In 2026, an unmanned NASA spacecraft is scheduled to arrive at 16 Psyche, a massive, metallic asteroid floating somewhere between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter. Why is NASA so interested in this heavy metal asteroid? Are we going to mine all that metal, or build a giant space magnet? Linda T. Elkins-Tanton explains how the real answer can be fo...

NASA engineer Bobak Ferdowsi helped the Curiosity rover land on Mars -- and he's curated these talks that deepen our understanding of the world around us.

From favorite moons to the search for alien life, astronomer Heidi Hammel discusses the latest in astronomy and the breakthrough innovations behind her work with NASA's James Webb Space Telescope. In conversation with science journalist Nadia Drake, Hammel shares how scientists are studying objects that are farther away and older than ever befor...

Why would a spacefaring organization like NASA be looking down at the ocean's microscopic ecosystem? Bridget Seegers of NASA's Ocean Ecology Lab explains why, delving into the ways plankton serve as a barometer for Earth's health while influencing everything from human health to our food supply.

How does an astronaut prepare physically and mentally to launch into space? NASA astronaut Megan McArthur, who traveled to the International Space Station in April 2021 as part of the SpaceX Crew-2 mission, shares stellar life lessons on how to cultivate the resolve to do incredible things through preparation -- and a dash of bravery. A rare gli...

Get the behind-the-scenes story from visual strategist Dan Goods about how a single question launched NASA's Jet Propulsion Lab into action at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, propelling an unprecedented pivot from space-exploring robots to live-saving ventilators. It'll inspire you to wonder: "Is what I'm doing right now the most importa...

Performing two original songs, stand-up comedian, writer and musician Marcia Belsky shares comical commentary on some peculiar aspects of our culture -- from Instagram-stalking your crush to fending off mansplainers on social media -- and lampoons NASA's notorious decision to provide astronaut Sally Ride with an egregious supply of tampons for h...

Nagin Cox explores Mars as part of the team that operates NASA's rovers.

The night before the Challenger exploded, NASA had a three-hour conference call with a company that knew the shuttle would fail. Why did NASA not abort the mission? John O'Leary explores what makes for an effective conversation. He lists three myths that can lead to destructive silence, and vital techniques to enable good conversation for groups...

James Green leads NASA's solar system exploration and astrobiology research.

By now, we all know that people make lousy decisions and behave badly. We eat the cake, wait until the last minute to do our taxes, and generally work against our own self-interest no matter how much we want to succeed. So...what can we do to fight it? Behavioral scientist Bob Nease shares some tricks to align our good intentions with our actions.

Singer-songwriter Niaz Nawab performs three songs, weaving stanzas from Persian poetry and philosophy into the latter two.

Technology should work for us, but what happens when it doesn't? Comedian Chuck Nice explores the unintended consequences of technological advancement and human interaction -- with hilarious results.

Ken Kamler has served as doctor on some of the world’s most daring expeditions, but also performs delicate microsurgery when at home in New York.

In this passionate talk, legendary spacecraft designer Burt Rutan lambasts the US government-funded space program for stagnating and asks entrepreneurs to pick up where NASA has left off.

In 2018, science writer Nathalia Holt wrote "Rise of the Rocket Girls," a riveting account of the women mathematicians who played a key role in launching America's space program in the 1950s. In this talk, she translates her historical research into evidence of the need for modern STEM workplace reform, sharing actionable lessons on how to recru...

In his research for NASA, clinical psychologist Raphael Rose discovered that failure is key to creating resilience. He explains how leaning into trials and setbacks builds the emotional callouses that help us value what's good in life.

In 2010, NASA announced the discovery of a never-before-seen galactic object: two gigantic gaseous bubbles, each emanating an impressive 25,000 light years from the center of the Milky Way. Astronomers were perplexed: what created these structures? And could this mean that the black hole at the center of our galaxy was waking up? Ashkbiz Danehka...

What does an in-flight meal look like when you're traveling to Mars? Designer Phnam Bagley envisions a future where astronauts have nourishing, flavorful food reminiscent of home -- a giant leap from their current staple of "goop-in-a-bag." Learn more about her team's gourmet creations for galactic travel and how these innovations can improve li...

We're heading for a world population of 10 billion people -- but what will we all eat? Lisa Dyson rediscovered an idea developed by NASA in the 1960s for deep-space travel, and it could be a key to reinventing how we grow food.

Nina Jablonski says that differing skin colors are simply our bodies' adaptation to varied climates and levels of UV exposure. Charles Darwin disagreed with this theory, but she explains, that's because he did not have access to NASA.

Peter Norvig is a leading American computer scientist, expert on artificial intelligence and the Director of Research at Google Inc.

Want to navigate the solar system without having to buy a spacecraft? Jon Nguyen demos NASA JPL's "Eyes on the Solar System" -- free-to-use software for exploring the planets, moons, asteroids, and spacecraft that rotate around our sun in real-time.

Can opera be ever-so-slightly sexy? The glorious soprano Danielle de Niese shows how, singing the flirty "Meine Lippen, sie küssen so heiss." Which, translated, means, as you might guess: "I kiss so hot." From Giuditta by Frans Lehár; accompanist: Ingrid Surgenor.

What if we treated the risk of pandemics the same way we treat the risk of fires? In this eye-opening talk, infectious disease epidemiologist Jennifer B. Nuzzo unpacks how the Great Baltimore Fire of 1904 sparked a cultural shift in how we defend against fires -- and explains why pandemics demand the same sort of reaction. She breaks down the da...

In May of 1945 the Third Reich was in chaos. Adolf Hitler was dead and German surrender was imminent. But while World War II was almost over, a new war was brewing. And the US was eager to recruit the smartest minds in Germany before the Soviets got the chance— regardless of their affiliation with the Nazis. This became known as Operation Paperc...

Carrie Nugent is part of a team that uses NASA's NEOWISE telescope to search the skies for and catalog asteroids.

Long before we had rocket scientists, the idea of spaceflight traveled from mind to mind across generations. With great visuals, TED Fellow and NASA economist Alexander MacDonald shows how 300 years of sci-fi tales -- from Edgar Allan Poe to Jules Verne to H.G. Wells and beyond -- sparked a culture of space exploration. A fascinating look at how...

The James Webb Space Telescope is a miracle of modern science and engineering. With a 21-foot, gold-coated mirror protected by a sunshield that's the size of a tennis court, it's the world's most powerful telescope and humanity's latest attempt to answer questions like: "Where did we come from?" and "Are we alone?" (It also needed to be folded u...

"We will start inhabiting outer space," says Angelo Vermeulen, crew commander of a NASA-funded Mars simulation. "It might take 50 years or it might take 500 years, but it's going to happen." In this charming talk, the TED Senior Fellow describes some of his official work to make sure humans are prepared for life in deep space ... and shares a fa...