| 100% | OVOID | 5 | The asteroid Vesta was confirmed to be this shape by NASA'a Dawn space mission |
| 36% | WATER | 5 | ___ Bearer, shape of a human that is said to be represented by the constellation Aquarius |
| 36% | NONET | 5 | A chamber work by Louis Spohr was the first to bear this title |
| 34% | TAG | 3 | "This ___ not to be removed except by the consumer" (warning attached to a mattress) |
| 33% | OSC | 3 | Henry Kerner was confirmed by the US Senate in 2017 to be the executive of this agency (abbr.) |
| 33% | BOX | 3 | Container (and, in a way, what you will find outlined by this year's clues related to the mega-meta) |
| 33% | NODOFF | 6 | At midnight when I'm still writing clues for the puzzle that absolutely has to be in Florida by 8:00 am, I have a tendency to do this |
| 33% | HALLOFFAME | 10 | This dedication to US Space Walking astronauts and equipment contractors is by the Indian R. in Titusville, FL. |
| 32% | WIT | 3 | A pun is said to be the lowest form of this |
| 31% | OSE | 3 | Monosaccharides are named according to a Greek prefix to indicate the number of carbon atoms followed by this suffix, meaning "sugar" |
| 31% | YOUNG | 5 | The Stingray Nebula has to be considered this, as far a nebulae go |
| 30% | EROS | 4 | First asteroid to be orbited by a spacecraft (2000) |
| 30% | GREGORY | 7 | __ Olsen, the third person to be a space tourist |
| 30% | CARBONFOOTPRINT | 15 | Global warming calculation whose shape is suggested by connecting 14 squares in this puzzle in a closed loop based on the appropriate 23-Across |
| 30% | HIP | 3 | "___ to be square," a hit song by Huey Lewis and the News |
| 30% | BEAR | 4 | Animal shape said to be represented by the constellation Ursa Major |
| 30% | DOG | 3 | Animal shape said to be represented by the constellation Canis Major |
| 29% | ERGS | 4 | A Foe is equal to ten to the power of fifty-one of these |
| 29% | ETHER | 5 | Anesthetic that used to be used by dentists, or a term for the sky |
| 29% | COROT | 5 | Acronym for a former space telescope mission by the French Space Agency |
| 29% | ANGLES | 6 | These are formed by two lines coming to a point |
| 29% | MOON | 4 | "Fly Me to the ___," Frank Sinatra melody that was closely associated with NASA's Apollo space program |
| 29% | NOID | 4 | Reason to be barred from a bar ... or the theme of this puzzle |
| 29% | UNIVERSE | 8 | "Across the ___," song by the Beatles that was beamed by NASA into deep space |
| 29% | ION | 3 | Type of thrusters the Dawn space probe used to get to the asteroid belt |
| 29% | DART | 4 | Acronym for a NASA space mission for defending Earth that was deployed in 2021 |
| 29% | ATLANTIS | 8 | Name of the last Space Shuttle to complete a mission |
| 28% | JIG | 3 | This was changed to Juliette in 1956 when the NATO Phonetic Alphabet was adopted by the US |
| 28% | FROSTY | 6 | ___ the Snowman, popular Christmas character, who can be brought to life by a magical silk hat |
| 28% | DROODLE | 7 | Humorous "what is this a picture of?" sketch invented by Roger Price in the 1950s |