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Articles, games and activities about our universe

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Earth And Space Science | PBS LearningMedia

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Explore teaching resources for Earth and Space science. Find free videos, games, and activities about our planet, stars, and galaxies.

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American Museum of Natural History: Ology Astronomy

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American Museum of Natural History: Ology Astronomy

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Have a question about outer space? Reach: A Space Podcast for Kids explores our galaxy and beyond. Listeners hear interviews with astronauts and engineers. And they take part in at-home activities. Brian Holden is one of the hosts. His...

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2024 Total Eclipse: Where & When - NASA Science

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The Monday, April 8, 2024, total solar eclipse will cross North America, passing over Mexico, the United States, and Canada.

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Chinese New Year occurs on January 23 this year. The fact that we even have to announce the date reveals that it changes each year. That's because the date for Chinese or Lunar New Year depends on how the annual cycle of the Earth orbiting the Sun interlocks with the roughly monthly cycle of the Moon orbiting the Earth. The event that lights the fuse on the celebrations is the December solstice.

There are some parts of the Northern hemisphere where it doesn't get very cold in the winter, like Vancouver where I live. But talk to anyone living just about anywhere else, and they'll tell you through chattering teeth, that December 21 is the middle of freakin' winter, not its beginning, as our Western calendars proclaim.

In other words, those freezing cold days on the Prairies in November? Fall, not winter. Changing the name doesn't make them any warmer.

The ancient Chinese astronomers and calendar-makers knew their hot from cold, though, and recognized the December solstice is the middle winter, just like March is the middle of spring, June is the middle of summer and September is the middle of fall:

Chinese New Year marks the end of winter and the beginning of spring, the transition from dreary blue to vibrant green in the diagram above. Now the Lunar Cycle comes into play. Each season - winter, spring, summer and fall - is roughly 3 months long so there's about a month and a half from the solstice to the New Year.

Or a lunar cycle and a half.

Here's how it works: take note of the Moon's phase on December 21 and let the lunar cycle play out. Last year, for example, there was a new Moon on December 24, 2011, a few days after the solstice. So began the last lunar cycle of the year which finishes on Monday, January 23, 2012, Chinese New Year.

Depending on the Moon's phase at solstice, the date for Chinese New Year can vary by about a month. This year, we're pretty close to the earliest possible date. For next year, though, there are new Moon's on December 11, 2012, on January 11, 2013 (the end of the middle, winter solstice cycle) so that Chinese New Year won't be until February 10, 2013.

If all this dependence on the phases of the Moon seems a little archaic and superstitious, let me ask you a question: When are Canada Day and Independence Day?
No brainers: July 1 and July 4.
What about Halloween? October 31. D'uh!

Okay, smarty-pants, when's Easter this year?
Er, um, just a sec while I... [google google google] ... Sunday, April 8, 2012.
You see, the phase of the Moon also plays a part in determining the date for Easter, which is defined as the first Sunday after the first full Moon after spring equinox. This year, the Moon is pretty close to new at the equinox and there won't be a full Moon until Friday, April 6. Easter occurs that Sunday, April 8. The fact that the most important date in the Christian calendar depends on the phase of the Moon, and that preparing for Easter depends on predicting those phases far in advance, are reasons why the Vatican has had an observatory for more than 250 years.

There is long and prestigious history and tradition of Chinese astronomy and time-keeping. I've only scratched the surface here, and my sincerest apologies if I've misrepresented that tradition through my over-simplification or just plain got-it-wrong-edness. In any case, be sure to take a moment next Monday to wish your friends a hearty Gung Hei Fat Choi!

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Chinese New Year occurs on January 23 this year. The fact that we even have to announce the date reveals that it changes each year. That's because the date for Chinese or Lunar New Year depends on how the annual cycle of the Earth orbiting the Sun interlocks with the roughly monthly cycle of the Moon orbiting the Earth.

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Learn about the solar system's genesis, plus its planets, moons, black holes, asteroids, and more.

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StarChild is a learning center for young astronomers ages 5-13 to learn about the solar system, the Milky Way galaxy, and the universe beyond. Use the links above to explore the site's topics. If you are looking for something a bit more advanced (ages 14+), then head on over to Imagine the Universe!

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StarChild: A Learning Center for Young Astronomers

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This site is intended for students in grades K through 8.

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Technology drives exploration. NASA technology development supports the nation's innovation economy by creating solutions for space exploration that also generate tangible benefits for life on Earth.

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Science And Technology | NASA Space Place - NASA Science for Kids

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NASA science games, articles and activities for kids

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Discover the universe: Learn about the history of the cosmos, what it’s made of, and so much more.

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Webb Home | Webb (webbtelescope.org)

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How We Study Space NGSS Grades 1-3 | SciShow Kids

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Outer space isn’t as far away as it might seem! We can make observations with special equipment like telescopes, but even just using our eyes we can learn a…

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May the Fourth Be With You | Nat Geo Kids

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The perfect playlist for explorers interested in galaxies far, far away...

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Blast off into the cosmos with astrophysicist Matt O'Dowd.

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ESA Science features news and resources to inspire the general public and inform the media on the latest discoveries in space exploration, in particular in the search for life on other planets and the origins of the universe.

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NASA Centennial Challenges were initiated in 2005 to directly engage the public in the process of advanced technology development. 

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The 3D-Printed Habitat Challenge was a NASA's Centennial Challenges program competition to build a 3D-printed habitat for deep space exploration, including the agency's journey to the Moon, Mars or beyond.

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Stellarium Web is a planetarium running in your web browser. It shows a realistic star map, just like what you see with the naked eye, binoculars or a telescope.

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Recent Videos & Visualizations

Why Does Climate Change Matter?

Why does climate change matter? Because it's happening and we're already feeling its effects around the world. But there's hope. NASA Chief Scientist and Senior Climate Advisor, Dr. Kate Calvin, explains how NASA collects data and develops tools that can help us better understand and prepare for climate change.

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Your home. Our Mission.And the one planet that NASA studies more than any other.

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Introduction

How did the Moon form?

Earth's Moon was born out of destruction.

Several theories about our Moon's formation vie for dominance, but almost all share that point in common: near the time of the solar system's formation, about 4.5 billion years ago, something ― perhaps a single object the size of Mars, perhaps a series of objects ― crashed into the young Earth and flung enough molten and vaporized debris into space to create the Moon.

Earth's Moon is thought to have formed in a tremendous collision. A massive object ― named Theia after the mythological Greek Titan who was the mother of Selene, goddess of the Moon ― smashed into Earth, flinging material into space that became the Moon. Credit: NASA

The early solar system would have been a chaotic, terrifying place. Debris left over from the formation of the Sun coalesced into a disk around the star, creating clumps that ranged in size from dust flecks to minor planets. Gravity drew these objects together, causing them to crash into each other ― violent smashups that could end in obliteration or new, larger objects. Those mashed-together objects make up the planets, moons, asteroids and other solar system objects we know today.

Written in Stone

Written in Stone

Five Things We Learned from Apollo Moon Rocks

1. The chemical composition of Moon and Earth rocks are very similar.

2. The Moon was once covered in an ocean of magma.

3. Meteorites have shattered and melted rocks on the Moon's surface through impacts.

4. Lava flowed up through cracks in the Moon's crust and filled its impact basins.

5. Lunar "soil" is made of pulverized rock created by meteorite impacts.

Visiting the Moon with the Apollo missions in the late 1960s and early 1970s revolutionized our understanding of the Moon's origins. Previous concepts ― that the Moon was an object captured by Earth's gravity as it sailed by, or that the Moon formed alongside Earth from the same debris ― fell out of favor after the Apollo missions brought back data and 842 pounds (382 kilograms) of lunar samples to Earth in the late 1960s and early 1970s. The Apollo evidence all pointed to the Moon forming from a large impact. The age of the rock samples indicated that the Moon formed around 60 million years after the solar system began to form. The type and composition of the samples showed that the Moon had been molten during its formation and was covered with a deep ocean of magma for tens of millions to hundreds of millions of years ― an environment that would occur in the aftermath of an intensely energetic impact. Lunar rocks were found to contain only small amounts of elements that vaporize when heated, further indicating the Moon could have formed in a high-energy impact that let those elements escape.

Scientist and astronaut Harrison H. Schmitt stands next to a huge, split lunar boulder during the Apollo 17 mission at the Taurus-Littrow landing site in this photograph from Dec. 13, 1972. Rock samples collected during the Apollo missions provided evidence that the Moon resulted from an object crashing into Earth in the early history of the solar system. Credit: NASA/Eugene Cernan

Perhaps most importantly, the rock samples indicated that the Moon was once a part of Earth. Basaltic rocks from the Moon's mantle have striking similarities to basaltic rocks from Earth's mantle. The oxygen isotopes and other elements sealed into the specimens matched those of Earth rocks too precisely for the similarities to be a coincidence.

This light-colored mineral, Apollo mission lunar sample 60639, is thought to have floated to the top of the magma ocean and formed the Moon's first crust around 4.4 billion years ago. Explore this rock in 3D. Credit: Lunar Sample Laboratory Facility for Astromaterials 3D Explorer

Meteorites make up another body of evidence. Samples collected by Apollo astronauts come from just a few sites on the Moon, but lunar meteorites ― rocks sent into space by impacts on the Moon that eventually find their way to Earth ― provide samples from all over the Moon that tell a similar tale of the Moon's history. Meteorites originating from asteroids have also been used to help confirm the timeline of the Moon's formation. Some show signs of having been bombarded by debris from the giant, Moon-forming impact.

Finally, more recent studies add the evidence for a high-energy impact that resulted in the creation of a molten Moon. Analysis of light reflecting off the Moon gives details of the mineral makeup of the Moon's surface, and it shows the widespread presence of anorthosite, an igneous rock that crystallizes out of and floats to the top of magma. The presence of anorthosite across the Moon's surface reinforces that the Moon must once have been covered by a widespread magma ocean that was quite deep, from hundreds to thousands of kilometers.

Lunar "Archaeology"

Lunar "Archaeology"

Though Earth and Moon both came from that ancient collision ― and Earth is certainly within easier reach ― studying the Moon gives us our best chance of understanding what happened all those billions of years ago. Earth's active geological processes, from plate tectonics to erosion, erase the evidence of formation. Aside from events like impacts, much of the Moon's surface changes on a vastly slower timescale. Like detectives at a crime scene, scientists use clues preserved on the lunar surface to piece together the Moon's history. Any improvements to the giant impact theory or a new theory would need to explain what we observe of the Moon today.

This diagram shows a cross-section of the Moon's interior during its early history, including the silicate mantle and a small metallic core. The lunar mantle is low in the elements 14 zinc, tin, cadmium, indium, and thulium, possibly because they never recondensed from gas form after the collision that created the Moon. (Illustration courtesy of NASA/JPL-Caltech).

One of the oddities is the Moon's low iron content as compared with Earth's. Earth's iron-rich core accounts for around 30 percent of its mass, but the core of the Moon is only about 1.6-1.8 percent of its total mass. One possible explanation is that the energy of the impact with Earth that formed the Moon vaporized lighter materials, casting them into space, and left behind heavier elements ― such as iron, which vaporizes only at extremely high temperatures ― to sink into Earth's core.

Any viable theory of lunar formation also has to explain where the Moon is now in relation to Earth and the speed and inclination of its orbit. Surface reflectors placed on the Moon during Apollo show that the Moon moves away from Earth at the rate of about an inch and a half per year. This indicates that the Moon initially formed much closer to our planet, and, therefore, that the early Earth's spin rate was much higher than it is today. Computer models created by scientists to test and analyze Moon formation theories must show how a massive collision can produce the existing orbits and rotation of Moon and Earth over billions of years when paired with the typical gravitational interactions between the two bodies. (Even today, the distance between the Earth and Moon, and the length of a day on Earth, continues to grow due to the effects of Earth's tides.)

Finally, strange discrepancies exist between the Moon's near and far sides. Differences include: the thickness of the crust ― 43 miles (70 kilometers) on the Moon's near-side versus 93 miles (150 kilometers) on the far side; the contrasting geological makeup, including a concentration of radioactive elements on the near side; and the rich history of volcanism on the near side compared with a relative lack of volcanic activity on the far side. How closely these differences are related to the Moon's formation ― how it cooled, how its volcanic activity took place, and the manner in which it has been bombarded by objects from space ― is a question scientists continue to wrestle with today.

The Moon's near side and far side. Credit: NASA LRO / Jatan Mehta

Model Behavior

Model Behavior

With humanity's return to the Moon through the Artemis program, scientists expect a flood of new information that will help us hone in on a single formation scenario. In the meantime, scientists continue to study existing samples and other information they have now ― such as information from lunar orbiters and the growing body of knowledge on planetary formation ― to construct computer models that help us understand how the collision might have happened, and how it could have resulted in the Moon and Earth as we see them today. The models account for factors like the strength of the colliding objects, the friction between the components, the density of the components, and how materials behave under different temperatures and pressures. Today's advanced computer models can provide a number of very specific outcomes based on variables like these.

A NASA and Durham University simulation theorizes that the Moon may have formed in a matter of hours, when material from the Earth and a Mars sized-body were launched directly into orbit after the impact. The simulations used in this research are some of the most detailed of their kind, operating at the highest resolution of any simulation run to study the Moon's origins or other giant impacts. Credits: NASA's Ames Research Center

For instance, when scientists want to figure out why the Moon is low in certain elements that vaporize easily, they use models to see how the Moon's composition would look if the elements were lost, or depleted, during different periods of the Moon's formation. Perhaps the environment in which the Moon formed or early eruptions on the Moon's surface created a temporary atmosphere that led to the elimination of some of those elements, or they may have been released through interactions with the heat of the Sun or a bright and still-molten Earth.

Even these complex models can't simulate every atom in a massive collision between giant objects that kicks debris into space. But astronomers can represent larger groups of debris by using particles whose properties depend on where they are located during the collision, like hot material situated near the proto-Moon's core. Astronomers are able to alter the properties in their models to produce different results, showing how even small changes can produce different scenarios. As evidence continues to come in, the eventual goal is a comprehensive model that accounts for everything we know about the Moon.

Searching for the Past in the Future

Searching for the Past in the Future

The final Apollo Moon mission was in 1972. Scientists have had decades to investigate lunar samples and data from the Apollo missions, combine it with information returned by subsequent lunar missions, come to conclusions, and form new questions. They know what to target during the upcoming Artemis missions to help solve some of the outstanding mysteries.

All of the Apollo missions landed near the Moon's equator, and the samples brought back are mostly from volcanic regions. Lunar scientists are hoping to obtain new samples from different locations, like the far side of the Moon and areas closer to the poles, so they can examine the Moon's composition in regions that would have evolved in different ways and uncover more evidence of how the Moon formed. They're hoping to drill down into the lunar surface and acquire core samples that expose additional layers of the Moon's geologic history, a record written in rock and mostly hidden from us for now.

These new discoveries will help narrow down the many unknown factors in the Moon formation models. If the new evidence shows ― to choose just one example ― that a vast quantity of sulfur was lost during a period of volcanic activity, then that sulfur loss doesn't need to be accounted for during early stages of Moon formation. Like a game of Clue, deciphering the mysteries of the Moon's formation will be a process of elimination, ruling out particular events happening during certain time periods and narrowing down the possibilities until few remain.

But scientists are also alert to the possibility of new discoveries, findings that paint a different picture. The greatest clues to the Moon's past may still be scattered around and beneath the lunar surface, waiting to be unearthed.
Writer: Tracy Vogel
Science Advisors: Prabal Saxena (NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center), Sarah Valencia (NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center) and Bill Bottke (Southwest Research Institute Boulder)

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TED-Ed lessons on the subject Earth and Space Science. TED-Ed celebrates the ideas of teachers and students around the world. Discover hundreds of animated lessons, create customized lessons, and share your big ideas.

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We're going back to the Moon for scientific discovery, economic benefits, and inspiration for a new generation of explorers: the Artemis Generation. While maintaining American leadership in exploration, we will build a global alliance and explore deep space for the benefit of all.

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https://www.nasa.gov/wp-content/uploads/static/artemis/Artemis is the name of NASA's program to return astronauts to the lunar surface. We are going forward to the Moon to stay.

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ANNETTE S. LEE | Artist | Astronomer | Indigenous | DSc | PhD | MFA

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ANNETTE S. LEE | Artist | Astronomer | Indigenous | DSc | PhD | MFA

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ESA's Human Spaceflight site features the latest news in astronauts, the International Space Station (ISS), research in space, and education.

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ESA Observing the Earth homepage features the latest news on ESA's Earth observation activities, missions and satellites, including Aeolus, Swarm, Cryosat, SMOS and the Copernicus Sentinels.

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The solar system has one star, eight planets, five dwarf planets, at least 290 moons, more than 1.3 million asteroids, and about 3,900 comets. It is located in an outer spiral arm of the Milky Way galaxy called the Orion Arm, or Orion Spur. Our solar system orbits the center of the galaxy at about 515,000 mph (828,000 kph). It takes about 230 million years to complete one orbit around the galactic center.

We call it the solar system because it is made up of our star, the Sun, and everything bound to it by gravity - the planets Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune; dwarf planets Pluto, Ceres, Makemake, Haumea, and Eris - along with hundreds of moons; and millions of asteroids, comets, and meteoroids.

Our Daily Skywatching Guide

A detailed guide to the night sky written by a NASA expert featuring full Moon lore, asteroid flybys, stars, galaxies, constellations, and more.
Learn More

10 THINGS about our solar system

Saying Farewell: Which Spacecraft are Leaving Our Solar System?

Only two spacecraft have reached interstellar space, the space between stars. Three other spacecraft have achieved enough velocity to eventually travel beyond the boundaries of our solar system.

Voyager 1 went interstellar in 2012 and Voyager 2 joined it in 2018. Both spacecraft, launched in 1977, are still in communication with Earth.

NASA's New Horizons spacecraft is currently exploring an icy region beyond Neptune called the Kuiper Belt. It eventually will leave our solar system.

Pioneer 10 and Pioneer 11 also will ultimately travel silently among the stars toward the galactic core. The spacecraft used up their power supplies decades ago.

Discover More Topics From NASA

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The solar system has one star, eight planets, five dwarf planets, at least 290 moons, more than 1.3 million asteroids, and about 3,900 comets.

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Globe at Night is an international citizen-science campaign to raise public awareness of the impact of light pollution by inviting citizen-scientists to measure & submit their night sky brightness observations.

Can you find Cygnus?

Cygnus the Swan is easy to find as it flies south along the path of the Milky Way. It is easiest to spot by looking straight up and looking for the three brightest stars forming what is known as the Summer Triangle. The bright star in the lower left of this triangle is Deneb, the tail of the swan. By using this star and looking in toward the center of the triangle, you can now spot Cygnus.

Visible in: Northern hemisphere

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Can you find Sagittarius?

Sagittarius the Centaur is most easily found looking South and following the Milky Way up in the Mid-Summer. It is easiest to spot Scorpius and looking just to the left and see that Sagittarius is pointing his bow and arrow at Antares the heart of Scorpius. The most prominent feature of Sagittarius is the arrangement of the body that resembles what many point out to be a teapot. The legs of Sagittarius extend below the teapot to the South and the cape extends in the opposite direction of his bow.

Visible in: Southern hemisphere

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Can you find Grus?

To find Grus, look directly south. You will see four bright stars making their way from left to right in the sky. These stars also happen to line up in brightness order. The brightest one, Sirius, will be somewhat higher in the sky than the other three, and is the farthest to the left. The next one to the right is Canopus, then Achernar. The fourth one is found in the constellation Piscis Austrinus, and is called Fomalhaut. Grus is found between the Achernar and Fomalhaut, and is located about 15 degrees lower in the sky than a line drawn between those two stars. Look for a triangle formed by Grus' three brightest stars (the third brightest star is actually two stars), the two dimmer stars in the triangle may appear red. The triangle forms the body of the crane with Grus' neck stretching out to the West, and the wings to the North and South.

Visible in: Southern hemisphere

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Join us for the September, 2023 campaign!

We are off to a great start this year with 15742 observations so far! Help us reach our goal of 20000 data points for 2023!

Globe at Night is truly an international campaign. Our Activity Guides, Postcards, and the data reporting webapp have been translated into many languages. These are all available to download from our Resources page.

Whether you use a smartphone, tablet or computer, you can submit your data in real time with our webapp - now available in 28 languages! Help us make 2021 a record year!

SciStarter and Arizona State University created a customizable citizen science kit with everything needed for patrons to engage in Globe at Night. Access all the materials and details at SciStarter.org/Library-Resources

See how your region is doing this year below. If you don't see very many data points, consider going outside tonight and contributing your own! Compare to other regions or previous years with our regional map generator.

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Loading... Skip to Content Globe at Night is an international citizen-science campaign to raise public awareness of the impact of light pollution by inviting citizen-scientists to measure & submit their night sky brightness observations. Cygnus the Swan is easy to find as it flies south along the path of the Milky Way.

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Native Skywatchers Home page - Indigenous Astronomy, Art, Culture Revitalization - Officially 501c3 Non-profit

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You've probably heard about the James Webb Space Telescope and seen some cool pictures.

But why should astronomers have all the fun?

How do we get to use this new toy ourselves?

The James Webb Space Telescope has now been in full operational science mode for several weeks now, and has seen some pretty amazing stuff, from colliding galaxies to planets and exoplanet atmospheres to the earliest, most distant galaxies ever observed.

You can check out its amazing accomplishments in lots of places - like the official NASA and Goddard Flight Center websites, and all over YouTube - but special shoutout to Anton Petrov for the best "best of JWST" that I've seen.

Many of you asked whether we were going to do a JWST episode, and at first I thought it wasn't needed due to the massive coverage.

But then I realized there's something missing.

Rather than tell you about what the telescope has done, or will do, I want to talk about the process of actually using a telescope like this.

What it takes to get time on the JWST, and how you can use it yourself.

The fact is, anyone CAN use JWST.

It was built by NASA with significant contributions from the Canadian and European Space Agencies, but it was built for everyone.

You don't have to be employed by NASA, or a US citizen, or even a professional astronomer.

But before we get to using JWST, let's talk about the telescope itself.

After all, if you're going to use it you better know what it's useful for.

The James Webb Space Telescope, JWST, or "the Webb" has been in the works for decades.

Really, from right after the launch of the Hubble Space Telescope in 1990.

The planning picked up over the 90s, and pretty quickly core properties started to crystalize for what was then the "Next Generation Space Telescope" (NGST).

It was to be a much bigger scope that Hubble - because with telescopes size matters.

The size of the aperture determines how sensitive it is to very faint objects.

Hubble has a 2.4 meter diameter mirror - the NGST had to be much bigger - 8m diameter to make it a worthy upgrade, which would give it 6 times the collecting area of Hubble.

To get an 8m mirror into space under the incredible stresses of space launch, it was realized early on that a foldable mirror was the way to go.

Another early decision that persisted was the focus on the infrared light - and I'll come back to why.

The history of the development of this telescope is a rocky one.

The mission encountered many setbacks, from technological to the fiscal to the political.

Its cost grew to consume 25% of NASA's entire budget, before being axed by the US Congress, then reinstated, and then streamlined, and finally launched, just a decade or so after the original launch goal.

The NGST became the James Webb Space Telescope after NASA's administrator for most the 60's - a controversial choice all on its own that I'll leave you to Google.

After decades of planning and billions of dollars spent, everyone was relieved to say the least that the telescope deployment proceded perfectly.

JWST now sits at the Earth's second Lagrange point, its mirrors fully unfolded and its infrared instruments humming along nicely.

JWST wasn't planned just to be a bigger, better Hubble.

In fact it's not that at all.

The telescope is focused on the infrared - that light on the longer-wavelength side of visible light.

Hubble, on the other hand, did visible light into ultraviolet.

The choice of long wavelength light specializes JWST for a number of particular science goals.

A big one is to study the early universe.

The very first galaxies shone with intense ultraviolet light as the dense, young gas of the early universe collapsed into the first stars.

But that UV light has now been traveling to us for most of cosmic history, and the expanding universe has stretched the light by more than a factor of 10.

Energetic ultraviolet photons reach us as infrared, stretched and worn out by the journey.

JWST is designed to catch that light and has already observed galaxies much closer to the Big Bang than ever before.

JWST is also great at exploring galaxies of any epoch of cosmic time.

It's IR sensitivity allows it to see the cool dust and gas that lives between the stars, as well as peer through that dust which normally blocks shorter wavelength light.

Combined with its sensitivity sensitified to the earliest galaxies this let's us complete our map of galaxy evolution over cosmic history.

Another key science area is planets.

IR sensitivity lets us peer into the dusty whirlpools around new stars and watch the formation of planets in action.

It also let's us see the atmospheres of planets in other solar systems, which is an important step towards finding other life out there in the universe.

JWST runs four separate instruments that allow it to take images as well as break light up into spectra, with sensitivities from visible red light through the slightly longer wavelengths of near-infrared all the way to the much longer wavelength mid-infrared.

It has various other tricks, like the ability to take spectra of many objects at once; or using a coronagraph to block the bright light of a star to better see its planets, to name just a couple.

OK, so that's a glimpse at what JWST can do.

So now that humanity has this new toy, how do we actually use it?

Let's start by looking at how most working astrophysicists hope to use JWST.

Most of what the telescope will look at over its hopefully long life will be through the General Observer or GO program.

Through this program, anyone who has a good idea can ask nicely to borrow the multi-billion dollar facility for a bit.

And by ask nicely I mean develop a proposal that lays out in excruciating detail the science goals, the targets, the types of observation, and why of all the telescopes in or out of the world only JWST has a hope of doing this and why these observations are going to advance our understanding of the universe in really important ways and why YOU are definitely going to be able to pull off the project if you get the data.

No big deal.

If you're one of the lucky few to pass these hurdles, then you get a very happy email notifying you of your success.

You celebrate for a few days, and get back to work on the next step - the phase 2 proposal.

The first step was the phase 1 proposal, by the way.

Phase 2 is when you lay out the exact observing plan in even more meticulous detail.

You give the precise locations on the sky of everything you want to look at, what instruments will be used, the exact settings for those instruments, the exposure times, etc.

etc.

Do not mess this part up, because if you spend an hour looking at the wrong spot or with the wrong settings, you probably won't be allowed to play with the telescope ever again.

And the final thing you need to do is wait for your data.

NASA queues up all the successful programs and executes them over the following year.

One day you'll get another email with a download link to your data, at which point the real work can begin: analyzing the data and trying to bring to fruition that genius idea you had, like, 18 months ago.

Once you have your data, typically you have a 12 month grace period in which only you and your team get to access it.

After that, the data becomes available to anyone in the world - I'll come back to that.

These days, essentially all major observatories keep modern, searchable databases of most of what they look at.

JWST data is accessed through the Mikulski Archive for Space Telescopes, or MAST, which also includes the data from Hubble, Gaia, Kepler, and many other space missions.

The sheer quantity and richness of data in MAST and other archives is enough to support many astrophysicists without them ever having to write a single observing proposal.

One of the reasons is that a lot of the data taken by these telescopes - and certainly JWST - is actually meant for the entire scientific community, not for individual researchers.

So-called legacy programs are all about maximizing the value of data for as many scientists and science questions as possible.

A classic example is the Hubble Ultra Deep Field, which is a million second exposure that Hubble took of one apparently empty spot on the sky, but which reveals 10,000 galaxies back into the early universe.

Many astronomers did a lot of science with this one image.

JWST will also do deep fields.

In fact it's already done one.

This is the SMACS 0723 cluster.

JWST pointed at it for 12 and a half hours across different filters to produce the deepest infrared image of any spot on the sky ever taken.

For comparison, this is the Hubble image of the same cluster.

Those white blobby things are massive elliptical galaxies of the cluster, several billion light years away.

These arcs are much more distant galaxies whose light is warped by the gravitational field of the cluster.

Some of these things are shining at us from out of the very early universe - maybe when it was 7% its current age.

And this bright star is, well, a star - in the milky Way galaxy.

Those pointy things are diffraction spikes, caused by interactions of incoming light with the hexagonal aperture of the scope.

And there'll be legacy programs to study everything else that JWST is good for.

These surveys often focus on areas of the sky that have been studied extensively by other telescopes, which might seem redundant, but JWST sees the universe very differently, so studying the same objects in this new light really deepens our knowledge.

Oh, and a proper legacy program doesn't have a proprietary period, which means the data is available to anyone after it's taken, including you if you want it.

OK, so that's a primer on what JWST can do and how astronomers use it.

Let's wrap up by getting a bit more practical.

How could YOU get started doing something with this telescope?

It's actually pretty straightforward.

We don't have time to do a full tutorial right now, so I'm going to link some resources below.

But here's an example from YouTube channel galactic hunter, who shows you how to download several images of the Carina nebula in different infrared filters, and uses these to build the sort of beautiful color image that we usually get from NASA.

If anyone sends us their there own processing of JWST data we'll try to show who it in a future episode.

We've waited a long, long time for JWST, and its time to reap the rewards for our patience and the hard work of many brilliant and dedicated people.

I hope you enjoy the steady stream of amazing images and even more amazing science that's sure to flow in from Earth's Lagrange 2 point over the next years as the James Webb Space Telescope shows us things never before seen, and some never imagined, from the furthest reaches of space time.

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PBS Space Time | Science of the James Webb Telescope Explained! | Season 8 | Episode 27 | PBS

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We explore all the cool facts of the James Webb Space Telescope.

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This fall, they began laying the foundation for what will be known as TERA-1, which is set to open its doors to visitors and guests this coming spring. TERA-1 will feature a 3D-printed outer shell made of AI SpaceFactory's proprietary polymer blend designed to withstand extreme weather conditions, while simultaneously retaining biodegradable and recyclable properties. Meanwhile, the wooden interior is set to be structurally independent and gorgeously crafted to mirror the beautiful woods that surround it off New York state's legendary Hudson River Valley.

As the crowdsourcing campaign continues, the team is hoping to unlock new levels of TERA's development, such as a grey-water recycling system, a high-powered telescope, aquaponic garden, and an off-grid radiant heating and cooling system. Sima Shaverdi is the lead designer on TERA-1. She is a practicing architect and researcher, exploring kinetic architecture, future smart cities, and robotic technology. Sima graciously shared some of her thoughts on TERA-1's one-of-a-kind design.

Jason: How did Earth's biology inspire healthier living spaces on Mars?

Sima: There are elements that are very precious on Earth that we become aware of when we are on Mars, when we don't have them in abundance. As an example, fresh food and its preparation is very critical on Mars and this important aspect influences the design of a traditional kitchen in TERA.

Growing fresh plants and using them directly in the process of preparing the food is changing the way our kitchen is performing. Like that, there are other examples that we are showcasing in the interior design of TERA.

Jason: What were some of the considerations of interior design for Mars that can (and should) be applied to design on Earth?

Sima: The boundary between work, living and sleeping space is a very thin line in the small and limited space. Working with a minimal area and having all activities in harmony with each other has been probably the most influential aspect of space design on Earth. TERA, the same as MARSHA, provides limited space where every inch of it would be very precious, therefore how to lay out the interior and make logical use out of it would be the main goal.

Jason: How did "generative" or "procedural" design tools become a factor when designing TERA?

Sima: There are different design approaches for TERA. The main tendency has been always toward "human centered design" which plays an important role here. Generative design tools have also influenced the results in different stages of creating TERA.

Jason: What kind of software was employed when designing TERA?

Sima: Rhinoceros, Grasshopper, Autodesk Maya, and Lumion.

Jason: How soon do you expect to see widespread 3D-printed construction in the USA?

Sima: It is unlikely we can stop building. There are the 1.6 billion in the world who live in inadequate shelter. Urbanization is reshaping the Planet's surface, and it shows no signs of abating. 200,000 people move into cities each day.

As our CEO and Chief Architect at AI SpaceFactory, David Malott puts it, "We can continue to take resources from the Earth at great cost; or, we can build in a way which gives back. Earth's bounty was used to grow our civilization and advance our technology. Now that we have the ability to venture out to the stars, it is time to return what we have borrowed. We are on the path to create a new way of construction and our goal is to distribute this technology and change the way of our thinking in this industry."

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AI SpaceFactory, winners of a NASA competition to design a living space on Mars, brings their futuristic habitat to life.

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Moon Phases | Phases, Eclipses & Supermoons – Moon: NASA Science

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Everything you want to know about why our Moon’s appearance changes throughout the month.

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NASA | NASA for Kids: Intro to Engineering

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All the latest videos from the NASA Goddard Heliophysics Division.

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At the center of most galaxies is one of the strangest and deadliest things in the universe: a black hole.

Most black holes, regardless of their size, are born when a giant star runs out of energy. The star implodes, and its center collapses under its own weight. This causes an explosion called a supernova. The giant star is eventually squashed into a supersmall dot you can't see.

A black hole's gravity, or attractive force, is so strong that it pulls in anything that gets too close. It can even swallow entire stars. Nothing can move fast enough to escape a black hole's gravity. This includes light, the fastest thing in the universe. That's why we can't see black holes in space-they've gobbled up all the light. Though astronomers can't see black holes, they know they're there by the effect they have on objects that get too close.

Two types of black holes exist. Supermassive black holes are the largest type of black hole. They're up to one million times more massive than our sun. This is the kind of black hole that's at the center of our galaxy, the Milky Way; it's called Sagittarius A*. (A* is scientist-code for "A-star.") The most common type of black holes, stellar black holes, are only up to 20 times more massive than our sun.

The intense gravity near a black hole makes time behave in strange ways. If an astronaut left his spacecraft to explore a black hole up close, he'd see the hands on his watch ticking at normal speed. But if anyone back on the spacecraft could observe the astronaut's watch from far away, they'd see its hands slow down as the spacewalker got closer to the black hole. When the spacewalker returned to the spaceship after an hour-long spacewalk, years would have passed for those aboard the spacecraft.

Someday humans might be able to use black holes to time travel forward. An astronaut could take a short trip near a black hole and return to Earth after years, decades, or even centuries had passed there. A black hole time machine could allow an astronaut to find out what the world will be like in the future. But going back in time? That's a different challenge altogether!

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Articles, games and activities about our planetary neighbors

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Articles, games and activities about our closest star

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Animals were the early pioneers of space flight, often losing their lives. But what animals have been in space, and how many animals have died in space?

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NASA Study: More Greenland Ice Lost Than Previously Estimated - NASA

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A new, comprehensive analysis of satellite data finds that majority of glaciers on the landmass have retreated significantly.

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NASA: How planets beyond our solar system form?

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NASA: How planets beyond our solar system form?

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Exoplanet Exploration: Planets Beyond our Solar System

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Planets emerge from the dense disk of gas and dust encircling young stars. Credit: NASA

The dust around a star is critical to forming celestial objects around it. Dust around stars contains elements such as carbon and iron which can help form planetary systems.

When a star is in its forming disk, otherwise known as the T Tauri phase, it is ejecting extremely hot winds dominated by positively charged particles called protons and neutral helium atoms. Although much of the material from the disk is still falling on the star, small groups of lucky dust particles are crashing into one another, clumping into larger objects.

Dust clumps become pebbles, pebbles become larger rocks that grind together to expand. The presence of gas helps particles of solid material stick together. Some break apart, but others hold on. These are the building blocks of planets, sometimes called "planetesimals."

Scientists think planets, including the ones in our solar system, likely start off as grains of dust smaller than the width of a human hair. They emerge from the giant, donut-shaped disk of gas and dust that circles young stars. Gravity and other forces cause material within the disk to collide. If the collision is gentle enough, the material fuses, growing like rolling snowballs. Over time, dust particles combine to form pebbles, which evolve into mile-sized rocks. As these planetesimals orbit their star, they clear material from their path, leaving tracks of space empty but for fine dust. At the same time, the star gobbles up nearby gas and pushes more distant material farther away. After billions of years, the disk will have totally transformed, much of it now in the form of new worlds. Watch the video to see this process unfold.

Where the disk is colder, far enough from the star that water can freeze, tiny fragments of ice hitch a ride with dust. Dirty snowballs can amass into giant planetary cores. These colder regions also allow gas molecules to slow down enough to be drawn onto a planet. This is how Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune, the gas giants of our solar system, are thought to have formed. Jupiter and Saturn are thought to have formed first and quickly within the first 10 million years of the solar system.

In the warmer parts of the disk, closer to the star, rocky planets begin to form. After the icy giants form there's not a lot of gas left for the terrestrial planets to accrete. Planets that are rocky like Mercury, Venus, Earth and Mars may take tens of millions of years to form after the birth of the star. The details of exactly where planets prefer to form in disks is still a mystery and an ongoing area of research.

Once planets form around a star they are referred to as planetary systems, which are defined as sets of gravitationally bound objects that orbit a star. They can consist of one or more planets, but may also include dwarf planets, asteroids, natural satellites, meteoroids, and comets. The Sun and its planets, including Earth, is known as the solar system. The term "extrasolar" system and "exoplanet" system refer to planetary systems other than our own.

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national aeronautics and space administration

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How do planets form? - Exoplanet Exploration: Planets Beyond our Solar System

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The dust around a star is critical to forming celestial objects around it.

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NASA Scientific Visualization Studio | How Planets Are Born

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Scientists have found evidence of plate tectonics on Jupiter's moon Europa. This indicates the first sign of this type of surface-shifting geological activity on a world other than Earth.

Researchers have clear visual evidence of Europa's icy crust expanding. However, they could not find areas where the old crust was destroyed to make room for the new. While examining Europa images taken by NASA's Galileo orbiter in the early 2000s, planetary geologists Simon Kattenhorn, of the University of Idaho, Moscow, and Louise Prockter, of the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory in Laurel, Maryland, discovered some unusual geological boundaries.

"We have been puzzled for years as to how all this new terrain could be formed, but we couldn't figure out how it was accommodated," said Prockter. "We finally think we've found the answer."

Plate tectonics is the scientific theory that Earth's outer layer is made up of plates or blocks that move, which accounts for why mountain and volcanoes form and earthquakes happen.

The surface of Europa - one of Jupiter's four largest moons and slightly smaller than Earth's moon - is riddled with cracks and ridges. Surface blocks are known to have shifted in the same way blocks of Earth's outer ground layer on either side of the San Andreas fault move past each in California. Many parts of Europa's surface show evidence of extension, where wide bands miles wide formed as the surface ripped apart and fresh icy material from the underlying shell moved into the newly created gap - a process akin to seafloor spreading on Earth.

On Earth, as new surface material forms at mid-ocean ridges, old material is destroyed at subduction zones, which are regions where two tectonic plates converge and overlap as one is forced under the other. However, despite the degree of extension evident on Europa's surface, researchers had not been able to determine how the surface could accommodate all the new material.

Scientists studying Europa often reconstruct the moon's surface blocks into their original configuration - as with a jigsaw puzzle - to get a picture of what the surface looked like before the disruption occurred. When Kattenhorn and Prockter rearranged the icy terrain in the images, they discovered about 7,700 square miles (about 20,000 square kilometers) of the surface were missing in the moon's high northern latitudes.

Further evidence suggested the missing terrain moved under a second surface plate - a scenario commonly seen on Earth at plate-tectonic boundaries. Kattenhorn and Prockter saw ice volcanoes on the overriding plate, possibly formed through melting and absorption of the slab as it dove below the surface, and a lack of mountains at the subduction zone, implying material was pushed into the interior rather than crumpled up as the two plates mashed against each other.

The scientists believe the subducted area was absorbed into Europa's ice shell, which may be up to 20 miles (about 30 kilometers) thick, rather than breaking through it into Europa's underlying ocean. On Europa's relatively young surface - about 40-90 million years old, on average - scientists have seen evidence of material moving up from under the shell but, until now, no mechanism had been found for moving material back into the shell, and possibly into the large ocean below the ice.

"Europa may be more Earth-like than we imagined, if it has a global plate tectonic system," Kattenhorn says. "Not only does this discovery make it one of the most geologically interesting bodies in the solar system, it also implies two-way communication between the exterior and interior - a way to move material from the surface into the ocean - a process which has significant implications for Europa's potential as a habitable world."

The team's results appear in the Sunday online edition of the journal Nature Geoscience.

In July, NASA issued an Announcement of Opportunity (AO) for proposals for science instruments that could be carried aboard a future mission to Europa.

"Europa continues to reveal itself as a dynamic world with compelling similarities to our own planet Earth," said Curt Niebur, Outer Planets program scientist at NASA Headquarters in Washington. "Studying Europa addresses fundamental questions about this potentially habitable icy moon and the search for life beyond Earth."

Previous scientific findings point to the existence of a liquid water ocean located under the moon's icy crust. This ocean covers Europa entirely and contains more liquid water than all of Earth's oceans combined.

NASA's Galileo spacecraft, launched in 1989, was the only space mission to make repeated visits to Europa, passing close by the moon about a dozen times.

Galileo's many firsts include discovering evidence for the existence of a saltwater ocean beneath Europa's icy surface. The mission officially was ended when Galileo plunged into Jupiter's atmosphere in September 2003 to prevent an impact with Europa. The mission was managed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, for the agency's Science Mission Directorate in Washington.

For more information about Europa and images of the plate tectonics, visit:
http://solarsystem.nasa.gov/europa
Information is available online about the Galileo Mission at:
http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/missions/galileo/
-end-

Dwayne Brown
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1726
dwayne.c.brown@nasa.gov
Michael Buckley
Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, Md.
240-228-7536
michael.buckley@jhuapl.edu
Preston Dyches
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
818-354-7013
preston.dyches@jpl.nasa.gov

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Scientists Find Evidence of 'Diving' Tectonic Plates on Jupiter's Moon Europa - NASA

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Scientists have found evidence of plate tectonics on Jupiter's moon Europa. This indicates the first sign of this type of surface-shifting geological activity

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Is Earth is the only planet with plate tectonics?

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Is Earth is the only planet with plate tectonics?

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Terrestrially, plate tectonics are a vital part of Earth's evolution.

The crust and upper mantle form the lithosphere: fragmented into a series of plates.

These plates collide, spread apart, uplift, and subduct, creating diverse surface features.

From mountain formation to volcanic island chains to oceanic spreading, plate tectonics affect Earth globally.

Continental drift creates and breaks apart supercontinents many times throughout history.

But is Earth unique? No other known planet possesses plate tectonics.

Mars is a single-plate planet, enabling Olympus Mons to form.

With an unmoving uniplate and a hotspot beneath it, Olympus Mons is the largest planetary volcano.

Mercury lost most of its mantle early on, having cooled to form a solid, one-plate planet.

But Venus, almost the size and mass of Earth with comparable internal heat, also has only one plate.

Although it's still volcanically active, Venus's surface deforms, but doesn't flow.

Earth owes its tectonic uniqueness to large surface oceans, with hints found elsewhere.

Europa, Jupiter's ice-covered moon, exhibits evidence for ice-plate tectonics.

Subduction and subsurface liquid upwelling occur there, with similar activity possible on Pluto.

Liquid water may be the key.

Internal heat plus water's lubricating effects, combined, likely enable Earth's flowing, sliding plates.
Mostly Mute Monday tells an astronomical story in images, visuals, and no more than 200 words. Talk less; smile more.

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Why Earth is the only planet with plate tectonics

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Terrestrially, plate tectonics are a vital part of Earth's evolution. The crust and upper mantle form the lithosphere: fragmented into a series of plates. These plates collide, spread apart, uplift, and subduct, creating diverse surface features. From mountain formation to volcanic island chains to oceanic spreading, plate tectonics affect Earth globally.

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NASA: What happens when something gets 'too close' to a black hole?

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NASA: What happens when something gets 'too close' to a black hole?

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Can a star be squeezed like a tube of toothpaste, flattened like a pancake, or stretched out like a piece of spaghetti? If there's a black hole nearby, maybe.

Scattered across the universe, black holes are objects with gravity so powerful, nothing can escape their grasp. These objects can tear apart whole stars and planets.

Seen nearly edgewise, the turbulent disk of gas churning around a black hole takes on a bizarre double-humped appearance. The black hole's extreme gravity alters the paths of light coming from different parts of the disk, producing the warped image where we see the disk behind the black hole as if it is simultaneously on the top and the bottom of the black hole. Credit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center/Jeremy Schnittman

Scientists have theorized about the existence of black holes since the 18th century. However, it wasn't until 1964 that astronomers found strong evidence of a black hole for the first time. Observatories detected X-rays coming from Cygnus X-1, which we now know is a black hole in orbit around a regular star in our own Milky Way galaxy. Now astronomers have a growing understanding of these strange gravitational powerhouses that form from the collapsed cores of dying stars.

While scientists have dramatically improved our understanding of black holes since that first detection, these objects remain quite mysterious. This is, in part, because light can't escape from a black hole, so they cannot be observed directly with telescopes. Instead, astronomers primarily look for the ways that black holes influence and distort matter around them.

One question that continues to intrigue scientists and science enthusiasts alike is: What actually happens when something gets too close to a black hole? Or, even though there are no black holes within human reach, what would happen if one of us got a little too close to a black hole?
Spaghettification and the "Point of No Return"
Whether it's gas, dust, planets, stars, ora hypothetical wayward space traveler, black holes are powerful enough to capture anything that veers too close.

The exact effects of a black hole depend on its mass, which can vary dramatically as black holes range from miniature to supermassive, or anywhere from tens to billions of times our Sun's mass. While a black hole's gravity isn't strange on its own, things change when an object gets too close, which generally means close enough that it can no longer maintain a stable orbit around the massive object.

What sets black holes and their gravitational power apart is their extreme density. While there are objects just as massive as some black holes, they don't have the same density. Black holes are extremely massive, but that mass is concentrated in a smaller area, creating a high density that increases the maximum force of a black hole's gravity by allowing objects to get very close to all of that mass.

When an object gets "too close," it will start to experience tidal forces. Here on Earth, the ocean has high and low tides which are caused by the Moon's gravitational pull tugging on Earth and its water. So, tidal forces refer to the distortion of one object by another due to the difference in the gravitational pull on the near and far side of an object. Due to a black hole's extreme density, objects in its vicinity will experience extreme gravity and hence extreme tidal forces that can even pull the object apart.

Watch eight model stars stretch and deform as they approach a virtual black hole 1 million times the mass of the Sun. The black hole rips some stars apart into a stream of gas, a phenomenon called a tidal disruption event. Others manage to withstand their close encounters. These simulations show that destruction and survival depend on the stars' initial densities. Yellow represents the greatest densities, blue the least dense. Credit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center/Taeho Ryu (MPA)

The effects of a black hole continue to escalate as an object approaches a black hole's event horizon: This is the point of no return, or the boundary surrounding a black hole beyond which nothing, not even light, can escape. For any object falling into a black hole, the part closer to the black hole will feel a stronger gravitational pull than the part farther away from the black hole. This difference in gravitational pull increases as the object gets closer to the event horizon. The difference in gravitational pull isn't unique to black holes, but their extreme density creates an extreme effect.

This effect essentially stretches out the object more and more as the object gets closer to the black hole, creating a long, thin shape. This process is known as spaghettification, which was first described by theoretical physicist Stephen Hawking in his book "A Brief History of Time."

In the book, Hawking describes a fictional astronaut's journey into a black hole's event horizon. In Hawking's description, he detailed how the astronaut crossed over the event horizon and was "stretched like spaghetti," hence the phenomenon's name. Astronomers have also theorized stars could look like they were squeezed like a tube of toothpaste when they're stretched by the gravity of black holes.

But black holes don't just turn things to spaghetti. Just as gravity close to a black hole can stretch things out, it can also flatten objects like pancakes. This is a phenomenon known as "pancake detonation" that primarily happens with supermassive black holes. In this phenomenon, stars that get too close to these black holes will be flattened and compressed by tidal forces. This short-lived "pancake" distortion is followed by an explosive release of thermonuclear energy.
Time Can Change
In addition to gravity stretching and squashing objects, another strange phenomenon that a traveler would observe close to a black hole is something called time dilation, in which time passes slower closer to the black hole than further away. This happens because massive objects (like black holes) create strong gravitational fields that curve and stretch the "fabric" of space-time.

We actually experience a very small amount of time dilation here on Earth because of Earth's gravity. This has been seen on airplanes where clocks tick at slightly faster rates in the air as opposed to on the ground. Astronauts living on the International Space Station also experience time at a slightly different rate because they are further from the gravitational pull of the Earth.

To imagine time dilation in action, picture an object traveling towards a black hole. As the object approaches the event horizon, it appears to start moving infinitely slower until the object will appear completely frozen.

So where does all of this matter falling into a black hole go?
What Happens Next?
Some, but not all, black holes are surrounded by hot, swirling matter in what is called an accretion disk. Here, gas and dust will collect, swirl, and flatten into this pancake-shaped disk.

By its very nature, a black hole cannot be seen, but the hot disk of material that encircles it shines bright. Against that bright backdrop, a black hole can appear to cast a shadow. In April 2019, an international network of radio telescopes called the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) captured this image of a black hole and its shadow for the first time. Credit: Event Horizon Telescope collaboration et al.

Matter in an accretion disk will continue to swirl and fall toward the event horizon of a black hole. As an object gets closer and closer, the gravitational force will intensify and the matter will continue to be pulled apart and spaghettify.

As matter in an accretion disk falls further inward towards a black hole, it swirls around and the friction from this movement can create light ranging from radio waves to visible light and X-rays. Sometimes, black holes can even redirect some of that infalling matter into jets of high-speed particles traveling away from the black hole that can emit gamma rays. Astronomers can use these jets of radiation to find black holes.

All in all, matter near a black hole can be spaghettified, super-heated, squeezed, pancaked, pulled apart, and swirled around all while time itself stretches in unusual ways. But once that matter falls all the way past the event horizon into the black hole, we don't yet know exactly what happens. This is one part of the story that remains a mystery.

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What Happens When Something Gets 'Too Close' to a Black Hole? - NASA Universe Exploration

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Can a star be squeezed like a tube of toothpaste, flattened like a pancake, or stretched out like a piece of spaghetti? If there's a black hole nearby, maybe. Scattered across the universe, black holes are objects with gravity so powerful, nothing can escape their grasp.

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Life Inside The International Space Station

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The International Space Station is a large spacecraft. It orbits around Earth. It is a home where astronauts live. The space station is also a science lab. Many countries worked together to build it. They also work together to use it. The space station is made of many pieces. The pieces were put together in space by astronauts. The space station's orbit is approximately 250 miles above Earth. NASA uses the station to learn about living and working in space. These lessons will help NASA explore space.

How Old Is the Space Station?

The first piece of the International Space Station was launched in 1998. A Russian rocket launched that piece. After that, more pieces were added. Two years later, the station was ready for people. The first crew arrived on November 2, 2000. People have lived on the space station ever since. Over time more pieces have been added. NASA and its partners around the world finished the space station in 2011.

How Big Is the Space Station?

The space station is as big inside as a house with five bedrooms. It has two bathrooms, a gymnasium and a big bay window. Six people are able to live there. It weighs almost a million pounds. It is big enough to cover a football field including the end zones. It has science labs from the United States, Russia, Japan and Europe.

What Are the Parts of the Space Station?

The space station is a home in orbit. People have lived in space every day since the year 2000. The space station's labs are where crew members do research. This research could not be done on Earth.

Scientists study what happens to people when they live in space. NASA has learned how to keep a spacecraft working for a long time. These lessons will be important in the future.

NASA has a plan to send humans deeper into space than ever before. The space station is one of the first steps. NASA will use lessons from the space station to get astronauts ready for the journey ahead.

On the sides of the space station are solar arrays. These arrays collect energy from the sun. They turn sunlight into electricity. Robot arms are attached outside. The robot arms helped to build the space station. They also can move astronauts around outside and control science experiments.

Airlocks on the space station are like doors. Astronauts use them to go outside on spacewalks.

Docking ports are like doors, too. The ports allow visiting spacecraft to connect to the space station. New crews and visitors enter the station through the docking ports. Astronauts fly to the space station on the Russian Soyuz. The crew members use the ports to move supplies onto the station.

Why Is the Space Station Important?

The space station is a home in orbit. People have lived in space every day since the year 2000. The space station's labs are where crew members do research. This research could not be done on Earth.

Scientists study what happens to people when they live in space. NASA has learned how to keep a spacecraft working for a long time. These lessons will be important in the future.

NASA has a plan to send humans deeper into space than ever before. The space station is one of the first steps. NASA will use lessons from the space station to get astronauts ready for the journey ahead.

More About the International Space Station
More to Explore: International Space Station
Kids Zone 3: International Space Station
Now in Space: Who's on the Space Station?
Read What is the International Space Station? (Grades 5-8)

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What Is the International Space Station? (Grades K-4) - NASA

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The International Space Station is a large spacecraft. It orbits around Earth. It is a home where astronauts live. The space station is also a science lab.

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Space for Kids! ESA Kids features space news, information, animations and downloads for kids aged between 6 and 12