Unveiling the Universe: NASA's SPHEREx and PUNCH Missions Launch from California

NASA's SPHEREx telescope launched on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket aims to explore cosmic origins and locate water in the Milky Way. The mission will map the universe in several wavelengths and understand cosmic inflation post-Big Bang. Accompanying this, NASA's PUNCH mission explores solar wind effects.

NASA has embarked on an ambitious mission to uncover the secrets of the universe with the launch of its SPHEREx telescope. The project, which took off from California aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, aims to trace the origins of the cosmos and scan the Milky Way for hidden water reserves.

SPHEREx, which stands for Spectro-Photometer for the History of the Universe, Epoch of Reionization and Ices Explorer, will gather data from over 450 million galaxies and more than 100 million stars in the Milky Way. Over its two-year mission, the telescope will generate a detailed three-dimensional map of the cosmos using 102 light wavelengths, to explore the history and evolution of the galaxies.

Launched alongside SPHEREx, NASA's PUNCH mission seeks to explore solar wind dynamics. A constellation of four compact satellites will scrutinize solar atmospheric structures and their transformation into solar wind, which can significantly impact Earth's technology. Together, SPHEREx and PUNCH are set to make groundbreaking contributions to our understanding of both cosmic and solar phenomena.

(With inputs from agencies.)