Wednesday, 2 September 2026

NASA Selects Blue Origin as Mars Telecommunications Network Provider

NASA insignia.
Credit: NASA

NASA awarded Blue Origin a contract Tuesday to develop the agency’s Mars Telecommunications Network, a next-generation communications system that will enable reliable, high-bandwidth communications and navigation services for current and future Mars missions.

The firm-fixed-price contract has a maximum potential value of approximately $700 million to deliver a high-performance Mars telecommunications orbiter to NASA no later than Dec. 31, 2028.

Blue Origin will design, develop, integrate, launch, and operate the network as a part of the agency’s broader space communications and navigation infrastructure. The architecture will consist of a high-performance telecommunications spacecraft orbiting Mars, transmitting science data, imagery, navigation information, and critical mission communications for spacecraft operating on and around the planet.

The award marks a milestone in NASA’s strategy to expand communications and navigation services beyond Earth and the Moon, establishing the foundation for sustained exploration of Mars in the coming decades.

Under the Artemis program, NASA is sending astronauts to explore the Moon and prepare for missions to Mars. Robotic missions will pave the way for human exploration of the Red Planet, and as these missions expand, demand for data will continue to increase. To meet this need, NASA is pursuing a purpose-built network capable of supporting a growing number of missions while providing greater capacity, reliability, and operational flexibility.

The selection follows NASA’s request for proposal issued in May. As the agency increasingly taps commercial partners for transportation and communications services in Earth orbit and to develop the Moon Base, the Mars Telecommunications Network initiative similarly seeks to harness private-sector capabilities while enabling NASA to focus on exploration and scientific discovery.

The network, managed by NASA’s Space Communications and Navigation program, is expected to be operational at Mars by 2030 and will support both current and future missions to the Red Planet, as NASA ventures deeper into space.

For more information about NASA’s space communications efforts, visit:

https://www.nasa.gov/communicating-with-missions

-end-

Rob Margetta
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-0918
robert.j.margetta@nasa.gov

Rob Garner
Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md.
301-286-5687
rob.garner@nasa.gov

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Sep 01, 2026
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Jessica Taveau


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What’s Up: September 2026 Skywatching Tips from NASA

Brilliant Venus and a Harvest Moon

Use the Moon to find Antares and the Teapot, spot brilliant Venus, welcome the equinox, and see the Harvest Moon near Saturn and Neptune.

Skywatching Highlights

  • Sept. 14-20: Use the Moon to find Antares and the Teapot; dark skies may reveal the Milky Way center
  • Sept 18: Venus reaches peak brilliance for this evening appearance
  • Sept. 22: September equinox; fall begins in the Northern Hemisphere and spring in the Southern Hemisphere
  • Sept. 26: Harvest Moon rises near Saturn and Neptune
A large, glowing full moon shines bright yellow in a dark twilight sky above a rustic red barn and silo set behind a golden harvest field, with a long V-formation of birds flying across the sky.
Birds fly over a barn as a harvest Moon rises.
Mike Linnihan

Transcript

The Moon joins a tea party… Venus cranks up the brightness… the seasons officially change… and the Harvest Moon meets up with some planetary neighbors.

That’s What’s Up for September.

A sky chart looking southwest after sunset on Sept. 20, 2026.
NASA/JPL-Caltech

From September 14 through 20, let the Moon guide you to a few celestial landmarks. About an hour after sunset, look south to find the Moon in the evening sky.

Night by night, the Moon shifts position against the background stars, passing near Antares.

This bright, reddish star marks the heart of the constellation Scorpius.

Next you’ll see the Teapot, a group of stars in neighboring Sagittarius that really does resemble a teapot, complete with a handle, lid, and spout.

If you are under an especially dark sky… you may see hazy steam rising from the Teapot’s spout.
Follow that steam to its thickest part, and you’ll be looking toward the center of our Milky Way galaxy.

A sky chart looking west after sunset on Sept. 18, 2026.
NASA/JPL-Caltech

Look west on September 18 as Venus hits peak brilliance, shining at its brightest of this evening appearance..

You won’t have to search hard to find it. Shortly after sunset, Venus will stand out as a brilliant point of light low above the western horizon, outshining every star around it. A clear view of the horizon will give you the best chance to catch it before it sets.

On September 19, celebrate International Observe the Moon Night!

People around the world are invited to look up and connect with our nearest celestial neighbor while learning more about lunar science, exploration, and the many ways the Moon has shaped cultures around the world. Find an event near you — or learn how to participate from wherever you are — at go.nasa.gov/ObserveTheMoon.

Then on September 22, it’s officially fall in the Northern Hemisphere …while spring begins in the Southern Hemisphere.

That’s the September equinox, when the Sun is directly above Earth’s equator and day and night are close to equal in length around the world.

From there, daylight keeps getting shorter in the Northern Hemisphere and longer in the Southern Hemisphere.

A sky chart looking east after sunset on Sept. 26, 2026.
NASA/JPL-Caltech

And on September 26, the Harvest Moon takes center stage, rising in the east shortly after sunset.

It won’t be alone. Saturn appears nearby, with faint Neptune completing a wide triangle in the sky.

Saturn is the easy one-you can see it with just your eyes. Neptune is a bit more challenging. At around magnitude 8, it’s too faint to see with the unaided eye …so you’ll need binoculars or a telescope to spot it. Darker skies and good observing conditions can help bring it into view.

Here are the phases of the Moon for September.

The phases of the Moon for September 2026.
NASA/JPL-Caltech

You can stay up to date on all of NASA’s missions exploring the solar system and beyond at NASA Science. I’m Raquel Villanueva from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and that’s What’s Up this month.

Learn More and Get Involved

A stylized logo graphic showing silhouettes of an adult pointing toward the sky, while a child holding a telescope looks on.

Night Sky Network

The Night Sky Network is a nationwide coalition of amateur astronomy clubs bringing the science, technology, and inspiration of NASA’s missions to the general public.

A scenic landscape photograph captures a large, glowing yellow full moon rising through a thin veil of clouds during twilight. In the foreground, a vintage metal windmill stands tall on a rustic farm property, silhouetted against a backdrop of rolling, arid hills. The sky is a deep, muted blue-grey, casting a soft, serene light over the dry grass and distant ridges. The composition creates a peaceful, rural atmosphere, highlighting the dramatic scale of the moonrise over the quiet countryside.

NASA Skywatching Resources

Expert skywatching tips and more from our experts.

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Tuesday, 1 September 2026

Ice Island Survives Run-In With Joe Island

AUGUST 24
AUGUST 23

A satellite view shows the iceberg after it pivoted out of the fjord into Nares Strait, wedged against a small, brown island.
A satellite view shows the iceberg after it pivoted out of the fjord into Nares Strait, wedged against a small, brown island.
NASA Earth Observatory / Lauren Dauphin

A satellite view shows a large tabular iceberg at the junction of its home fjord and Nares Strait.
A satellite view shows a large tabular iceberg at the junction of its home fjord and Nares Strait.
NASA Earth Observatory / Lauren Dauphin

A satellite view shows the iceberg after it pivoted out of the fjord into Nares Strait, wedged against a small, brown island.
A satellite view shows the iceberg after it pivoted out of the fjord into Nares Strait, wedged against a small, brown island.
NASA Earth Observatory / Lauren Dauphin
A satellite view shows a large tabular iceberg at the junction of its home fjord and Nares Strait.
A satellite view shows a large tabular iceberg at the junction of its home fjord and Nares Strait.
NASA Earth Observatory / Lauren Dauphin

AUGUST 24

AUGUST 23


An iceberg from Petermann Glacier encounters Joe Island in northwestern Greenland, visible in images captured by the OLI (Operational Land Imager) on Landsat 9 on August 23, 2026 (right), and August 24, 2026 (left). NASA Earth Observatory images by Lauren Dauphin.

Summer is prime iceberg season in Greenland’s glacier-fed fjords, and 2026 was no exception. Especially notable was the berg that broke from the Petermann Glacier along Greenland’s northwest coast in August. Roughly the size of St. Thomas in the U.S. Virgin Islands, it was the largest calving event by any Arctic glacier since 2020.

Iceberg calving is a routine part of an outlet glacier’s life cycle. Scientists watch the process closely, however, along with numerous other observations of the ice and its environment, for longer-term signs of instability. Petermann is one of Greenland’s largest marine-terminating glaciers and acts as a gatekeeper for ice flowing from the ice sheet into the ocean. Its future stability has implications for sea level rise.

The calving event of summer 2026 was spotted on August 4 by Adam Garbo, a doctoral student in glaciology at the University of Ottawa, in imagery from the European Space Agency’s Sentinel-1 mission. Garbo and an international team of colleagues have been using remote sensing to study and track the glacier’s ice tongue.

The team reported that the large tabular iceberg, or “ice island,” measured just over 76 square kilometers (29 square miles) at the time it calved—the largest to break from the glacier since the ice island of 2012 (130 square kilometers). The 2012 calving followed earlier major events in 2008 (31 square kilometers) and 2010 (just over 250 square kilometers).

The August 2026 event could have been even bigger. Garbo and colleagues had been expecting a major calving once one of the large rifts they were monitoring finally cut all the way across Petermann’s ice tongue. “What surprised us was that the calving instead followed a different fracture, producing a smaller ice island than we had originally anticipated,” Garbo said. As of late August, two large rifts remained and were expected to eventually produce new ice islands of roughly 94 square kilometers and 84 square kilometers, though the timing remained uncertain.

A detailed satellite view shows the iceberg wedged against the small, brown island, with sea ice packed densely to its left and more sparsely to its right.
August 24, 2026
NASA Earth Observatory/Lauren Dauphin

Glaciologist Mauri Pelto of Nichols College has also been tracking the iceberg, using images from NASA-USGS Landsat satellites, as it drifted down Petermann Fjord toward Nares Strait. In the week since it calved, the berg drifted an average of 3 kilometers per day. It continued toward the fjord’s junction with Nares Strait, where it rammed into a small rocky outcrop known as Joe Island (Joe Ø). The brief encounter is visible in images captured by the OLI (Operational Land Imager) on Landsat 9 on August 23 (top right) and August 24 (top left). A detailed view of the August 24 image is shown above.

Joe Island sits at the mouth of Petermann Fjord, making it one of the first obstacles a departing ice island meets. Collisions with it—like the one that split the 2010 ice island in two—often mark the start of a berg’s breakup. Petermann bergs tend to be thinner and more fragile than those calved by glaciers such as Greenland’s Jakobshavn and Helheim, and thinner still than Antarctica’s behemoths, Pelto noted.

“We were certainly watching closely as it interacted with Joe Island and were impressed that it survived the interaction without further fragmentation,” Garbo said.

The ice island was estimated to be less than 150 meters thick at the time of calving. Wind and surface currents have swept it out of the fjord, and satellite images show it pivoting away from Joe Island and continuing southwest through Nares Strait. As it drifts, it will fracture into smaller pieces as tides, winds, currents, and melting continue to weaken the ice.

Thicker bergs that calve from tidewater glaciers without floating ice-shelf extensions can drag and even become grounded on the seafloor within the fjord, while ice islands, like those from Petermann, might run aground later in their drift. Many ice islands have become “grounded” off the coasts of Coburg and Baffin islands.

Garbo and colleagues noted that ice islands and their fragments have been known to travel considerable distances, posing potential hazards to marine activities and infrastructure while also distributing freshwater through the ocean as they melt.

NASA Earth Observatory images by Lauren Dauphin, using Landsat data from the U.S. Geological Survey. Story by Kathryn Hansen.

Downloads

A satellite view shows a large tabular iceberg at the junction of its home fjord and Nares Strait.

August 23, 2026

JPEG (12.59 MB)

A satellite view shows the iceberg after it pivoted out of the fjord into Nares Strait, wedged against a small, brown island.

August 24, 2026

JPEG (10.23 MB)

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NASA Welcomes Türkiye as Newest Artemis Accords Signatory  

Turkish Minister of Industry and Technology, Mehmet Fatih Kacır, 3rd from left, signs the Artemis Accords for the Republic of Türkiye as NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman, left, U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Space and Environment Connor Tomlinson, and Turkish Space Agency President, Yusuf Kıraç, right, look on, Monday, August 31, 2026, at the Mary W. Jackson NASA Headquarters building in Washington. Türkiye is the 71st country to sign the Artemis Accords, which establish a practical set of principles to guide space exploration cooperation among nations participating in NASA’s Artemis program.
Turkish Minister of Industry and Technology, Mehmet Fatih Kacır, 3rd from left, signs the Artemis Accords for the Republic of Türkiye as NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman, left, U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Space and Environment Connor Tomlinson, and Turkish Space Agency President, Yusuf Kıraç, right, look on, Monday, August 31, 2026, at the Mary W. Jackson NASA Headquarters building in Washington.
NASA/Bill Ingalls

During a ceremony hosted by NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman at the agency’s headquarters in Washington on Monday, the Republic of Türkiye signed the Artemis Accords, joining the growing international coalition of like-minded nations dedicated to peaceful, transparent space exploration.

“It is my privilege to welcome the Republic of Türkiye as the 71st signatory of the Artemis Accords,” said Isaacman. “Last year, President Trump directed NASA to accelerate its return to the lunar surface and establish humanity’s first enduring presence on another world, a Moon Base, as well as lay the foundation for the manned exploration of Mars. NASA never undertakes these grand endeavors alone. On the Moon Base, we’re taking the Artemis Accords principles and putting them into practice on the lunar surface. NASA has invited every signatory to take part in this endeavor, creating opportunities for nations to contribute major pieces of hardware, scientific payloads, technology demonstrations, CubeSats, and other capabilities to future Artemis missions.”

Turkish Minister of Industry and Technology Mehmet Fatih Kacır signed on behalf of Türkiye. The President of the Turkish Space Agency Yusuf Kıraç, and the U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Space and Environment Connor Tomlinson, also participated in the event.

Türkiye’s recent achievements in human spaceflight underscore its commitment to space exploration. In 2024, the country’s first astronaut, Alper Gezervaci, traveled to the International Space Station on Axiom Mission 3 and conducted scientific research alongside NASA astronauts. That same year, a second Turkish astronaut, Tuva Atasever, flew on Virgin Galactic 07 suborbital mission, conducting experiments and physiology research.

Türkiye will soon launch its first lunar mission, AYAP-1, joining the small but growing group of countries building and launching their own satellites to the Moon.

The country’s signing also comes as the country prepares to host the International Astronautical Congress in Antalya this October. Dozens of Artemis Accords signatories are expected to attend to discuss the future of peaceful and transparent space exploration.

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, committing nations to:

  • explore peaceably and transparently
  • render aid to those in need
  • enable access to scientific data
  • ensure activities do not interfere with those of others
  • preserve historically significant sites and artifacts by developing best practices

By signing the Artemis Accords, nations open the door to opportunities for future lunar exploration with NASA, advancing humanity’s return to the Moon, and shaping the Golden Age of space exploration and innovation.

Learn more about the Artemis Accords at: 

https://www.nasa.gov/artemis-accords

-end-



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September 2026 Satellite Puzzler

The image features a mixture of browns, greens, oranges, and yellows in both rectilinear and organic, curved shapes. A curving gray line runs diagonally through it.

Every month, NASA Earth Observatory features a puzzling satellite image. The September 2026 puzzler appears above. 

Your Challenge
Identify the location shown in this satellite image. Share what clues you see, where you think it is, and what makes this place interesting or unique to you.

How to Answer
Submit your response using this form and select “Puzzler Answer” as the topic. Please include your preferred name or alias.

You can keep it simple and just guess the location. Want to impress us? Tell us which satellite and instrument captured the image, which spectral bands were used, or point out a subtle detail about the geology or history of the area. If something catches your eye, or if this is your home or means something to you, we’d love to hear about it.

The Prize
We can’t offer prize money or a trip to space to see Earth like satellites and astronauts do. But we can offer something almost as rewarding: puzzler bragging rights.

About a week after the challenge, we’ll post the answer at the top of this page, along with a link to an Earth Observatory Image of the Day story that explains the image in more detail. We’ll recognize the first person who correctly guesses the location, and we may also highlight readers who share especially thoughtful or interesting answers. By submitting a response, you acknowledge that your comments may be edited, excerpted, and published on this page.

Until then, zoom in, look closely, and enjoy the challenge. See you at the reveal!



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Monday, 31 August 2026

NASA’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope Launches

In a sepia-toned photo, the Sun appears as a bright, enormous orb that appears to have frayed edges. Against this backdrop, a tall and slender rocket is seen in silhouette atop a cloudy plume.
NASA/John Kraus

NASA’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope, aboard a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket, transits the Sun during launch from the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Aug. 30, 2026. Roman is named after the agency’s first chief astronomer.

Roman will survey billions of stars and galaxies with a field of view far larger than Hubble’s, helping scientists study dark energy, exoplanets, and the evolution of the universe.

Follow along with Roman’s journey.

Image credit: NASA/John Kraus



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Roman Commissioning

2 Min Read

Roman Commissioning

Beauty pass of Roman Space Telescope
Beauty pass of Roman, coming around from behind with high-gain antenna rotating.
Credits:
NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center/Conceptual Image Lab

Where is Roman?

Roman is making its three-month journey from Earth to Sun-Earth Lagrange Point 2, or L2. Along the way, Roman is undergoing a process called commissioning, where systems are turned on, adjusted, calibrated, and prepared for science operations. Commissioning is the time for scientists and engineers to make sure that Roman is performing as expected. The schedule is subject to change as the team assesses and adjusts as needed.


Visit the Roman Blog

Deployments

An hour and 23 minutes after launch, Roman began to emerge from the tight configuration that allowed it to fit in the rocket fairing. The solar panels and sunshade deployed, shading the rest of the observatory and providing power to the systems. Within the upcoming days, the antenna will swing out and the visor-like deployable aperture cover will move into place to permanently reveal and shade the primary mirror.

Roman’s Orbit

This visualization shows the stable, halo orbit that Roman will have around L2. At this location, the gravity of the Sun and Earth, together with an object’s motion around the Sun, let it stay lined up with Earth as they orbit, allowing Roman to have a relatively steady orbit without using much fuel. This location also offers exceptionally stable optical performance and a constant, unobstructed view of a wide swath of the sky; Earth won’t block much of Roman’s view since it will be so distant. And at L2, heat from Earth, the Sun, and the Moon have less effect on infrared telescopes, which “see” heat.

Explore the Roman Systems

Learn more about the systems that are getting turned on, tested and calibrated.

3D View



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NASA Selects Blue Origin as Mars Telecommunications Network Provider

Credit: NASA NASA awarded Blue Origin a contract Tuesday to develop the agency’s Mars Telecommunications Network, a next-generation communi...