America’s compact between science and politics is broken

• NASA’s Fermi mission has identified two supernova remnants that likely originated from a pair of binary stellar siblings. • The first star's explosion ejected its companion star from their orbit, sending it hurtling through space for thousands of years before it also detonated.

• NASA announced a new public-private partnership on Wednesday aimed at advancing Mars science by integrating agency leadership with commercial innovation. • The initiative seeks to accelerate scientific discovery and increase the frequency of missions to the Red Planet.

• Astronomers using the James Webb Space Telescope have discovered a "salty surprise" on a cold exoplanet nicknamed the "Pink Planet." • The research team noted that the chemical composition of this planet is unlike any other celestial body they have previously analyzed.

• NASA has selected the Dynamic Atmosphere-Ionosphere Explorer (DAPHNE) mission concept to study the complex interactions between space weather and Earth's atmosphere. • The mission will specifically research how atmospheric dynamics and space weather influence the surrounding space environment, focusing on phenomena like auroras and atmospheric waves.

• NASA is launching a daring rescue mission to capture and boost the Swift observatory, a space telescope that is currently falling toward Earth. • The mission involves a specialized vehicle designed to intercept the telescope and push it back into a stable orbit to prevent its atmospheric reentry.

• Astronomers using the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) have identified HD 80606 b as one of the most extreme "Hot Jupiters" ever discovered. • The exoplanet is characterized by extreme temperatures caused by its proximity to its home star, which effectively "roasts" the planet.

• Physicists have resolved a long-standing scientific problem regarding systems that seem to violate Newton’s third law, specifically in the movement of bacterial colonies and bird flocks. • Researchers discovered that hydrogen radicals produced by intense UV light can break down PFAS "forever chemicals" without the need for additional chemical additives.

• Relativity Space has announced plans to develop and launch a private Mars orbiter mission scheduled for 2028. • This initiative marks a strategic shift for the company as it moves toward privately developing complex planetary missions.

• In 2018, researcher Guillermo de Anda discovered a previously unknown, sealed cave located within the ancient Mayan ruins of Chichen Itza in Mexico. • Inside the cave, de Anda found a collection of Maya offerings that had remained untouched for centuries, hidden away from the site's well-known plazas and the El Castillo pyramid.

• Astronauts on the International Space Station have activated upgrades to NASA’s Cold Atom Lab (CAL), a specialized facility used to study quantum physics. • On May 8, 2026, astronaut Jessica Meir installed hardware updates, including optical fibers, to the minifridge-sized laboratory.

• NASA's James Webb Space Telescope observed HD 80606 b, an exoplanet four times the mass of Jupiter with a highly elliptical orbit. • The planet experiences extreme heating as its orbit brings it exceptionally close to its Sun-like host star.

• NASA astronaut Anil Menon will be available for limited virtual media interviews starting at 9 a.m. EDT on Monday, June 22. • A native of Minneapolis, Menon is a colonel in the U.S. Space Force, a mechanical engineer, and an emergency medicine physician.