Ribbon-Cutting Event for NASA Deep Space Network’s Deep Space Station 23
Ribbon-Cutting Event for NASA Deep Space Network’s Deep Space Station 23

Description Leadership from NASA Headquarters, the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, and the Deep Space Network (DSN) stand in front of the recently completed Deep Space Station 23 antenna at the Deep Space Network’s Goldstone complex near Barstow, California, on Aug. 25, 2026.  From left: Germaine Aziz (project manager, DSN Aperture Enhancement Project, JPL); Bradford Arnold (manager, […]

NASA Deep Space Network’s New Goldstone Antenna Goes Online
NASA Deep Space Network’s New Goldstone Antenna Goes Online

Description Long shadows are cast by the recently completed Deep Space Station 23 at the Deep Space Network’s Goldstone complex near Barstow, California, in August 2026. A 34-meter (114-foot) multifrequency beam-waveguide antenna, DSS-23 will boost the DSN’s capacity and enhance NASA’s deep space communications capabilities for decades to come. NASA leadership and personnel as well […]

Panorama Showcasing the 34-Meter Antennas of the DSN’s Goldstone Complex
Panorama Showcasing the 34-Meter Antennas of the DSN’s Goldstone Complex

Description Five antennas soak in the summer sun at the Deep Space Network’s Goldstone complex near Barstow, California, in August 2026. The recently completed Deep Space Station 23, a 34-meter (114-foot) beam-waveguide antenna, can be seen to the right of the frame in the foreground. The other three 34-meter antennas are, from left, DSS-26, DSS-25, and […]

MAIA Air Sensor at Work in Addis Ababa
MAIA Air Sensor at Work in Addis Ababa

Description This roof-mounted air sensor in Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia, is one of 10 used by NASA’s Multi-Angle Imager for Aerosols (MAIA) to study the city’s air quality. MAIA’s air sensors provide a detailed look at particulate matter that is 2.5 micrometers or less in diameter, also known as PM2.5, one of the world’s deadliest forms […]

Mapping Air Pollution With MAIA Sensors in Addis Ababa
Mapping Air Pollution With MAIA Sensors in Addis Ababa

Description This map of Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia, shows the locations of 10 air sensors that NASA’s Multi-Angle Imager for Aerosols (MAIA) mission is using to provide one of the most detailed looks ever at the city’s air pollution. Over the course of three years, these sensors measured particulate matter that is 2.5 micrometers or less […]

NASA’s SkyFall Helicopters at Work (Artist’s Concept)
NASA’s SkyFall Helicopters at Work (Artist’s Concept)

Description This artist’s concept depicts NASA’s three SkyFall Mars helicopters collecting data while flying over the surface of the Red Planet.  The green frequency waves emanating from the helicopters’ large antennas depict collection of subsurface radar data. The red beams depict collect near-infrared imagery data from regolith (crushed rock and dust) and other surface features. […]

Antenna Testing for NASA’s SkyFall Mission
Antenna Testing for NASA’s SkyFall Mission

Description SkyFall ground-penetrating radar engineer Maya Román connects a coaxial cable to a test antenna in the Environmental Test Lab’s electromagnetic interference testing chamber at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California.  The antenna was pointed up during test to minimize reflections and interferences with the antenna pattern during the measurement. Equipped with four instruments each, the […]

NASA’s Perseverance Captures Phobos and Earth
NASA’s Perseverance Captures Phobos and Earth

Description This composite of seven images from the Mastcam-Z instrument aboard NASA’s Perseverance Mars rover shows Earth, visible as a small bright dot moving from upper left to lower right, passing behind the Martian moon Phobos on July 2, 2026, 1,907th Martian day, or sol, of the mission. The black background is the result of […]

NASA’s Curiosity Views a Sand-Capped Butte
NASA’s Curiosity Views a Sand-Capped Butte

Description NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover captured this sand-capped butte, nicknamed “Miraflores,” estimated to be about 20 feet (6 meters) tall, with its Mast Camera, or Mastcam, on June 11, 2026, the 4,923rd Martian day, or sol, of the mission. The butte was left behind as surrounding rock eroded away over time, deepening the broad valley […]

NASA’s Curiosity Discovers a Field of Martian Polygons
NASA’s Curiosity Discovers a Field of Martian Polygons

Description NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover captured this 360-degree view of an expanse of terrain covered in surface features called polygons on June 19 and 20, 2026, the 4,930th and 4,931st Martian days, or sols, of the mission. The rover has found polygons several times in the past, but never so many in one place. Across […]