Claire Parkinson, Marc Kuchner, and Neil Gehrels received recognition for their leadership in understanding sea-ice changes through satellite measurements and detecting extra-solar planets. The scientists' research has greatly advanced astronomers' understanding of climate change, exoplanet formation, and gamma-ray bursts.
The NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies found that 2008 was the coolest year on record since 2000, with most of the world experiencing near-normal or warmer temperatures. A strong La Niña event in the Pacific Ocean contributed to the cooling effect.
Comet Lulin is releasing a great amount of gas, making it an ideal target for X-ray observations. Swift's UVOT detects hydroxyl molecules, revealing a cloud spanning nearly 250,000 miles, while the XRT sees X-rays from the comet's atomic cloud.
The Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope has detected the most extreme gamma-ray burst yet, emitting energies 3,000 to 5 billion times that of visible light. The burst, GRB 080916C, occurred at a distance of 12.2 billion light-years away and is believed to be powered by an exotic massive star running out of nuclear fuel.
A new carbon dioxide map of the US has been released on Google Earth, showing hourly and geographic emissions data for various fossil fuel sources. The map is an unprecedented inventory of CO2 emissions from different types of fossil fuel, offering insights into climate change.
Researchers found black gold bubbles in sunlight reflections on the ocean's surface, revealing a new technique to detect oil seeps. This method could provide timely and cost-effective means to survey oceans for oil spills and monitor human-induced releases.
A NASA study successfully predicted the 2006-2007 Rift Valley fever outbreak in northeast Africa using a blend of climate measurements and satellite data. The prediction gave public health officials up to six weeks' notice, allowing them to implement disease mitigation measures and lessen human impact.
The NASA Hurricane Web Page offers daily storm updates, stunning video animations, educational tools, and historic storm information on all storms since 2005. Researchers gather data from various satellites to understand factors that determine why a tropical cyclone strengthens or weakens.
Four NASA Goddard scientists, John Connerney, Thomas Moore, Richard Ray, and Compton Tucker, have been named AGU Fellows for their outstanding work in the field. They were recognized for their research contributions to planetary science, geophysics, and space plasmas.
Astronomers detect frequent X-ray and gamma-ray flares from a soft-gamma-ray repeater, a rare type of neutron star. The object has erupted with over 100 flares in 20 minutes, releasing more energy than the sun does in 20 years.
The James Webb Space Telescope's Backplane, a critical component supporting the 21-foot primary mirror, is being assembled with unprecedented thermal stability performance. This structure will maintain motionlessness to enable precise focusing of telescope optics and instruments, crucial for discovering the first stars and galaxies.
The NOAA-N Prime spacecraft has been launched into space, improving weather forecasting and monitoring environmental events around the world. The satellite will collect vital data on the Earth's surface and atmosphere, supporting NOAA's weather forecasts and providing critical inputs for search and rescue operations.
SkyView's latest survey is now available in WorldWide Telescope, with visitors generating 300,000 images a month, up from 20,000 ten years ago. The project provides a single interface for accessing over 36 surveys covering nearly 100 wavelength bands, making astronomy accessible to everyone.
Peter Serlemitsos, a NASA astrophysicist, has made significant contributions to the development of X-ray detectors and telescopes. His work enabled decades of scientific advances in high-energy astrophysics, including pioneering instruments aboard OSO-8 and ASCA missions.
Astrophysicist Neil Gehrels receives the Henry Draper Medal for his groundbreaking work on gamma-ray bursts and active galactic nuclei. His leadership of NASA's Swift Mission has significantly advanced astronomers' understanding of these phenomena.
Researchers used a novel combination of historical temperature data and satellite records to reconstruct a 50-year history of surface temperatures across Antarctica. The analysis confirms that West Antarctica warmed at a higher rate than the rest of the continent.
The NOAA-N Prime satellite will provide vital data inputs for NOAA's weather forecasts and support the Search and Rescue Satellite-Aided Tracking System. The satellite has instruments that can detect solar winds, impair communications, and affect astronaut safety.
The report highlights the importance of aerosol research in predicting Earth's future climate. Scientists need a better understanding of how aerosols affect climate to narrow down temperature increase uncertainty by nearly two-thirds.
A team of NASA and university scientists has detected methane in the Martian atmosphere, indicating the planet may be biologically active. The discovery was made using spectrometers at the Infrared Telescope Facility and W.M. Keck telescope, revealing three spectral features that are a definitive signature of methane.
James E. Hansen, NASA's longtime director of the Goddard Institute of Space Studies, has been awarded the Carl-Gustaf Rossby Research Medal for his groundbreaking work on climate change and clear communication of scientific findings to policymakers. This prestigious honor recognizes his tireless efforts to raise awareness about global ...
The team found a cosmic puzzle that booms six times louder than predicted, ruling out origins from primordial stars and known radio sources. The source of this cosmic radio background remains a mystery, complicating efforts to detect the first stars in the universe.
Astronomers are discovering that galaxies with actively forming stars have a bluish color, while those without do so appear red. The BAT Hard X-ray Survey of NASA's Swift spacecraft has found most nearby active galaxies to be spiral and irregular, with more than 30% being colliding.
Astronomers have identified gas molecules in the host galaxy of a gamma-ray burst, providing insight into star formation when the universe was about one-sixth its present age. The study found hydrogen and carbon monoxide absorption lines, suggesting a thick molecular cloud similar to those that spawn stars in our galaxy today.
Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope has discovered 12 new gamma-ray-only pulsars and detected pulses from 18 others. The finds are challenging our previous understanding of how pulsars work, with gamma rays now believed to originate far above the neutron star.
The Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter has successfully completed thermal vacuum testing at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, simulating extreme hot and cold conditions of space. The orbiter will carry seven instruments to provide detailed maps of the lunar surface and increase understanding of its topography and natural resources.
University of Idaho engineers have developed unique new technology that will be used in NASA's Landsat Data Continuity Mission and Magnetospheric Multiscale Mission. The technology includes advanced data compression and channel coder algorithms, increasing science data return and protecting data fidelity.
Researchers have found that the alignment of the sun's magnetic field with Earth's shields our planet from solar particles. The discovery could be used to predict when solar storms will be severe, and is expected to impact power lines and spacecraft.
Satellite data from NASA's Aura and Terra satellites shows a nearly 50% decline in nitrogen dioxide levels and a 20% drop in carbon monoxide levels during the 2008 Olympic pollution controls. The results demonstrate the effectiveness of air quality restrictions, but also highlight challenges in detecting sulfur dioxide due to its longe...
The NPOESS Preparatory Project (NPP) successfully completed a comprehensive Mission Operations Readiness Review, assessing its operational readiness and progress to launch. The review determined that NPP's overall operations readiness is sound, with strengths and weaknesses identified but no major issues found.
Researchers detected a stream of perfectly intact hydrogen atoms shooting out of an X-class solar flare, surprising scientists. The discovery suggests that all strong flares might emit hydrogen bursts, which could be detected using the NASA's STEREO spacecraft.
NASA instruments have observed the boundary between the Earth's upper atmosphere and space has moved to extraordinarily low altitudes, with measurements taken by the Coupled Ion Neutral Dynamics Investigation (CINDI) instrument suite on an Air Force satellite.
Scientists can now access valuable hurricane research information and easy data access to a collection of multi-sensor datasets via the NASA Hurricane Data Analysis tool. The tool allows users to visualize key parameters, such as area plots and animations, for tropical cyclones around the world.
Swift's Ultraviolet/Optical Telescope (UVOT) observes the chemical composition of comet atmospheres, while its X-Ray Telescope (XRT) studies gas and solar wind interactions. This research offers clues about comets' origins and the solar system.
Researchers used NASA satellite data to estimate the heat-trapping effect of water vapor, validating its critical component role in climate change. The study found that increasing water vapor leads to a spiraling cycle of warming and increased absorption, amplifying the warming effect of other greenhouse gases.
The NSF CubeSat program represents a new 'low cost access to space' approach to performing high-quality science. Firefly will explore the relationship between lightning and Terrestrial Gamma Ray Flashes (TGFs), with potential implications for understanding Earth's upper atmosphere and near-Earth space environment.
NASA's Hubble Space Telescope has directly observed a planet circling another star, Fomalhaut b. The exoplanet orbits Fomalhaut at a distance of 10.7 billion miles, 10 times that of Saturn from the sun.
The NASA-designed Sunshield is made of a super-tough polymer-based film that can block the sun's energy while maintaining structural integrity. The telescope needs to be extremely cold to observe distant galaxies and stars in infrared light, and the Sunshield plays a crucial role in achieving this.
A new NASA technique uses satellite data to measure changes in the mass of mountain glaciers in the Gulf of Alaska with unprecedented precision. The annual ice mass lost from glaciers has been found to be 84 gigatons annually, contributing nearly half as much freshwater melt as Greenland.
NASA sold a portfolio of 11 patented technologies, including the Hilbert-Huang Transform method, to Ocean Tomo Federal Services LLC through a public auction. The sale demonstrated the government's ability to commercialize federally-funded technology and accelerate innovation.
The NOAA-N Prime satellite, built by Lockheed Martin, will provide a polar-orbiting platform for environmental monitoring instruments. The satellite will assist in measuring Earth's atmosphere, surface, and cloud cover, as well as supporting the Search and Rescue Satellite-Aided Tracking system.
Using NASA satellite data, forecasters can now more accurately predict the timing of two out of three dust events. This capability is crucial for issuing early warnings to populations at risk for dust-related health complications.
A new study analyzing historic samples from a classic origin-of-life experiment by NASA and university researchers found 22 amino acids, 10 of which were never seen before. The team discovered that volcanic eruptions could provide the necessary chemistry for life to emerge.
Scientists have discovered a 10,000-year-old stellar corpse that only pulses in gamma rays, providing fundamental insights into the behavior of collapsed stars. The pulsar, located about 4,600 light-years away, emits 1,000 times the energy of our sun and is thought to be part of a larger population of similar objects.
The IBEX spacecraft will conduct high-altitude orbits to investigate and capture images of the interstellar boundary, a region where the solar system meets interstellar space. The two-year mission will provide insights into the dynamic interactions between the hot solar wind and cold expanse of space.
Researchers used NASA's Thunderhead supercomputer to simulate dusty disks around sunlike stars, finding that planets as small as Mars can create detectable ring structures. The models provide a way to infer a planet's mass and orbital distance based on dust particle simulations.
NASA scientists uncrated an Apollo-era heat shield to analyze its design and thermal response, providing valuable insights for the development of the Orion Crew Exploration Vehicle's Thermal Protection System. The study aims to improve the vehicle's heat protection capabilities, enabling it to safely carry crews to the moon and beyond.
The James Webb Space Telescope model is on display at the Deutsches Museum in Munich, Germany until October 28, 2008. The model showcases the telescope's size and complexity, measuring 80 feet long, 40 feet wide, and 40 feet tall.
The Interstellar Boundary Explorer (IBEX) mission will conduct extremely high-altitude orbits above Earth to investigate and capture images of processes taking place at the farthest reaches of the solar system. The spacecraft will provide scientists with a new understanding of the global interaction between our sun and the galaxy.
A NASA study confirms a link between rising Arctic storm activity and accelerated sea ice drift, which may serve as a negative feedback mechanism for global warming. The research suggests that the Arctic's capacity to absorb carbon dioxide could increase, offering a potential solution to climate change.
Scientists using Spitzer data have identified the precise event that produces the echo we see, revealing the supernova's first flash. The hot spots near the shattered remains of an exploded star are echoing the blast's first moments, powered by radiation from the supernova shock wave.