NASA Launches Telescope to Unlock Universe’s Origins

NASA successfully launched its SPHEREx space telescope on Tuesday aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California.

The mission aims to map the entire sky in unprecedented detail, shedding light on the formation of galaxies and the rapid expansion of the universe in its earliest moments.

SPHEREx, short for Spectro-Photometer for the History of the Universe, Epoch of Reionization, and Ices Explorer, is a $488 million project designed to analyze light from billions of cosmic sources.

By splitting this light into its component wavelengths, the telescope will create a three-dimensional map of over 450 million galaxies in 102 colors. Scientists anticipate groundbreaking discoveries as SPHEREx scans the entire sky every six months using its infrared sensors.

In addition to deep-space exploration, the telescope will also investigate the presence of water and life-building molecules in the icy clouds of the Milky Way, where new solar systems are born.

Joining the launch was NASA’s PUNCH mission, a set of four small satellites designed to study the Sun's corona and its transformation into solar wind, which affects space weather throughout the solar system.

Following weather-related delays, the successful launch marks a major step in NASA’s efforts to uncover the secrets of the cosmos and better understand the forces shaping our universe.