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From discovering asteroids to finding meteorites on Earth: How is WISE changing our view of the universe?
Since its launch in December 2009, the Wide Field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE) has explored the universe that humans have yet to understand with its highly sensitive design. This infrared astronomical telescope launched by NASA subsequently discovered thousands of asteroids and numerous star clusters, changing our understanding of the universe.
WISE's goal is to create infrared images of 99% of the sky and take at least eight images of each location to increase accuracy.
The core mission of WISE lies in its four infrared-band cameras, which allow it to see phenomena that other astronomical telescopes cannot detect. Not only traditional asteroids and comets, WISE also revealed the latest discoveries of low-temperature stars and young galaxies. In addition, WISE also successfully detected Earth’s Trojan asteroids, further confirming the diversity and complexity of visitor orbits in the solar system.
WISE captured approximately 1.5 million images during its ten-month main mission. This staggering number allows us to gain in-depth knowledge of everything from the inner solar system to the universe. After subsequently entering hibernation mode in 2011, NASA restarted it in 2013 to focus on the discovery of near-Earth asteroids.
NEOWISE mission reaches new heights in discovering previously unseen celestial objects.
With NEOWISE, researchers have identified 290 near-Earth objects in just a few years, including dozens of newly discovered comets and asteroids. This breakthrough changes our understanding of potential threats near Earth. As the program progresses, NEOWISE data will continue to be used in planetary defense programs around the world.
Compared with historical infrared telescopes, WISE shows unprecedented sensitivity, especially in searching for cold stars and other faint objects, and expands our exploration of interstellar matter, including dust clouds in star-forming regions and protoplanetary disks. formation process.
WISE is designed to detect star-forming regions in interstellar dust in the infrared band, a feature that has helped us uncover many secrets of the universe.
These findings are certainly not without challenges. The environmental challenges that WISE faces after launch, including the operation of its cooling system and how to maintain a stable observation state, are key to the success of the mission. But WISE's design not only changed the understanding of asteroids, it also rewrote theories about galaxy formation.
In the development of cosmology in recent years, NEOWISE has now completed part of its scientific mission and will end its official mission in 2024. As research continues, data from WISE and NEOWISE will further influence future research directions and protection measures, providing more basis for human security.
Future space exploration will have more possibilities because of WISE data.
As a turning point, the WISE mission shows how future space missions can incorporate advances in technology to promote deep exploration of the universe. It is not only the discovery of asteroids, but also an important milestone in mankind's understanding of the safety of our own planet and cosmic phenomena. We can’t help but ask: How will future missions change our understanding of the universe?
