NASA's SPHEREx and PUNCH missions, launching on March 2, are expected to provide groundbreaking insights into the origins of the universe and the sun's dynamic outer layers. SPHEREx will peer into the beginnings of the universe and uncover clues to the Big Bang, while PUNCH will track the solar wind's journey from the corona. Space enthusiasts can witness history in the making with live launches and pre-launch briefings.

The Spectrophotometer for the Explorers of Cosmic History, Epochs of Reionization and Ice (SPHEREx) mission will provide the first all-sky spectroscopic survey. During the planned two-year mission, the SPHEREx observatory will collect data from more than 450 million galaxies and more than 100 million stars in the Milky Way to explore the origin of the universe. Source: NASA

NASA and SpaceX are now aiming to launch the SPHEREx and PUNCH missions by Sunday, March 2 (the previous launch was scheduled for February 28). The updated schedule leaves more time for final preparations before the rocket takes off. The launch is scheduled for 10:09 pm EST (7:09 pm Beijing time) from Space Launch Complex 4 East (SLC-4E) at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California.

The SPHEREx mission (Spectrophotometer for Cosmic History, Reionization Epochs, and Ice Explorers) will study what happened in the first seconds after the Big Bang and search for the building blocks of life in our galaxy. At the same time, the PUNCH mission (Polar Coordinate Unification of the Corona and Heliosphere) will study the transition of the solar corona to the solar wind.

Technicians integrate four of NASA's PUNCH (Polarimeters for Unifying the Corona and Heliosphere) satellites onto the Evolved Expendable Launch Vehicle Secondary Payload Adapter Array Ring on Friday, February 14, 2025, at the Astrotech Space Operations Facility at Vandenberg Air Force Base, California. The PUNCH mission will share launch with NASA's SPHEREx (Spectrophotometer for Cosmic History, Epochs of Reionization and Ice Explorer) observatory. Image source: USSF 30th Space Wing/Joe Davila

The pre-launch press conference is scheduled for Saturday, March 1, at 3:30 p.m. ET and will be broadcast live on the NASA+ website. Media representatives may attend in person or by telephone. Media representatives attending in person are asked to plan ahead as space is limited.

The SPHEREx and PUNCH launch livestream will begin at 9:15pm on Sunday, March 2 and will be streamed on NASA+.

Compiled from /ScitechDaily