NASA
- 1Acronym of National Aeronautics and Space Administration.
NASA launched a new weather satellite from Florida on Tuesday.
Engineers at NASA spent nearly a decade designing the Mars rover.
Note
The short name has almost replaced the long one for this civilian US government agency, which handles space and aeronautical research and exploration. As an acronym it is spoken as a word, not spelled out letter by letter. It normally takes no article: researchers at NASA, NASA was accused. In a NASA spokesperson, the article belongs to spokesperson, and NASA simply works as a modifier in front of it.
- 2Acronym of National Auto Sport Association.
He entered his Miata in a NASA event at the road course last weekend.
NASA requires every car to pass a technical inspection before it can compete.
Note
Motorsport has its own NASA, spelled exactly like the space agency and at home in the language of race weekends: events, road courses, technical inspection. Only context tells them apart. In writing for a general reader, spell out National Auto Sport Association at first mention. Inside racing coverage, the short form can stand alone.
Practice
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