NASA's next major telescope to see the big picture of the universe

[Jim__]

From phys.org:

NASA is beginning to design its next big astrophysics mission, a space telescope that will provide the largest picture of the universe ever seen with the same depth and clarity as the Hubble Space Telescope.

Scheduled to launch in the mid-2020s, the Wide Field Infrared Survey Telescope (WFIRST) will function as Hubble's wide-eyed cousin. While just as sensitive as Hubble's cameras, WFIRST's 300-megapixel Wide Field Instrument will image a sky area 100 times larger. This means a single WFIRST image will hold the equivalent detail of 100 pictures from Hubble.

"A picture from Hubble is a nice poster on the wall, while a WFIRST image will cover the entire wall of your house," said David Spergel, co-chair of the WFIRST science working group and the Charles A. Young professor of astronomy at Princeton University in New Jersey.

The mission's wide field of view will allow it to generate never-before-seen big pictures of the universe, which will help astronomers explore some of the greatest mysteries of the cosmos, including why the expansion of the universe seems to be accelerating. One possible explanation for this speed-up is dark energy, an unexplained pressure that currently makes up 68 percent of the total content of the cosmos and may have been changing over the history of the universe. Another possibility is that this apparent cosmic acceleration points to the breakdown of Einstein's general theory of relativity across large swaths of the universe. WFIRST will have the power to test both of these ideas.


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[Delmette2.0]

1. Very cool.

I couldn't explain any of the video to another person, but I am fascinated by the possibilities. I hope I live long enough to see the results.

[Igel]

2. It's a good project.

But I really don't like hype.

The video goes with "huge" for the field of view. "Big pictures."

It's a 0.28 square degree field of view. It's a lot, lot larger. But "huge" tends not just to be relative. I mean, a proton is huge. Compared to an electron. But "it's a proton-sized event" hardly inspires all without careful prepping of the context.

[eppur_se_muova]

3. Why not call it ultrawide field -- UFIRST ? nt