NASA launches SPHEREx to illuminate universe's secrets
NASA has launched the new SPHEREx space telescope into orbit, intended to complement the observations of the James Webb Telescope. It was launched from the Vandenberg Base in California aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket and has already begun its mission, accompanied by new satellites.
NASA has initiated two new space missions aimed at studying the Sun and the origins of the universe. The focus is on placing the new SPHEREx space telescope into orbit, which will provide panoramic views of the universe, complementing the observations of the James Webb Telescope (JWST). It was sent into orbit aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, launched from the Vandenberg Base in California. Alongside it, PUNCH satellites were also on board.
The SPHEREx telescope will collect data from over 450 million galaxies
The mission commenced on 11 March. The SPHEREx telescope, as described by NASA, is tasked with investigating the origins of the universe, the history of galaxies, and searching for the ingredients of life in our galaxy. Once fully operational, SPHEREx will scan the entire night sky four times using 102 separate infrared sensors. This will enable scientists to gather data from over 450 million galaxies during its planned two-year mission. The information collected will help answer key cosmology questions, such as the formation and evolution of galaxies, the origin of water, and the birth of the universe.
SPHEREx, which cost $488 million, has been designed to map the universe by observing optical and infrared light. The telescope will orbit the Earth 14 times a day, completing 11,000 orbits during its mission. Using spectroscopic techniques, SPHEREx will filter infrared light from distant clouds of gas and dust. The observatory will begin its two-year primary mission after a verification period of about a month, during which engineers and scientists will ensure that the spacecraft operates correctly.
Scientists hope that this telescope will create a remarkable image of the cosmos using the oldest light. This will allow for the study of galaxies at different stages of their evolution, tracking ice in space, and understanding the period just after the Big Bang.
The oldest light may help create a new image of the cosmos
To achieve its broad scientific goals, SPHEREx will produce a three-dimensional map of the entire sky every six months, providing a wide perspective to complement the work of space telescopes that observe smaller sections of the sky in more detail, such as the James Webb Space Telescope and the Hubble Telescope.
PUNCH satellites have also reached orbit, where they will observe the Sun
In addition to SPHEREx, the rocket also launched another research instrument: four small satellites that form the PUNCH mission. Their goal is to study how the Sun's outer atmosphere, the corona, extends into the solar wind.
The PUNCH satellites now begin a 90-day initiation period during which they will settle into their proper orbit and be calibrated as one "virtual instrument." Craig DeForest from NASA, the principal investigator of the PUNCH mission, stated that this mission will revolutionise space weather forecasting by enabling the tracking of space weather events in three dimensions for the first time.
The telescope and satellites will operate in low Earth orbit
Both instruments will operate in a low Earth orbit synchronised with the Sun's movement, which is crucial for SPHEREx to protect the telescope from the Sun's light and heat and for PUNCH to have a clear view in all directions around the Sun. Both tools will employ spectroscopy.
Spectroscopy can also reveal the composition of cosmic objects, and SPHEREx will examine our galaxy for hidden reservoirs of frozen water and other molecules like carbon dioxide, which are essential to life as we know it.
