Jet Propulsion Laboratory

Mars

Mars 2020

Detective Work Enables Perseverance Team to Revive SHERLOC Instrument

After six months of effort, an instrument that helps the Mars rover look for potential signs of ancient microbial life has come back online.

Posted June 26, 2024

Juno

Jet Propulsion Laboratory

Jupiter

Jupiter Moons

NASA’s Juno Gets a Close-Up Look at Lava Lakes on Jupiter’s Moon Io

Infrared imagery from the solar-powered spacecraft heats up the discussion on the inner workings of Jupiter’s hottest moon. New findings from NASA’s Juno probe provide a fuller picture of how widespread the lava lakes are on Jupiter’s moon Io and include first-time insights into the volcanic processes at work there.

Posted June 26, 2024

Perseverance (Rover)

Astrobiology

Jet Propulsion Laboratory

Johnson Space Center

Mars

Mars 2020

Planetary Environments & Atmospheres

Why Scientists Are Intrigued by Air in NASA’s Mars Sample Tubes

Tucked away with each rock and soil sample collected by the agency’s Perseverance rover is a potential boon for atmospheric scientists. Atmospheric scientists get a little more excited with every rock core NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover seals in its titanium sample tubes, which are being gathered for eventual delivery to Earth as part of the […]

Posted June 20, 2024

Heliophysics

Jet Propulsion Laboratory

Voyager 1

Voyager 1 Returning Science Data From All Four Instruments

The spacecraft has resumed gathering information about interstellar space. NASA’s Voyager 1 spacecraft is conducting normal science operations for the first time following a technical issue that arose in November 2023.

Posted June 14, 2024

Ames Research Center

Earth

Extreme Weather Events

Goddard Space Flight Center

Jet Propulsion Laboratory

Johnson Space Center

Langley Research Center

Marshall Space Flight Center

Natural Disasters

NASA Announces New System to Aid Disaster Response

In early May, widespread flooding and landslides occurred in the Brazilian state of Rio Grande do Sul, leaving thousands of people without food, water, or electricity. In the following days, NASA teams provided data and imagery to help on-the-ground responders understand the disaster’s impacts and deploy aid.

Posted June 13, 2024

James Webb Space Telescope (JWST)

Astrophysics

Exoplanets

Jet Propulsion Laboratory

Stars

NASA’s Webb Reveals Long-Studied Star Is Actually Twins

Managed by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory through launch, Webb’s Mid-Infrared Instrument also revealed jets of gas flowing into space from the twin stars. Scientists recently got a big surprise from NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope when they turned the observatory toward a group of young stars called WL 20. The region has been studied since […]

Posted June 13, 2024

Perseverance (Rover)

Jet Propulsion Laboratory

Mars

Mars 2020

Mars Sample Return (MSR)

The Solar System

NASA’s Perseverance Fords an Ancient River to Reach Science Target

Originally thought of as little more than a route clear of rover-slowing boulders, Neretva Vallis has provided a bounty of geologic options for the science team. After detouring through a dune field to avoid wheel-rattling boulders, NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover reached its latest area of scientific interest on June 9. The route change not […]

Posted June 13, 2024

Armstrong Flight Research Center

General

Jet Propulsion Laboratory

Learning Resources

MUREP

STEM Engagement at NASA

NASA Supports California Students Aiming to Advance Technology

Students from a minority-serving university in California are helping solve challenges of autonomous systems for future drone operations on Earth and other planets. These students are making the most of opportunities with NASA, the U.S.

Posted June 12, 2024

Voyager Program

Heliophysics

Heliosphere

Jet Propulsion Laboratory

Jupiter

Neptune

Planetary Science

Saturn

The Solar System

Uranus

Voyager 1

Voyager 2

Ed Stone, Former Director of JPL, Voyager Project Scientist, Dies

Known for his steady leadership, consensus building, and enthusiasm for engaging the public in science, Stone left a deep impact on the space community. Edward C. Stone, former director of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California, and longtime project scientist of the agency’s Voyager mission, died on June 9, 2024. He was 88. He […]

Posted June 11, 2024

Mars

Curiosity (Rover)

Goddard Space Flight Center

Jet Propulsion Laboratory

MAVEN (Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN)

NASA Watches Mars Light Up During Epic Solar Storm

In addition to producing auroras, a recent extreme storm provided more detail on how much radiation future astronauts could encounter on the Red Planet. Mars scientists have been anticipating epic solar storms ever since the Sun entered a period of peak activity earlier this year called solar maximum. Over the past month, NASA’s Mars rovers […]

Posted June 10, 2024