Caltech IPAC

NASA’s Lunar Trailblazer Moon Mission Ends NASA’s Lunar Trailblazer ended its mission to the Moon on July 31. Despite extensive efforts, mission operators were unable to establish two-way communications after losing contact with the spacecraft...

“We’re immensely disappointed that our spacecraft didn’t get to the Moon, but the two science instruments we developed, like the teams we brought together, are world class,” said Bethany Ehlmann, the mission’s principal investigator at Caltech.

Read more:
www.ipac.caltech.edu/news/nasa-s-...

After losing contact with the spacecraft and several months of a global effort to listen for a signal, Lunar Trailblazer concluded its mission to the Moon on July 31.

Read more:
www.ipac.caltech.edu/news/nasa-s-...

Join this month's Roman Virtual Lecture Series to learn about observing accreting neutron stars and black holes with Roman. 🌟

Subscribe to tinyurl.com/RVLSsubscr for call-in details!

📅 Thurs July 31

🕐 4-4:30 PM EDT

🔗 bit.ly/4m7MkjY

Registration for #IRSpaceSpectroscopy closes this week!⏱️

If you're planning to attend in person, register by midnight PDT this Friday, Aug. 1, 2025 to secure your spot and avoid a $50 late registration fee. conference.ipac.caltech.edu/IRSpaceSpectroscopy/

Betelgeuse’s Companion Star May Have Been Seen at Last Three IPAC scientists, David R. Ciardi, Catherine A. Clark, and Elise Furlan, were co-authors on this study supporting the claim that Betelgeuse may have a stellar companion after centuries of hypothe...

Betelgeuse’s Companion Star May Have Been Seen at Last 👯‍♀️
ipac.caltech.edu/news/betelge...

"It always amazes me how much we still have to learn. Even stars like Betelgeuse, which we have studied for literally thousands of years, can still surprise us," said David Ciardi.

Earth 2.0?? 🤯🌎🌍🌏
Livestream public talk on 7/16 @ 4pm PT 👇
@nancyromansci.bsky.social

Clear Skies Ahead for Another #VGSF😎

IPAC bids farewell to Penn State graduate student Nick Tusay, who has been working with NExScI's @aurorakess.bsky.social to learn more about ultra-hot Jupiters using high-resolution spectroscopy. Best of luck to Nick and his future endeavors!🚀

SPHEREx has delivered its first set of publicly-available data on @irsaipac.bsky.social ! 📊 🛰️

"Almost every area of astronomy can be addressed by SPHEREx data,” said Rachel Akeson, the lead for the SPHEREx Science Data Center at IPAC.

spherex.caltech.edu/news/how-nas...

From Galileo to Galaxies: Astronomy at the Vatican

IPAC Exec Director @tom-greene.bsky.social spent part of his summer guest teaching at @vaticanobservatory.bsky.social Summer School on topics focusing on JWST. He also met Pope Leo XIV!

Read all about it: www.ipac.caltech.edu/news/from-ga...

The #RubinFirstLook has us 🤩

"These images mark the beginning of an avalanche of data," said IPAC Manager David Imel.

At IPAC, we've been developing the Science User Interface and Tools for the Rubin LSST Science Platform.

Read about IPAC & @vrubinobs.bsky.social: ipac.caltech.edu/project/rubin

IPAC's own Andreas Faisst recently appeared on @ktla.com discussing the COSMOS-Web JWST survey, which is shaking up what we thought we knew about the universe 🌀

Read more about COSMOS-Web: www.ipac.caltech.edu/news/cosmos-...

Watch Faisst's interview: ktla.com/video/caltec...

Come work with NExScI Chief Scientist @aussiastronomer.bsky.social and the Roman Galactic Exoplanet Survey Project Infrastructure Team (RGES PIT)!
Perks include RGES PIT membership, time for independent research, and access to observing facilities, including Palomar! aas.org/jobregister/...

Abstract Deadline: July 1⏲️

There is one week left to submit abstracts for IPAC's October 2025 conference: "Infrared Spectroscopy from Space."

Join us in Pasadena to discuss the vast scientific potential unlocked by space-based infrared observations! conference.ipac.caltech.edu/IRSpaceSpectroscopy

Current IPAC staff members (less than 200 people!) have published over 5,000 research papers! That's a lot of science in one place! 🤯

Dive into the science happening at IPAC here: www.ipac.caltech.edu/science

#AAS246 Preparing for the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope's First Call for Proposals 📞📄

The first call for proposals is expected to be released in Fall 2025! Stay up to date with @nancyromansci.bsky.social and the Roman Science Support Center @ IPAC: roman.ipac.caltech.edu/page/call-fo...

Excited to announce the mission patch for our #NITARP research team! Looking forward to spending time with Dr. Rebull at @caltechipac.bsky.social this summer. Thanks to the inimitable and amazing Tim Gagnon for the design!! 🔭

In the #AAS246 Plenary Lecture, IPAC Senior Scientist and NExScI Deputy Director David Ciardi stepped up to the plate to discuss all things exoplanets 🪐

Ciardi took over for Sean Carey, IPAC Senior Scientist and NEO Surveyor Task Lead, who could no longer attend the meeting.

IPACer Wanggi Lim presented at a press conference at #AAS246 ⭐️
The new research, led in partnership with James De Buizer @setiinstitute.bsky.social, revealed surprising results about the rate at which high-mass stars form in the Galactic Center of the Milky Way.
www.youtube.com/live/gJjSZu9...

This is an image of the combined Caltech/IPAC and NExScI booth at the 246th meeting of the American Astronomical Society (AAS) held in Anchorage, Alaska from June 8 to 12, 2025. Visual description: Five people -- three adult men and two adult women -- stand behind two waist-level tables branded with the IPAC and NExScI logos. Behind them are banners that say Caltech/IPAC and NExScI. The image was taken in the Exhibit Hall area of the convention center in Anchorage, Alaska where the science meeting was held from June 8 through June 12, 2025.

Hello #AAS246!👋

We're excited to support the astrophysics community in Anchorage this week! Stop by booth 205 in the Exhibit Hall to say hi and to learn about the latest science and tech happening at IPAC and NExSCI.🤖🚀📶🔍

Exoplanet discovery database, ExoFOP, reaches 1 million files and counting Discovering an exoplanet doesn’t mean having one, definitive eureka moment. Instead, it requires multiple observations, sometimes from multiple observatories, and the scientific community coming toget...

Exoplanet discovery database, ExoFOP, reaches 1 million files and counting 📈🪐

Read more about how the astronomy community is working together to answer science's biggest questions:
www.ipac.caltech.edu/news/exoplan...

Discovery of giant planet orbiting tiny star challenges theories on planet formation The University of Warwick and UCL astronomers, as part of a global collaboration including partners in Chile, USA and Europe, have discovered the smallest known star to host a transiting giant planet,...

This giant planet orbiting a tiny star is challenging our current theories 🧩🤔

Planet TOI-6894b is a low-density gas giant with a radius a bit larger than Saturn. The host star is the lowest mass star to have a transiting giant planet discovered to date.

Read more: ipac.caltech.edu/news/discove...

IPAC welcomes Tom Greene as the new Executive Director!

“IPAC is a well-oiled machine, and it's clearly the place to go as a premier science and data center for a variety of missions and projects," said Greene.

Read more here: www.ipac.caltech.edu/news/ipac-an...

Lots of smiles and waves from IPACers at the annual picnic!
Thank you to the admin team for organizing a wonderful event, and thank you to the bakers who participated in our favorite tradition: the IPAC bake-off 😋🍰

This is a group photo of approximately 65 astronomers who attended the PRIMA working meeting in person. The event was held on the Caltech campus May 19-21, 2025. The group is standing on the sidewalk in front of the Cahill Center for Astronomy and Astrophysics. Image credit: Caltech/IPAC-Marcy Harbut

We extend a heartfelt THANK YOU to the >350 in-person and online attendees, as well as the hard-working organizers and admin team who made the #PRIMA2025 working meeting a smashing success! 🫶🏽🎊

We hope you're inspired to envision new possibilities for using @prima-probe.bsky.social in your work.

We asked #prima2025 participants to share how a far-infrared telescope like @prima-probe.bsky.social would illuminate their research. They had a lot of wishes!📝🌠

Jed McKinney of @utaustin.bsky.social wants to use the proposed @prima-probe.bsky.social far-infrared space telescope to peer deep into the hearts of galaxies and better understand how they formed. prima.ipac.caltech.edu

#prima #prima2025 #astronomy #astrophysics

Associate Professor Ilse Cleeves from the University of Virginia says @prima-probe.bsky.social would help her study how exoplanets form, how much water vapor is available during planet formation, and how many planets are out there! More about the proposed mission: prima.ipac.caltech.edu. #prima2025

#PRIMA2025 Day 2!

Today's topics: Dust and galaxy evolution 🌌, debris disks and solar system☀️, interstellar medium and polarization☄️, and AGN and star formation✨! prima.ipac.caltech.edu

This is a group photo of four people sitting behind the registration table at the PRIMA working meeting, held in the Cahill Center for Astronomy and Astrophysics on the Caltech campus. The table holds brochures, lanyards, and swag (pens, stickers, magnets, etc.) for event attendees. From left to right: Daniel "Pina" Muro, Teresa Molano, Nancy Solis, and Sean Kindt. Image credit: Marcy Harbut, Caltech/IPAC

This is a photo of the in-person attendees of the PRIMA working meeting, held in the Hameetman Auditorium in the Cahill Center for Astronomy and Astrophysics on the Caltech campus, May 19-21, 2025. The photo, taken from the rear-right area of the auditorium, shows the audience watching a presentation by Dr. Tiffany Kataria, who is at the front of the auditorium presenting a slide on the proposed PRIMA space telescope. Image credit: Marcy Harbut, Caltech/IPAC

#PRIMA2025 Working Meeting: Day 1!

We're welcoming >350 scientists to discuss
@prima-probe.bsky.social's possibilities! The response to the three-day hybrid event was so outstanding we moved it to a bigger venue. Today's topics: project overview, protoplanetary disks, time domain astro, & stars.

Registration is now open! Sign up to attend either in person or remotely by midnight PDT Aug. 1, 2025 at the following link:
conference.ipac.caltech.edu/IRSpaceSpect...

* Abstracts are due a month earlier on July 1.