Tuesday, 3 February 2026

Cracking Antarctic Sea Ice

January 19
January 20
A satellite image shows sea ice along Antarctica’s Ross Island near McMurdo Station. Buildings and fuel tanks are visible on land. The start of a straight channel, cut by an icebreaker through the sea ice, is visible toward the right, originating from small area of dark open water.
NASA Earth Observatory
A satellite image of the same area shows a completed channel cut by an icebreaker through the sea ice. The ship channel stretches about 10 kilometers from open water on the right to McMurdo Station on the left.
NASA Earth Observatory
A satellite image shows sea ice along Antarctica’s Ross Island near McMurdo Station. Buildings and fuel tanks are visible on land. The start of a straight channel, cut by an icebreaker through the sea ice, is visible toward the right, originating from small area of dark open water.
NASA Earth Observatory
A satellite image of the same area shows a completed channel cut by an icebreaker through the sea ice. The ship channel stretches about 10 kilometers from open water on the right to McMurdo Station on the left.
NASA Earth Observatory

January 19

January 20

‘Tis the season for long and ruler-straight cracks in McMurdo Sound’s sea ice. Though natural breaks in sea ice are called leads, the better term for the human-made fracture seen in these satellite images is a ship channel.

In the austral summer, usually in January, an icebreaker rams a path through the fast ice—a type of sea ice that is anchored to the shore—that often covers McMurdo Sound. This annual effort allows cargo ships to reach McMurdo Station, a research base operated by the United States Antarctic Program. The U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Polar Star completed the task in January 2026, arriving after breaking a path through several miles of ice between the Ross Sea and an ice pier at McMurdo. Most of the channel was cut between January 19 and 20.  

Seven satellite images captured in January 2026 show a stepwise lengthening of a ship channel in sea ice flanking the coast of Ross Island. The channel spans diagonally across the image, from an area of dark open water on the bottom-right to a research base on the top-left.
January 2 – January 27, 2026

The animation above, made of images captured by the OLI (Operational Land Imager) on Landsat 8 and 9, offers satellite views of the icebreaker’s work. Images were captured on January 2, 7, 19, 20, 23, 25, and 27. The nearly 120-meter (400-foot) vessel weighs 13,500 tons and has thick steel-plated hulls. With 75,000 shaft horsepower, it’s the world’s most powerful non-nuclear icebreaker.

The ship sometimes conducts search-and-rescue missions as well. On January 17, the day marking its 50th year of service, the Polar Star responded to a call from an Australian cruise ship in the Ross Sea hampered by thick, pack ice—a type of sea ice unattached to the shoreline that drifts. After making two close passes to break up the ice and clear a path, the Polar Star escorted the cruise ship 4 nautical miles (7 kilometers) to open water in the Ross Sea, according to the U.S. Coast Guard.

A reference map of Antarctica shows the continent in white surrounded by light blue ocean. Labels identify the Weddell Sea, Amundsen Sea, Ross Ice Shelf, Ronne Ice Shelf, West Antarctica, and the Antarctic Peninsula. A small boxed area near the Ross Ice Shelf marks the “Area of Landsat images.

Established in 1955, McMurdo Station is the southernmost point on Earth accessible by ship. With a population that swells to 1,200 in the summer, it is the largest research station in Antarctica, hosting a harbor, two airfields, and a helicopter pad. Though once powered by a portable nuclear reactor known as “Nukey Poo,” the base now runs on energy from diesel electric generators and a wind farm on Crater Hill.

With the ship passage open, McMurdo Station is slated to receive two large deliveries this summer. The Stena Polaris, a tanker, arrived on January 20 with 5 million gallons of diesel fuel. Plantijngracht, a cargo ship, will arrive later with food, supplies, and parts of a new floating pier that will replace the traditional ice pier that military engineers have constructed each winter to give ships somewhere to unload cargo.

The U.S. National Science Foundation manages McMurdo Station and much of the science conducted there. NASA has also been involved in several projects at the base over the years. For instance, NASA’s McMurdo Ground Station, a Near Space Network facility, is used to download data from polar-orbiting satellites such as Landsat 9 and SMAP. The agency also flew its Operation Ice Bridge airborne campaign from McMurdo in 2013 and regularly launches research balloons from the station as part of its scientific ballooning program.

The Polar Star typically remains at McMurdo through March to keep the ship passage clear and returns to its home port of Seattle in April.

NASA Earth Observatory images by Michala Garrison, using Landsat data from the U.S. Geological Survey. Story by Adam Voiland.

Downloads

A satellite image shows sea ice along Antarctica’s Ross Island near McMurdo Station. Buildings and fuel tanks are visible on land. The start of a straight channel, cut by an icebreaker through the sea ice, is visible toward the right, originating from small area of dark open water.

January 2, 2026

JPEG (347.10 KB)

A satellite image shows sea ice along Antarctica’s Ross Island near McMurdo Station. Buildings and fuel tanks are visible on land. The start of a straight channel, cut by an icebreaker through the sea ice, is visible toward the right, originating from small area of dark open water.

January 7, 2026

JPEG (371.12 KB)

A satellite image shows sea ice along Antarctica’s Ross Island near McMurdo Station. Buildings and fuel tanks are visible on land. The start of a straight channel, cut by an icebreaker through the sea ice, is visible toward the right, originating from small area of dark open water.

January 19, 2026

JPEG (396.28 KB)

A satellite image of the same area shows a completed channel cut by an icebreaker through the sea ice. The ship channel stretches about 10 kilometers from open water on the right to McMurdo Station on the left.

January 20, 2026

JPEG (406.54 KB)

A satellite image of the same area shows a completed channel cut by an icebreaker through the sea ice. The ship channel stretches about 10 kilometers from open water on the right to McMurdo Station on the left.

January 23, 2026

JPEG (390.37 KB)

A satellite image of the same area shows a completed channel cut by an icebreaker through the sea ice. The ship channel stretches about 10 kilometers from open water on the right to McMurdo Station on the left.

January 25, 2026

JPEG (426.85 KB)

References & Resources

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Stay up-to-date with the latest content from NASA as we explore the universe and discover more about our home planet.
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Seasons Change in Southwest Virginia

October 4–December 6, 2025

As the seasons sweep through southwest Virginia, the lush summer landscape transforms, fading into fall and winter.

From October 4 to December 6, 2025, the forests in this animation turn from green to orange to brown before being blanketed by white snow. The animation is composed of images from Harmonized Landsat and Sentinel-2 (HLS), a NASA product that combines imagery from the NASA/USGS Landsat 8 and Landsat 9 satellites and the European Space Agency’s Sentinel-2A, 2B, and 2C satellites.

The animation showcases the Valley and Ridge province of the Appalachian Mountains, named for its characteristic parallel ridges and valleys. When the supercontinent Pangea formed, the region was compressed, one of the factors producing this folded landscape.

The region’s forests, largely deciduous, undergo color change in the fall before shedding their leaves. Certain species change color earlier, while others lose their green pigment later in the season. Because of Virginia’s rich tree diversity—nearly 100 species of deciduous trees are native to the state—the landscape becomes a patchwork of shifting colors.

A satellite image of the Appalachian Mountains after a winter snowstorm shows the town of Blacksburg at the center in shades of white and light gray.
December 6, 2025

Paige Williams, an assistant professor in the School of Life Sciences and Sustainability at Virginia Commonwealth University, identified several notable landscape changes captured in the video. Price Mountain, with nearly entirely deciduous forests, appears bright orange in early November and then fades to brown by mid-month.

Northeast of Price Mountain, Blacksburg—home of Virginia Tech—maintains a backdrop of green and gray. Ellet Valley, east of town, stays green until early December, long after surrounding ridgelines fade to brown, due to irrigated agricultural fields, cattle grazing, and golf courses. Evergreens, which retain their foliage year-round, dot the scene with dark green and thrive most on north-facing slopes.

Nearly 80 percent of Virginia’s forests are deciduous or a mix of deciduous and pine trees. Deciduous trees lose their leaves every fall in a process called senescence. As days get shorter and temperatures drop, chlorophyll (which gives leaves their green color) begins to break down, revealing other carotenoid plant pigments, usually yellow and orange hues hidden during the spring and summer. Some trees produce new pigments that turn leaves red. Before the leaves fall, the trees absorb as many of their nutrients as possible, recycling them for future growth.

In early December, a rare early-season snowstorm visited Virginia. Snow covered the landscape, sliding off steeper slopes and collecting in valleys and flatlands. The National Weather Service reported that by the month’s end, Blacksburg had collected a total of 8.6 inches (22 centimeters) of snow—nearly 4 inches more than the 1991–2020 average for December.

Animation by Ross Walter/Landsat Science Office Support, using data from the Harmonized Landsat and Sentinel-2 (HLS) product. Still image by Lauren Dauphin/NASA Earth Observatory using Landsat data from the U.S. Geological Survey. Story by Madeleine Gregory/Landsat Project Science Support.

Downloads

satellite image of the Appalachian Mountains after a winter snowstorm shows the town of Blacksburg at the center in shades of white and light gray.

December 6, 2025

JPEG (5.01 MB)

October 4–December 6, 2025

MP4 (43.69 MB)

References & Resources

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NASA Space to Soil Challenge

A 3D rendering of a satellite with solar panels and a wire mesh antenna orbiting Earth. The Earth is textured with continents and oceans. The satellite is in the foreground against a dark background with stars.
NASA/JPL-Caltech

Rapid advances in commercial space, artificial intelligence, and edge computing are transforming what is possible for Earth observation. By pushing more intelligence onboard, missions can move from passively collecting data to actively interpreting and responding to changing surface conditions in near-real time, enabling more targeted observations and dramatically improving the value of data returned to the ground. Within this context, land-focused applications such as regenerative agriculture, sustainable forestry, and broader land resilience efforts stand to benefit enormously from satellites that can adapt what, when, and how they sense based on dynamic environmental signals and algorithmic insight rather than fixed schedules or static acquisition plans.

NASA Earth Science Technology Office (ESTO) invites participants to design small satellite (SmallSat) mission concepts that leverage adaptive sensing and onboard processing to enhance regenerative agriculture, forestry, or a similar land resilience objective.​ Participants must work within onboard power, compute, and bandwidth constraints characteristic of SmallSat missions, focusing on how to orchestrate existing land observation algorithms into an efficient, responsive onboard intelligence layer.​ Both hardware-oriented and software-oriented solutions—or combinations of the two—are encouraged.

NASA’s primary objective for this challenge is to advance computational and systems approaches for adaptive sensing or onboard processing on SmallSat missions. The goal is not to develop new agricultural or forestry science but rather to improve how SmallSats sense, process, and deliver information to enable these applications.

Award: $400,000 in total prizes

Challenge Open Date: January 30, 2026

Submission Close Date: May 4, 2026

For more information, visit: https://nasa-space-to-soil.org/



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NASA Astronaut to Answer Questions from Students in Pennsylvania

NASA astronauts Chris Williams and Zena Cardman, both Expedition 74 Flight Engineers, work on spacesuit maintenance inside the International Space Station's Quest airlock.
NASA astronauts Chris Williams and Zena Cardman, both Expedition 74 Flight Engineers, work on spacesuit maintenance inside the International Space Station’s Quest airlock on Dec. 16, 2025.
Credit: NASA

NASA astronaut Chris Williams will connect with students in Pennsylvania to answer prerecorded science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) questions while aboard the International Space Station.

The Earth-to-space call will begin at 12:20 p.m. EST Thursday, Feb. 5, and will stream live on the agency’s Learn With NASA YouTube channel.

Media interested in covering the event must RSVP by 5 p.m., Wednesday, Feb. 4, to Tamara Krizek at: 917-692-5038 or tamara.krizek@davincisciencecenter.org.

The Da Vinci Science Center will host this event in Allentown, Pennsylvania, for students in kindergarten through grade 12, and members of the community. This unique opportunity aims to deepen understanding of space exploration and inspire young people to pursue a future career in STEM.

For more than 25 years, astronauts have continuously lived and worked aboard the space station, testing technologies, performing science, and developing skills needed to explore farther from Earth. Astronauts communicate with NASA’s Mission Control Center in Houston 24 hours a day through SCaN’s (Space Communications and Navigation) Near Space Network.

Research and technology investigations taking place aboard the space station benefit people on Earth and lay the groundwork for other agency deep space missions. As part of NASA’s Artemis campaign, the agency will send astronauts to the Moon to prepare for future human exploration of Mars, inspiring the world through discovery in a new Golden Age of innovation and exploration.

See more information on NASA in-flight calls at:

https://www.nasa.gov/stemonstation

-end-

Gerelle Dodson
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1600
gerelle.q.dodson@nasa.gov

Sandra Jones
Johnson Space Center, Houston
281-483-5111
sandra.p.jones@nasa.gov

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Last Updated
Feb 02, 2026
Editor
Jessica Taveau


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Monday, 2 February 2026

NASA’s Orion Spacecraft at Launch Pad

The Orion spacecraft is white and cylinder-shaped with a pointed nose at the top. It rests above the SLS rocket, part of which (the orange part) can just barely be seen at the bottom of the photo. Behind Orion and the SLS is a gray gantry with scaffolding and balconies.
NASA/Brandon Hancock

NASA’s Orion spacecraft, which will carry the Artemis II crew around the Moon, sits at the launch pad on Jan. 17, 2026, after rollout. It rests atop the SLS (Space Launch System) rocket. Orion can provide living space on missions for four astronauts for up to 21 days without docking to another spacecraft. Advances in technology for deep space travel such as life support, avionics, power systems, and state-of-the-art thermal protection will support the crew during launch, landing, and recovery.

Image credit: NASA/Brandon Hancock



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NASA to Discuss Early Results of Artemis II Wet Dress Rehearsal

The Moon is seen shining over the SLS (Space Launch System) and Orion spacecraft, on top of the mobile launcher on Feb. 1, 2026. The rocket is currently at Launch Pad 39B at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, as teams are preparing for a wet dress rehearsal to practice timelines and procedures for the launch of Artemis II.
Credit: NASA/Sam Lott

Following a fueling test of NASA’s SLS (Space Launch System) rocket at the launch pad for the Artemis II Moon mission, leaders will discuss initial results during a news conference at 12 p.m. EST on Tuesday, Feb. 3.

The agency’s SLS rocket and Orion spacecraft arrived at Launch Pad 39B at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Jan. 17. Since then, engineers have been conducting a variety of tests prior to launch. Underway now is a wet dress rehearsal, which requires filling the rocket with the 700,000 gallons of propellant. Call to stations began Jan. 31, and teams are counting down to a simulated launch window opening at 9 p.m. Monday. If more work is needed, NASA may rollback SLS and Orion into the Vehicle Assembly Building after the wet dress rehearsal.

The agency will stream the news conference live on its YouTube channel. A 24/7 live stream of the rocket remains online, as well as a separate feed for coverage of the wet dress rehearsal. Look for individual streams for these events to watch on YouTube. Learn how to stream NASA content through a variety of online platforms, including social media.

Participants in the news conference include:

  • NASA Associate Administrator Amit Kshatriya
  • Lori Glaze, acting associate administrator for the Exploration Systems Development Mission Directorate
  • John Honeycutt, chair, Artemis II Mission Management Team
  • Representative, Exploration Ground Systems Program

Following a successful wet dress rehearsal, NASA leaders will make a final call to send the Artemis II astronauts to Kennedy. The four crew members have been in quarantine in Houston since Jan. 21. If teams need more time to work on Artemis II hardware, crew can remain in Houston or exit quarantine.

If the crew members are sent to Kennedy, they are expected to fly NASA’s T-38s to Florida, arriving on the center about 3 p.m. on Feb. 3. They will participate in a media gaggle immediately following landing. Their gaggle also will stream live on NASA’s YouTube channel.

Participants include all four Artemis II crew members:

  • Reid Wiseman, commander, NASA astronaut
  • Victor Glover, pilot, NASA astronaut
  • Christina Koch, mission specialist, NASA astronaut  
  • Jeremy Hansen, mission specialist, CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut

Media previously credentialed for launch may join these events in person. To participate in the news conference virtually, media must RSVP no later than two hours prior to the start of the call to Lauren Low in the Office of Communications at: lauren.e.low@nasa.gov. NASA’s media credentialing policy is online.

As part of a Golden Age of innovation and exploration, Artemis will pave the way for new U.S. crewed missions on the lunar surface in preparation to send the first astronauts to Mars.

To learn more about the Artemis campaign, visit:

https://www.nasa.gov/artemis

-end-

Cheryl Warner / Rachel Kraft
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1600
cheryl.m.warner@nasa.gov / rachel.h.kraft@nasa.gov

Tiffany Fairley
Kennedy Space Center, Florida
321-747-8306
tiffany.l.fairley@nasa.gov

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Last Updated
Feb 02, 2026


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Saturday, 31 January 2026

What’s Up: February 2026 Skywatching Tips from NASA

The Moon readies for Artemis II, Orion shines bright, and a planetary parade marches across the night sky

NASA’s Artemis II mission has its first opportunity to launch to the moon, Orion the Hunter takes center stage, and a planetary parade marches across the night sky.

Skywatching Highlights

  • Feb: Artemis II launch window opens.
  • Feb: Orion the Hunter ideal viewing
  • Mid-Late Feb: Planetary Parade

Transcript

The Moon could have human visitors for the first time since 1972, the constellation Orion will be clear to see, and a planetary parade will sparkle across the skies.

That’s What’s Up, this February.

The Moon could have some visitors soon!

NASA’s Artemis II mission will send astronauts to fly around the Moon. The first opportunities for launch are this February.

This mission will pave the way for Artemis III, which will be the first time we’ve sent humans to the lunar surface since the final Apollo mission, Apollo 17, in 1972.

So this month, look up to the Moon shining bright in the night sky and there might be somebody looking back down at you.

Can you spot Orion the Hunter in the night sky?

NASA/JPL-Caltech

You might be able to see the line of three stars that make up Orion’s Belt, but that belt is a part of a larger constellation called Orion, named for the hunter in Greek mythology.

Above Orion’s belt, the hunter’s right shoulder is actually Betelgeuse (or Alpha Orionis), one of the brightest stars in the night sky!

This horizontal panoramic graphic titled February 2026 highlights the prominent celestial features of the winter sky, centering on the constellation Orion the Hunter as it rides high in the south. To the lower left of Orion's three-star belt, the brilliant blue-white star Sirius—the brightest in the night sky—shines from the constellation Canis Major, while the giant planet Jupiter dominates the upper left as a steady, bright beacon in Gemini. The illustration serves as a stargazing guide, showing the relative positions of these famous markers, including Orion’s distinct orange shoulder star Betelgeuse, his blue-white foot star Rigel, and the faint, fuzzy Orion Nebula nestled within his sword.
NASA/JPL-Caltech

Most visible in the winter, February is one of the clearest times to see Orion in the sky.

From dusk through the night, look to the southern sky and try and spot the hunter for yourself.

A planetary parade will march across the sky this month!

This horizontal panoramic graphic titled February 2026 highlights the prominent celestial features of the winter sky, centering on the constellation Orion the Hunter as it rides high in the south. To the lower left of Orion's three-star belt, the brilliant blue-white star Sirius—the brightest in the night sky—shines from the constellation Canis Major, while the giant planet Jupiter dominates the upper left as a steady, bright beacon. The illustration serves as a stargazing guide, identifying the three stars of the belt as Alnitak, Alnilam, and Mintaka, while also marking Orion’s distinct orange shoulder star Betelgeuse, his blue-white foot star Rigel, and the faint, fuzzy Orion Nebula nestled within his sword.
NASA/JPL-Caltech

Mid-February, Saturn will drop down toward the horizon as Venus and Mercury climb upward in the sky, meeting together in the west to southwestern sky.

Jupiter will find itself high in the sky.

And even Uranus, found in the southern sky, and Neptune, found nearby Saturn, will join the parade—though you’ll need binoculars or a telescope to spot these two far-off planets.

The planets will be visible soon after sunset throughout the month of February, but they’ll be lined up best toward the end of the month.

So, go outside and see how many planets you can find!

Here are the phases of the Moon for February.

A horizontal panoramic graphic titled February 2026 illustrates four primary lunar phases set against a solid black background, with their corresponding dates positioned directly below each moon. The sequence begins on the far left with a fully illuminated Full Moon, commonly known as the Snow Moon, marked with the number 1. To its right is the Third Quarter moon, showing illumination on its left half and labeled with the number 9. The third image in the series depicts the New Moon on the 17th, appearing as a faint, dark silhouette; notably, this phase coincides with an annular solar eclipse. The cycle concludes on the far right with the First Quarter moon on the 24th, which is illuminated on its right side.
NASA/JPL-Caltech

You can stay up to date on all of NASA’s missions exploring the solar system and beyond at science.nasa.gov.

I’m Chelsea Gohd from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and that’s What’s Up for this month.

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Cracking Antarctic Sea Ice

Science Earth Observatory Cracking Antarctic Sea Ice Earth Earth Observatory Image of the Day EO Explorer All Topics ...