The Moon may have less water ice than previously thought. New research using data from NASA’s ShadowCam, a camera flying on Korea’s Danuri lunar orbiter found no evidence of pure-ice deposits in the permanently shadowed regions of the lunar poles. At most, 20% of the surface regolith appears to be water (by weight). Pictured: An image of the lunar surface from Danuri. Image credit: NASA/KARI/ASU.
The Vera C. Rubin Observatory has found an enormous number of asteroids. Despite not having begun its official survey, the telescope has already found over 11,000 asteroids. This includes hundreds of objects beyond Neptune and 33 previously unknown near-Earth asteroids.
Nickel on Mars could be a remnant of ancient life. High nickel concentrations detected in Martian bedrock by NASA’s Perseverance rover could be a sign that there was once microbial life on the red planet, according to a new study. The rover’s discovery of nickel alongside organic matter and iron sulfides on Mars resembles biosignature patterns seen in ancient Earth rocks. The rover’s instruments can’t confirm a biological link, though — Mars Sample Return may be what’s needed to determine whether this is a biosignature.
NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman defended the White House’s proposed cuts to NASA. Last week, the Office of Management and Budget requested $18.8 billion for NASA from Congress, $5.6 billion less than the 2026 amount. These cuts would result in the cancellation of more than 40 missions. Still, this week, Isaacman said that he supports the proposed cuts.