NASA's Spectro-Photometer for the History of the Universe, Epoch of Reionization and Ices Explorer (SPHEREx) telescope has commenced its mission to conduct an all-sky survey in infrared light. Launched on March 11, 2025, SPHEREx has successfully powered on its detectors and captured initial images, marking a significant milestone in its two-year mission.
The mission involves a global collaboration, including contributions from South Korea, and Taiwan. This international partnership underscores the global nature of scientific research and technological advancement, pooling resources, expertise, and funding to achieve ambitious goals that might be challenging for a single nation.
SPHEREx has already captured initial images containing approximately 100,000 light sources each, including stars and galaxies. These first images, taken on March 27, 2025, confirm that all systems are functioning as expected.
Scientists anticipate that the data from SPHEREx will provide crucial insights into the early universe, the evolution of galaxies, and the origins of water and biogenic ices in star-forming regions. The telescope will map the entire sky four times over its mission, creating a comprehensive 3D map of the cosmos.
The SPHEREx mission is managed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). The science analysis of the SPHEREx data will be conducted by a team of scientists located at multiple institutions. Data will be processed and archived at IPAC at Caltech, which manages JPL for NASA. The mission's principal investigator is based at Caltech with a joint JPL appointment.