Carruthers Geocorona Observatory

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Carruthers Geocorona Observatory
Carruthers Geocorona Observatory Images (SVS14830 - 24-22101-Carruthers SpaceVehicleComplete-Edited).jpg
A BAE systems technician inspecting the fully assembled Carruthers Geocorona Observatory
Mission type Space telescope
Operator NASA
Website https://science.nasa.gov/mission/carruthers-geocorona-observatory/
Start of mission
Launch date24 September 24 2025, 11:30 UTC
Rocket Falcon 9 Block 5
Launch site Kennedy, LC-39A
Contractor SpaceX
Orbital parameters
Reference system Geocentric orbit
Regime L1

The Carruthers Geocorona Observatory, previously called Global Lyman-alpha Imagers of the Dynamic Exosphere (GLIDE), is a NASA mission led by the University of Illinois, which will survey ultraviolet light emitted by Earth's outermost atmospheric layer, the exosphere, and geocorona. [1] [2]

Contents

Name

The mission name was given to honour George R. Carruthers, a pioneer American space physicist, engineer, and inventor. He is widely recognised for his groundbreaking contributions to ultraviolet astronomy. His most famous invention was the Far Ultraviolet Camera/Spectrograph, [3] a compact but powerful telescope that was placed by the astronauts of Apollo 16 on the Moon in 1972. [4]

Launch

NOAA's SWFO-L1, along with NASA's Interstellar Mapping and Acceleration Probe (IMAP) and Carruthers Geocorona Observatory fully integrated for launch Three Missions Fully Integrated (54798160955).png
NOAA's SWFO-L1, along with NASA's Interstellar Mapping and Acceleration Probe (IMAP) and Carruthers Geocorona Observatory fully integrated for launch

Carruthers Geocorona Observatory was launched as a secondary payload on the SpaceX Falcon 9 launch vehicle carrying NASA's Interstellar Mapping and Acceleration Probe (IMAP) spacecraft, together with NOAA's SWFO-L1, on 24 September 2025. [5] [6] [7]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "GLIDE (Carruthers Geocorona Observatory)". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved 1 March 2025.
  2. ↑ "NASA Selects Heliophysics Missions of Opportunity for Space Science Research and Technology Demonstration". NASA. Retrieved 1 March 2025.
  3. ↑ "Looking Back: Dr. George Carruthers and Apollo 16 Far Ultraviolet Camera/Spectrograph". NASA. Retrieved 1 March 2025.
  4. ↑ "BAE Systems completes integration of NASA's Carruthers Observatory". BAE Systems. Retrieved 1 March 2025.
  5. ↑ Clark, Stephen (24 September 2025). "A "cosmic carpool" is traveling to a distant space weather observation post". Ars Technica. Retrieved 24 September 2025.
  6. ↑ "NASA Selects Proposals to Further Study the Fundamental Nature of Space" (Press release). NASA. 13 August 2019. Retrieved 9 October 2019.PD-icon.svg This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain .
  7. ↑ "NASA Awards Launch Services Contract for IMAP Mission" (Press release). NASA. 25 September 2020. Retrieved 25 September 2020.PD-icon.svg This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain .
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