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.
Colors of the Moon
Explanation: What color is the Moon? It depends on the night — and the time. Outside of the Earth’s atmosphere, the dark Moon, which shines by reflected sunlight, appears a magnificently brown-tinged gray. The featured image highlights a collection of apparent colors of the full moon on Earth, documented by one astrophotographer over 10 years from different locations across Italy. A red– or yellow-colored moon usually indicates a moon seen near the horizon. There, some of the blue light has been scattered away by a long path through the Earth’s atmosphere, sometimes laden with fine dust. A blue-colored moon is more rare and can indicate an atmosphere carrying larger dust particles. What created the purple moon is unclear — it may be a combination of several effects. The last image captures the total lunar eclipse of 2018 July — where the moon, in Earth’s shadow, appeared a faint red — due to light refracted through air around the Earth. Have you ever seen an unusually colorful Moon?
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.
Night on a Spooky Planet
Explanation:What spooky planet is this? Planet Earth on a dark and stormy night, of course. The ghostly scene was photographed at Hverir, a geothermally active area found along northeastern Iceland’s volcanic landscape. Triggered by solar activity, geomagnetic storms have unleashed energetic particles trapped in Earth’s magnetic field. Penetrating the planet’s upper atmosphere at high latitudes, the particles create auroral displays in the starry night sky. Ghostly towers of steam and gas are venting from local fumaroles to dance against the eerie, greenish northern lights. For now, auroral activity on planet Earth remains in a high state as the Sun is only in early phases of decline from the peak of its solar activity cycle. And soon, other ghostly apparitions may dance in your neighborhood. Happy Halloween!
NASA’s Freedom 250 F-5 team, including NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman, performs a flyover during the national anthem at an NFL game between the Cleveland Browns and the Carolina Panthers at Huntington Bank Field, Sept. 27, 2026, in Cleveland.
Credit: NASA/Jordan Cochran
America’s newest aerospace expo and air show – MAX POWER – is fast approaching, and NASA has announced key events beginning Friday, Nov. 6, and running through Sunday, Nov. 8, hosted on and near the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
Through multiple park experiences at MAX POWER, NASA and a variety of external collaborators will showcase the newest aircraft, autonomous vehicles, technologies, and more defining the future of air and space. NASA will display its quiet supersonic X-59 plane, and agency partners will showcase Moon rovers, spacecraft, and more. The expo also is a culmination of the agency’s recent Inspiration Tour, which included numerous flyovers to highlight NASA’s fleet of aircraft.
A current schedule of events is available on the agency’s website.
MAX POWER includes opportunities to meet leadership, astronauts, engineers, scientists, and other subject matter experts during the family-friendly public events with gates opening at 9 a.m. EST on Nov. 7 and Nov. 8.
NASA also will share multiple news updates during the weekend, including hosting a news conference at 5 p.m. on Nov. 7, to provide its latest Moon Base update. Located near the lunar South Pole, the Moon Base is humanity’s first outpost for long-term lunar exploration.
Live coverage of the news conference will stream on a variety of platforms online. Learn where to watch:
Media credentialing for this event is closed. Media approved for this event must request interviews in advance. Space in the news conference is limited, and first come, first served. Media also may participate in the news conference virtually. To request call details or an interview, please contact Lauren Low in the NASA Headquarters newsroom at: lauren.e.low@nasa.gov.
A short list of key NASA activities during MAX POWER are listed below. All times are listed in Eastern standard time, and are subject to change.
Friday, Nov. 6:
2 p.m., to 4 p.m.: Media one-on-one opportunities to preview weekend MAX POWER activities
Location: NASA Press Site
Saturday, Nov. 7:
10 a.m.: Nuclear NASA media gaggle
Location: UP.Summit Main Stage
Cynthia Simmons, director, Space Reactors Division
11:30 a.m.: Opening air show remarks featuring NASA Deputy Administrator Matt Anderson
Location: Air Dot Show Main Stage
11:58 a.m.: F-5 flyover in the Air Dot Show featuring NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman
12:45 p.m.: Meet the Astronauts: NASA’s Artemis III Crew
Location: Air Dot Show Main Stage
Participants include:
NASA astronaut Randy Bresnik (mission commander)
ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Luca Parmitano (pilot)
NASA astronaut Frank Rubio (mission specialist)
NASA astronaut Bob Hines, backup crew member
NASA will host a media gaggle with crew immediately following this event.
1:31 p.m.: MiG-29 flyover featuring Isaacman
2 p.m.: Learn about NASA’s Roman Space Telescope
Location: Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex (Journey to Mars Theater)
Participant:
Remarks by Julie McEnery
5 p.m. Moon Base News Conference
Location: Press Site Auditorium
Participants:
NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman
Carlos García-Galán, director, Moon Base
Nicky Fox, associate administrator for Science, NASA Headquarters
Dayna Ise, director, Utility and Infrastructure, Moon Base Program
NASA subject matter experts will be available for one-on-one interviews following this announcement.
Sunday, Nov. 8:
9 a.m. NASA’s X-59 media gaggle
Location: UP.Summit Exhibit Area
Participants:
Laurie Grindle, director, NASA Aeronautics Division
Peter Coen, NASA Quesst mission manager, NASA Langley
Jim “Clue” Less, test pilot, X-59, NASA Armstrong
10 a.m.: Student challenge announcement
Location: Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex, Rocket Garden
Participants:
NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman
Carlos García-Galán, director, Moon Base Program
NASA experts may be available for interviews at this location. Media interested in attending must contact Lauren Low by 5 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 5, at: lauren.e.low@nasa.gov.
11:58 a.m.: F-5 flyover in the Air Dot Show featuring Isaacman
12:45 p.m.: United States Space Academy
Location: UP.Summit Main Stage
NASA Deputy Administrator Matt Anderson
12:45 p.m.: Meet the Astronauts: NASA’s SpaceX Crew-12
Location: Air Dot Show Main Stage
Participants:
NASA astronaut Jessica Meir
NASA astronaut Jack Hathaway
1:31 p.m.: MiG-29 flyover featuring Isaacman
For more information about MAX POWER, including the latest schedule of events and how to attend, visit the agency’s website:
Map Showing Potential Origins of Martian Meteorite Teghaza 001
PIA26802
Credits: NASA/JPL-Caltech/USGS
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Map Showing Potential Origins of Martian Meteorite Teghaza 001
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This global map of Mars shows 13 locations that match the mineralogy and chemistry of Teghaza 001, one of the most ancient Martian meteorites ever found on Earth. While scientists can never know for sure where a Martian meteorite originated, Teghaza 001 includes clues that link it to highlands in the southern hemisphere of the Red Planet.
The base map of this image was produced with data from the Mars Orbiter Laser Altimeter instrument aboard NASA’s Mars Global Surveyor mission. Scientists used data from NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter to identify areas of the map (noted with white circles) that have similar mineralogy and chemistry as Teghaza 001.
ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Luca Parmitano finally gets his wish to fly like Superman aboard the International Space Station during Expedition 37.
Although no ghouls, goblins, or trick-or-treaters come knocking at the International Space Station’s front hatch, crew members aboard the orbiting laboratory still like to get in the Halloween spirit. Whether individually or as an entire crew, they dress up in sometimes spooky, sometimes scary, but always creative costumes, often designed from materials available aboard the space station.
Take a look at how the station crews have celebrated in years past.
For Halloween 2009, the Expedition 21 crew shows off its costumes.
Expedition 21 NASA astronaut Nicole Stott shows off her Halloween costume.
In 2017, Expedition 53 crew members show off their Halloween costumes.
Flight Engineer Sergei Prokopyev of Roscosmos, dressed as Elvis Presley, Commander Alexander Gerst of ESA as Darth Vader, and Flight Engineer Serena Auñón-Chancellor of NASA as a mad scientist, pose for a Halloween photo inside the Kibo Japanese Experiment Module pressurized module aboard the space station during Expedition 57.
Members of Expedition 61, NASA astronaut Christina Koch, top left, ESA astronaut Luca Parmitano, and NASA astronauts Andrew “Drew” Morgan, and Jessica Meir, show off their Halloween spirit in 2019.
Expedition 66 crewmembers NASA astronaut Shane Kimbrough, left, Thomas Pesquet of ESA, Akihiko Hoshide of JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency), and NASA astronaut Mark Vande Hei show off their Halloween cards.
In 2022, Expedition 68 astronauts Koichi Wakata of JAXA, left, and NASA astronauts Francisco “Frank” Rubio, Nicole Mann, and Josh Cassada dressed as popular video game and cartoon characters, using stowage containers in their Halloween costumes and holding improvised trick-or-treat bags.
Expedition 70 astronauts Jasmin Moghbeli of NASA, left, Satoshi Furukawa of JAXA, NASA astronaut Loral O’Hara, and ESA astronaut Andreas Mogensen celebrate Halloween 2023.
A trio of Expedition 73 astronauts dressed for Halloween in 2025.
The space station remains a vital scientific platform, providing the foundation needed to survive and thrive as humanity ventures into the unexplored territories of our universe.
Explore stories, images, and research from more than 25 years of continuous human presence aboard the space station.
When a rose-colored meteorite was found in the Sahara Desert in 2022, no one knew how old it was or where it came from. Not until NASA-funded scientists age-dated its minerals did they realize the nearly 2-pound (800-gram) rock was a piece of Mars that formed more than 4.1 billion years ago, making it one of the oldest Martian meteorites ever found. Named Teghaza 001 after the salt plain in Mali where it was discovered, the meteorite is one of roughly 435 from the Red Planet.
In a paper published Thursday in Science, researchers offered an initial characterization of Teghaza 001, providing a rare snapshot of Mars’ ancient crust and formation. What scientists learn from future studies could help answer many questions, including how water and rocks interacted on ancient Mars. A separate paper published in Science Advances in June detailed the meteorite’s water content, offering a look at how water shaped the early planet’s surface.
“It was only after we started looking closely that we realized this meteorite is really unique,” said the paper’s lead author, Yang Liu of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California. “One of the paper’s reviewers called it a Rosetta Stone for Mars.”
This slice of Teghaza 001, a Martian meteorite, was used to study its mineralogy and chemistry.
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
Rose-colored stone
What sets Teghaza 001 apart from other Martian meteorites is its texture and age as well as the uniqueness of its igneous, or volcanic, minerals. It is one of the three most ancient Martian meteorites found on Earth. While invaluable, the others provide more limited glimpses of Mars’ geological history. They include ALH84001, which is composed almost entirely of one mineral and is similar in age to Teghaza 001. The other meteorite, nicknamed “Black Beauty,” formed about 2.1 billion years ago and is composed of small, volcanic rock fragments.
Unlike its ancient peers, Teghaza 001 has a mix of igneous minerals that tells a story about how the planet’s crust formed from cooling magma before it was eventually altered by subsurface water. The meteorite’s distinctive mineralogy matches what NASA’s Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter has observed in the planet’s cratered southern highlands. No one will ever know exactly where the meteorite originated on Mars, but the paper identifies several potential locations that match Teghaza 001’s mineralogy and chemistry.
“This is really our first piece of Martian crust from a part of Mars we’ve never had a sample of before,” said the new paper’s second author, Lee Saper, who conducted the research while at JPL as a postdoctoral scholar. Lee now is a scientist at NASA’s Ames Research Center in Silicon Valley. “It records interactions of water and rock and maybe even an imprint of the Martian atmosphere as it was losing water.”
Although the Mars meteorites found on Earth differ from one another, they share a common history, having been blasted off the Red Planet’s surface by an impact, followed by a trajectory that eventually placed them on Earth and into the hands of scientists. Meteorites are often found by collectors in deserts or snowy plains, where they stand out from the rest of the barren landscape. Scientists can verify a meteorite as Martian by matching its mineral and chemical components to data collected by NASA’s Mars missions, including the Viking landers as well as the Curiosity and Perseverance rovers.
Scientists identified 13 locations on Mars that match the mineralogy and chemistry of Teghaza 001, one of the most ancient Martian meteorites ever found on Earth.
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/USGS
Signs of water
When Liu was first asked to look at Teghaza 001, she almost passed on the opportunity.
Researchers at the University of New Mexico had already identified it as Martian based on its oxygen isotopes, which serve as geochemical fingerprints for different planetary bodies. In this case, the researchers matched the meteorite’s oxygen isotopes to those seen in other Martian meteorites. Teghaza 001 appeared to be a shergottite which is the most common class of meteorite from the Red Planet. As an expert in planetary samples, Liu has seen plenty of those, but she decided to take a peek, anyway.
At the very least, there were odd textures and unusual minerals she hadn’t seen before. Liu and her colleagues discovered zircon crystals in Teghaza 001, which record clues to a rock’s formation and can be used by geologists to precisely age-date a sample. Further analysis revealed when Teghaza 001 formed and when certain changes, like water alteration, occurred.
Caltech coauthor Francois Tissot helped the researchers utilize a novel age-dating method pioneered by his team. Compared with bulk-analysis techniques, where a sample is entirely dissolved and analyzed, Tissot’s in-situ rubidium-strontium age-dating used a piece of Teghaza 001 that was smaller than a fingernail, analyzing single mineral grains on its surface. Besides its extreme precision and speed, the technique preserves rare samples like Martian meteorites for future studies.
“Right now, we are one of very few labs in the world able to perform this kind of age-dating, and the first to date such an ancient Martian meteorite,” Tissot said. “Our hope is to pave the way for dating even more Martian meteorites, or samples returned from other planets, their moons, and asteroids.”
When the age-dating results came back, Liu was shocked: This rock had been altered by Martian water sometime around 4.1 billion years ago, suggesting it originally formed even earlier. Clues within the oxygen isotopes, texture, and chemistry of Teghaza 001 minerals point to a much more dynamic water cycle on early Mars.
This year’s papers are just the start. Liu and her co-authors are eager to see what the rest of the scientific community can learn from Teghaza 001.
Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater)
Former NASA astronaut and Artemis II Commander Reid Wiseman joins Caltech and NASA JPL as Caltech associate vice president and JPL deputy director on Nov. 30.
Photo Credit: NASA
Artemis II Commander Reid Wiseman has been named Caltech associate vice president and deputy director of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California. The emeritus astronaut and retired U.S. Navy captain begins his new role at NASA’s center of excellence for robotics and deep space exploration and at Caltech, which manages JPL for NASA, on Nov. 30, 2026.
“Reid has spent his career at the edge of what is possible, and he has the technical judgment, operational experience, and leadership to help push that edge farther,” said NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman. “As commander of Artemis II, he helped carry America back around the Moon, and now, as an emeritus astronaut, he will continue giving back to NASA from a new vantage point at JPL. Reid is joining a storied laboratory that has made an enormous amount of history, and there is a lot more ahead. I am excited to see what he and the JPL team accomplish in the years to come.”
During the Artemis II test flight, Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Jeremy Hansen journeyed 695,081 miles on a lunar flyby that took them farther than any humans have ever traveled before.
“It feels fitting for Reid, who with the Artemis II crew traveled farther from Earth than any human in history, to join Caltech and JPL — institutions that for nearly 90 years have sent spacecraft into the far reaches of our solar system and beyond,” said Dave Gallagher, JPL director and Caltech vice president. “Reid shares our drive for discovery, knows what it takes to lead teams through high-stakes missions, and has a remarkable ability to inspire people everywhere. He adds incredible bench strength to our leadership team as we build on the lab’s legacy and shape its future together.”
After joining NASA’s astronaut corps in 2009, Wiseman went on to serve as flight engineer aboard the International Space Station for the 165-day Expedition 41 mission in 2014 and was a commander of NASA’s 21st Extreme Environment Mission Operations expedition, during which he lived for eight days in a habitat on the ocean floor in 2016. As the agency’s chief astronaut from December 2020 to November 2022, Wiseman led NASA’s astronaut corps, overseeing crew flight readiness and crew safety for all NASA human spaceflight missions. During his years of service at the agency, he has conducted hundreds of scientific experiments.
“I’ve explored the furthest reaches of what a human can explore at NASA — and there were truly no words in the English vocabulary to describe seeing the Sun disappear behind the Moon from deep space. But that experience was really the jumping off point to go do the impossible things that Caltech and JPL dream, dare together, and do for NASA and the nation,” Wiseman said. “What an awesome time in my career to join this team and to try and push humanity and push our understanding of the solar system and the universe.”
Wiseman joins JPL, NASA’s only federally funded research and development center, as the lab approaches its 90th anniversary since being founded by Caltech. In his role as Caltech’s associate vice president and JPL deputy director, Wiseman will be responsible for the strategic leadership, stewardship and continuous improvement of laboratory operations, including close partnership with Caltech on institutional planning, management and compliance. Serving as Center Management Authority for JPL mission execution, Wiseman will ensure operational excellence across mission support functions in accordance with NASA requirements and applicable federal and state regulations. In addition, he will be JPL’s primary interface for national security programs.
“Reid brings to Caltech and JPL a truly unprecedented view of what humanity can achieve when ingenuity and determination are matched with the courage to pursue the furthest frontiers,” said Caltech president Ray Jayawardhana. “His pioneering spirit coupled with unbounded curiosity make him a natural fit for Caltech and JPL, a force-multiplier for a community whose daring continues to push the limits of humanity’s reach. I look forward to working closely with Dave and Reid as we chart our next era of exploration in partnership with NASA, elevating America’s space ambitions to breathtaking new heights.”
After receiving a bachelor’s degree in computer and systems engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Wiseman joined the Navy, going on to fly combat missions and serve as a test pilot. He also has a master’s degree in systems engineering from Johns Hopkins University in his hometown of Baltimore.
The Socialist Republic of Vietnam became the 78th nation to sign the Artemis Accords, joining a growing coalition of like-minded nations committed to the peaceful, transparent, and responsible exploration of space.
“Vietnam is joining at an important point in the development of its own space program,” said NASA Deputy Administrator Matt Anderson in recorded remarks for the ceremony. “NASA and the Vietnam National Space Center have built momentum in satellite innovation, land-use research, and radar-based Earth observation. Joining the Artemis Accords opens a new chapter in that relationship. We’ve aligned on the principles. The opportunities are in front of us, and now we can build on that foundation together. We are proud to welcome Vietnam to the Artemis Accords community.”
Vietnam’s Minister of Science and Technology Vũ Hải Quân signed the Artemis Accords on behalf of the country during the Vietnam International Digital Week in Ha Long. The United States Ambassador to Vietnam Jennifer Wicks also participated in the signing event.
Vietnam’s decision extends the U.S.-Vietnam Comprehensive Strategic Partnership into a new frontier. Built on more than 30 years of cooperation, the partnership spans defense, economic, law enforcement, war legacy, and technological cooperation, and it advances peace, stability, and prosperity in a free and open Indo-Pacific.
Earlier this year, NASA partnered with Vietnam’s Vietnamese-German University to support the agency’s Soil Moisture Active Passive mission, which measures surface-soil water worldwide. Vietnam also inaugurated its National Space Center in Hanoi and is developing domestic satellite capabilities through the LOTUSat program, focusing on Earth observation, weather monitoring, and disaster response.
In 2020, NASA and the State Department joined with seven other founding nations to establish the Artemis Accords, responding to the growing interest in lunar activities by both governments and private companies. They introduced the first set of practical principles aimed at enhancing the safety and coordination between nations as they explore the Moon, Mars, and beyond.
Signing the Artemis Accords means committing to explore peaceably and transparently, to render aid to those in need, to enable access to scientific data that all of humanity can learn from, to ensure activities do not interfere with those of others, and to preserve historically significant sites and artifacts by developing best practices for space exploration for the benefit of all.
More countries are expected to sign the Artemis Accords in the months and years ahead, as NASA continues its work to establish a safe, peaceful, and prosperous future in space.
The SLS (Space Launch System) core stage is lifted from the transfer aisle of the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026.
NASA/Sean Cannon
The SLS (Space Launch System) core stage is lifted from the transfer aisle of the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026.
NASA/Sean Cannon
The SLS (Space Launch System) core stage is horizontal in the transfer aisle of the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Friday, Oct. 23, 2026.
NASA/Cory S Huston
The SLS (Space Launch System) core stage is integrated alongside the twin solid rocket booster motor segments on Sunday, Oct. 25, 2026, inside the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida completing its short stack configuration.
NASA/Sean Cannon
The SLS (Space Launch System) rocket core stage is integrated with the solid rocket boosters for Artemis III in High Bay 3 of the Vehicle Assembly Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida to complete its short stack configuration.
NASA/Frank Michaux
NASA’s Artemis III SLS (Space Launch System) core stage is integrated alongside the twin solid rocket boosters on Oct. 28 inside the Vehicle Assembly Building’s High Bay 3 at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
Technicians lifted the 212-foot rocket stage from the facility’s High Bay 2 using a one-of-a kind lifting beam designed to place the stage onto the mobile launcher. Once testing and checkouts are complete, teams will roll the core stage and booster stack out to Launch Pad 39B to conduct a tanking test where liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen fuel will be loaded only into the core stage and launch teams will practice countdown procedures and timelines.
The Artemis III mission will launch NASA astronauts Randy Bresnik, Frank Rubio, Andre Douglas, and ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Luca Parmitano in the Orion spacecraft on top of the SLS rocket to test rendezvous and docking capabilities between Orion and commercial spacecraft from Blue Origin and SpaceX ahead of future mission to land astronauts on the Moon.
Photo credit: NASA/Sean Cannon, Cory S Huston, and Frank Michaux
