HST
Current
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=1990-037B
http://archive.stsci.edu/hst/index.html
115
2500
nm
NASA
ESA
Visible, near-ultraviolet, and near-infrared observations of the cosmos and planetary objects. First of NASA's Great Observatories.
JWST
Current
http://www.stsci.edu/jwst/
5000
26000
nm
NASA
ESA
CSA
A large infrared telescope with a 6.5-meter primary mirror. Launch is planned for 2013.
DXS
Past
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=DXS
http://heasarc.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/dxs/archive/dxs_archive.html
420
840
nm
NASA
X-ray spectra of the diffuse soft X-ray background radiation in the Milky Way Galaxy.
IUE
Past
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=1978-012A
http://archive.stsci.edu/iue/index.html
115
320
nm
NASA
ESA
SERC
Ultraviolet observations of selected targets.
AGILE
Current
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=2007-013A
http://agile.asdc.asi.it/
0.030
50
GeV
ASI
Gamma-ray detection of AGN flaring activity, gamma-ray bursts, pulsars, new transients, solar flares, and cosmic ray interactions in the Galaxy.
CGRO
Past
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=1991-027B
http://cossc.gsfc.nasa.gov/archive/index.html
0.030
30000
MeV
NASA
Gamma-ray studies of high-energy sources and processes including gamma-ray bursts and blazars. The second of NASA's Great Observatories.
INTEGRAL
Current
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=2002-048A
http://www.sciops.esa.int/index.php?project=INTEGRAL
0.015
10
MeV
ESA
Gamma-ray spectroscopy, imaging, and accurate positioning of cosmic gamma-ray sources.
HEAO 1
Past
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=1977-075A
http://heasarc.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/heao1/archive/heao1_archive.html
0.2
10000
keV
NASA
X-ray and low-energy gamma ray source survey.
Vela 5B
Past
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=1969-046E
http://heasarc.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/vela5b/archive/vela5b_archive.html
3
750
keV
USAF
Gamma-ray and X-ray study of the celestial sphere.
Suzaku
Astro-E2
Past
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=2005-025A
http://heasarc.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/astroe/astroe2.html
0.4
700
keV
NASA
ISAS
High-resolution X-ray spectroscopy of black holes, and supernovae, and other extended objects.
Ginga
Past
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=1987-012A
http://heasarc.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/ginga/archive/ginga_archive.html
1
400
keV
ISAS
X-ray time variability study of active galaxies (e.g., Seyfert galaxies, BL Lac objects, and quasars).
HETE 2
Past
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=2000-061A
http://heasarc.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/hete2/hete2.html
0.5
400
keV
NASA
X-ray sky survey and multiwavelength observations of gamma-ray bursts.
Beppo-SAX
Past
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=1996-027A
http://heasarc.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/sax/shp_archive.html
0.1
300
keV
ASI
NIVR
X-ray spectroscopy and time variability studies of celestial sources.
RXTE
XTE
Past
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=1995-074A
http://heasarc.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/xte/xhp_archive.html
2
250
keV
NASA
X-ray study of temporal and broad-band spectral phenomena associated with compact objects.
Swift
Current
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=2004-047A
http://swift.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/swift/archive/
10
150
keV
NASA
X-ray study of the afterglow of gamma-ray bursts.
Einstein
HEAO 2
Past
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=1978-103A
http://heasarc.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/einstein/archive/heao2_archive.html
0.2
20
keV
NASA
X-ray imaging and spectrographic studies of targeted sources and studies of the diffuse X-ray background.
Uhuru
SAS-A
Past
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=1970-107A
http://heasarc.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/uhuru/archive/uhuru_archive.html
2
20
keV
NASA
X-ray sky survey. Studies of the structure of extended sources.
Astro 1
Past
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=ASTRO-1
http://archive.stsci.edu/astro/
0.3
12
keV
NASA
Ultraviolet and X-ray observations of selected targets.
ASCA
Past
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=1993-011A
0.4
10
keV
ISAS
NASA
X-ray spectroscopy of astrophysical plasmas with emphasis on the iron K band, and imaging of extended sources.
Copernicus
OAO 3
Past
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=1972-065A
http://archive.stsci.edu/copernicus/
0.5
10.0
keV
NASA
Ultraviolet and x-ray survey mission.
Chandra
Current
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=1999-040B
http://asc.harvard.edu/cda/
0.1
10
keV
NASA
X-ray imaging and spectroscopy of high energy regions in the universe. The third of NASA's Great Observatories.
XMM-Newton
Current
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=1999-066A
http://heasarc.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/xmm/xmmhp_archive.html
0.2
10
keV
ESA
X-ray investigation of emission characteristics of cosmic sources.
ROSAT
Past
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=1990-049A
http://heasarc.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/rosat/rhp_archive.html
0.1
2.5
keV
NASA
BMBF
SERC
X-ray survey mission; x-ray imaging and spectroscopy of selected targets.
EUVE
Past
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=1992-031A
http://archive.stsci.edu/euve/index.html
7
76
nm
NASA
Extreme ultraviolet full-sky survey and spectroscopic observations of selected targets.
CHIPS
Past
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=2003-002B
http://chips.ssl.berkeley.edu/chips.html
9
26
nm
NASA
Extreme ultraviolet all-sky spectroscopy of the diffuse background.
ORFEUS
Past
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=1993-058C
http://archive.stsci.edu/orfeus/index.html
40
125
nm
DARA
NASA
Ultraviolet spectroscopic observations.
Astro 2
Past
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=ASTRO-2
http://archive.stsci.edu/astro/
42.5
320
nm
NASA
Ultraviolet observations of selected targets.
FUSE
Past
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=1999-035A
http://archive.stsci.edu/fuse/
90.5
118.7
nm
NASA
Far-ultraviolet study of the cosmic abundance of deuterium, and the hot gas content of our galaxy.
GALEX
Past
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=2003-017A
http://www.galex.caltech.edu/
130
300
nm
NASA
Ultraviolet mission to explore the origin and evolution of galaxies and the origins of stars and heavy elements.
Hipparcos
Past
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=1989-062B
http://astro.estec.esa.nl/SA-general/Projects/Hipparcos/research.html
375
750
nm
ESA
Optically accurate measurements of trigonometric parallaxes, proper motions, and positions of selected stars.
SOFIA
Current
http://sofia.arc.nasa.gov/
300
1000000
nm
NASA
DLR
Infrared observations of the universe from an airborne observatory.
IRTS
Past
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=1995-011A
http://www.ir.isas.ac.jp/irts/irts_E.html
1000
1000000
nm
ISAS
Infrared astronomy observations emphasizing cosmology, interstellar matter, late type stars and interplanetary dust.
COBE
Past
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=1989-089A
http://lambda.gsfc.nasa.gov/product/cobe/
1250
10000000
nm
NASA
Infrared and microwave measurements of the cosmic infrared background and the cosmic microwave background.
2 MASS
Past
http://www.ipac.caltech.edu/2mass/overview/access.html
1250
2170
nm
NSF
NASA
Near-infrared large-area sky survey; ground-based.
ISO
Past
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=1995-062A
http://www.ipac.caltech.edu/iso/iso.html
2500
240000
nm
ESA
Infrared, detailed study of selected galactic and extragalactic sources.
Spitzer
Past
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=2003-038A
http://www.spitzer.caltech.edu/
3000
180000
nm
NASA
Infrared search for brown dwarfs and protoplanets, study ultraluminous galaxies, and conduct deep surveys. Fourth of NASA's Great Observatories.
MSX
Past
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=1996-024A
http://irsa.ipac.caltech.edu/applications/MSX/
4200
26000
nm
BMDO
Infrared mapping of the Galactic Plane and the Large Magellanic Cloud.
IRAS
Past
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=1983-004A
http://irsa.ipac.caltech.edu/Missions/iras.html
12000
100000
nm
NASA
SERC
NIVR
Infrared full-sky survey.
Herschel
FIRST
Past
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=2009-026A
http://sci.esa.int/science-e/www/area/index.cfm?fareaid=16
0.60
0.67
mm
ESA
Far-infrared and submilimeter photometry and spectroscopy probing the formation of stars and galaxies.
Planck
Past
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=2009-026B
http://sci.esa.int/science-e/www/area/index.cfm?fareaid=17
0.33
10
mm
ESA
Microwave mapping of the structure of the cosmic microwave background.
MSAM
TopHat
Past
http://topweb.gsfc.nasa.gov/
0.4
4.4
mm
NASA
Infrared and microwave study of the cosmic microwave background radiation.
SWAS
Past
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=1998-071A
http://irsa.ipac.caltech.edu/Missions/swas.html
0.55
0.61
mm
NASA
Submillimeter study of interstellar clouds and how stars and planets form.
WMAP
MAP
Past
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=2001-027A
http://wmap.gsfc.nasa.gov/
3.3
13.6
mm
NASA
Microwave measurement of the temperature of the microwave cosmic background radiation.
HALCA
Past
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=1997-005A
http://www.vsop.isas.ac.jp/
1.7
23
GHz
ISAS
Radio imaging of astronomical sources in coordination with ground-based radio observatories. Space Very Long Baseline Interferometry mission.
NVSS
Past
http://www.cv.nrao.edu/nvss/
1.4
1.4
GHz
NRAO
Radio continuum survey; ground-based.
Hakucho
CORSA-B
Past
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=1979-014A
0.1
100
keV
ISAS
The first X-ray astronomy Japanese satellite.
Tenma
Astro-B
Past
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=1983-011A
0.1
60
keV
ISAS
NASA
The second Japanese X-ray astronomy satellite.
EXOSAT
Past
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=1983-051A
0.05
50
keV
ESA
X-ray observations of active galactic nuclei, stellar coronae, cataclysmic variables, white dwarfs, X-ray binaries, clusters of galaxies, and supernova remnants.
Granat
Past
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=1989-096A
2
100000
keV
RKA
Russian dedicated X-ray/gamma ray astronomy mission in collaboration with other European countries.
Fermi
GLAST
Current
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=2008-029A
http://fermi.gsfc.nasa.gov/
0.010
300000
MeV
NASA
Observations of active galactic nuclei, gamma ray bursts, neutron stars, cosmic rays, supernova remnants, and other sources of gamma rays.
GP-B
Gravity Probe-B
Past
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=2004-014A
http://einstein.stanford.edu/
0.0000001
100000000000
Hz
NASA
Tests of Einstein's General Theory of Relativity.
WISE
Wide-field Infrared Survey Mission
Past
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=2009-071A
http://wise.ssl.berkeley.edu/
3400
22000
nm
NASA
Infrared full-sky survey.
Gaia
Current
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=2013-074A
http://www.cosmos.esa.int/web/gaia/home
330
1050
nm
ESA
All-sky survey of Milky Way to a magnitude of 20.
Hitomi
Past
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraftDisplay.do?id=2016-012A
http://astro-h.isas.jaxa.jp/en/
0.1
600
keV
JAXA
NASA
Observe X-rays from supernova remnants, supermassive black holes, and clusters of galaxies.
IXPE
Current
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraft/display.action?id=2021-121A
https://ixpe.msfc.nasa.gov/
2
8
keV
NASA
ASI
Measure the polarization of X-rays from a variety of cosmic sources.
NuSTAR
Current
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraft/display.action?id=2012-031A
https://www.nustar.caltech.edu/
3
79
keV
NASA
Studies the universe in high energy X-rays to better understand the dynamics of black holes, exploding stars and the most extreme active galaxies.
TESS
Current
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraft/display.action?id=2018-038A
https://tess.mit.edu/
600
1000
nm
NASA
Search for exoplanets.
Kepler
Past
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraft/display.action?id=2009-011A
https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/kepler/spacecraft/index.html
400
850
nm
NASA
Search for exoplanets.
COSI
In development
https://cosi.ssl.berkeley.edu/
0.2
5
MeV
NASA
Probe origins of galactic positrons and investigate sites of nucleosynthesis.
Euclid
Current
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraft/display.action?id=2023-092A
https://www.esa.int/Science_Exploration/Space_Science/Euclid
550
2000
nm
ESA
Explore the evolution of the dark universe.
Roman
WFIRST
In development
https://roman.gsfc.nasa.gov/
575
2300
nm
NASA
Search for extra-solar planets and measure the effects of dark energy.
XRISM
Current
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraft/display.action?id=2023-137A
https://xrism.isas.jaxa.jp/en/
0.4
13
keV
JAXA
NASA
Investigate celestial X-ray objects with high-resolution spectroscopy and high-throughput imaging.
NICER
Current
https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/nmc/spacecraft/display.action?id=NICER
https://www.nasa.gov/nicer
0.2
12
keV
NASA
Study of neutron stars.