NASA’s Jet Propulsion Lab closed due to raging LA fires

An approaching wildfire has forced the closure of NASA’s lead center for robotic planetary exploration.

The Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), which lies at the base of the San Gabriel Mountains just north of Los Angeles, has been temporarily shuttered due to the Eaton fire, which is raging nearby.

“JPL is closed except for emergency personnel. No fire damage so far (some wind damage) but it is very close to the lab. Hundreds of JPLers have been evacuated from their homes & many have lost homes. Special thx to our emergency crews. Pls keep us in your thoughts & stay safe,” JPL Director Laurie Leshin announced via X today (Jan. 8).

JPL is federally funded but managed by the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. The center runs many of NASA’s high-profile robotic missions, such as the Perseverance and Curiosity Mars rovers and the $5 billion Europa Clipper, which recently launched to explore an intriguing ocean moon of Jupiter.

Related: Facts and information about NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory

The Eaton fire sparked up on Tuesday evening (Jan. 7) near Altadena, which is just north of Pasadena. It has burned at least 1,000 acres (400 hectares) to date, according to CBS News, which cited the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CalFire).

The Eaton fire is one of several big blazes churning through the Los Angeles area, driven and spread by record-setting winds. The biggest and most destructive is the Palisades Fire, which is laying waste to the Pacific Palisades neighborhood on the west side of the city.

The wildfire closure isn’t the only adversity that JPL has faced recently. The lab conducted two rounds of layoffs last year, letting go 8% of its workforce in February and another 5% in November due to budgetary issues.

Michael Wall is a Senior Space Writer with Space.com and joined the team in 2010. He primarily covers exoplanets, spaceflight and military space, but has been known to dabble in the space art beat. His book about the search for alien life, “Out There,” was published on Nov. 13, 2018. Before becoming a science writer, Michael worked as a herpetologist and wildlife biologist. He has a Ph.D. in evolutionary biology from the University of Sydney, Australia, a bachelor’s degree from the University of Arizona, and a graduate certificate in science writing from the University of California, Santa Cruz. To find out what his latest project is, you can follow Michael on Twitter.