At the Supercomputing Conference, or SC2024, Nicola Fox, NASA’s associate administrator for the Science Mission Directorate, detailed new computational tools aimed at advancing space science. NASA plans to employ a large language model across its science divisions, supported by foundation models tailored for Earth science, heliophysics, astrophysics, planetary science, and the biological and physical sciences. This strategy was illustrated through the Heliophysics Foundation Model, which applies extensive data from NASA’s Solar Dynamics Observatory to forecast solar wind events and track sunspot activity.
Space computing and the development of the Voyager mission
Fox described how NASA’s Voyager missions, launched in the 1970s, served as a milestone in computing for space exploration. Operating with early semiconductor memory, these spacecraft provided unique insights, including the discovery of Jupiter’s faint rings and Saturn’s additional moons.
Although far ahead of modern technology, the Voyager missions highlighted the potential for future computational breakthroughs in space science. Since then, NASA’s computational needs have expanded, with more than 140 petabytes of data now stored and shared under open science policies, allowing global scientists to access and benefit from NASA’s research.
Real time data and earth observation progress
NASA’s Earth Information Center was presented as a prime example of federal cooperation. It integrated data on environmental changes with insights from agencies such as NOAA and EPA.
Using data from satellite missions, Fox demonstrated NASA’s ability to observe natural phenomena such as wildfires in real time. He also noted advances in wildfire detection from polar-orbiting satellites, allowing precise tracking of hot spots. He said such data-driven efforts are important as NASA increases monitoring of natural phenomena on Earth.
Search for life beyond Earth
Finally, he addressed NASA’s ongoing investigations into extraterrestrial life. Recent studies of exoplanets such as LP 791-18d underline this discovery. NASA’s observatories, including the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS). It has helped detect thousands of exoplanets, leading to the search for conditions that could support life beyond Earth.
Fox concluded by highlighting the powerful role that AI and computing now play in analyzing the vast datasets produced by NASA missions, making it possible to explore questions that were previously out of reach.
