Watch how X-ray echoes, mapped by NASA’s Neutron star Interior Composition Explorer (NICER) revealed changes to the corona of black hole MAXI J1820+070.Credit: NASA’s Goddard Space Flight CenterMusic: "Superluminal" from Killer TracksComplete transcript available. || Black_Hole_Corona_Still.jpg (1920x1080) [317.0 KB] || Black_Hole_Corona_Still_print.jpg (1024x576) [109.5 KB] || Black_Hole_Corona_Still_searchweb.png (320x180) [87.9 KB] || Black_Hole_Corona_Still_thm.png (80x40) [6.6 KB] || 12854_Black_Hole_Corona_ProRes_1920x1080.mov (1920x1080) [3.3 GB] || 12854_Black_Hole_Corona_1080p.mov (1920x1080) [515.0 MB] || 12854_Black_Hole_Corona.mp4 (1920x1080) [335.5 MB] || 12854_Black_Hole_Corona_small.mp4 (1920x1080) [135.2 MB] || 12854_Black_Hole_Corona_ProRes_1920x1080.webm (1920x1080) [26.7 MB] || 12854_Black_Hole_Corona_SRT_Captions.en_US.srt [4.5 KB] || 12854_Black_Hole_Corona_SRT_Captions.en_US.vtt [4.5 KB] ||

Watch how NASA’s Neutron star Interior Composition Explorer (NICER) has expanded our understanding of pulsars, the dense, spinning corpses of exploded stars. Pulsar J0030+0451 (J0030 for short), located 1,100 light-years away in the constellation Pisces, now has the most precise and reliable measurements of both a pulsar’s mass and size to date. The shapes and locations of its hot spots challenge textbook depictions of these incredible objects. Music: "Uncertain Ahead" and "Flowing Cityscape" (underscore). Both from Universal Production MusicCredit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight CenterWatch this video on the NASA Goddard YouTube channel.Complete transcript available. || Two_NS_Model_Still.jpg (1920x1080) [308.5 KB] || Two_NS_Model_Still_print.jpg (1024x576) [140.4 KB] || Two_NS_Model_Still_searchweb.png (320x180) [87.0 KB] || Two_NS_Model_Still_thm.png (80x40) [8.0 KB] || 13240_NICER_J0030_MassRadius_1080.webm (1920x1080) [33.5 MB] || 13240_NICER_J0030_MassRadius_1080.mp4 (1920x1080) [301.1 MB] || 13240_NICER_J0030_MassRadius_Best_1080.mp4 (1920x1080) [804.5 MB] || 13240_NICER_J0030_MassRadius_SRT_Captions.en_US.srt [5.9 KB] || 13240_NICER_J0030_MassRadius_SRT_Captions.en_US.vtt [5.9 KB] || 13240_NICER_J0030_MassRadius_ProRes_1920x1080_2997.mov (1920x1080) [1.9 GB] ||

Observations from NASA’s Neutron star Interior Composition Explorer (NICER) show X-ray boosts linked in the Crab pulsar's random giant radio pulses. Watch to learn more. Credit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight CenterMusic: "The Awakening" from Universal Production MusicWatch this video on the NASA Goddard YouTube channel.Complete transcript available. || Crab_Radio_Still.jpg (1920x1080) [865.4 KB] || Crab_Radio_Still_searchweb.png (320x180) [65.9 KB] || Crab_Radio_Still_thm.png (80x40) [5.2 KB] || 13737_Crab_Pulsar_Radio_Bursts_ProRes_1920x1080_2997.mov (1920x1080) [1.6 GB] || 13737_Crab_Pulsar_Radio_Bursts_Best_1080.mp4 (1920x1080) [275.3 MB] || 13737_Crab_Pulsar_Radio_Bursts_1080.mp4 (1920x1080) [114.7 MB] || 13737_Crab_Pulsar_Radio_Bursts_Best_1080.webm (1920x1080) [15.2 MB] || 13737_Crab_Pulsar_Radio_Bursts_SRT_Captions.en_US.srt [2.6 KB] || 13737_Crab_Pulsar_Radio_Bursts_SRT_Captions.en_US.vtt [2.6 KB] ||

Watch how NASA’s Neutron star Interior Composition Explorer (NICER) is helping physicists peer into the hearts of neutron stars, the remains of massive stars that exploded in supernovae. Scientists want to explore the nature of matter inside these objects, where it exists on the verge of collapsing into black holes. To do so, scientists need precise measurements of neutron stars’ masses and sizes, which NICER and other efforts are now making possible.Credit: NASA’s Goddard Space Flight CenterMusic: "Question Time" from Universal Production MusicWatch this video on the NASA Goddard YouTube channel.Complete transcript available. || Video_title_card_2.jpg (1920x1080) [206.4 KB] || Video_title_card_2_searchweb.png (320x180) [54.8 KB] || Video_title_card_2_thm.png (80x40) [5.7 KB] || 13832_NICER_TestsMattersLimits_Best_1080.webm (1920x1080) [28.5 MB] || 13832_NICER_TestsMattersLimits_1080.mp4 (1920x1080) [187.8 MB] || 13832_NICER_TestsMattersLimits_Best_1080.mp4 (1920x1080) [650.1 MB] || 13832_NICER_TestsMattersLimits_SRT_Captions.en_US.srt [4.7 KB] || 13832_NICER_TestsMattersLimits_SRT_Captions.en_US.vtt [4.8 KB] || 13832_NICER_TestsMattersLimits_ProRes_1920x1080_2997.mov (1920x1080) [3.5 GB] ||

Scientists analyzing the first data from the Neutron Star Interior Composition Explorer (NICER) mission have found two stars that revolve around each other every 38 minutes. One of the stars in the system, called IGR J17062–6143 (J17062 for short), is a rapidly spinning, superdense star called a pulsar. The other is probably a hydrogen-poor white dwarf. The discovery bestows the stellar pair with the record for the shortest-known orbital period for a certain class of pulsar binary system.Music: "Games Show Sphere 2" from Killer TracksComplete transcript available.Watch this video on the NASA Goddard YouTube channel. || NICER_Binary_Still.jpg (1920x1080) [197.3 KB] || NICER_Binary_Still_print.jpg (1024x576) [89.4 KB] || NICER_Binary_Still_searchweb.png (320x180) [46.7 KB] || NICER_Binary_Still_thm.png (80x40) [4.0 KB] || 12938_NICER_Binary_1080.mp4 (1920x1080) [91.4 MB] || 12938_NICER_Binary_1080p.mov (1920x1080) [47.8 MB] || 12938_NICER_Binary_Good_1080.m4v (1920x1080) [44.7 MB] || 12938_NICER_Binary_1080p.webm (1920x1080) [7.0 MB] || 12938_NICER_Binary_ProRes_1920x1080_2997.mov (1920x1080) [456.9 MB] || NICER_Binary_SRT_Captions.en_US.srt [767 bytes] || NICER_Binary_SRT_Captions.en_US.vtt [741 bytes] ||

At about 10:04 p.m. EDT on Aug. 20, NASA’s Neutron star Interior Composition Explorer (NICER) telescope on the International Space Station detected a sudden spike of X-rays caused by a massive thermonuclear flash on the surface of a pulsar, the crushed remains of a star that long ago exploded as a supernova. The X-ray burst, the brightest seen by NICER so far, came from an object named SAX J1808.4-3658, or J1808 for short. The observations reveal many phenomena that have never been seen together in a single burst. In addition, the subsiding fireball briefly brightened again for reasons astronomers cannot yet explain. The data reveal a two-step change in brightness, which scientists think is caused by the ejection of separate layers from the pulsar surface, and other features that will help them decode the physics of these powerful events.The explosion, which astronomers classify as a Type I X-ray burst, released as much energy in 20 seconds as the Sun does in nearly 10 days.J1808 is located about 11,000 light-years away in the constellation Sagittarius, spins at a dizzying 401 rotations each second, and is one member of a binary system. Its companion is a brown dwarf, an object larger than a giant planet yet too small to be a star. A steady stream of hydrogen gas flows from the companion toward the neutron star, and it accumulates in a vast storage structure called an accretion disk.Hydrogen raining onto the pulsar's surface forms a hot, ever-deepening global “sea.” At the base of this layer, temperatures and pressures increase until hydrogen nuclei fuse to form helium nuclei, which produces energy — a process at work in the core of our Sun. The helium settles out and builds up a layer of its own. Eventually, the conditions allow helium nuclei to fuse into carbon. The helium erupts explosively and unleashes a thermonuclear fireball across the entire pulsar surface.As the burst started, NICER data show that its X-ray brightness leveled off for almost a second before increasing again at a slower pace. The researchers interpret this “stall” as the moment when the energy of the blast built up enough to blow the pulsar’s hydrogen layer into space. The fireball continued to build for another two seconds and then reached its peak, blowing off the more massive helium layer. The helium expanded faster, overtook the hydrogen layer before it could dissipate, and then slowed, stopped and settled back down onto the pulsar’s surface. Following this phase, the pulsar briefly brightened again by roughly 20 percent for reasons the team does not yet understand. ||

On April 28, space- and ground-based observatories detected powerful, simultaneous X-ray and radio bursts from a source in our galaxy. Watch to see how this unique event helps solve the longstanding puzzle of fast radio bursts observed in other galaxies.Credit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight CenterMusic: "Jupiter's Eye" from Universal Production MusicWatch this video on the NASA Goddard YouTube channel.Complete transcript available. || Magnetar_FRB_Still.jpg (1920x1080) [535.5 KB] || Magnetar_FRB_Still_searchweb.png (320x180) [65.5 KB] || Magnetar_FRB_Still_thm.png (80x40) [4.8 KB] || 13751_Magnetar_FRB_ProRes_1920x1080_2997.mov (1920x1080) [3.2 GB] || 13751_Magnetar_FRB_Best_1080.mp4 (1920x1080) [741.8 MB] || 13751_Magnetar_FRB_1080.mp4 (1920x1080) [237.4 MB] || 13751_Magnetar_FRB_Best_1080.webm (1920x1080) [25.7 MB] || Fast_Radio_Burst_SRT_Captions.en_US.srt [4.5 KB] || Fast_Radio_Burst_SRT_Captions.en_US.vtt [4.5 KB] ||

Explore how NASA’s Neutron star Interior Composition Explorer (NICER) tracked brilliant hot spots on the surface of an erupting magnetar – from 13,000 light-years away. Credit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight CenterMusic: "Particles and Fields" from Universal Production MusicWatch this video on the NASA Goddard YouTube channel.Complete transcript available. || Magnetar_Still.jpg (1920x1080) [574.3 KB] || Magnetar_Still_print.jpg (1024x576) [229.0 KB] || Magnetar_Still_searchweb.png (320x180) [66.1 KB] || Magnetar_Still_thm.png (80x40) [5.2 KB] || 14115_Merging_Magnetar_HotSpots_1080_Best.webm (1920x1080) [17.4 MB] || 14115_Merging_Magnetar_HotSpots_1080.mp4 (1920x1080) [158.9 MB] || 14115_Merging_Magnetar_HotSpots_1080_Best.mp4 (1920x1080) [382.0 MB] || 14115_Migrating_Magnetar_HotSpots_1080.en_US.srt [2.1 KB] || 14115_Migrating_Magnetar_HotSpots_1080.en_US.vtt [2.1 KB] || 14115_Merging_Magnetar_HotSpots_ProRes_1920x1080_2997.mov (1920x1080) [2.1 GB] ||

Watch how astronomers used data from NASA’s NICER (Neutron star Interior Composition Explorer) to study a mysterious cosmic phenomenon called a quasi-periodic eruption, or QPE.Credit: NASA’s Goddard Space Flight CenterMusic: "Superluminal" by Lee Groves [PRS] and Peter Geogre Marett [PRS], Universal Production MusicWatch this video on the NASA Goddard YouTube channel.Complete transcript available. || YTframe_thumbnail_NICER_QPE.jpg (1280x720) [225.7 KB] || YTframe_thumbnail_NICER_QPE_searchweb.png (320x180) [95.5 KB] || 14819_NICER_QPE_Good.mp4 (1920x1080) [70.6 MB] || 14819_NICER_QPE_Best.mp4 (1920x1080) [172.3 MB] || 14819_NICER_QPE_Captions.en_US.srt [2.8 KB] || 14819_NICER_QPE_Captions.en_US.vtt [2.7 KB] || YTframe_thumbnail_NICER_QPE_thm.png [8.7 KB] || 14819_NICER_QPE_ProRes_1920x1080_2997.mov (1920x1080) [1.6 GB] ||

2024 was an exciting year for astrophysics. There were fascinating discoveries by missions new and old, new instruments launched, and older instruments getting ready for unprecedented repairs in space. Several upcoming missions continued their march toward completion, with SPHEREx launching in 2025, the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope launching no later than May of 2027, and the Habitable Worlds Observatory beginning development as a next-generation space telescope. Building off the incredible successes, 2025 will be a great year for astrophysics at NASA.Credit: NASAMusic credit: “Extrapolations,” Andrii Yefymov [BMI], Universal Production MusicYouTubeComplete transcript available. || ASD_2024_highlight_STILL.jpg (1920x1080) [561.4 KB] || ASD_2024_highlight_STILL_searchweb.png (320x180) [111.9 KB] || ASD_2024_Highlights_good.mp4 (1920x1080) [134.2 MB] || ASD_2024_Highlights_best.mp4 (1920x1080) [368.9 MB] || ASD2024HighlightsCaptions.en_US.srt [1.7 KB] || ASD2024HighlightsCaptions.en_US.vtt [1.6 KB] || ASD_2024_highlight_STILL_thm.png [8.2 KB] || ASD_2024_Highlights_ProRes_1920x1080_2997.mov (1920x1080) [2.0 GB] ||