Division News

Search for the "Sutter's Mill" meteorite

The fireball created by the falling meteoroid, which is thought to have been about 3-4 meters in diameter, was seen in multiple states. These searches have so far turned up two fragments of the original body, and additional pieces have been found by meteorite dealers and members of the public.

LADEE UVS Flight Instrument Enters Flight Acceptance Testing

The LADEE UltraViolet Spectrometer (UVS) passed its Pre-Environmental testing Review (PER) and was cleared for flight acceptance testing. Over the next 35 days the UVS instrument will be put through a series of tests, including EMI/EMC, random vibration and thermal vacuum testing, before being delivered to the LADEE Project for integration into the LADEE spacecraft.

NASA’s Astrobiology Research Sparks 'GreenTech' Revolution

NASA's astrobiologists study microbial life to understand how it transformed a rocky Earth into the thriving, diverse, life-sustaining planet we inhabit today. These studies of photosynthetic "green" algae are creating sparks for new "green technologies" [at Ames] on Earth and future human space exploration missions.

Upcoming Events

Mars Recent Climate Change Workshop

May 15, 2012 - 8:00am - May 17, 2012 - 5:00pm

For more information:

http://spacescience.arc.nasa.gov/mars-climate-workshop-2012/
Space Science & Astrobilogy Seminar Series - Fredrik Windmark

May 31, 2012 - 3:30pm - 4:30pm

"Formation of Planetesimals in the Protoplanetary Disk

Dr. Fredrik Windmark

Max Planck Institute
*Special Date* Space Science & Astrobilogy Seminar Series - Darlene Lim

June 7, 2012 - 3:30pm - 4:30pm

"Exploration Concepts for Field Science on Earth and Beyond"

Dr. Darlene Lim, Planetary Systems Branch

NASA Ames

Ames Science Missions

Interface Region Imaging Spectrograph (IRIS)

The Interface Region Imaging Spectrograph, or IRIS, mission will use a solar telescope and spectrograph to explore the solar chromospheres. This is a crucial region for understanding energy transport into the solar wind and an archetype for stellar atmospheres. Recent discoveries have shown the chromosphere is significantly more dynamic and structured than previously thought.

Gravity and Extreme Magnetism SMEX (GEMS)

Gravity and Extreme Magnetism SMEX, or GEMS, will use an X-ray telescope to track the flow of highly magnetized matter into super massive black holes. Among the thousands of X-ray sources observed with prior and current X-ray satellites, only one astrophysical object, the Crab Nebula, has been measured in polarized X-rays.