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The end-of-financial-year sales have seen many smartphone deals across flagship, mid-range and budget handsets, including some rare discounts on the current iPhone 17 range.If you splurged on a new phone during the sales, you may be interested in signing up for a new SIM-only plan if you bought one outright, especially if you’re not 100% happy with your current provider.Even if you didn’t buy a new phone, it can still pay to shop around for a new SIM-only plan, as you may find one that fits your needs better than your current one. You could be paying for a ton of data with your current provider that goes unused, for example. Or maybe you’d benefit from having international calls included in your monthly price.Given how competitive the telco market is currently, providers are jostling for your attention — whether it’s generous mobile data allowances, discounts on the monthly plan fees or inclusions like international calls and texts — and it would be a good idea to take full advantage.The best part is, unless your current plan is tied up with a mobile phone, it’s so easy to switch providers. If the promotional plan discount of the SIM-only plan you signed up has just wrapped up, you can easily swap to a different provider that’s offering its own discounted plan with next to zero hassle.I’ve put together a list below of the best SIM-only plans I’ve spotted this EOFY across a range of use cases and budgets, with all the inclusions and discounts:Best value EOFY SIM-only planTPG Large Plan | 100GB | AU$22.50 per 28-day renewal (first six renewals, then AU$45 per renewal)While we’ve usually spruiked the TPG plan that’s a step down from this one (50GB data for AU$17.50 per month) as the best value SIM-only deal, getting 100GB of mobile data for AU$22.50 is an outright steal, even if it’s just for the first 6 months. Unlike many of the SIM-only plans at this price range, you get access to the full Vodafone 5G network, bringing with it added benefits of extended coverage and faster download speeds. One perk also worth mentioning is the inclusion of unlimited international calls and texts to 31 destinations. Do note is that this is a 28-day plan, which means you’ll have 13 payments each year.Total minimum cost: AU$22.50Total cost for first year: AU$405Ongoing yearly cost: AU$540View DealBest cheap EOFY SIM-only planSwoop Mobile | 30GB | AU$12.40 p/m (first 6 months, then AU$24.90 p/m)There are cheaper plans than this, but this entry-level offering from Swoop Mobile not only provides 30GB of mobile data, but it also uses Vodafone’s 5G and 4G networks, which is rare at this price point. You also get unlimited national calls and texts at this price.Total minimum cost: AU$12.40Total cost for first year: AU$223.80Ongoing yearly cost: AU$298.80View DealBest EOFY SIM-only plan on the Telstra networkExetel PlusOne eSIM plan | 130GB | AU$40p/mExetel has only a single mobile plan offering, but the brand nails the brief perfectly with a great value option on the Telstra 5G network (with speeds capped at 150Mbps). You get a generous 130GB of data each month, unlimited international calls to 15 countries including the UK and US, and the ability to bank up to 1000GB of data. And all this for just AU$40 per recharge (30 days). Do note that this plan is only available with an eSIM, so you'll first need to check if your phone is compatible.Total minimum cost: AU$40Total yearly cost: AU$480View DealBest EOFY high-data SIM-only planVodafone Large Plan | 400GB | AU$36.50 (first 6 months, then AU$73p/m)Of the big 3 Aussie telcos, Vodafone has regularly provided the best value, and the mere fact that the brand made it to this list means that it can compete with MVNOs in certain price points. Vodafone is offering 50% off plan fees for the first 6 months, making the 400GB Large Plan, at less than AU$40 per month, the best high-data SIM-only plan this EOFY. To sweeten the pot further, you also get unlimited minutes to 'Zone 1' nations and 300 minutes to 'Zone 2' nations. To see which countries are available, you can learn more about international calls with Vodafone.Total minimum cost: AU$36.50Total cost for first year: AU$657Ongoing yearly cost: AU$876View DealBest EOFY long expiry SIM-only planLyca Mobile Large | 900GB | AU$220 (first 12 months, then AU$480)Lyca Mobile's Large plan has long been TechRadar’s favourite long-term expiry plan, especially now the included data has increased from 600GB to 900GB (although the price did also increase from AU$175 to AU$220 for the first 12 months). Granted, the ongoing cost after the first year is quite pricey, but you at least have the option to shop around for a different promo on a long-expiry plan afterwards. The mobile data will be provisioned in 75GB instalments each month, which can be helpful in case you accidentally use too much data in a single month. You'll also receive international minutes to 35 destinations with this plan.Total minimum cost: AU$220First year cost: AU$220Ongoing yearly cost: AU$480View DealMore of the best SIM-only plansKeen to shop around more? Check out the most popular SIM-only plans in the widget below:

Earth Observatory Science Earth Observatory Playing the Moon Game  Earth Earth Observatory Image of the Day EO Explorer Topics All Topics Atmosphere Land Heat & Radiation Life on Earth Human Dimensions Natural Events Oceans Remote Sensing Technology Snow & Ice Water More Content Collections Global Maps World of Change Articles Earth Matters Blog Blue Marble: Next Generation EO Kids Mission: Biomes About About Us Subscribe 🛜 RSS Contact Us Search   September 29, 2025 In preparing to visit the Moon’s surface, soon-to-be lunar explorers in NASA’s Apollo program first ventured into a variety of unfamiliar landscapes on Earth. A couple of these trips, in the summers of 1965 and 1966, took astronauts to Alaska’s remote Katmai National Park for simulations of field geology in Moon-like environments. In one exercise, which they called “playing the Moon game,” pairs of astronauts were placed at unfamiliar field sites and asked to pretend as if they were on the Moon. By the account of William Phinney, Apollo’s science training coordinator, they were tasked with collecting representative geologic samples and practicing how to communicate their observations to scientists. September 29, 2025 The Alaskan setting for the Moon game was an unusual volcanic landscape called the Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes. The valley is full of debris deposited by the 1912 eruption of Novarupta—the largest volcanic event on Earth in the 20th century. The images above, acquired on September 29, 2025, with the OLI (Operational Land Imager) on Landsat 9, show the massive ash flow deposited by Novarupta. The layer measures up to 660 feet (200 meters) thick and was emplaced at a searing 1,380 degrees Fahrenheit (750 degrees Celsius).  The Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes, shown in the 1917 photo below, is so named because of the abundance of fumaroles—gas and steam-emitting vents—that filled the valley for a decade after the eruption. A few hundred persisted more than 10 years, with some lasting until the 1990s. 1917 Scientists initially suspected that the monster eruption occurred at Mount Katmai, a neighboring volcano with a large caldera located 6 miles (10 kilometers) east of Novarupta’s dome. However, they later determined that the eruption actually occurred at Novarupta—whose name means “new eruption”—after stealing magma from beneath Katmai. As the magma chamber emptied, Katmai collapsed, forming the 2.5-mile-wide (4-kilometer-wide) caldera present today. The volcanic landscape in the Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes is far fresher than the ancient lava flows that formed the Moon’s volcanic features. But for the Apollo astronauts, it offered an “excellent opportunity to view volcanic materials and landforms in nearly pristine condition,” Phinney wrote. They studied evidence of fumaroles and examined vertical sections of the deposits where streams had eroded deep gorges. June 9, 1991 Researchers continue to visit this Alaskan wilderness in search of clues that could help decipher the geology of the Moon and Mars. In 2024, the Goddard Instrument Field Team (GIFT) trekked to the Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes to study its icy volcanic landscape. Like the valley, Mars contains glaciers and ice sheets layered with dust and ash, a dynamic and difficult-to-interpret environment. Advancing lunar science, the GIFT team also collected samples from rock formations comparable to the Moon’s Gruithuisen Domes. These mysterious features are made of hardened lava with a different composition than the surrounding rock. With more to learn about our nearest celestial neighbor, the spirit of the Moon game lives on in the 21st century. NASA Earth Observatory images by Lauren Dauphin, using Landsat data from the U.S. Geological Survey. Photos from National Geographic Society Katmai expeditions photographs, Archives and Special Collections, Consortium Library, University of Alaska Anchorage, and from the U.S. Geological Survey Volcano Hazards Program. Story by Lindsey Doermann.  Downloads September 29, 2025 JPEG (2.64 MB) References & Resources NASA Lunar Volcanism. Accessed June 23, 2026.  NASA (2024, August 24) Into The Field With NASA: Valley Of Ten Thousand Smokes. Accessed June 23, 2026.  NASA (2015, November) Science Training History of the Apollo Astronauts. Accessed June 23, 2026.  NASA Earth Observatory (2024, August 22) Under the Ash: Glacier Science at a Volcano. Accessed June 23, 2026.  NASA Earth Observatory (2016, May 14) Katmai National Park, Alaska. Accessed June 23, 2026.  NASA Earth Observatory (2012, June 9) Remembering a Monster Eruption. June 23, 2026. National Park Service (2023, April 18) Fumaroles. Accessed June 23, 2026.  National Park Service (2021, August 24) Following in the Footsteps of Astronauts. Accessed June 23, 2026. You may also be interested in: Stay up-to-date with the latest content from NASA as we explore the universe and discover more about our home planet. Scoria Cones on Earth and Mars 7 min read The hill-shaped features are a sign of explosive volcanic activity—a rarity on the Red Planet. Article A Volcanic Medley Near Mammoth Lakes  4 min read A massive, old caldera and more recently formed craters shape the landscape in the eastern Sierra Nevada. Article Restless Kīlauea Launches Lava and Ash 3 min read Episode 43 of the Hawaiian volcano’s current eruption was marked by high lava fountains and widespread ash dispersal. Article 1 2 3 4 Next Keep Exploring Discover More from NASA Earth Science Subscribe to Earth Observatory Newsletters Subscribe to the Earth Observatory and get the Earth in your inbox. Earth Observatory Image of the Day NASA’s Earth Observatory brings you the Earth, every day, with in-depth stories and stunning imagery. Explore Earth Science Earth Science Data Open access to NASA’s archive of Earth science data