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SPHEREx
NASA near-infrared space observatory / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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SPHEREx (Spectro-Photometer for the History of the Universe, Epoch of Reionization, and Ices Explorer)[4] is a future near-infrared space observatory that will perform an all-sky survey to measure the near-infrared spectra of approximately 450 million galaxies. In February 2019, SPHEREx was selected by NASA for its next Medium-Class Explorers mission, beating out two competing mission concepts: Arcus and FINESSE.[5][6] As of August 2022[update], SPHEREx is targeted to launch no earlier than April 2025 on a Falcon 9 launch vehicle from Vandenberg Space Force Base.[2][7] The principal investigator is James Bock at California Institute of Technology (Caltech) in Pasadena, California.
![]() Artist's concept of SPHEREx | |
Names | Spectro-Photometer for the History of the Universe, Epoch of Reionization, and Ices Explorer |
---|---|
Mission type | Astrophysics |
Operator | NASA |
Website | http://spherex.caltech.edu/ |
Mission duration | 25 months (planned) |
Spacecraft properties | |
Manufacturer | Ball Aerospace & Technologies |
Launch mass | 178 kg [1] |
Start of mission | |
Launch date | April 2025 (planned)[2] |
Rocket | Falcon 9[3] |
Launch site | Vandenberg SFB, SLC-4E[3] |
Contractor | SpaceX |
Orbital parameters | |
Reference system | Geocentric orbit |
Regime | Low Earth orbit |
Perigee altitude | 700 km (430 mi) |
Apogee altitude | 700 km (430 mi) |
Inclination | 97.00° |
Period | 90.00 minutes |
Main telescope | |
Diameter | 20 cm |
Wavelengths | Near-infrared |
Transponders | |
Band | S-band, Ka-band |
Instruments | |
Spectrophotometer | |