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By Space Force
The U.S. Space Force honored Ed Mornston, associate deputy chief of Space Operations for Intelligence, for his 50 years of combined military and civilian service.
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By NASA
Flight Engineer Joe Acaba works in the U.S. Destiny laboratory module on the International Space Station, setting up hardware for the Zero Boil-Off Tank (ZBOT) experiment. Joe Acaba Space missions rely on cryogenic fluids — extremely cold liquids like liquid hydrogen and oxygen — for both propulsion and life support systems. These fuels must be kept at ultra-low cryogenic temperatures to remain in liquid form; however, solar heating and other sources of heat increase the rate of evaporation of the liquid and cause the pressure in the storage tank to increase. Current storage methods require venting the cryogenic propellant to space to control the pressure in fuel tanks.
NASA’s Zero Boil-Off Tank Noncondensables (ZBOT-NC) experiment is the continuation of Zero Boil-Off studies gathering crucial data to optimize fuel storage systems for space missions. The experiment will launch aboard Northrop Grumman’s 23rd resupply mission to the International Space Station.
When Cold Fuel Gets Too Warm
Even with multilayer insulation, heat unavoidably seeps into cryogenic fuel tanks from surrounding structures and the space environment, causing an increase in the liquid temperature and an associated increase in the evaporation rate. In turn, the pressure inside the tank increases. This process is called “boil-off” and the increase in tank pressure is referred to as “self-pressurization.”
Venting excess gas to the environment or space when this process occurs is highly undesirable and becomes mission-critical on extended journeys. If crew members used current fuel storage methods for a years-long Mars expedition, all propellant might be lost to boil-off before the trip ends.
NASA’s ZBOT experiments are investigating active pressure control methods to eliminate wasteful fuel venting. Specifically, active control through the use of jet mixing and other techniques are being evaluated and tested in the ZBOT series of experiments.
The Pressure Control Problem
ZBOT-NC further studies how noncondensable gases (NCGs) affect fuel tank behavior when present in spacecraft systems. NCGs don’t turn into liquid under the tank’s operating conditions and can affect tank pressure.
The investigation, which is led out of Glenn Research Center, will operate inside the Microgravity Science Glovebox aboard the space station to gather data on how NCGs affect volatile liquid behavior in microgravity. It’s part of an effort to advance cryogenic fluid management technologies and help NASA better understand low-gravity fluid behavior.
Researchers will measure pressure and temperature as they study how these gases change evaporation and condensation rates. Previous studies indicate the gases create barriers that could reduce a tank’s ability to maintain proper pressure control — a potentially serious issue for extended space missions.
How this benefits space exploration
The research directly supports Mars missions and other long-duration space travel by helping engineers design more efficient fuel storage systems and future space depots. The findings may also benefit scientific instruments on space telescopes and probes that rely on cryogenic fluids to maintain the extremely low temperatures needed for operation.
How this benefits humanity
The investigation could improve tank design models for medical, industrial, and energy production applications that depend on long-term cryogenic storage on Earth.
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Biological & Physical Sciences Division
NASA’s Biological and Physical Sciences Division pioneers scientific discovery and enables exploration by using space environments to conduct investigations not possible on Earth. Studying biological and physical phenomenon under extreme conditions allows researchers to advance the fundamental scientific knowledge required to go farther and stay longer in space, while also benefitting life on Earth.
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By European Space Agency
Estonia marked its 10th anniversary in the European Space Agency alongside the plenary session of the European Interparliamentary Space Conference on 4 September.
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By NASA
Dr. Steven “Steve” Platnick took the NASA agency Deferred Resignation Program (DRP). His last work day was August 8, 2025. Steve spent more than three decades at, or associated with, NASA. While he began his civil servant career at the NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC) in 2002, his Goddard association went back to 1993, first as a contractor and then as one of the earliest employees of the Joint Center for Earth Systems Technology (JCET), a cooperative agreement between the University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC) and GSFC’s Earth Science Division. At JCET Steve helped lead the development of the Atmosphere Physics Track curricula. Previously, he had held an NRC post-doctoral fellow at the NASA’s Ames Research Center. Along with his research work on cloud remote sensing from satellite and airborne sensors, Steve served as the Deputy Director for Atmospheres in GSFC’s Earth Sciences Division from January 2015–July 2024.
Dr. Steve Platnick Image credit: NASA During his time at NASA, Steve played an integral role in the sustainability and advancement of NASA’s Earth Observing System platforms and data. In 2008, he took over as the Earth Observing System (EOS) Senior Project Scientist from Michael King. In this role, he led the EOS Project Science Office, which included support for related EOS facility airborne sensors, ground networks, and calibration labs. The office also supported The Earth Observer newsletter, the NASA Earth Observatory, and other outreach and exhibit activities on behalf of NASA Headquarter’s Earth Science Division and Science Mission Directorate (further details below). From January 2003 – February 2010, Steve served as the Aqua Deputy Project Scientist.
Improving Imager Cloud Algorithms
Steve was actively involved in the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) Science Team serving as the Lead for the MODIS Atmosphere Discipline Team (cloud, aerosol and clear sky products) since 2008 and as the NASA Suomi National Polar-orbiting Partnership (Suomi NPP)/JPSS Atmosphere Discipline Lead/co-Lead from 2012–2020. His research team enhanced, maintained, and evaluated MODIS and Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite (VIIRS) cloud algorithms that included Level-2 (L2) Cloud Optical/Microphysical Properties components (MOD06 and MYD06 for MODIS on Terra and Aqua, respectively) and the Atmosphere Discipline Team Level-3 (L3) spatial/temporal products (MOD08, MYD08). The L2 cloud algorithms were developed to retrieve thermodynamic phase, optical thickness, effective particle radius, and derived water path for liquid and ice clouds, among other associated datasets. Working closely with longtime University of Wisconsin-Madison colleagues, the team also developed the CLDPROP continuity products designed to bridge the MODIS and VIIRS cloud data records by addressing differences in the spectral coverage between the two sensors; this product is currently in production for VIIRS on Suomi NPP and NOAA-20, as well as MODIS Aqua. The team also ported their CLDPROP code to Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellites (GOES) R-series Advanced Baseline Imager (ABI) and sister sensors as a research demonstration effort.
Steve’s working group participation included the Global Energy and Water Exchanges (GEWEX) Cloud Assessment Working Group (2008–present); the International Cloud Working Group (ICWG), which is part of the Coordination Group for Meteorological Satellites (CGMS), and its original incarnation, the Cloud Retrieval Evaluation Working (CREW) since 2009; and the NASA Observations for Modeling Intercomparison Studies (obs4MIPs) Working Group (2011–2013). Other notable roles included Deputy Chair of the Plankton, Aerosol, Cloud, ocean Ecosystem (PACE) Science Definition Team (2011–2012) and membership in the Advanced Composition Explorer (ACE) Science Definition Team (2009–2011), the ABI Cloud Team (2005–2009), and the Climate Absolute Radiance and Refractivity Observatory (CLARREO) Mission Concept Team (2010-2011).
Steve has participated in numerous major airborne field campaigns over his career. His key ER-2 flight scientist and/or science team management roles included the Monterey Area Ship Track experiment (MAST,1994), First (International Satellite Cloud Climatology Project (ISCCP) Regional Experiment – Arctic Cloud Experiment [FIRE-ACE, 1998], Southern Africa Fire-Atmosphere Research Initiative (SAFARI-2000), Cirrus Regional Study of Tropical Anvils and Cirrus Layers – Florida Area Cirrus Experiment (CRYSTAL-FACE, 2002), and Tropical Composition, Cloud and Climate Coupling (TC4, 2007).
Supporting Earth Science Communications
Through his EOS Project Science Office role, Steve has been supportive of the activities of NASA’s Science Support Office (SSO) and personally participated in many NASA Science exhibits at both national and international scientific conferences, including serving as a Hyperwall presenter numerous times.
For The Earth Observer newsletter publication team in particular, Steve replaced Michael King as Acting EOS Senior Project Scientist in June 2008, taking over the authorship of “The Editor’s Corner” beginning with the May–June 2008 issue [Volume 20, Issue 3]. The Acting label was removed beginning with the January–February 2010 issue [Volume 22, Issue 1]. Steve has been a champion of continuing to retain a historical record of NASA science team meetings to maintain a chronology of advances made by different groups within the NASA Earth Science community. He was supportive of the Executive Editor’s efforts to create a series called “Perspectives on EOS,” which ran from 2008–2011 and told the stories of the early years of the EOS Program from the point of view of those who lived them. He also supported the development of articles to commemorate the 25th and 30th anniversary of The Earth Observer. Later, Steve helped guide the transition of the newsletter from a print publication – the November–December 2022 issue was the last printed issue – to fully online by July 2024, a few months after the publication’s 35th anniversary. The Earth Observer team will miss Steve’s keen insight, historical perspective, and encouragement that he has shown through his leadership for the past 85 issues of print and online publications.
A Career Recognized through Awards and Honors
Throughout his career, Steve has amassed numerous honors, including the Goddard William Nordberg Memorial Award for Earth Science in 2023 and the Verner E. Suomi Award from the American Meteorological Society (AMS) in 2016. He was named an AMS Fellow that same year. He received two NASA Agency Honor Awards – the Exceptional Achievement Medal in 2008 and the Exceptional Service Medal in 2015.
Steve received his bachelor’s degree and master’s degree in electrical engineering from Duke University and the University of California, Berkeley, respectively. He earned a Ph.D. in atmospheric sciences from the University of Arizona.
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By NASA
The SpaceX Crew Dragon Endurance spacecraft is seen as it lands with NASA astronauts Anne McClain and Nichole Ayers, JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Takuya Onishi, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Kirill Peskov aboard in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of San Diego, Saturday, Aug. 9, 2025.Credit: NASA/Keegan Barber The first crew to splash down in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of California as part of NASA’s Commercial Crew Program completed the agency’s 10th commercial crew rotation mission to the International Space Station on Saturday.
NASA astronauts Anne McClain and Nichole Ayers, JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Takuya Onishi, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Kirill Peskov returned to Earth at 11:33 a.m. EDT. Teams aboard SpaceX recovery vessels retrieved the spacecraft and its crew. After returning to shore, the crew will fly to NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston and reunite with their families.
“Splashdown! Crew-10 is back on Earth from the International Space Station marking the completion of another successful flight,” said NASA acting Administrator Sean Duffy. “Our crew missions are the building blocks for long-duration, human exploration pushing the boundaries of what’s possible. NASA is leading the way by setting a bold vision for exploration where we have a thriving space industry supporting private space stations in low Earth orbit, as well as humans exploring the Moon and Mars.”
The agency’s SpaceX Crew-10 mission lifted off at 7:03 p.m. on March 14, from Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. About 29 hours later, the crew’s SpaceX Dragon spacecraft docked to the Harmony module’s space-facing port at 12:04 a.m. on March 16. Crew-10 undocked at 6:15 p.m. Aug. 8, to begin the trip home.
During their mission, crew members traveled nearly 62,795,205 million miles and completed 2,368 orbits around Earth. The Crew-10 mission was the first spaceflight for Ayers and Peskov, and the second spaceflight for McClain and Onishi. McClain has logged 352 days in space over her two flights, and Onishi has logged 263 days in space during his flights.
Along the way, Crew-10 contributed hundreds of hours to scientific research, maintenance activities, and technology demonstrations. McClain, Ayers, and Onishi completed investigations on plant and microalgae growth, examined how space radiation affects DNA sequences in plants, observed how microgravity changes human eye structure and cells in the body, and more. The research conducted aboard the orbiting laboratory advances scientific knowledge and demonstrates new technologies that enable us to prepare for human exploration of the Moon and Mars.
McClain and Ayers also completed a spacewalk on May 1, relocating a communications antenna, beginning the installation of a mounting bracket for a future International Space Station Roll-Out Solar Array, and other tasks. It was the third spacewalk for McClain, the first for Ayers, and the 275th supporting space station assembly, maintenance, and upgrades.
Crew-10’s return to Earth follows the Crew-11 mission, which docked to the station on Aug. 2 for its long-duration science expedition.
NASA’s Commercial Crew Program provides reliable access to space, maximizing the use of the International Space Station for research and development, and supporting future missions beyond low Earth orbit, such as to the Moon and Mars, by partnering with private U.S. companies, including SpaceX, to transport astronauts to and from the space station.
Learn more about NASA’s Commercial Crew Program at:
https://www.nasa.gov/commercialcrew
-end-
Joshua Finch / Jimi Russell
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1100
joshua.a.finch@nasa.gov / james.j.russell@nasa.gov
Sandra Jones / Joseph Zakrzewski
Johnson Space Center, Houston
281-483-5111
sandra.p.jones@nasa.gov / joseph.a.zakrzewski@nasa.gov
Steven Siceloff
Kennedy Space Center, Florida
321-867-2468
steven.p.siceloff@nasa.gov
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Last Updated Aug 09, 2025 LocationNASA Headquarters Related Terms
International Space Station (ISS) Commercial Crew Humans in Space ISS Research View the full article
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