NASA News

The state was unusually dry for much of 2025, but the intensity of the drought has ratcheted up since January 2026.

Editor’s note: This release was updated at 7:28 p.m. EDT on April 6, 2026, to reflect Orion’s final closest approach to the lunar surface from about 4,070 miles to about 4,067 miles. NASA also updated the farthest distance Orion will travel. Finally, NASA also made changes at 10 p.m. to the statements about crew firsts. […]

NASA’s Northrop Grumman Commercial Resupply Services 24 mission, or Northrop Grumman CRS-24, will deliver approximately 11,000 pounds of science and supplies to the International Space Station. This mission will be the second flight of the Cygnus XL, the larger, more cargo-capable version of the company’s solar-powered spacecraft. 

On April 6, 2026, the crew of Artemis II reached a milestone, traveling farther than any humans in recorded history, as they orbited the far side of the Moon, roughly 4,000 miles above the lunar surface.  You can rewatch this historic broadcast on NASA’s YouTube channel or on NASA+. Be sure to celebrate with your communities with […]

Grants Status Requests To submit a request, visit NASA General Information Request Form and complete the form. You will receive an automated email with the most commonly requested grant status information. Important Instructions: How to Fill Out the Form: Memorandum for NASA Grantee Community Guidance Regarding OMB Memorandum M-25-14 and Recent Temporary Restraining Orders Update […]

The astronauts aboard NASA’s Orion spacecraft captured this photo of the Moon’s near side on April 4, 2026. The image features dark patches at center and right; these are ancient lava flows, which are unique to this side of the Moon. The Artemis II astronauts – astronauts Victor Glover, Reid Wiseman, and Christina Koch of […]

On April 4, 2026, NASA astronaut and Artemis II Commander Reid Wiseman peers out of one of the Orion spacecraft’s main cabin windows, looking back at Earth, as the crew travels towards the Moon. The Artemis II astronauts – Wiseman and fellow NASA astronauts Christina Koch and Victor Glover, and CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut […]

Editor’s Note: This article was updated at 5:50 p.m. EDT on Monday, April 6, 2026, to update the times for lunar flyby activities. Editor’s Note: This article was updated at 1:40 p.m. EDT on Sunday, April 5, 2026, to correct the time for the distance record, and adjust other times for lunar flyby activities. The […]

NASA astronaut Christina Koch reads on a tablet in the dimly lit Orion crew capsule in this April 3, 2026, photo. To the right of the image’s center, CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen is seen in profile peering out of one of Orion’s windows. Lights are turned off to avoid glare on the […]

NASA, Northrop Grumman, and SpaceX are targeting no earlier than 8:49 a.m. EDT on Wednesday, April 8, for the next launch delivering science investigations, supplies, and equipment to the International Space Station. Filled with approximately 11,000 pounds of cargo, the Northrop Grumman Cygnus XL spacecraft, aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, will launch from Space […]

NASA’s first Artemis II science officers—Kelsey Young, Trevor Graff, and Angela Garcia—are pioneering a new era of mission operations by integrating advanced lunar science directly into Mission Control. Their work will shape how future Artemis crews observe, analyze, and deepen our understanding of the Moon.

Today marks the 100th anniversary of the birth of Virgil I. “Gus” Grissom, born April 3, 1926, in Mitchell, Indiana. As one of NASA’s first seven astronauts, he became America’s second astronaut to fly in space when he launched aboard the Liberty Bell 7 spacecraft on July 21, 1961, just weeks after Alan Shepard’s historic […]

NASA astronaut and Artemis II Commander Reid Wiseman took this picture of Earth from the Orion spacecraft’s window after completing the translunar injection burn. There are two auroras (top right and bottom left) and zodiacal light (bottom right) is visible as the Earth eclipses the Sun. This and another photo of Earth are the first […]

Patches of open water in the region contributed to low sea ice extent across the Arctic in March 2026, which tied with the lowest maximum observed in the satellite record.

For the first time in more than 50 years, astronauts on a NASA mission are bound to fly around the Moon after successfully completing a key burn of Orion’s main engine. With the approximately six-minute firing of the spacecraft’s service module engine on Thursday, known as the translunar injection burn, Orion and its crew of […]

NASA’s Space Launch System rocket and Orion spacecraft lift off in this April 1, 2026, image. NASA’s Artemis II mission will take NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Koch, and CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy on an approximately 10-day journey around the Moon and back aboard their Orion spacecraft. See more launch […]

The February 2026 eruption at Piton de la Fournaise has lasted longer and produced a larger volume of lava than recent eruptions from this frequently active volcano.

Spurred by American ingenuity, astronauts on NASA’s Artemis II mission are in flight, preparing for the first crewed lunar flyby in more than 50 years. NASA’s SLS (Space Launch System) rocket lifted off from Launch Pad 39B at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida at 6:35 p.m. EDT Wednesday, sending four astronauts aboard the […]

Strong winds in March 2026 carried Saharan dust across northwestern Africa and toward the Canary Islands, reducing visibility and prompting alerts.

NASA astronaut Jessica Meir took this photo of an Artemis program patch floating in the International Space Station’s cupola. She posted it on X on March 30, 2026, with the following caption: “Our work on the @Space_Station has provided the foundation to explore further, preparing us to return humans to the Moon this week. Stay […]