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Share Details Last Updated Feb 23, 2026 Location NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Contact Media Laura Betz NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center Greenbelt, Maryland laura.e*****@*****.tld Christine Pulliam Space Telescope Science Institute Baltimore, Maryland Related Terms James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) Astrophysics Goddard Space Flight Center Science & Research Spiral Galaxies Stars Supernovae The Universe Related Links and Documents The science paper by C. Kilpatrick et al.

Safety and quality management are integral to every program at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, and across the entire agency. That gives team members like ******* Senegal, acting chief of the Safety and Mission Assurance Directorate’s (SMA) Quality and Flight Equipment Division, a unique opportunity to collaborate with diverse organizations and personnel. Official portrait of ******* Senegal.NASA “I’m responsible for managing safety and quality teams for about 13 customers,” Senegal said, noting that these customers include the Orion and Gateway Programs, the Human Landing System, and the Extravehicular Activity and Human Surface Mobility Program. Senegal’s teams work at several levels to implement agency, program, and center SMA requirements, in addition to assisting with monitoring Johnson’s Quality Management System to identify concerns for SMA leadership. Some teams operate at the program level, helping to write program requirements, establishing assurance programs, and identifying and characterizing risk. Other teams work on a developmental level and focus on ensuring that a piece of hardware, software, and other components meet requirements and are safe. One team is dedicated to extravehicular activity, or EVA, operations, making sure that both crew members and equipment are prepared for safe and successful spacewalks. Senegal’s division is also responsible for calibration, safety, and quality for government-furnished equipment at Johnson, procurement quality, and the Receiving, Inspection and Test Facility. “This division is probably the most diverse at Johnson because we do a multitude of things and have a multitude of disciplines,” Senegal said. “That’s why I enjoy it.” Senegal was introduced to quality management as a manufacturing engineer for General Motors, where she worked for seven years before becoming a NASA contractor. She said it was always her goal to work at NASA, but there were no opportunities available at Johnson when she graduated from Prairie View A&M University with a degree in electrical and electronics engineering. “I just kept applying to anything that had to do with NASA, and then SAIC hired me,” she said. SAIC, or Science Applications International Corp., is a subcontractor of NASA. Senegal has worked at Johnson for 28 years, becoming a civil servant in 2004. In that time, she has been involved in the development and implementation of space and life science experiments, the Human Research Facility, and crew exercise hardware, among other projects. She said her most memorable experience was working to transition crew health equipment from the Space Shuttle Program to the International Space Station. Senegal explained that while the hardware worked well on shuttle missions, it had to be redesigned to support longer missions and larger crews on station. She was not responsible for the redesign, but she had to ensure the equipment worked and was safe. “I really enjoyed that because it was a challenge, and you had all of these great ideas coming together from engineers, doctors, and the crew,” she said. “We became a strong, close team. Everyone was there trying to achieve the same goal.” NASA astronaut Andrew Thomas presents ******* Senegal with a Silver Snoopy Award in 2011. NASA/Lauren Harnett Her career in SMA has touched nearly every program at Johnson and some agency-level initiatives. Along the way, she has progressed from group lead to branch chief, deputy division chief, and now division chief—a role she calls her most challenging yet. “As deputy, you manage parts of the business. As chief, you own it all—mission outcomes, safety posture, budget, culture, and external optics,” Senegal explains. Decisions once offered as advice now carry her endorsement and reputation. The shift means setting direction, allocating resources, and making tough calls, even when every request feels mission-critical. She also shapes how the division recruits, rotates, and grows talent, while tackling challenges like refreshing skill sets and building succession depth in critical disciplines. In today’s evolving risk environment, Senegal must balance mission risk with project, program, and agency priorities, while keeping programs on schedule. “The chief’s message has to be clear, repeatable, and behavior-shaping,” she says. Building rhythms like staff syncs and risk reviews keeps the team aligned amid competing agendas. Looking ahead, Senegal sees the team focusing on supporting NASA’s acquisition strategy and improving the speed and quality of organizational decision-making. “We need to define when issues go to the chief, deputy, or branch chiefs—and protect strategic time by saying ‘no’ when ‘yes’ isn’t the right answer.” Her leadership philosophy centers on connection: “Know your team’s strengths and care about them—even small gestures matter,” she says. “When people know you care, it makes coming to work easier.” ******* Senegal poses for a picture at a Safety and Mission Assurance podium. Senegal emphasized the importance of sharing SMA lessons learned with early career team members and future agency employees. “They need to know the safety and quality policies, but they also need to understand why we have them in place,” she said. “If you teach them the history behind it, they’re less likely to repeat it, and it helps them understand how and when to accept risk.” Senegal also encourages the next generation to ask people for their opinions. “Be honest if you don’t know something and say you want to learn more. Never be afraid to speak up.” Explore More 4 min read Award-Winning NASA Camera Revolutionizes How We See the Invisible Article 4 days ago 3 min read I Am Artemis: Katie Oriti Article 5 days ago 4 min read NASA Advances High-Altitude Traffic Management Article 6 days ago View the full article

Earth (ESD) Earth Explore Explore Earth Science Agriculture Air Quality Climate Change Freshwater Life on Earth Severe Storms Snow and Ice The Global Ocean Science at Work Earth Science at Work Technology and Innovation Powering Business Multimedia Image Collections Videos Data For Researchers About Us 5 Min Read NASA Is Helping Bring Giant Tortoises Back to the Galápagos Giant tortoises disappeared in the mid-1800s from Floreana Island in the Galápagos. Credits: © Galápagos Conservancy, used with permission For the first time in more than 150 years, giant tortoises are returning to the wild on Floreana Island in the Galápagos — guided by NASA satellite data that helps scientists discover where the animals can find food, water, and nesting habitat. The effort, a collaboration between the Galápagos National Park Directorate and Galápagos Conservancy, marks a key milestone in restoring tortoise populations to one of the most ecologically distinctive archipelagos on Earth. On Floreana Island, tortoises disappeared in the mid-1800s after heavy hunting by whalers and the introduction of new predators like pigs and rats, which consumed tortoise eggs and hatchlings. Without the tortoises, the island began to change. Across the Galápagos, giant tortoises historically helped shape the landscape by grazing vegetation, opening pathways through dense plant growth, and carrying seeds across islands. “This is exactly the kind of project where NASA Earth observations make a difference,” said Keith Gaddis, the manager for NASA Earth Action’s Biological Diversity and Ecological Forecasting program at NASA Headquarters in Washington. “We’re helping partners answer a practical question: Where will these animals have the best chance to survive — not just today, but decades from now?” Matching Tortoises to Landscape On Feb. 20, the Galápagos National Park Directorate and conservation partners released 158 giant tortoises at two sites on Floreana. “It’s a huge deal to have these tortoises back on this island. Charles Darwin was one of the last people to see them there,” said James Gibbs, the Galápagos Conservancy’s Vice President of Science and Conservation and a co-principal investigator of the project. In 2000, scientists made an unexpected discovery. Gibbs and other researchers found unusual tortoises on northern Isabela Island’s Wolf Volcano, the tallest peak in the Galápagos, that did not look like any other known living tortoises. About a decade later, DNA extracted from bones of the extinct Floreana tortoises — found in caves on the island and in museum collections — confirmed the tortoises carried Floreana ancestry, launching a breeding program that has since produced hundreds of offspring expected to return to the island. Researchers believe that whalers likely moved tortoises between the islands more than a century earlier. The Galápagos National Park Directorate has raised and released across the Galápagos more than 10,000 tortoises over the last 60 years, one of the largest rewilding efforts ever attempted. But each island presents a different puzzle. Some hills and small mountains in the Galápagos intercept clouds and stay cool and damp with evergreen vegetation. Others are dry enough that green vegetation appears only briefly after rain. Where these zones occur on the same island, tortoises move between them, with some animals traveling miles each year between seasonal feeding and nesting areas. “It’s difficult for the tortoises because they get introduced from captivity into this environment,” Gibbs said. “They don’t know where food is. They don’t know where water is. They don’t know where to nest. If you can place them where conditions are already right, you give them a much better chance.” Part of Floreana Island is shown in the Galápagos, where ongoing restoration efforts aim to make the landscape ready for the return of giant tortoises. Credits: © Galápagos Conservancy, used with permission That’s where NASA satellite data comes in. NASA Earth observations allow scientists to map environmental conditions across the islands and track how vegetation, moisture, and temperature shift over time — clues to where tortoises can find food and water. Using those records, Gibbs and Giorgos Mountrakis, the project’s principal investigator, and their team built a decision tool that combines satellite measurements of habitat and climate conditions with millions of field observations of tortoise locations across the archipelago to guide where, and when, to release the animals. “Habitat suitability models and environmental mapping are essential tools,” said Christian Sevilla, the Director of Ecosystems at the Galápagos National Park Directorate. “They allow us to integrate climate, topography, and vegetation data to make evidence-based decisions. We move from intuition to precision.” This map shows modeled giant tortoise habitat suitability across the Galápagos under current environmental conditions, with colors ranging from low to high, indicating increasing likelihood of suitable food, moisture, and nesting habitat availability. Wanmei Liang/NASA Earth Observatory The decision tool draws on multiple NASA and partner satellite missions. Landsat and European Sentinel satellites track vegetation conditions. The Global Precipitation Measurement mission provides rainfall data. The Terra satellite helps estimate land-surface temperature, and terrain data adds elevation and landscape features. In some cases, high-resolution commercial satellite images, acquired through NASA’s Commercial Smallsat Data Acquisition Program, help teams evaluate potential release sites before field surveys begin. With tortoise-environment relationships in hand, the team can map habitat suitability today and forecast how it may shift decades into the future as environmental conditions change. “The forecasting part is critical,” said Mountrakis, of the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry in Syracuse. “This isn’t a one-year project. We’re looking at where tortoises will succeed 20, 40 years from now.” Because the tortoises can live more than a century, habitat conditions decades from now matter as much as conditions today. More Than Conservation The tortoise release is part of the larger Floreana Ecological Restoration Project, which aims to remove invasive species like rats and feral cats and eventually return 12 native animal species to the island, with tortoises serving as the keystone for rebuilding the ecosystem. This Landsat 8 image of Floreana Island from October 6, 2020, shows dry coastal lowlands surrounding greener, higher-elevation vegetation toward the island’s center. Wanmei Liang/NASA Earth Observatory The Galápagos Conservancy is also using NASA satellite data and the decision tool developed to help guide tortoise releases on other Galápagos islands and to plan future reintroductions across the archipelago. If successful, Floreana Island could once again support a large tortoise population, helping restore relationships between animals, plants, and the landscape that shaped the island for thousands of years. “For those of us who live and work in Galápagos, this [release] is deeply meaningful,” Sevilla said. “It demonstrates that large-scale ecological restoration is possible and that, with science and long-term commitment, we can recover an essential part of the archipelago’s natural heritage.” About the Author Emily DeMarco Writer/Editor (IV) Share Details Last Updated Feb 20, 2026 Related Terms Earth Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) Goddard Space Flight Center Human Dimensions Landsat Life on Earth Terra Vegetation Wildlife Explore More 3 min read Winds Whip Up Fires and Dust on the Southern Plains Dry, gusty conditions spurred fast-growing fires in Oklahoma and Kansas, along with dangerous dust storms… Article 15 hours ago 3 min read Northern Glow Spans Iceland and Canada A vivid display of the aurora lit up skies over the Denmark Strait and eastern… Article 2 days ago 1 min read Commodity Classic 2026 Hyperwall Schedule Article 2 days ago Keep Exploring Discover More Topics From NASA Earth Your home. Our Mission. And the one planet that NASA studies more than any other. Earth Observatory NASA’s Earth Observatory brings you the Earth, every day: images, stories, and discoveries about the environment, Earth systems, and climate. Explore Earth Science Earth Science in Action NASA’s unique vantage point helps us inform solutions to enhance decision-making, improve livelihoods, and protect our planet. View the full article

NASA/Brendan Finnegan NASA astronaut Christina Koch and ********* Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen take off on a T-38 training flight from Ellington Field on Feb. 11, 2026, as a waning crescent Moon hovers above. Koch and Hansen, along with NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman and Victor Glover, are part of NASA’s Artemis II mission, the first crewed flight of the Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft. Artemis II will fly around the Moon and back to test Orion’s systems and capabilities before returning the crew to a splashdown off the California coast. As part of a Golden Age of innovation and exploration, Artemis will pave the way for new U.S. crewed missions on the lunar surface in preparation to send the first astronauts to Mars. Image credit: NASA/Brendan Finnegan View the full article

Earth Observatory Science Earth Observatory Winds Whip Up Fires and Dust… Earth Earth Observatory Image of the Day EO Explorer Topics All Topics Atmosphere Land Heat & Radiation Life on Earth Human Dimensions Natural Events Oceans Remote Sensing Technology Snow & Ice Water More Content Collections Global Maps World of Change Articles Notes from the Field Blog Earth Matters Blog Blue Marble: Next Generation EO Kids Mission: Biomes About About Us Subscribe 🛜 RSS Contact Us Search February 17, 2026 High winds coupled with dry conditions fueled fast-spreading wildland fires in the U.S. southern Plains in winter 2026. On February 17, several large blazes broke out on the Oklahoma Panhandle and burned quickly through tens of thousands of acres of grasslands and shrublands. The winds also caused dust storms and low visibility throughout the wider region. Smoke from multiple fires as well as wind-borne dust streamed across the Plains on the afternoon of February 17, when the MODIS (Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer) on NASA’s Aqua satellite acquired this image. The Ranger Road fire, the largest of the group, started that day shortly after noon near Beaver, Oklahoma, and spread rapidly throughout the afternoon. By the evening, it had burned into Kansas and consumed an estimated 145,000 acres (587,000 hectares), the Oklahoma Forestry Service reported. Combined with other fires nearby, including the Stevens and Side Road fires near Tyrone, Oklahoma, more than 155,000 acres burned that day, the agency said. The Ranger Road fire exhibited features of a “fast fire,” a particularly dangerous and destructive type of fire characterized by rapid spread. These blazes usually burn in grasslands and shrublands rather than forests, often occur in autumn and winter when fuels are dry, and are propelled by strong winds. Wind gusts up to 70 miles (110 kilometers) per hour were measured across the Oklahoma and Texas panhandles on February 17, the National Weather Service said. The fires destroyed several structures, threatened farmland and livestock, and prompted evacuation orders for parts of western Oklahoma and southern Kansas, according to news reports. Oklahoma’s governor declared a disaster emergency for counties in the Panhandle. Persistent winds and dry conditions led to further fire growth on February 18. The Ranger Road and Stevens fires approximately doubled in size that day, the Oklahoma Forestry Services reported. On February 19, a red flag warning remained in effect for the Texas and Oklahoma panhandles, with forecasts calling for wind gusts up to 40 miles (64 kilometers) per hour and very low relative humidity. Wind-blown dust created other serious hazards across the region. Near Pueblo, Colorado (west of this scene), poor visibility led to a deadly pileup of dozens of vehicles on Interstate 25, according to reports. And in southern New Mexico, officials warned travelers of dangerous conditions due to blowing dust. NASA Earth Observatory image by Lauren Dauphin, using MODIS data from NASA EOSDIS LANCE and GIBS/Worldview. Story by Lindsey Doermann. Downloads February 17, 2026 JPEG (2.62 MB) References & Resources AccuWeather (2026, February 18) Oklahoma, Kansas wildfire consumes area larger than New York City as new fires spark in Texas. Accessed February 19, 2026. AP News (2026, February 18) 5 dead in Colorado highway crashes after blowing dirt makes it hard to see. Accessed February 19, 2026. NASA Earth Observatory (2024, December 12) The Fast Fire Threat. Accessed February 19, 2026. Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry (2026) Forestry Services. Accessed February 19, 2026. Oklahoma Forestry Services, via Facebook (2026) Posts. Accessed February 19, 2026. The Oklahoman (2026) Oklahoma wildfire, smoke map: Track latest wildfires, red flag warnings. Accessed February 19, 2026. You may also be interested in: Stay up-to-date with the latest content from NASA as we explore the universe and discover more about our home planet. B.C. Wildfires Send Smoke Skyward 2 min read Lightning likely ignited several large fires that sent smoke pouring over the ********* province in early September 2025. Article Fires on the Rise in the Far North 3 min read Satellite-based maps show northern wildland fires becoming more frequent and widespread as temperatures rise and lightning reaches higher latitudes. Article Fires Erupt in South-Central Chile 2 min read Tens of thousands of people fled to safety as blazes spread throughout the country’s Biobío and Ñuble regions. Article 1 2 3 4 Next Keep Exploring Discover More from NASA Earth Science Subscribe to Earth Observatory Newsletters Subscribe to the Earth Observatory and get the Earth in your inbox. Earth Observatory Image of the Day NASA’s Earth Observatory brings you the Earth, every day, with in-depth stories and stunning imagery. Explore Earth Science Earth Science Data View the full article

3 min read Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) This artist’s concept shows several advanced air mobility aircraft concepts staged for a medical transport. NASA’s recent aircraft noise study included sounds from multiple types of advanced air mobility concept aircraft.NASA/Lillian Gipson New kinds of aircraft taking to the skies could mean unfamiliar sounds overhead — and where you’re hearing them might matter, according to new NASA research. NASA aeronautics has worked for years to enable new air transportation options for people and goods, and to find ways to make sure they can be safely and effectively integrated into U.S. communities. That’s why the agency continues to study how people respond to aircraft noise. In this case, NASA’s work focused on air taxis, shorthand for a variety of aircraft intended to carry people short distances for everything from personal travel to medical treatment. Researchers investigated whether residents in loud cities would respond differently to air taxi sounds than those in quieter suburban settings. From late August through September 2025, 359 participants in the Los Angeles, New York City, and Dallas-Fort Worth areas took part in NASA’s Varied Advanced Air Mobility Noise and Geographic Area Response Difference (VANGARD) test. Researchers played 67 unique sounds simulating aircraft, including NASA-owned industry concept designs. To ensure unbiased feedback, the research team withheld aircraft manufacturer names. Participants were also not shown images of the aircraft they were hearing. Initial results reveal that residents living in noisy areas reported being more bothered by the air taxi sounds than those in quieter areas. The VANGARD team members are currently analyzing the data to better understand these findings, but so far, they’re hypothesizing that people in loud environments may simply be more sensitive to additional noise. Researcher Sidd Krishnamurthy tests the remote platform developed to study human response to air taxi noise at NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia.NASA/Ally Olney “With air taxis coming soon, we need to understand how people will react to a variety of future aircraft sounds,” said Sidd Krishnamurthy, lead researcher at NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia. “This test filled a critical gap, and its results will improve how we predict human reactions to noise, guiding the design and operation of future aircraft.” During the study, participants listened to individual aircraft flyover sounds and rated their annoyance levels. The participants also provided their zip codes, allowing the researchers to sort their locations into high and low background noise levels. “We wanted to know if people in low or high background noise zones would be more annoyed by the air taxi sounds, and to what extent, even without their usual background sounds present during the test,” Krishnamurthy said. Most participants listened from their home locations, with their own audio devices. But to complement that testing, a control group of 20 people listened in-person at NASA Langley in June, using tablets and headphones with fixed audio settings. Results showed that the control group responded similarly to those who tested from home. Many factors influence how humans respond to aircraft noise. This study was not designed to answer every question — for example, it did not look at the potential effects of high background noise masking air taxi noise — but it provided the VANGARD team with initial insights. The results from this study, and any follow-on efforts, will guide the design and operation of future advanced air mobility aircraft to help designers and regulators determine how and where these aircraft may fly. This research was led under the Revolutionary Vertical Lift Technology project and contributes to NASA’s advanced air mobility research. The project falls under the Advanced Air Vehicles Program within NASA’s Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate. Share Details Last Updated Feb 19, 2026 EditorDede DiniusContactTeresa Whiting*****@*****.tld Related TermsAdvanced Air MobilityAdvanced Air Vehicles ProgramAeronauticsArmstrong Flight Research CenterDrones & YouLangley Research CenterRevolutionary Vertical Lift Technology Explore More 4 min read Award-Winning NASA Camera Revolutionizes How We See the Invisible Article 5 hours ago 4 min read NASA Advances High-Altitude Traffic Management Article 2 days ago 8 min read ARMD Research Solicitations (Updated Feb. 4) Article 2 weeks ago Keep Exploring Discover More Topics From NASA Armstrong Flight Research Center Langley Research Center Aeronautics Drones & You View the full article

Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft that launched NASA’s Crew Flight Test astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams to the International Space Station is pictured docked to the Harmony module’s forward port on July 3, 2024. This view is from a window on the SpaceX Dragon Endeavour spacecraft docked to the port adjacent to the Starliner.Credit: NASA At a news conference on Thursday, NASA released a report of findings from the Program Investigation Team examining the Boeing CST-100 Starliner Crewed Flight Test as part of the agency’s Commercial Crew Program. “The Boeing Starliner spacecraft has faced challenges throughout its uncrewed and most recent crewed missions. While Boeing built Starliner, NASA accepted it and launched two astronauts to space. The technical difficulties encountered during docking with the International Space Station were very apparent,” said NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman. “To undertake missions that change the world, we must be transparent about both our successes and our shortcomings. We have to own our mistakes and ensure they never happen again. Beyond technical issues, it is clear that NASA permitted overarching programmatic objectives of having two providers capable of transporting astronauts to-and-from orbit, influence engineering and operational decisions, especially during and immediately after the mission. We are correcting those mistakes. Today, we are formally declaring a Type A mishap and ensuring leadership accountability so situations like this never reoccur. We look forward to working with Boeing as both organizations implement corrective actions and return Starliner to flight only when ready.” Starliner launched June 5, 2024, on its first crewed test flight to the International Space Station. Originally planned as an eight-to-14-day mission, the flight was extended to 93 days after propulsion system anomalies were identified while the spacecraft was in orbit. After reviewing flight data and conducting ground test at White Sands Test Facility, NASA decided to return the spacecraft without NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams. Starliner returned from the space station in September 2024, landing at White Sands Space Harbor in New Mexico. Wilmore and Williams later returned safely to Earth aboard the agency’s SpaceX’s Crew-9 mission in March 2025. In February 2025, NASA chartered an independent Program Investigation Team to investigate the technical, organizational, and cultural contributors to the test flight issues. This report was completed in November 2025. NASA and Boeing have been working together since Starliner returned 18 months ago to identify and address the challenges encountered during the mission, and the technical root cause work continues. Investigators identified an interplay of combined hardware failures, qualification gaps, leadership missteps, and cultural breakdowns that created risk conditions inconsistent with NASA’s human spaceflight safety standards. NASA will accept this as the final report. As a result, NASA is taking corrective actions to address the findings of the report, in an effort to ensure the lessons learned contribute to crew and mission safety of future Starliner flights and all NASA programs. Due to the loss of the spacecraft’s maneuverability as the crew approached the space station and the associated financial damages incurred, NASA has classified the test flight as a Type A mishap. While there were no injuries and the mission regained control prior to docking, this highest-level classification designation recognizes there was potential for a significant mishap. NASA will continue to work closely with Boeing to fully understand and solve the technical challenges with the Starliner vehicle alongside incorporating the investigative recommendations before flying the next mission. For the full report, which includes redactions in coordination with our commercial partner to protect proprietary and privacy-sensitive material is available online. A 508-compliant version of the report is forthcoming, and will be posted on this page. NASA will update with an editor’s note when complete. [Hidden Content] -end- Bethany Stevens / Cheryl Warner Headquarters, Washington 202-358-1600 *****@*****.tld / *****@*****.tld Share Details Last Updated Feb 19, 2026 EditorCheryl WarnerLocationNASA Headquarters Related TermsHumans in SpaceCommercial CrewInternational Space Station (ISS)Leadership View the full article

Credit: NASA During a news conference at 2 p.m. EST on Thursday NASA will discuss the findings of investigations into the 2024 crewed test flight of Boeing Starliner to the International Space Station. The news conference will stream live on NASA’s YouTube channel. An instant replay will be available online. NASA participants include: Administrator Jared Isaacman Associate Administrator Amit Kshatriya To ask questions during the news conference, media must RSVP no later than 30 minutes prior to the start of the call to the NASA Headquarters newsroom at: *****@*****.tld. NASA’s media accreditation policy is available online. For NASA’s blog and more information about the mission, visit: [Hidden Content] -end- Bethany Stevens / Cheryl Warner Headquarters, Washington 202-358-1600 *****@*****.tld / *****@*****.tld Share Details Last Updated Feb 19, 2026 EditorJennifer M. DoorenLocationNASA Headquarters Related TermsInternational Space Station (ISS)Commercial CrewNASA Headquarters View the full article

4 Min Read Award-Winning NASA Camera Revolutionizes How We See the Invisible A shock wave interacting with a thin layer of fluid at Mach 10 in a wind tunnel, as captured by the Self-Aligned Focusing Schlieren (SAFS) system invented in 2020 by researchers at NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia. Compared to conventional Schlieren imaging it eliminates irrelevant features such astunnel boundary layers, off-plane shockwaves, and flow structures from temperature variations outside the wind tunnel. Credits: NASA/Brett Bathel Imagine trying to photograph wind. That’s similar to what NASA engineers dealt with during a recent effort to study how air moves around planes, rockets, and other kinds of aerospace vehicles. Air is invisible, but our understanding of how it flows is crucial for building better, safer aircraft. For 80 years, researchers used a technique called “focused schlieren imaging.” Think of it as a special camera system that can “see” air movement by detecting tiny changes in its density. It’s the same effect that lets you to see heat waves rising from hot pavement on a sunny day ¾ just much more precise. The Self-Aligned Focusing Schlieren (SAFS) system is a game-changer. It’s a compact, low-cost, easy-to-use visualization tool that is less complex than traditional focusing schlieren systems. “What makes this breakthrough compelling is the ripple effect,” said NASA’s Brett Bathel, who invented the SAFS alongside fellow engineer Joshua Weisberger at the agency’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia. “When researchers can see and understand air movement in ways that were previously difficult to achieve, it leads to better aircraft designs and safer flights for everyone.” The SAFS system is an innovative measurement technology the uses cameras and light polarization to visualize flow structures. In this video, the SAFS is showing the middle section of a rocket booster and capturing the complex shock structures along the booster for various angles of attack.NASA/Brett Bathel Switching from older systems to SAFS in wind tunnels and other specialized research environments allows aerospace engineers to gather high-speed flow visualization data more efficiently, with less facility downtime, and lower costs. For the aviation industry, it opens doors to new discoveries, potentially revolutionizing how we design everything from commercial airliners to spacecraft. With SAFS in its toolbox, NASA is also better positioned to meet its mission goals related to efficiency and safety in aviation and space. Researchers are using SAFS to capture flow separation on the High Lift Common Research Model, a tool for improving how accurately we can predict the takeoff and landing performance of new aircraft. And it’s helping them investigate shock cell structures ¾ diamond shapes that form in exhaust plumes ¾ for the Space Launch System model. The NASA technology is already being used worldwide, adopted by over 50 institutions in more than 8 countries, from Notre Dame to the University of Liverpool. Companies continue to license the technology and commercial versions are hitting the market. The impact has been so significant that NASA’s researchers earned multiple awards. R&D World gave SAFS a spot on its 2025 R&D 100 Awards, selected by a panel of global experts. NASA also named the SAFS a 2025 NASA Government Invention of the Year, the highest award the agency gives to groundbreaking technologies. Giant Leap Ahead To understand why the SAFS is a big deal, you need to know what researchers were working with before. The older focused schlieren imaging setup required researchers to have access to both sides of what they were testing. They needed to set up separate grids of light sources on each side and align them perfectly with each other. It’s the equivalent of lining up two window screens on opposite sides of a room so their patterns match exactly. The SAFS system is an imaging method developed by Brett Bathel and Joshua Weisberger at NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia. It provides researchers with a simple setup for testing than the complex, manual alignment needed with traditional dual-grid setup systems.NASA/ Setting up one of these systems could take weeks of painstaking adjustments, and if someone accidentally bumped the system or needed to make an adjustment? Start over. Enter the SAFS system. In 2020, NASA researchers asked a critical question: What would happen if they could eliminate all that complexity by using the properties of light itself? The solution? Light polarization. Your polarized sunglasses work by filtering light in specific directions. The SAFS system does something similar, using light polarization to create the same effect as the older, cumbersome dual-grid setup. The SAFS system only requires access to one side of the object you’re testing. And, instead of needing two separate grids that must be perfectly aligned, it uses just one grid that does double duty. What used to take weeks of setup now takes just minutes. Need to make adjustments? No problem. The SAFS system can tweak sensitivity, change its field of view, or adjust focus on the fly. The system is compact and immune to vibrations (goodbye, starting-over-because-someone-walked-by). Sometimes revolutionary advances come not from adding complexity, but from finding new creative solutions to age-old problems. The SAFS is proof that there’s always room for innovation ¾ and this one is already making its mark on the world. The work on SAFS was supported through NASA’s Aerosciences Evaluation and Test Capabilities portfolio office and Transformational Tools and Technologies project, which works to develop new computational tools to help predict aircraft performance. The project is part of NASA’s Transformative Aeronautics Concepts Program under its Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate. About the AuthorDiana FitzgeraldWriter Share Details Last Updated Feb 19, 2026 Related TermsAeronauticsAeronautics Research Mission DirectorateAerosciences Evaluation Test CapabilitiesGeneralLangley Research CenterTransformational Tools TechnologiesTransformative Aeronautics Concepts Program Explore More 3 min read I Am Artemis: Katie Oriti Article 1 day ago 4 min read NASA Advances High-Altitude Traffic Management Article 2 days ago 6 min read What You Need to Know About NASA’s SpaceX Crew-12 Mission Article 1 week ago View the full article

Redwire This June 5, 2024, image shows lysozyme crystals aboard the International Space Station. Lysozyme is a protein found in bodily fluids like tears, saliva, and milk, and is used as a control compound to demonstrate well-formed crystals. Lysozyme plays a vital role in innate immunity, protecting against bacteria, viruses, and fungi. The crystals were grown with Redwire’s PIL-BOX in a study of the effect of microgravity on various types of crystals production. Image credit: Redwire View the full article

2 min read Map the Earth’s Magnetic Shield with the Space Umbrella Project A stream of charged particles known as the solar wind flows from the Sun toward Earth. Here, it meets the Earth’s magnetic fields, which shield our planet like a giant umbrella. The Space Umbrella project needs your help investigating this dynamic region, where NASA’s Magnetosphere Multiscale (MMS) mission has been collecting data since 2015. The MMS mission investigates how the Sun and Earth’s magnetic fields connect and disconnect, explosively transferring energy from one to the other in a process that is important to the Sun, other planets, and everywhere in the universe. With the Space Umbrella project, you will help identify when the MMS spacecraft has observed the strongest interactions between the Earth’s magnetosphere and the solar wind. While these interactions can result in beautiful auroras, they also release energy that could disrupt GPS and communications systems and endanger astronauts. Your work will also help scientists better understand solar storms. Understanding these solar storms can contribute to keeping our astronauts and technology safe. To get started, visit the Space Umbrella project website and complete the tutorial. The tutorial will teach you everything you need to know, including how to tell when the satellite is inside Earth’s magnetic field and when the magnetosphere is interacting with the Sun’s particles. Everyone is welcome to participate — no prior experience needed! Left: An artist’s drawing of Earth’s magnetic field (blue lines) interacting with the Sun’s charged particles (yellow lines). The Earth’s magnetosphere (orange crescent) is created by Earth’s magnetic field. It deflects those particles like an umbrella. Right: NASA MMS mission observations like those volunteers would see while participating in the Space Umbrella project. NASA/Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory Learn More and Get Involved Space Umbrella Use data from NASA’s Magnetosphere Multiscale Mission to shed light on solar storms. Facebook logo @nasascience_ @nasascience_ Instagram logo @nasascience_ Linkedin logo @nasascience_ Share Details Last Updated Feb 19, 2026 Related Terms Citizen Science Heliophysics Heliophysics Division Explore More 3 min read Northern Glow Spans Iceland and Canada A vivid display of the aurora lit up skies over the Denmark Strait and eastern… Article 10 hours ago 2 min read How Small Is Too Small? Volunteers Help NASA Test Lake Monitoring From Space Volunteers participating in the Lake Observations by Citizen Scientists and Satellites (LOCSS) project have been… Article 2 months ago 3 min read NASA’s IMAP Mission Captures ‘First Light,’ Looks Back at Earth Article 2 months ago View the full article

The International Space Station orbits above the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of Portugal. A small but mighty piece of lab equipment, about the size of a cellphone, has arrived at the International Space Station after launching with NASA’s SpaceX Crew-12 mission. NASA aims to use the off-the-shelf device, called a microplate reader, to conduct vital biological research in space and get real-time access to data. Demonstrations like this are part of NASA’s Commercially Enabled Rapid Space Science (CERISS) initiative, which partners with industry to develop transformative research capabilities and increase the pace and productivity of space science. NASA’s Biological and Physical Sciences Division is leading the demonstration in collaboration with the agency’s International Space Station Program. Potential to speed up access to research results The immediate benefit of using a microplate reader for space science is speed. Scientists can get data as soon as testing is complete, rather than waiting for samples to be stored, returned to Earth, and analyzed in ground labs. In-situ analysis like this — testing done on-site rather than after sample return — could reduce the delays, complications, and costs of bringing materials back to Earth. Traditional microplate readers on the ground are typically much larger — often ******* than a microwave — but NASA’s tests will use a version that is not much larger than a cellphone. For now, the microplate reader device requires a trained astronaut to run tests. But proving commercial lab equipment can work in low Earth orbit could open doors for future automation and even more advanced testing capabilities. In the future, scientists could test astronaut samples for various molecules during long-duration missions to monitor crew health in deep space. The microplate reader is adaptable — different test kits could support a range of measurements wherever humans explore in space. Shining light on space biology The microplate reader uses a wavelength of light to detect color in biological tests. When a target molecule is present in a sample, the test produces a color change. The intensity of that change tells researchers how much of a particular molecule is present. NASA will initially use samples from the Microgravity Associated Bone Loss-B (MABL-B) investigation — which explores potential ways to prevent bone loss in space — to test the microplate reader on the space station. For this demonstration, the microplate reader will measure a protein called interleukin-6 in samples from the MABL-B investigation. Scientists suspect this protein may contribute to astronaut bone loss. Operating the device is straightforward. It connects to a tablet or laptop via USB and uses standard 96-well plates — the same format many labs use on Earth. An astronaut runs the test using software to operate the device and get results immediately. Scientists can monitor the experiment in real-time via video and visually observe the initial readouts. If researchers have instructions for the crew, those are relayed via space station ground personnel communicating with crew. Additionally, a detailed data file can be downlinked quickly from the station and shared with the researchers. Testing commercial lab equipment using ultimate laboratory A microplate reader arrived at the orbiting laboratory Feb. 14 with Crew-12. The test kit and samples will launch aboard a future mission to the space station. Once all materials are aboard station, NASA will run the demonstration and compare the results with identical tests conducted on Earth. “The microplate reader hardware and the kit to measure a protein called Interleukin-6 are both off the shelf — we’re testing these commercially available products in space to accelerate the pace of doing research in orbit,” said Dan Walsh, CERISS program executive for NASA. “Our CERISS effort is building the capabilities and infrastructure needed for a thriving low Earth orbit research economy. Demonstrations like this show how commercial tools can integrate into space station operations and help grow the commercial space industry.” View the full article

Earth Observatory Science Earth Observatory Northern Glow Spans Iceland… Earth Earth Observatory Image of the Day EO Explorer Topics All Topics Atmosphere Land Heat & Radiation Life on Earth Human Dimensions Natural Events Oceans Remote Sensing Technology Snow & Ice Water More Content Collections Global Maps World of Change Articles Notes from the Field Blog Earth Matters Blog Blue Marble: Next Generation EO Kids Mission: Biomes About About Us Subscribe 🛜 RSS Contact Us Search February 16, 2026 Although the aurora borealis, or northern lights, is most often observed in March and September, it can appear at other times of the year if conditions are right. For instance, in February 2026, a minor geomagnetic storm produced a striking display of light swirling across northern skies. The VIIRS (Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite) on the Suomi NPP satellite acquired these images in the early morning hours of February 16. The VIIRS day-night band detects nighttime light in a range of wavelengths from green to near-infrared and uses filtering techniques to observe signals such as city lights, reflected moonlight, and auroras. While these satellite data are displayed in grayscale, auroras appear in various colors to observers on the ground, from green (the most common) to purple to red. The first image (top) shows ribbons of light that shimmered over the Denmark Strait and Iceland at 04:45 Universal Time (4:45 a.m. local time in Reykjavík). The second image shows the view farther west, where the lights danced above the ********* provinces of Québec and Newfoundland and Labrador at about 06:30 Universal Time (1:30 a.m. local time in Montreal). February 16, 2026 According to the NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center, a minor geomagnetic storm was in progress during this *******. Classified as a G1—the lowest level on a scale that goes up to G5—such storms typically make the aurora visible at high latitudes. G1 storms can also cause slight disruptions, including weak fluctuations in power grids and minor impacts on satellite operations. Later that day, conditions intensified to a G2 storm, likely associated with a coronal hole and a high-speed stream of solar wind. G2 storms are considered moderate in strength and can occasionally push auroral displays as far south as New York and Idaho. About a week earlier, on February 10, a NASA rocket mission launched from the Poker Flat Research Range near Fairbanks, Alaska, to study the electrical environment of an aurora. The GNEISS (Geophysical Non-Equilibrium Ionospheric System Science) mission’s two sounding rockets gathered data that will help scientists create a 3D reconstruction of the electrical currents flowing from the northern lights. Combined with observations from the ground and space, this information can help researchers better understand the system that drives space weather near Earth. NASA Earth Observatory images by Michala Garrison, using VIIRS day-night band data from the Suomi National Polar-Orbiting Partnership. Story by Kathryn Hansen. Downloads Iceland, February 16, 2026 JPEG (654.50 KB) Canada, February 16, 2026 JPEG (1.79 MB) References & Resources NASA Science (2025, February 27) Electrojet Zeeman Imaging Explorer. Accessed February 18, 2026. NASA Science (2025, January 23) Aurorasaurus. Accessed February 18, 2026. NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility (2026, February 10) NASA Rocket to Conduct ‘CT Scan’ of Auroral Electricity. Accessed February 18, 2026. NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center via X (2026, February 16) EXTENDED WARNING: Geomagnetic K-index of 5 expected. Accessed February 18, 2026. University of Alaska Fairbanks (2026, February) Launches x4: Multiple missions kept everyone busy at Poker Flat. Accessed February 18, 2026. You may also be interested in: Stay up-to-date with the latest content from NASA as we explore the universe and discover more about our home planet. A Northwest Night Awash in Light 3 min read The glow of city lights, the aurora, and a rising Moon illuminate the night along the northwest coast of North… Article The Galaxy Next Door 3 min read The Large Magellanic Cloud—one of our closest neighboring galaxies—is a hotbed of star formation that is visible to both astronauts… Article Five Minutes in Orbit 3 min read An astronaut captured a moonrise—and much more—in a series of photos taken from the International Space Station. Article 1 2 3 4 Next Keep Exploring Discover More from NASA Earth Science Subscribe to Earth Observatory Newsletters Subscribe to the Earth Observatory and get the Earth in your inbox. Earth Observatory Image of the Day NASA’s Earth Observatory brings you the Earth, every day, with in-depth stories and stunning imagery. Explore Earth Science Earth Science Data View the full article

4 min read Digital Surface and Terrain Models from Vantor’s Precision3D Product Line Added to Satellite Data Explorer NASA’s Commercial Satellite Data Acquisition (CSDA) Program announces the addition of three digital elevation and digital terrain products from Vantor’s Precision3D Product Line to its Satellite Data Explorer (SDX) data access and discovery tool. The products include: Digital Surface Model (DSM) at 1-meter spatial resolution The DSM is a 3D elevation model derived from imagery captured by Vantor’s constellation of Worldview satellites. It provides precise measurements across all surfaces and terrains and is available in standard formats to facilitate integration into a range of workflows and analysis. It is suitable for a range of applications requiring detailed elevation data, such as urban planning, environmental monitoring, disaster mitigation and response, and terrain mapping. Digital Terrain Model (DTM) at 1-meter spatial resolution The DTM is a 3D elevation model derived from the DSM that offers bare-earth elevation data by removing above-ground features like vegetation and buildings and is designed for analyzing terrain and topography. Created with automated processing techniques, the DTM ensures consistency across all terrain types and is available in a variety of in user-friendly formats. Elevation Bundle (DSM + DTM) at 1-, 2-, and 4-meter spatial resolution The Elevation Bundle, which combines the DSM and DTM products, provides a detailed view of both above-ground features and the underlying bare earth. With global coverage and high-resolution data at 1-, 2-, and 4-meter resolution, this product offers reliable elevation information in all types of terrain, making it a suitable tool for a range of applications from slope analysis to flood modeling. “Digital Elevation Models are foundational geospatial infrastructure for NASA’s science community, and including them in the CSDA program ensures broad, consistent access to high‑quality commercial terrain data that sharpen geometric accuracy, support Earth system and hazard modeling, and extend NASA’s capabilities in support of Earth action priorities,” said Dana Ostrenga, Project Manager for the CSDA. About SDX The SDX allows users to search, discover, and access data acquired through the CSDA program. The web tool offers streamlined data download, automated quota tracking, and a new coverage map that provides a high-level overview of the regions covered by of the data discoverable through the SDX for any specified month and year. Currently, SDX offers access to the EarthDEM digital elevation model created by the Polar Geospatial Center at the University of Minnesota and now Vantor (formerly Maxar). For a summary of the NASA commercial partner datasets available in SDX, visit the SDX website. Researchers interested in accessing these data in SDX can use their Earthdata Login for authentication and initiate data download requests. Data will be made available for download upon approval and acceptance of the end user license agreement (EULA). The use of these digital elevation and digital terrain products is governed by a United States government End User License Agreement (USG EULA). To order data from SDX, users must create an account with and be logged in to NASA Earthdata. (The initial attempt to use SDX will redirect users to Earthdata Login, where they will be prompted to enter their Earthdata credentials and accept the terms of the EULA.) Users must agree to the terms of the EULA before any data can be requested. Note: All data requests must be approved by CSDA data managers. About the CSDA Program NASA’s Earth Science Division (ESD) established the CSDA Program to identify, evaluate, and acquire data from commercial providers that to support NASA’s Earth science research and applications. NASA recognizes the potential of commercial satellite constellations to advance Earth System Science and applications for societal benefit and believes commercially acquired data can augment the Earth observations acquired by NASA, other U.S. government agencies, and NASA’s international partners. All data from CSDA contract-awarded vendors are evaluated by the investigator-led CSDA project teams that assess the value of adding a vendor’s data to CSDA’s data holdings based on their quality and how they might benefit in the context of NASA Earth science research and applications. To learn about the program, its commercial partners, data evaluation process, and more, visit the CSDA website. Learning Resources For more information on the CSDA Program’s SDX, see the SDX user guide. Share Details Last Updated Feb 18, 2026 Related Terms Uncategorized Explore More 4 min read Vantor Archive Imagery Added to Satellite Data Explorer The CSDA Program has added imagery from Vantor to its Satellite Data Explorer (SDX) data… Article 1 hour ago 4 min read CSDA Releases New Data Acquisition Request System The CSDA Program’s Data Acquisition Request System lets authorized users submit proposals for yet-to-be-collected data… Article 1 hour ago 4 min read CSDA Program Announces Eight New Data Agreements The CSDA Program announced eight new agreements that will give users more access to multispectral and… Article 2 hours ago Keep Exploring Discover Related Topics Missions Humans in Space Climate Change Solar System View the full article

4 min read Vantor Archive Imagery Added to Satellite Data Explorer A high-resolution multispectral image of Washington, DC from Vantor. Visible are the Washington Monument (left), Tidal Basin (the body of water in the center-right), and the Jefferson Memorial (right). Credit: Vantor NASA’s Commercial Satellite Data Acquisition (CSDA) Program announces the addition of imagery from Vantor to its Satellite Data Explorer (SDX) data access and discovery tool. The imagery, which was obtained by Vantor’s Legion satellites, comes from Vantor’s 125-plus petabyte imagery archive, which dates back to 1999. The imagery from this archive contains a mix of panchromatic (******/white) and color imagery (up to 18 multispectral bands) and offers global coverage of up to 30 cm resolution. There are three types of imagery available from this archive in SDX: System-Ready Level 1B Data This data is idea for users who are looking to apply their own tools and models to fully process the data and extract the information that they need. It comes with all bands, full bit-depth, and requires further processing to be ready for deriving downstream analytics. This basic processing of this product offers an imagery product ready for custom orthorectification. View-Ready Level 2A Data This processing level is intended for users who want to get straight to using the data to extract downstream analytical information. It provides a basis for deriving downstream analytics and has been orthorectified against a coarse digital elevation model (DEM). It comes with all bands and full bit depth. Map-Ready 3-D This data product offers standardized and orthorectified (i.e., corrected to remove distortion caused by terrain variations, and sensor angle), imagery that has been radiometrically calibrated and geo-rectified to produce a highly accurate imagery product ready for seamless integration into workflows. Map-ready data is ideal for image viewing and locational referencing and offers a high degree of cartographic accuracy. Vantor’s Legion satellites offer 8-band visible and near-infrared multispectral imagery at a resolution of up to 30-centimeters for use in a wide variety of applications ranging from agriculture and natural resources monitoring to disaster response and environmental surveillance. Further, the addition of these datasets to the CSDA Program’s SDX enhances the tool’s utility for users within the larger NASA’s Earth observation community to find high-resolution data that meets their needs. “NASA established the CSDA Program is to identify, evaluate, and acquire data from commercial sources that support NASA’s Earth science research and application goals,” said CSDA Project Manager Dana Ostrenga. “The inclusion of these Vantor data products in SDX is an example of our focus on realizing that mission and marks yet another step to our goal of bringing high-quality data from NASA’s commercial partners to users within the Earth observation science community.” About SDX The SDX allows users to search, discover, and access a variety of Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS), digital elevation model (DEM), synthetic aperture radar (SAR), multispectral, and precipitation radar data acquired through the CSDA program. It also provides streamlined data download, automated quota tracking, and a new coverage map that provides a high-level overview of the spatial coverage of the data discoverable through the SDX for any specified month and year. For a summary of the NASA commercial partner datasets available in SDX, visit the SDX website. Researchers interested in accessing these data in SDX can use their Earthdata Login for authentication and initiate data download requests. Data will be made available for download upon approval and acceptance of the end user license agreement (EULA). To order data from SDX, users must create an account with and be logged in to NASA Earthdata. (The initial attempt to use SDX will redirect users to Earthdata Login, where they will be prompted to enter their Earthdata credentials and accept the terms of the EULA.) Users must agree to the terms of the EULA before any data can be requested. Note: All data requests must be approved by CSDA data managers. About the CSDA Program NASA’s Earth Science Division (ESD) established the CSDA Program to identify, evaluate, and acquire data from commercial providers that to support NASA’s Earth science research and applications. NASA recognizes the potential of commercial satellite constellations to advance Earth System Science and applications for societal benefit and believes commercially acquired data may also can augment the Earth observations acquired by NASA, and other U.S. government agencies, and NASA’s international partners. All data from CSDA contract-awarded vendors are evaluated by the investigator-led CSDA project teams that assess the value of adding a vendor’s data to CSDA’s data holdings based on their quality and how they might benefit in the context of NASA Earth science research and applications. To learn more about the program, its commercial partners, data evaluation process, and more, visit the CSDA website. Learning Resources For more information on the CSDA Program’s SDX, see the tool’s user guide. Share Details Last Updated Feb 18, 2026 Related Terms Uncategorized Explore More 4 min read CSDA Releases New Data Acquisition Request System The CSDA Program’s Data Acquisition Request System lets authorized users submit proposals for yet-to-be-collected data… Article 23 minutes ago 4 min read CSDA Program Announces Eight New Data Agreements NASA’s Commercial Satellite Data Acquisition (CSDA) Program announced eight new agreements with seven of its commercial… Article 41 minutes ago 3 min read Seasons Change in Southwest Virginia From autumn color to a winter-white finish, forested areas around Blacksburg trade foliage for snow… Article 2 weeks ago Keep Exploring Discover Related Topics Missions Humans in Space Climate Change Solar System View the full article

4 min read CSDA Releases New Data Acquisition Request System This screen capture of the SDX dashboard shows a map of Earth’s surface, and on the right, the search filters SDX users can manipulate to find the imagery that they need. Credit: CSDA NASA’s Commercial Satellite Data Acquisition (CSDA) Program released a new Data Acquisition Request System, which lets authorized users submit proposals for yet-to-be-collected data from CSDA’s commercial partners and track their requests through an easy-to-use dashboard. “With the Data Acquisition Request System, approved users will be able to ‘task,’ meaning to request future data, from a CSDA commercial partner’s satellite,” said Aaron Kaulfus, CSDA Data Management Team Lead. “The process begins with a user submitting a proposal that is subject to an approval process. If approved, the proposal will be processed by a CSDA commercial partner in accordance with the user’s other parameters.” The Data Acquisition Request System has been incorporated into the CSDA Program’s Satellite Data Explorer (SDX), an online tool for searching, discovering, and accessing the commercial satellite data acquired by NASA. (Note: Although anyone can browse the CSDA’s data holdings, only authorized data users can log into the SDX and request data. Information on the user authentication and authorization process is provided below.) “The dashboard shows users the proposals they’ve submitted and informs them of each proposal’s status and whether it’s been approved. In the case a proposal is partially approved, the dashboard will also include information supporting that decision,” said Kaulfus. “After approval, the proposal will be processed by the vendor, and the requested data will be collected and delivered to the system for download. This means that users can now request data from a vendor, track the status of their proposal, and download the data all in one place.” By providing these services in a single, centralized system, the CSDA aims to make the process of requesting future data from CSDA vendors more efficient and user-friendly. “Currently, the proposal process relies on users filling in a PDF-type form about their data needs followed by a series of email exchanges among users, CSDA Program staff, and vendors,” Kaulfus said. “The Data Acquisition Request System confines all of these interactions in a single, streamlined system, which allows users’ proposals to move through the [proposal review] process as quickly and efficiently as possible.” That process includes in-depth proposal reviews by CSDA staff to ensure the requested data fall within the program’s budget and the vendor’s capabilities. Therefore, the program’s response to users’ proposals won’t be immediate. Still, Kaulfus says the Data Acquisition Request System’s dashboard will help CSDA staff stay abreast of each proposal’s status and any actions required to keep it moving through the evaluation process. In addition to expediting users’ proposals, the Data Acquisition Request System will help the program address CSDA data users’ needs over the long term by providing the program with information it can use to expand its catalog of commercial satellite data. “We’ve realized that, through the Data Acquisition Request System, we can collect and catalog our users’ requests to inform future CSDA initiatives and add to our current capabilities,” said Kaulfus. “For example, in regard to fire applications, we really don’t have vendors that will support hotspot detection right now. But if a large number of users’ submit proposals requesting hotspot detection data, then that points to a need that we’ve not addressed.” This ability to zero-in on unmet user needs supports the program’s goal of expanding the use of commercial data within NASA’s data-user community. “Expanding the use of commercial data is a big part of this effort,” said Kaulfus. “We want to grow the audience of people who use our data and we want to do it efficiently, but for that to happen, we need information about the data that users need. Along with direct feedback from users themselves, the Data Acquisition Request System will help us get it.” Learning Resources For more information on the CSDA Program’s SDX, see the SDX user guide. Read More Share Details Last Updated Feb 18, 2026 Related Terms Uncategorized Explore More 4 min read Vantor Archive Imagery Added to Satellite Data Explorer NASA’s Commercial Satellite Data Acquisition (CSDA) Program announces the addition of imagery from Vantor to… Article 11 minutes ago 4 min read CSDA Program Announces Eight New Data Agreements NASA’s Commercial Satellite Data Acquisition (CSDA) Program announced eight new agreements with seven of its commercial… Article 41 minutes ago 3 min read Seasons Change in Southwest Virginia From autumn color to a winter-white finish, forested areas around Blacksburg trade foliage for snow… Article 2 weeks ago Keep Exploring Discover Related Topics Missions Humans in Space Climate Change Solar System View the full article

CSDA Program Announces Eight New Data Agreements This Spotlight Mode SAR image from Capella Space shows a portion of the city of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on August 21, 2021. Credit: Capella Space NASA’s Commercial Satellite Data Acquisition (CSDA) Program announced eight new agreements with seven of its commercial partners— Airbus Defense and Space GEO Inc (Airbus U.S.), Capella Space Corporation, ICEYE US, MDA Space, Planet Labs, Umbra, and Vantor (formerly Maxar)—to give users more access to near‑global multispectral and synthetic aperture radar (SAR) data. With these agreements, the CSDA program further advances its mission to acquire data from commercial providers that supports NASA’s Earth science research and applications, and expands the quality, coverage, and range of Earth observation data NASA offers to the scientific community. “These new agreements will provide users with a range of high-quality multispectral and SAR data that can be used in a variety of applications from environmental monitoring to surface deformation,” said CSDA Project Manager Dana Ostrenga. “In addition, they exemplify the CSDA Program’s commitment to acquiring data that enhances and supports the agency’s application and research objectives.” New Near-Global, Multispectral Imagery In support of NASA programs and stakeholders, the CSDA program enacted three agreements with Planet, Airbus, and Vantor (formerly Maxar) to provide near‑global multispectral and pan‑sharpened electro‑optical satellite imagery of nearly all global land and coastal surfaces. This imagery has a spatial resolution of approximately 30 centimeters, 1 meters, and up to 10 meters (depending on the product) and is suitable for applications including environmental monitoring, agriculture, and urban applications. Data products will include Top of Atmosphere radiances and surface reflectance across the visible and near‑infrared spectrum. New SAR Data In response to NASA’s and users’ needs for SAR data, and following rigorous technical and programmatic evaluation, CSDA executed five agreements for high‑resolution SAR imagery, including tasked Spotlight, StripMap, Scan, Wide/Extended Spotlight, and Long‑Dwell modes, with Capella, ICEYE, MDA, Umbra, and Airbus. These SAR capabilities provide all‑weather, day‑night imaging that complements the electro‑optical agreements and enhances NASA’s ability to monitor dynamic processes such as flooding, land deformation, sea‑ice motion, and infrastructure impacts. Further, under these agreements, each commercial partner will provide specific data requirements consistent with their respective sensor capabilities and performance, as well as tasking and archive access. Increased Access and User Eligibility The data acquired under these agreements will be made available to authorized commercial satellite data users in accordance with the CSDA Program’s End User License Agreements (EULAs). EULAs generally pertain to NASA‑funded investigators and designated collaborators and outline established mechanisms for accessing CSDA data, such as the CSDA Satellite Data Explorer (SDX) and related portals. Users can contact the CSDA Program at *****@*****.tld to obtain additional information about user agreements, detailed product specifications, and procedures for requesting and accessing these commercial datasets for their research and application activities. About the CSDA Program NASA’s Earth Science Division (ESD) established the CSDA Program to identify, evaluate, and acquire data from commercial providers that to support NASA’s Earth science research and applications. NASA recognizes the potential of commercial satellite constellations to advance Earth System Science and applications for societal benefit and believes commercially acquired data may also can augment the Earth observations acquired by NASA, and other U.S. government agencies, and NASA’s international partners. All data from CSDA contract-awarded vendors are evaluated by the investigator-led CSDA project teams that assess the value of adding a vendor’s data to CSDA’s data holdings based on their quality and how they might benefit in the context of NASA Earth science research and applications. To learn more about the program, its commercial partners, data evaluation process, and more, visit the CSDA website. View the full article

2 min read Notes from the Field Looking at Chlorophyll from Space By Compton “Jim” Tucker Tucker began his ground studies using a handheld instrument built by one of his classmates. “The instrument was literally held together by masking tape and rubber bands.” NASA scientists are able to study plants from space, but this wasn’t always the case. “I love using satellite data to study the Earth,” says Dr. Compton “Jim” Tucker. When Tucker was a graduate student, he and some friends discovered a new way to study photosynthesis. “We realized that there was a really strong connection with the plant pigment, chlorophyll, and certain wavelengths of light. We figured out that if you wanted to study photosynthesis you needed to study chlorophyll.” Tucker learned that you could figure out plant health by measuring how much visible and near-infrared light a plant reflects. “We call this light-type comparison the Normalized Differentiated Vegetation Index (NDVI). Really it is just a simple ratio of these two wavelengths or bands.” Tucker in 1971. Tucker first became interested in the world around him and began to look at it more closely when a friend’s older brother took them both exploring around the Pecos River in New Mexico. “He really helped to raise my awareness and my interest in the natural wonders of Earth. I really enjoy doing field work.” This was groundbreaking science. Tucker also learned that this observation and comparison could be done from space. In 1981 the first NDVI instrument flew in space as part of the Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) mission. “It is the same instrument from my working-in-the-field days, literally, just *******.” Later in 1983, Tucker met Piers Sellers. This meeting began a decades-long friendship and scientific collaboration. Sellers came up with a way to scale Tucker’s photosynthesis measurements. This made it possible to get detailed information about plant health around the globe — from a single leaf to plants covering a field, a forest, or a continent and all from space. “People are always asking me when I plan to retire,” Tucker says. “And I always say that I really like what I am doing. I am going to do it for as long as I can because it is fun. Most people look at me and think ‘Are you crazy?’ I am not. It is true: I really love my work.” About the Author Compton “Jim” Tucker Compton “Jim” Tucker is a Senior Scientist in the Earth Sciences Division at NASA’s Goddard Spaceflight Center (GSFC). Tucker has been able to travel to some pretty exciting places to do research. This image was taken while in the field in the Amazon. Jim’s beard, usually white, appears red in this picture. He used a special native Amazonian fruit, to dye his hair red for fun. Share Details Last Updated Feb 18, 2026 Related Terms Explorer Keep Exploring Discover More Topics From NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory Earth Your home. Our Mission. And the one planet that NASA studies more than any other. Explore NASA’s History Get Your Daily Dose of NASA History Explorer 1 America’s first satellite, Explorer 1. America joined the space race with the launch of this small, but important spacecraft. View the full article

5 min read 42 Years of Measuring the Sun, the Earth and the Energy in Between By Denise Lineberry NASA’s Earth Radiation Budget Satellite (ERBS), a part of the NASA’s three satellite Earth Radiation Budget Experiment (ERBE), was designed to investigate how energy from the Sun is absorbed and re-emitted by the Earth. On Jan. 31, 1958, Explorer 1 became the first satellite launched by the United States. Its primary science instrument, a cosmic ray detector, was designed to measure the radiation environment in Earth orbit. Though its final transmission was in May 1958, it continued to revolve around Earth more than 58,000 times. As those looping orbits continued, NASA was busy building other ground-breaking instruments to observe and better understand Earth’s systems. By 1975, just five years after Explorer 1 burned up as it entered Earth’s atmosphere, NASA’s first Nimbus instrument launched, providing the first global, direct observations of the amount of solar radiation entering and exiting Earth. This helped confirm and improve the earliest climate models and laid the groundwork for NASA’s Earth Radiation Budget Experiment (ERBE). By the 1970s, the ERBE team was beginning to plan for the next phase of Earth Radiation Budget measurements. Retired experiment scientist for ERBE, Bruce Barkstrom, recalled the very first ERBE science team meeting involved a full day of attempting to determine exactly where the top of the atmosphere was. After much debate, they assigned one person at NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia, to develop the number, which ended up being about 18 miles (30 kilometers) above the sphere that forms the Earth. “That was the level of detail we had to get into as a science team,” Barkstrom said. In October 1984, ERBE launched aboard NASA’s Earth Radiation Budget Satellite (ERBS) from the space shuttle Challenger (STS-41G). “We had to get up at 3:30 a.m. to watch the ERBS launch at 7:30 a.m., and what I remember about that particular morning was that we had an overcast sky. And when the shuttle lit up, it was such a bright exhaust that it lit up the whole sky from underneath,” Barkstrom recalled. “And then, of course, the shuttle went through the clouds, and the light dimmed, and probably about a minute later the sky lit up again because the sun was reflected off the exhaust. “It’s impossible for me to describe this without getting a little emotional.” Early leaders in NASA’s CERES (Clouds and the Earth’s Radiant Energy System) mission, including former Principal Investigators Bruce Wielicki and Bruce Barkstrom, used knowledge gathered from Nimbus and ERBE to formulate and execute a long-term satellite-based study of the role that cloud’s play in Earth’s Radiation Energy System. The seventh and final CERES Flight Model-6 achieved ‘first light’ in January 2018. For 10 years, ERBE provided invaluable data for scientists studying the energy interactions between the Sun, clouds and Earth. Its satellite measurements have provided new information on Earth’s radiation at the top of the atmosphere, including the important radiative effects of clouds on incoming and outgoing energy in the overall process. In the late 1980s, satellite instruments provided the first direct observation that clouds cooled Earth’s climate. Former CERES Principal Investigator Bruce Wielicki developed an algorithm to apply to Nimbus and ERBE models to help quantify cloud forcing — the difference between the radiation budget components for average cloud conditions and cloud-free conditions. With new knowledge about the important role that clouds play in Earth’s energy budget, the science team was anxious to gather more data. In 1997, the first in a new series of instruments, the Clouds and the Earth’s Radiant Energy System (CERES), launched, extending the important ERBE measurements. Six other CERES instruments have since been activated in space to measure the solar energy reflected by Earth, the heat the planet emits, and the role of clouds in that process. “The CERES instrument is small, it’s very elegant, it’s probably the most accurate radiometry that NASA has flown,” said CERES Principal Investigator Kory Priestley. “We’re trying to build the next generation of instrument now to meet the same requirements.” The seventh and final CERES instrument launched aboard NOAA’s Joint Polar Satellite System (JPSS)-1 in November 2017. It has since been activated and first light is expected in January 2018. For 42 years, NASA has observed Earth’s energy budget. NASA Langley’s Earth Radiation Budget Science Team is the only group producing ERB data globally. Though our understanding of Earth’s energy budget and the technology used to gather data has taken massive strides since Explorer 1 and Nimbus, that understanding is ever-evolving. “With Earth observations, you never complete your understanding, so you’re always at the mercy of somebody discovering some new things,” Barkstrom said. “If you’re dealing with observational science, you never have that final escape into absolute certainty where you’ll never have to change things.” Why Measure Earth’s Energy Budget? According to Barkstrom, attempts to understand the radiation budget started in about 1880. Earth’s energy budget is a metaphor for the delicate equilibrium between energy from the Sun versus energy radiated back into space. Continuous, stable and accurate data records over decades are critical to understanding Earth’s energy balance. The data collected improve models that provide seasonal and longer-term forecasts, which inform industry and policy makers to better plan for the future. The Latest NASA’s Total and Spectral Solar Irradiance Sensor (TSIS)-1 is currently on the International Space Station in a mission to measure the Sun’s energy input to Earth. Various satellites have captured a continuous record of this solar energy input since 1978. TSIS-1 sensors advance previous measurements, enabling scientists to study the Sun’s natural influence on Earth’s ozone layer, atmospheric circulation, clouds and ecosystems. These observations are essential for a scientific understanding of the effects of solar variability on the Earth system. About the Missions: ERBE and CERES ERBE The radiation budget represents the balance between incoming energy from the Sun and outgoing thermal (longwave) and reflected (shortwave) energy from the Earth. In the 1970s, NASA recognized the importance of improving our understanding of the radiation budget and its effects on Earth’s climate. Langley Research Center was charged with developing a new generation of instrumentation to make accurate regional and global measurements of the components of the radiation budget. The Goddard Space Flight Center built the Earth Radiation Budget Satellite (ERBS) on which the first Earth Radiation Budget Experiment (ERBE) instruments were launched by the Space Shuttle Challenger in 1984. ERBE instruments were also launched on two National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration weather monitoring satellites, NOAA 9 and NOAA 10, in 1984 and 1986. CERES The Clouds and Earth’s Radiant Energy System (CERES) experiment is one of the highest priority scientific satellite instruments developed for NASA’s Earth Observing System (EOS). The first CERES instrument was launched in December 1997 aboard NASA’s Tropical Rainfall Measurement Mission (TRMM), CERES instruments are collecting observations on three separate satellite missions, including the EOS Terra and Aqua observatories, the Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership (S-NPP) observatory, and soon, the Joint Polar Satellite System, a partnership between NASA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). In fall 2017, CERES FM6 launched on JPSS-1, becoming the last in a generation of successful CERES instruments that help us to better observe and study Earth’s interconnected natural systems with long-term data records. Share Details Last Updated Feb 18, 2026 Related Terms Explorer Keep Exploring Discover More Topics From NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory Earth Your home. Our Mission. And the one planet that NASA studies more than any other. Explore NASA’s History Get Your Daily Dose of NASA History Explorer 1 America’s first satellite, Explorer 1. America joined the space race with the launch of this small, but important spacecraft. View the full article

6 min read The Sky Belongs to All of Us By Hashima Hasan How did a little girl born in India soon after its independence from the British Empire, become a program scientist for NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope, and the first female program scientist for the James Webb Space Telescope, Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA), Gravity Probe B, and other astrophysics flight missions? The story starts in October 1957, when I was 7 years old, and my grandmother ordered the entire family, including my 3-year-old sister, all the servants and their families, to collect at dawn in the backyard of the home and watch Sputnik pass by the clear night skies of Lucknow. That morning, as I saw Sputnik and the dark, starry sky, I dreamt the impossible dream that one day I would be a space scientist. The path was not easy. With determination and encouragement from my mother and school teachers, I forged ahead, won a scholarship to the University of Oxford, from where I earned a doctorate in theoretical nuclear physics in 1976. The path to a traditional academic career for a female scientist was fraught with challenges, exacerbated by social pressures. After pursuing post-doctoral research, a university faculty position, crisscrossing three continents and making a home across the Atlantic three times, I found myself again on the shores of the U.S. (1985) ― this time with a husband and two infant sons. My research career had oscillated between nuclear physics and environmental science, preparing me for yet another scientific challenge, when I was offered a research position at the Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI), Baltimore, to write the software to simulate the optics of NASA’s newest (now legendary) telescope, the Hubble Space Telescope and its science instruments. I boldly accepted the job, and under the guidance of Dr. Christopher Burrows, wrote the Telescope Image Modeling (TIM) software. Little did we know that after the launch of Hubble, TIM would be instrumental in our analysis of the first images, the identification and characterization of the spherical aberration, monitoring the focus of the telescope, and image simulations to enable scientists to analyze their aberrated data. I was appointed as the Optical Telescope Assembly (OTA) scientist, and have the dubious distinction of being the first and only OTA scientist whose task was to keep the Hubble “in focus” until a fix could be designed. I regularly monitored the images to learn about the health of the telescope optics, degradation of filters in the Faint Object Camera, and image characteristics. The flaw in the primary mirror caused by shaving off glass from its edges no thicker than about a human hair, not only caused blurry images, but had a dramatic effect when there were minute movements of the mirror. We learned that the graphite epoxy truss that supported the primary and secondary mirrors, desorbed water faster and longer than calculations had predicted, causing minute shrinkage in the truss. This meant that approximately every 3 months the mirror had to be moved to bring it back to the “best focus” established by the science community. I also participated in the design and optical testing phase of the Corrective Optics Space Telescope Axial Replacement (COSTAR). During the first servicing mission, I did a final image analysis and focusing the telescope before COSTAR was deployed. I had been allowed three attempts to focus the telescope, but I achieved it in one attempt and COSTAR was deployed ahead of schedule. The following 2 years, I continued to work on the Hubble optics, a concept for an Advanced Camera for the Hubble, and astronomical research on barred galaxies. I am proud to be a part of the NASA team that turned adversity to victory. The story of Hubble is a tribute to NASA’s “can do” attitude. The entire scientific, technology and human space flight community rallied around Hubble in the true “Explore as One” spirit to fix Hubble. The brave astronauts, who undertook the life-threatening job of servicing Hubble five times, helped make the observatory what it is today. In 1994, I was ready for a new challenge and accepted a job as visiting senior scientist at NASA Headquarters, under the wing of the fabled, Dr. Edward Weiler. Under his tutelage, I rapidly learned how to manage flight missions and research programs, lead community working groups, strategic planning, international negotiations, and other skills. By 1999, I had achieved sufficient skills and experience to be appointed as a civil servant. During my 23 years at NASA, there have been numerous memorable moments. I would like to mention some. In 1999, I was appointed as the program scientist for the Hubble, a position that I held till 2004. I provided scientific oversight to the science instruments, Wide Field Camera 3, and the Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph (STIS), taking strategic decisions to enable development within cost and schedule. I participated in two servicing missions, SM3A and SM3B. My involvement with the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) started in 1995, when it was a mere concept referred to as the Next Generation Space Telescope (NGST), and Ed Weiler asked me to send a research grant to John Mather at Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) to study the concept for NGST. I was appointed NGST program scientist from 1999-2001 (and JWST program scientist from 2011-2015), and led the solicitation and selection of early technology development. I led the appointment of an Interim Science Working Group to develop the science requirement for NGST science instruments, and wrote the solicitation for the science instruments and Science Working Group. A particularly contentious negotiation we went through with our partners, the European Space Agency (ESA), and the ********* Space Agency (CSA), was the partnership on the Mid-InfraRed Instrument (MIRI), ended amicably. Much negotiation was held with our partners, the European Space Agency (ESA) and the ********* Space Agency (CSA), concerning the Mid-InfraRed Instrument (MIRI). I developed a strategy for selecting a NASA center for management of the MIRI instrument. We were conducting a review of proposals for MIRI management on the fateful day, Sept. 11, 2001. Again, we did not let adversity stop us, and today MIRI and all the other science instruments are installed on JWST. Lessons learned from Hubble development have been applied to JWST development, including complete optical testing in a specially modified chamber at Johnson Space Center (JSC). The building of JWST is another example of “Explore as One,” where scientists, engineers, private industry and non-U.S. space agencies have come together with the ambitious goal of learning how the first stars and galaxies were born. I would like all readers to follow their dreams as I have and not to get discouraged, as we continue exploring the Universe. The sky belongs to all of us, and NASA’s tremendous scientific journey can be followed through our space missions on [Hidden Content]. About the Author Hashima Hasan Hashima Hasan is the NASA program scientist for the Keck Observatory, the SOFIA mission, ADCAR and is deputy program scientist for the James Webb Space Telescope. She also serves as the education lead for Astrophysics. Dr. Hasan has been the program scientist for many NASA missions, and from 2001-2006, she served as the lead for Astronomy and Physics Research and Analysis programs. Dr. Hasan received Her Ph.D. from the University of Oxford, U.K., in theoretical nuclear physics. She was the optical telescope assembly scientist at Space Telescope Science Institute, Baltimore, until 1994, when she joined NASA Headquarters. Share Details Last Updated Feb 18, 2026 Related Terms Explorer Keep Exploring Discover More Topics From NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory Earth Your home. Our Mission. And the one planet that NASA studies more than any other. Explore NASA’s History Get Your Daily Dose of NASA History Explorer 1 America’s first satellite, Explorer 1. America joined the space race with the launch of this small, but important spacecraft. View the full article

4 min read Measuring the Big Bang with the COBE satellite By John Mather The Cosmic Background Explorer satellite (COBE) went up on a Delta rocket on Nov. 18, 1989, into a polar sun-synchronous orbit 900 km up. Our team at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC), Ball Aerospace, the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) and universities built it to look at the cosmic microwave and infrared background light that comes to us from the distant universe, so far away that it seems to be a nearly uniform glow. With it, we started the new subject of precision cosmology; before the COBE very little was known except the general idea of an expanding universe, misnamed the Big Bang. (It’s misnamed because the name conjures up the image of a firecracker, happening at a place and a time. Astronomers see an infinite universe expanding into itself, with no center, no edge and no first moment.) Our team measured the spectrum of the cosmic heat ― more precisely the cosmic microwave background radiation― left over from times when the universe was compressed and hot, with a precision of 50 parts per million. The prediction was for a nearly perfect blackbody spectrum, and it matched. No other story of the universe was ever able to explain that. We also found the hot and cold spots of the heat radiation, known as anisotropy (Greek for not the same in every direction). Stephen Hawking said that was the most important scientific discovery of the century, if not of all time. Now we know that: a.) the spots are responsible for our existence, because gravity acting on the regions of higher density was able to stop the matter from expanding; b.) most of the spots are caused by dark matter; and c.) if we ever know what made the spots, we might understand quantum gravity. In 2006, I got a call from Stockholm, and the Nobel Prize in Physics went to me and to George Smoot in recognition of the work of our team. Now the entire world knows what we know: it was really important. We started in 1974, just 5 years after the first Apollo landing on the Moon, when NASA announced opportunities to propose new satellite missions. I had just finished my thesis project in January and taken a job with NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies in New York City to become a radio astronomer. My thesis project at the University of California, Berkeley, was intended to measure that cosmic background radiation, but it failed to function properly. Yet only months after my arrival in New York, NASA announced the opportunity. My advisor Pat Thaddeus knew what to do: call up our friends and write a proposal. (One of those friends is Rainer Weiss of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, who was also working on gravitational wave detection. He shared the 2017 Nobel Prize for detecting gravitational waves from merging ****** holes.) I never expected our proposal to be chosen, but it was, thanks to far-seeing people at Headquarters like Nancy Boggess, and NASA created a new science team including people from two competing teams. Anticipating that choice, Mike Hauser recruited me to Goddard in Greenbelt, Maryland, and I was hoping to become the lead scientist. Soon Goddard assigned a brilliant team of engineers, who were just completing the IUE observatory, to help us along. We built up a team that eventually included 1,500 contributors, including a science team of 19 spread around the country. The project was extraordinarily challenging, and became the largest in-house project Goddard has ever done. We brought the work in, because we were pushing so far beyond known engineering that it was impossible to write a contract specification; I spent much of my life in the offices of engineers seeking approaches to doing the impossible. I trusted my future to them, and they to me. In the end, our mission worked beautifully, after many changes, including a redesign after the Challenger loss made it clear we would not be launched on the shuttle. NASA and its partner agencies like the European Space Agency and ********* Space Agency are the only places in the known universe where space science and space engineering meet so intimately, where engineers build what has never been built before, so scientists may discover what has never been known before. I can only marvel at the works we have done, and imagine what we may yet do together. About the Author John C. Mather John C. Mather is a senior astrophysicist in the Observational Cosmology Laboratory at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC). His research centers on infrared astronomy and cosmology. As an NRC postdoctoral fellow at the Goddard Institute for Space Studies, New York City, he led the proposal efforts for the Cosmic Background Explorer (1974-1976), and came to GSFC to be the study scientist (1976-1988), project scientist (1988-1998), and also the principal investigator for the Far IR Absolute Spectrophotometer (FIRAS) on COBE. As senior project scientist (1995-present) for the James Webb Space Telescope, Dr. Mather leads the science team and represents scientific interests within the project management. He has received many awards including the 2006 Nobel Prize in Physics for his precise measurements of the cosmic microwave background radiation using the COBE satellite. Share Details Last Updated Feb 18, 2026 Related Terms Explorer Keep Exploring Discover More Topics From NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory Earth Your home. Our Mission. And the one planet that NASA studies more than any other. Explore NASA’s History Get Your Daily Dose of NASA History Explorer 1 America’s first satellite, Explorer 1. America joined the space race with the launch of this small, but important spacecraft. View the full article

7 min read Peering Homeward, 1972 By Laura Rocchio The scientists and engineers at NASA Goddard looking at the first MSS images were looking at just one band of data, so the images appeared ****** and white to them. The image shows the area on that July 25, 1972 image that initially had them concerned that something was wrong with the imagery (an area in the Ouachita Mountains). NASA/USGS On July 23, 1972 the first civilian satellite designed to image Earth’s land surfaces was launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. On board the satellite, originally named the Earth Resources Technology Satellite (ERTS), but later known as Landsat 1, were two sensors. The primary sensor, called the Return Beam Vidicon (RBV), used three shuttered cameras to take photographs; the secondary sensor, the Multispectral Scanner System (MSS) was an experimental instrument. Both sensors were packed onto a “butterfly-shaped” spacecraft repurposed from the successful Nimbus weather missions. There were strict size and weight limitations for the sensors, especially the experimental MSS that weighed less than the primary RBV sensor and the data recorder. (At over 150 pounds, the data recording system onboard was the biggest recording device ever orbited.) A color composite (MSS bands 6,7,5) showing the first cloud-free land image acquired by the Landsat 1 multispectral scanner system (MSS), on July 25, 1972, including the Ouachita Mountains in southeastern Oklahoma. The dark stripe above the image center results from several dropped MSS scanlines. NASA/USGS The MSS technology was a novel way of looking at Earth. It used a scanning mirror to build up an image pixel-by-pixel with six scan lines sweeping across the satellite’s ground path 13.62 times per second as the satellite hurtled around Earth at over 14,400 mph. As the first civilian imaging scanner to orbit Earth, many of the scientists and engineers outside the small cadre of scanner enthusiasts wondered if the satellite’s MSS instrument would be able to successfully produce an image traveling at such a high velocity. This made for a harrowing day when the first imagery was transmitted back to Earth two days after launch. A group of Landsat scientists and engineers gathered in the Landsat data processing facility at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center as the first MSS digital transmission was translated onto 70-mm film by an electron beam recorder and then displayed. As they watched the first imagery scroll by they saw clouds, more clouds, and finally land… but the ****** and white image had irregular wavy lines on it. “It’s terrible. It has moiré patterns,” a technician lamented. Quickly those in the room figured out where the image was showing geographically—the Ouachita Mountain region of southeastern Oklahoma. Then the geologists in the room realized that they were seeing the curvilinear outcrops of the ancient mountains. Landsat 1’s Return Beam Vidicon (RBV) cameras, built by RCA. NASA Anxiety transformed into excitement. NASA geologist Nicholas Short, who had been unconvinced of the utility of land remote sensing for geology, turned to the NASA Deputy Associate Administrator for Space Applications and said, “I was so wrong about this. I’m not going to eat crow. Not big enough. I’m going to eat raven.” USGS cartographer Alden Colvocoresses, who had been cynical about any cartographically accurate data being collected with “a little mirror in space,” turned to his colleagues in the room and said simply, “Gentlemen, that’s a map.” To the surprise of many, it was the ride-along secondary instrument of Landsat 1, the experimental Multispectral Scanner System that became the mission’s imaging powerhouse. The MSS instrument represented many “firsts.” It was the first space-based sensor to digitally encode and transmit Earth surface data; the first Earth-observing instrument to obtain in orbit calibration data, which meant it was the first instrument Earth-scientists could use to make robust comparisons of changes to Earth’s surface over time and across geographies. It quickly proved itself better than the primary Return Beam Vidicon instrument—and a good thing too because just 15 days after launch a major electrical short associated with the RBV’s power-switching circuit caused enough problems that the RBV was shut down for the rest of the satellite’s mission. The MSS data’s accurate geometric fidelity made it a major cartographic tool, and the low sun angle of Landsat’s mid-morning acquisition time accentuated shadows of topographic features making the images especially valuable to geologists; but many fields including agriculture, forest management and marine studies found the data useful. A diagram of a Multispectral Scanner System (MSS) instrument. NASA/Hughes Santa Barbara Research Center The Explorer 1 mission had begun the U.S. forays into space, yet a striking realization that came from the space-bound missions that followed Explorer 1 in quick succession (Mercury, Gemini, Apollo) was that space offered a distinctive vantage point for observing our home planet. A few months prior to the Landsat 1 launch, Secretary of the Interior and Landsat champion, Stuart Udall, had explained to The New York Times, “I thought an Earth applications program was a perfect means of bringing the benefits of space back to Earth.” Once Landsat and its MSS instrument had proved itself after launch, NASA Administrator James C. Fletcher confirmed Udall’s belief, remarking that Landsat was “a second giant stride for mankind” because of the new technology’s potential to improve the understanding of environmental issues. He went on to say that Landsat had a “profound effect on the thinking of the world, particularly on our approach to emerging problems of protecting our environment and maintaining the quality of life for all of Earth’s people…not just clean air and water, but clean land.” The First Space-Based GPS Satellite Tracking Experiment, 1982 On July 16, 1982 the fourth Landsat satellite—carrying “the most complex and pioneering Earth viewing instrument ever proposed for a NASA program” at the time—took to the sky. Nearly everything about this second-generation Earth observation satellite had been upgraded from its Landsat 1, 2, and 3 predecessors. In addition to an MSS sensor, Landsat 4 carried a second-generation Earth-observing sensor, called the Thematic Mapper or TM instrument. The TM, a more advanced version of the MSS, was only one aspect of the mission’s radical redesign. Artist’s concept of the Landsat 4 satellite in position for repair in the Space Shuttle cargo bay. NASA/Hughes Santa Barbara Research Center The Landsat 4 spacecraft was a custom-designed platform and not a re-purposed Nimbus weather satellite platform used for the first three Landsats. But the mission requirements were many—the satellite was required to be Space Shuttle rendezvous ready (for the concept of Shuttle-based repairs); to carry a large antenna (at the end of a long 12.5 foot *****) for communicating with NASA’s Tracking and Data Relay Satellite System (TDRSS); and to carry a GPS receiver. Schematic showing the Landsat 1 satellite in orbit and how the MSS used a scan mirror to build an image six lines at a time as it traveled over its ground path. NASA Landsat 4 was the very first civilian satellite to carry a spaceborne GPS receiver package and to use GPS signals to calculate its position. The concept of GPS was so new at this time that in Landsat 4 press communications, the acronym “GPS” had to be written out and described as “a new US Air Force satellite navigation system involving orbiting navigational satellites to triangulate the exact position of other satellites which require navigation information as part of their data communication to Earth Stations.” GPS receivers were used on both Landsat 4 and 5 satellites to assess if GPS could deliver more accurate position-location data than data gathered from traditional methods (ground-predicted ephemeris, or mathematically modeled locations). GPS was in its infancy and only 4 of the planned 24 GPS constellation satellites were in orbit at the time of Landsat 4’s launch. So there were often times during Landsat 4’s orbit when no GPS satellites were in range. Two researchers at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, Howard Heuberger and Leonard Church, presented a paper on the Landsat 4 GPS navigation results demonstrating that GPS could establish Landsat 4’s position to within 50 meters, and its velocity within six centimeters per second—when the GPS satellites were in view. Though these error margins grew exponentially when GPS satellites were out of reach (because of lapses between measurements), Heuberger and Church concluded that GPS was a good alternative for supplying onboard ephemeris to future spacecraft systems even before the full GPS constellation was in orbit. Drawing sowing the breakout diagram of the instruments individual components. NASA The experiment was largely a success, but deemed not ready for operational use. It was not until the launch of Landsat 8 in 2013—almost three decades after the Landsat 4 GPS experiment—that GPS receivers would become a routine part of Landsat spacecraft. For an exhaustive technical history of the Landsat program, see the new book: Landsat’s Enduring Legacy: Pioneering Global Land Observations from Space. About the Mission Landsat This joint NASA-U.S. Geological Survey program provides the longest continuous space-based record of Earth’s land in existence. Every day, Landsat satellites provide essential information to help land managers and policy makers make wise decisions about our resources and our environment. For over 40 years, the Landsat program has collected spectral information from Earth’s surface, creating a historical archive unmatched in quality, detail, coverage, and length. Landsat sensors have a moderate spatial-resolution. You cannot see individual houses on a Landsat image, but you can see large man-made objects such as highways. This is an important spatial resolution because it is coarse enough for global coverage, yet detailed enough to characterize human-scale processes such as urban growth. Share Details Last Updated Feb 18, 2026 Related Terms Explorer Keep Exploring Discover More Topics From NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory Earth Your home. Our Mission. And the one planet that NASA studies more than any other. Explore NASA’s History Get Your Daily Dose of NASA History Explorer 1 America’s first satellite, Explorer 1. America joined the space race with the launch of this small, but important spacecraft. View the full article

4 min read My NASA Experience By Marcia J. Rieke The development of infrared detector arrays is intertwined with my experiences working on NASA projects. As an astronomer at a university, my interactions with NASA all start with a proposal in response to an opportunity. In 1983, near-infrared detector arrays were beginning to attract the attention of astronomers. At the suggestion of Nancy Boggess at NASA Headquarters, we wrote a proposal to the NASA Research and Analysis Program to obtain an array and test it. At the time, I was a member of the Infrared Astronomy Group working with George Rieke using a single light-sensing element (e.g. a 1 pixel array!) on ground-based telescopes, and I was only starting to become cognizant of astronomy opportunities with NASA. In this initial proposal, we wrote that the array we were contemplating acquiring from what was then called Rockwell International (now Teledyne Imaging Systems), would potentially be useful for infrared instruments on HST. We were not thinking of proposing such an instrument ourselves as we were preoccupied with proposing an instrument for the SIRTF which was later re-named Spitzer. Our proposal was selected, and we purchased a 32×32 HgCdTe array (wow, a whole kilopixel!). Taking a device to the telescope where one could actually take an infrared picture rather than creating a picture by scanning a single pixel back and forth made me feel even happier than a kid in the candy store. Some of my colleagues called it my “toy” camera, but it was so much fun. I remember characterizing the performance of this array, since performance would be of obvious great importance if such arrays were to be used on future NASA missions. During testing, I discovered that the dark current of our first device was orders of magnitude less than what Rockwell had quoted. This needed to be understood because if my result was correct, then this class of infrared array would be a candidate for second generation HST instruments. I called Rockwell, and quizzed the staff about how they had measured the dark current on the array that they had sent us. The Rockwell test engineer explained that he had put a piece of aluminum foil over the dewar window to ensure that the array was in the dark. Well, that was the answer. Yes, the aluminum foil prevented visible light from entering the test dewar, but since it was at room temperature, it was emitting loads of infrared photons. Based on this discovery we decided to propose for a second generation HST instrument which eventually became “NICMOS.” As part of the development funding for that instrument, we moved all the way up to a 256×256 pixel array – 65.5 kilopixels but still not even 1 Mpixel camera. As a result of my involvement in the early steps of working with HgCdTe arrays, I became the Deputy PI for NICMOS, and became deeply involved in a NASA project. NICMOS was the first use in space of the style of near-infrared array that has now become the standard for infrared arrays. Near the end of my involvement with NICMOS and before Spitzer was launched, another opportunity presented itself. People were discussing a “Next Generation Space Telescope” that would push the limits of detectability back to the first stage of galaxy formation. I replied to a letter soliciting members, and I set out to work on this new project. I stuck with it, and responded to the Announcement of Opportunity in 2001, and this triggered a change of events that has led to my being PI of the NIRCam instrument on the James Webb Space Telescope. The detector arrays in NIRCam are each 2028×2048 pixels (eg. 4 Megapixels) with the entire camera holding 40 Megapixels, a long way from my first 1 kilopixel array camera! About the Author Marcia J. Rieke Marcia J. Rieke is a professor of Astronomy at the University of Arizona and is the principal investigator for the near-infrared camera (NIRCam) on the James Webb Space Telescope. Rieke came to the University of Arizona (UA) in 1976 and has made seminal contributions to infrared astronomy. She has served as the deputy principal investigator on the Near Infrared Camera and Multi-Object Spectrometer for the Hubble Space Telescope (NICMOS), and the outreach coordinator for the Spitzer Space Telescope. A fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, Rieke received her undergraduate and graduate degrees in physics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Boston, Massachusetts. Share Details Last Updated Feb 18, 2026 Related Terms Explorer Keep Exploring Discover More Topics From NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory Earth Your home. Our Mission. And the one planet that NASA studies more than any other. Explore NASA’s History Get Your Daily Dose of NASA History Explorer 1 America’s first satellite, Explorer 1. America joined the space race with the launch of this small, but important spacecraft. View the full article

14 min read The Gestation of the Hubble By Nancy Grace Roman Looking through the atmosphere is like looking through a piece of old stained glass. The glass has defects that distort the image. The atmosphere also has defects that distort the image, but the defects in the atmosphere move, thus blurring the image as well. The glass is colored, so only some colors get through. Until the mid-20th century, that did not appear to be a major problem. Stars primarily radiated like ****** bodies, and their temperatures were such that their radiation came through the atmosphere and our eyes adapted to seeing it. The development of radio astronomy, as a result of the technology stimulated by World War II, proved that the universe was far more complex and far more interesting than the staid view in the visible. This made astronomers eager to detect colors that do not come through atmosphere. In addition, the glass is dusty. The dust scatters light making the background brighter and harder to see through. The molecules in the atmosphere also scatter light. This is why we cannot see stars in the daytime. It also keeps us from seeing the faintest stars at night. Finally, unlike the glass, the atmosphere shines faintly, making the faintest objects invisible from the ground. For these reasons, astronomers had been anxious for decades to put telescopes above the atmosphere, and they jumped at the opportunity provided by the opening of the Space Age. The first NASA astronomy missions hunted for high-energy radiation in gamma ray and X-ray regions of the spectrum. These searches relied on techniques that had been developed for decades for the measurement of cosmic rays and for studying high-energy phenomena in laboratories. We knew from rocket observation that the Sun displayed interesting effects in the ultraviolet that changed continuously. This was an impetus behind the Orbiting Solar Observatories. Stellar astronomers were also interested in the ultraviolet. Young, massive stars emit most of their energy in that region. In addition, the strongest and simplest lines of common, light elements are in the ultraviolet. Without observations of these lines, it was impossible to analyze the compositions of stars. This led to the development of the Orbiting Astronomical Observatories with their emphasis on the ultraviolet of stars. We were less interested in the infrared at that time, and detector technology was too primitive to make this region easily accessible. These instruments provided an exciting introduction to space astronomy, but astronomical objects are very distant. That makes them appear faint and tiny. A large mirror is required to collect enough light to analyze any but the brightest stars. The fineness of the detail that is discernible is a direct function of the size of the mirror. Thus, to take advantage of the dark sky and steady images above the atmosphere requires a large mirror. For decades, astronomers had longed for a large space telescope. In 1946, Lyman Spitzer wrote a short paper for the Rand Corporation describing the science that could be learned with a 4-meter telescope in space. This is generally considered the impetus for such a telescope in the U.S. From time to time, NASA asks the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) for advice on its science program. In the summer of 1962, the Academy assembled a group of scientists at the University of Iowa, dividing the group into various committees representing different areas of science, including one for astronomy. One astronomer had studied the characteristics of the Saturn rocket and determined that it could carry a 3-meter telescope. The entire astronomy committee jumped on the idea. That is what they really wanted. I thought that it was too early to start work on such a project. I knew how much trouble we were having trying to develop a satellite and instrumentation for a 6-inch telescope. This telescope was not successful until 1968. Thus, I essentially ignored the idea. At that time, NASA’s Langley Research Center (LaRC) was responsible for NASA’s human space program. Some of the engineers there jumped on the idea of developing a large, manned orbiting telescope. The NAS conducted another study in the summer of 1965. By this time, the astronomers only argued about whether the telescope should be in orbit or on the Moon. The latter would provide a stable base, making the telescope less sensitive to the motion of parts, and also provide a reference system for the pointing controls. Connected to a manned base, it could be used much as ground-based telescopes are used. There were also disadvantages with the Moon. Perhaps the most serious one was that it was unclear how soon such an installation would be feasible. The Moon appeared to be undesirably dusty. Moreover, its motion is complex, making the guidance difficult before modern computers were well developed. Nevertheless, the issue remained alive until the early 1970s. Several aerospace companies were intrigued by the LaRC idea and presented designs for a manned, large space telescope. This was the last thing astronomers wanted! Aside from the fact that research had not been done by a person looking through a telescope for almost a century, with one small exception, a man needed an atmosphere, and that was what we were trying to get away from. In addition, a man would wiggle during long exposures and that would cause the telescope floating in orbit to wiggle in the opposite direction, blurring the image. I still thought it was too early to design a satellite for a 3-meter telescope, but decided that if companies were going to spend money designing such a satellite system, they might as well design a usable one. A major problem at this stage was to win the support of the general astronomical community, many of whom had no interest in observations from space. One facet of attacking this problem was to set up a working group under the auspices of the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) on the uses of a Large Space Telescope (LST), under the direction of Lyman Spitzer. The committee held an early meeting in Pasadena, California, to discuss the use of such a telescope for studies of galaxies, cosmology, and interstellar matter. Numerous West Coast astronomers attended the meeting, increasing their understanding of the possibilities and, hence, somewhat decreasing their antipathy. Although the members of the working group were supporters, the cachet of the NAS gave their report, which was published in 1969, special importance. I met with many astronomers to discuss the promise of a 3-meter telescope above the atmosphere. I addition, I gave many illustrated public talks on the questions that we expected such a telescope to answer, although I also emphasized that the most important results would be those we could not predict. The Astronomy Working Group that had been established to advise me on the entire astronomy program also started to discuss what was really needed for a successful LST and the engineering problems that required solution. By 1971, I assembled an LST Science Steering Group to work only on the LST. For this, I assembled a group of astronomers from all over the country representing various interests that could be served by a large space telescope and some NASA engineers to sit down and outline a design that would meet the needs of the astronomers and that the engineers thought would be doable. Purposely, I included several who were not really enthusiastic about the project but whose science could benefit from the program. Together, we sketched the system that would become the basis for the Hubble. After about 2 years, a more detailed design was needed. NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center was assigned the responsibility for turning our sketch into a design. I maintained a general overview of the continued developments as program scientist, but Robert O’Dell was hired in September 1972 as the project scientist, with the detailed responsibility for keeping the scientific requirements at the center of the planning. At one point, there was a strong push to decrease the diameter of the mirror, probably to make use of facilities that existed for other purposes. We were asked to consider mirror sizes of 2.4 m and 1.8 m. A primary objective of the telescope was to determine the brightness of Cepheid variables in the Virgo cluster of galaxies. Hubble had shown that the velocity of recession of distant galaxies was proportional to their distance. However, the proportionality constant was uncertain by a factor of two. Galaxies have random motions. The velocities of distant galaxies are small compared to the velocity caused by expansion, but for nearby galaxies, these random motions overwhelm the general expansion. Moreover, the nearby galaxies are in a group in which they interact gravitationally. To determine the proportionality constant it was necessary to determine the distance of a cluster of galaxies not interacting with nearby galaxies and distant enough that the random velocities are not significant on the average. The nearest suitable cluster is the Virgo cluster of galaxies at a distance of about 54 million light years. Henrietta Leavitt had shown that the brightness of a particular class of variable stars, called Cepheids, was an accurate function of the periods of variation. We could calibrate this relation for Cepheids in the Milky Way galaxy. Thus, if we could observe these variables in the Virgo cluster, we could determine the distance of the cluster. Measuring the velocity of the expansion was easy. I and, independently, several others determined that with the available detectors, we could reach the Cepheid variables in the Virgo cluster with a 2.4 m mirror but that we could not do so with a 1.8 m mirror. Dropping the mirror diameter to 2.4 m also made the design of a satellite that would fit the space shuttle easier. As the early design developed, it was necessary to make a place for the project in the NASA plans. It was relatively easy to convince my superiors in NASA that such a telescope would be worth the cost. Convincing the political community, with little understanding of science was more difficult. James Webb, the administrator of NASA at that time gave a series of dinners for men with political power. After each dinner, three of us presented a “dog and pony show.” Jesse Mitchell discussed the engineering and its feasibility, ***** Halpern presented the management plans, and I described the scientific research we expected to do with the telescope. I never testified before Congress, but I did write congressional testimony to justify the Large Space Telescope for about 10 years. I also pitched the case for the telescope to representatives of the Bureau of the Budget (now the Office of Management and Budget), the agency that prepares the budget the president sends to Congress. At some point, for political reasons, the word “Large” was dropped from the name with the satellite simply becoming the Space Telescope until launch. In spite of these efforts, Congress continuously postponed approval for construction. Even after construction was started, Congress cut the budget below an optimum level. Of course, this increased the final cost of the mission. By the early to mid-1970s, astronomers organized major lobbying efforts. This finally led to the approval of the project. At one point, then-Sen. William Proxmire (D-Wisconsin), noted for ridiculing government funding that he considered frivolous, asked NASA why the American taxpayer should support an expensive telescope. I did a back-of-envelope calculation and determined that for the cost of one night at the movies, every American would have 15 years of exciting discoveries. I was probably off by a factor of four or five, depending on how launch and servicing costs are allocated, but we shall probably have 25 years of discoveries. Even at a cost of a night at the movies once a year, which would more than cover costs by any accounting, I believe that most Americans believe that the expenditure has been worth it. At the time the Hubble was being designed, NASA was pitching the space shuttle as a cheap way to launch spacecraft. To lower the costs, a busy launch schedule was required. Therefore, all satellites were designed to be launched by the shuttle and several were designed to be serviceable. The Hubble was scheduled to be launched by the next flight after the Challenger accident. That catastrophe cancelled all shuttle launches for 3 years, during which the satellite was kept in storage and a knowledgeable group of engineers kept on the payroll until the 1990 launch. These 3 wasted years also added significantly to the cost of the mission. The Challenger experience caused NASA to rethink its use of the shuttle for most missions. Most payloads had to be redesigned for robotic launches. Fortunately, the Hubble was too far along to be changed. The ability to service it with the shuttle not only saved the basic mission after the mirror problem was discovered, but also provided the possibility of replacing instruments from time to time by more modern versions, thus greatly increasing the capability of the telescope. As mentioned earlier, I started funding development of detectors early in the program. A major portion of the funding for ultraviolet detectors went to Princeton University which subcontracted to Westinghouse for the development of an intensified vidicon for the telescope camera. The Steering Group, and later the Working Group, assumed that this detector was already chosen. As the time approached for the selection of the scientific instruments for the telescope, I was unsatisfied with the progress on the intensified vidicon. At a Steering Group meeting shortly before the selection of the instruments, I arranged a presentation of various types of detectors. Charged coupled devices (CCDs) had clear advantages in resolution, sensitivity, and stability. These are arrays of tiny, solid state chips (pixels) each sensitive to photons. At the conclusion of an exposure, the intensity recorded by each chip is read sequentially down a column, and then the sums are read across. In this way, a map of intensity as a function of position, that is, a picture is obtained. Commercial establishments were strongly interested in supporting their development. (They are the basis of the modern digital camera and are also used for TV cameras.) A problem is that a bare CCD is not sensitive in the ultraviolet. Nevertheless, as a result of this presentation, the Working Group decided to open the choice of detector for the camera. When a proposal from Jim Westphal solved the ultraviolet sensitivity problem by coating the CCD surface with an organic substance that fluoresced in the visible when hit with ultraviolet light, the vidicon lost the competition. Many in the astronomical community were unhappy with NASA management of the Space Telescope. They wanted it in the hands of astronomers with a management contractor in the way that the National Optical and Radio Observatories were handled. This overlooked the fact that the scope of the LST construction and operation was far larger than that of the ground-based observatories. Nevertheless, there was one area in which the community insistence on operation by scientists was non-negotiable – the scientific management of the operation. This nearly cost me my job. Goddard badly wanted the scientific operation of the telescope. After considering this, I decided that it was much too big a job for the small astronomy group at Goddard, even if the astronomical community would have stood still for such an arrangement. As a result, the scientific and astronomy leaders at Goddard talked Noel Hinners into to transferring me to a different job. I decided that I did not want the other job and stayed put for a year or so. I took advantage of an early-out ******* to retire in 1979, but continued for 9 months longer as the Space Telescope program scientist in order to participate on the Source Selection Board for the Space Telescope Science Institute, which would manage the scientific operations of the Space Telescope. I found this an interesting experience. There were five proposals, four of which based the Institute at Princeton University. The proposals from Associated Universities Incorporated, which managed the National Radio Astronomy Observatories, and from Associated Universities for Research in Astronomy, which managed the National Optical Astronomy Observatories, were highly competitive, and the decision between them was difficult. The latter, placed the Institute at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore. Many people believed that it was selected because Baltimore is closer to Goddard. That has helped over time but did not enter our deliberations. I left the project before substantial management problems arose, leaving their solution to my successor, Ed Weiler. He also had to handle the discovery of the mirror problem. It was clear from his actions in these major fiascos that I had left the project in good hands. About the Author Nancy Grace Roman Nancy Grace Roman received her Ph.D. in astronomy from the University of Chicago in 1949. She joined NASA in 1959 and became the first chief of astronomy in the Office of Space Science, where she had oversight for the planning and development of programs including the Cosmic Background Explorer and the Hubble Space Telescope. Dr. Roman finished her NASA career at the Goddard Space Flight Center, retiring as manager of the Astronomical Data Center in 1979, and continued to work at Goddard as a contractor. The first woman to hold a leadership position at NASA, Dr. Roman has been an advocate for woman in the sciences throughout her career. Share Details Last Updated Feb 18, 2026 Related Terms Explorer Keep Exploring Discover More Topics From NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory Earth Your home. Our Mission. And the one planet that NASA studies more than any other. Explore NASA’s History Get Your Daily Dose of NASA History Explorer 1 America’s first satellite, Explorer 1. America joined the space race with the launch of this small, but important spacecraft. View the full article

The Moon rises behind NASA’s Artemis II SLS (Space Launch System) rocket and Orion spacecraft atop a mobile launcher at Launch Complex 39B at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Sunday, Feb. 1, 2026. The Artemis II test flight will take Commander Reid Wiseman, Pilot Victor Glover, and Mission Specialist Christina Koch from NASA, and Mission Specialist Jeremy Hansen from the CSA (********* Space Agency), around the Moon and back to Earth. NASA/Ben Smegelsky As NASA continues preparations for the Artemis II test flight, the agency will provide coverage Thursday, Feb. 19, of its next wet dress rehearsal, a fueling test of the SLS (Space Launch System) rocket, and hold a news conference on Friday, Feb. 20. Teams are counting down to the opening of a simulated launch window at 8:30 p.m. EST on Feb. 19, and the test could extend to up to four hours. At 11 a.m. on Feb. 20, agency leadership will participate in a news conference to provide details about the outcome of the rehearsal. NASA participants include: Lori Glaze, acting associate administrator, Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate John Honeycutt, chair, Artemis II Mission Management Team Representative, Exploration Ground Systems The agency will stream the news conference live on its YouTube channel. A 24/7 live stream of the rocket at the pad continues online, and NASA will provide a separate feed capturing wet dress activities and share real-time blog posts during the fueling day. Look for individual streams for these events to watch on YouTube. Learn how to stream NASA content through a variety of online platforms, including social media. This is the second wet dress rehearsal following a previous rehearsal that concluded Feb. 3. Media previously credentialed for launch may join the news conference in person. To participate virtually, media should contact the newsroom at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida no later than one hour prior to the beginning of the news conference at: ksc*****@*****.tld. As part of a Golden Age of innovation and exploration, Artemis will pave the way for new U.S. crewed missions on the lunar surface in preparation to send the first astronauts to Mars. To learn more about the Artemis campaign, visit: [Hidden Content] -end- Rachel Kraft / Jimi Russell Headquarters, Washington 202-358-1600 rachel.h*****@*****.tld / *****@*****.tld Tiffany Fairley Kennedy Space Center, Florida 321-747-8306 *****@*****.tld Share Details Last Updated Feb 18, 2026 LocationNASA Headquarters Related TermsArtemisArtemis 2Humans in Space View the full article