NASA Goddard Space Flight Center

Astronomers detect a 10-sided decagon forming at Saturn's south pole

As of September 2026: Leads the OPAL program, co-authored the decagon study

Saturn's north pole has worn a six-sided hexagon for more than 40 years. Now Hubble Space Telescope images show a 10-sided decagon emerging at the planet's south pole — the first large polygonal jet pattern ever seen in that hemisphere.

Updated Sep 6

NASA builds its next flagship space telescope to map the dark universe

New Capabilities

As of May 2026: Lead center managing Roman's development, integration, and testing

NASA's Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope is fully built and targeting a September 2026 launch — eight months ahead of schedule. Its 300-megapixel infrared camera has a field of view 100 times wider than Hubble's and will photograph a billion galaxies and discover more than 100,000 new worlds in its first five years.

Updated May 31

The K2-18b biosignature hunt

New Capabilities

As of May 2026: Center for skeptical reanalysis of biosignature claims

Cambridge astronomers announced they'd found dimethyl sulfide and dimethyl disulfide in the atmosphere of K2-18b—molecules that, on Earth, only life produces. The detection using JWST's mid-infrared instrument hit 3-sigma confidence, meaning a 0.3% chance it's statistical noise. If real, it's the strongest evidence yet of biology beyond our solar system.

Updated May 19

NASA Goddard Space Flight Center

Stories

Astronomers detect a 10-sided decagon forming at Saturn's south pole

NASA builds its next flagship space telescope to map the dark universe

The K2-18b biosignature hunt