NASA MCP Server for Cline 9 tools — connect in under 2 minutes
Cline is an autonomous AI coding agent inside VS Code that plans, executes, and iterates on tasks. Wire NASA through Vinkius and Cline gains direct access to every tool. from data retrieval to workflow automation. without leaving the terminal.
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{
"mcpServers": {
"nasa": {
"url": "https://edge.vinkius.com/[YOUR_TOKEN_HERE]/mcp"
}
}
}
* Every MCP server runs on Vinkius-managed infrastructure inside AWS - a purpose-built runtime with per-request V8 isolates, Ed25519 signed audit chains, and sub-40ms cold starts optimized for native MCP execution. See our infrastructure
About NASA MCP Server
Connect to NASA's open APIs through any AI agent and explore space science through natural conversation.
Cline operates autonomously inside VS Code. it reads your codebase, plans a strategy, and executes multi-step tasks including NASA tool calls without waiting for prompts between steps. Connect 9 tools through Vinkius and Cline can fetch data, generate code, and commit changes in a single autonomous run.
What you can do
- Astronomy Picture of the Day — Fetch today's APOD or any historical image with title, explanation and media URL
- Mars Rover Photos — Browse photos from Curiosity, Perseverance, Opportunity and Spirit rovers by date and camera
- Earth Satellite Imagery — View Landsat 8 satellite imagery for any coordinate on Earth with date filtering
- EPIC Earth Images — See full-disk Earth images from the DSCOVR satellite's Deep Space Camera
- Near-Earth Objects — Track asteroids and their size, velocity and hazard rating over a date range
- NASA Library Search — Search NASA's extensive image and video library with free-text queries
- Patent & Technology Transfer — Search NASA patents and discover technologies available for licensing
The NASA MCP Server exposes 9 tools through the Vinkius. Connect it to Cline in under two minutes — no API keys to rotate, no infrastructure to provision, no vendor lock-in. Your configuration, your data, your control.
How to Connect NASA to Cline via MCP
Follow these steps to integrate the NASA MCP Server with Cline.
Open Cline MCP Settings
Click the MCP Servers icon in the Cline sidebar panel
Add remote server
Click "Add MCP Server" and paste the configuration above
Enable the server
Toggle the server switch to ON
Start using NASA
Ask Cline: "Using NASA, help me...". 9 tools available
Why Use Cline with the NASA MCP Server
Cline provides unique advantages when paired with NASA through the Model Context Protocol.
Cline operates autonomously. it reads your codebase, plans a strategy, and executes multi-step tasks including MCP tool calls without step-by-step prompts
Runs inside VS Code, so you get MCP tool access alongside your existing extensions, terminal, and version control in a single window
Cline can create, edit, and delete files based on MCP tool responses, enabling end-to-end automation from data retrieval to code generation
Transparent execution: every tool call and file change is shown in Cline's activity log for full visibility and approval before committing
NASA + Cline Use Cases
Practical scenarios where Cline combined with the NASA MCP Server delivers measurable value.
Autonomous feature building: tell Cline to fetch data from NASA and scaffold a complete module with types, handlers, and tests
Codebase refactoring: use NASA tools to validate live data while Cline restructures your code to match updated schemas
Automated testing: Cline fetches real responses from NASA and generates snapshot tests or mocks based on actual payloads
Incident response: query NASA for real-time status and let Cline generate hotfix patches based on the findings
NASA MCP Tools for Cline (9)
These 9 tools become available when you connect NASA to Cline via MCP:
get_apod
If no date is specified, returns today's APOD. Optionally specify a single date, a date range (start_date and end_date), or a count of random APODs. Returns the image/video URL, title, explanation, copyright and date. This is one of NASA's most popular APIs. Get NASA Astronomy Picture of the Day (APOD)
get_earth_imagery
Requires longitude and latitude coordinates. Optionally specify a date (YYYY-MM-DD) to get imagery from a specific time. Returns the image URL and metadata. Useful for viewing geographic changes over time. Get satellite imagery of Earth from NASA
get_epic_images
Optionally specify a date (YYYY-MM-DD) and whether to use enhanced-color images (true) or natural-color (false, default). Returns image URLs, coordinates and acquisition time. Get Earth Polychromatic Imaging Camera (EPIC) images from NASA
get_mars_photos
Optionally filter by Earth date (YYYY-MM-DD), camera type (FHAZ, RHAZ, MAST, CHEMCAM, MAHLI, MARDI, NAVCAM, PANCAM, MINITES), and page number. Each photo includes the image URL, rover name, camera, Earth date and Mars sol date. Get Mars Rover photos from NASA
get_mars_rovers
Useful for discovering which rovers are active and when they last took photos. Get information about NASA Mars rovers
get_neo_feed
Optionally specify a start and end date (YYYY-MM-DD, max 7 days range). Returns asteroid count per day, estimated diameters, velocity, and whether they are potentially hazardous. Great for space awareness and planetary defense tracking. Get Near-Earth Object (NEO) feed from NASA
get_tech_transfer
Optionally filter by category (software, patent). Returns descriptions, contact information and availability status. Get NASA technology transfer information
search_nasa_library
Accepts a free-text query and returns matching media with titles, descriptions, NASA center information and media type (image, video, audio). Optionally set page number for pagination. This is the primary search endpoint for NASA media assets. Search the NASA Image and Video Library
search_patents
Requires a search query. Returns patent titles, numbers, abstracts and licensing availability. Useful for technology transfer and commercialization research. Search NASA patents
Example Prompts for NASA in Cline
Ready-to-use prompts you can give your Cline agent to start working with NASA immediately.
"Show me today's Astronomy Picture of the Day."
"Show me photos taken by the Perseverance rover on Mars."
"Are there any potentially hazardous asteroids approaching Earth this week?"
Troubleshooting NASA MCP Server with Cline
Common issues when connecting NASA to Cline through the Vinkius, and how to resolve them.
Server shows error in sidebar
NASA + Cline FAQ
Common questions about integrating NASA MCP Server with Cline.
How does Cline connect to MCP servers?
Can Cline run MCP tools without approval?
Does Cline support multiple MCP servers at once?
Connect NASA with your favorite client
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Microsoft's framework for multi-agent collaborative conversations.
Connect NASA to Cline
Get your token, paste the configuration, and start using 9 tools in under 2 minutes. No API key management needed.