NASA Headquarters – Page 2

NASA Invites Creators to Design Mascot for Artemis Moon Mission

March 7, 2025 NeRD

Credit: NASA NASA is seeking design ideas from global creators for a zero gravity indicator that will fly aboard the agency’s Artemis II test flight. Zero gravity indicators are small, plush items carried aboard spacecraft to provide a visual indication of when the spacecraft and its crew reach space. This opportunity, with a submission deadline of May 27, asks for original designs representing the significance of NASA’s Artemis campaign, the mission, or exploration and discovery, and meet specific requirements for materials and size. “What better way to fly a mission…

NASA Remembers Long-Time Civil Servant John Boyd

February 26, 2025 NeRD

Portrait of John Boyd, whose contributions to NASA spanned more than 70 years. Credit: NASA John Boyd, known to many as Jack and whose career spanned more than seven decades in a multitude of roles across NASA as well as its predecessor, the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA), died Feb. 20. He was 99. Born in 1925, and raised in Danville, Virginia, he was a long-time resident of Saratoga, California. Boyd is being remembered by many across the agency, including Dr. Eugene Tu, director, NASA’s Ames Research Center in…

Five Facts About NASA’s Moon Bound Technology

February 24, 2025 NeRD

4 Min Read Five Facts About NASA’s Moon Bound Technology A view of the Moon from Earth, zooming up to IM-2's landing site at Mons Mouton, which is visible in amateur telescopes. Credits: NASA/Scientific Visualization Studio NASA is sending revolutionary technologies to the Moon aboard Intuitive Machines’ second lunar delivery as part of the agency’s CLPS (Commercial Lunar Payload Services) initiative and Artemis campaign to establish a long-term presence on the lunar surface.  As part of this CLPS flight to the Moon, NASA’s Space Technology Mission Directorate will test novel technologies…

NASA’s Advancements in Space Continue Generating Products on Earth

February 12, 2025 NeRD

The cover of Spinoff 2025, NASA’s annual publication that chronicles commercial products born from space technology, is a detailed view of the lunar surface captured by cameras on the Orion spacecraft on a close approach of the Moon during the Artemis I mission. Credit: NASA The latest edition of NASA’s Spinoff publication, which highlights the successful transfer of agency technology to the commercial sector, is now available online. For nearly 25 years, NASA has supported crew working in low Earth orbit to learn about the space environment and perform research…

NASA Space Tech’s Favorite Place to Travel in 2025: The Moon!

January 24, 2025 NeRD

4 Min Read NASA Space Tech’s Favorite Place to Travel in 2025: The Moon! The first image from space of Firefly's Blue Ghost mission 1 lunar lander as it begins its 45-day transit period to the Moon. Credits: Firefly Aerospace NASA Space Technology has big travel plans for 2025, starting with a trip to the near side of the Moon! Among ten groundbreaking NASA science and technology demonstrations, two technologies are on a ride to survey lunar regolith – also known as “Moon dust” – to better understand surface interactions…

Former NASA Official, Astronaut Bob Cabana Receives Top Civilian Award

January 13, 2025 NeRD

NASA Administrator Bill Nelson, left, and Deputy Administrator Pam Melroy, right, present Bob Cabana, who served as a NASA associate administrator, astronaut, and a colonel in the United States Marine Corps, the President’s Award for Distinguished Federal Civilian Service, recognizing his exceptional achievements and public service to the nation, Jan. 10, 2025, at the Mary W. Jackson NASA Headquarters in Washington. The award, signed by President Biden, is the highest honor the federal government can grant to a federal civilian employee. Credit: NASA/Bill Ingalls Robert Cabana, who served as a…

NASA Receives 14th Consecutive ‘Clean’ Financial Audit Opinion

November 15, 2024 NeRD

Credit: NASA For the 14th consecutive year, NASA received an unmodified, or “clean,” opinion from an external auditor on its fiscal year 2024 financial statements. The rating is the best possible audit opinion, certifying that NASA’s financial statements conform with Generally Accepted Accounting Principles for federal agencies and accurately present the agency’s financial position. The audit opinion reaffirms the agency’s commitment to transparency in the use of American taxpayers’ dollars. “For the 14th year in a row, NASA has delivered a reliable, accurate, and transparent report of our fiscal operations…

NASA Awards Aerospace Research, Technology, and Simulations Contract

October 10, 2024 NeRD

Credit: NASA NASA has selected Metis Technology Solutions Inc. of Albuquerque, New Mexico, to provide engineering services as well as develop and maintain software and hardware used to conduct simulations for aerospace research and development across the agency. The Aerospace Research, Technology, and Simulations (ARTS) contract is a hybrid cost-plus-fixed-fee and firm-fixed-price contract with an indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity component and has a maximum potential value of $177 million. The performance period begins Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024, with a one-year base period, and options to extend performance through November 2029. Under this contract,…

NASA Invites Media to Preview its Museum Earth Information Center

September 30, 2024 NeRD

Space for Earth is an immersive experience that is part of the Earth Information Center. Credit: NASA Media is invited to preview and interview NASA leadership ahead of the opening of the Earth Information Center at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History at 10 a.m. EDT, Monday, Oct. 7. The 2,000-square-foot exhibit includes a 32-foot-long, 12-foot-high video wall displaying Earth science data visualizations and videos, an interpretive panel showing Earth’s connected systems, information on our changing world, and an overview of how NASA and the Smithsonian study our home…