NASA

This video chronicles solar activity from Aug. 12 to Dec. 22, 2022, as captured by NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO). From its orbit in space around Earth, SDO has steadily imaged the Sun in 4K x 4K resolution for nearly 13 years. This information has enabled countless new discoveries about the workings of our closest star and how it influences the solar system. With a triad of instruments, SDO captures an image of the Sun every 0.75 seconds. The Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA) instrument alone captures images every 12 seconds at 10 different wavelengths of light. This 133-day time lapse showcases photos taken at a wavelength of 17.1 nanometers, which is an extreme-ultraviolet wavelength that shows the Sun’s outermost atmospheric layer: the corona. Compiling images taken 108 seconds apart, the movie condenses 133 days, or about four months, of solar observations into 59 minutes. The video shows bright active regions passing across the face of the Sun as it rotates. The Sun rotates approximately once every 27 days. The loops extending above the bright regions are magnetic fields that have trapped hot, glowing plasma. These bright regions are also the source of solar flares, which appear as bright flashes as magnetic fields snap together in a process called magnetic reconnection. While SDO has kept an unblinking eye pointed toward the Sun, there have been a few moments it missed. Some of the dark frames in the video are caused by Earth or the Moon eclipsing SDO as they pass between the spacecraft and the Sun. Other blackouts are caused by instrumentation being down or data errors. SDO transmits 1.4 terabytes of data to the ground every day. The images where the Sun is off-center were observed when SDO was calibrating its instruments. SDO and other NASA missions will continue to watch our Sun in the years to come, providing further insights about our place in space and information to keep our astronauts and assets safe. The music is a continuous mix from Lars Leonhard’s “Geometric Shapes” album, courtesy of the artist. Credit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center Scott Wiessinger (PAO): Lead Producer Tom Bridgman (SVS): Lead Visualizer Scott Wiessinger (PAO): Editor This video can be freely shared and downloaded at https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/14263. While the video in its entirety can be shared without permission, the music and some individual imagery may have been obtained through permission and may not be excised or remixed in other products. Specific details on such imagery may be found here: https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/14263. For more information on NASA’s media guidelines, visit https://nasa.gov/multimedia/guidelines. Video Description: On the left side of the frame is the full circle of the Sun. It appears in a golden yellow color, but splotchy and with thin yellow wisps extending from the surface. Some areas are very bright and others almost black. The whole Sun rotates steadily, with one full rotation taking 12 minutes in this time lapse. There are usually only a few bright regions visible at a time and they shift and flash like small fires. From these regions there are wispy loops reaching up above the surface that rapidly change shape and size. On the right side of the frame are two white-outlined squares with enlargements of interesting regions of the Sun.

Following Crew-7's successful launch, mission experts take questions from the media at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Participants include: - Ken Bowersox, associate administrator, Space Operations Mission Directorate, NASA Headquarters - Steve Stich, manager, Commercial Crew Program, Kennedy - Joel Montalbano, manager, International Space Station Program, Johnson - Sarah Walker, director, Dragon Mission Management, SpaceX - Hiroshi Sasaki, vice president, JAXA - Josef Aschbacher, director general, ESA NASA's SpaceX Crew-7 mission lifted off from Kennedy at 3:27 a.m. EDT (0727 UTC) on Saturday, Aug. 26. NASA astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli, ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Andreas Mogensen, JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Satoshi Furukawa, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Konstantin Borisov are traveling to the International Space Station aboard SpaceX's Dragon Endurance spacecraft for a several-month science expedition. Docking is currently scheduled for approximately 8:39 a.m. EDT (1239 UTC) on Sunday, Aug. 27.

Where are the Moon rocks from the Apollo missions kept? When they’re not being studied by institutions or enjoyed by museumgoers, NASA has a specialized Lunar Sample Curation Laboratory at NASA’s Johnson Space Center to store and keep these otherworldly samples safe. Studying these samples helps us learn more about the origin of not only our moon, but our planet. Deputy Apollo Sample Curator (Sept 2019 – Dec 2022) Dr. Juliane Gross explains more about lunar sample curation. Producers: Scott Bednar, Jessica Wilde Editor: David Shelton Link to download this video: https://go.nasa.gov/3QK72Km Credit: NASA

An international crew is preparing to launch to the International Space Station aboard NASA’s SpaceX Crew-7 mission. NASA astronaut Jasmin Moghbeli, ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Andreas Mogensen, JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Satoshi Furukawa, and cosmonaut Konstantin Borisov of Roscosmos will perform research technology demonstrations, science experiments, and maintenance activities aboard the microgravity laboratory. Crew-7 is targeted to launch no earlier than 3:27 a.m. EDT Saturday, Aug. 26 from Launch Complex 39A at Kennedy. As part of the agency’s Commercial Crew Program, Crew-7 marks the eighth human spaceflight mission supported by a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft and the seventh crew rotation mission to the space station since 2020 for NASA. You can watch the launch live on NASA TV, NASA.gov, the NASA app, and right here on YouTube: https://youtube.com/live/QD2XDoeT8SI Learn more about the Crew-7 mission here: https://blogs.nasa.gov/crew-7/ Credit: NASA Video Producer: Sonnet Apple Music: Universal Production Music

Find out why July 2023 was a record-breaking month, a high-flying NASA aircraft is helping to study lighting, and making landings safe for flights of the future … a few of the stories to tell you about – This Week at NASA! Link to download this video: https://images.nasa.gov/details/Find%... Video Producer: Andre Valentine and Haley Reed Video Editor: Haley Reed Narrator: Jesse Carpenter Music: Universal Production Music Credit: NASA

On Oct. 14, 2023, a “ring of fire,” or annular, solar eclipse will travel from Oregon coast to the Gulf of Mexico. Weather permitting, most of the Americas will be able to view at least a partial solar eclipse. Click here to see the NASA 2023 and 2024 Solar Eclipse Map: https://go.nasa.gov/USEclipseMaps An annular solar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes between the Sun and the Earth, but is just far away enough in its orbit that the Sun is not completely covered—creating a large, bright ring in the sky. WARNING: During an annular eclipse, it is never safe to look directly at the Sun without specialized eye protection designed for solar viewing. How to safely view an eclipse: https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/eclipses/2023/oct-14-annular/safety/ Not in the path of the eclipse? Watch with us from anywhere in the world. We will provide live broadcast coverage on Oct. 14 from 11:30 a.m. to 1:15 p.m. EDT (1530-1715 UTC) on NASA TV, NASA.gov, the NASA app, and right here on YouTube: https://youtube.com/live/LlY79zjud-Q Learn more about the upcoming annular solar eclipse: https://solarsystem.nasa.gov/eclipses/2023/oct-14-annular/overview/ Credit: NASA Producer: Sonnet Apple Music: Universal Production Music

Our Webb Space Telescope captures a cosmic ring, the team behind our upcoming Psyche mission, and the unique thing about a star that was ripped apart by a black hole … a few of the stories to tell you about – This Week at NASA! Link to download this video: https://images.nasa.gov/details/NHQ_2... Video Producer: Andre Valentine Video Editor: Andre Valentine Narrator: Andre Valentine Music: Universal Production Music Credit: NASA