NASA

Webb Opens Treasure Chest – This NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope Picture of the Month takes us to a fantastical realm within our home galaxy, where piercing starlight and billowing winds sculpt dust clouds into inventive shapes. This scene is from the Carina Nebula, which lies just 7500 light-years away in the constellation Carina (the Keel).

unitedyam August 22, 2026August 22, 2026

This NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope Picture of the Month takes us to a fantastical realm within our home galaxy, where piercing starlight and billowing winds sculpt dust clouds into inventive shapes. This scene is from the Carina Nebula, which lies just 7500 light-years away in the constellation Carina (the Keel).

Artemis Mission Patches – A NASA jacket containing Artemis I and II mission patches, along with other NASA patches hangs on the back of a chair on Thursday, Aug. 6, 2026, inside Firing Room 1 of the Rocco A. Petrone Launch Control Center at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida during a terminal countdown simulation for the Artemis III mission.

unitedyam August 21, 2026August 21, 2026

A NASA jacket containing Artemis I and II mission patches, along with other NASA patches hangs on the back of a chair on Thursday, Aug. 6, 2026, inside Firing Room 1 of the Rocco A. Petrone Launch Control Center at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida during a terminal countdown simulation for the Artemis III mission.

unitedyam August 20, 2026August 20, 2026

About 12 billion years ago, a dwarf galaxy known as LKH collided with a young Milky Way and merged with it. This artist’s concept portrays that collision. NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope uncovered definitive evidence of this collision by studying globular star clusters.

unitedyam August 19, 2026August 19, 2026

NASA’s Boeing 777 returns to the agency’s Langley Research Center after receiving a new paint scheme.

Colorful Collage of Tarantula Nebula – Like a collage made of layered sheets of colored cellophane, a vibrant new image layers observations of a famous star-forming nebula from NASA space telescopes. The resulting cosmic “craft” reveals new details about the star formation region known as 30 Doradus, or the Tarantula Nebula.

unitedyam August 17, 2026August 17, 2026

Like a collage made of layered sheets of colored cellophane, a vibrant new image layers observations of a famous star-forming nebula from NASA space telescopes. The resulting cosmic “craft” reveals new details about the star formation region known as 30 Doradus, or the Tarantula Nebula.

unitedyam August 15, 2026August 15, 2026

A total solar eclipse is seen from San Millán de los Caballeros, Spain, Wednesday, Aug. 12, 2026.

unitedyam August 14, 2026August 14, 2026

This composite image shows the progression of a total solar eclipse over San Millán de los Caballeros, Spain on, Wednesday, Aug. 12, 2026.

unitedyam August 13, 2026August 13, 2026

The constellation Orion is framed by two Perseid meteors on Aug. 12, 2018, in Cedar Breaks National Monument, Utah.

Lion Nebula Roars in Webb’s Sights – NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope imaged the planetary nebula NGC 2392, the Lion Nebula, using the observatory’s NIRCam and MIRI instruments. The central star’s remains are responsible for the nebula’s structure, including a lion face-shaped bubble of ionized gas and dust “mane.”

unitedyam August 12, 2026August 12, 2026

NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope imaged the planetary nebula NGC 2392, the Lion Nebula, using the observatory’s NIRCam and MIRI instruments. The central star’s remains are responsible for the nebula’s structure, including a lion face-shaped bubble of ionized gas and dust “mane.”

NASA Astronaut Jessica Meir Uses VR Goggles – NASA astronaut and Expedition 75 commander Jessica Meir wears a set of virtual reality goggles, also called the Nevada Screening Vision System, for a test that measures visual function using a series of vision screening apps testing visual acuity, contrast sensitivity, and more.

unitedyam August 11, 2026August 11, 2026

NASA astronaut and Expedition 75 commander Jessica Meir wears a set of virtual reality goggles, also called the Nevada Screening Vision System, for a test that measures visual function using a series of vision screening apps testing visual acuity, contrast sensitivity, and more.

NASA’s IXPE Studies Magnetar – A first of its kind measurement of a magnetar may have captured empty space behaving in a way physicists have predicted for 90 years, but never directly observed. The results published Wednesday in Nature.

unitedyam August 8, 2026August 8, 2026

A first of its kind measurement of a magnetar may have captured empty space behaving in a way physicists have predicted for 90 years, but never directly observed. The results published Wednesday in Nature.

Taking Flight to Prepare for Space – NASA astronaut candidate Adam Fuhrmann prepares for a training flight aboard NASA’s WB-57 aircraft.

unitedyam August 7, 2026August 7, 2026

NASA astronaut candidate Adam Fuhrmann prepares for a training flight aboard NASA’s WB-57 aircraft.

unitedyam August 6, 2026August 6, 2026

Engineers connect the Orion crew and service modules for the Artemis III mission inside the Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Roman Space Telescope Plaque Install – Technicians inside the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center complete installation of a commemorative plaque on the agency’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope, as photographed on Tuesday, July 28, 2026.

unitedyam August 4, 2026August 4, 2026

Technicians inside the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center complete installation of a commemorative plaque on the agency’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope, as photographed on Tuesday, July 28, 2026.

unitedyam August 3, 2026August 3, 2026

Relatively low tidal waters expose sandflats and mudflats in the Bijagós Archipelago of Guinea-Bissau in this image acquired on November 28, 2025, with the OLI (Operational Land Imager) on Landsat 8. These coastal landforms support an array of invertebrates, making the archipelago a popular stopover for migratory shorebirds.

unitedyam August 1, 2026August 1, 2026

NASA opened its newest wind tunnel, the Flight Dynamics Research Facility at NASA’s Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia, on Friday, providing a critical resource for the agency and its partners to test the safety and performance of future generations of aircraft, rockets, and space exploration vehicles.

Understanding How Martian Auroras Are Made – This illustration depicts charged particles from a solar storm stripping away charged particles of Mars’ atmosphere, one of the processes of Martian atmosphere loss studied by NASA’s MAVEN mission.

unitedyam July 31, 2026July 31, 2026

This illustration depicts charged particles from a solar storm stripping away charged particles of Mars’ atmosphere, one of the processes of Martian atmosphere loss studied by NASA’s MAVEN mission.

unitedyam July 30, 2026July 30, 2026

NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope’s Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI) reveals the nearby galaxy Centaurus A, exposing the dusty structures and hidden activity that shape this unusual system.

NASA Astronaut Chris Williams Returns to Earth – NASA astronaut Chris Williams is seen outside the Soyuz MS-28 spacecraft after he landed with Expedition 74 Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergey Kud-Sverchkov, and Sergei Mikaev in a remote area near the town of Zhezkazgan, Kazakhstan on Sunday, July 26, 2026. The trio returned to Earth after logging 241 days in space as a members of Expeditions 73 and 74 aboard the International Space Station.

unitedyam July 28, 2026July 28, 2026

NASA astronaut Chris Williams is seen outside the Soyuz MS-28 spacecraft after he landed with Expedition 74 Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergey Kud-Sverchkov, and Sergei Mikaev in a remote area near the town of Zhezkazgan, Kazakhstan on Sunday, July 26, 2026. The trio returned to Earth after logging 241 days in space as a members of Expeditions 73 and 74 aboard the International Space Station.

unitedyam July 26, 2026July 26, 2026

The aurora australis arcs over Earth during an active solar event in this photograph taken at approximately 11:32 p.m. local time from the International Space Station as it orbited 271 miles above the Indian Ocean southwest of Perth, Australia on June 5.

unitedyam July 25, 2026July 25, 2026

From left, Expedition 74 flight engineers Anna Kikina and Pyotr Dubrov of Roscosmos, and Anil Menon of NASA pose for a portrait while holding a cake celebrating their recent arrival aboard the International Space Station.

unitedyam July 24, 2026July 24, 2026

Crews at NASA’s Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans transport the 130-foot-tall liquid hydrogen tank out of a production cell inside the main factory building into a detached test building on a separate portion of the 829-acre site.

A New Look – and Sound – for Messier 94 – Messier 94 is a spiral galaxy with a bright inner ring around it, called a starburst ring, where new stars are forming.

unitedyam July 22, 2026July 22, 2026

Messier 94 is a spiral galaxy with a bright inner ring around it, called a starburst ring, where new stars are forming.

unitedyam July 21, 2026July 21, 2026

This composite of images taken by NASA’s Psyche mission shows the crescent of Mars grow as the spacecraft approached the planet for a gravity assist from May 2 to May 15, 2026. Because Psyche approached Mars from a high phase angle, the planet appeared as a thin crescent in the days running up to the close approach, lit by sunlight reflecting off its surface.

Our First View of the Surface of Mars – On the morning of July 20, 1976, roughly 40 minutes after mission controllers received word that the Viking 1 lander had successfully touched down on the surface of Mars, this photo gave us our first view from the surface of another planet.

unitedyam July 20, 2026July 20, 2026

On the morning of July 20, 1976, roughly 40 minutes after mission controllers received word that the Viking 1 lander had successfully touched down on the surface of Mars, this photo gave us our first view from the surface of another planet.

NASA’s Chandra and IXPE Study Pulsar in Lighthouse Nebula – Scientists using NASA’s IXPE (Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer) directly measured the magnetic fields of PSR J1101−6101, a pulsar located within what is often referred to as the “Lighthouse” Nebula, for the first time.

unitedyam July 18, 2026July 18, 2026

Scientists using NASA’s IXPE (Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer) directly measured the magnetic fields of PSR J1101−6101, a pulsar located within what is often referred to as the “Lighthouse” Nebula, for the first time.

Anil Menon Launches to Space Station – NASA astronaut candidate Anna Menon and her children watch as a Soyuz rocket launches to the International Space Station with Expedition 75 crewmembers NASA astronaut Anil Menon and Roscosmos cosmonauts Pyotr Dubrov and Anna Kikina, Tuesday, July 14, 2026, at Site 31/6 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.

unitedyam July 17, 2026July 17, 2026

NASA astronaut candidate Anna Menon and her children watch as a Soyuz rocket launches to the International Space Station with Expedition 75 crewmembers NASA astronaut Anil Menon and Roscosmos cosmonauts Pyotr Dubrov and Anna Kikina, Tuesday, July 14, 2026, at Site 31/6 at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.

unitedyam July 16, 2026July 16, 2026

In the Picture of the Month from the James Webb Space Telescope, we are taken on a visit to a building site of significant scale. The project is a galaxy cluster named MACS J0553.4-3342, located in the constellation Columba (the Dove).

unitedyam July 15, 2026July 15, 2026

A glowing landscape of gas and dust is heated and illuminated by a thriving population of young stars in the LH 95 region of the Large Magellanic Cloud.

unitedyam July 14, 2026July 14, 2026

NASA astronaut and Expedition 75 flight engineer Anil Menon poses in a spacesuit for a portrait at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas.

unitedyam July 11, 2026July 11, 2026

The waxing gibbous Moon is pictured above Earth from the International Space Station as it orbited 264 miles above a partly cloudy Indian Ocean southeast of Madagascar.

Curiosity Sees Martian Sulfur Up Close – These sulfur crystals were found inside a rock after NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover happened to drive over it and crush it on May 30, 2024, the 4,200th Martian day, or sol, of the mission.

unitedyam July 9, 2026July 9, 2026

These sulfur crystals were found inside a rock after NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover happened to drive over it and crush it on May 30, 2024, the 4,200th Martian day, or sol, of the mission.

Hubble Captures Star-Studded Cluster – This image from NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope shows Messier 3, a densely packed cluster of stars whose origins may be a merger between globular clusters in the early universe.

unitedyam July 8, 2026July 8, 2026

This image from NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope shows Messier 3, a densely packed cluster of stars whose origins may be a merger between globular clusters in the early universe.

unitedyam July 7, 2026July 7, 2026

The Artemis II crew participates in the dedication of the Apollo 14 Moon tree at the Lunar Receiving Park at NASA’s Johnson Space Center. This tree is a second-generation Apollo Moon tree of the loblolly pine species.

unitedyam July 6, 2026July 6, 2026

NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman leads a flyover featuring his personally owned F-5 Tiger during the Great American State Fair on July 4, 2026, on the National Mall in Washington, D.C.

unitedyam July 3, 2026July 3, 2026

A bright orange sunburst illuminates Earth’s atmosphere during an orbital sunrise in this photograph from the International Space Station as it orbited 264 miles above the Caucasus Mountains.

unitedyam July 2, 2026July 2, 2026

A Katalyst engineer runs tests on LINK while the satellite is inside the Pegasus XL rocket attached to the Stargazer aircraft at NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility on the evening of Tuesday, June 16, 2026.

unitedyam July 1, 2026July 1, 2026

This NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope image features the globular cluster NGC 6723, sometimes called the Chandelier Cluster.

unitedyam June 30, 2026June 30, 2026

Flight engineer Sophie Adenot of ESA (European Space Agency) assists flight engineer Chris Williams of NASA as he tries on his spacesuit, testing its comfort and mobility as well as its communications and life support systems inside the International Space Station’s Quest airlock.

Euclid Sees Heart of Milky Way – This image by ESA’s (European Space Agency) Euclid (with color added using ground-based images) provides an earlier snapshot of a region of our galaxy that NASA’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope will repeatedly observe during the upcoming years.

unitedyam June 26, 2026June 26, 2026

This image by ESA’s (European Space Agency) Euclid (with color added using ground-based images) provides an earlier snapshot of a region of our galaxy that NASA’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope will repeatedly observe during the upcoming years.

unitedyam June 25, 2026June 25, 2026

NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope recently observed edge-on starburst galaxy Messier 82 (M82), nicknamed the Cigar Galaxy.

unitedyam June 24, 2026June 24, 2026

NASA’s Pegasus barge arrives at the Launch Complex 39 turn basin at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida carrying NASA’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope on Sunday, June 21, 2026.

Hanging in the Balance – The Moon’s rocky, uneven, and otherworldly surface features are highlighted by the terminator – the difference between light and darkness.

unitedyam June 23, 2026June 23, 2026

The Moon’s rocky, uneven, and otherworldly surface features are highlighted by the terminator – the difference between light and darkness.

NASA’s Chandra Finds Possible Supernova Remnant – Using data from NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory, astronomers may have found a supernova remnant in an intriguing neighborhood in the middle of our galaxy.

unitedyam June 23, 2026June 23, 2026

Using data from NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory, astronomers may have found a supernova remnant in an intriguing neighborhood in the middle of our galaxy.

unitedyam June 18, 2026June 18, 2026

This NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope Picture of the Month shows the giant molecular cloud Orion A, an area of the sky replete with star-forming clouds.

Hubble Sees Swarm of Galaxies – This NASA Hubble Space Telescope image features the galaxy cluster MACS0329-0211.

unitedyam June 17, 2026June 17, 2026

This NASA Hubble Space Telescope image features the galaxy cluster MACS0329-0211.

San Francisco’s Patchwork Streets – A period of unsettled weather brought scattered showers and thunderstorms to California’s Bay Area on May 27, 2026. That afternoon, a break in the clouds left downtown San Francisco and nearby communities beneath mostly cloud-free skies, allowing an astronaut aboard the International Space Station to take this photograph.

unitedyam June 15, 2026June 15, 2026

A period of unsettled weather brought scattered showers and thunderstorms to California’s Bay Area on May 27, 2026. That afternoon, a break in the clouds left downtown San Francisco and nearby communities beneath mostly cloud-free skies, allowing an astronaut aboard the International Space Station to take this photograph.

Black Eye Galaxy – Easily identified by the spectacular band of dark dust that partially obscures its bright core, Messier 64, or the Black Eye Galaxy, is characterized by its bizarre internal motion.

unitedyam June 13, 2026June 13, 2026

Easily identified by the spectacular band of dark dust that partially obscures its bright core, Messier 64, or the Black Eye Galaxy, is characterized by its bizarre internal motion.

Soccer Meets Space Science – Researchers tested soccer balls aboard the International Space Station to study how internal mass affects motion and stability in microgravity.

unitedyam June 12, 2026June 12, 2026

Researchers tested soccer balls aboard the International Space Station to study how internal mass affects motion and stability in microgravity.

unitedyam June 11, 2026June 11, 2026

A train transports eight booster motor segments for the SLS (Space Launch System rocket) that will power NASA’s Artemis III mission from Northrop Grumman’s Railyard Shipping Facility in Corinne, Utah, June 2, to NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Older Posts

NASA’s B777 Gets New Coat of Paint – NASA’s Boeing 777 returns to the agency’s Langley Research Center after receiving a new paint scheme.

2026 Total Solar Eclipse in Spain – A total solar eclipse is seen from San Millán de los Caballeros, Spain, Wednesday, Aug. 12, 2026.

Total Solar Eclipse in Sunflower Field – This composite image shows the progression of a total solar eclipse over San Millán de los Caballeros, Spain on, Wednesday, Aug. 12, 2026.

Perseids Meteor Shower – The constellation Orion is framed by two Perseid meteors on Aug. 12, 2018, in Cedar Breaks National Monument, Utah.

NASA’s IXPE Studies Magnetar – A first of its kind measurement of a magnetar may have captured empty space behaving in a way physicists have predicted for 90 years, but never directly observed. The results published Wednesday in Nature.

Taking Flight to Prepare for Space – NASA astronaut candidate Adam Fuhrmann prepares for a training flight aboard NASA’s WB-57 aircraft.

Artemis III Orion Crew and Service Models Joined – Engineers connect the Orion crew and service modules for the Artemis III mission inside the Neil A. Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Roman Space Telescope Plaque Install – Technicians inside the Payload Hazardous Servicing Facility at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center complete installation of a commemorative plaque on the agency’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope, as photographed on Tuesday, July 28, 2026.

Understanding How Martian Auroras Are Made – This illustration depicts charged particles from a solar storm stripping away charged particles of Mars’ atmosphere, one of the processes of Martian atmosphere loss studied by NASA’s MAVEN mission.

Starburst Galaxy Centaurus A – NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope’s Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI) reveals the nearby galaxy Centaurus A, exposing the dusty structures and hidden activity that shape this unusual system.

Aurora Australis – The aurora australis arcs over Earth during an active solar event in this photograph taken at approximately 11:32 p.m. local time from the International Space Station as it orbited 271 miles above the Indian Ocean southwest of Perth, Australia on June 5.

New Crew Members Welcomed to International Space Station – From left, Expedition 74 flight engineers Anna Kikina and Pyotr Dubrov of Roscosmos, and Anil Menon of NASA pose for a portrait while holding a cake celebrating their recent arrival aboard the International Space Station.

Crews Move Artemis IV Liquid Hydrogen Tank – Crews at NASA’s Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans transport the 130-foot-tall liquid hydrogen tank out of a production cell inside the main factory building into a detached test building on a separate portion of the 829-acre site.

A New Look – and Sound – for Messier 94 – Messier 94 is a spiral galaxy with a bright inner ring around it, called a starburst ring, where new stars are forming.

Our First View of the Surface of Mars – On the morning of July 20, 1976, roughly 40 minutes after mission controllers received word that the Viking 1 lander had successfully touched down on the surface of Mars, this photo gave us our first view from the surface of another planet.

NASA’s Chandra and IXPE Study Pulsar in Lighthouse Nebula – Scientists using NASA’s IXPE (Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer) directly measured the magnetic fields of PSR J1101−6101, a pulsar located within what is often referred to as the “Lighthouse” Nebula, for the first time.

Young Galaxy Cluster – In the Picture of the Month from the James Webb Space Telescope, we are taken on a visit to a building site of significant scale. The project is a galaxy cluster named MACS J0553.4-3342, located in the constellation Columba (the Dove).

Hubble Sees Crimson Cloud and Stars – A glowing landscape of gas and dust is heated and illuminated by a thriving population of young stars in the LH 95 region of the Large Magellanic Cloud.

NASA Astronaut Anil Menon – NASA astronaut and Expedition 75 flight engineer Anil Menon poses in a spacesuit for a portrait at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas.

Waxing Gibbous Moon – The waxing gibbous Moon is pictured above Earth from the International Space Station as it orbited 264 miles above a partly cloudy Indian Ocean southeast of Madagascar.

Curiosity Sees Martian Sulfur Up Close – These sulfur crystals were found inside a rock after NASA’s Curiosity Mars rover happened to drive over it and crush it on May 30, 2024, the 4,200th Martian day, or sol, of the mission.

Hubble Captures Star-Studded Cluster – This image from NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope shows Messier 3, a densely packed cluster of stars whose origins may be a merger between globular clusters in the early universe.

Artemis II Crew and Apollo 14 Moon Tree – The Artemis II crew participates in the dedication of the Apollo 14 Moon tree at the Lunar Receiving Park at NASA’s Johnson Space Center. This tree is a second-generation Apollo Moon tree of the loblolly pine species.

NASA Takes Flight For America’s 250th – NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman leads a flyover featuring his personally owned F-5 Tiger during the Great American State Fair on July 4, 2026, on the National Mall in Washington, D.C.

Good Morning, Earth! – A bright orange sunburst illuminates Earth’s atmosphere during an orbital sunrise in this photograph from the International Space Station as it orbited 264 miles above the Caucasus Mountains.

LINK Spacecraft Set for Mission to Boost NASA’s Swift Observatory – A Katalyst engineer runs tests on LINK while the satellite is inside the Pegasus XL rocket attached to the Stargazer aircraft at NASA’s Wallops Flight Facility on the evening of Tuesday, June 16, 2026.

Starry Chandelier Cluster – This NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope image features the globular cluster NGC 6723, sometimes called the Chandelier Cluster.

Euclid Sees Heart of Milky Way – This image by ESA’s (European Space Agency) Euclid (with color added using ground-based images) provides an earlier snapshot of a region of our galaxy that NASA’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope will repeatedly observe during the upcoming years.

Millions of Stars in Cigar Galaxy – NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope recently observed edge-on starburst galaxy Messier 82 (M82), nicknamed the Cigar Galaxy.

Roman Telescope Comes to Kennedy – NASA’s Pegasus barge arrives at the Launch Complex 39 turn basin at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida carrying NASA’s Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope on Sunday, June 21, 2026.

Hanging in the Balance – The Moon’s rocky, uneven, and otherworldly surface features are highlighted by the terminator – the difference between light and darkness.

NASA’s Chandra Finds Possible Supernova Remnant – Using data from NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory, astronomers may have found a supernova remnant in an intriguing neighborhood in the middle of our galaxy.

Stages of Star Formation – This NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope Picture of the Month shows the giant molecular cloud Orion A, an area of the sky replete with star-forming clouds.

Hubble Sees Swarm of Galaxies – This NASA Hubble Space Telescope image features the galaxy cluster MACS0329-0211.

Black Eye Galaxy – Easily identified by the spectacular band of dark dust that partially obscures its bright core, Messier 64, or the Black Eye Galaxy, is characterized by its bizarre internal motion.

Soccer Meets Space Science – Researchers tested soccer balls aboard the International Space Station to study how internal mass affects motion and stability in microgravity.