There's more to the cosmos than meets the eye. About 80 percent of the matter in the universe is invisible to telescopes, yet its gravitational influence is manifest in the orbital speeds of stars around galaxies and in the motions of clusters of galaxies.
After more than three years in space, NASA's Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope is extending its view of the high-energy sky into a largely unexplored electromagnetic range.
In early November 1572, observers on Earth witnessed the appearance of a "new star" in the constellation Cassiopeia, an event now recognized as the brightest naked-eye supernova in more than 400 years.
A peculiar cosmic explosion first detected by NASA's Swift observatory on Christmas Day 2010 was caused either by a novel type of supernova located billions of light-years away or an unusual collision much closer to home.
The constellation Cygnus, now visible in the western sky as twilight deepens after sunset, hosts one of our galaxy's richest-known stellar construction zones.
Neil is the recipient of COSPAR's 2012 Massey Award. The award recognizes the outstanding contributions to the development of space research, interpreted in the widest sense, in which a leadership role is of particular importance.
The Astroparticle Physics Laboratory conducts research in cosmic ray and gamma ray high-energy astrophysics. Researchers investigate high-energy phenomena in the universe in terms of unified theories of fundamental interactions. The Laboratory conducts a broad range of space-based scientific studies of the origin, nature, and effect of cosmic rays. Researchers also observe gamma radiation that carries the signatures of physical processes at work throughout the universe. The birth and evolution of black holes and other compact objects is a key area of investigation. The Laboratory emphasizes the development of new detectors and instrumentation technologies.
General inquiries about the scientific programs at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center may be directed to the Center Public Affairs office at 1.301.286.8955.
