• DATA
  • CONTENT
  • FORMAT
  • HUMAN

How to generate daily astronomy briefings with your AI

Connect your AI to NASA's daily image feed. Once connected, your agent handles the data retrieval and drafting.

Ask AI about this page

Short answer

How can I automate NASA APOD briefings?

Your AI uses the get_apod tool to grab the latest image and its scientific description from NASA. You can then tell your agent to format this data into a newsletter, a Slack message, or a daily summary. You get a fresh piece of space science every morning.

The outcomes

What your automation produces

The AI handles the heavy lifting of data fetching and text processing.

DATA

Fresh space imagery

The AI uses get_apod to pull the most recent high-resolution image and its metadata directly from NASA.

CONTENT

Scientific context

Your agent reads the professional explanation provided by NASA to ensure the briefing is accurate.

FORMAT

Custom delivery

The AI transforms the raw data into whatever format you need, like a text summary or a structured report.

HUMAN

Final review

You decide if the briefing is ready to send or if the tone needs a human touch before it goes live.

The workflow

What your AI does when the data arrives.

The AI acts as the bridge between NASA's database and your preferred communication tool.

  1. Fetch the image

    The agent reaches out to NASA to grab the latest Astronomy Picture of the Day.

    get_apod

  2. Extract science

    It pulls the professional scientific explanation that accompanies the image.

    get_apod

  3. Draft the brief

    The AI organizes the image URL and the text into a readable format based on your instructions.

    get_apod

  4. Prepare for output

    The agent presents the final draft to you for approval or sends it to your destination.

    get_apod

Try it

Copy these to start.

Use these prompts to kick off your automation.

Starting points

These are opening lines. Swap out the specific destination, like Slack or Email, for whatever you use.

NASA Connector

You're all set. Choose your MCP client and follow the setup instructions.

Connector linkhttps://edge.vinkius.com/vk_preview_ORnuQkE6wxe9Lp9aYjdkKQxfaHVB2g77bXnCFMGy/mcp

Claude Desktop

Follow the steps below to connect in seconds.

  1. 1In Claude Desktop, open Settings → Connectors.
  2. 2Click “Add custom connector” and paste the connector link above as the remote MCP server URL.
  3. 3Click Add and start a new chat — NASA capabilities are ready to use.
Configuration · claude_desktop_config.jsonCopy
{
  "mcpServers": {
    "nasa-apod-astronomy-picture-of-the-day-mcp": {
      "url": "https://edge.vinkius.com/vk_preview_ORnuQkE6wxe9Lp9aYjdkKQxfaHVB2g77bXnCFMGy/mcp"
    }
  }
}
Copy into chat04

  • Get the latest NASA APOD and summarize the scientific explanation for my Slack channel.

  • Find today's NASA APOD and draft a short email briefing for my astronomy club.

  • Retrieve the current NASA APOD image and write a three-sentence summary for my daily journal.

  • Check the latest NASA APOD and format the data into a markdown table for my notes.

  • Claude
  • ChatGPT
  • Cursor
  • VS Code
  • Windsurf
  • Claude Code
  • JetBrains
  • Cline

Start here

Connect NASA APOD once, then ask.

One click connects the NASA feed to your agent. Your credentials stay encrypted, and the full walkthrough lives on the Connector page.

Connect NASA APOD to your AI

FAQ

How this task behaves

  • 01

    Can the AI download the image file to my computer?

    No. The AI retrieves the image URL and the scientific text, but you must handle the actual file downloading.

  • 02

    Will the AI post the image to my social media automatically?

    No. The AI can draft the post and provide the image link, but you must review and hit 'send' yourself.

  • 03

    Does it work with any AI client?

    Yes, it works with any MCP-compatible client like Claude, Cursor, or Windsurf.

  • 04

    Can I schedule these briefings to happen every morning?

    The AI performs the retrieval when you ask it to. You would need to trigger the prompt to get a new briefing.

  • 05

    Does the AI write its own scientific facts?

    No. It specifically uses the professional explanation provided by NASA via the get_apod tool.

  • More questions about NASA APOD? The Connector page answers them. See everything the NASA APOD Connector can do

Connect NASA to Claude, Cursor, ChatGPT & more