AstroSpark Alliance

30 July 2026 15:55

🛰️ NASA’s Curiosity Discovers a Field of Martian Polygons

Description NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover captured this 360-degree view of an expanse of terrain covered in surface features called polygons on June 19 and 20, 2026, the 4,930th and 4,931st Martian days, or sols, of the mission. The rover has found polygons several times in the past, but never so many in one place. Across …

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AstroSpark Alliance

30 July 2026 15:55

🛰️ NASA Awards 2026 Innovative Technology Concepts

The NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts (NIAC) program has created 18 new awards to support visionary ideas to improve aerospace technologies in areas ranging from the exploration of the solar system to understanding the universe. The 18 NIAC Phase I awards total $3.2 million. Each award provides up to $175,000 for a nine-month initial investigation. The …

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AstroSpark Alliance

30 July 2026 15:55

🛰️ NASA Johnson Interns Shaping the Future of Exploration

NASA interns at Johnson Space Center are applying their talents to real-world projects while working alongside the engineers, scientists, communicators, and innovators advancing human spaceflight. Learn how these students are gaining hands-on experience, contributing to real missions, and preparing to join the nation’s highly skilled and competitive aerospace workforce.   Meet the students behind the work and discover what inspired them to pursue careers at …

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AstroSpark Alliance

30 July 2026 13:09

🛰️ Little red dots may mark temporary black hole phase

Since their discovery by NASA's James Webb Space Telescope in 2022, little red dots (LRDs) have been the subject of great interest to astronomers. Understanding the nature of these extremely distant, compact red sources has been a puzzling scientific endeavor.

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AstroSpark Alliance

30 July 2026 13:06

🛰️ Webb reveals millions of stars in nearby galaxy

<img alt="" src="https://www.esa.int/var/esa/storage/images/esamultimedia/images/2026/07/centaurusamiriimage/27358464-1-eng-GB/CentaurusAMIRIimagecardfull.jpg" />
<p>In new images from the NASA/ESA/CSA <a href="https://www.esa.int/ScienceExploration/SpaceScience/Webb" target="blank">James Webb Space Telescope</a> to celebrate its fourth science anniversary, a familiar galaxy transforms into something far richer, and far more complex, than ever seen before. Webb’s unprecedented sensitivity across near- and mid-infrared wavelengths cuts through the thick lanes of dust that obscure Centaurus A’s centre in visible light, showing a densely packed tapestry of individual stars and an active, everchanging galaxy. These images mark four years of better-than-anticipated performance and successful science operations for the most powerful space telescope in history.</p>

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AstroSpark Alliance

30 July 2026 13:06

🛰️ Expedition Sound podcast series

<img alt="Key visual of Expedition Sound, an ESA Space Science podcast series" src="https://www.esa.int/var/esa/storage/images/esamultimedia/images/2026/07/keyvisualofexpeditionsoundanesaspacesciencepodcastseries/27380753-1-eng-GB/KeyvisualofExpeditionSoundanESASpaceSciencepodcastseriescardfull.png" />
<p>Expedition Sound is a podcast series by the European Space Agency (ESA) in which you’re invited to explore the Universe through your ears. Guided by sonifications – the translation of data into sound – host Zsófi Szalavári travels from our Sun out into the depths of space to uncover what the space telescopes of ESA’s science missions teach us about the Universe.</p>

🔗 [Read Full Article](https://www.esa.int/ScienceExploration/SpaceScience/ExpeditionSoundpodcastseries)

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AstroSpark Alliance

29 July 2026 19:39

🛰️ APOD: 2026 July 29 – Psyche Receives Gravity Assist from Mars

A video of the Psyche spacecraft flying by Mars.

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AstroSpark Alliance

29 July 2026 19:39

🛰️ NASA’s Curiosity Discovers a Field of Martian Polygons

Description NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover captured this 360-degree view of an expanse of terrain covered in surface features called polygons on June 19 and 20, 2026, the 4,930th and 4,931st Martian days, or sols, of the mission. The rover has found polygons several times in the past, but never so many in one place. Across …

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AstroSpark Alliance

29 July 2026 09:31

🛰️ NASA to Cover Three US Spacewalks, Host Preview News Conference

Editor&#8217;s note: This media advisory was updated July 27, 2026 to reflect an updated start time for the spacewalk on Thursday, Aug. 6. NASA will provide coverage as astronauts venture outside the International Space Station during three spacewalks in August to continue upgrading solar arrays, replace a communications antenna, and connect power and data cables &#8230;

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AstroSpark Alliance

29 July 2026 09:31

🛰️ NASA Astronaut Chris Williams Returns to Earth

NASA astronaut Chris Williams is all smiles in this July 26, 2026, photo taken shortly after he landed with Expedition 74 Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergey Kud-Sverchkov, and Sergei Mikaev in Kazakhstan. This was Williams&#8217; first mission. Williams spent eight months aboard the International Space Station, where he supported a wide range of&#160;scientific investigations&#160;and technology demonstrations. He &#8230;

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AstroSpark Alliance

29 July 2026 09:31

🛰️ NASA Astronaut Chris Williams to Discuss Space Station Mission

NASA astronaut Chris Williams will recap his recent eight-month mission aboard the International Space Station during a news conference at 2:45 p.m. EDT Tuesday, Aug. 4, from the agency’s Johnson Space Center in Houston. NASA will stream this event live through a variety of platforms. Learn where to watch online: https://www.nasa.gov/live United States-based media interested &#8230;

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AstroSpark Alliance

29 July 2026 01:06

🛰️ NASA’s Swift Sees ‘Wandering’ Mega Black Hole Shredding Star

NASA’s Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory captured an “orphan” black hole lighting up as it devoured a star on the outskirts of a faraway galaxy. These phenomena are rare to begin with, and none had ever before been seen so far outside of a galaxy’s core. “We were looking for these star-shredding events as a way …

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AstroSpark Alliance

29 July 2026 01:05

🛰️ NASA Science Soars During August Total Solar Eclipse

Each time the Moon covers the Sun during a total solar eclipse — darkening daytime skies and briefly revealing the Sun’s ethereal outer atmosphere, the corona — it presents new opportunities to better understand our star and its influence on Earth. On Wednesday, Aug. 12, as the next total solar eclipse sweeps over Greenland, Iceland, …

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AstroSpark Alliance

25 July 2026 10:25

🛰️ Hubble Spies One-Sided Spiral

This Hubble image features spiral galaxy NGC 4654, located 72 million light-years away in the constellation Virgo (the Maiden).

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AstroSpark Alliance

25 July 2026 10:25

🛰️ NASA Announces New Spacecraft Technology Demonstration Mission at Moon

NASA is working with industry to advance the next phase of cislunar infrastructure for the agency’s Artemis program and Moon Base, including orbital assets and demonstrations. Under a contract awarded to Advanced Space, the agency’s CAPSTONE 02 mission will demonstrate rendezvous and proximity operations, autonomous navigation, and cislunar communication capabilities while continuing to characterize the &#8230;

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AstroSpark Alliance

30 July 2026 15:55

🛰️ NASA’s Curiosity Views a Sand-Capped Butte

Description NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover captured this sand-capped butte, nicknamed “Miraflores,” estimated to be about 20 feet (6 meters) tall, with its Mast Camera, or Mastcam, on June 11, 2026, the 4,923rd Martian day, or sol, of the mission. The butte was left behind as surrounding rock eroded away over time, deepening the broad valley …

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AstroSpark Alliance

30 July 2026 15:55

🛰️ APOD: July 30 – Red Sun trough Wildfire Smoke

APOD Science APOD APOD: July 30 – Red Sun… Today’s APOD Archive Submissions Index Search Calendar RSS Education About Discuss   APOD Astronomy Picture of the Day Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation written by a professional astronomer. Red Sun &#8230;

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AstroSpark Alliance

30 July 2026 13:09

🛰️ Curiosity Mars rover discovers field of honeycomb textures

As NASA's Curiosity rover recently began climbing a Martian valley nicknamed "Valle Grande," it sent back images that were a familiar sight to mission scientists: honeycomb-like textures called polygonal fractures, each about 1.5–3 inches (4–8 centimeters) across. The mission has spotted small patches of these geometric shapes several times before, but nothing at the scale discovered in Valle Grande.

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AstroSpark Alliance

30 July 2026 13:09

🛰️ Solar eclipse: myth vs fact

<img alt="" src="https://www.esa.int/var/esa/storage/images/esamultimedia/videos/2026/06/solareclipsemythvsfact/27342225-1-eng-GB/Solareclipsemythvsfactcardfull.png" />
Video:
00:03:39
<p>What really happens during a solar eclipse? ESA astronaut Pablo Álvarez Fernández separates myth from fact, answering common questions and misconceptions about one of nature's most spectacular phenomena.</p><p>ESA is getting ready for three European solar eclipses. Follow <a href="https://www.esa.int/ScienceExploration/SpaceScience/Europeansolareclipses">this page</a> to keep up to date with our planned activities!</p>

🔗 [Read Full Article](https://www.esa.int/ESAMultimedia/Videos/2026/06/Solareclipsemythvsfact)

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AstroSpark Alliance

30 July 2026 13:06

🛰️ Metallic waves on ancient Mars

<img alt="Mars Express spies metallic waves in Mars’s ancient highlands" src="https://www.esa.int/var/esa/storage/images/esamultimedia/images/2026/07/marsexpressspiesmetallicwavesinmarssancienthighlands/27378598-1-eng-GB/MarsExpressspiesmetallicwavesinMarssancienthighlandscardfull.jpg" />
<p><a href="https://www.esa.int/ScienceExploration/SpaceScience/MarsExpress">The European Space Agency’s Mars Express</a>&nbsp;has spotted a swathe of metallic-looking waves filling Mars’s large Kaiser Crater – an ancient and otherworldly dune field sculpted by wind.</p>

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AstroSpark Alliance

29 July 2026 19:39

🛰️ Understanding How Martian Auroras Are Made

This July 23, 2026, illustration depicts charged particles from a solar storm stripping away charged particles of Mars&#8217; atmosphere, one of the processes of Martian atmosphere loss studied by NASA&#8217;s MAVEN (Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution) mission. NASA MAVEN mission scientists have found that certain types of auroras on Mars form in a similar way &#8230;

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AstroSpark Alliance

29 July 2026 19:39

🛰️ NASA’s Curiosity Mars Rover Discovers Field of Honeycomb Textures

As NASA’s Curiosity rover recently began climbing up a Martian valley nicknamed “Valle Grande,” it sent back images that were a familiar sight to mission scientists: honeycomb-like textures called polygonal fractures, each one about 1.5 to 3 inches (4 to 8 centimeters) across. The mission has spotted small patches of these geometric shapes several times &#8230;

🔗 Read Full Article

✨ Hammerspacecraft X Astrospark Alliance

AstroSpark Alliance

29 July 2026 19:38

🛰️ NASA’s Curiosity Views a Sand-Capped Butte

Description NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover captured this sand-capped butte, nicknamed “Miraflores,” estimated to be about 20 feet (6 meters) tall, with its Mast Camera, or Mastcam, on June 11, 2026, the 4,923rd Martian day, or sol, of the mission. The butte was left behind as surrounding rock eroded away over time, deepening the broad valley …

🔗 Read Full Article

✨ Hammerspacecraft X Astrospark Alliance

AstroSpark Alliance

29 July 2026 09:31

🛰️ NASA’s Swift Sees ‘Wandering’ Mega Black Hole Shredding Star

NASA’s Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory captured an “orphan” black hole lighting up as it devoured a star on the outskirts of a faraway galaxy. These phenomena are rare to begin with, and none had ever before been seen so far outside of a galaxy’s core. “We were looking for these star-shredding events as a way …

🔗 Read Full Article

✨ Hammerspacecraft X Astrospark Alliance

AstroSpark Alliance

29 July 2026 09:31

🛰️ NASA Science Soars During August Total Solar Eclipse

Each time the Moon covers the Sun during a total solar eclipse — darkening daytime skies and briefly revealing the Sun’s ethereal outer atmosphere, the corona — it presents new opportunities to better understand our star and its influence on Earth. On Wednesday, Aug. 12, as the next total solar eclipse sweeps over Greenland, Iceland, …

🔗 Read Full Article

✨ Hammerspacecraft X Astrospark Alliance

AstroSpark Alliance

29 July 2026 01:06

🛰️ NASA to Cover Three US Spacewalks, Host Preview News Conference

Editor&#8217;s note: This media advisory was updated July 27, 2026 to reflect an updated start time for the spacewalk on Thursday, Aug. 6. NASA will provide coverage as astronauts venture outside the International Space Station during three spacewalks in August to continue upgrading solar arrays, replace a communications antenna, and connect power and data cables &#8230;

🔗 Read Full Article

✨ Hammerspacecraft X Astrospark Alliance

AstroSpark Alliance

29 July 2026 01:05

🛰️ NASA Astronaut Chris Williams Returns to Earth

NASA astronaut Chris Williams is all smiles in this July 26, 2026, photo taken shortly after he landed with Expedition 74 Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergey Kud-Sverchkov, and Sergei Mikaev in Kazakhstan. This was Williams&#8217; first mission. Williams spent eight months aboard the International Space Station, where he supported a wide range of&#160;scientific investigations&#160;and technology demonstrations. He &#8230;

🔗 Read Full Article

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AstroSpark Alliance

29 July 2026 01:05

🛰️ NASA Astronaut Chris Williams to Discuss Space Station Mission

NASA astronaut Chris Williams will recap his recent eight-month mission aboard the International Space Station during a news conference at 2:45 p.m. EDT Tuesday, Aug. 4, from the agency’s Johnson Space Center in Houston. NASA will stream this event live through a variety of platforms. Learn where to watch online: https://www.nasa.gov/live United States-based media interested &#8230;

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AstroSpark Alliance

25 July 2026 10:25

🛰️ NASA to Support Blue Origin New Glenn Rocket Testing, Advance Artemis

NASA and Blue Origin announced Friday they recently agreed to conduct second stage hot fire testing for the company’s New Glenn rocket on the B-2 test stand at the agency’s Stennis Space Center near Bay St. Louis, Mississippi. The annex to a reimbursable Space Act Agreement signed earlier this month highlights NASA’s commitment to working &#8230;

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AstroSpark Alliance

25 July 2026 10:25

🛰️ New Crew Members Welcomed to International Space Station

From left, Expedition 74 flight engineers Anna Kikina and Pyotr Dubrov of Roscosmos, and Anil Menon of NASA pose for a July 18, 2026, photo while holding a cake celebrating their recent arrival aboard the International Space Station. The trio arrived at the space station on July 14, 2026, after launching from the Baikonur Cosmodrome &#8230;

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