This Week at NASA: The Solar Eclipse and More

Natural phenomena such as the Aug. 21, 2017 solar eclipse can inspire awe, but scientists can also use eclipse-like events to learn more about the universe.
For instance, a total eclipse, or an occultation in scientific terms – happens when a celestial body completely blocks light from a star, like our sun. This type of event can help astronomers learn more about an object’s atmosphere, including whether it might be surrounded by rings or other planetary matter. During a similar event, called a transit, variations in light that result when a closer object passes in front of a star, but only blocks a small part of the star, have been used by missions such as our Kepler space telescope, to discover new planets outside our solar system. Also, SpaceX Launches Science, Supplies to Space Station, New Communications Satellite Launched, Cassini Begins Final Five Orbits around Saturn and Spacewalk aboard the Space Station.