International Space Station (ISS)

NASA Astronaut Anne McClain Works on Space Station

May 8, 2025 NeRD

NASA astronaut and Expedition 72 flight engineer Anne McClain is pictured near one of the International Space Station’s main solar arrays during a spacewalk. NASA/Nichole Ayers In this May 1, 2025, photo taken by fellow NASA astronaut Nichole Ayers, Anne McClain works near one of the International Space Station’s main solar arrays during a spacewalk. During the May 1 spacewalk – McClain’s third and Ayers’ first – the astronaut pair relocated a space station communications antenna and completed the initial mounting bracket installation steps for an International Space Station Rollout…

NASA’s NICER Maps Debris From Recurring Cosmic Crashes

May 6, 2025 NeRD

5 min read NASA’s NICER Maps Debris From Recurring Cosmic Crashes Lee esta nota de prensa en español aquí. For the first time, astronomers have probed the physical environment of repeating X-ray outbursts near monster black holes thanks to data from NASA’s NICER (Neutron star Interior Composition Explorer) and other missions. Scientists have only recently encountered this class of X-ray flares, called QPEs, or quasi-periodic eruptions. A system astronomers have nicknamed Ansky is the eighth QPE source discovered, and it produces the most energetic outbursts seen to date. Ansky also…

Spot the Station Frequently Asked Questions

May 6, 2025 NeRD

An augmented reality interface makes it easier for users to locate the International Space Station and provides options for capturing and sharing pictures and videos of their sightings in real-time (Credit: NASA). 1. Why is the International Space Station up there? The International Space Station is a convergence of science, technology, and human innovation that enables research not possible on Earth for the benefit of humanity. For more than 25 years, NASA has supported a continuous U.S. human presence aboard the station, through which astronauts have learned to live and…

Back to Earth

May 2, 2025 NeRD

NASA/Jonny Kim The Soyuz MS-26 spacecraft is pictured backing away from the International Space Station shortly after undocking on April 19, 2025. Three hours later, the spacecraft landed in Kazakhstan, returning astronaut Don Pettit and cosmonauts Alexey Ovchinin and Ivan Vagner to Earth. While aboard the International Space Station, Pettit conducted hundreds of hours of scientific investigations, including research to enhance on-orbit metal 3D printing capabilities, advance water sanitization technologies, explore plant growth under varying water conditions, and investigate fire behavior in microgravity, all contributing to future space missions. Image…

NASA Harvests Lettuce for Space Station Study

May 1, 2025 NeRD

Inside a laboratory in the Space Systems Processing Facility at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, a payload implementation team member harvests ‘Outredgeous’ romaine lettuce growing in the Advanced Plant Habitat ground unit on Thursday, April 24, 2025. The harvest is part of the ground control work supporting Plant Habitat-07, which launched to the International Space Station aboard NASA’s SpaceX 31st commercial resupply services mission. The experiment focuses on studying how optimal and suboptimal moisture conditions affect plant growth, nutrient content, and the plant microbiome in microgravity. Research like this…

NASA, International Astronauts to Connect with Students in Texas

April 30, 2025 NeRD

Expedition 72 Flight Engineers Takuya Onishi from JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) and NASA astronauts Anne McClain, Nichole Ayers, and Don Pettit pose while inside the vestibule between the International Space Station’s Unity module and the Cygnus space freighter. NASA NASA astronaut Nichole Ayers and JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Takuya Onishi will answer prerecorded questions about science, technology, engineering, and mathematics from students in Mansfield, Texas, while aboard the International Space Station. The 20-minute space-to-Earth call will take place at 10:40 a.m. EDT on Monday, May 5, and…

NASA Kicks Off Biological Research Aboard Space Station

April 30, 2025 NeRD

Crew members are kicking off operations for several biological experiments that recently launched to the International Space Station aboard NASA’s 32nd SpaceX commercial resupply services mission. These include examining how microgravity affects production of protein by microalgae, testing a microscope to capture microbial activity, and studying genetic activity in biofilms. Microalgae in microgravity Sophie’s BioNutrients This ice cream is one of several products made with a protein powder created from Chlorella microalgae by researchers for the SOPHONSTER investigation, which looks at whether the stress of microgravity affects the algae’s protein…

Navigation Technology

April 25, 2025 NeRD

4 Min Read Navigation Technology ESA astronaut Matthias Maurer sets up an Astrobee for the ReSWARM experiment. Credits: NASA Science in Space April 2025 Humans have always been explorers, venturing by land and sea into unknown and uncharted places on Earth and, more recently, in space. Early adventurers often navigated by the Sun and stars, creating maps that made it easier for others to follow. Today, travelers on Earth have sophisticated technology to guide them. Navigation in space, including for missions to explore the Moon and Mars, remains more of…

NASA Astronaut to Answer Questions from Students in California

April 23, 2025 NeRD

NASA astronaut and Expedition 73 Flight Engineer Jonny Kim. Credit: Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center Students from Santa Monica, California, will connect with NASA astronaut Jonny Kim as he answers prerecorded science, technology, engineering, and mathematics-related questions aboard the International Space Station. Watch the 20-minute space-to-Earth call at 12:10 p.m. EDT on Tuesday, April 29, on the NASA STEM YouTube Channel. Media interested in covering the event must RSVP by 5 p.m., Friday, April 25, to Esmi Careaga at: ecareaga@smmusd.org or 805-651-3204 x71582. The event is hosted by Santa Monica High…

NASA Astronaut Don Pettit to Discuss Seven-Month Space Mission

April 23, 2025 NeRD

NASA astronaut and Expedition 72 Flight Engineer Don Pettit sets up camera hardware to photograph research activities inside the International Space Station’s Kibo laboratory module on March 15, 2025. Credit: NASA Media are invited to a news conference at 2 p.m. EDT Monday, April 28, at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston where astronaut Don Pettit will share details of his recent mission aboard the International Space Station. The news conference will stream live on NASA’s website. Learn how to stream NASA content through a variety of platforms. To participate…