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The Spitzer Space Telescope is a telescope launched into space by NASA in 2003. It is the fourth telescope in the Great Observatories program (the Hubble Space Telescope was the first). The Hubble Space Telescope takes pictures of visible light, and the Spitzer Space Telescope takes pictures of infrared light. Unlike Hubble, Spitzer orbits the Sun instead of the Earth.
The Spitzer Space Telescope is named after the scientist Lyman Spitzer. It was planned to last for 2.5 years, but it actually lasted until 2009. Some parts of the telescope are still working even today.
The Spitzer Space Telescope was able to see very good detail. Spitzer was the first telescope that could see light from extrasolar planets (planets outside the Solar System.) It was also able to see some of the first stars in the universe, believed to be only 100 million years after the Big Bang.
Henize 206 viewed by different instruments in March 2004. The separate IRAC and MPIS images are at right.
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Spitzer's first light image of IC 1396.
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The Helix Nebula. Blue shows infrared light of 3.6 to 4.5 micrometers; green shows infrared light of 5.8 to 8 micrometers; and red shows infrared light of 24 micrometers.
Artificial color image of the Double Helix Nebula, thought to be generated at the galactic center by magnetic torsion 1000 times greater than the Sun's.
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An arrow points to the embryonic star HOPS-68, where scientists believe forsterite crystals are raining down onto the central dust disk.
Artist's impression of the TRAPPIST-1 system
