Having scheduled for just 2.5 years, initially in 25th August 2003, NASA’s Spitzer Space Telescope has been able to complete 15 whole years in space. Being the youngest member of NASA’s “Great Observatory” programme, it is assembled in such a way that it can view the whole universe in different and complementary wavelengths of light.
This Spitzer Space Telescope is heliocentric, meaning it orbits the sun rather than the Earth like the Hubble. This gives this infrared telescope a different view of the detectable universe. It has used this view to look at young stars, and even help support the New Horizons probe.
Everyone is amazed as it has, unexpectedly, persisted for more than 5 years. The US Space Agency said, “The space telescope has lasted far beyond its expected lifetime.”
Paul Hertz, Astrophysics Director at NASA, said, “In its 15 years of operations, Spitzer has opened our eyes to new ways of viewing the universe. Spitzer’s discoveries extend from our own planetary backyard to planets around other stars, to the far reaches of the universe.” He added: “And by working in collaboration with NASA’s other Great Observatories, Spitzer has helped scientists gain a more complete picture of many cosmic phenomena.”
NASA, for celebrating Spitzer’s achievements, released two multimedia products – The NASA Selfies app for iOS and Android, and the Exoplanet Excursions VR Experience for Oculus and Vive, as well as a 360 degrees video version for smartphones, as stated in a statement.
