NASA
Americannoun
acronym
Usage
What is NASA? NASA is short for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, a civilian agency of the United States government that specializes in space exploration and research about flight and aircraft. Aeronautics is the science of flight. Although NASA is most known for space travel and research, it also researches things like supersonic flight, energy-efficient aircraft, and drones. Over the years, NASA has advanced space exploration and made many contributions to science. Its notable programs and missions have included astronaut moon landings, Mars rovers, satellites around planets, and interstellar telescopes. One of NASA’s earliest and most famous programs was the Apollo program, which put the first person on the moon on July 20, 1969. NASA runs numerous missions and programs at its facilities across the United States.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore, which is operated by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy, conducts Hubble science operations for NASA.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 17, 2026
However it is really the result of a "cosmic coincidence", according to NASA.
From Barron's ● Aug. 11, 2026
According to NASA, El Niño’s warmer ocean water displaces colder water close to the sea surface.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 10, 2026
A spokesperson for Freedom 250, the President Trump-aligned group that planned events for the 250th celebration, referred questions about the flyover to NASA.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 5, 2026
They're not much different from kitchen trash bags, though I'm sure they cost $50,000 because of NASA.
From "The Martian" by Andy Weir
![]()
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.