Compiling images and data from over a decade of work, the Spitzer Space Telescope (SST) provides astronomers with the most comprehensive view of our galaxy yet – the GLIMPSE360.
Launched in 2003, the SST produced the GLIMPSE360 using more than 2 million infrared images taken over the course of 4,142 hours of dedicated observation time. Using the infrared spectrum, Spitzer was able to peer through murky interstellar dust and illuminate a galaxy hidden from the visible spectrum.
"Spitzer is helping us determine where the edge of the galaxy lies," said Ed Churchwell, co-leader of the GLIMPSE team at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. "We are mapping the placement of the spiral arms and tracing the shape of the galaxy."
Beyond that mission, Spitzer has also been instrumental in discovering some of the oldest stars in our Universe and, although well past its effective operational period, the telescope will continue its life actively searching for exoplanets.
Even if Spitzer never makes another discovery, the telescope will be viewed as one of the most effective astronomical instruments ever built. Additionally, according to NASA’s JPL at Caltech, Spitzer’s Universal portrait will help guide the James Webb Telescope in its quest to understand how stars, galaxies, solar systems and our Universe as a whole were formed; which is quite the legacy.
Images and Video Courtesy of NASA and JPL