NASA
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What Is the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope? (Grades 5-8)
Words to Know Astrophysics: a branch of space science that applies physics and mathematics to study the universe. Lagrange point: a position in space where the gravitational forces of a two-body system, such as the Sun and Earth, are balanced. This point creates an “orbital parking spot” where minimal fuel is needed to maintain a spacecraft’s position. Infrared light: light that is…
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NASA Completes Astronaut-Deployed Science Instrument for Lunar Surface
NASA has declared “wrenches down” on the first completed payload designed for Artemis astronauts to deploy on the Moon’s surface. Engineers working on NASA’s Lunar Environment Monitoring Station, or LEMS, have completed hardware development and testing and the payload is ready for its permanent home near the lunar South Pole. With the hardware complete, LEMS is ready to support one…
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Lion Nebula Roars in Webb’s Sights
Observing across the starry “plains” of space, NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope has taken new images of NGC 2392, nicknamed the Lion Nebula. The nebula’s “mane” is clear and detailed in this image released on Aug. 10, 2026, due to Webb’s high-resolution imaging. See more images of the Lion Nebula from Webb. Image: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI; Image Processing: Alyssa…
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NASA Telescopes Create Colorful ‘Craft’ From Nearby Nebula
Like a collage made of layered sheets of colored cellophane, a vibrant new image layers observations of a famous star-forming nebula from NASA space telescopes. The resulting cosmic “craft” reveals new details about the star formation region known as 30 Doradus, or the Tarantula Nebula. Located in the Large Magellanic Cloud, a small neighbor galaxy to the Milky Way about…
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Eight Emerging Startups Selected for ISS National Lab’s Orbital Edge Accelerator Program
The International Space Station (ISS) National Laboratory announced the eight early-stage startups selected for the two tracks of the 2026 Orbital Edge Accelerator program. Now in its second year, this one-of-a-kind accelerator will provide the selected startups with access to low Earth orbit for research and technology development and $500,000 to $750,000 in private capital funding per startup. The program is…
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Building the Moon Base: NASA Stories at the Ion
As NASA prepares to return astronauts to the lunar surface for longer stays and increasingly complex operations, building the Moon Base will require new ideas, advanced technologies, and expertise across many fields. During NASA Stories at the Ion on July 30, Shatel Bhakta, principal systems engineer for NASA’s Moon Base Program, presented “Building the Moon Base: Challenges and Opportunities at the Lunar South Pole.” He discussed the work required to establish a sustained human presence at the Moon. Through its growing…
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NASA Shares Station Research Today Supporting Moon, Mars Tomorrow
The International Space Station has been busy throughout 2026, as it continues to be a bustling workspace for astronauts conducting a variety of scientific experiments that lay the groundwork for missions to the Moon and beyond. NASA’s Artemis II mission in April was the first crewed flight around the Moon in more than 50 years, marking a major milestone for humanity’s return…
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Curiosity Blog, Sols 4968-4974: Rock Climbing Towards the Discontinuity
Written by Lucy Lim, Planetary Scientist at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center Earth planning date: Friday, July 31, 2026 As mentioned in the previous blog, Curiosity has been exploring a large-scale feature in Gale’s sedimentary record suspected to be an “erosional supersurface.” The “supersurface” represents a period in time when a net depositional environment changed to a net erosional one before…
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Astronomy Picture of the Day
Six Moons of Saturn Explanation: How many moons does Saturn have? While the total will likely continue to grow, as of June 2026 the ringed gas giant had 293 confirmed moons. That’s easily more than any other planet of the Solar System, including ruling gas giant Jupiter with a mere 115 confirmed moons. Most of Saturn’s known moons are small, irregular satellites. Many are…
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Bountiful Roebuck Bay
Editor’s Note: Today’s story is the answer to the August Puzzler. Tides are among the clearest signs of the Moon’s pull on Earth. Just 239,000 miles (385,000 kilometers) away, the Moon’s gravity pulls on Earth’s oceans and solid crust, subtly distorting them into a more oblong shape with bulges roughly extending toward and away from the Moon. High tides happen throughout Earth’s oceans, but in some places they leave an…
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