Tag: The Solar System

NASA DAVINCI Mission’s Many ‘Firsts’ to Unlock Venus’ Hidden Secrets

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5 Min Read NASA DAVINCI Mission’s Many ‘Firsts’ to Unlock Venus’ Hidden Secrets The surface of Venus is an inferno with temperatures hot enough to melt lead. This image is a composite of data from NASA’s Magellan spacecraft and Pioneer Venus Orbiter. Credits: NASA/JPL-Caltech NASA’s DAVINCI — Deep Atmosphere Venus Investigation of Noble gases, Chemistry, and Imaging — mission embodies the spirit of innovation and exploration that its namesake, Leonardo da Vinci, was famous for. Scheduled to launch in the early 2030s, DAVINCI will explore Venus with both a spacecraft…

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Sinister Solar System

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1 Min Read Sinister Solar System A witch appears to be screaming in space in this image from NASA’s Wide-Field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE). Credits: NASA/WISE Our universe is full of mysterious sights. Explore some of our most frightful finds from past Halloweens. Keep Exploring Discover More Topics From NASA Solar System Exploration Europa Clipper Europa Clipper will search for signs of potential habitability on Jupiter’s icy ocean moon Europa. Europa Jupiter About the Author NASA Science Editorial Team Share Details Last Updated Oct 24, 2024 Related Terms The Solar…

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The Next Full Moon is a Supermoon, and the Hunter’s Moon

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29 Min Read The Next Full Moon is a Supermoon, and the Hunter’s Moon A supermoon rises behind the U.S. Capitol, on March 9, 2020, in Washington. Credits: NASA/Joel Kowsky The Next Full Moon is a Supermoon; the Hunter’s Moon; the Travel Moon, the Dying Grass Moon, or the Sanguine or Blood Moon; the start of Sukkoth; Sharad Purnima, Kumara Purnima, Kojagari Purnima, Navanna Purnima Kojagrat Purnima, or Kaumudi Purnima; the end of Vassa and Pavarana; the Thadingyut Festival Moon; the end of the Phaung Daw U Pagoda Festival; and…

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New Video Series Spotlights Engineers on NASA’s Europa Clipper Mission

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Learn about some of the engineering work being done by five members of NASA’s Europa Clipper mission, which aims to launch Thursday, Oct. 10. NASA With NASA’s Europa Clipper just weeks away from launch, five short videos give a behind-the-scenes peek at some of the engineers dedicated to making the mission a success. What does it take to build a massive spacecraft that will seek to determine if a mysterious moon has the right ingredients for life? Find out in a new video series called “Behind the Spacecraft,” which offers…

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NASA’s Artemis II Crew Uses Iceland Terrain for Lunar Training

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4 Min Read NASA’s Artemis II Crew Uses Iceland Terrain for Lunar Training Credits: NASA/Trevor Graff/Robert Markowitz Black and gray sediment stretches as far as the eye can see. Boulders sit on top of ground devoid of vegetation. Humans appear almost miniature in scale against a swath of shadowy mountains. At first glance, it seems a perfect scene from an excursion on the Moon’s surface … except the people are in hiking gear, not spacesuits. Iceland has served as a lunar stand-in for training NASA astronauts since the days of…

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NASA Shares Asteroid Bennu Sample in Exchange with JAXA

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As part of an asteroid sample exchange, NASA has transferred to JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) a portion of the asteroid Bennu sample collected by the agency’s OSIRIS-REx mission. The sample was officially handed over by NASA officials during a ceremony on Aug. 22 at JAXA’s Sagamihara, Japan, campus. The signature exchange for the Bennu sample transfer took place on Aug. 22, 2024, at JAXA’s (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) Institute of Space and Astronautical Science, Sagamihara Campus. JAXA This asteroid sample transfer follows the November 2021 exchange where JAXA transferred…

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NASA’s Perseverance Rover Scientists Find Intriguing Mars Rock

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7 min read Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) NASA’s Perseverance rover discovered “leopard spots” on a reddish rock nicknamed “Cheyava Falls” in Mars’ Jezero Crater in July 2024. Scientists think the spots may indicate that, billions of years ago, the chemical reactions in this rock could have supported microbial life; other explanations are being considered. NASA/JPL-Caltech/MSSS An annotated version of the image of “Cheyava Falls” indicates the markings akin to leopard spots, which have particularly captivated scientists, and the olivine in the rock. The image was captured…

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What’s Up: July 2024 Skywatching Tips from NASA

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What to Look for in July The scorpion’s star clusters, and Mars reveals elusive Uranus Follow the tail of Scorpius to locate star clusters M6 and M7, let Mars guide you to observe planet Uranus, and see the Moon gather a group of planets in the morning. Highlights All month – Two easy-to-spot star clusters – M7, aka Ptolemy’s Cluster, and M6, the Butterfly Cluster – are both located about 5 degrees east of the the bright stars that mark the “stinger” end of the scorpion’s tail. They reach their…

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What’s Up: June 2024 Skywatching Tips from NASA

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Planets rule the a.m., and what’s that bright light? Saturn and Mars meet up with the Moon, Jupiter returns at dawn, and tips for identifying some common objects seen in the sky. Highlights All month – All the planetary action continues to be in the morning sky, with Saturn and Mars rising in the early morning hours. They are joined later in the month by Jupiter. June 2 – In the hour before sunrise, reddish Mars hangs just beneath the crescent Moon. Find the pair low in the east with…

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