NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory

New Capabilities

Operates the Curiosity rover mission

For 14 years, the Curiosity rover has looked for organic molecules on Mars by heating samples in a tiny onboard oven. The method works, but it destroys fragile compounds before they can be identified. On April 22, 2026, NASA reported that a different technique—squirting a chemical solvent onto a Martian rock sample before heating it—revealed more than 20 organic molecules the rover had never seen before.

Updated May 31

New Capabilities

Leading U.S. operations for SWOT mission

NASA's SWOT satellite caught a magnitude 8.8 Kamchatka earthquake's tsunami in unprecedented detail on July 30, 2025. The waves scattered, interacted, and dispersed across the Pacific, contradicting the 50-year assumption that they travel as one coherent swell.

Updated May 19