Expedition 74 Earth Aurora Collection | International Space Station

Expedition 74 Earth Aurora Collection | International Space Station

The aurora australis arcs across the Indian Ocean south of Perth, Australia, in this photograph taken at approximately 2:19 a.m. local time from the International Space Station as it orbited 270 miles above Earth.

The aurora australis crowns Earth’s atmosphere in this photograph taken at approximately 3:13 a.m. local time from the International Space Station as it orbited 269 miles above the Indian Ocean east of the French Southern and Antarctic Lands. In the foreground, the Canadarm2 robotic arm extends from a power and data grapple fixture attached to the Harmony module.

This view from a window aboard the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft shows the aurora australis glowing above Earth’s atmosphere as the International Space Station soared 270 miles over the Indian Ocean, just southwest of the French Southern and Antarctic Lands.

You can see part of each of the Scandinavian countries–Sweden is in the center of the image (looks like clouds over Southern Sweden, so lights look a bit blurry there), the air glow of the atmosphere at night, and the aurora (and the edge of an ISS solar array).

You can see parts of Norway and Sweden (again a bit blurry in Southern Sweden due to clouds). The large bright spot in lower right area of image is Stockholm.

Expedition 74 emblem

Also known as the northern lights (aurora borealis) or southern lights (aurora australis), auroras are colorful, dynamic, and often visually delicate displays of an intricate dance of particles and magnetism between the Sun and Earth called space weather. When energetic particles from space collide with atoms and molecules in the atmosphere, they can cause the colorful glow that we call auroras.

Learn more about auroras: 
https://science.nasa.gov/sun/auroras/

Follow Expedition 74:
https://blogs.nasa.gov/spacestation/

Expedition 74 Crew
Station Commander: Sergey-Kud Sverchkov (Russia)
Roscosmos (Russia) Flight Engineers: Andrey Fedyaev, Sergei Mikaev

European Space Agency Flight Engineer: Sophie Adenot

NASA Flight Engineers: Jessica Meir, Jack Hathaway, Chris Williams

An international partnership of space agencies provides and operates the elements of the International Space Station (ISS). The principals are the space agencies of the United States, Russia, Europe, Japan, and Canada.

Image Credits: NASA/JSC, J. Meir

Dates: March 11-April 4, 2026

#NASA #Space #Science #Earth #Aurora #AuroraBorealis #AuroraAustralis #ISS #Expedition74 #Astronauts #JessicaMeir #AstronautPhotography #Cosmonauts #Russia #Россия #Roscosmos #Роскосмос #HumanSpaceflight #InternationalCooperation #Expedition74 #JSC #UnitedStates #ESA #Europe #SpaceExploration #SolarSystem #STEM #Education

NASA Artemis II Moon Mission Control—Duane Chin | Johnson Space Center

NASA Artemis II Moon Mission Control—Duane Chin | Johnson Space Center

In Mission Control’s Orion Mission Evaluation Room inside NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas, Duane Chin supported a demo of the Orion Crew Survival System (OCSS) suit as the crew ran pressurized tests inside Orion during flight day 5 of the Artemis II mission. The Crew Habitation Equipment Support Systems (CHESS) console monitored all the gear the crew relied on aboard the spacecraft—from suits to exercise hardware.

Credit: NASA
Producers: Rad Sinyak, Erika Peters
Editor: Nicole Rose
Duration: 1 minute, 26 seconds
Release Date: April 16, 2026

#NASA #Space #Science #Earth #Moon #ArtemisProgram #ArtemisII #OrionSpacecraft #SLS #Astronauts #ChristinaKoch #ReidWiseman #VictorGlover #JeremyHansen #CSA #Canada #HumanSpaceflight #SolarSystem #SpaceExploration #NASAJohnson #JSC #MissionControl #OCSS #CHESS #Houston #Texas #UnitedStates #STEM #Education #HD #Video

The Moon: Copernicus Crater Central Peak | NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter

The Moon: Copernicus Crater Central Peak | NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter

West-to-east view of Copernicus crater central peak complex. The sharp boundary at the base of the 700 meter high peak in the foreground is a now frozen sea of impact melt that flooded the floor of the crater in its final stages of formation. Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera (LROC) Narrow Angle Camera (NAC) M196665381LR, image is ~8 km wide

Central peak with bouldery outcrops and streak seen from the east (top), and the west (bottom)

Reduced resolution view of the entire Narrow Angle Camera (NAC) view of Copernicus crater

Subsampled synoptic view of the central peak complex, image is ~18 km wide, the tallest peak rises more than 1300 meters above the floor

The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera (LROC) captured this view of the heart of Copernicus crater (9.62°N, 339.92°E, 93 km diameter) just before sunset, on July 11, 2012. LROC can only be slewed large angles while looking away from the Sun, otherwise its radiators are exposed to the hot Moon and the LROC Wide Angle Camera (WAC) optics are exposed to the Sun. So back-to-back obliques are not possible on the same day. Between May and July, the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) passed over the terminator (boundary between night and day) and thus the direction to the Sun reversed, in terms of LRO. On that orbit the daylight side switched from one side of the Moon to the other, at least from the perspective of the spacecraft.

Copernicus is a lunar impact crater located in eastern Oceanus Procellarum. It was named after the astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus (1473-1543). It typifies craters that formed during the Copernican period in that it has a prominent ray system. It may have been created by debris from the breakup of the parent body of asteroid 495 Eulalia 800 million years ago.

What are those dark streaks we see on the peak? 
There is a dark streak visible on both sides of the central peak, showing that it is three dimensional within the peak. Might it be a dark rock intruded as a dike into the light colored crystalline bedrock that was brought up from beneath the deepest part of the transient cavity in the Copernicus target? Or is it simply a dark rock that is eroding and slumping down the sides of the peak?

Because of their state of preservation (despite being nearly a billion years old) and the identification of scientifically interesting mineralogy from remote sensing spectroscopy, the central peaks of Copernicus have long been coveted by lunar explorers as a prime location for a mission, including sample return. In fact, Copernicus was considered as an Apollo landing site. To sample the peak you would not need to scale the slopes. In the first image, you can see many rocks and boulders that have rolled down from the summit, lying on the relatively flat floor waiting to be picked up.

When and how will we first visit this fascinating and geologically rich area? Imagine the view astronauts will have as they descend to the floor and then step out at the base of this peak.

LRO has made a 3-D map of the Moon's surface at 100-meter resolution and 98.2% coverage (excluding polar areas in deep shadow), including 0.5-meter resolution images of Apollo landing sites.

LRO has been studying the Moon from up close since 2009, making it the longest-lived lunar orbiting mission ever. The orbiter has mapped the Moon’s surface and measured its temperature, composition, and radiation environment in unprecedented detail. Data from LRO enables NASA, and our international and commercial partners, to select locations on the lunar surface where spacecraft and astronauts can safely land. The orbiter is also helping NASA identify areas near the Moon’s South Pole with crucial resources like water and extended sunlight that provides power for equipment and supports exploration activities.

Learn more about LRO:
https://science.nasa.gov/mission/lro/

Image Credit: NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University
Text Credit: Mark Robinson
Release Date: July 18, 2012

#NASA #Space #Astronomy #Science #Earth #Moon #Geology #Geoscience #ImpactCraters #CopernicusCrater #LRO #LunarOrbiter #LROC #NAC #WAC #SpaceRobotics #SpaceTechnology #NASAGoddard #GSFC #ASU #UnitedStates #SolarSystem #SpaceExploration #STEM #Education

Planet Earth over Moon's Compton Crater | NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter

Planet Earth over Moon's Compton Crater | NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter

Image Description: The Earth straddling the limb of the Moon, as seen from above Compton crater. The large tan area in the upper right is the Sahara desert, and just beyond is Saudia Arabia. The Atlantic and Pacific coasts of South America are visible to the left.

This image was taken when NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) was 134 km above the farside crater Compton (51.8°N, 124.1°E). Capturing an image of the Earth and Moon with the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter Camera (LROC) is a complicated task. First the spacecraft must be rolled to the side (in this case 67°), then the spacecraft slews with the direction of travel to maximize the width of the lunar horizon in the NAC image. All this takes place while LRO is traveling over 1600 meters per second (faster than 3580 mph) relative to the lunar surface below the spacecraft. The Earth is much brighter (higher reflectance) than the Moon, especially from this angle; the Earth was captured near noon while the limb of the Moon was just appearing from the shadows of night, so the Moon was relatively dim. 

Compton is a prominent lunar impact crater that is located in the northern hemisphere on the far side of the Moon. It lies to the east of the Mare Humboldtianum, and southwest of the walled plain Schwarzschild. To the southeast of Compton is the heavily eroded crater Swann.

From the Earth, the daily Moonrise and Moonset are always inspiring moments. However, lunar astronauts will see something very different: viewed from the lunar surface, the Earth never rises or sets. Since the Moon is tidally locked, the Earth is always in the same spot above the horizon, varying only a small amount with the slight wobble of the Moon. The Earth may not move across the "sky", but the view is not static. Future astronauts will see the continents rotate in and out of view and the ever changing pattern of clouds will always catch one's eye. Well at least on the nearside, but what about the farside? The Earth is never visible from the surface of the farside. Imagine a sky with no Earth or Moon—what will farside explorers think with no Earth overhead?

LRO has made a 3-D map of the Moon's surface at 100-meter resolution and 98.2% coverage (excluding polar areas in deep shadow), including 0.5-meter resolution images of Apollo landing sites.

LRO has been studying the Moon from up close since 2009, making it the longest-lived lunar orbiting mission ever. The orbiter has mapped the Moon’s surface and measured its temperature, composition, and radiation environment in unprecedented detail. Data from LRO enables NASA, and our international and commercial partners, to select locations on the lunar surface where spacecraft and astronauts can safely land. The orbiter is also helping NASA identify areas near the Moon’s South Pole with crucial resources like water and extended sunlight that provides power for equipment and supports exploration activities.

Learn more about LRO:
https://science.nasa.gov/mission/lro/

Image Credit: NASA/GSFC/Arizona State University
Image Data: WAC E1199291151C (Earth only), NAC M1199291564LR (Earth and Moon); sequence start time 12 October 2015 12:18:17.384 UTC 
Text Credit: Mark Robinson 
Release Date: Dec. 18, 2015

#NASA #Space #Astronomy #Science #Earth #Moon #Geology #Geoscience #ComptonCrater #FarSide #LRO #LunarOrbiter #LROC #NAC #WAC #SpaceRobotics #SpaceTechnology #NASAGoddard #GSFC #ASU #UnitedStates #SolarSystem #SpaceExploration #STEM #Education

Auroras over Northwest Territories

Auroras over Northwest Territories

Astrophotographer John David McKinnon: "The light, the movement, the colours, the absolute beauty of it all... nothing beats a good old Geomagnetic Aurora Storm at the N60° of Latitude."

Also known as the northern lights (aurora borealis) or southern lights (aurora australis), auroras are colorful, dynamic, and often visually delicate displays of an intricate dance of particles and magnetism between the Sun and Earth called space weather. When energetic particles from space collide with atoms and molecules in the atmosphere, they can cause the colorful glow that we call auroras.

Learn more about auroras: 
https://science.nasa.gov/sun/auroras/

The Northwest Territories is a territory of Canada. It is bordered by the territories of Nunavut to the east and Yukon to the west, and by the provinces of British Columbia, Alberta, and Saskatchewan to the south; it also touches Manitoba to the southeast at a quadripoint that includes Nunavut and Saskatchewan.

Image Credit: John David McKinnon 
Location: Fort Smith/Tthebacha, Northwest Territories, Canada
Date: April 18, 2026

#NASA #Space #Astronomy #Science #Stars #SolarSystem #Sun #Planets #Earth #Aurorae #Auroras #AuroraBorealis #NorthernLights #Astrophotography #JohnDavidMcKinnon #Astrophotographers #NorthwestTerritories #Canada #STEM #Education

Comet C/2025 R3 Panstarrs: View from Spain

Comet C/2025 R3 Panstarrs: View from Spain

Astrophotographer Frank Niebling: "Comet Panstarrs has now a highly detailed tail: It shows now a separated dust and gas tail as indicated by the different colours in the tail. Additionally the gas tail gave a very pleasent view this morning."

Discovered by the Pan-STARRS survey in September 2025, the comet is diving toward its closest approach to the sun (0.50 AU) on April 19, 2026, bringing it well inside the orbit of Venus. If current trends continue, the comet could brighten to magnitude +2, easily seen and photographed in the pre-dawn sky.

The comet's brightness will receive a further boost between April 24-25 when it passes almost directly between Earth and the Sun. The process is called "forward scattering." Sunlight passing through the comet's dusty atmosphere could be amplified 100-fold or more.

We will not be able to see the April 24 surge from Earth. The comet will be too close to the Sun. However, coronagraphs onboard the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) will have a great view of what could briefly become a truly magnificent object.

Spain, officially the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Peninsular Spain is bordered to the north by France, Andorra, and the Bay of Biscay; to the east and south by the Mediterranean Sea and Gibraltar and Morocco, through its exclaves in North Africa; and to the west by Portugal and the Atlantic Ocean. 

Image Credit: Frank Niebling
Location: PixelSkies, Spain

Text Credit: Frank Niebling, Michael Buechner

Image Details: 18.4.2026, 4h10 UT, 4x2min L with Tec 140 at f5, Asi6200mm, 4x2min RGB with Askar 300, Qhy367cPro
Frank's website: https://www.sternfreundefranken.de
Date: April 18, 2026

#NASA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Comets #CometC2025R3Panstarrs #SolarSystem #Astrophotography #FrankNiebling #Astrophotographers #Spain #España #STEM #Education

The Tarantula Nebula in The Large Magellanic Cloud | Hubble Space Telescope

The Tarantula Nebula in The Large Magellanic Cloud | Hubble Space Telescope

The image shows the central region of the Tarantula Nebula in the Large Magellanic Cloud. The young and dense star cluster R136 can be seen at the lower right of the image. This cluster contains hundreds of young blue stars, among them the most massive star detected in the Universe so far. The Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) is a dwarf galaxy and satellite galaxy of the Milky Way.

Distance from Earth: 170,000 light years

Using the NASA/European Space Agency Hubble Space Telescope astronomers were able to study the central and most dense region of this cluster in detail. Here they found nine stars of more than 100 solar masses.

Credit: NASA, ESA, P Crowther (University of Sheffield)
Release Date: March 17, 2016

#NASA #ESA #Hubble #Astronomy #Space #Science #Stars #StarCusters #OpenStarClusters #RMC136 #R136 #Nebulae #TarantulaNebula #DoradoConstellation #LMC #DwarfGalaxies #Cosmos #Universe #HST #HubbleSpaceTelescope #GSFC #STScI #UnitedStates #Europe #STEM #Education

Introducing SpaceX Raptor 3: "The Most Advanced Rocket Engine Ever"

Introducing SpaceX Raptor 3: "The Most Advanced Rocket Engine Ever"

"Raptor 3 is SpaceX’s latest evolution—the best rocket engine ever made."

Key upgrades:

•  No external heat shield (full regenerative cooling)

•  Record thrust-to-weight ratio

•  Simplified design with fewer parts for faster production & higher reliability

SpaceX CEO Elon Musk:

“Raptor 3 engine is a very advanced engine, by far the best rocket engine ever made.”

"It powers Starship V3/V4 toward 10,000+ tons thrust and rapid reusability—the key to Mars."

As of October 13, 2025, the SpaceX Starship has been "launched 11 times with 6 successes and 5 failures." SpaceX has developed Starship with the intention of lowering launch costs using economies of scale. It aims to achieve this by reusing both rocket stages, increasing payload mass to orbit, increasing launch frequency, creating a mass-manufacturing pipeline and adapting it to a wide range of space missions.

"Starship is essential to both SpaceX’s plans to deploy its next-generation Starship system as well as for NASA, which will use a lunar lander version of Starship for landing astronauts on the Moon during the Artemis III mission through the Human Landing System (HLS) program."

Learn more about Starship:

https://www.spacex.com/vehicles/starship/

Download the Free Starship User Guide (PDF):

https://www.spacex.com/media/starship_users_guide_v1.pdf

Credit: Space Exploration Technologies Corporation (SpaceX)
Duration: 29 seconds

Date: April 16, 2026

#NASA #SpaceX #Space #Earth #Mars #Moon #MoonToMars #ArtemisProgram #ArtemisIII #Starship #StarshipFlight12 #ReusableSpacecraft #SuperHeavy #SuperHeavyV3 #Raptor3 #ElonMusk #Engineering #SpaceTechnology #HumanSpaceflight #CommercialSpace #SpaceExploration #StarbaseTexas #Texas #UnitedStates #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Moonbound Episode 2 | For All Humanity | NASA Artemis II Mission

Moonbound Episode 2 | For All Humanity | NASA Artemis II Mission

With the Artemis II mission, four astronauts transitioned from years of training to mission-ready reality. The second episode of the NASA+ "Moonbound" series explores the physical and psychological challenges of preparing for a crewed flight around the Moon, and the teamwork required to test new systems at the edge of exploration.

NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen splashed down in the Pacific Ocean on April 10, 2026, concluding the Artemis II mission. Our Artemis II crew accomplished many milestones on their nearly 10-day mission, surpassing the Apollo 13 record for farthest crewed spaceflight and capturing unprecedented views of the far side of the Moon.

Under Artemis, NASA will send astronauts on increasingly difficult missions to explore more of the Moon for scientific discovery, economic benefits, and to build on our foundation for the first crewed missions to Mars.

Learn more about NASA's Artemis II Mission:
https://www.nasa.gov/mission/artemis-ii/

Get ready for NASA's Artemis III Mission:
https://www.nasa.gov/mission/artemis-iii/

Video Credit: National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)
Duration: 37 minutes
Release Date: April 17, 2026

#NASA #Space #Science #Earth #Moon #ArtemisProgram #ArtemisII #OrionSpacecraft #SLS #Astronauts #ReidWiseman #ChristinaKoch #VictorGlover #JeremyHansen #CSA #Canada #HumanSpaceflight #SolarSystem #SpaceExploration #NASAJohnson #JSC #UnitedStates #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Moonbound Episode 1 | Charting the Course | NASA Artemis II Mission

Moonbound Episode 1 | Charting the Course | NASA Artemis II Mission

"Artemis II and its test flight around the Moon transformed plans and preparation into execution and exploration." The first episode of our NASA+ documentary series, "Moonbound," explores how NASA prepared to launch new systems and hardware for lunar exploration for the first time with crew.

NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen splashed down in the Pacific Ocean on April 10, 2026, concluding the Artemis II mission. Our Artemis II crew accomplished many milestones on their nearly 10-day mission, surpassing the Apollo 13 record for farthest crewed spaceflight and capturing unprecedented views of the far side of the Moon.

Under Artemis, NASA will send astronauts on increasingly difficult missions to explore more of the Moon for scientific discovery, economic benefits, and to build on our foundation for the first crewed missions to Mars.

Learn more about NASA's Artemis II Mission:
https://www.nasa.gov/mission/artemis-ii/

Get ready for NASA's Artemis III Mission:
https://www.nasa.gov/mission/artemis-iii/

Video Credit: National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)
Duration: 22 minutes
Release Date: April 17, 2026

#NASA #Space #Science #Earth #Moon #ArtemisProgram #ArtemisII #OrionSpacecraft #SLS #Astronauts #ReidWiseman #ChristinaKoch #VictorGlover #JeremyHansen #CSA #Canada #HumanSpaceflight #SolarSystem #SpaceExploration #NASAJohnson #JSC #UnitedStates #STEM #Education #HD #Video

China Launches High-precision Greenhouse Gas Detection Earth Satellite

China Launches High-precision Greenhouse Gas Detection Earth Satellite

A Chinese Long March-4C carrier rocket sent a satellite for high-precision greenhouse gas detection within planet Earth's atmosphere into the preset orbit on Friday, April 17, 2026. The rocket blasted off at 12:10 (Beijing Time) from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center (JSLC) in northwest China.

The Earth is warmed by sunlight, causing its surface to radiate heat. This is then mostly absorbed by greenhouse gases. The five most abundant greenhouse gases in Earth's atmosphere are water vapor, carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide, and ozone. Unlike other gases, greenhouse gases absorb the radiations that a planet emits, resulting in the greenhouse effect. The greenhouse effect occurs when heat-trapping gases in a planet's atmosphere prevent the planet from losing heat to space, raising its surface temperature.

The Long March 4 (LM-4) rocket family or Chang Zheng 4 (CZ-4) rocket family is an expendable launch system within the Long March series and is operated by the People's Republic of China. Three configurations currently exist: Long March 4A, Long March 4B, and Long March 4C.

Note: Long March-4C rocket cooling tiles are shed by design after liftoff when they are no longer needed.

The Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center (JSLC) in nortwestern China was founded in 1958. It was the first of China's four spaceports. The launch center has been the focus of many of China's historic space ventures, including the country's first satellite Dong Fang Hong I in 1970 and their first crewed space mission, Shenzhou V, on October 15, 2003. JSLC is now a home for many new Chinese commercial space launch firms.

Video Credit: CGTN

Duration: 30 seconds

Date: April 17, 2026

#NASA #Space #Satellites #Science #Planets #Earth #Atmosphere #EarthObservation #RemoteSensing #China #中国 #RocketLaunch #LongMarch4CRocket #LongMarch4C #LM4C #CGWIC #JSLC #Climate #ClimateChange #GreenhouseGases #GHGs #GreenhouseEffect #GlobalHeating #Environment #STEM #Education #HD #Video

SpaceX Super Heavy V3 Static Test Fire: Pre-Flight 12 | Starbase Texas

SpaceX Super Heavy V3 Static Test Fire: Pre-Flight 12 | Starbase Texas

SpaceX Update: Starship and Super Heavy continue preflight testing. This was the first 33-engine static fire test for Super Heavy V3. The Super Heavy reusable rocket booster is Starship's reusable first-stage.

As of October 13, 2025, the SpaceX Starship has been "launched 11 times with 6 successes and 5 failures." SpaceX has developed Starship with the intention of lowering launch costs using economies of scale. It aims to achieve this by reusing both rocket stages, increasing payload mass to orbit, increasing launch frequency, creating a mass-manufacturing pipeline and adapting it to a wide range of space missions.

"Starship is essential to both SpaceX’s plans to deploy its next-generation Starship system as well as for NASA, which will use a lunar lander version of Starship for landing astronauts on the Moon during the Artemis III mission through the Human Landing System (HLS) program."

Learn more about Starship:

https://www.spacex.com/vehicles/starship/

Download the Free Starship User Guide (PDF):

https://www.spacex.com/media/starship_users_guide_v1.pdf

Credit: Space Exploration Technologies Corporation (SpaceX)
Duration: 20 seconds

Date: April 15, 2026

#NASA #SpaceX #Space #Earth #Mars #Moon #MoonToMars #ArtemisProgram #ArtemisIII #Starship #StarshipFlight12 #ReusableSpacecraft #SuperHeavy #SuperHeavyV3 #ElonMusk #Engineering #SpaceTechnology #HumanSpaceflight #CommercialSpace #SpaceExploration #StarbaseTexas #Texas #UnitedStates #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Comet C/2025 R3 PanSTARRS: View from Canary Islands

Comet C/2025 R3 PanSTARRS: View from Canary Islands

Astrophotographer Marina Prol: "C/2025 R3 (PanSTARRS) Early morning on April 14th, we headed up to Ayagaures viewpoint, not too far from home in the south of Gran Canaria, to finally try and capture the comet of the moment after several failed early starts because of the clouds. These days it’s Dark Skies Week, so here’s one more reminder and a protest against excessive light pollution."

Discovered by the Pan-STARRS survey in September 2025, the comet is diving toward its closest approach to the sun (0.50 AU) on April 19, 2026, bringing it well inside the orbit of Venus. If current trends continue, the comet could brighten to magnitude +2, easily seen and photographed in the pre-dawn sky.

The comet's brightness will receive a further boost between April 24-25 when it passes almost directly between Earth and the Sun. The process is called "forward scattering." Sunlight passing through the comet's dusty atmosphere could be amplified 100-fold or more.

We will not be able to see the April 24 surge from Earth. The comet will be too close to the Sun. However, coronagraphs onboard the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) will have a great view of what could briefly become a truly magnificent object.

The Canary Islands, also known informally as the Canaries, are a Spanish region, autonomous community and archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean. At their closest point to the African mainland, they are 100 kilometers (62 miles) west of Morocco and the Western Sahara. Gran Canaria, also Grand Canary Island, is the third-largest and second-most-populous island of the Canary Islands

Image Credit: Marina Prol
Location: Gran Canaria, Canary Islands (Spain)

Marina's website: https://www.marinaprol.com
Release date: April 14, 2026

#NASA #Astronomy #Space #Science #Comets #CometC2025R3Panstarrs #SolarSystem #Astrophotography #MarinaProl #Astrophotographers #GranCanaria #CanaryIslands #IslasCanarias #AtlanticOcean #Africa #Spain #España #STEM #Education

Shenzhou-21 Astronauts Complete 3rd Series of Spacewalks | China Space Station

Shenzhou-21 Astronauts Complete 3rd Series of Spacewalks | China Space Station

The Shenzhou-21 crew aboard China's orbiting Tiangong Space Station completed their mission's third series of extravehicular activities (EVAs) on April 17, 2026, according to the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA). 

The astronaut trio—Zhang Lu, Wu Fei and Zhang Hongzhang—worked for roughly five and a half hours and completed their EVAs at 01:36 (Beijing Time), assisted by the space station's robotic arm and a team on Earth.

The trio completed the installation of a space debris protection device for the space station, and extravehicular equipment and facility inspections, among other tasks. Zhang Lu, the commander of the Shenzhou-21 mission, and Wu Fei conducted the spacewalk and returned to the Wentian lab module safely, according to the CMSA.

Zhang Lu has so far carried out seven EVAs, making him one of the Chinese astronauts with the most spacewalks to date.

Since completing their second series of EVAs on March 16, the Shenzhou-21 astronauts have steadily advanced experiments in areas such as space life sciences, human research, and microgravity physical science. They have carried out in-orbit environmental monitoring, equipment inspection and maintenance, and supply management. The crew has also completed a full-system pressure emergency drill, emergency life-support training, and preparations for extravehicular activities.

The three astronauts have been in orbit for more than five months and remain in good working and living condition.

To further validate technologies related to long-term human habitation in orbit and to maximize the comprehensive benefits of using the Shenzhou-22 spacecraft as an emergency launch vehicle to resupply the space station, it has been decided, after careful evaluation and assessment, that the crew's stay in orbit will be extended by approximately one month.

During the upcoming phase of their space journey, the crew will continue to conduct scientific experiments and technical tests, and will also celebrate the Space Day of China, marked annually on April 24, and the International Workers' Day on May 1 while in orbit.

Shenzhou-21 Crew
Zhang Lu (张陆) - Commander & Pilot - 2nd spaceflight
Wu Fei (武飞)  Flight Engineer - 1st spaceflight
Zhang Hong Zhang (张洪章) - Payload Specialist - 1st spaceflight

Video Credit: CCTV
Duration: 1 minute
Release Date: April 17, 2026

#NASA #Space #Science #China #中国 #Shenzhou21Mission #神舟二十一号 #Shenzhou21 #Taikonauts #Astronauts #EVA #Spacewalks #ZhangLu #WuFei #ZhangHongzhang #ChinaSpaceStation #中国空间站 #TiangongSpaceStation #MicrogravityExperiments #SpaceLaboratory #CNSA #国家航天局 #HumanSpaceflight #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Mrugen Patel: Moon Mission Control's Orion Evaluation Room | NASA Artemis II

Mrugen Patel: Moon Mission Control's Orion Evaluation Room | NASA Artemis II

"To be here and experience this mission unfold in real time and be part of this team—I'm just living my dream right now.”

In Mission Control’s Orion Mission Evaluation Room inside NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, Mrugen Patel supported Orion’s passive thermal control system, watching real‑time spacecraft data to ensure the crew and hardware remained within safe temperatures throughout the Artemis II mission.

Credit: NASA 
Producers: Rad Sinyak, Erika Peters 
Editor: Nicole Rose 
Duration: 1 minute, 23 seconds
Release Date: April 16, 2026

#NASA #Space #Science #Earth #Moon #ArtemisProgram #ArtemisII #OrionSpacecraft #SLS #CrewedMissions #Astronauts #ChristinaKoch #ReidWiseman #VictorGlover #JeremyHansen #CSA #Canada #HumanSpaceflight #SolarSystem #SpaceExploration #NASAJohnson #JSC #MissionControl #Houston #Texas #UnitedStates #STEM #Education #HD #Video

Commander Reid Wiseman Gives Thanks | NASA Artemis II Moon Mission

Commander Reid Wiseman Gives Thanks | NASA Artemis II Moon Mission

"We launched as friends, and we came back as best friends." 

 —Artemis II commander and NASA astronaut Reid Wiseman

Listen to Artemis II commander Reid Wiseman thanking the world during a news conference at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas, on Thursday, April 16, 2026. The Moon crew discussed their flyby mission around the Moon.

Watch the full 1-hour news conference here: 
https://www.youtube.com/live/_43Ei9eQVww?si=XZT9E1E8qM7b2Pjj&t=228

NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Jeremy Hansen splashed down in the Pacific Ocean on April 10, 2026, concluding the Artemis II mission. Our Artemis II crew accomplished many milestones on their 10-day mission, surpassing the Apollo 13 record for farthest crewed spaceflight and capturing unprecedented views of the far side of the Moon.

Under Artemis, NASA will send astronauts on increasingly difficult missions to explore more of the Moon for scientific discovery, economic benefits, and to build on our foundation for the first crewed missions to Mars.

The Artemis II Mission wrapped up a historic seven-hour lunar flyby on April 6, 2026, marking humanity’s first return to the Moon since Apollo 17 in 1972 and capturing images of the lunar far side. During their nearly 10-day mission, the crew completed a record-setting lunar flyby, taking them 252,756 miles at their farthest distance from Earth and 4,067 miles above the lunar surface at their closest approach. 

The first crewed test flight of NASA’s Artemis program lifted off from Launch Pad 39B at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on April 1, 2026, carrying the first astronauts to travel to the Moon in more than half a century.

Learn more about NASA's Artemis II Mission:
https://www.nasa.gov/mission/artemis-ii/

Get ready for NASA's Artemis III Mission:
https://www.nasa.gov/mission/artemis-iii/

Credit: NASA/JSC
Duration: 1 minute, 18 seconds
Date: April 16, 2026

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