Images of Missions

Stardust is the first U.S. mission dedicated solely to a comet and will be the first to return extraterrestrial material from outside the orbit of the Moon. Stardust’s main objective is to capture a sample from a well-preserved comet called Wild-2 (pronounced “Vilt-2”).

Jason 1 is an oceanography mission to monitor global ocean circulation, study the ties between the oceans and atmosphere, improve global climate forecasts and predictions, and monitor events such as El NiÃ±o conditions and ocean eddies.

SeaWinds on Advanced Earth Observation Satellite 2. Radar study of near-surface ocean winds

Kepler, a NASA Discovery mission, is a spaceborne telescope designed to look for Earth-like planets around stars beyond our solar system. Scheduled to launch in 2007, Kepler will hunt for planets using a specialized one-meter diameter telescope called a photometer to measure the small changes in brightness caused by the transits.
Dawn’s goal is to characterize the conditions and processes of the solar system’s earliest epoch by investigating in detail two of the largest protoplanets remaining intact since their formations. Ceres and Vesta reside in the extensive zone between Mars and Jupiter together with many other smaller bodies, called the asteroid belt.

Smart Lander and Long-range Mars Rover, with landing and hazard avoidance capabilities. NASA is studying options to launch this mobile science laboratory mission as early as 2007.

Deep Impact is a spacecraft that will travel to comet Tempel 1 and release a small impactor, creating a hole in the side of the comet.

Large Binocular Telescope Interferometer (LBTI). Provides high-resolution images of many faint objects over a wide field-of-view, including galaxies in the Hubble Deep Field with 10 times the Hubble resolution.
Hawaii’s Keck Observatory, World’s Largest Ground-Based Telescope.

Aerogel heat shield demonstration, Low-density comet catcher on Stardust mission to collect comet dust and sample return. Even insulating from a torch, the matches won’t heat up enough to ignite.

Comet Halley taken by the Giotto spacecraft in 1986

Deep Space 1 encounter with comet Borrelly
Ion Engine. This image of a xenon ion engine, photographed through a port of the vacuum chamber where it was being tested at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, shows the faint blue glow of charged atoms being emitted from the engine. Part of the advanced propulsion for Deep Space Probes.

Galileo Spacecraft, Mission to Jupiter and its moons

Ulysses to study the environment around the Sun’s north and south poles

Topex/Poseidon high-fidelity radar view of the changing heights of the seas
Cassini mission to Saturn. Onboard Cassini is a scientific probe called Huygens that will be released from the main spacecraft to parachute through the atmosphere to the surface of Saturn’s largest and most interesting moon, Titan, which is shrouded by an opaque atmosphere. Titan’s atmosphere includes organic compounds leading scientists to believe that the moon may be like a frozen vault of conditions similar to those on Earth before life began. The Cassini orbiter will also use imaging radar to map Titan’s surface.

Mars Global Surveyor low-altitude, nearly polar orbit over Mars studying the entire surface, atmosphere and interior

Venera 14, Camera II, Russian lander on Venus, courtesy, click here

Venera 14, Camera I, Russian lander on Venus, courtesy, click here
Venera 14, Camera II, Russian lander on Venus, courtesy, click here

Venera 13, Camera II, Russian lander on Venus, courtesy, click here

Venera 14, Camera I, Russian lander on Venus, courtesy, click here

Aura Concept to investigate terrestrial atmosphere including ozone and trace chemistry
Artist’s impression of ESA’s Cluster spacecraft. Credit: ESA

The magnetosphere – a natural protective bubble. Credit: ESA

This aerogel array, which was mounted atop the Stardust spacecraft, was used to collect interstellar dust particles as well as dust from the tail of comet Wild 2. Credit: Berkeley

Artist’s conception of Stardust spacecraft collecting dust from the tail of comet Wild 2. (NASA images)
In an experiment using a special air gun, particles shot into aerogel at high velocities leave carrot-shaped trails in the substance. Credit: Berkeley

Retrieving the stardust capsule

Venus conference cake

HMS Challenger. On 21 December 1872 the Challenger sailed from Portsmouth on a 3-year voyage of marine exploration which laid the foundations of oceanography.
Artist’s conception of the Mars Science Laboratory rover using ChemCam to analyze a rock. Image Credit: French Space Agency (CNES) and Los Alamos National Laboratory.

Artist’s conception of the Mars Science Laboratory moving across the planet surface. Image credit:NASA

Lyon, France, location of the 2006 European workshop on Astrobiology

Artist’s concept of Mars Global Surveyor. Image credit: NASA/JPL
Smart dust is able to maneuver by changing shape. Roughening the surface causes increased drag on the smart dust particle and it floats higher in the air; conversely, smoothing out the surface causes the particle to sink.Credit: Glasgow University

his image shows one example of dust particle components that have a size of 63 mm cubed. Credit: UC Berkeley/Peter Menzel Photography

NASA’s Kepler mission will not only help in the search for extrasolar planets, butwill also study the rotation periods of the stars that host them.Credit: NASA

MIT postdoctoral associate Aaron Edsinger gets some help from Domo, an assistiverobot he has been developing for the last three years. Credit: Donna Coveney
An assistive robot has to be able to sense when a human is touching it. Domo hassprings in its arms, hands and neck that can sense force and respond to it. Credit: Donna Coveney

Image of the planet Jupiter’s moon, Io, as seen by the New Horizonsspacecraft. A plume from a huge volcanic eruption can be seen at thenorth pole of the moon. Click image to enlarge. Credit: NASA/JHUAPL

Conceptual drawing of a Mars base based on bio-power. A greenhouse, microbial fuel cells, and algal growing compartments are all visible. Image by Chris Lund (c) IntAct Labs

Schematic of a microbial fuel cell. Microbes in the anode compartment metabolize organic fuel (in this case glucose) and release electrons, ions and C02. In the cathode compartment Electrons combine with ions and oxygen to form water and close the circuit. (c) IntAct Labs
Schematic drawing showing the extent of the ZacatÃ³n sinkhole system. Credit: Marcus Gary

John Spear, in kayak, paddles out to greet DEPTHX as it is lowered into Cenote ZacatÃ³n. Credit: Henry Bortman

Cenote El ZacatÃ³n, the world´ deepest water-filled sinkhole. Credit: Art Palmer

Bacterial mats like this one cover the walls of the sinkholes in the ZacatÃ³n system. Credit: Marcus Gary
NASA’s Dawn mission will visit two of the first bodies formed in oursolar system: the “dwarf planet” Ceres and the massive asteroid Vesta.Credit: NASA

In this image, workers secure the attachments of the Dawn spacecraftonto the upper stage booster of the Delta II launch vehicle. Credit: NASA, George Shelton

NASA’s Dawn spacecraft is set to launch on July 7th from Cape Canaveral.Credit: NASA

Dawn spacecraft arrives at Pad-17B of the Cape Canaveral Air ForceStation. Next stop – asteroid belt. Credit: NASA/Jack Pfaller
This is an image of Salmonella typhimurium. A strain of this bacteria was used totest the affects of spaceflight on microbes.Credit: University of Florida

STS-115 crew portrait. Astronauts Brent W. Jett, Jr. (right) and Christopher J.Ferguson, commander and pilot, respectively, flank the mission insignia. The missionspecialists are, from left to right, astronauts Heidemarie M. Stefanyshyn-Piper,Joseph R. (Joe) Tanner, Daniel C. Burbank, and Steven G. MacLean.Credit: NASA

The salmonella experiment was flown aboard NASA’s space shuttle mission STS-115.Credit: NASA

Hyperion explores Devon Island in the Canadian high Arctic, autonomously positioning itself to obtain enough solar energy to continue operation.Credit: Carnegie Mellon University
ZoÃ« makes tracks across Chile´ barren Atacama Desert, mapping the distribution of life in the driest place on Earth.Credit: Carnegie Mellon University

Researchers at a makeshift control center for ZoÃ«, set up in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, simulated the experience of commanding a rover as it explores a distant world.Credit: Carnegie Mellon University

The semi-autonomous robotic rover ZoÃ« hunts for rocks in Chile´ Atacama Desert. Credit: Carnegie Mellon University

ZoÃ« under construction at Carnegie Mellon University. Credit: Carnegie Mellon University.
This 2006 NASA-sponsored Desert RATS exercise in the Arizona desert studied how humans and robots might work together to explore an unknown world. Credit: Henry Bortman

An artist’s cross-section of Lake Vostok, the largest known subglacial lake in Antarctica. Liquid water is thought to take thousands of years to pass through the lake, which is the size of North America’s Lake Ontario. Image Credit: Nicolle Rager-Fuller / National Science Foundation
In developing his WSL robots, Dr. Hong took inspiration from amoebas, microscopic single-celled organisms that move by extending “pseudopods.”

An experiment to test the theory of using expanding and contracting rings to generate the novel motion of the amoeba robot. Credit: RoMeLa: Robotics & Mechanisms Laboratory.

An early prototype built from measuring tapes and specialized springs known as shape-memory coils. Credit: RoMeLa: Robotics & Mechanisms Laboratory.

ZoÃ«, a robot configured to create geologic maps, explores the Mojave Desert near Amboy Crater, which is seen in the background on the right. credit: Henry Bortman
David Thompson, who wrote ZoÃ«´ mapping software, communes with the robot over a wireless network. credit: David Thompson

credit: Henry Bortman

At the beginning of a traverse (l), Zoe´ map has minimal detail, but as it travels farther (r), it is able to make geological distinctions with more confidence. The dark blue line represents Zoe´ path through its target region. credit: David Thompson/Carnegie Mellon. The underlying grayscale image is based on ASTER data (credit: NASA).

The new images from MESSENGER show cliffs on Mercury’s surface that extend forhundreds of kilomters. This picture shows a large cliff crossing vertically throughthe scene, on the far right of the image. The width of this image is about 200 km.Credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory/CarnegieInstitution of Washington
This artist’s impression shows the types of molecules that Venus Express hasidentified in the planet’s lower atmosphere.Credits: C. Carreau, ESA

In 2011, NASA will launch two spacecraft that will orbit the Earth and sample theharsh radiation belt environment. The Radiation Belt Storm Probes Mission willprovide scientists with the information they need to make predications about changesin this critical region of space.Credit: NASA

Biodesign Institute scientist John Chaput and his research team havemade the first self-assembled nanostructures composed entirely ofglycerol nucleic acid — a synthetic analog of DNA. The nanostructurescontain additional properties not found in natural DNA, including theability to form mirror image structures. The ability to make mirrorimage structures opens up new possibilities for nanotechnology.Credit: Biodesign Institute at Arizona State University

The only chemical difference between DNA and a synthetic cousin, GNA, isin the sugar molecule.Credit: Biodesign Institute at Arizona State University
UMan Working with a Wooden Toy. Credit: U Mass Amherst.

An array of printed transistors on plastic.Credit: Northwestern University

Cut-away illustration of the WEAVCredit: University of Florida

SnoMotes measure just two feet long and one foot wide, enabling their light weight bodies to traverse volatile terrain more effectively and without endangering scientists. Credit: University of Alaska Southeast/Alex Bogolepov
University of Alaska Southeast scientist Matt Heavner and Georgia Tech engineer Ayanna Howard observe SnoMotes during field tests of the robots’ navigation and communications capabilities in June on Juneau, Alaska’s Mendenhall Glacier. Credit: University of Alaska Southeast/Matt Heavner

The cryobot thermal probe uses heat to melt through ice, rather than a drill to cut. Image credit: NASA / JPL

The thermal drill features spinning blades and a series of heaters, designed to be as effective and efficient as possible.Image credit: Hong Kong Polytechnic University

A melting probe combined with a more conventional drill would make short work of solid obstacles like layers of sand.Image credit: Hong Kong Polytechnic University
With its successful test this month, Sentry is set to replace its predecessor, the Autonomous Benthic Explorer (ABE).Image Credit: University of Washington

A NASA image of the asteroid Eros (left) can be seen here compared to Robert Gaskell’s shape model of the asteroid (right).Credit: PSI

The location of Devon Island, where the Mars Society conducted a Mars simulation experiment in 2007.

The “Flashline” Mars Arctic Research Station (F-MARS) on Devon Island in the Canadian Arctic.
Inspecting tracks during Mars simulation. Credit: Mars Society.

Returning to the habitation after a day exploring on “Mars”. Photo Credit: The Mars Society.

Collecting a core sample on Devon Island. Credit: The Mars Society.

A moment of reflection while exploring Devon Island. Credit: The Mars Society.
Dinner in the hab during the 2007 FMARS experiment. Credit: The Mars Society.

Collecting samples during the 2007 FMARS experiment on Devon Island. Credit: The Mars Society.

Water ice diagram

MSL
watermap

Credit: University Of Aarhus, Denmark

Rhodri Armour with the ‘Jollbot’. Credit: University of Bath

Allen SETI/RAL
CIAUFO

Ozma

The Allen Array

Arecibo
AllenTelescopeArray

TPF Interferometer

LISA

SIM Life Astrometric Observatory
TPF Impression

TPF-I

O/OREOS

EXPOSE-R
BIOPAN

O/OREOS assembly

William Herschel Telescope

Ariane 5
Herschel Impression

Planck Impression

comet ice simulator

ENDURANCE bouyancy test
Bot House

Taylor Glacier

EELT4

THEMIS
MBARISphere

MBARICore

SwiftSatellite

ALVIN1
Alvin2

Svalbard2

Svalbard3

Genebox
SvalbardRaman

RocketLaunch

IBEXMission

ImmersionSuit
KeplerPhotometer

VoyagerArt

VoyagerTravels

MercuryVolcanism
MercuryCoverage

VoyagerRecord

UracilMaker

DeepWorker
PLRP Team

BiosafetyCabinet

SRFFlad

IDCSRF
LASSRF

AntarcticaRequirements

Trench

Tents
cargo

Aquarius

DawnLaunch

MEarth
Kepler Launch

UKIRT

VehicleAssemblyBuilding

Apollo 1 Crew
Apollo 1 Capsule

Launch Complex

Challenger Ice

Challenger Disaster
Columbia Disaster

UCYN-A

Volatile Analysis by Pyrolysis of Regolith

Robonauts at Work
Dextre ISS

Robonaut Telepresence

RobonautLeg

DaVinci
DaVinci System

Davinci Interface

VIEW

AvatarBody
RTS HAVNet

Avatar A.L. Gronstal

OSIRIS-REx

Juno w Jupiter
USS Hornet

ISS EVA

Brain Implants

wearable kidney
Robot Moth

Digital Eye

Skinput2

Skinput
EnduranceArrival

Skinput3

PioneerPlaque

VLA New Mexico
ThermalDrill

ThermalDrill2

Palomar

Enterprise Titan
Voyager at the edge

League City

TitanBlimp

Fermilab
DZero Detector

GravitationalMicrolensing

Honeybee Chamber

Keck Telescopes
VLT Array

Gavia vehicles

Rohzen 60cm

jena
Debris

CubeSat

Nanosat

CubeSat Kit
GeneSat

PharmaSat

Juno Cleanroom

Juno Shielding
Hubble Repair

Satellite Earth

Venus Samples

Venus Samples 2
Venus Samples 3

CloudSat

IKAROS Spacecraft

LightSail-1
NanoSail-D

NanoSail-D Integration

BIOPAN Image

Robot Exploration
Discover Supercomputer

Pan-Starrs

RFID chip

CDATA centers
Chang´E-2

Chang’e 1

EPOXI/Deep Impact spacecraft

Spitzer Earth dust
oreos in lab

Kodiac

Nanotube

nanotube diameter
WMAP Big Bang timeline

Microwave lightcraft

Lasercraft

Laserlaunch
solar sail in orbit

Dry lake beds

Yeager Bell X1

re-usable concept
M2F1

1969 Classic NB-52B

Manned Orbiting Lab

Young Crippen
Bell X-1

X15 B52

Dale A Gardner

Spaceship One plane
CryoSat mission

CryoSat measurements

Solar Irradiance Monitor

IBEX
Genetic circuits

two Voyagers

GOCE satellite

Megellan aerobraking
Brian Basset Shuttle Commemorative

NASA Radiation Labs

Galaxy Evolution Explorer

MC3E Experiment
Solar system from outside

Voyager model

NASA´ most distant spacecraft 2011

dual electron spec
MMS mission

Spacetime warp

Gravity B gyroscope

C-130
Argentinian C-130

Inside C-130

TPF-C and TPF-I

SIM mission components
74 DNA molecule

Planetary Lake Lander project

GETGAMM Greenland site

Mars methane map
ALPHA Capture device

DREAMS in Mojave

DREAMS 8 image

DREAMS-11 payload
DREAMS tracking

DREAMS recovery

ESA/NASA ExoMars TGO

CoRot spacecraft
Forward osmosis for STS-135

Forward osmosis bags for STS-135

Voyagers exploring the edge

neutrino detector
J-PARC Accelerator

CT Scan

Chiao and Sharipov on ISS

Amir Seni Ultrasound
space ultrasound

STS-1

STS-134 poster

Atlantis final roll out
Launch Pad 39A

Gaia focal plane

completed CCD array for Gaia

ARTEMIS representation
ARTEMIS P1 probe orbit

Dawn illustration

KamLAND anti-neutrino detector

KAMLand Illustration
Juno folded

Juno spacecraft

WMAP mission

Juno Launch
Space Elevator

deployment of CTD

MOST

Laboratory Diamonds
GV in Anchorage

2003 ESA Mars Express Mission

ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter

OSIRIS-REx spacecraft
SLS on launchpad.

Future ex targs

SLS launch

Kepler’s photometer
OPERA neutrinos

Opera Detector schematic

LCRD concept

LADEE mission
Kepler spacecraft

HIPWAC

microformulators Wikswo Lab

JWST concept
JWST L2 orbit

Hubble mirror

Mirror segments

JWST primary mirror segments
Star shade JWST

tractor beam sample collection

Polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) microchip

Phobos-Grunt and Yinghuo-1
Phobos-Grunt payload adapter

Phobos-Grunt spacecraft

Phobos-Grunt prep

Phobos-Grunt launch
ID24

Diamond Anvil Cell

New Horizons at Pluto in 2015

Soyuz TMA-22 crew boarding
Soyuz TMA-22 launch

MAVEN artist concept

cyborg beetle

cyborg beetle 2
Voyager between the Solar System and interstellar space

Titan Mare Explorer craft

Sensorbot

ROPOS and Sensorbots
Autosub6000

CORK recovery tool

Rendering of the Cluster satellite

One of ESA’s four Cluster satellites
atomic experiment chamber

Scripps Research and Technion logos

Technion logos

Scripps Research logo
EXCEDE schematic

PR2 robot

Pioneer 10 in space

Pioneer 10 construction
Pioneer 10 trajectory

Pioneer 10 RTGs

Pioneer 10 plaque

Pioneer 10 launch
Pioneer 10 view of Jupiter

TIMED satellite

Rosetta navigating with pulsars

Enterprise navigation
FINESSE mission

OSIRIS-REx concept

IceCube Lab

ESA JUICE mission
Vehicle Assembly Building

Amber mounted on microtomograph

Proposed Enterprise

Enterprise size comparison
Building an enterprise

FINESSE spacecraft

Tumbleweed rover

Inside Dragon module
SpaceX Dragon

Visible Nulling Coronagraph

RoboJelly

RoboJelly 2
Arctic wide-field camera

StennisSphere

Student Airborne Research Program

Low-Density Supersonic Decelerator Project
Wide-field Infrared Survey

Geoflow

Inside Geoflow

Sentinel orbit
Sentinal mission concept

Expedition 31 Crew

Baikonur, Kazakhstan

ISS preparations
Russian Soyuz

Soyuz capsule

View above the clouds

outside neutron monitor
Don Pettit and Soyuz suits

Graffiti in Baikonur

Baikonur Graffiti

Below the Soyuz
Soyuz down

Facilities

Spacecraft 3D

Deep space human mission
Two weeks of crew clothing

Deep Space Habitat

Group living area

Pioneer spacecraft
Radiation Belt Storm Probe spacecraft

Mini magnetosphere

Friendship 7

Earth by John Glenn
Friendship 7 capsule

STS-7 in the clouds

ISS above the atmosphere

ISS above the lights
Leonardo

San Antonio from ISS

Tierra del Fuego lights

Lights of Tierra del Fuego
The cold box

Cold box Antarctica

Voyager spacecraft concept

Voyager 1 encountering a stagnation region
Radiation Belt Storm Probe spacecraft arrive at KSC

Astrotech payload processing facility

The Large Hadron Collider

SMART-1 electric propulsion
Solar electric propulsion

Gordon supercomputer

2012 RATS team

ARGOS at JSC
RATS Crew Member

InSight

Voyager launch

Atlas V payload fairing with RBSP spacecraft
RBSP satellite launch

Hayabusa 2

Dawn at Vesta

Biomimetic tuna
BIOSwimmerâ„¢

Pioneer Venus Orbiter

ExoPlanetSat

TALISE boat mission
ISS star trails

Star trails over the horizon

Seven faces

Sample study
Atlantis astronauts

Cheops

NASA’s Aqua satellite

Columbus Space Lab at the ISS
Kepler timeline

Voyager 1 Explores

The Sun’s Southern Wind Flows Northward

CERN’s Large Hadron Collider
SOFIA Flying in Clouds

Extreme Ultraviolet Normal Incidence Spectrograph

The EUNIS team

Supplies strapped down onboard the ISS
ISS coffee cup

Coffee in a cup on the ISS

AIDA mission concept

Asteroid Impact Monitor design
Voyager spacecraft illustration

Cryobot & hydrobot on Europa

Jupiter Europa Orbiter (JEO) concept

Concept drawing of the DE-STAR system
Goddard’s Cosmic Ice Lab

Sample trajectory from a new web-based NASA tool

Pu-238 pellet

New Horizons RTG
Asteroid capture mission

The Planetary Science Decadal Survey

Preparing for launch: SAGE III in the laboratory at Langley Research Center

Artist rendering of the Russian Meteor 3M spacecraft with the SAGE III instrument onboard.
Artist impression of TESS mission

Graph from NASA’s 2014 Budget Request.

Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) project

James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) team
The 100-year starship

ESA’s CHEOPS (CHaracterising ExOPlanets Satellite)

The Next-Generation Transit Survey atop Cerro Paranai

The Next-Generation Transit Survey
An artist’s illustration of the MOST space telescope.Credit: Canadian Space Agency

Artist concept of the IRIS mission

GOSAT

MetOp satellite
TESS trajectory from launch to final mission orbit

Possible robotic lander for a future mission to Jupiter’s moon Europa

Artist’s concept of NASA’s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft

The Micro-2 investigation launched aboard space shuttle Atlantis on May 14, 2010.
Voyager spacecraft against a field of stars in the darkness of space

This artist’s concept shows the Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, or WISE spacecraft, in its orbit around Earth. In September of 2013, engineers will attempt to bring the mission out of hibernation to hunt for more asteroids and comets in a project called NEOWISE. Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

Notional Zephyr Entry, Descent and Landing Profile

Orion Docking Approach
This concept image shows an astronaut retrieving a sample from the captured asteroid.

This concept image shows an astronaut preparing to take samples from the captured asteroid after it has been relocated to a stable orbit in the Earth-moon system. Hundreds of rings are affixed to the asteroid capture bag, helping the astronaut carefully navigate the surface.

COROT space telescope

The James Webb Space Telescope will launch in 2018 and, amongst other things, characterize the atmospheres of planets orbiting bright stars. Image: NASA
View of a CubeSat equipped with an inflated antenna, in a NASA radiation chamber. Photo: Alessandra Babuscia

A glimpse of the signal from Voyager 1’s transmitter

Voyager 1’s position on the sky

Over its ten years in space, NASA’s Spitzer Space Telescope has evolved into a premier tool for studying exoplanets.
A commemorative stamp featuring Russian pioneers in spaceflight

This artist’s concept shows the MAVEN spacecraft in orbit around the Red Planet, with a fanciful image of her home planet in the background. Credit: NASA/Goddard

Inside the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, reporters and photographers look over the Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution, or MAVEN, spacecraft. Photo credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett

The current design of ExoplanetSat. The telescope is approximately the size of a loaf of bread. Image Credit: Pong et al. 2010 (SPIE 7731).
The Keck Telescopes in Hawaii. Credit: NASA/JPL

The field of stars that the Kepler space telescope examined as it searched for exoplanets. Credit: NASA/JPL

Artist impression of two spacecraft concepts for the PLATO mission that were studied during the assessment phase: (left) concept from Thales Alenia Space, and (centre) concept from EADS Astrium. Credit: ESA

India’s Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM) swings around Earth on its final orbit and breaks free of the Home Planet following final engine burn on Dec. 1 placing her on Mars Transfer Trajectory in this artists concept. Credit: ISRO
Trans Mars Injection (TMI), carried out on Dec 01, 2013 at 00:49 hrs (IST) has moved the spacecraft in the Mars Transfer Trajectory (MTT). With TMI the Earth orbiting phase of the spacecraft ended and the spacecraft is now on a course to encounter Mars after a journey of about 10 months around the Sun. Credit: ISRO

An artist’s rendition of the Dawn spacecraft in orbit around the dwarf planet Ceres. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/UCLA/McREL

This artist’s concept shows NASA’s Dawn spacecraft heading toward the dwarf planet Ceres. Dawn spent nearly 14 months orbiting Vesta, the second most massive object in the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, from 2011 to 2012. It is heading towards Ceres, the largest member of the asteroid belt. When Dawn arrives, it will be the first spacecraft to go into orbit around two destinations in our solar system beyond Earth. Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

NASA’s Dawn spacecraft will be getting an up-close look at the dwarf planet Ceres starting in late March or the beginning of April 2015. This graphic shows the science-gathering orbits planned for the spacecraft, with the altitudes above the surface noted for each of the orbits. Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech
This graphic shows the planned trek of NASA’s Dawn spacecraft from its launch in 2007 through its arrival at the dwarf planet Ceres in early 2015. When it gets into orbit around Ceres, Dawn will be the first spacecraft to go into orbit around two destinations in our solar system beyond Earth. Its journey involved a gravity assist at Mars and a nearly 14-month-long visit to Vesta. Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

This cosmic pirouette of Earth and our moon was captured by the Juno spacecraft as it flew by Earth on Oct. 9, 2013. Image Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

Artist representation of the Gaia spacecraft mapping the stars in the Milky Way galaxy.Image credit: ESA/ATG medialab/ESO/S. Brunier

Gaia will make the largest, most precise 3D map of our Galaxy by surveying an unprecedented number of stars.Image Credit: ESA
Artist rendering of a RAVAN (Radiometer Assessment using Vertically Aligned Nanotubes) satellite in orbit. Credit: JHU

An artists rendering of a cubesat network. Credit: APL/JHU

Cubesat schematic. Credit APL/JHU

Canberra Deep Space Communications Complex
Canberra Deep Space Communications Complex (large)

Goldstone Deep Space Communications Complex

Goldstone Deep Space Communications Complex (large)

Madrid Deep Space Communications Complex
Madrid Deep Space Communications Complex (large)

Map of Deep Space Network Sites

Map of Deep Space Network Sites (Large)

Artist concept of the Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) Core Observatory satellite.
GPM Constellation Concept

Artist concept of the Global Precipitation Measurement (GPM) Core Observatory satellite (large)

Orbital Sciences Corp. Cygnus

Cygnus Attached
Cygnus Approaches

Antares launches

Mars lost much of its nitrogen early in its history, presumably because it has a weak magnetic field. NASA’s MAVEN spacecraft will study more about the planet’s atmospheric composition when it arrives at Mars in September 2014. Credit: NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center

The “Gordon” supercomputer at the San Diego Supercomputer Center. How can we define and parameterize it and its even more advanced future brethren’s’ modes of intelligence, when we made them? Credit: University of California, San Diego, publications/Erik Jepsen
The technology is also being tested onboard the IPEX cubesat for Earth science applications. IPEX measures 10 centimeters on each side and carries several low-resolution cameras. IPEX is funded by funded by NASA’s Earth Science Technology Office (ESTO). Credit: NASA ESTO, NASA JPL, California Polytechnic State University

Commander Mark Kelly

Luis Zea CU Ph.D. candidate

NASA’s Global Hawk 872 on a checkout flight from Dryden Flight Research Center, Edwards, Calif., in preparation for the 2014 ATTREX mission over the western Pacific Ocean.Image Credit: NASA/Tom Miller
Artist’s concept of the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer instrument flown on the Terra satellite. Image Credit: NASA

MAVEN just before launch. Credit: Courtesy of Lockheed Martin

MAVEN deployed over Mars. Credit: Courtesy NASA/GSFC

NASA’s Kepler spacecraft has found over 5,000 potential planets, most of which will likely be confirmed. Scientists have combed through the list in search of the best planets to hunt for exomoons around. Credit: NASA/Kepler Mission/Wendy Stenzel
This equipment is used by Goddard’s Astrobiology Analytical Lab to analyze very small samples. On the right is the nanoelectrospray emitter, which gives sample molecules an electric charge and transfers them to the inlet of the mass spectrometer (left), which identifies the molecules by their mass. Image Credit: Michael Callahan

This is an artist’s depiction of NASA’s Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer (LADEE) observatory in space with the moon in the distance.Image Credit: NASA Ames/Dana Berry

NGIMS instrument, just prior to integration with into the MAVEN spacecraft. Credit: Courtesy of NASA/Goddard

22kg IUVS instrument. Credit: Courtesy of LASP, Colorado
Artist impression of the MAVEN spacecraft. Credit: NASA

Dual Magnetometers. Courtesy of LASP.

Magnetometers on MAVEN

The five Lagrangian points for the Sun-Earth system are shown in the diagram below. An object placed at any one of these 5 points will stay in place relative to the other two. Credit: NASA
Human fibroblasts will be grown in the BioServe’s cell culture system.Image Credit: Bioanalytical Core Laboratory

Damage in human fibroblasts will be measured by the phosphorylation of a histone protein H2AX after bleomycin treatment.Image Credit: Bioanalytical Core Laboratory

TYPE IV damage to human fibroblasts after bleomycin treatment, shown in a 53BP1 stain.Image Credit: Bioanalytical Core Laboratory

Thyroid cancer cell line FTC-133 after four hours of exposure to simulated microgravity. Nuclei are stained blue, components of the cytoskeleton stained green and red.Image Credit: Team Daniela Grimm
Three-dimensional, multicellular tumor spheroids that begin to form after exposure to real microgravity.Image Credit: Team Daniela Grimm

The automated Astrium Type-IV experiment chambers that will be used to culture thyroid cancer cells on board the International Space Station.Image Credit: Team Daniela Grimm

Galactic Gas Station – Christine Daniloff/MIT

The Icebreaker drill in the laboratory at Honeybee Robotics. Credit: Honeybee Robotics
University Valley, Antarctica (approximate coordinates: -77.866427, 160.725585). Credit: Honeybee Robotics

Icebreaker at work in the field at University Valley, Antarctica. Credit: Honeybee Robotics

Cape Armitage, Antarctica (approximate coordinates: -77.850261, 166.708475). Credit: Honeybee Robotics

The Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) in Chile is designed to search for astronomical phenomena such as complex molecules in protoplanetary discs. Credit: ALMA (ESO/NAOJ/NRAO)/B. Tafreshi (twanight.org)
Artist’s conception of the Square Kilometre Array, a set of telescopes that will work together using a technique called interferometry. Credit: SKA Organisation/Swinburne Astronomy Productions

Concept art showing LADEE over the lunar surfaceImage Credit: NASA