NASA's Barbara Cohen created this image of the Moon's Pierazzo crater, named after our late PSI colleague Betty Pierazzo. Betty was an expert in impact modeling and the astrobiological and environmental effects of impacts. She also passionately supported students and other teachers.
The topography in this scene shows a limb view of Bennu’s largest boulder Benben, cut from scientific manuscripts studying aqueous alteration. Each page was altered itself using water and black paint made from carbon, allowed to curl and deform naturally.
as study of the rock samples returned by OSIRIS-REx indicates they are rich in carbon and organic molecules, and have been aqueously altered in the past. Study of these samples provides a window into the conditions of the early Solar System when the asteroids and planets formed...
Bennu’s boulders are widely observed to be fracturing, flaking, and crumbling apart - a synergy between stresses caused by daily heating and cooling from the Sun and the layered texture of their clay minerals. Chemistry and dehydration likely also play a role...
#SciArt: This artwork by PSI Senior Scientist Jamie Molaro uses data from the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft’s laser altimeter to recreate the surface of asteroid Bennu and explore how the properties of its boulders contribute to its rough landscape texture...
Have you seen the Artemis II images NASA has been posting on Flickr? We keep getting lost in the joy of the crew and the beauty of the Earth-Moon system! buff.ly/Pz32PpU
We can't wait for the day when we also get to get lost in the science! buff.ly/jvbuT44
#ClarkVision: This is a 2013 image of Comet PanSTARRS (C/2011 L4). Later this month (Apr. 26-27), another PanSTARRS comet (C/2025 R3) will be visible with binoculars & possibly with the naked eye under dark skies.
PSI's Roger Clark captured this image in the Colorado Rocky Mountains.
#JunoCam: The textures of Jupiter. 💟
Interested in processing your own JunoCam images? Visit: buff.ly/oppRMrT
📸: NASA / JPL / SwRI / MSSS / Gerald Eichstädt
ICYMI: PSI's David Grinspoon was featured on the Doha Debates podcast on an episode titled "Are we the most intelligent beings in the universe?"
Catch it here:
PSI in the News: buff.ly/ClIdpZi
Have you been tuning into the Artemis II flight highlights?
In "Artemis II Day 5 highlights," uploaded to YouTube a few hours ago, the crew comments on the brightness of Pierazzo Crater, named after our late PSI colleague, Betty Pierazzo.
Catch it between mins 16:30 and 18:00: buff.ly/ZjVpn8X
When I’m not working on science, you can usually find me at the barn. I have been riding horses since I was 5 years old. I love working with and training horses, and I am a United States Hunter Jumper Association credentialed riding instructor.
Read more: buff.ly/F9Q8FW9
"PSI has a long history of doing lunar science and lunar missions. This partnership on a crewed mission is particularly significant as we approach PSI’s 55th anniversary in 2027 and we look back on our roots in the Apollo era.” -PSI Director Amanda Hendrix
Full story: buff.ly/jvbuT44
Happy Friday! 🪐 🐾
This week's #PlanetaryPet is Momo, PSI Senior Scientist Elisabeth Adams's tuckered out calico research assistant.
#JunoCam: Io at Perijove (closest position to Jupiter)
Interested in processing your own JunoCam images? Visit: buff.ly/k1zZcLJ
📸: NASA / JPL / SwRI / MSSS / Gerald Eichstädt / Thomas Thomopoulos
Watch live coverage starting at 12:50pm on NASA+. Lucky folks may also be able to see the launch from Florida, Georgia, & surroundings.
No fooling, on April 1, we're going back toward the Moon! NASA's Artemis II is slated to launch at 6:24 p.m Eastern, with NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, and Christina Koch, & CSA (Canadian Space Agency) astronaut Jeremy Hansen on a mission around the Moon.
❓ What advice do you have for students considering a career in planetary science?
🎙️ Be flexible. And have some skills that AI can't easily replicate.
Read the full Q&A & subscribe for PSI stories delivered directly to your inbox: buff.ly/VLC92rA
As Bill describes it, “The Sun is just passing behind Jupiter. Jupiter’s very thin ring is visible – seen nearly edge-on. Umbrella-shaped clouds of debris formed from eruptions of active volcanoes have been photographed from space probes near Io.”
Join us from 11am-3pm at 1700 E. Fort Lowell Rd.
#SciArt: We hope to see you Sunday at the opening of the William K. Hartmann Art Collection! 🎨 🌌
Hartmann collaborated with space artist Ron Miller to create this painting, "Landscape with an Erupting Volcano on Jupiter’s Satellite, Io" for one of Hartmann & Miller’s books about the Solar System.
PSI's James Lyons studies isotopes – atoms of the same name and chemical properties but with variations in mass – from Earth, Mars, the Sun, the Solar nebula and protoplanetary disks.
You could call him an “isotope chaser.”
Read more: buff.ly/E1jjvR7
#JunoCam: Jupiter with a Galilean moon
Interested in processing your own JunoCam images? Visit: buff.ly/k1zZcLJ
📸: NASA / JPL / SwRI / MSSS / Gerald Eichstädt / Thomas Thomopoulos
, I was afraid I would never be able to be involved in the field because of that. Planetary science requires all types of people with all types of skills, and you can find so many unique careers that allow you to be a part of the field.
Read more & subscribe our newsletter: buff.ly/L0jn1QZ
What advice do you have for students considering a career in planetary science?
There are so many ways to be a part of the field, even if you don't have a traditional education in planetary science. Although I've always loved science, I did not pursue a PhD in science in college. For a long time..
