Astromaterials News
Jemma Davidson, Astromaterials Curator
Volume 7 No. 3 • November 2025
Welcome from the New Astromaterials Curator:
Welcome to the fifteenth issue of the Astromaterials Newsletter. The Astromaterials Newsletter is a biannual publication produced by the Astromaterials Acquisition and Curation Office at NASA's Johnson Space Center (JSC). Its purpose is to keep the extraterrestrial sample science community informed about updates to our policies, collections, and available samples. The Astromaterials Newsletter serves as the exclusive mechanism for announcing new samples or sample opportunities across all of NASA's astromaterials collections. It is published on the same cadence as the Antarctic Meteorite Newsletter, ensuring consistent and timely communication with the scientific community. Due to the recent government furlough, the anticipated October newsletter release was delayed. As a result, sample request deadlines have been adjusted – please check the individual collection updates for more information.
The primary aim of the Astromaterials Newsletter is to maximize the scientific return from NASA's existing astromaterials collections by improving communication and raising awareness of sample availability within the scientific community. A key part of this effort is providing timely updates about activities in our laboratories and at JSC that may impact the collections or the timing of sample allocations. Most importantly, the newsletter was established to ensure a fair and transparent process for disseminating information about available samples across all collections. As always, detailed information about NASA's astromaterials samples can be found in each collection's sample catalog, available on our website (https://curator.jsc.nasa.gov/). Any new samples announced in this issue will also be reflected in the appropriate catalog online.
Updates from the Astromaterials Acquisition and Curation Office:
This year has been a highly productive one for the Curation Office, marked by substantial progress toward full compliance with NASA Procedural Requirements (NPR) 7100.5, Curation of Astromaterials. In parallel with our ongoing responsibilities in the preservation, characterization, and allocation of NASA's astromaterials collections, we have undertaken a series of compliance initiatives. These include executing detailed collection inventories, renewing loan agreements, developing tailored Collection Plans for each collection, and systematically updating our policies and procedures to align with current standards and best practices. These efforts represent a significant step forward in strengthening the governance, transparency, and scientific stewardship of NASA's astromaterials collections.
At the September 2025 meeting of the Extraterrestrial Materials Analysis Group (ExMAG), held at the Lunar and Planetary Institute (LPI) in Houston, the Astromaterials Curation Office provided key updates on NASA's extraterrestrial sample collections and ongoing curation activities, highlighting the breadth of NASA's recent curation efforts. I presented the Astromaterials Curation and Allocation Report, providing an overview of the Curation office and highlighting recent developments, including the transition of the Genesis Collection into preservation-mode and recent sample allocation efforts. The meeting also featured updates from collection curators - from Apollo, Meteorite, Cosmic Dust, Stardust, Hayabusa2, and OSIRIS-REx - as well as planning updates for future lunar and martian samples and progress in Advanced Curation, particularly Cold Curation techniques. Slides and/or recordings are expected to be made available on the LPI's website.
October marked the beginning of the new fiscal year and the start of a government furlough. As a result, NASA was closed for all non-excepted activities, leading to a pause of routine operations and communications. While regular work was on hold, the NASA Astromaterials collections continued to be safeguarded and maintained throughout the closure. However, we did experience delays, including the release of this newsletter and impacts to sample processing and shipping. We appreciate your patience and understanding as we work through the backlog of inquiries and allocations following the six-week furlough.
Personnel updates in the Astromaterials Acquisition and Curation Office:
The Curation Office bid farewell to two Curators, Judith Allton and Mary Luckey, who retired in August 2025. We extend our heartfelt thanks to them both for their contributions to NASA's astromaterials curation efforts.
Judith Allton, NASA's first Genesis Curator, was a cornerstone of astromaterials curation for five decades, contributing to Apollo sample handling and leading efforts for curation of Genesis solar wind samples. She was known for her meticulous contamination control, deep historical knowledge, and creative spirit. Judy's legacy continues to inspire the planetary science community. Judy will be succeeded in the role of Genesis Curator by Dr. Alissa Madera. Read more in the Genesis update.
Mary Luckey made significant contributions as the Education Sample Curator, playing a vital role in promoting public engagement and STEM education through the distribution of extraterrestrial samples. She managed the loan of lunar and meteorite thin sections and encapsulated sample disks, helping to inspire students and the public about planetary science and NASA's exploration missions. Mary's duties have been integrated into the broader role of the Astromaterials Curator.
We will continue with Interim Curators overseeing both the Antarctic Meteorite and Cosmic Dust collections for the foreseeable future. We have been fortunate to welcome new contractor processors into the lunar, OSIRIS-REx, and meteorite collections. These additions to the team bring fresh energy and expertise, and their support is already making a meaningful impact on our ability to manage and prepare samples for scientific analysis. We are grateful for their contributions and look forward to the continued strengthening of our curation capabilities.
Upcoming Changes:
There are some exciting changes coming to Curation that will help us better serve the astromaterials analysis community. Firstly, collections are moving toward using collection specific email addresses to reduce single-point failures. Some collections are already accepting requests at these email addresses while others are still transitioning - please check the collection pages on our website for collection-specific instructions. We are also planning to move to rolling deadlines for all collection sample requests. Currently the Apollo, Antarctic meteorite, and OSIRIS-REx collections accept requests twice a year, while the other collections accept requests on a rolling basis (except for Genesis, which is not currently accepting requests). We will gradually move toward the rolling deadline model for all collections. We are currently investigating lessons learned from NASA R&A rolling deadlines with our HQ counterparts and will announce more details in a future newsletter. We also intend to host a series of community conversations aligned with the release of the Astromaterials Newsletter, with the goal of fostering greater engagement, transparency, and dialogue around current curation activities, policy updates, and collection developments. We hope to start those with the next newsletter.Sample Request Resources:
In addition to the plethora of information available on our various collection website pages, we also previously participated in a virtual workshop, "How to Become Part of the NASA Planetary Sample Science Community", hosted by the Lunar and Planetary Institute. We discussed NASA's nine current astromaterials collections and how to request samples - the recordings and slides can be viewed online here. The workshop was very successful and serves as a valuable resource for scientists looking to learn more about how to request samples and/improve their request success rate. We look forward to participating in more community events in the future.Astromaterials Data Systems Updates:
The Astromaterials Data System (Astromat) is the primary NASA-sponsored archive for laboratory analyses of returned samples (see NASA's Planetary Science Division's Information and Data Management Policy Supplement to SPD-41A). Astromat supports the extraterrestrial samples community with services that enable sharing, discovery, access, and reuse of data generated by laboratory analysis of astromaterials samples.News from Astromat:
- Over 650 OSIRIS-REx sample analysis datasets are now publicly accessible at the Astromaterials Data Archive (ADA). They include tabular data - isotopes, noble gases, spectral data, XCT, NanoSIMS, and SEM images, 3D SLS scans and models, and much more. Additional datasets are made publicly available as papers are published.
- A new web page provides access to data from the Apollo Next Generation Sample Analysis (ANGSA) https://www.astromat.org/collections/angsa. These ANGSA data were submitted as part of the "Preservation of Data Produced by the Apollo Next Generation Sample Analysis (ANGSA) Program" project, led by S. Simon (UNM) and supported by NASA through PDART. Over 350 XCT datasets for ANGSA samples were also submitted from the Johnson Space Center
- Astromat is now compiling 'ready-to-use' datasets for specific sample types, chemical properties, and missions. These citable datasets can be downloaded from the AstroRepo. The first two ready-to-use datasets are for lunar meteorites and lunar samples. Please participate in our survey to prioritize the next compilations.
- The Astromat Synthesis grew to > 2.3 million analytical data points for over 5,100 citations. The database includes the entire content of the MetBase database and lab analytical data for NASA's Astromaterials collections (Lunar samples, Antarctic Meteorites, Stardust, Genesis, Cosmic Dust, Hayabusa, Hayabusa2). You can search the Astromat Synthesis database through the Astromat's Search app.
- Astromat is happy to announce that it has been awarded CoreTrustSeal certification as a trusted data repository.
- Astromat will be at GSA25 at the Data Help Desk and at the LPSC26 in the exhibit hall. Stop by for a tour of Astromat systems, if you have questions and/or comments, or need help with data archiving.
Newsletter Highlights:
OSIRIS-REx Sample Requests – Third Round of Community Allocation Requests: The OSIRIS-REx collection will be accepting more samples requests from the community. You can find more details on the OSIRIS-REx News page of this issue of the Astromaterials Newsletter.
Cosmic Dust Lab Updates: The Cosmic Dust Lab recently obtained a desktop environmental scanning electron microscope that will be used to add value to preliminary examination of cosmic dust samples in a cleanroom environment. A balloon-borne cosmic dust collector prototype test flight was also successfully flown in September. Find collection updates on the
Cosmic Dust page of this issue.
New Antarctic Meteorites Announced: The
Antarctic Meteorite Newsletter
has announced the characterization and classification of 74 new Antarctic meteorites, primarily from Dominion Range (DOM).
I appreciate you taking the time to read the Astromaterials News section of the Astromaterials Newsletter.