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NASA Launches SPHEREx to Explore Galactic Origins and Life-Bearing Ingredients

NASA’s latest venture into astrophysics, the SPHEREx observatory, has successfully taken to the skies. Designed to explore the beginnings of the universe and the evolution of galaxies, SPHEREx, which stands for Spectro-Photometer for the History of the Universe, Epoch of Reionization, and Ices Explorer, launched aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket at 8:10 p.m. PDT on March 11 from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California.

Alongside SPHEREx on this mission were four small satellites forming the PUNCH (Polarimeter to Unify the Corona and Heliosphere) mission, aimed at understanding the dynamics of the Sun’s outer atmosphere and the solar wind.

According to Nicky Fox, associate administrator for NASA’s Science Mission Directorate, the joint launch of SPHEREx and PUNCH enhances the potential for groundbreaking scientific discoveries. “Everything in NASA science is interconnected,” she remarked. “Congratulations to both mission teams as they explore the cosmos from distant galaxies to our local star. I am excited to see the data returned in the years to come.”

Communication with SPHEREx was established by ground controllers at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) at 9:31 p.m. PDT. Following a month-long validation phase, the observatory will commence its primary mission, which is set to last two years, focusing on confirming its operational capabilities.

Laurie Leshin, director of NASA JPL, praised the dedication of the SPHEREx team amid challenges like the Southern California wildfires, emphasizing their commitment to unveiling the universe’s mysteries. “We now eagerly await the scientific breakthroughs from SPHEREx’s all-sky survey — including insights into how the universe began and where the ingredients of life reside,” she stated.

Meanwhile, the PUNCH satellites successfully separated from the rocket approximately 53 minutes post-launch, and all spacecraft have established communication with their control teams. Over the next 90 days, PUNCH will complete a commissioning phase to ensure proper orbital alignment and instrument calibration to analyze solar wind imagery effectively.

Both missions will orbit in a low Earth, sun-synchronous trajectory, ensuring that the Sun’s position remains stable for optimal observational conditions, crucial for SPHEREx to shield its telescope from sunlight and for PUNCH to monitor the solar wind from all angles.

SPHEREx is tasked with creating a comprehensive 3D map of the entire celestial sky twice a year, offering broader perspectives that complement the more focused studies conducted by prominent space telescopes like NASA’s James Webb and Hubble Space Telescopes.

Utilizing spectroscopy, SPHEREx will measure distances to an estimated 450 million galaxies and investigate their distribution, which has been shaped by a significant cosmic event known as inflation that occurred nearly 14 billion years ago. This mission will also assess the cumulative brightness of all galaxies, shedding light on cosmic formation and evolution.

Moreover, the spectroscopic methods employed by SPHEREx will enable the survey of the Milky Way for potential reserves of frozen water ice and other molecular components vital to life.

As James Fanson, SPHEREx project manager at JPL, noted, the quest to answer profound questions about humanity’s existence and potential extraterrestrial life is more attainable than ever, marking a significant era for scientific inquiry.

Similarly, NASA’s PUNCH mission aims to gain a three-dimensional understanding of the inner solar system and the mechanics of the Sun’s corona, particularly how its mass and energy contribute to the solar wind, a phenomenon vital for understanding space weather. This research is essential, as events like coronal mass ejections could pose risks to both spacecraft and astronauts.

Craig DeForest, the principal investigator for PUNCH, highlighted the mission’s goal of demystifying the solar phenomena that permeate the space between planets. “The space between planets is not an empty void. It’s full of turbulent solar wind that washes over Earth,” he explained.

About SPHEREx and PUNCH Missions

The SPHEREx project is organized by NASA JPL for the agency’s Astrophysics Division under the Science Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters. The spacecraft and telescope were developed by BAE Systems. The analysis of SPHEREx data will be conducted by a multi-institution team in the U.S., South Korea, and Taiwan, with data management hosted at IPAC at Caltech. The resulting SPHEREx datasets will be publicly accessible via the NASA-IPAC Infrared Science Archive.

The PUNCH mission is led by the Southwest Research Institute, which constructed the four satellites and their instruments, while additional components were developed by institutions like the Naval Research Laboratory. The mission is coordinated from SwRI’s operation center in Boulder, Colorado, and managed within the Explorers Program Office at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center.

NASA’s Launch Services Program facilitated the launch, further showcasing the collaborative efforts that underlie these scientific missions.

For comprehensive updates on NASA’s various scientific undertakings, visit: http://science.nasa.gov

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www.nasa.gov