Archive | Image of the day

Landsat 9 captured this image of lava coming from an eruptive fissure near Stóra Skógfell peak on Iceland’s Reykjanes peninsula. Lava from the eruption flowed across major roads and closed in on the Blue Lagoon, a popular tourist destination. This natural color scene is overlaid with an infrared signal to help distinguish the lava’s heat […]

NASA astronaut and Expedition 72 Commander Suni Williams checks out the Astrobee robotic free-flyer in the Kibo laboratory module outfitted with tentacle-like arms containing gecko-like adhesive pads to demonstrate satellite capture techniques. Development of this robotic technology may increase the life span of satellites and enable the removal of space debris. To source

Technicians carefully install a piece of equipment to house Gateway’s xenon fuel tanks, part of its advanced electric propulsion system. To source

“I love my country. I love serving my country. I think that was ingrained in me in the military, where I grew to realize how lucky we are to live in America and have the freedoms that we have. When I returned from [my first duty station] in Germany, I separated from the Air Force […]

In this photograph astronaut and STS-113 mission specialist John B. Herrington, (center frame), participates in the mission’s third spacewalk. The forward section of the Space Shuttle Endeavour is in right frame. To source

NASA astronaut Victor Glover (right) takes photos during a visit on Friday, Nov. 8, 2024, with employees at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The employees support the agency’s Exploration Ground Systems Program to help NASA send astronauts, including Glover, to the Moon and back through the Artemis II launch. To source

This robot prototype was built at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California to demonstrate the feasibility of a mission concept called SWIM, short for Sensing With Independent Micro-swimmers. SWIM envisions a swarm of dozens of self-propelled, cellphone-size robots exploring the waters of icy moons like Jupiter’s Europa and Saturn’s Enceladus. To source

A cyclone is a low-pressure area of winds that spiral inwards. Although tropical storms most often come to mind, these spiraling storms can also form at mid- and high latitudes. Two such cyclones formed in tandem south of Iceland in November 2006. To source

This illustration depicts a hypothetical uneven ring of dust orbiting KIC 8462852, also known as Boyajian’s Star or Tabby’s Star. Astronomers have found the dimming of the star over long periods appears to be weaker at longer infrared wavelengths of light and stronger at shorter ultraviolet wavelengths. To source

The STS-129 crew members posed for a portrait following a joint news conference on Nov. 24, 2009, with the Expedition 21 crew members (out of frame) on the International Space Station. Pictured (clockwise) from bottom left are astronauts Charles O. Hobaugh, commander; Mike Foreman, Leland Melvin, Robert L. Satcher Jr. and Randy Bresnik, all mission […]

On Nov. 19, 1969, astronaut Alan L. Bean, lunar module pilot for the Apollo 12 mission, begins to step off the ladder of the lunar module to join astronaut Charles Conrad Jr., mission commander, in a spacewalk. Conrad and Bean descended in the Apollo 12 lunar module to explore the moon while astronaut Richard F. […]

Participants from the 14th First Nations Launch High-Power Rocket Competition watch NASA’s SpaceX Crew-7 launch from the Banana Creek viewing site at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Saturday, Aug. 26, 2023. Students and advisors from University of Washington, University of Colorado-Boulder, and an international team from Queens University – this year’s First […]

NASA’s SLS (Space Launch System) rocket carrying the Orion spacecraft launched on the Artemis I flight test, Wednesday, Nov. 16, 2022, from Launch Complex 39B at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. NASA’s Artemis I mission was the first integrated flight test of the agency’s deep space exploration systems. To source