What it does
NASA provides mission imagery, video, scientific visualisations and other media through its public libraries. Its usage page links to collections for astronomy, Earth science and historic missions. Reuse guidance distinguishes NASA material from third-party content, protected identifiers and images of identifiable people.
The usage page links to the NASA Image and Video Library, JPL Photojournal, Earth imagery and the Scientific Visualization Studio. Choose the collection closest to the subject.
At the Scientific Visualization Studio, open Download beside an asset to compare formats and resolutions. A page may offer MP4 or WebM video, still images and individual frame sequences. The IRIS First Light page, for example, places mission explanations and credit lines beside its image and movie files.
NASA generally permits factual educational and informational use without an individual permission request, with credit to NASA. Third-party copyrighted material needs the owner’s permission. Current astronauts and employees cannot be used to promote commercial products, and NASA logos have separate rules. Some visualisations contain licensed music; the Studio identifies cases where the visuals may be reused without that soundtrack.
Strengths
- Mission captions and credit lines accompany downloadable media
- Scientific visualisations can offer video, still and frame-sequence formats
Watch out for
- Third-party content and music may have separate permissions
- NASA identifiers and promotional depictions of employees have specific restrictions
Best for
- Science publishers and educators sourcing space-related visuals
Sources
- NASA images and media usage guidelines (Oct 27, 2026)
- NASA Scientific Visualization Studio help (Oct 27, 2026)
- NASA IRIS First Light images and movies (Oct 27, 2026)