NASA Science

NASA Science seeks to discover the secrets of the universe, search for life elsewhere, and protect and improve life on Earth and in space.

cargo resupply mission

SpaceX CRS-29 Launch

message in a bottle

Send Your Name to Europa

celebrate solar science

Heliophysics Big Year
The image is divided horizontally by an undulating line between a cloudscape forming a nebula along the bottom portion and a comparatively clear upper portion. Speckled across both portions is a starfield, showing innumerable stars of many sizes. The smallest of these are small, distant, and faint points of light. The largest of these appear larger, closer, brighter, and more fully resolved with 8-point diffraction spikes. The upper portion of the image is blueish, and has wispy translucent cloud-like streaks rising from the nebula below. The orangish cloudy formation in the bottom half varies in density and ranges from translucent to opaque. The stars vary in color, the majority of which have a blue or orange hue. The cloud-like structure of the nebula contains ridges, peaks, and valleys – an appearance very similar to a mountain range. Three long diffraction spikes from the top right edge of the image suggest the presence of a large star just out of view.

Welcome to our redesigned NASA Science website

A gateway to our missions, research, and engagement efforts.

The Science Mission Directorate inspires the learners of today and develops the leaders of tomorrow. One of our key strategies is to purposefully and actively engage with audiences and learners of all ages to share the story of NASA’s integrated science program. From exoplanet research to better understanding Earth’s climate to understanding the influence of the sun on our planet and the solar system, our work is interdisciplinary and collaborative. Similarly, this new website showcases our work in a crosscutting way so that we may build stronger connections with you, our most important stakeholder. Together, we lead a globally interconnected program of scientific discovery that encourages innovation, positively impacts people’s lives, and is a source of inspiration.

Read Nicky Notes
Dr. Nicola Fox speaking at a recent event in Washington, D.C.
Science Mission Directorate Associate Administrator, Dr. Nicola Fox, speaking at a recent event in Washington, D.C. about the success of the Parker Solar Probe mission.
NASA/Aubrey Gemignani

Featured Missions

Upcoming mission milestones showcase the breadth and depth of NASA science.

A montage of the Webb Space Telescope over a composited background of stars and galaxies.

James Webb Space Telescope

Webb is celebrating one year of incredible discoveries, from exoplanets to the early Universe.

OSIRIS-REx

OSIRIS-REx is the first U.S. mission to collect a sample from an asteroid. It returned to Earth on Sept. 24, 2023, kicking off an exciting autumn of asteroid milestones!

PACE

PACE will advance the assessment of ocean health by measuring the distribution of phytoplankton, tiny plants and algae that sustain the marine food web.

Featured Story

Satellite Data Can Help Limit the Dangers of Windblown Dust

Dust storms present a growing threat to the health and safety of U.S. populations.

Read the Story

Our Solar System

The planetary system we call home orbits a star in an outer spiral arm on the vast Milky Way galaxy.

Learn More
Illustration showing orbit lines emanating from Earth and extending throughout our solar system.

What's out there?

Sun with solar flare

Exploring the star at the center of our solar system, whose energy enables life on our planet.

Earth blue marble photo

Investigating the complex and interconnected systems of our home planet through decades of observations.

Jupiter in Color, by Cassini

Learning from robotic explorations from the innermost planet to the outer reaches of the solar system.

Cassini's visual and infrared mapping spectrometer captured this mosaic view of Titan during flybys in October 2006.

Searching for signs of life in the ice and water of distant moons.

This illustration, created in March 2021, depicts the 140-mile-wide (226-kilometer-wide) asteroid Psyche, which lies in the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter.

Understanding the origins of our solar system from these leftovers from its formation.

Kuiper Belt object (KBO), located on the outer rim of our solar system

Discovering clues to the early history of our solar system in this region of icy bodies.