Satellites love hydrazine – a type of space propellant – but it’s toxic to people and extremely difficult to handle. A non-toxic alternative will be put to the test with NASA’s Green Propellant Infusion Mission (GPIM), set to launch on a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket. via NASA https://go.nasa.gov/2N69GuQ

The electric motors for X-57’s Mod II vehicle and their propellers were powered up and spun together for the first time as part of an integrated spin test. via NASA https://go.nasa.gov/2Lcdesy

At 5:30 a.m. EDT Thursday, June 20, 2019, a 40-foot tall rocket carrying 28 student experiments (measuring acceleration, humidity, pressure, temperature and radiation counts) launched from Wallops Flight Facility. via NASA https://go.nasa.gov/2x555ht

The pilot of NASA’s X-59 Quiet SuperSonic Technology, or QueSST, aircraft will navigate the skies in a cockpit unlike any other. via NASA https://go.nasa.gov/2XpdOK8

Command Module pilot Michael Collins practices in the CM simulator on June 19, 1969, at Kennedy Space Center. via NASA https://go.nasa.gov/2MYdvlu

Samples of spacesuit material will be flown on the Mars 2020 mission to study show they might degrade in the Martian environment. via NASA https://go.nasa.gov/2WMkd2s

This flag accompanied NASA astronaut Alan B. Shepard on his 15-minute suborbital journey on May 5, 1961. via NASA https://go.nasa.gov/31ybpw0

“Years ago at the South Pole, I looked up to the aurora for inspiration through the 6-month winter night.” Aboard the International Space Station, NASA astronaut Christina Koch snapped this image of an aurora. via NASA https://go.nasa.gov/2WA3nz7

A D.C. Department of Transportation employee removes a paper cover from the “Hidden Figures Way” street sign in front of NASA Headquarters at the corner of 3rd and E Street SW. via NASA https://go.nasa.gov/2X4t27j

NASA astronaut Serena Auñón-Chancellor is hugged by students after a presentation about her experience on Expeditions 56 and 57 onboard the International Space Station at Excel Academy Public Charter School in DC. via NASA https://go.nasa.gov/2IByIw2