National Aeronautics and Space Administration

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is the United States government agency responsible for science and technology related to air and space. NASA's current relevance is highlighted by its ongoing Artemis program, aiming to return humans to the Moon. Recently, the Space Launch System (SLS) Moon rocket and Orion Space Capsule, part of the Artemis II mission, were transported to a launch pad at Kennedy Space Center in Florida, a 12-hour journey in preparation for a launch scheduled for February 6th. While not directly related to NASA's core mission, the news articles also mention a Caltech scientist, Carl Grillmair, who studied astronomy, was fatally shot. Caltech collaborates with NASA on various projects, including the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). Finally, while NASA is not mentioned directly, the article about global temperatures exceeding the Paris Agreement limit is relevant as NASA conducts extensive Earth science research, including climate monitoring and modeling.