Category: Space Exploration

Source: NASA

David SmithDuke University 
The increasing population of spacefaring vehicles and satellites motivates increasingly powerful technologies for space situational awareness (SSA). While the US space surveillance network (SSN) is able to monitor objects down to about four inches in size using, for example, the latest upgrade to the space fence, the associated requirements limit implementation to ground-based tracking of low earth orbit (LEO) objects using kilometer-scale radar arrays. Beyond LEO, the prospect of cislunar traffic and the extreme distances involved render ground-based arrays impractical. This limitation is fundamental to coherent radar systems: for a given detection performance, the required array size grows in direct proportion to the target distance. As a result, it can in fact become simpler to decrease the sensing distance rather than extend array sizes, and this can only be achieved by shifting to a space-based SSA platform.  
Although space-deployed radar systems offer distinct advantages in terms of sensing capabilities, the large distances associated with cislunar surveillance still require extremely large apertures for adequate performance. This poses significant practical challenges based on limitations to modern deployable structures which, to date, cannot consistently achieve dimensions greater than 100 meters. This limitation arises because state-of-the-art deployable antennas, including membrane, mesh, and inflatable architectures, require the entire structure to be housed inside a single launch fairing. In contrast, the prospect of in-space assembly suggests the potential for scalable structures that are not limited by launch constraints and so can meet the challenging requirements of long-range SSA.  
We propose a spaceborne radar system that pairs the demonstrated performance of robotically assembled mechanically stable structures with reconfigurable, volumetric electromagnetic metamaterials. The former technology enables modular and precise construction of arbitrary volumetric structures, while the latter offers a sophisticated and readily compatible design platform for achieving the challenging requirements of long-range SSA. Both approaches exploit a unit cell-driven, modular design procedure that enables nearly arbitrary scaling for mechanically and electromagnetically robust antenna platforms. The ability to reliably assemble and control volumetric antenna structures in this way provides access to new and powerful capabilities including steering over wide fields of view (FOV) without the need for slow, mechanical slewing of the antenna.  
The proposed work will demonstrate the feasibility and scalability of a reconfigurable, volumetric S-band metamaterial for achieving various beam steering capabilities. This effort will include advancement of metamaterial design strategies for omnidirectional electromagnetic beam forming and initial assessment/design of a reconfigurable unit cell compatible with robotic assembly. The development of the metamaterial design procedure will exploit a numerically efficient dipole model that has been previously validated at smaller scales, while the metamaterial element design will proceed by established full-wave numerical methods. System design concepts will incorporate practical constraints according to successful demonstrations of robot assembly by the Automated Reconfigurable Mission Adaptive Digital Assembly Systems (ARMADAS) project.  
While the project will target SSA applications, the design considerations involved are equally applicable to missions requiring large physical apertures such as low-frequency radiometry for earth observation and deep-space communications. Since the performance (resolution, sensitivity) of all beam steering, radar, and observation missions improves with increased aperture sizes, the realization of alternative electromagnetic strategies that offer reduced CSWaP can provide advantages across a wide range of NASA programs. 
2026 Selections

Source: NASA

Pablo SobronSETI Institute
This proposal explores a new class of reconnaissance spacecraft that map minerals from orbit using Raman spectroscopy during high-speed flybys–without landing, sample return, or extended dwell. If feasible, this concept would enable NASA to evaluate ice and ilmenite at the Moon, ore content at asteroids, and volatile-bearing minerals at Mars’ moons–all with a single 300-kg spacecraft. The capability addresses NASA’s long-term goals in sustainable lunar presence, asteroid resource evaluation, and Mars logistics by answering a key operational question: what exactly is this material?  
The central objective is to determine whether Raman spectroscopy–a technique that identifies minerals by their molecular fingerprints–can operate from tens of kilometers away during flyby or orbital arcs. To date, planetary Raman has only been used from meters away on rovers. Performing Raman from 30–50 km standoff would open a new regime for planetary science and space resource mapping, delivering the compositional specificity that passive reflectance or neutron methods cannot.  
The reference mission concept uses a single solar electric propulsion spacecraft to conduct three reconnaissance legs: (1) 50 km polar orbit of the Moon to map ice and ilmenite; (2) a 30 km flyby of a near-Earth asteroid to identify silicates, metals, and organics; (3) a 30—50 km orbit of Phobos or Deimos to detect volatile-rich phases that inform Mars mission logistics.  
At each leg, a high-energy pulsed laser, time-gated photon-counting detector, and rad-class beam steering system isolate Raman signals from the planetary surface. No existing sensor or mission class can perform this function.  
To determine feasibility, this NIAC Phase I study answers three core questions: (1) Can key mineral Raman lines be detected with adequate signal-to-noise from 50 km? (2) Can beam pointing and smear be stabilized during fast flybys to allow integration over dwell time? (3) Can a 300-kg spacecraft with realistic propulsion, power, and attitude control systems close the mission architecture across all three destinations?  
Methods include first-principles photon modeling based on known Raman cross-sections, spacecraft jitter analysis, and trajectory design using NASA’s standard mission planning tools. The study is divided into three technical work packages plus synthesis and reporting. Sensitivity analyses and decision gates are built in to determine how changes in photon return or pointing control would affect overall mission viability. Alternative architectures are explored for each leg, including lower flyby altitudes and different propulsion schemes.
The study team combines deep expertise in Raman instrumentation, spaceborne lidar, and mission design. PI Sobron led field 120-meter-range Raman systems and contributed to SuperCam and SHERLOC on Mars. Co-I Lee and Collaborator Yu from NASA Goddard bring direct heritage from ICESat-2 and other orbital laser systems. Co-I Casell at NASA Ames leads early mission design and brings prior NIAC experience. The team is supported by SETI and OffWorld, a commercial partner.  
If successful, the work will define the first architecture for orbital Raman mineral detection and demonstrate that high-resolution molecular mapping is possible without landing. Even partial success would establish new boundaries for remote sensing physics, provide validated models, and support future NASA decisions in Artemis siting, asteroid mining, and Mars ISRU planning. The architecture enables a cost-effective Discovery-class template that could eventually scale to a fleet of inner Solar System scouts–bringing Landsat-style mineral intelligence to planetary exploration.
2026 Selections

Source: NASA

Paul StankusBrookhaven Science Associates
The scientific goal of the proposed work will be reconstructing the image, ie resolving surface features, of an Earth-like exoplanet around a nearby star as seen in visible light. The innovation is in two stages. First, the design of a new kind of nulling interferometer — “dynamic hierarchical nulling” — combining inputs from multiple apertures and capable of separating star light from planet light with contrast of 10^10 or better in the visible. Second, combine the output beams from two such nullers on spacecraft stationed ~100km apart to achieve the required angular resolution using Michelson interferometric imaging; note that the hierarchical nuller preserves the star’s light in a separate beam which can then be used as in interference phase reference. The capability to survey the features of Earth-like exoplanets is perfectly aligned with NASA priorities and sure to excite public interest.  
2026 Selections

Source: NASA

Paul StankusBrookhaven Science Associates 
The scientific goal is to enable a new method for observing gravitational waves at low frequencies, based on the astrometric GW signature — gravitational waves passing by the Earth will cause a (very small) coordinated apparent motion of all sky objects. Our innovation is to deploy a new approach to precision astrometry using quantum mechanical two-photon interference, which was published quite recently. The approach has the great benefit that two separate interferometric spacecraft stations can operate independently, ie without an optical connection between them, greatly simplifying spacecraft requirements compared to standard space-based interferometric designs. With this capability we propose to be able to detect passing gravitational waves at low frequencies, in the micro-Hz to nano-Hz range, at a sensitivity at an astronomically interesting level (note that there are, currently, essentially no alternative approaches for GW detection in this band). We show how this could be achieved with a straightforward mission using two modest-sized spacecraft in free-fall orbits; and detection of such GW’s would be of great interest for galaxy formation and SM black hole physics, as well as exciting the public imagination.
2026 Selections

Source: NASA

NASA Langley’s “Stars, Stripes, and Supernovas – Symphony Under the Stars” event brought employees, families, and community members together for an evening filled with music, connection, and celebration.  
Organizers planned the event, which took place July 16, to mark the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States of America. 
The evening featured a dynamic mix of performances from an orchestra that included NASA Langley employees and members of the Williamsburg Youth Orchestra, as well as smaller group performances from employees and special guest artist Karl Werne.  

“It’s fun to bring people together, to share their diverse talents in order to create something that’s meaningful – and in this case something that was very beautiful too,” said Jennifer Kibler, deputy director of the Research Directorate at NASA Langley.  
The orchestra played a selection of patriotic favorites and space-inspired pieces that highlighted the creativity and talent within the community. “America the Beautiful,” “God Bless America,” and “Jupiter, the Bringer of Jollity” from Gustav Holst’s orchestral suite “The Planets” were among the songs they performed.  
The event, which also took place just one day before NASA Langley’s 109th birthday, served as a reminder of the spirit that defines the center—scientists, engineers, communicators, and staff coming together to celebrate not only NASA’s mission, but the people who make that mission possible.  
“This was a big team effort,” said Nicole Oman, administrative management specialist with the Research Directorate. “It wouldn’t have been a success without the contributions of every single person.” 

Source: NASA

Saptarshi BandyopadhyayDimming the Sun (DimSun) Using Controllable Dust Cloud to Reduce Solar InsolationNASA Jet Propulsion LaboratoryPasadena, CA 91109-80012026 Phase I
David BugbyCombinatory Architecture offering Neomobility, on-Venus Adaptability, and Survivability (CANVAS)NASA Jet Propulsion LaboratoryPasadena, CA 91109-80012026 Phase I
Anish DamodaranPS21: Transforming Submillimeter Space Interferometry with Photonic TechnologiesUniversity of Central FloridaOrlando, FL  32826-29332026 Phase I
Artur DavoyanCoilable Stacked Solar Sails for Very High delta-V MissionsUniversity of CaliforniaLos Angeles, CA 90024-00012026 Phase I
A.C. CharaniaEARENDIL: Extended Astronaut Radioisotope-EVA in Nighttime and Deep-space Icy LandscapesZeno Power Systems, Inc.Washington, DC 20001-37012026 Phase I
Daniel DrewSolid-state Propulsion for Autonomous Reconnaissance of Karst (SPARK)University of HawaiiHonolulu, HI 96822-23032026 Phase I
Gilly ElorPower-over-Fiber to Enable a Lunar Underground eXplorer (LUX)Stone Aerospace, Inc.Del Valle, TX 78617-30172026 Phase I
Zhaoyan LiuQuantum Wind Lidar Applications for Planetary and Earth Science MissionsNASA Ames Research CenterMoffett Field, CA 94034-00012026 Phase I
Jeff NosanovOBLIVIAN: Observing Black hole LIght Via Intensity cOrrelatioNOrbital Velocity, LLCDecatur, GA 30033-41512026 Phase I
Keunhan ParkPlasmon-Enhanced Radioisotope Thermophotovoltaic (PRTPV) Power Generation for Interstellar MissionsUniversity of UtahSalt Lake City 84112-11092026 Phase I
Austin PhoenixECLIPSE – Efficient variable Conductivity Lunar Insulator for Passive Surveyor Environmental ControlVirginia Polytechnic Institute & StateUniversity, Blacksburg, VA 24060-56052026 Phase I
Marco QuadrelliPRAXIS: Planetary Rings Autonomous EXploration with In-situ SamplingNASA Jet Propulsion LaboratoryPasadena, CA 91109-80012026 Phase I
Michael RubensteinActively Steerable Femtosat Constellations for In-situ Exploration of Saturn’s Rings, Atmosphere, and MagnetosphereNorthwestern UniversityChicago Evanston, IL 60208-00012026 Phase I
Benjamin SchaferPhotophoretic Tracers for Near-Space Remote Sensing at 30-100 km AltitudesUniversity of CaliforniaLos Angeles, CA 90024-00012026 Phase I
David SmithRobotically Assembled Electromagnetic Metamaterials for Long-Range Space Situational AwarenessDuke University Durham, NC 27708-99762026 Phase I
Pablo SobronInterworld Slingshot Resource SurveysSETI InstituteMountain View, CA 94043-52032026 Phase I
Paul StankusMapping Alien Continents: Achieving Optical VLBI for Exoplanet ImagingBrookhaven Science AssociatesUpton NY 11973-00012026 Phase I
Paul StankusPrecision Astrometry Using Optically Independent Spacecraft for Graviational Wave DetectionBrookhaven Science AssociatesUpton, NY 11973-00012026 Phase I

Source: NASA

As of July 20, the public can access data from the two powerful radar instruments aboard the NISAR (NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar) satellite. Teams in the United States and India will release files processed from the satellite’s L-band and S-band radars on an ongoing basis, helping researchers and other users track the movement of Earth’s land and ice masses, monitor changes in ecosystems like forests and wetlands, and respond to natural hazards such as landslides and earthquakes. 
The release comes as NASA and ISRO (Indian Space Research Organisation) prepare to celebrate the first anniversary of NISAR’s July 30, 2025, launch from India’s Satish Dhawan Space Centre. Since that time, the mission engineering and science teams have been busy calibrating instrumentation, refining algorithms, and monitoring nearly all the planet’s land- and ice-covered surfaces twice every 12 days. Along the way, the team has captured scenes from around the globe — urban street grids, agricultural fields, landslides, earthquakes, and sinking land in Mexico City.  
An early image released Tuesday revealed the fractured, barren surface of an Antarctic landscape in stark detail. In a merging of science and serendipity, it also resembles something else entirely: a hummingbird. 
Despite its otherworldly quality, the Antarctic image shows a very real geographical feature called Nunatak Zaterjavshijsja, a mountaintop in East Antarctica, poking out amid a stream of ice flowing northeast to the ocean. As the moving glacier passes the obstruction, the mountain’s topography causes stresses in the ice, heavily fracturing the surrounding surfaces with deep cracks, called crevasses, which show as sharp green lines in the image.  
“First, it’s a beautiful image, with rich details of features that provide insights to how the glacier is moving. Then, because radar can often see through snow and deep into the ice, NISAR can observe fundamentally different properties of Antarctic ice than can be seen in optical imagery,” said Seongsu Jeong, the signal analysis engineer who produced the image at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California. “With NISAR we’re seeing what’s hidden beneath the surface.” 

Generated with measurements that NISAR’s L-band instrument gathered in August 2025, as U.S. and Indian mission teams tested the satellite’s systems, the “hummingbird” exemplifies one of the young mission’s hallmarks: intricately detailed imagery that is both informative and eye-catching.  
The colors show differences in the way polarized microwave signals, which vibrate in different directions, interact with and reflect from the ice. Over Antarctica, NISAR transmits radar waves toward Earth with a horizontal polarization. The orientation of the signals that return — either horizontal, vertical, or both — provide clues about the object or surface that reflected them. 
Signals that come back with a horizontal polarization likely bounced off a more regular surface, such as smooth ice. Those signals appear magenta in the image. Signals that return with vertical polarization may have refracted as they partially penetrated the snow and ice or scattered at different angles as they reflected off irregular surfaces, such as the faces of crevasses. Called volume scattering, these observations are displayed in green. 
The white represents areas in which magenta and green signals scatter back strongly, a possible indication that there is an equal blend of surface and volume scattering. 
The same scene viewed in optical light is almost entirely white with ice and snow. Slight shadows and rippling indicate the presence of the mountaintop, and textures in the surrounding area suggest the ice is not completely smooth. 

The NISAR satellite is the first free-flying space mission to feature two radar instruments: an L-band system and an S-band system. The systems are complementary due to their differing wavelengths. For example, the longer-wave L-band can pass through tree canopies, imaging the ground beneath. Meanwhile, depending on leaf sizes, S-band can collect observations of those canopies. 
The Indian science team, based at ISRO’s Space Applications Centre in Ahmedabad, recently started releasing S-band data via the Bhoonidhi portal.  
On July 20, the U.S. side of the mission started releasing calibrated products continuously for all L-band measurements collected since June 17. By the end of the year, the team expects to have released all data acquired earlier during science operations. The NISAR project science team previously had two limited releases of L-band data, the first in January of about 25 sample products and a release in February of thousands of pre-calibrated products. 
As with the earlier releases, data users will be able to download the latest files at the Alaska Satellite Facility Distributed Active Archive Center in Fairbanks, which hosts and distributes all NASA synthetic aperture radar data.  
The NISAR mission’s science data output is vast, on the order of dozens of terabytes a day, due to the satellite’s frequent coverage of nearly all the land and ice surfaces on Earth. It scans from within a few degrees of the South Pole in Antarctica to 77.5 degrees north latitude, above the Arctic Circle. 

Managed by Caltech, JPL leads the U.S. component of the project and provided the satellite’s L-band SAR and antenna reflector. The spacecraft bus and its S-band SAR were provided by ISRO. 
The NISAR satellite is the first to carry two SAR instruments at different wavelengths, collecting data using the spacecraft’s giant drum-shaped reflector, which measures 39 feet (12 meters) wide — the largest radar antenna reflector NASA has sent into space. 
To learn more about NISAR, visit: 

NISAR

Media Contacts
Andrew Wang / Andrew Good Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. 626-379-6874 / 818-393-2433 andrew.wang@jpl.nasa.gov / andrew.c.good@jpl.nasa.gov 
2026-049

Source: NASA

NASA and its partners will discuss the upcoming crew rotation mission to the International Space Station during a pair of news conferences on Monday, Aug. 3, from the agency’s Johnson Space Center in Houston.
Mission leadership will provide an overview of NASA’s SpaceX Crew‑13 mission at 12 p.m. EDT. Next, crew members will discuss their training and mission preparations at 2 p.m. This is Crew-13’s final media availability prior to traveling to the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida for launch.
NASA will stream these events live. Learn where to watch online:

NASA Live

The Crew-13 mission will carry NASA astronauts Jessica Watkins and Luke Delaney, CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Joshua Kutryk, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Sergey Teteryatnikov to the orbiting laboratory. The crew will launch aboard a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft on the company’s Falcon 9 rocket from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida no earlier than mid-September.
International media attending in person must email the NASA Johnson newsroom at jsccommu@mail.nasa.gov by 5 p.m., Tuesday, July 21. United States-based media attending in person must respond by 5 p.m., Thursday, July 30. Media joining virtually must respond by 10 a.m. the day of the event. NASA’s media accreditation policy is available online.
Briefing participants are as follows (all times Eastern and subject to change based on real-time operations):
12 p.m.: Mission Overview News Conference

Joel Montalbano, deputy associate administrator, Human Spaceflight Mission Directorate, NASA Headquarters
Dana Weigel, manager, Low Earth Orbit Program, NASA Johnson
Mathieu Caron, director, Astronauts, Life Sciences, and Space Medicine, CSA
Julianna Scheiman, director, NASA Science and Dragon Programs, SpaceX

2 p.m.: Crew-13 News Conference

Jessica Watkins, commander, NASA
Luke Delaney, pilot, NASA
Joshua Kutryk, mission specialist, CSA
Sergey Teteryatnikov, mission specialist, Roscosmos

Following the news conference, crew members will be available for limited media interviews. All interview requests must be submitted by 5 p.m. on July 30, to the NASA Johnson newsroom at: jsccommu@mail.nasa.gov.
This will be the second flight to the space station for Watkins, who was selected as a NASA astronaut in 2017. Watkins grew up in Lafayette, Colorado, and earned an undergraduate degree in geological and environmental sciences from Stanford University, as well as a doctorate in geology from the University of California, Los Angeles. As a geologist, she studied the Martian surface and was a member of the Curiosity rover science team at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California. Watkins first launched to the space station as a crew member aboard NASA’s SpaceX Crew-4 mission, spending a total of 170 days in space across space station Expeditions 67/68 in 2022. She will be the first NASA astronaut to launch aboard a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft twice.
Selected as a NASA astronaut in 2021, Delaney earned a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering at the University of North Florida and a master’s degree in aerospace engineering at the Naval Postgraduate School. The Florida native is a distinguished naval aviator who participated in exercises throughout the Asia Pacific region and conducted missions in support of Operation Enduring Freedom. As a test pilot, Delaney evaluated developmental aircraft systems and served as a test pilot instructor. He also worked as a research pilot at NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia, where he supported airborne science missions. This is the first spaceflight for Delaney.
The Crew-13 mission also is the first spaceflight for Kutryk. Prior to his selection as a CSA astronaut in 2017, he served as a CF-18 fighter pilot, flying missions in support of Canada’s NATO, U.N., and North American Aerospace Defense Command commitments. A native of Fort Saskatchewan, Alberta, Kutryk also worked as an experimental and operational test pilot at the Aerospace Engineering Test Establishment in Cold Lake, Alberta. Kutryk received a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from the Royal Military College of Canada in Kingston, Ontario, and he is a distinguished graduate of the United States Air Force Test Pilot school in Edwards, California. He has master’s degrees in space studies, flight test engineering, and defense studies.
This mission will be Teteryatnikov’s first trip to the orbiting laboratory. He graduated from the Naval Academy, St. Petersburg, Russia, in 2011 as an engineer specializing in ship power plant operations. Before his selection as a test cosmonaut, Teteryatnikov served in various naval engineering roles, including undersea vessels and specialized engine room operations. He was selected for the Gagarin Research and Test Cosmonaut Training Center Cosmonaut Corps in 2021 and has served as a test cosmonaut since 2023.
For more information about the mission, visit:

NASA’s SpaceX Crew-13

-end-
Joshua Finch / Jimi RussellHeadquarters, Washington202-358-1100joshua.a.finch@nasa.gov / james.j.russell@nasa.gov
Leah Cheshier / Anna SchneiderJohnson Space Center, Houston281-483-5111leah.d.cheshier@nasa.gov / anna.c.schneider@nasa.gov

Source: NASA

The Wabanaki people have a deep well of creation myths explaining the rocky coastlines of the Bay of Fundy, Downeast Maine, and Acadia National Park. Many involve Glooscap—a magical figure said to have floated down the Bay of Fundy in a stone canoe, sculpting coastal features by scraping the vessel across the landscape and scattering enormous boulders during battles with primordial beavers, frogs, moose, whales, and other gigantic animals.
Fewer Indigenous creation myths survive to explain the origins of the sandy and marshy shorelines of southern Maine and the rocky, indented coasts of the state’s Midcoast region. But the sharp contrast between the sandy shoals and beaches south of Portland and the rocky shoreline of promontories, headlands, and narrow peninsulas to the east—visible in the Landsat image above—has long drawn the attention of coastal geologists, whose scientific explanations on its origins abound.
The coastal transition reflects both differences in the underlying bedrock and the distribution of sediment left behind by the last glacial maximum, coastal geologists say. Southern Maine has broad deposits of sand, much of it sourced from rivers. The sandy beaches of Saco Bay, for instance, home to Maine’s longest contiguous beach and the state’s largest saltmarsh, received sediment from the weathering and breakdown of the White Mountains, with material transported to the coast largely by the Saco River, explained Peter Slovinsky, a geologist with the Maine Geological Survey. Waves and tides reworked these soft sediments over time, sculpting them into the arch-shaped embayed beaches and sprawling salt marshes found around Saco Bay and the broader region.
While erosion-resistant granite juts from the sandy shorelines in southern Maine to form rocky headlands, metamorphic bedrock becomes the dominant surface feature east of Portland. There, whole ridges and valleys made of rock layers transformed by exposure to high pressures and temperatures define the landscape. During the last ice age, glaciers scoured and widened many of these coastal valleys, which later flooded as the Laurentide Ice Sheet melted and sea levels rose.
Around Casco Bay, these ridge-and-valley systems, combined with the drowning of the shoreline, produce the jagged, highly indented shoreline and many long, narrow islands seen today. “The tortured folds of these old landscapes also set up a sharp directional preference for erosion to exploit,” said Nicholas Whiteman, also a geologist with the Maine Geological Survey. “This led to the eye-catching difference in the orientation of the islands and necks that dominate Casco Bay compared with those to the northeast.”
The various forms that coastlines take fascinate geologists, but they also carry everyday implications for the economies of Maine’s coastal communities. While tourists flock to the sandy beaches of communities like Saco and Kennebunkport, the state’s iconic lobster fisheries are concentrated in Midcoast Maine. The crustaceans thrive in the cold waters of the region’s many rocky, protected inlets, turning communities such as Harpswell into leaders in lobster landings.  
The state’s oyster farms are also concentrated in this region. Casco Bay and the Damariscotta Estuary, sheltered from winds and waves, offer waters that farmers can easily access without large boats. These waters provide a range of temperatures, salinities, and other characteristics that create numerous microclimates where oysters can grow quickly and take on a variety of tastes, known as merroir, explained Tom Kiffney, a researcher at the University of Maine. Kiffney is part of a team of researchers using Landsat and other satellite observations to predict oyster growth rates and help identify the most promising locations for new oyster farms in Maine based on water temperatures and quality.

NASA Earth Observatory image by Michala Garrison, using Landsat data from the U.S. Geological Survey. Story by Adam Voiland.

August 31, 2025

Kelley, J. (1987) An Inventory of Coastal Environments and Classification of Maine’s Glaciated Shoreline. Glaciated Coasts, 151-176.
Kiffney, T., et al. (2026) Using dynamic energy budget modeling and high-resolution satellite products to predict eastern oyster growth at a farm scale. Aquaculture, 612(1), 743133.
Leland, C. (1884) Algonquin Legends of New England: How Glooskap sailed through the great Cavern of Darkness. Accessed July 17, 2026.
Maine.gov (2026) Maine’s Coastal Marine Geology. Accessed July 17, 2026.
Maine Geological Survey (2002) Simplified Bedrock Geologic Map of Maine. Accessed July 17, 2026.
Maine Geological Survey (1999) The Variety of Maine’s Changing Shoreline. Accessed July 17, 2026.
Merroir (2026) What is Merroir? Accessed July 17, 2026.
NASA (2026, January 15) NASA Data Helps Maine Oyster Farmers Choose Where to Grow. Accessed July 17, 2026.
NASA Earth Observatory (2017) Oyster Prospecting With Landsat 8. Accessed July 17, 2026.
Snyder, J., et al. (2017) Oyster Aquaculture Site Selection Using Landsat 8-Derived Sea Surface Temperature, Turbidity, and Chlorophyll a. Frontiers in Marine Science, 4(190).
World History Encyclopedia (2025, February 6) Glooscap Tales. Accessed July 17, 2026.

Source: NASA

Seattle, Washington—sometimes known as the “Emerald City”—was glimmering in the morning sunlight when an astronaut aboard the International Space Station took this photo on June 16, 2026. The city’s parks and tree-filled neighborhoods lend a lush, green look to the metropolis, while tall buildings downtown cast long shadows and ships navigate surrounding waterways.
The broad contours of the city’s landscape and the water around it owe their shape to the advance and retreat of glaciers during the last ice age. Between roughly 18,000 and 16,000 years ago, the Puget lobe of the Cordilleran ice sheet covered the area in a mass of ice up to 3,300 feet (1,000 meters) thick. The glacier scoured the basins now occupied by Puget Sound and the region’s lakes. 
The glacier left its mark above water, too. Several of Seattle’s notorious hills (of which there are seven or more, depending on who’s counting) are drumlins. These elongated mounds of glacial debris run north-south, parallel to the direction of the ice’s movement. East-west travelers in the city, facing challenging ups and downs, may attest to this topographic trend.
The ice also transported large boulders called glacial erratics from more northerly locations and deposited them around the region. A particularly large erratic, the Wedgwood Rock, stands about 20 feet (6 meters) tall and draws its name from the North Seattle neighborhood in which it rests.

In more recent times, humans have undertaken projects to rework the topography. Notable alterations include leveling Denny Hill north of downtown and filling in tideflats at the mouth of the Duwamish River south of downtown, which created around 1,300 acres of new land. Seattle’s professional sports stadiums sit atop this fill.
This photo was acquired after several development projects to update waterfront infrastructure downtown, initiated in 2010, were completed. These include a new ferry dock and terminal, a rebuilt seawall, and a tunnel to replace an above-ground highway and create more inviting public access to the waterfront.
Some replumbing of the region’s waterways is apparent from the astronaut’s perspective, as well. In the 1910s, the Army Corps of Engineers built canals on either side of Lake Union to connect Puget Sound (an inlet of the Pacific Ocean) with Lake Washington. Starting in 1916, the Montlake Cut connected Lake Washington to Lake Union, and the Ballard Locks, northwest of Lake Union, began raising and lowering watercraft between the freshwater lakes and tidal Puget Sound. As a result of this project, Lake Washington’s water level dropped about 9 feet (3 meters) and ceased draining from its natural outlet at its southern end.
Today, the waters in and around Seattle support many uses: container ships, cruise ships, car and passenger ferries, floatplanes, and recreational craft ply the sound and lakes. And as for Seattle’s emerald nickname, pockets of old-growth forest still exist within city limits, containing centuries-old trees such as Douglas fir, Western red cedar, and Western hemlock. Seattleites often spot wildlife such as bald eagles, coyotes, and sea lions in the city’s various habitats.

Astronaut photograph ISS074-E-723719 was acquired on June 16, 2026, with a Nikon Z9 digital camera using a focal length of 560 millimeters. It is provided by the ISS Crew Earth Observations Facility and the Earth Science and Remote Sensing Unit at NASA Johnson Space Center. The image was taken by a member of the Expedition 74 crew. The image has been cropped and enhanced to improve contrast, and lens artifacts have been removed. The International Space Station Program supports the laboratory as part of the ISS National Lab to help astronauts take pictures of Earth that will be of the greatest value to scientists and the public, and to make those images freely available on the Internet. Additional images taken by astronauts and cosmonauts can be viewed at the NASA/JSC Gateway to Astronaut Photography of Earth. Story by Lindsey Doermann.

June 16, 2026: Wide view

June 16, 2026: Detailed view

Booth, D.B., et al. (2003) The cordilleran ice sheet. Development in Quaternary Science, 1, 17-43.
Cascade PBS (2025, January 9) The Giant Ice Sheet That Shaped Seattle. Accessed July 17, 2026.
City of Seattle (2026) Waterfront Seattle Program. Accessed July 17, 2026.
HistoryLink.org (2017, February 5) Lake Washington Ship Canal (Seattle). Accessed July 17, 2026.
HistoryLink.org (2016, December 30) Cedar-Sammamish Watershed. Accessed July 17, 2026.
Williams, D.B. (2017) Too High and Too Steep. University of Washington Press.