Ancient stars dazzle in a celestial chandelier | Space photo of the day for Aug. 21, 2026
Stars scattered across the cosmos sparkle in the appropriately named Chandelier Cluster.
New solar system models show Earth is no fluke
Over the past three decades, computer models of planetary system formation have gone from fairly crude representations to sophisticated simulations using thousands of different st…
Interplanetary spacecraft capture a coronal mass ejection component hidden from Earth
During a coronal mass ejection (CME), the sun hurls billions of tons of magnetized plasma into space. These eruptions are among the most powerful events in the solar system, and w…
China is launching a moon mission to find water ice
We've known for nearly two decades that some form of water exists on the moon. What we still don't know is exactly how much accessible water ice lies inside permanently shadowed c…
My favorite thing in the night sky appears on Aug. 28 — and it proves Earth is a sphere
We'll soon get a chance to see a giant curved shadow in space move slowly across the moon during a very deep partial lunar eclipse. There are few more awesome or enlightening sigh…
Could 'dark photons' explain dark matter?
New research suggests that if dark matter is composed of "dark photons," it would not have heated the early cosmos like scientists thought.
Europe’s Scorching Summer
A series of heat waves in 2026 is breaking records and taking a toll in Europe.
Japan to launch probe for Mars moons in October: Space agency
Japan's ambitious mission to collect and bring back samples from one of Mars' moons will lift off Oct. 20, the space agency announced Thursday.
China's Chang'e 7 moon probe will launch this weekend on the most ambitious lunar mission in history
China aims to launch its Chang'e 7 moon mission on Aug. 24 to send a lander, a rover, a hopper and a wide range of science experiments to the lunar south pole.
SpaceX will try for 1st Starship tower catch 'in a few months,' Elon Musk says
SpaceX will likely try to make the first-ever catch of its Starship upper stage a few months from now, according to Elon Musk. He had earlier flagged late August as a potential da…
SmallSat 2026
SmallSat 2026 Join NASA in the Exhibit Hall (Booth # 635, 835, 641, and 940) for Storytelling by NASA experts. Full Agenda below. MONDAY, AUGUST 24, 9:00 – 10:00 AM WelcomeJose Nu…
Microbes from Earth may survive on the moon, scientists find
"Even a bootprint or a rover's tread may create a habitable area."
'Wet Hot American Summer': The raunchy 2000s teen movie that was actually about a space station falling to Earth
Reminiscing about the summer camp Skylab disaster movie on its 25th anniversary.
A weather satellite 22,000 miles above Earth saved my 2026 total solar eclipse cruise on the Mediterranean Sea
Joe Rao took to sea aboard the cruise ship Le Boréal to watch the total solar eclipse on Aug. 12, 2026. Here's what it was like.
Ludicrous, nonsensical, an affront to canon — 'Strange New Worlds'' puppet episode is an instant classic
It could have been a disaster, but "Star Trek"'s collaboration with the Jim Henson Company is a hilarious masterpiece
Mars Express orbiter captures detailed new video of the crater where Mark Watney was stranded in 'The Martian'
Europe's Mars Express orbiter has captured stunning telemetry to create a new flyover visualization of the Red Planet's Southern Highlands and Schiaparelli Crater in magnificent d…
Artemis Mission Patches
A jacket decorated with Artemis I and II mission patches, along with other NASA patches hangs on the back of a chair on Thursday, Aug. 6, 2026, inside the Rocco A. Petrone Launch …
NASA Selects University Teams to Help Advance Aviation Research
NASA has selected four university teams to help the agency transform the future of aviation through projects ranging from high-supersonic propulsion systems to low-noise routes fo…
The View from Above: The Gemini Visual Acuity Experiments
NASA astronaut L. Gordon Cooper, Jr. took 29 color photographs of the Earth with a 70mm camera as he orbited our planet during the Mercury-Atlas 9 mission in May 1963. Cooper’s vi…
Interstellar travel IV: Solar, magnetic, & directed-energy sails
Welcome back to our series on interstellar travel! In our first installment, we examined attempts to realize nuclear propulsion and how the technology could be used to reach the n…
Global sand dunes map reveals clues to distant worlds, including Mars
A new study from Monash University has delivered the most complete and accurate digital map of Earth's windblown sand dunes to date. The research, published in Nature Communicatio…
NASA Data Feeds River Forecasts as Snow Drought Effects Linger
NASA Earth science data is supporting machine-learning forecasts that inform decisions about water, power, and public safety in Washington state.
On this day in space! Aug. 20, 1977: Voyager 2 launches to the outer planets
On this day in space! Aug. 20, 1977: NASA launched the Voyager 2 spacecraft on a mission to explore the outer planets.
Try not to be hypnotized by the 'Eye of Africa' | Space photo of the day for Aug. 20, 2026
This geologic feature has been mesmerizing astronauts since 1965.