Lunar and Planetary Institute

08/15/2025

The LPI Planetary Sciences Community Meetings Calendar lists dates and locations of upcoming planetary science meetings and includes brief descriptions and links to meeting websites. The calendar is searchable, plus you can suggest meetings to add. Check out this helpful resource. https://ow.ly/4qTv50WAWcO

08/14/2025

HiRISE: This HiRISE image shows fractured terrain in Cydonia Mensae on Mars. https://ow.ly/KmSj50WBipZ

08/13/2025

The next episode of Ask an Astrobiologist will feature Dr. Megan Ansdell, Program Officer in the Planetary Science Division and the Astrophysics Division at NASA Headquarters. Tomorrow, August 14, she will present "Artificial Intelligence, Exoplanets, and the Future of Astrobiology." https://ow.ly/mwxp50WEx8h

08/12/2025

The next Extraterrestrial Materials Analysis Group (ExMAG) meeting will be held in Houston, Texas, at the Lunar and Planetary Institute on September 15–19 with opportunities for virtual participation. This meeting will focus on NASA’s extraterrestrial materials collections, curation, and sample return activities. It will include updates from NASA HQ and curation as well as reports on the collections, sample return activities in progress and planned, advanced curation methods, NASA funding and facilities, and data archiving. Registration fees are not being collected for this meeting, but registration is required and will be available through September 19. https://ow.ly/TlKC50WAFF6

08/11/2025

Applications are being accepted through September 5 for the Eugene and Carolyn Shoemaker Impact Cratering Award. This award is for undergraduate or graduate students of any nationality, working in any country, in the disciplines of geology, geophysics, geochemistry, astronomy, or biology. The award, which will include $3000, is to be applied for the study of impact craters, either on Earth or on the other solid bodies in the solar system. Areas of study may include but are not limited to impact cratering processes, the bodies (asteroidal or cometary) that make the impacts; or the geological, chemical, or biological results of impact cratering. Apply soon! https://ow.ly/Ujlg50WAEUO

08/10/2025

Astronomers using NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope have found strong evidence of a giant planet orbiting a star in the stellar system closest to our own Sun, the Alpha Centauri triple star system. If confirmed, the planet would be the closest to Earth that orbits in the habitable zone of a Sun-like star. However, because the planet candidate is a gas giant, scientists say it would not support life as we know it.

Astronomers using NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope have found strong evidence of a giant planet orbiting a star in the stellar system closest to our own Sun.

08/09/2025

Episode 396 of Houston We Have a Podcast takes a look at recent Commercial Lunar Payload Services missions and lunar surface research. The guests are Maria Banks, NASA project scientist for Firefly’s Blue Ghost Mission 1, and Sue Lederer, NASA project scientist for Intuitive Machines’ IM-2. They each share what we’re up to on the Moon and why it’s of scientific value. https://ow.ly/mVTu50WC2nO

08/08/2025

HiRISE: This HiRISE image shows a fissure and channel near Pavonis Mons on Mars. https://ow.ly/hwBQ50Wvhza

08/07/2025

The 2025 Annual Meeting of the Lunar Exploration Analysis Group (LEAG) is scheduled for October 28–30 at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory in Laurel, Maryland, with an opportunity for virtual participation. Find out about about the LEAG Service Award and various opportunities for travel and participation support on the meeting website. In addition, visit the Early-Career Resources page for information about opportunities available to early-career researchers interested in lunar science and exploration. And a reminder, the abstract submission deadline is August 13. https://ow.ly/tHWw50WBtsu

08/06/2025

CURIOSITY: It's been 13 years since the Curiosity rover landed on Mars, and it is picking up new tricks. Curiosity has been given more autonomy and the ability to multitask, and these improvements are designed to make the most of its energy source. https://ow.ly/gggI50WzZtK

08/05/2025

NASA recently awarded the prestigious 2024 Planetary Science Early Career Award to Dr. Prajkta Mane, a USRA staff scientist at the Lunar and Planetary Institute. This highly competitive award supports Mane’s research in cosmochemistry and analysis of planetary materials, while also recognizing her growing leadership in the field. Her award proposal centers on advancing our understanding of early solar system processes using state-of-the-art analytical techniques. Congratulations, Dr. Mane!

NASA recently awarded the prestigious 2024 Planetary Science Early Career Award (ECA) to Dr. Prajkta Mane, a USRA staff scientist at the Lunar and Planetary Institute (LPI).

08/04/2025

The LPI's eXtraterrestrial SamPle, Analyses, Curation, and Exploration (XSPACE) website is a valuable resource for finding out about the classification of new meteorites. Search the meteorite database, request samples for scientific study, and find out what to do if you think you've found a meteorite. https://ow.ly/TZUP50WqvX6