi) Sun-synchronous orbit (SSO).

CAS Space is a Chinese commercial space launch provider based in Guangzhou, capital and largest city of Guangdong province in southern China. CAS Space was founded in 2018 and is majority owned by the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS).

China's 15th Five Year Plan, started this year, aims turn the country's space industry into one of its "emerging pillar" industries along with integrated circuits and biomedicine.

Video Credit: SMG
Duration: 1 minute, 27 seconds
Date: Sept. 1, 2026

#NASA #Space #Satellites #Earth #China #中国 #CASSpace #中科宇航 #CAS #中国科学院 #Kinetica2 #力箭二号 #Kinetica2Rocket #Lijian2 #Kinastra1 #Kinastra1UpperStage #CommercialSpace #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Meir & Adenot on Spacewalk | International Space Station

Meir & Adenot on Spacewalk | International Space Station

European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut Sophie Adenot, with her spacesuit’s gold‑plated helmet visor down, is tethered to the International Space Station.

Expedition 75 commander Jessica Meir of NASA points her camera toward her spacesuit’s helmet visor and takes an out-of-this-world “space selfie.”

Expedition 75 commander Jessica Meir of NASA rides the Canadarm2 robotic arm during a spacewalk for navigation and science maintenance outside the International Space Station.

From left, the Soyuz MS‑29 crew spacecraft, docked to the Prichal module, and Northrop Grumman’s Cygnus XL cargo spacecraft, berthed to the Unity module, are pictured as the International Space Station orbited 261 miles above the Pacific Ocean west of Peru.

From left, flight engineer Jack Hathaway, station commander Jessica Meir, and flight engineer Anil Menon—NASA astronauts and members of Expedition 75—pose for a portrait inside the International Space Station’s Quest airlock.

From left, Expedition 75 crewmates Sophie Adenot of European Space Agency (ESA) and Jessica Meir of NASA, flight engineer and station commander respectively, smile for a portrait while working together inside the International Space Station’s Quest airlock.

From left, astronauts Jessica Meir of NASA and Sophie Adenot of the European Space Agency (ESA) pose for a portrait inside the International Space Station’s Quest airlock while configuring spacesuits the day before they conducted a spacewalk together.

NASA astronaut Jessica Meir and the European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut Sophie Adenot concluded their spacewalk outside the International Space Station at 3:29 p.m. EDT, September 1, 2026.

During the 6-hour, 49-minute spacewalk, Meir and Adenot installed a new retroflector on the forward port of the space station’s Harmony module to support spacecraft navigation during rendezvous and docking operations. The duo replaced a high-definition camera on the station’s truss and completed a swab of the space station’s exterior for microorganisms. They also partially completed work to install jumper cables for electrical systems and started work to prepare for the replacement of the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer’s heat-rejecting radiator on a future spacewalk.

Mission Control deferred installing the remaining guide studs for the spectrometer’s replacement radiator so engineers can develop a plan to finish the work during a future spacewalk. As the crew fell behind the timeline, the mission control team also shifted completion of the remaining jumper cables and other noncritical tasks to a later date.

During the spacewalk, Adenot experienced mobility issues with her left arm. Meir took a look at Adenot’s suit and determined the glove heater harness was likely getting caught and causing limited movement in the left shoulder joint. Unzipping the joint seemed to resolve the issue ahead of the crew entering the airlock.

U.S. spacewalk 99 was Meir’s seventh and Adenot’s third. Meir now ranks third all-time among women at NASA for total spacewalks, behind Peggy Whitson (10) and Suni Williams (9). It also was the 284th spacewalk in support of space station assembly, maintenance, and upgrades.

It also was the 284th spacewalk in support of space station assembly, maintenance, and upgrades.

Follow Expedition 75:

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

Expedition 75 Crew
Station Commander: Jessica Meir
Roscosmos (Russia) Flight Engineers: Andrey Fedyaev, Anna Kikina, Pyotr Dubrov

European Space Agency Flight Engineer: Sophie Adenot

NASA Flight Engineers: Jack Hathaway, Anil Menon

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 Credits: NASA's Johnson Space Center/A. Menon/S. Adenot
Image Dates: Aug. 28-Sept. 1, 2026

#NASA #Space #Science #ISS #Planets #Earth #Astronauts #Spacewalks #USSpacewalk99 #EVAs #Spacesuits #AnilMenon #SophieAdenot #France #CNES #AstronautPhotography #Cosmonauts #Russia #Россия #Roscosmos #Роскосмос #HumanSpaceflight #Expedition75 #InternationalCooperation #UnitedStates #STEM #Education

A New Decagon Detected Encircling Saturn’s South Pole | Hubble Space Telescope

A New Decagon Detected Encircling Saturn’s South Pole | Hubble Space Telescope

Two views of Saturn from NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope reveal a giant, evolving 10-sided atmospheric wave encircling the planet’s south pole. The feature, called a decagon, is the first large, persistent, regular-sided pattern observed at Saturn’s southern hemisphere.

By comparing observations taken over several years, researchers found that the pattern has become increasingly distinct since 2023, suggesting they may be witnessing a new atmospheric phenomenon develop on the gas giant. The “X” and dashed circle in the image on the right represent where data was not captured by Hubble.

A single wavelength of light from NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope's Wide Field Camera 3 provides a particularly clear view of the 10-sided atmospheric wave discovered encircling Saturn’s south pole. The feature, labeled “decagon,” is embedded within one of Saturn’s powerful jet streams. The wave is centered around 63 degrees south latitude, and its apparent position shifts slightly depending on the wavelength of light observed. Observations from Hubble at different wavelengths of light reveal the structure at different altitudes. Hubble observations also show that the feature was present as early as 2023 and has become more pronounced over subsequent years.

The “X” and dashed circle in the image represents where data was not captured by Hubble.

Recent NASA Hubble Space Telescope images show the gas giant Saturn and its southern pole, where astronomers have discovered a 10-sided atmospheric wave. Observations show the decagon extends through multiple layers of Saturn’s atmosphere.

Recent observations with NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope have revealed a giant, evolving, ten-sided atmospheric wave encircling Saturn's south pole. This discovery marks the first time a large, regular-sided jet pattern has been observed in the planet's southern hemisphere. The feature appears remarkably similar to Saturn's famous hexagon at its northern pole, but is also distinctly different, suggesting scientists may be witnessing a new atmospheric phenomenon develop on the iconic gas giant.

The results published Wednesday, Sept. 2, 2026, in the journal Science Advances.

By piecing together several years of Hubble observations dating back to 2023, researchers found subtle hints of the structure beginning to emerge before it became a clearly defined pattern. Those observations were taken as part of Hubble’s Outer Planet Atmospheres Legacy (OPAL) program. It has photographed the outer planets annually for more than a decade.

"We've never seen anything quite like this in Saturn's southern hemisphere," said Amy Simon, study co-author and OPAL principal investigator, NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. "The northern hexagon has been there every time we've looked for more than 40 years. This feature is different—it appears to be strengthening, giving us the rare opportunity to watch a giant atmospheric pattern develop."

The discovery was possible because Saturn's changing seasons gradually brought the planet's south pole back into view from Earth, where astronomers that collectively analyze images of Saturn from ground-based observatories first identified it.

Agustín Sánchez-Lavega, lead author of the new study, is a researcher at the University of the Basque Country in Spain. The university manages a website, called Planetary Virtual Observatory Laboratory, that accepts ground-based images of solar system planets contributed by observers all over the world. It was in those images, first in 2024, that Sánchez-Lavega and amateur astronomers Trevor Barry and Jean-Paul Oger noticed a subtle undulating band along the southern pole. Additional 2025 imagery taken from the ground hinted even more strongly toward this decagon structure.

This is when the Hubble observations come into the picture. Hubble’s view from space offers unmatched image sharpness and spatial resolution over full rotations of Saturn without smearing by Earth’s atmosphere.

“Given Saturn’s symmetry in its north-south jet stream system, we have been searching for a counterpart to Saturn’s northern hexagon on the south pole in Hubble images since 1990,” Sánchez-Lavega said. “Images from NASA’s Cassini spacecraft, which orbited Saturn between 2004 and 2017, showed no inkling of a long-lived formation, either. The Hubble data confirmed the feature’s presence back to 2023.”

The wave sits within one of Saturn's powerful jet streams and extends through multiple layers of the atmosphere, indicating it is not just a cloud-level feature, but a vertically extended atmospheric structure. The decagon’s apparent position shifts slightly, because Hubble captures images from a range of wavelengths for a variety of altitudes in Saturn's atmosphere.

“The most intriguing part to me is that this seems to have just formed recently,” said Simon. “The question is, why did it suddenly form now when we haven't seen one before?”

The authors say further study is needed from Hubble and NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope, as well as analysis of computer models, to understand how the decagon formed, how long it may last, and how it compares to the long-lived hexagon in the north.

Hubble’s long duration in operation has allowed astronomers to track changes over time in solar system planets and other astronomical objects as well.

Rather than providing a single snapshot, the OPAL program allows scientists to follow seasonal changes, track short-lived storms, and identify other atmospheric features that evolve slowly over time.

"When we started the OPAL program, we expected compelling surprises, but we didn't know what to expect specifically,” said Mike Wong, study co-author, University of California, Berkeley. “A lot of the discoveries we see coming from OPAL are not just based on one observation, but on years and years of data. Regular observations over time are enabling a lot of new findings."

The team plans to continue observing Saturn to determine whether the decagon settles into a long-lived, stable configuration like the northern hexagon or continues to evolve. Future observations also could help scientists determine what drives the wave, what it reveals about the atmospheric dynamics of giant planets throughout the solar system, and how they may relate to those we see here on Earth.

The Hubble Space Telescope has been operating for more than three decades and continues to make ground-breaking discoveries that shape our fundamental understanding of the universe. Hubble is a project of international cooperation between NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA). NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, manages the telescope and mission operations. Lockheed Martin Space also supports mission operations at Goddard. The Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore, which is operated by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, conducts Hubble science operations for NASA.

Image Credits: NASA, ESA, STScI, Agustin Sánchez-Lavega (UPV), Amy Simon (NASA-GSFC), Michael Wong (UC Berkeley)
Image Processing: Alyssa Pagan

Text Credit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center
Release Date: Sept. 2, 2026

#NASA #Hubble #Astronomy #Space #Science #Planets #Saturn #Atmospheres #SouthPole #Decagon #SolarSystem #SpaceExploration #Cosmos #Universe #HST #HubbleSpaceTelescope #WFC3 #ESA #Europe #GSFC #STScI #UnitedStates #STEM #Education

Space Cooperation Becomes Model for Chinese-Egyptian Relations

Space Cooperation Becomes Model for Chinese-Egyptian Relations

Space science and exploration has become a model field for cooperation between China and Egypt, and the partnership will be further strengthened by the Chang’e‑7 Mission, when China is scheduled to deliver an Egyptian payload to the lunar south pole.

China has already helped Egypt build the Debris and Satellite Monitoring Station, providing the North African country with all the technologies needed, including laser-equipped telescopes.

The two countries have also worked together to launch a number of telecom and remote sensing satellites into space.

"China started opening its space program to the world. It began cooperation with Egypt, as a gateway for it, to introduce this technology and science to Africa," said Osama Shalabiea, dean at the Faculty of Navigation Science and Space Technology at Beni Suef University.

China has also equipped an Assembly, Integration and Test (AIT) center in Egypt with all the necessary tools to design, assemble and test payloads before launching them to space.

The upcoming Chang'e-7 launch will mark another milestone in this technological relationship, as China and Egypt team up with Bahrain for the Moon exploration mission.

"China is taking an ambitious and unprecedented step through the Chang'e-7 Mission. The mission surpasses what we would have imagined or hoped for. It’s a complex mission that involves countries from all over the world. We are installing a precision multi-spectrum camera that will take pictures of the Moon's surface. This is a great participation under Arab-Arab and the Arab-Chinese cooperation," said Shalabiea.

Besides technology, China is also providing post graduate scholarships to Egyptian students.

Cooperation with China has helped Egypt advance its space program. With Chang'e-7 setting a new standard in this advanced technological partnership, it has put Egypt among the first countries in the Middle East and Africa to deploy a camera to the South Pole of the Moon.

Video Credit: CCTV
Duration: 2 minutes

Release Date: Sept. 2, 2026

#NASA #CNSA #Space #Satellites #Astronomy #Science #China #中国 #Egypt #CAS #Moon #Geology #WaterIce #SouthPole #CLEP #Change7 #嫦娥七号 #SpaceRobotics #SpaceTechnology #LunarExploration #DeepSpace #SolarSystem #STEM #Education #Russia #InternationalCooperation #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Dark Nebula LDN 1165 in Cepheus | Hubble Space Telescope

Dark Nebula LDN 1165 in Cepheus | Hubble Space Telescope

This Hubble image captures a portion of a dark nebula in the constellation Cepheus. LDN 1165 is part of a collection called Lynds’ Catalog of Dark Nebulae, originally published in 1962. Dark nebulae― also called absorption nebulae―are clouds of gas and dust that neither emit nor reflect light, instead blocking light coming from behind them. These nebulae tend to contain large amounts of dust. This allows them to absorb visible light from stars or nebulae beyond them. Dark nebulae are so dark that they have been referred to as “holes in the sky,” but in reality they may be full of activity with stars sometimes forming inside their dense clouds.

Hubble observed this region as part of a study of protostars, hot dense cores of newly forming stars that are accumulating gas and dust as they undergo the starbirth process. The bright area in this image is likely a star-forming region that may hold one or more young protostars. Further study of dark nebulae like LDN 1165 will help us better understand the nature of these dark and dusty clouds and the stellar nurseries that may lurk within them.

Image Credit: NASA, ESA, T. Megeath (University of Toledo), and K. Stapelfeldt (Jet Propulsion Laboratory)

Image Processing: Gladys Kober (NASA/Catholic University of America)
Release Date: Oct. 24, 2021

#NASA #ESA #Hubble #Astronomy #Space #Science #Stars #Protostars #StellarNurseries #Nebulae #DarkNebulae #LDN1165 #CepheusConstellation #Cosmos #Universe #HST #HubbleSpaceTelescope #GSFC #STScI #UnitedStates #Europe #STEM #Education

The Prawn Nebula in Scorpius: Visible light & infrared | Hubble

The Prawn Nebula in Scorpius: Visible light & infrared | Hubble

The Prawn Nebula is a massive stellar nursery located in the constellation Scorpius, about 6,000 light years from Earth. Although the nebula stretches 250 light-years and covers a space four times the size of the full Moon, it emits light primarily in wavelengths the human eye cannot detect, making it extremely faint to earthbound viewers. Hubble’s gaze, however, shows a small section of the nebula here in visible and invisible infrared light, capturing dazzling detail of the nebula’s structure, including bright areas of glowing gas.

The Prawn Nebula, also known as IC 4628, is an emission nebula. This means its gas has been energized, or ionized, by the radiation of nearby stars. The radiation from these massive stars strips electrons from the nebula’s hydrogen atoms. As the energized electrons revert from their higher-energy state to a lower-energy state by recombining with hydrogen nuclei, they emit energy in the form of light, causing the nebula’s gas to glow. In this image, red indicates the presence of ionized iron (Fe II) emission.

This Hubble Space Telescope image was captured as part of a survey of massive- and intermediate-size “protostars,” or newly forming stars. Astronomers used the infrared sensitivity of Hubble’s Wide Field Camera 3 to look for hydrogen ionized by ultraviolet light ionized by the protostars, jets from the stars, and other features.

Credit: NASA, ESA, and J. Tan (Chalmers University of Technology); Processing; Gladys Kober (NASA/Catholic University of America)
Release Date: Oct. 24, 2021

#NASA #ESA #Hubble #Astronomy #Space #Science #Nebulae #PrawnNebula #EmissionNebulae #IC4628 #Gum56 #ScorpiusConstellation #Cosmos #Universe #HST #HubbleSpaceTelescope #WFC3 #OpticalAstronomy #InfraredAstronomy #GSFC #STScI #UnitedStates #Europe #STEM #Education

NASA & SpaceX Adjust Crew-13 Launch Date | International Space Station

NASA & SpaceX Adjust Crew-13 Launch Date | International Space Station

The four members of NASA's SpaceX Crew-13 mission to the International Space Station display their mission plaque inside a training mockup of a space station module. From left are, Commander Jessica Watkins and Pilot Luke Delaney, both from NASA, and Mission Specialists Joshua Kutryk of the Canadian Space Agency (CSA) and Sergey Teteryatnikov of Roscosmos (Russia).

NASA astronaut Jessica Watkins, commander of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-13 mission

Roscosmos cosmonaut Sergey Teteryatnikov of Russia, mission specialist of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-13 mission

NASA astronaut Luke Delaney, pilot of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-13 mission

Canadian Space Agency (CSA) astronaut Joshua Kutryk, mission specialist of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-13 mission

NASA's SpaceX Crew-13 emblem

NASA and SpaceX are adjusting the launch date for the agency’s Crew-13 mission to the International Space Station to address an oxidizer leak on their Dragon spacecraft’s propulsion system. It was detected during standard prelaunch spacecraft processing. Joint NASA and SpaceX teams are performing additional tests and data review and will complete any necessary rework prior to launch. A new target date will be announced once available.

NASA astronauts Jessica Watkins and Luke Delaney will serve as spacecraft commander and pilot, respectively. They will be joined by Canadian Space Agency (CSA) astronaut Joshua Kutryk and Roscosmos cosmonaut Sergey Teteryatnikov of Russia, who will serve as mission specialists. After arriving at the orbiting laboratory, Crew-13 will become members of the space station’s Expedition 75. The crew will enter quarantine about two weeks prior to flight from the agency’s Johnson Space Center in Houston.

Crew-13 will lift off aboard SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft on the company’s Falcon 9 rocket from Space Launch Complex 40 in Cape Canaveral, Florida.

Follow Expedition 75:

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

Expedition 75 Crew
Station Commander: Jessica Meir
Roscosmos (Russia) Flight Engineers: Andrey Fedyaev, Anna Kikina, Pyotr Dubrov

European Space Agency Flight Engineer: Sophie Adenot

NASA Flight Engineers: Jack Hathaway, Anil Menon

Image Credits: NASA/Morgan Gridley, SpaceX
Release Date: Aug. 1, 2026

#NASA #Space #Science #Earth #ISS #SpaceXCrew13 #Astronauts #JessicaWatkins #LukeDelaney #JoshuaKutryk #CanadianSpaceAgency #CSA #Canada #SergeyTeteryatnikov #Cosmonauts #Russia #Россия #Roscosmos #Роскосмос #HumanSpaceflight #InternationalCooperation #Expedition75 #NASAJSC #Houston #Texas #UnitedStates #STEM #Education

Tuesday, September 01, 2026

What's Up for September 2026: Skywatching Tips from NASA | JPL

What's Up for September 2026: Skywatching Tips from NASA | JPL

Here are examples of skywatching highlights for the northern hemisphere in September 2026:

The Moon joins a tea party, Venus reaches peak brilliance, the seasons change, and the Harvest Moon meets up with planetary neighbors.

From September 14 through 20, use the Moon as a guide to spot Antares, the Teapot asterism, and—under especially dark skies—the center of our Milky Way galaxy.

On September 18, look low in the west shortly after sunset as Venus reaches peak brilliance for this evening appearance.

On September 19, celebrate International Observe the Moon Night! People around the world are invited to look up and connect with our nearest celestial neighbor while learning more about lunar science, exploration, and the many ways the moon has shaped cultures around the world.

The September equinox arrives on September 22, marking the start of fall in the Northern Hemisphere and spring in the Southern Hemisphere.

Then on September 26, the Harvest Moon rises near Saturn with faint Neptune completing a wide triangle in the sky. Saturn is visible to the unaided eye, while Neptune requires binoculars or a telescope.

0:00 Intro

0:12 Moon near Antares and the Teapot

1:02 Venus reaches peak brilliance

1:49 September equinox

2:13 Harvest Moon, Saturn and Neptune

2:50 Moon phases

Video Credit: NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Duration: 3 minutes
Date: Sept. 1, 2026

#NASA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Skywatching #Earth #Moon #HarvestMoon #SeptemberEquinox #Planets #Venus #Saturn #Neptune #SolarSystem #Nebulae #Stars #TeapotAsterism #Constellations #MilkyWayGalaxy #Skywatching #JPL #California #UnitedStates #Canada #Mexico #NorthernHemisphere #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Journey to NGC 7253—Interacting Galaxies in Pegasus | Gemini North Telescope

Journey to NGC 7253—Interacting Galaxies in Pegasus | Gemini North Telescope

Nā ʻUhane Māhoe Huki Pū i ke Ola is the Hawaiian name given to this image of NGC 7253—a pair of spiral galaxies caught in each other’s gravity in the constellation Pegasus. This image was captured by the Gemini North telescope on Maunakea, Hawaii, one half of the International Gemini Observatory, partly funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) and operated by NSF NOIRLab. The name of the image translates to “The Twin Spirits Pulling Together Creating Life.” It was chosen by the 2026 Project Hōkūlani interns.

NGC 7253 was discovered by the German-British astronomer Albert Marth on September 9, 1863. It is listed in Halton Arp's Atlas of Peculiar Galaxies as Arp 278, as an example of gravitationally interacting galaxies.

Of the pair, the galaxy to the north is known individually as NGC 7253A. The other galaxy in the pair is known individually as NGC 7253B.

NGC 7253 has a possible active galactic nucleus (AGN), i.e. it has a compact region at the galaxy's center that emits a significant amount of energy across the electromagnetic spectrum with characteristics indicating that this luminosity is not produced by the stars.

Learn about the Gemini North Telescope:
https://noirlab.edu/public/programs/gemini-observatory/gemini-north/

Credit: International Gemini Observatory/NOIRLab/NSF/AURA
Image Processing: J. Miller & M. Rodriguez (International Gemini Observatory/NSF NOIRLab), T.A. Rector (University of Alaska Anchorage/NSF NOIRLab), D. de Martin & M. Zamani (NSF NOIRLab)

Duration: 1 minute
Release Date: Sept. 1, 2026

#NASA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Galaxies #NGC7253 #NGC7253A #NGC7253B #Arp278 #InteractingGalaxies #PegasusConstellation #Cosmos #Universe #InternationalGeminiObservatory #GeminiNorthTelescope #GMOS #Maunakea #Hawaii #NOIRLab #NSF #AURA #UnitedStates #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Close-up: NGC 7253—Interacting Galaxies in Pegasus | Gemini North Telescope

Close-up: NGC 7253—Interacting Galaxies in Pegasus | Gemini North Telescope

Of the pair, the galaxy to the north is known individually as NGC 7253A. The other galaxy in the pair is known individually as NGC 7253B.

Learn about the Gemini North Telescope:
https://noirlab.edu/public/programs/gemini-observatory/gemini-north/

Duration: 30 seconds
Release Date: Sept. 1, 2026

NGC 7253: A Pair of Interacting Spiral Galaxies in Pegasus | Gemini North Telescope

NGC 7253: A Pair of Interacting Spiral Galaxies in Pegasus | Gemini North Telescope

Of the pair, the galaxy to the north is known individually as NGC 7253A. The other galaxy in the pair is known individually as NGC 7253B.

Learn about the Gemini North Telescope:
https://noirlab.edu/public/programs/gemini-observatory/gemini-north/

Pages

Thursday, September 03, 2026

Wednesday, September 02, 2026

Tuesday, September 01, 2026