Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer

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Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE)

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Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer

United States satellite

Also known as: WISE

Written by Erik Gregersen

Fact-checked by The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Article History

Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE), U.S. satellite that observed astronomical objects at infrared wavelengths. It was launched on December 14, 2009, by a Delta II launch vehicle from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, into a polar orbit 500 km (310 miles) above Earth. WISE contained a 40-cm (16-inch) telescope that surveyed the entire sky at wavelengths of 3.4, 4.6, 12, and 22 microns (1 micron is 10⁻⁶ metre) from January to August 2010. After the solid hydrogen that kept WISE’s detectors cool was exhausted, WISE was still able to use the 3.4- and 4.6-micron detectors to survey the main ...(100 of 376 words)

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