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NASA Goddard

@NASAGoddard

Welcome to your friendly neighborhood space flight center, home to the largest community of scientists & engineers on Earth.

 Greenbelt, MD USA
nasa.gov/goddard
Joined February 2009
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Photo by NASA Goddard (@NASAGoddard)Photo by NASA Goddard (@NASAGoddard)Photo by NASA Goddard (@NASAGoddard)Photo by NASA Goddard (@NASAGoddard)Photo by NASA Goddard (@NASAGoddard)Photo by NASA Goddard (@NASAGoddard)Photo by NASA Goddard (@NASAGoddard)Photo by NASA Goddard (@NASAGoddard)Photo by NASA Goddard (@NASAGoddard)Photo by NASA Goddard (@NASAGoddard)
The Jupiter Trojan asteroids are remnants of our early solar system, trapped in the same orbit as — but not close to — Jupiter. By studying the Trojans up close, we can learn more about how our solar system’s planets formed 4.5 billion years ago. science.nasa.gov/blogs/lucy/…
NASA’s Lucy Reaches Trojan Asteroid Region 5 Years After Launch - NASA Science

NASA’s Lucy Reaches Trojan Asteroid Region 5 Years After Launch - NASA Science

Having traveled more than 2.2 billion miles since it launched on Oct. 16, 2021, NASA’s Lucy is the first spacecraft to enter a region of primitive solar-system bodies known as the Jupiter Trojan...

science.nasa.gov
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Lucy: 1 Odysseus: 0 The Lucy spacecraft has officially reached the Jupiter Trojan asteroid region, just 5 years after launch — half the time it took Odysseus to get home from his voyage to the Trojans.
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Curiosity didn’t kill the cat, it helped NASA capture it 🐱 @NASAHubble & @NASAWebb peeked at the Cat’s Head Nebula. Despite its demure appearance, the star-forming region was shaped by shockwaves from nearby stars in the Carina Nebula. See the pictures: go.nasa.gov/4yVsFJX
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Replying to @NASAGoddard @NASAHubble
With @NASARoman's view being 100 times wider than Hubble, Roman will spot thousands of lensed galaxies, helping astronomers map dark matter and better understand the invisible mass found in galaxies. Magnify the details: go.nasa.gov/4idXW64
NASA’s Hubble Charts Path for Roman with Gravitational Lenses - NASA Science

NASA’s Hubble Charts Path for Roman with Gravitational Lenses  - NASA Science

This Hubble gravitational lensing image is one of many taken in preparation for science with the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope.

science.nasa.gov
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Replying to @NASAGoddard @NASAHubble
Here is a zoomed in view of the gravitational lens. The background galaxy appears as two arcs: a small, distorted arc in the bottom right and a prominent arc in the top left. This specific configuration is called an arc-counterarc pair.
A Hubble image of gravitational lens DESI J194.5345+03.5358 that has been zoomed in. The lens has a spherical yellow galaxy at its center, with a large arc to the upper left of the galaxy and the same arc, flipped and much smaller, to the lower right of the galaxy.

ALT A Hubble image of gravitational lens DESI J194.5345+03.5358 that has been zoomed in. The lens has a spherical yellow galaxy at its center, with a large arc to the upper left of the galaxy and the same arc, flipped and much smaller, to the lower right of the galaxy.

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WAKE ME UP when you spot the strangest galaxy (galaxies?) in this image 🎸 Hidden among this @NASAHubble image of many galaxies lies an oddity in the bottom right. A foreground galaxy is acting as a gravitational lens, magnifying the light from a more distant galaxy behind it.
A spiral galaxy with two distinct arms forming a backwards “S” shape is in the foreground, against a background of many other much smaller, more distant galaxies. In the right lower corner, a gravitational lens can be seen, with a large, distinctive arc to the upper left.

ALT A spiral galaxy with two distinct arms forming a backwards “S” shape is in the foreground, against a background of many other much smaller, more distant galaxies. In the right lower corner, a gravitational lens can be seen, with a large, distinctive arc to the upper left.

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NASA Goddard retweeted
NASA (@NASA) profile picture
NASA
@NASANov 2
What’s up in the night sky for November? This month, you can look forward to: - Multiple meteor showers reaching their peak - Jupiter meeting up with Mars in the wee hours - A supermoon lighting up the night sky More skywatching tips: go.nasa.gov/4iuD8FZ
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After 5 years and 2.2. billion miles, NASA's Lucy spacecraft has reached the Jupiter Trojan asteroids. These asteroids serve as time capsules from the birth of our solar system, rich with clues about the environment in which Earth & other planets formed. science.nasa.gov/blogs/lucy/…
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Pack your bags, we're heading to Titan! Add your name to fly along with Dragonfly, the rotorcraft we're sending to Saturn's largest moon. Download your boarding pass now! go.nasa.gov/dragonfly-names
A rectangular orange boarding pass for the Dragonfly mission to Titan. The smaller, left side, which would normally be torn off a ticket, has a QR code and the Dragonfly logo. The larger right side is a lighter orange. It has the NASA logo and says National Aeronautics and Space Administration along the top. Below that, the name Robert Goddard is printed in black. The Dragonfly craft flies along the right side. Details about the spacecraft are printed below the name, including Type: Rotorcraft, Launch Vehicle: SpaceX Falcon Heavy, Mission: To Explore Titan's Unique Environment and Chemistry. The spacecraft dimensions are listed to the right. Below that, a dotted line runs from Earth to Saturn. Finally, along the bottom, details include Scheduled Departure: July 2028, Approximate Miles Traveled: 2,200,000,000, and Estimated Arrival: Dec. 2034.

ALT A rectangular orange boarding pass for the Dragonfly mission to Titan. The smaller, left side, which would normally be torn off a ticket, has a QR code and the Dragonfly logo. The larger right side is a lighter orange. It has the NASA logo and says National Aeronautics and Space Administration along the top. Below that, the name Robert Goddard is printed in black. The Dragonfly craft flies along the right side. Details about the spacecraft are printed below the name, including Type: Rotorcraft, Launch Vehicle: SpaceX Falcon Heavy, Mission: To Explore Titan's Unique Environment and Chemistry. The spacecraft dimensions are listed to the right. Below that, a dotted line runs from Earth to Saturn. Finally, along the bottom, details include Scheduled Departure: July 2028, Approximate Miles Traveled: 2,200,000,000, and Estimated Arrival: Dec. 2034.

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NASA Goddard retweeted
Hubble (@NASAHubble) profile picture
Hubble
@NASAHubbleOct 30
NASA issued a Request for Information to learn more about industry capabilities for in-space servicing to support the agency’s Hubble Space Telescope: science.nasa.gov/missions/hu…
The Hubble Space Telescope in orbit above Earth.

ALT The Hubble Space Telescope in orbit above Earth.

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🎃 What's that lurking just beyond the light of our own Sun? Something haunts the universe. Gather 'round the campfire for a Halloween tale of terror: a planet that never existed at all.
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History will never forget the name Captain Picard. Thank you for inspiring the Next Generation of explorers. ✨
Two interacting galaxies against the black of space. Together, they fill most of the right side of the image. They have a rounded center shape, with two extended arms. The arms both extend back, shaped roughly like the starship Enterprise. A third smaller galaxy spirals to its left.

ALT Two interacting galaxies against the black of space. Together, they fill most of the right side of the image. They have a rounded center shape, with two extended arms. The arms both extend back, shaped roughly like the starship Enterprise. A third smaller galaxy spirals to its left.

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Your next trip: a flight to another world. 🪐 Send your name aboard NASA’s Dragonfly mission to Saturn’s largest moon Titan and get a personalized boarding pass for the journey. Become a Dragonflyer today: go.nasa.gov/dragonfly-names
Poster with a peach-and-gold background that reads “Journey to Titan” in bold orange text, with a banner beneath it that says “Fly your name to another world!” Below the headline, NASA’s Dragonfly rotorcraft flies through a hazy sky with its rotors spinning, with faint hexagon patterns in the background.

ALT Poster with a peach-and-gold background that reads “Journey to Titan” in bold orange text, with a banner beneath it that says “Fly your name to another world!” Below the headline, NASA’s Dragonfly rotorcraft flies through a hazy sky with its rotors spinning, with faint hexagon patterns in the background.

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Phytoplankton are tiny, but together they are visible from space, changing the color of the ocean. In areas that are usually filled with phytoplankton, the ocean can appear teal or green. This El Niño year, with fewer phytoplankton in the western Pacific, the ocean appears bluer.
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Phytoplankton feel the heat too Microscopic plants called phytoplankton prefer cool, nutrient-rich waters. During an El Niño, weakening trade winds reduce the phytoplankton food source from cycling up to the surface. With limited food supply, phytoplankton abundance drops.
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In 2026, a band of warm water stretches across the equatorial Pacific, appearing in a deep red. In a weak La Niña year, that same area swirls with waters that are normal or slightly colder than normal, appearing tan or light blue, respectively.
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Widening warm waters With an El Niño year, sea surface temperature also fluctuates. In the same region where sea surface height was increasing, the waters are also warmer than normal. Sea surface temperature and height are interconnected. As water heats, it expands.
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As months pass in 2026, notice the large swath of higher-than-normal waters, appearing red, growing along the equator. Last year, a weak La Niña year, the same area had sea surface heights that were normal or slightly lower than normal, appearing shades of yellow and blue.
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The heartbeat of El Niño One of the first clues of an El Niño is a Kelvin wave—a slow-moving swell of warm water. They pulse, transfer heat from west to east, cause changes in air pressure, & can weaken trade winds. These features cause rising sea levels in the eastern Pacific.
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NASA satellites like PACE and Sentinel-6 are equipped to measure some of the key features of the phenomenon. go.nasa.gov/4yZv7PW
NASA Satellites Observe Historic 2026 El Niño - NASA Science

NASA Satellites Observe Historic 2026 El Niño - NASA Science

El Niño is a natural climate pattern that emerges roughly every two to seven years marked by warmer-than-normal water temperatures in parts of the equatorial

science.nasa.gov
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