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    New Mexico Scientific Balloon Campaign Update – Sept. 14

    NASA launched two scientific balloon missions from the agency’s Fort Sumner, New Mexico, launch facility Sunday, Sept. 14, 2025. This marks the first time two scientific balloons were launched on the same day since 2011.

    The JPL-Remote mission launched at 10:12 a.m. EDT (8:12 a.m. MDT) Sept. 14, 2025. The balloon and payload reached a float altitude of 127,000 feet and flew for 12 hours, 58 minutes. The mission’s main goal is to measure how different gases are layered in Earth’s atmosphere to check satellite data and track long-term changes since 1989.

    The Cosmic Dust Collection Project (CDCP) mission launched at 12:10 p.m. EDT (10:10 a.m. MDT). The balloon and payload reached a float altitude of 125,000 feet and flew for 8 hours, 36 minutes. The mission’s aimed to capture cosmic dust at different altitudes in Earth’s atmosphere to study how much of this dust has contaminated the stratosphere.

    To follow the missions in the 2025 Fort Sumner campaign, visit NASA’s Columbia Scientific Balloon Facility website for real-time updates of balloons’ altitudes and locations during flight.

    A NASA scientific balloon inflating behind a white truck during launch operations, with the balloon glowing in the sunlight against a cloudy sky.
    Launch preparations for the JPL-REMOTE payload showing the scientific balloon during inflation phase. The balloon rises behind the launch support truck as part of standard balloon mission operations.
    NASA

    Solar Arrays Deploy as Cygnus XL Orbits Toward Station

    Northrop Grumman's Cygnus cargo craft, carrying 8,200 pounds of science and supplies, approaches the International Space Station for a capture with the Canadarm2 robotic arm commanded by Expedition 71 Flight Engineer Matthew Dominick of NASA. The maneuver marked the 50th free-flying capture for the Canadarm2 robotic arm.

    Northrop Grumman’s Cygnus XL spacecraft deployed its two solar arrays after launching earlier Sunday at 6:11 p.m. EDT on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida to the International Space Station. 

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    Cygnus XL Cargo Craft Counts Down to Launch on NASA+

    Northrop Grumman’s Cygnus spacecraft, atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, lifts off from Space Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida on Sunday, Aug. 4, 2024.

    NASA’s coverage is underway on NASA+, Amazon Prime, and more for the launch of Northrop Grumman’s Commercial Resupply Services 23, or Northrop Grumman CRS-23, to the International Space Station. Learn how to watch NASA content through a variety of platforms, including social media.

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    Space Cargo Out for Delivery Days Before Next Resupply Mission Launches

    The warm city lights of Southeast Asia streak below the silvery U.S. segment of the International Space Station in this 30-second exposure from the orbital outpost as it soared 259 miles above China at approximately 10:39 a.m. local time. Near the top center, is the partially obscured SpaceX Dragon spacecraft that docked to the Harmony module's forward port carrying NASA's Crew-11 mission.

    One cargo spacecraft is orbiting Earth toward the International Space Station while another stands at its launch pad counting down to a lift off on Sunday to continue resupplying the Expedition 73 crew. The orbital residents will be preparing for the dual cargo missions while keeping up cardiac and bone research over the weekend.

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