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NASA Scientists Take to Air and Space to Study Arctic Sea Ice
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Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) These four views were captured from a World War II-era aircraft in April 2026, when scientists used instruments aboard the plane to study Arctic sea ice. Their flights were timed to coincide with satellites passing overhead so the airborne and orbital data could be combined.NASA/JPL-CaltechThis month, engineers at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California are testing a spacecraft sensor that will help measure how quickly Arctic sea ice is disappearing. And while that instrument won’t launch for another year, scientists started preparing for its use during a recent field campaign in the Canadian wilderness.
Researchers spent two weeks in April flying above the Arctic Ocean, often watching sunrise from an altitude of 1,500 feet (457 meters) in a World War II-era plane. A variety of cutting-edge sensors used to measure the thickness of sea ice and snow were aboard the plane, including a stand-in for the microwave radiometer now undergoing testing at JPL. Measuring sea ice thickness is tricky, requiring a number of precise figures, including how high the sea ice rises above water, the depth of snow on top of that ice, and microwave emissions from the surface.
Flights were timed to the passage of satellites overhead so coordinated observations could be taken of the same features. Combining the airborne and satellite data will improve scientists’ ability to measure sea ice and understand how climate conditions are evolving across the Arctic.
In recent decades, the extent and thickness of Arctic sea ice have changed. Improving measurements of those changes helps scientists better understand the Arctic system while supporting navigation, weather and ocean research, and future satellite observations. As Arctic shipping activity increases, the region is also becoming strategically and economically more significant.
According to Sahra Kacimi of JPL, who served as the field campaign’s science lead, ongoing warming in the Arctic could potentially impact public safety and economic interests.
Find out what Arctic sea ice looked like as scientists studied it from the air — and using space-based instruments — during a field campaign this past April.Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech Frequent flyers
Kacimi has spent years studying sea ice using satellite data, but the top-down view she gets from space is different than peering out a plane’s window.
The bewildering diversity of sea ice creates otherworldly landscapes. The ice can be attached to land or adrift in the ocean; it can be rough or smooth. Driven by winds and ocean currents, the ice is constantly shifting, breaking apart, and deforming. Cracks can open into long stretches of exposed ocean, and collisions between floes can push ice rubble into massive ridges that extend for miles.
Some sea ice lasts only one season, while thicker ice can survive for several years (though multiyear sea ice is becoming less common in many parts of the Arctic). Entire ecosystems are affected by these changes, down to the arctic foxes and hares the scientists spotted throughout the trip.
Improving estimates of sea ice thickness helps scientists better understand how the region is changing and supports long-term observations of the Arctic environment. The NASA team logged about 50 hours in the air over the two-week campaign, conducting flights over drifting ice near the town of Inuvik before studying ice fixed to the shore of another location, a hamlet called Cambridge Bay.
For the Inuvik portion of the campaign, the team coordinated with the Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT) mission, a satellite jointly developed by NASA and the French space agency, CNES (Centre National d’Études Spatiales), with JPL leading the United States component of the mission. Though it was designed to map the height of the globe’s sea and fresh water, SWOT can also measure the amount of sea ice above the waterline.
In Cambridge Bay, the NASA team joined researchers from ESA (European Space Agency), Germany’s Alfred Wegener Institute, and Canada’s University of Calgary. During this part of the campaign, coordinated flights soared over a field camp and under the tracks of satellite missions such as NASA’s Ice, Cloud, and Land Elevation Satellite-2 (ICESat-2) and ESA’s CryoSat-2.
To improve sea ice thickness estimates, ESA is developing, with cooperation from NASA, a new polar mission called Copernicus Polar Ice and Snow Topography Altimeter (CRISTAL). During the April airborne campaign, scientists flew instruments similar to what CRISTAL will carry, including the microwave radiometer now being tested at JPL.
“Combining observations from space, air, and ground surface instruments is essential for developing and validating algorithms for current and future missions,” Kacimi said.
For the scientists, it was also a chance to meet locals who see the Arctic’s changes up close. Kacimi spoke to community leaders and students at a STEM camp about how disappearing ice is affecting their communities.
“I’m used to looking at sea ice from space and thinking about its role in the global climate, but for people living in the Arctic, it carries a much deeper meaning,” Kacimi said.
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Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
818-393-2433
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NASA Headquarters, Washington
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elizabeth.a.vlock@nasa.gov
2026-043
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Students Connect NASA Science With Indigenous Knowledge to Study Coastal Erosion
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Students Connect NASA Science With Indigenous Knowledge to Study Coastal Erosion Students return from fieldwork and sit together in the classroom, examining NASA satellite images to learn about the changes to their community’s coastline.Story by Keri Moskowitz, Gulf of Maine Research Institute
For the Pleasant Point Passamaquoddy Reservation, or Sipayik, the ocean has always been a teacher. Situated in what is known as Downeast Maine, along the shores of Passamaquoddy Bay, generations of Indigenous people have lived along the coast, learning from the tides, the land, and their elders. But today, the shoreline is changing more rapidly. Coastal erosion is slowly taking land away. Land that already holds a history of loss.
In the summer of 2023, inspired by a trip to Fairbanks, AK to attend Climate Change in My Community – a workshop organized by the NASA Science Activation (SciAct) program’s Arctic and Earth Signs project – SciAct’s Learning Ecosystems Northeast (LENE) team began working with partners, including Indigenous leaders and scientists, to ask an important question: What does coastal erosion mean to people who have already lost land?
By November 2024, planning was underway at Sipayik Elementary School. The goal was to bring together Western science and Indigenous knowledge so students could understand the changes happening in their own community.
The lessons began in March 2025. For five weeks, nine 5th-grade students explored erosion in many ways. They visited local field sites and listened to elders share stories about how the coastline used to look. Learners used these accounts to measure the changes, both on the coast and via maps back in the classroom. They built erosion trays from simple materials to test how waves shape the land. They measured current high tide lines and compared them to historical ones. They studied old photographs and aerial images from 1942 to 2023 to see how much the shoreline had moved. They even compared 300-year-old tribal maps with future flood projections.
Students learned that science does not only live in textbooks. As one observer shared, “Our people were scientists without having to go to school.”
The students were curious, engaged, and proud. They saw that resilience is part of who they are. They have always adapted while holding on to culture.
In June of 2026, the students were invited to the Gulf of Maine Research Institute to present their work to scientists, staff, and REU (Research Experience for Undergraduate) interns. They traveled 3.5 hours for this opportunity, and the journey proved worthwhile. During the Q&A portion following their slideshow, someone asked whether learning to read the various maps was difficult. One student responded with a reminder: these were not merely maps but NASA satellite images.
Future goals for the project include inviting more elders and adding more field sites in the work, strengthening language and cultural connections, sharing student learning with other Native youth, and planning resilience strategies like marsh restoration in coordination with tribal leadership. When the students were asked if they planned to continue their studies and work on this cause after their time in the classroom ended, they all resoundingly stated “YES”.
In Sipayik, the story of erosion is not just about land washing away. It is about memory, knowledge, identity, and the strength of a community that continues to learn from the shore.
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Hubble Captures Star-Studded Cluster
This image from NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope showcases Messier 3 (M3), one of the Milky Way galaxy’s most massive globular clusters, or spherical collections of gravitationally bound stars. Globular clusters are made up of ancient stars that formed at roughly the same time from the same cloud of gas, giving those stars similar ages. Around 150 known globular clusters are sprinkled around the outer regions of the Milky Way.
Image credit: NASA, ESA, and A. Sarajedini (Florida Atlantic University); Processing: Gladys Kober (NASA/Catholic University of America)
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NASA Transfers ‘Hundred Acre Wood’ to Patuxent Research Refuge
NASA ceremonially transferred ownership of about 105 acres of wooded land at its Goddard Space Flight Center’s Greenbelt, Maryland, campus Tuesday to the adjoining Patuxent Research Refuge, managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
The property, formerly known as NASA Goddard’s Area 400, is now part of the largest block of unfragmented forest between Washington and Baltimore. The nearly 13,000-acre woodland is the nation’s only refuge specifically established to support wildlife research. The refuge also supports recreational uses, such as walking, biking, horseback riding, fishing, and hunting.
At a ceremony on July 7, 2026, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Director Brian Nesvik (left) and Jamie Dunn, center director, NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md., sign certificates that ceremonially transfer a 105-acre parcel of property known as “Area 400” from NASA Goddard to the Service.NASA“For over six decades, NASA Goddard has helped shape humanity’s understanding of Earth,” said Jamie Dunn, center director, NASA Goddard. “We’re glad to present this land to our colleagues in the Fish and Wildlife Service, whose conservation and research helps do the real legwork in preserving our Blue Marble for future generations.”
NASA Goddard had used Area 400 for propellant research beginning in the 1960s. That work has largely since shifted to NASA facilities in other states or to commercial providers, and the property had long been a candidate for divestment. NASA and the Service began discussing a potential transfer in 2021.
Following remarks from attending dignitaries and the signing ceremony, assembled guests participated in a monarch butterfly release and milkweed seed dispersal.NASAPrior to the transfer, Area 400 was still almost entirely wooded aside from a two-and-a-half-acre clearing with 11 small structures. The interagency transfer was effective on Feb. 23, and NASA recently completed its final closeout activities at the property, deconstructing the buildings, roadway, and utility service.
This aerial photograph shows Area 400’s appearance in 1984. The surrounding forest has remained largely unchanged since NASA Goddard occupied the property in the 1960s.NASA“Through working with partners on the best use of land, as exemplified with this land transfer, we can continue to conserve America’s natural beauty and expand outdoor recreation opportunities for future generations,” said U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Director Brian Nesvik.
Media contacts:
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NASA’s New Horizons Spacecraft Wakes from Hibernation in Good Health
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NASA’s New Horizons Spacecraft Wakes from Hibernation in Good HealthFollowing its longest hibernation period ever of nearly a year, NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft has emerged in good health and is ready to begin transmitting science data gathered in the distant Kuiper Belt far beyond Pluto.
From left, flight controllers Mark Lahr and Josh Albers, and Mission Operations Manager Alice Bowman, monitor telemetry streaming from NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft to the mission operations center at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory in Laurel, Maryland, on June 24, 2026. Now approximately 5.9 billion miles (9.5 billion kilometers) from Earth, New Horizons is ready to begin transmitting science data after being awakened from its longest ever, nearly yearlong hibernation period. NASA/Johns Hopkins APL/SwRI/Justin GladdenOn June 23, flight controllers at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) in Laurel, Maryland, confirmed New Horizons, acting on stored commands uplinked to its main computer last July, had safely awakened from a 321‑day hibernation period that began Aug. 7. With the spacecraft now approximately 5.9 billion miles (9.5 billion kilometers) from Earth, the radio signals carrying that confirmation took about 8 hours and 52 minutes to reach the APL Mission Operations Center via NASA’s Deep Space Network station near Madrid, Spain.
The mission team typically places New Horizons in resource‑saving hibernation mode during long cruise periods. While the spacecraft is hibernating, operators do not send commands or retrieve data, but the spacecraft continues gathering and storing data around the clock from its heliospheric plasma sensors, Solar Wind at Pluto and the Pluto Energetic Particle Spectrometer Science Investigation, as well as its space dust detector, the Venetia Burney Student Dust Counter.
Alice Bowman, the New Horizons mission operations manager at APL, said the spacecraft reported back to Earth, via the Deep Space Network, with a weekly status beacon. “Every status report through this hibernation period was ‘green,’ meaning all was well aboard New Horizons each and every week,” she said.
As New Horizons resumes active operations, Bowman noted, the team will begin downlinking spacecraft health and safety data, followed by data from the three scientific instruments. In about three weeks, the spacecraft’s onboard Alice ultraviolet spectrograph will look at the hydrogen gas distribution in the outer heliosphere, while the Solar Wind at Pluto, the Pluto Energetic Particle Spectrometer Science Investigation, and the Venetia Burney Student Dust Counter instruments continue their measurements, and the ground team conducts a series of spacecraft and instrument checkouts.
The team also is completing upgrades to the ground‑system software that will make it easier to maintain operations of the spacecraft. Tests are already underway and are expected to continue through the year.
New Horizons is operating on updated autonomy logic designed for operations farther from the Sun and to accommodate the expected reduction in power and the naturally occurring increase in radio‑signal travel time.
The NASA spacecraft’s exploration of this distant region of the solar system marks the latest step in a journey that began in January 2006 with the fastest launch on record; a flyby of Jupiter in February 2007 that included stunning views of the gas giant and its moons; the first exploration through the Pluto system in July 2015; the first exploration of a Kuiper Belt object, Arrokoth, in January 2019, and unique studies of the Sun’s outer heliosphere and dozens of additional Kuiper Belt objects since then.
For more information on NASA’s New Horizons mission, visit:
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Artemis II Crew and Apollo 14 Moon Tree
In this photograph, the Artemis II crew participates in the dedication of the Apollo 14 Moon tree at the Lunar Receiving Park at NASA’s Johnson Space Center on June 25, 2026. This tree is a second-generation Apollo Moon tree of the loblolly pine species. The original Apollo Moon trees were grown from seeds carried aboard Apollo 14 by NASA astronaut Stuart Roosa, a former U.S. Forest Service smoke jumper. Upon return to Earth, the seeds were germinated by the Forest Service, and the resulting seedlings were planted throughout the United States and around the world.
Image credit: NASA/James Blair
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NASA Takes Flight For America’s 250th
NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman leads a flyover featuring his personally owned Northrop F-5 Tiger during the Great American State Fair on July 4, 2026, on the National Mall in Washington, D.C.
For 250 years, America has pushed the boundaries of what’s possible. From the earliest days of exploration, to the first steps on the Moon and the missions shaping our future, NASA represents the spirit of discovery that defines our nation.
As the United States celebrates its semiquincentennial, Freedom 250 highlights how innovation, courage, and scientific leadership have carried America forward — and how NASA continues to expand the frontier for the next generation.
NASA Seeks Industry Input on Second Phase of Commercial Space Stations
On Monday, NASA released a draft Request for Proposals (RFP) seeking feedback from American companies on the next phase of its commercial space stations strategy, aimed at ensuring a seamless transition of activities in low Earth orbit from the International Space Station.
“NASA’s review reflects what we’ve been hearing from industry throughout this process. Industry believes it can meet the timelines and that a viable commercial marketplace exists where NASA is one customer among many,” said NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman. “We’re focused on supporting those efforts, enabling the capabilities that make this transition possible, and doing all we can to ensure the United States maintains a continuous human presence in low Earth orbit.”
The draft RFP builds on the agency’s request for information released March 25. Based on industry’s input, NASA will proceed with its original plan to procure commercial services through FAR-based contract(s) awarded via full and open competition. Industry has indicated there is significant capital investment behind this approach and expressed high confidence in their ability to attract additional capital investment and expand future market opportunities after NASA makes an award.
NASA intends to award firm-fixed-price, multi-award, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contracts supporting development, certification, and services. This approach would allow NASA to select two or more contractors through early development, followed by a competitive task order for final design, test, evaluation, as well as certification and services from one or more contractors.
Industry feedback is due Monday, July 27. NASA also will hold an informational industry briefing on Thursday, July 9, at the agency’s Johnson Space Center in Houston to provide a top-level summary of the documents and expectations.
The draft RFP gives companies the opportunity to review and comment on the planned acquisition approach for future commercial space station services, helping shape the agency’s path forward as it proceeds with its original commercial strategy. This strategy will provide the government with reliable, safe, cost-effective services through commercial partners, enabling NASA to focus on the next step in humanity’s deep space exploration while also continuing to use low Earth orbit as an ideal training environment and proving ground for Artemis missions to the Moon and future human exploration of Mars.
Learn more about commercial space stations at:
Share Details Last Updated Jul 06, 2026 Related TermsNASA’s CAPSTONE Completes Extended Mission Testing Lunar Technologies
As NASA prepares for a sustained human presence on the Moon, missions will increasingly require spacecraft that can navigate and communicate without a direct connection to Earth.
NASA’s Cislunar Autonomous Positioning System Technology Operations and Navigation Experiment, or CAPSTONE, validated and advanced these capabilities.
Designed to test and validate technologies in lunar orbit, CAPSTONE launched in June 2022 and became the first U.S. commercial mission at the Moon. The spacecraft tested operations in three-body orbits around the Moon, using the combined gravity of Earth and the Moon to reduce the fuel needed to maintain a stable lunar path. It became the first spacecraft to fly and characterize this orbit for future exploration and science missions. Owned and operated by Advanced Space, the microwave-sized spacecraft then received a 15-month mission extension, becoming a testbed for advanced communications, networking, autonomous navigation, and software-defined satellite technologies.
Dylan Schmidt, CAPSTONE assembly integration and test lead, right, and Lachlan Moore, systems integration engineer, left, install solar panels onto the CAPSTONE spacecraft at Tyvak Nano-Satellite Systems, Inc., in Irvine, California.NASA/Dominic HartRather than launch a new satellite, NASA’s Research and Technology Mission Directorate demonstrated that CAPSTONE’s existing hardware could host new applications after launch, transforming the spacecraft into a cost-effective, flexible lunar technology demonstration platform. NASA’s SCaN (Space Communications and Navigation) Division will now use the data to demonstrate innovative networking and navigation techniques on future experiments.
“Operating multiple experiments simultaneously aboard the same spacecraft allows NASA to evaluate how these technologies perform together in a real lunar environment,” said Greg Stover, director of the Advanced Research and Technology Division within NASA’s Research and Technology Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington. “Investments in autonomous operations and resilient communications infrastructure are essential to ensuring U.S. leadership as activity around the Moon continues to increase.”
Two experiments aboard CAPSTONE used software-defined infrastructure to advance two future mission essentials: autonomous navigation and deep space communications. The autonomous Navigation, Guidance, and Control software, or autoNGC, is designed to allow a spacecraft to determine where it is, where it is going, and how to get where it needs to be without waiting for instructions from the ground. While portions of the software had previously flown in Earth orbit, CAPSTONE marked the first time autoNGC was tested at the Moon.
“To really demonstrate that something works, you have to fly it,” said Sun Hur-Diaz, principal investigator for the autoNGC technology development project at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. “The real environment is key.”
To really demonstrate that something works you have to fly it. The real environment is key.Sun Hur-Diaz
Principal Investigator for the autoNGC Project, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
Researchers also evaluated how autoNGC performed with limited contact to Earth. While NASA’s Deep Space Network antennas were supporting the Artemis II crewed test flight around the Moon, CAPSTONE’s communications window dropped to just a few passes per week.
Those gaps became one of the experiment’s most valuable tests. Without data from Earth, autoNGC determined CAPSTONE’s location using an onboard star tracker camera to image the Moon, Earth, and other celestial bodies. The camera-based system, known as optical navigation, at times outperformed ground-based methods for real-time onboard navigation, advancing technologies for future deep-space missions.
Alongside autonomous navigation testing, CAPSTONE also tested delay/disruption tolerant networking (DTN), a communications architecture designed for deep space. Unlike Earth-based internet systems, deep space communications must function despite long delays and frequent signal gaps. The DTN system addresses those challenges by storing information on the spacecraft when no connection is available and automatically forwarding it once communications are restored. With these demonstrations, CAPSTONE became the first to fly the latest DTN protocols beyond Earth orbit and the first to run them in NASA’s core Flight System, an open-source framework that can be implemented on any spacecraft.
In one demonstration, engineers began transmitting data from CAPSTONE to Earth, but the connection ended before the transfer was complete. The spacecraft stored the remaining data until the next communications opportunity, and transmission resumed automatically. Every piece of data made it home.
Artist’s rendering depicting astronauts, habitats, rovers, power systems, and cargo operations supporting sustained human activities at the Moon Base near the lunar South Pole. The technologies CAPSTONE tested may be key to NASA’s growing lunar communications and navigation infrastructure.NASA“You can imagine an astronaut walking behind a lunar hill or descending into a crater and temporarily losing connectivity,” said Ben Anderson, a systems engineer for the Near Space Network at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. “This technology allows that data to be automatically retransmitted once communications are restored.”
In addition to its primary achievements, CAPSTONE’s second life as a software-defined testing platform demonstrated that new technologies can be affordably tested and proven directly in their operational environment.
After nearly four years of technology maturation, NASA’s activities on CAPSTONE concluded in June 2026, while Advanced Space will continue to use the spacecraft as a technology development testbed.
The CAPSTONE spacecraft was designed and built by Terran Orbital and is owned and operated by Advanced Space. NASA’s Research and Technology Mission Directorate managed the mission through the Small Spacecraft and Distributed Systems program, based at NASA’s Ames Research Center in California’s Silicon Valley. Elements of the CAPSTONE technology suite were supported by NASA’s Small Business Innovation Research program. The autoNGC and DTN demonstrations conducted during CAPSTONE’s extended mission were managed by NASA’s SCaN Division, based at NASA Headquarters in Washington.
About the AuthorKorine PowersLead Writer and Communications StrategistKorine Powers, Ph.D. is a writer for NASA's SCaN (Space Communications and Navigation) Program office and covers emerging technologies, commercialization efforts, exploration activities, and more.
Share Details Last Updated Jul 06, 2026 EditorJimi RussellContactKorine Powerskorine.powers@nasa.govLocationAmes Research Center Related Terms Explore More 2 min read NASA Transfers ‘Hundred Acre Wood’ to Patuxent Research Refuge Article 10 hours ago 3 min read NASA’s New Horizons Spacecraft Wakes from Hibernation in Good HealthFollowing its longest hibernation period ever of nearly a year, NASA’s New Horizons spacecraft has…
Article 11 hours ago 6 min read NASA Webb Uncovers Unusual Galaxy Shaped by Cosmic CollisionIn new images from NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope to celebrate its fourth science anniversary,…
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NASA Webb Uncovers Unusual Galaxy Shaped by Cosmic Collision
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NASA Webb Uncovers Unusual Galaxy Shaped by Cosmic Collision 6 Min Read NASA Webb Uncovers Unusual Galaxy Shaped by Cosmic Collision The mid-infrared view of Centaurus A from NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope reveals dusty structures and hidden activity within the nearby, active galaxy. Credits:Image: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI; Image Processing: Alyssa Pagan (STScI), Joseph DePasquale (STScI), Macarena Garcia Marin (ESA Office at STScI)
In new images from NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope to celebrate its fourth science anniversary, a familiar galaxy transforms into something far richer, and far more complex, than ever seen before. Webb’s unprecedented sensitivity across near- and mid-infrared wavelengths cuts through the thick lanes of dust that obscure Centaurus A’s center in visible light, showing a densely packed tapestry of individual stars and an active, everchanging galaxy. These images mark four years of better-than-anticipated performance and successful science operations for the most powerful space telescope in history.
Centaurus A is 11 million light-years away from Earth, relatively close in cosmic terms. Yet, unlike most nearby galaxies, it is very active, making it a powerful laboratory for understanding how galaxies and black holes grow and evolve together.
Image: Centaurus A (MIRI Image) Unable to render the provided source The mid-infrared view of Centaurus A from NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope reveals dusty structures and hidden activity within the nearby, active galaxy. Image: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI; Image Processing: Alyssa Pagan (STScI), Joseph DePasquale (STScI), Macarena Garcia Marin (ESA Office at STScI)At its core sits a supermassive black hole actively feeding on surrounding material. As it does, the black hole launches powerful jets and releases enormous amounts of energy, shaping the galaxy around it. At the same time, Centaurus A bears the scars of a dramatic past: a major collision with another galaxy roughly two billion years ago. The aftermath of that merger is still visible today in its unusual structure and ongoing star formation.
Visible light observations from NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope could not reveal the central region where dust blocked the view, while NASA’s retired Spitzer Space Telescope revealed large scale structures in the infrared without resolving individual stars. Now, Webb brings both clarity and depth, exposing the galaxy’s inner workings star by star.
Interactive: Journey into Centaurus A Unable to render the provided source Use this interactive tool to journey into NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope’s mid-infrared view of Centaurus A, where dust gives way to a rich landscape of stars and hidden features. NASA / STScI“No single telescope tells the whole story,” said Shawn Domagal-Goldman, division director, Astrophysics, NASA Headquarters in Washington. “Discoveries build over time and new observatories expand on the foundations laid by earlier missions. Webb represents the most powerful step forward yet, opening a window into wavelengths and details never before accessible. This allows astronomers to examine structures and processes that other telescopes could not see.”
Dust, aweWebb’s mid-infrared vision highlights the galaxy’s rich dust structures, which glow in intricate shapes that surprise and even perplex astronomers. A warped, parallelogram-like band cuts across the galaxy’s center, while wisps of material stretch outward like cosmic clouds.
An “S” shaped feature, most notable in the image from Webb’s MIRI (Mid-Infrared Instrument), is also unusual and invites questions that need further study to answer. What created this shape? How does the black hole influence it? Is it influenced by merger-induced star formation?
Many of the glowing red points in the MIRI image are dust-rich stars or stellar nurseries, where aging stars are shedding material back into space or new stars are forming. This dust is the raw ingredient for future generations of stars and planets, making it central to the ongoing life cycle of the galaxy.
Image: Centaurus A Crop (NIRCam & MIRI) Unable to render the provided source In the combined mid- and near-infrared view of Centaurus A, the NIRCam (Near-Infrared Camera) on NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope brings out the galaxy’s dense field of millions of stars. Image: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI; Image Processing: Alyssa Pagan (STScI), Joseph DePasquale (STScI), Macarena Garcia Marin (ESA Office at STScI) Written in its starsWith Webb’s high resolution, astronomers can now study Centaurus A star by star, even in its long-obscured central region. What looks “grainy” in the image from Webb, most obvious in the combined MIRI and NIRCam (Near-Infrared Camera) view, is actually a densely packed field of individual stars, together carrying information about the galaxy’s past.
With Webb’s view of Centaurus A, it becomes a case of galactic archaeology. Each star revealed helps to reconstruct when different events happened: when older stars first formed, when activity slowed down, a burst of star formation during the collision, and stars born from gas stirred in its aftermath. Together, they form a timeline of the galaxy’s evolution.
Dynamic black holeWebb’s capabilities go beyond imaging. By analyzing light with spectroscopy, astronomers can measure how gas moves within the galaxy.
Early findings from Webb show fast-moving ionized gas flowing outward, likely driven by the black hole’s activity, and warmer molecular hydrogen in a warped rotating disk near the center. These observations help explore one of astronomy’s biggest questions: How does a black hole influence an entire galaxy?
The answer appears to be complex. The black hole can trigger star formation by compressing gas, but also limit it by pushing material away. Centaurus A offers a rare, nearby view of this cosmic interplay.
By tracing dust in never-before-seen detail, resolving millions of stars, and revealing the motion of gas near a supermassive black hole, Webb transforms Centaurus A into a vivid record of cosmic history.
The James Webb Space Telescope is the world’s premier space science observatory. Webb is solving mysteries in our solar system, looking beyond to distant worlds around other stars, and probing the mysterious structures and origins of our universe and our place in it. Webb is an international program led by NASA with its partners, ESA (European Space Agency) and CSA (Canadian Space Agency).
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Related Images & Videos Centaurus A (MIRI Image)The mid-infrared view of Centaurus A from NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope reveals dusty structures and hidden activity within the nearby, active galaxy.
Centaurus A Crop (NIRCam and MIRI Image)
In the combined mid- and near-infrared view of Centaurus A, the NIRCam (Near-Infrared Camera) on NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope brings out the galaxy’s dense field of millions of stars.
Centaurus A Context Image (ESO and Webb Images)
A ground-based image of nearby galaxy Centaurus A from the European Southern Observatory (top left) puts the near-infrared and mid-infrared views from NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope image into context.
Centaurus A (MIRI Compass Image)
Annotated image of the active galaxy Centaurus A captured by the James Webb Space Telescope’s MIRI (Mid-Infrared Instrument), with compass arrows, a scale bar, and color key for reference. The north and east compass arrows show the orientation of the image on the sky. Note …
Centaurus A Crop (NIRCam and MIRI Compass Image)
Annotated image of the active galaxy Centaurus A captured by the James Webb Space Telescope’s NIRCam (Near-Infrared Camera) and MIRI (Mid-Infrared Instrument), with compass arrows, a scale bar, and color key for reference. The north and east compass arrows show the orientat…
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Read more: What Are Active Galactic Nuclei?
Watch: Black Hole Snapshot
Explore more: ViewSpace: Black Holes: Centaurus A
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Laura Betz
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Space Telescope Science Institute
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Space Telescope Science Institute
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NASA’s Hubble Spies Stellar Sparkler for July 4th
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NASA’s Hubble Spies Stellar Sparkler for July 4th Ancient stars shine in red, white and blue from a globular cluster almost as old as the universe itself in this image from NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope. NASA, ESA, and A. Dotter (Dartmouth College); Processing: Gladys Kober (NASA/Catholic University of America)Red, white, and blue stars glitter like a sparkler being waved on a dark night in this new image from NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope. NASA released this image to celebrate the United States’ 250th anniversary, as the agency carries forward America’s legacy of exploration.
Located in the outer halo of our Milky Way galaxy, globular cluster NGC 6426 is a spherical collection of stars bound together by their mutual gravity, one of 150 known globular clusters in our galaxy. These groups of stars are thought to form as a unit from the same collapsing cloud of gas, and thus the stars in them typically have similar ages. The stars in globular clusters tend to be ancient. At approximately 13 billion years old, NGC 6426 is one of the Milky Way’s oldest globular clusters and almost as old as the universe itself (13.7 billion years).
In this image, blue indicates the shorter wavelengths that are visible light, while red depicts the longer wavelengths of visible light, as well as some near-infrared light. Colors in Hubble images are chosen based on standard image processing techniques to best represent the wavelengths of light that pass through the filters used in the observation. Because the color and temperature of stars are directly related, we know that the blue stars in this image are hotter and the red stars are cooler.
The stars of NGC 6426 have low metallicity, which means they have fewer elements that are heavier than hydrogen and helium. These conditions resemble those of the early universe, when matter was mostly helium and hydrogen and heavier elements were just beginning to form via nuclear fusion within massive stars.
Researchers have found evidence for two chemically distinct populations of stars in NGC 6426, indicating that the slightly younger and more metallic stars were enriched with material from the explosive deaths of the cluster’s earlier stars. Massive stars that explode as supernovae fling elements heavier than hydrogen and helium into the universe, seeding it with materials to build new stars and planets.
Hubble took this image as part of a study of globular clusters in the Milky Way’s halo intended to determine their ages and shed light on the formation and evolution of the galaxy. Over the past three decades in orbit, Hubble has fundamentally changed our understanding of the universe. Its discoveries are expanded upon and complemented by observations from other NASA missions like the infrared-detecting James Webb Space Telescope and the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope, scheduled to launch in late summer.
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Since its 1990 launch, the Hubble Space Telescope has changed our fundamental understanding of the universe.
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NASA’s Hubble Captures Crimson Cloud Sparkling with White, Blue Stars
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NASA’s Hubble Captures Crimson Cloud Sparkling with White, Blue Stars A glowing landscape of gas and dust is heated and illuminated by a thriving population of young stars in the LH 95 region of the Large Magellanic Cloud. NASA, ESA, and N. Da Rio (The University of Virginia), G. De Marchi (European Space Agency – ESTEC), and D. Gouliermis (Universitat Heidelberg); Processing: Gladys Kober (NASA/Catholic University of America)Like fresh fireworks launched against a background of dissipating smoke, blue and white stars shine brilliantly against a crimson background of glowing gas in this image of stellar nursery LH 95 from NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope.
LH 95 is a region in the Large Magellanic Cloud, a dwarf galaxy that orbits the Milky Way. Low-mass infant stars live alongside massive blue giant stars in what is known as a stellar association, one of many in the Large Magellanic Cloud.
The LH 95 region’s most massive stars, possessing at least three times the mass of the Sun and visible here as the largest and brightest blue stars, expel ultraviolet radiation and stellar winds that both heat and shape the surrounding hydrogen gas. Dark filaments stand out in sharp contrast against the glowing hydrogen where denser dust lanes resist erosion.
In this image, blue indicates the shorter wavelengths that are visible light, while red depicts the longer wavelengths of visible light, as well as some near-infrared light. Colors in Hubble images are chosen based on standard image processing techniques to best represent the wavelengths of light that pass through the filters used in the observation. The gas of the nebula glows crimson due to hydrogen-alpha emissions.
Hydrogen-alpha is an excellent indicator of star formation, allowing astronomers to identify very young stars embedded in this glowing gas. Researchers found developing stars still gathering material from the disks of gas and dust around them. In fact, LH 95 is home to an extraordinary 2,500 stars that have accumulated almost all of their critical mass but have not yet “turned on” by beginning fusion reactions. These stars, called “pre-main-sequence stars,” have formed from collapsing clouds of gas and are still contracting. They will soon begin burning hydrogen in their cores to become full stars.
By studying these forming stars, researchers confirmed that the stars’ accretion rate ― the rate at which they accumulate matter ― decreased with age, as expected. However, they also learned that accretion can persist for several million years, longer than sometimes assumed. This information helps refine our understanding of how young stars keep growing and how their disks evolve.
Researchers noted that distinct generations of stars in LH 95 exist side-by-side, indicating that rather than forming stars in a single event, the region produces multiple stellar generations over an extended period.
The most massive star in LH 95 (above center, slightly left) has about 60-70 times the mass of the Sun and is about a million years younger than the rest of stars in the system, which appear to be around 4 million years old. Massive stars like these burn through their fuel quickly and die in supernova explosions.
With its rich stellar population, LH 95 is valued by astronomers for providing a way to observe forming stars at relatively close range in an environment with less obscuring dust than similar regions of the Milky Way.
As one of NASA’s flagship observatories, Hubble has produced a wealth of scientific discoveries over more than 30 years in orbit. Its observations are expanded upon and enhanced by observations with other NASA missions, including the infrared-detecting Webb Space Telescope and the upcoming Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope, which is scheduled to launch in late summer.
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NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD
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Since its 1990 launch, the Hubble Space Telescope has changed our fundamental understanding of the universe.
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NASA’s Hubble Spots Star-Spangled Cosmic Scene
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NASA’s Hubble Spots Star-Spangled Cosmic Scene This image from NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope shows Messier 3, a densely packed cluster of stars whose origins may be a merger between globular clusters in the early universe. NASA, ESA, and A. Sarajedini (Florida Atlantic University); Processing: Gladys Kober (NASA/Catholic University of America)More than 500,000 stars blaze red, white, and blue in this image from NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope, released in celebration of the United States’ 250th anniversary. The image showcases Messier 3 (M3), one of the Milky Way galaxy’s most massive globular clusters, or spherical collections of gravitationally bound stars. Globular clusters are made up of ancient stars that formed at roughly the same time from the same cloud of gas, giving those stars similar ages. Around 150 known globular clusters are sprinkled around the outer regions of the Milky Way.
In addition to its significant mass, M3 is unusual because it lies relatively far from the galactic center and has more than 240 RR Lyrae variable stars, the most of any globular cluster in our galaxy. RR Lyrae variables are some of the galaxy’s oldest stars and are of special interest to astronomers, due to their age and because their light fluctuates over time in a way that tells us their intrinsic brightness. This true brightness can be used to measure distances in the cosmos, just as knowing the brightness of car headlights on a dark road can help estimate the distance to an oncoming vehicle.
The M3 globular cluster also contains around 70 identified “blue straggler” candidates, which are stars that shine with a bright, blue light that makes them look like younger stars than the typical, redder residents of globular clusters. This was the first cluster in which these oddball stars were located. These stars are thought to have gravitationally pulled mass from companion stars, rejuvenating them and making them appear bluer and younger despite their true age.
The unusual characteristics of M3 may arise from its origins. The globular cluster, which contains two distinct populations of stars, may be the result of a merger of two globular clusters. These two clusters were members of the same dwarf galaxy, which was later swallowed up by the Milky Way.
Hubble has taken several images of M3, also known as NGC 5272, documenting its complicated and intriguing characteristics. In this image, blue indicates the shorter wavelengths that are visible light, while red depicts the longer wavelengths of visible light, as well as some near-infrared light. Colors in Hubble images are chosen based on standard image processing techniques to best represent the wavelengths of light that pass through the filters used in the observation. Because the color and temperature of stars are directly related, we know that the blue stars in this image are hotter and the red stars are cooler.
This image is part of a Hubble Treasury program survey designed to observe approximately half of the Milky Way’s globular clusters to construct a detailed chronology of how the Milky Way galaxy formed. With over 30 years of observations, Hubble is one of NASA’s flagship observatories and works in complement with its sibling space missions, including the infrared-detecting Webb Space Telescope and the upcoming Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope, to weave together a comprehensive picture of our vast universe.
Facebook logo @NASAHubble @NASAHubble Instagram logo @NASAHubble Explore MoreExploring the Birth of Stars
Hubble’s Star Clusters
Hubble’s Nebulae
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Claire Andreoli
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD
claire.andreoli@nasa.gov
Since its 1990 launch, the Hubble Space Telescope has changed our fundamental understanding of the universe.
Explore the Night Sky
Break out your telescope or binoculars and compare your view with Hubble’s observations.
What Did Hubble See on Your Birthday?
Take a look at what cosmic wonders Hubble observed on your special day!
Fourth of July Through Hubble’s Eyes
To commemorate the nation’s 250th birthday, Hubble shares 13 images for the nation’s 13 original colonies.
NASA’s Artemis II Breaks Agency Streaming Record
NASA’s live coverage of the Artemis II mission mission drew unprecedented public interest – including more than 149.4 million views of the launch, lunar flyby, splashdown on NASA-owned platforms, including the 24/7 streams covering the mission and the Orion spacecraft views – demonstrating strong, sustained global engagement throughout the mission.
Around the Clock Live BroadcastNASA’s Artemis II Crew Launches to the Moon broadcast set unprecedented viewership records across the agency’s streaming platforms, drawing a combined peak of 3,662,554 viewers—rising to 3.66 million when including more than 411,130 concurrent viewers on X and Twitch—surpassing previous milestones, including the launches of Artemis I (2022) and the James Webb Space Telescope (2021–2022). The launch generated 23.9 million total views across NASA platforms, with 16.6 million people watching live, underscoring the mission’s broad national and global appeal from liftoff onward. NASA en español’s dedicated broadcast also reached a landmark peak of 458,366 concurrent viewers and has since amassed 2.8 million total views, highlighting the mission’s strong resonance with Spanish‑speaking audiences and expanding the global reach of Artemis communications.
NASA’s Artemis II Lunar Flyby broadcast delivered one of the largest peak audiences ever recorded across the agency’s streaming platforms, reaching 1,471,069 total concurrent viewers – driven largely by 897,789 on YouTube, one of NASA’s strongest single platform performances – along with an additional 190,221 viewers on X and Twitch, underscoring the mission’s broad global reach and sustained excitement. Together, the Artemis II launch and Moon flyby broadcasts have redefined NASA’s livestreaming benchmarks, demonstrating record-breaking public interest in humanity’s return to the Moon. As of April 13, the flyby broadcast has accumulated 40 million views across NASA+, YouTube, X, and Twitch, highlighting the intense and enduring engagement surrounding Artemis II.
Pre‑splashdown coverage across major outlets emphasized the “riskiest moments” still ahead—particularly Orion’s reentry and heat‑shield performance—framing the return as the mission’s climax and driving heightened public attention. As anticipation grew, audience interest that had already surged during the record‑setting launch only intensified: Artemis II’s liftoff drew 3,662,554 peak viewers, but global curiosity about the crew’s safe return pushed splashdown viewership even higher to 3,838,418, a 4.8% increase that reflected widespread investment in the mission’s outcome as viewers tuned in to witness the critical reentry sequence, confirm crew safety, and celebrate humanity’s first journey around the Moon in more than 50 years. NASA’s Artemis II Crew Comes Home generated 29.5 million total views across NASA-owned platforms, with an estimated 24.1 million occurring during the live return sequence—an exceptional level of engagement that underscores the deep public interest carried through the mission’s final and most critical moments.
Major entertainment platforms including HBO Max, Netflix, Peacock, and Amazon Prime Video exponentially expanded NASA’s global footprint by placing Artemis II in front of hundreds of millions of potential viewers worldwide, with HBO Max reaching 120–150 million global subscribers; Netflix reaching 325 million paid subscribers and covering 54% of global households; Peacock contributing 36–41 million U.S. subscribers; and Amazon Prime Video reaching up to 275 million global subscribers. Together, these partners enabled NASA to reach mainstream, international, and non-traditional audiences at a scale unattainable through NASA-owned channels alone.
Four astronauts aboard NASA’s Orion spacecraft atop the SLS (Space Launch System) rocket launched on the agency’s Artemis II test flight on Wednesday, April 1, 2026, from Launch Complex 39B at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.NASA/Michael DeMocker WebsitesNASA’s Artemis II mission drove a major surge in traffic across the agency’s websites, with NASA.gov recording 125.1 million pageviews between April 1 and 10 – more than double the roughly 50 million logged in all of March – reflecting intense public interest in following the mission in real time. On launch day alone, NASA sites saw 17.6 million pageviews from 8.3 million visitors, with the Artemis Real-Time Orbit Website (AROW) drawing 797,796 pageviews,
Interest spiked again during the April 6 lunar flyby, generating 16.5 million pageviews from 6.2 million visitors; AROW registered 1.9 million pageviews – boosted by more than 440,000 Google referrals – while the NASA homepage reached 2.3 million. Splashdown day brought another surge to NASA-owned websites, with more than 16 million pageviews from 6.1 million visitors as audiences followed the Artemis II crew’s return; AROW drew over 1 million pageviews and surpassed 11 million cumulative views since launch. Together, these metrics show sustained, high-volume engagement across all mission milestones, with live hubs, broadcast pages, and real-time tracking consistently ranking among the most-visited content throughout launch, flyby, and splashdown.
Social MediaPublic reaction to NASA’s Artemis II mission remained largely steady across launch week, with neutral and positive posts dominating the online conversation. Neutral sentiment consistently led daily discussion, ranging from 47 to 60 percent, while positive reactions accounted for 30 to 42 percent, fueled by excitement over the crew’s historic lunar journey, striking mission imagery, and renewed interest in deep space exploration. Engagement spiked around major mission milestones, with NASA accounts generating 35 million engagements on splashdown day content alone and 261 million from March 27 to April 13, underscoring how closely audiences followed each phase. Strong amplification from major news outlets, brands, and international partners, further boosted visibility and cemented Artemis II as a global cultural moment.
NASA’s Artemis II mission drove major social media growth across the agency’s flagship and mission‑specific accounts, with follower numbers climbing steadily from rollout through the lunar flyby and splashdown. Internal tracking shows NASA’s flagship Instagram account added more than 4.6 million followers, while the Artemis‑dedicated Instagram account grew by 2 million—a 66% increase over the course of the mission. Significant gains were also recorded across X, Facebook, and YouTube, including a 2 million increase in YouTube subscribers and NASA’s flagship Facebook page climbing by 1.7 million. Collectively, these gains highlight how Artemis II’s human‑spaceflight narrative, real‑time crew updates, and highly visual moments drew millions of new followers across platforms.
From left: The Artemis II crew—NASA astronaut Christina Koch, CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen, and NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman and Victor Glover—pause for a group photo with their zero-gravity indicator “Rise” inside the Orion spacecraft on April 7, 2026.NASA Mission ImagesNASA has long shaped its legacy through unforgettable imagery—pictures that don’t just document history but become part of it. Artemis II carries that tradition forward with a growing collection of images capturing every phase of the mission, from the anticipation of launch to the sweep of a lunar flyby and splashdown. For those eager to explore more, the mission’s dedicated image galleries offer a rich visual journey, complemented by additional photos on the NASA Headquarters official Flickr account and the NASA Image and Video Library.
NASA CampaignsMoon Mascot: NASA Artemis II ZGI Design Challenge
Last year, the Moon mascot design contest received thousands of submissions from more than fifty countries for the Artemis II mission’s zero‑gravity indicator. This plush item serves a special purpose — it begins to float once the astronauts reach space, signaling the onset of zero gravity. It also provides a comforting reminder of Earth when the crew is far from home.
Ultimately, the Artemis II astronauts selected “Rise”—inspired by the iconic Earthrise photograph captured during the Apollo 8 mission and designed by Lucas Ye of Mountain View, California—as the zero‑gravity indicator that will accompany them around the Moon. “Rise” also features a small pouch that will carry an SD card containing all 5.6 million names submitted through the Send Your Name with Artemis campaign.
Send Your Name with Artemis II
NASA invited the public to join the agency’s Artemis II test flight as four astronauts ventured around the Moon and back to test the systems and hardware needed for deep space exploration. As part of the agency’s “Send Your Name with Artemis II” effort, anyone could claim their spot by signing up before Jan. 21, 2026. Participants launched their names aboard the Orion spacecraft and SLS (Space Launch System) rocket alongside NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen.
Online CollaborationsThe April 1, 2026, Google Doodle celebrated the launch of Artemis II, the NASA mission that sent astronauts around the Moon and back for the first time in more than 50 years. During the approximately 10‑day voyage, the crew tested the spacecraft’s systems while traveling farther into deep space than any human had gone since the Apollo program. This critical test flight brought us one step closer to a long‑term return to the Moon and future missions to Mars.
Spotify Playlist: The Artemis II Crew’s Wake-up Songs
NASA’s official playlist for the Artemis II mission featuring songs selected by the crew for their historic 10-day journey around the Moon.
Merriam-Webster highlighted the Artemis II mission on their official Facebook page, engaging with astronauts in deep space to discuss the experience of traveling farther than any human before.
In New York, a digital display on the Nasdaq Marquee and special lights on the Empire State Building marked successful Artemis II mission milestones. In London, Piccadilly Lights celebrated the mission with a digital display following a successful lunar flyby. Offline CollaborationsNASDAQ, New York
Nasdaq celebrated the successful launch of NASA’s Artemis II mission, marking humanity’s return to the Moon after more than 50 years.
Empire State Building, New York
Red, white, and blue for the Artemis II crew. Welcome back to Earth.
Sphere, Las Vegas
As the astronauts on Orion reached their closest approach to the Moon, the sphere celebrated this milestone here on Earth. NASA provided the Sphere with a 3D model of the Orion spacecraft and unique soundbites from the April 1, 2026, launch to help design the moon, spacecraft, and flight path to match the real-life version.
London’s Piccadilly Lights celebrated the lunar flyby of Artemis II, where the four astronauts aboard the Orion spacecraft went deeper into space than ever before.
NASA’s Artemis ProgramThe Artemis II mission launched April 1, 2026, on NASA’s SLS (Space Launch System) rocket from Kennedy Space Center in Florida. During the nearly 10‑day test flight, the crew achieved the mission’s primary objectives, including testing its life support systems; manually piloting the Orion spacecraft; performing maneuvers to propel Orion to the Moon and adjust its course; conducting a lunar flyby with unprecedented views of the Moon’s far side; and completing a safe re-entry and recovery. The astronauts also set a record for the farthest distance traveled by humans away from Earth.
As part of a Golden Age of innovation and exploration, NASA will send Artemis astronauts on increasingly challenging missions to explore more of the Moon for scientific discovery, economic benefits, establish an enduring human presence on the lunar surface, and lay the groundwork for sending the first astronauts – American astronauts – to Mars.
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Good Morning, Earth!
NASA astronaut Chris Williams took this photo of an orbital sunrise from the International Space Station on June 26, 2026. In 24 hours, the space station makes 16 orbits of Earth, traveling through 16 sunrises and sunsets.
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Image credit: NASA/Chris Williams
