Categories: AstronomyInfrared AstronomyMissionsSatellites

Gallery: WISE’s Greatest Hits

WISE First Light image. Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/UCLA

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The WISE mission is now over, with the spacecraft taking its final image on Feb. 1, 2011. WISE was a “cool” infrared mission, with the optics chilled to less than 20 degrees centigrade above absolute zero (20 Kelvins). In its low Earth orbit (523 km above the ground), the spacecraft explored the entire Universe and collected infrared light coming from everywhere in space and studied asteroids, the coolest and dimmest stars, and the most luminous galaxies. Expect to hear and see more from WISE, however in the future. More images will be released from the team in April and in the spring of 2012. Here’s a look back at some of the great images from WISE’s 13 months in space:

The red dot at the center of this image is the first near-Earth asteroid discovered by NASA's Wide-Field Infrared Survey Explorer, or WISE Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/UCLA

The red smudge at the center of this picture is the first comet discovered by NASA's Wide-Field Infrared Survey Explorer, or WISE. Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/UCLA

The immense Andromeda galaxy, also known as Messier 31 or simply M31, is captured in full in this February 2010 image from WISE. credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/UCLA

NGC 3603, as seen by WISE. credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/UCLA

NGC 1514, sometimes called the Crystal Ball nebula shows a new double ring feature in an image from WISE. Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/UCLA

This image from WISE shows the Tadpole nebula. Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/UCLA

The Heart and Soul nebulae are seen in this infrared mosaic from WISE. Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/UCLA

An image released in August 2010 from WISE image of the Small Magellanic Cloud. Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/WISE Team

This oddly colorful nebula is the supernova remnant IC 443 as seen by WISE. Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/UCLA

The last image that will ever be taken by the WISE spacecraft. Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/WISE Team

And if you want to see how it all started, here’s a video of WISE’s launch:

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Nancy Atkinson

Nancy has been with Universe Today since 2004, and has published over 6,000 articles on space exploration, astronomy, science and technology. She is the author of two books: "Eight Years to the Moon: the History of the Apollo Missions," (2019) which shares the stories of 60 engineers and scientists who worked behind the scenes to make landing on the Moon possible; and "Incredible Stories from Space: A Behind-the-Scenes Look at the Missions Changing Our View of the Cosmos" (2016) tells the stories of those who work on NASA's robotic missions to explore the Solar System and beyond. Follow Nancy on Twitter at https://twitter.com/Nancy_A and and Instagram at and https://www.instagram.com/nancyatkinson_ut/