Webb team brings 18 dots of starlight into hexagonal formation
The James Webb Space Telescope team continues to make progress in aligning the observatory's mirrors. Engineers have completed the first stage in this process, called "Segment Image Identification." The resulting image shows that the team has moved each of Webb's 18 primary mirror segments to bring 18 unfocused copies of a single star into a planned hexagonal formation.
With the image array complete, the team has now begun the second phase of alignment: "Segment Alignment." During this stage, the team will correct large positioning errors of the mirror segments and update the alignment of the secondary mirror, making each individual dot of starlight more focused.
Antares launches Cygnus cargo spacecraft to ISS
A Northrop Grumman Antares rocket launched a Cygnus cargo spacecraft carrying several tons of cargo for the International Space Station Feb. 19.
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State Fight: SpaceX brings business to Brownsville, Texas
At the outset of the coronavirus pandemic, city officials in Brownsville, Texas, anticipated sales and property tax revenue declines. To their surprise, residential property values and sales tax collections have continued to climb. Much of the credit goes to SpaceX.
State Fight: New Mexico’s growing reputation as a space state
New Mexico was not often in the conversation about key space states until Virgin Galactic named Spaceport America its flight operations center in 2009.
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A Sol in the Life of a Rover
What does Percy do all day? A Martian day- or Sol- is 24 hours and 37 minutes long, and while every Sol is different, each one is packed full of exciting science activities, observations, and discoveries! Let's follow Percy on Sol 345 (February 8th, 2022) to catch a glimpse into the daily life of a Martian explorer.
Percy woke up early in the morning at 02:07 LMST (Local Mean Solar Time on Brains of cosmonauts get 'rewired' to adapt to long-term space missions, study finds
A new study published in Frontiers in Neural Circuits is the first to analyze the structural connectivity changes that happen in the brain after long-duration spaceflight. The results show significant microstructural changes in several white matter tracts such as the sensorimotor tracts. The study can form a basis for future research into the full scope of brain changes during human space explor China's Chang'e-4 discovers glass globules on far side of moon
The Yutu-2 lunar rover of China's Chang'e-4 mission has discovered two macroscopic translucent glass globules during its exploration of the far side of the moon, which could potentially help reveal the moon's early impact history.
According to a study published in Science Bulletin, the Yutu-2 rover captured images of two translucent globules using its panoramic camera.
No composition Northrop Grumman launches cargo ship to International Space Station
A fresh supply of 8,300 pounds of scientific investigations and cargo launched from NASA's Wallops Flight Facility in Virginia at 12:40 p.m. EST on Saturday, Feb. 19, aboard a Northrop Grumman Cygnus resupply spacecraft, and is now traveling to the International Space Station.
The Cygnus spacecraft, which was launched on an Antares rocket, is scheduled to arrive at the space station around Fingerprinting minerals to better understand how they are affected by meteorite collisions
When a space rock survives the turbulent passage through Earth's atmosphere and strikes the surface, it generates shockwaves that can compress and transform minerals in the planet's crust. Since these changes depend on the pressure produced upon impact, experts can use features in Earth's minerals to learn about the meteorite's life story, from the moment of collision all the way back to the con NRAO and Optisys Partner Up to Produce 3D Devices for Radio Astronomy
Recent advancements in 3D printing (also known as additive manufacturing) for metallic structures make it possible to print all-metal electromagnetic devices-like antennas and waveguides-on demand. A new partnership between the National Radio Astronomy Observatory, headquartered in Charlottesville, Virginia, and Optisys, LLC, headquartered in West Valley City, Utah, will explore the potential fo 
