Trump admin cancels lease for NASA's NYC Goddard Institute for Space Studies Lab | This Week In Space: Episode 158 - Hubble's 35th Birthday | Uranus passed between Earth and a distant star this month
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It would appear that the latest wave of U.S. federal program cuts fueled by the Trump administration has affected NASA's Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS) lab in New York City, a branch of the agency dedicated to studying climate change and other Earth sciences.
On Friday (April 25), news outlets such as CNN and SpaceNews reported that GISS's lease on office space in a Columbia University building in Manhattan's Upper West Side is set to be canceled. According to SpaceNews, an April 24 email sent to Goddard employees and signed by Makenzie Lystrup, director of NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Maryland (the parent organization of GISS), stated that the lease will end on May 31. The news outlet says the lease, which costs the agency $3.03 million annually, was originally supposed to last through August 2031.
The Hubble Space Telescope has been one of NASA's most successful flagship missions, recently celebrating 35 years in space.
Often referred to as "the gift that keeps giving," the HST has provided not just magnificent science — shared worldwide — but also some of our universe's most significant and stunning images, inspiring wonder and driving countless young people into the sciences and STEM fields in general. And for the general public, Hubble continues to provide a profound sense of the wonders of the universe and our place in it.
NASA researchers got a rare chance to study Uranus' atmosphere and rings this month, when the ice giant passed between Earth and a distant star, creating a "stellar occultation." This rare event lasted about an hour on April 7 and was only visible from western North America. The last time a bright stellar occultation of Uranus occurred was 1996, so NASA came prepared. An international team of more than 30 astronomers, led by planetary scientists at NASA's Langley Research Center in Virginia, used 18 observatories to gather data.
Lessons learned and on-the-spot surprises from the first fully successful commercial lunar lander mission bolsters the chances of long-term robotic and human operations on the moon. Blue Ghost completed more than 14 days of surface operations during 346 hours of daylight, stretching its lifetime for a little over 5 hours into the super-chilly lunar night. The trek to the moon involved seven major engine burns, doing so with the company's in-house engine technology that performed with precision, Kim said. "So we're going to use that engine over and over."
The first bits of data have come back from the trio of small satellites that make up NASA's EZIE (Electrojet Zeeman Imaging Explorer) mission, which aims to solve some mysteries surrounding the "auroral electrojet" phenomena in our atmosphere. The "first light" observations are promising, and NASA says the EZIE satellites are "poised to reveal crucial details about Earth's auroral electrojets." After launching March 14 from California's Vandenberg Space Force Base on SpaceX's Transporter 13 rideshare mission, EZIE's three suitcase-sized cubesats now orbit a few hundred miles above Earth in a string-of-pearls configuration.
SpaceX launched a milestone mission on Sunday night (April 27). A Falcon 9 rocket carrying 23 of the company's Starlink broadband satellites -- including 13 with direct-to-cell capability -- lifted off from Florida's Cape Canaveral Space Force Station on Sunday at 10:09 p.m. EDT (0209 GMT on Monday, April 28). It was the 250th time SpaceX had sent a batch of Starlink craft skyward, the company noted via X shortly after launch.
NASA's pioneering Dragonfly mission has cleared a key hurdle, keeping it on track for a 2028 launch to Saturn's huge moon Titan. Dragonfly, a car-sized, nuclear-powered rotorcraft designed to investigate Titan's potential to host life, passed its Critical Design Review, NASA announced on Thursday (April 24).
It's March 2005, and before Revenge of the Sith's release in theaters and several other major Star Wars video game launches, Republic Commando has just hit the shelves. It looks and plays unlike any other Star Wars first-person shooter before it, and while the initial reception isn't glowing, it's destined to impact countless future stories.
Two full decades* later, it's hard to argue against LucasArts' tactical FPS being one of the most unique and best Star Wars games ever made. From the immersive action to its darker, boots-on-the-ground tone, it's the rare sort of Star Wars story that brought fans of George Lucas' galaxy far, far away closer to the nameless grunts dying on the frontlines. They may have only been pawns in the centuries-long chess match between the light and dark sides of the Force, but away from the Jedi and the Sith, every gunfight can be the last, and even the Republic's finest clone troopers were just humans at the end of the day.
The skies this week are buzzing with cosmic activity. Venus cozies up to Saturn while Neptune lurks nearby, and the moon makes dramatic leaps past Jupiter, Mars, and the Beehive Cluster. A little-known star pattern — the Three Leaps of the Gazelle — gallops across the sky, and asteroid Vesta reaches its peak brightness of the year. With the first quarter moon arriving Sunday, it's a perfect time to enjoy lunar views and planet-packed photo ops.
Here's what not to miss in this action-packed week above!
Before dawn, look east to see brilliant Venus passing just above Saturn. The two planets fit in the same binocular view all week, offering a dazzling planetary duo in the morning sky.
After dusk, catch the waxing crescent moon sitting just below bright Jupiter in the west. It's a perfect pairing for evening skywatchers and a great chance for a scenic photo.
Look high overhead after dusk to spot the "Three Leaps of the Gazelle" in Ursa Major. This lesser-known star pattern stretches nearly 30 degrees near the familiar Big Dipper.
Minor planet Vesta shines brightest for the year tonight, visible all night in Virgo. At magnitude 5.4, it's easy to spot with binoculars just left of the star Mu Virginis.
Early risers may spot Neptune near Venus and Saturn in the east. While only visible through telescopes, the trio fits in a binocular field, best seen from darker, southern skies.
At dusk, the half-moon hovers over Mars with the Beehive star cluster nearby. In eastern North America, the moon briefly covers a star in Cancer just after 10 p.m. EDT.
The moon reaches first quarter at 9:52 a.m. EDT (1352 GMT). This phase offers the best views of lunar craters and mountains, with the moon visible from afternoon through midnight in most time zones.
Though the first quarter moon on May 4 will be a splendid sight, my favorite moon phase to look out for this week will be the waxing crescent moon on April 29, shining just below Jupiter.
Feeling inspired to take a more in-depth moonlit tour of our rocky companion? Our ultimate guide to observing the moon will help you plan your next skywatching venture, whether it be exploring the lunar seas, mountainous terrain, or the many craters that blanket the landscape. You can also see where astronauts, rovers and landers have ventured with our Apollo landing sites observing guide.
In groundbreaking photos, eclipse chasers captured the elusive solar corona during a partially eclipsed sunrise/moonrise in Quebec. It could change eclipse chasing forever.
Astrophotographer Ron Brecher sent us this incredible image of Messier 106, a stunning spiral galaxy some 24 million light-years away.
M106 shines at a relatively bright magnitude of 9.1, making it visible through a small telescope, though you'll need a larger scope to reveal its finer details. It’s best seen in May.
Towards the lower left of the image is another prominent galaxy, NGC 4248, also about 24 million light-years away.
Here are the best star projectors to enjoy a night sky experience from the comfort of your couch. They are often reduced on special occasions such as Prime Days, so keep your eyes open.
