Current Missions
Current Missions
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Launch Date: December 18, 1999
Designed to capture high-resolution images of Earth, the Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer, or ASTER, instrument is one of five instruments aboard NASA's Terra satellite.ASTER
Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer
Advanced Spaceborne Thermal Emission and Reflection Radiometer -
Launch Date: April 3, 2013
The Airborne Snow Observatory is an Earth-based mission designed to collect data on the snow melt flowing out of major water basins in the western United States.
ASO
Airborne Snow Observatory
Airborne Snow Observatory -
Launch Date: 2012
AVIRIS-NG is an acronym for the Airborne Visible InfraRed Imaging Spectrometer - Next Generation.
AVIRIS-NG
Airborne Visible-Infrared Imaging Spectrometer - Next Generation
Airborne Visible-Infrared Imaging Spectrometer - Next Generation -
Launch Date: 1986
AVIRIS is the first full spectral range imaging spectrometer and dedicated to Earth Remote Measurement.
AVIRIS
Airborne Visible/Infrared Imaging Spectrometer
Airborne Visible/Infrared Imaging Spectrometer -
Launch Date: May 4, 2002
The Atmospheric Infrared Sounder, or AIRS, instrument is a key tool for climate studies on greenhouse gases and carbon dioxide distribution, as well as weather forecasts.AIRS
Atmospheric Infrared Sounder
Atmospheric Infrared Sounder -
Launch Date: June 15, 2004
The Autonomous Sciencecraft Experiment is an experimental technology on the Earth Observer 1 spacecraft that can autonomously make decisions about what data to collect, process that data and send it back to Earth.ASE
Autonomous Sciencecraft Experiment
Autonomous Sciencecraft Experiment -
Launch Date: October 15, 1997
Orbiting the ringed planet Saturn and its numerous moons, the Cassini spacecraft has been and continues to be a keystone of exploration of the Saturnian system and the properties of gaseous planets in our solar system.Cassini
Cassini-Huygens
Cassini-Huygens -
Launch Date: April 28, 2006
Part of NASA's fleet of weather- and climate-tracking satellites, CloudSat uses advanced radar to examine the inner structure of clouds, helping researchers better understand how severe tropical cyclones as well as climate changes related to clouds occur.Cloudsat
Cloudsat -
Launch Date: September 27, 2007
Dawn orbited the protoplanet Vesta and is now in orbit around the dwarf planet Ceres as part of its mission to characterize the conditions and processes that shaped our solar system.Dawn
Dawn -
Launch Date: December 3, 2015
The Disturbance Reduction System, or DRS, designed as part of the Space Technology 7 project, is an experimental system for measuring gravitational waves in space, which are thought to contain important data about the history of the universe.DRS
Disturbance Reduction System
Disturbance Reduction System -
Launch Date: June 18, 2009
An instrument flying aboard NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, the Diviner Lunar Radiometer Experiment is designed to measure surface temperatures on the moon, providing key information for future lunar surface operations and exploration.DLRE
Diviner Lunar Radiometer Experiment
Diviner Lunar Radiometer Experiment -
Launch Date: March 17, 2002
An award-winning mission that's changed the way we study Earth's gravitational forces, the Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment, or GRACE, mission flies twin spacecraft in tandem around Earth to study key changes in the planet's waters and ice sheets.GRACE
Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment
Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment -
Launch Date: September 20, 2014
The ISS-RapidScat instrument is a speedy and cost-effective replacement for NASA's QuikScat Earth satellite, which monitored ocean winds to provide essential measurements used in weather predictions, including hurricane monitoring.ISS-RapidScat
ISS-RapidScat -
Launch Date: June 20, 2008
Jason 2 is an Earth satellite designed to make observations of ocean topography for investigations into sea-level rise and the relationship between ocean circulation and climate change.Jason 2
Jason 2 -
Launch Date: January 17, 2016
Extending the timeline of ocean surface topography measurements begun by the Topex/Poseidon and Jason 1 and 2 satellites, Jason 3 will make highly detailed measurements of sea-level on Earth to gain insight into ocean circulation and climate change.Jason 3
Jason 3 -
Launch Date: August 5, 2011
The Juno spacecraft, which successfully entered the orbit of Jupiter on July 4, 2016, will for the first time peer below the dense cover of clouds to answer questions about the gas giant and the origins of our solar system.Juno
Juno -
Launch Date: March 6, 2009
Kepler is a space telescope designed to survey a portion of the Milky Way galaxy in search of exoplanets, which are planets outside our solar system.Kepler
Kepler -
Launch Date: December 6, 2010
The Large Binocular Telescope Interferometer, or LBTI, is a ground-based instrument connecting two 8-meter class telescopes on Mount Graham in Arizona to form the largest single-mount telescope in the world.LBTI
Large Binocular Telescope Interferometer
Large Binocular Telescope Interferometer -
Launch Date: July 7, 2003
Opportunity was the second of the two rovers launched in 2003 to land on Mars and begin traversing the Red Planet in search of signs of past life.MER
Mars Exploration Rover - Opportunity
Mars Exploration Rover - Opportunity -
Launch Date: April 7, 2001
With more than 10 years in orbit and counting, the 2001 Mars Odyssey spacecraft has spent more time in orbit around the Red Planet, collecting data on Mars' climate and geology, than any other spacecraft in history.Mars Odyssey
Mars Odyssey -
Launch Date: August 12, 2005
The Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter, or MRO, has studied the Red Planet's atmosphere and terrain from orbit since 2006 and also serves as a key data relay station for other Mars missions, including the Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity.MRO
Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter
Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter -
Launch Date: November 26, 2011
The Mars Science Laboratory mission's Curiosity rover, the most technologically advanced rover ever built, landed in Mars' Gale Crater the evening of Aug.MSL
Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity Rover
Mars Science Laboratory Curiosity Rover -
Launch Date: March 2, 2004
Flying aboard the European Space Agency's Rosetta spacecraft, the NASA-built Microwave Instrument for the Rosetta Orbiter, or MIRO, is studying gases given off by comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko now that the spacecraft has successfully entered orbit around the object in August 2014.MIRO
Microwave Instrument for the Rosetta Orbiter
Microwave Instrument for the Rosetta Orbiter -
Launch Date: July 15, 2004
Making up one piece of the most advanced and accurate atmospheric chemistry laboratory ever deployed in space, the Microwave Limb Sounder, or MLS, instrument flies aboard NASA's Aura Earth satellite with three other instruments.MLS
Microwave Limb Sounder
Microwave Limb Sounder -
Launch Date: December 18, 1999
The Multi-angle Imaging SpectroRadiometer, or MISR, instrument is one of five instruments aboard NASA's Terra satellite, which is collecting important data on the causes and effects of global climate change.MISR
Multi-angle Imaging SpectroRadiometer
Multi-angle Imaging SpectroRadiometer -
Launch Date: December 14, 2009
The NEOWISE mission uses a space telescope to hunt for asteroids and comets, including those that could pose a threat to Earth.NEOWISE
NEOWISE
NEOWISE -
Launch Date: June 13, 2012
The Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array, or NuSTAR, mission will study the universe in high energy X-rays to better understand the dynamics of black holes, exploding stars and the most extreme active galaxies.NuSTAR
Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array
Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array -
Launch Date: April 18, 2014
The Optical Payload for Lasercomm Science, or OPALS, is a technology demonstration aboard the International Space Station designed to test the use of focused laser energy for space communications.OPALS
Optical Payload for Lasercomm Science
Optical Payload for Lasercomm Science -
Launch Date: July 2, 2014
The Orbiting Carbon Observatory 2, or OCO-2, is an Earth satellite mission designed to study the sources and sinks of carbon dioxide globally and provide scientists with a better idea of how carbon is contributing to climate change.OCO-2
Orbiting Carbon Observatory 2
Orbiting Carbon Observatory 2 -
Launch Date: 2012
The coastal zone is home to a high fraction of humanity and is increasingly affected by natural and human-induced events from tsunamis to toxic blooms and oil spills.
PRISM
Portable Remote Imaging SpectroMeter
Portable Remote Imaging SpectroMeter -
Launch Date: June 19, 1999
The SeaWinds instrument, which flies on NASA's Quick Scatterometer Earth satellite, is a specialized microwave radar that measures near-surface wind velocity and cloud cover over Earth's oceans.SeaWinds
SeaWinds -
Launch Date: January 31, 2015
Soil Moisture Active Passive, or SMAP, is an Earth satellite mission designed to measure and map Earth's soil moisture and freeze/thaw state to better understand terrestrial water, carbon and energy cycles.SMAP
Soil Moisture Active Passive
Soil Moisture Active Passive -
Launch Date: February 12, 1997
The Space Very Long Baseline Interferometry is a network of space- and Earth-based radio antennas that combine to create the equivalent of a telescope with a diameter more than two-and-a-half times the diameter of Earth.Space VLBI
Space Very Long Baseline Interferometry
Space Very Long Baseline Interferometry -
Launch Date: August 25, 2003
Considered a cousin of the Hubble Space Telescope, the Spitzer Space Telescope is designed to study the early universe in infrared light.Spitzer Space Telescope
Spitzer Space Telescope -
Launch Date: July 15, 2004
An infrared sensor instrument aboard NASA's Aura Earth satellite, the Tropospheric Emission Spectrometer, or TES, is designed to measure and investigate Earth's troposphere, the lowest level of Earth's atmosphere, and one of its key chemical components, ozone.TES
Tropospheric Emission Spectrometer
Tropospheric Emission Spectrometer -
Launch Date: August 18, 2007
The Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle Synthetic Aperture Radar, or UAVSAR, is an imaging radar instrument that collects key measurements of Earth deformation.UAVSAR
Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle Synthetic Aperture Radar
Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle Synthetic Aperture Radar -
Launch Date: September 5, 1977
Voyager 1 reached interstellar space in August 2012 and is the most distant human-made object in existence.Voyager 1
Voyager 1 -
Launch Date: August 20, 1977
The Voyager 2 spacecraft, which has been in operation since 1977 and is the only spacecraft to have ever visited Uranus and Neptune, is currently making its way to interstellar space, where its twin spacecraft, Voyager 1, has resided since August 2012.Voyager 2
Voyager 2 -
Launch Date: December 14, 2009
WISE launched into the morning skies above Vandenberg Air Force Base in central California on Dec.
WISE
Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer
Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer