Tag: SPHEREx (Spectro-Photometer for the History of the Universe and Ices Explorer)

6 Things to Know About SPHEREx, NASA’s Newest Space Telescope

NeRD

5 min read Preparations for Next Moonwalk Simulations Underway (and Underwater) NASA’s SPHEREx observatory undergoes testing at BAE Systems in Boulder, Colorado, in August 2024. Launching no earlier than Feb. 27, 2025, the mission will make the first all-sky spectroscopic survey in the near-infrared, helping to answer some of the biggest questions in astrophysics. BAE Systems/NASA/JPL-Caltech Shaped like a megaphone, the upcoming mission will map the entire sky in infrared light to answer big questions about the universe. Expected to launch no earlier than Thursday, Feb. 27, from Vandenberg Space…

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SPHEREx’s Concentric Cones

NeRD

Short for Spectro-Photometer for the History of the Universe, Epoch of Reionization and Ices Explorer, SPHEREx will create a map of the cosmos like no other. Using a technique called spectroscopy to image the entire sky in 102 wavelengths of infrared light, SPHEREx will gather information about the composition of and distance to millions of galaxies and stars. With this map, scientists will study what happened in the first fraction of a second after the big bang, how galaxies formed and evolved, and the origins of water in planetary systems…

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NASA to Preview Sky-Mapping Space Telescope Ahead of Launch

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NASA’s SPHEREx space observatory was photographed at BAE Systems in Boulder, Colorado, in November 2024 after completing environmental testing. The spacecraft’s three concentric cones help direct heat and light away from the telescope and other components, keeping them cool. Credit: BAE Systems NASA will host a news conference at 12 p.m. EST Friday, Jan. 31, to discuss a new telescope that will improve our understanding of how the universe evolved and search for key ingredients for life in our galaxy. Agency experts will preview NASA’s SPHEREx (Spectro-Photometer for the History…

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NASA’s Kennedy Space Center Looks to Thrive in 2025

NeRD

Photographers at NASA capture the sunset on Tuesday, Jan. 30, 2024, near the headquarters building of the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. NASA/Ben Smegelsky As NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida wraps up a year that will see more than 90 government, commercial, and private missions launch from Florida’s Space Coast, a look to 2025 shows the missions, partnerships, projects, and programs at the agency’s main launch site will continue innovating, inspiring, and pushing the boundaries of exploration for the benefit of humanity. “The next year promises to be…

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What is Dark Energy? Inside our accelerating, expanding Universe

NeRD

11 min read What is Dark Energy? Inside our accelerating, expanding Universe Some 13.8 billion years ago, the universe began with a rapid expansion we call the big bang. After this initial expansion, which lasted a fraction of a second, gravity started to slow the universe down. But the cosmos wouldn’t stay this way. Nine billion years after the universe began, its expansion started to speed up, driven by an unknown force that scientists have named dark energy. But what exactly is dark energy? The short answer is: We don’t…

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Meet the Infrared Telescopes That Paved the Way for NASA’s Webb

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Scientists have been studying the universe with infrared space telescopes for 40 years, including these NASA missions, from left: the Infrared Astronomical Satellite (IRAS), launched in 1983; the Spitzer Space Telescope, launched in 2003; and the James Webb Space Telescope, launched in 2021. NASA/JPL-Caltech The Webb telescope has opened a new window onto the universe, but it builds on missions going back 40 years, including Spitzer and the Infrared Astronomical Satellite. On Dec. 25, NASA will celebrate the two-year launch anniversary of the James Webb Space Telescope – the largest…

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Construction on NASA Mission to Map 450 Million Galaxies Is Under Way

NeRD

6 min read Construction on NASA Mission to Map 450 Million Galaxies Is Under Way Sara Susca, deputy payload manager and payload systems engineer for NASA’s SPHEREx mission, looks up at one of the spacecraft’s photon shields. These concentric cones protect the telescope from light and heat from the Sun and the Earth, which can overwhelm the telescope’s detectors. NASA/JPL-Caltech SHPEREx Photon Shield Fabrication at Applied Aerospace Structures Corp. in Stockton CA Requester: Kaitlyn Soares Photographer: Gregory M. Waigand Date: 2023-07-12 Photolab order: 107469-11.02.03 AACS Key elements are coming together…

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