NASA Sets Launch Coverage for Missions Studying Cosmic Origins, Sun

Editor’s note: This advisory was updated Feb. 21, 2025, to reflect a new target launch date, as well as updated dates for the prelaunch news conference and launch day events.

NASA will provide live coverage of prelaunch and launch activities for SPHEREx (Spectro-Photometer for the History of the Universe, Epoch of Reionization and Ices Explorer), the agency’s newest space telescope. This will lift off with another NASA mission, Polarimeter to Unify the Corona and Heliosphere, or PUNCH, which will study the Sun’s solar wind.

The launch window opens no earlier than 10:09 p.m. EST (7:09 p.m. PST) Friday, Feb. 28, for the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket that will lift off from Space Launch Complex 4 East at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. Watch coverage on NASA+. Learn how to watch NASA content through a variety of platforms, including social media.

The SPHEREx mission will improve our understanding of how the universe evolved and search for key ingredients for life in our galaxy.

The four small spacecraft that comprise PUNCH will observe the Sun’s corona as it transitions into solar wind.

The deadline for media accreditation for in-person coverage of this launch has passed. NASA’s media credentialing policy is available online. For questions about media accreditation, please email: ksc-media-accreditat@mail.nasa.gov.

NASA’s mission coverage is as follows (all times Eastern and subject to change based on real-time operations):

Tuesday, Feb. 25

2 p.m. – SPHEREx and PUNCH Science Overview News Conference

• Shawn Domagal-Goldman, acting director, Astrophysics Division, NASA Headquarters
• Joe Westlake, director, Heliophysics Division, NASA Headquarters
• Nicholeen Viall, PUNCH Mission Scientist, NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center
• Rachel Akeson, SPHEREx science data center lead, Caltech/IPAC
• Phil Korngut, SPHEREx instrument scientist, Caltech

The news conference will stream on NASA+. Media may ask questions in person or via phone. Limited auditorium space will be available for in-person participation. For the dial-in number and passcode, media should contact the NASA Kennedy newsroom no later than one hour before the start of the event at ksc-newsroom@mail.nasa.gov.

Thursday, Feb. 27

3:30 p.m. – SPHEREx and PUNCH Prelaunch News Conference

• Mark Clampin, acting deputy associate administrator, Science Mission Directorate, NASA Headquarters
• David Cheney, PUNCH program executive, NASA Headquarters
• James Fanson, SPHEREx project manager, NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory
• Denton Gibson, launch director, NASA’s Launch Services Program
• Julianna Scheiman, director, NASA Science Missions, SpaceX
• U.S. Air Force 1st Lt. Ina Park, 30th Operations Support Squadron launch weather officer

Coverage of the prelaunch news conference will stream live on NASA+.

Media may ask questions in person and via phone. Limited auditorium space will be available for in-person participation. For the dial-in number and passcode, media should contact the Kennedy newsroom no later than one hour before the start of the event at ksc-newsroom@mail.nasa.gov.

Friday, Feb. 28

12 p.m. – SPHEREx and PUNCH Launch Preview will stream live on NASA+.

9:15 p.m. – Launch coverage begins on NASA+.

10:09 p.m. – Launch window opens.

Audio Only Coverage

Audio only of the launch coverage will be carried on the NASA “V” circuits, which may be accessed by dialing 321-867-1220, or -1240. On launch day, “mission audio,” countdown activities without NASA+ media launch commentary, will be carried on 321-867-7135.

NASA Website Launch Coverage

Launch day coverage of the mission will be available on the agency’s website. Coverage will include links to live streaming and blog updates beginning no earlier than 9:15 p.m., Feb. 28, as the countdown milestones occur. On-demand streaming video and photos of the launch will be available shortly after liftoff.

For questions about countdown coverage, contact the Kennedy newsroom at 321-867-2468. Follow countdown coverage on the SPHEREx blog.

Attend the Launch Virtually

Members of the public can register to attend this launch virtually. NASA’s virtual guest program for this mission also includes curated launch resources, notifications about related opportunities or changes, and a stamp for the NASA virtual guest passport following launch.

Watch, Engage on Social Media

You can also stay connected by following and tagging these accounts:

X: @NASA, @NASAJPL, @NASAUnivese, @NASASun, @NASAKennedy, @NASA_LSP

Facebook: NASA, NASAJPL, NASA Universe, NASASunScience, NASA’s Launch Services Program

Instagram: @NASA, @NASAKennedy, @NASAJPL, @NASAUnivese

For more information about these missions, visit:

https://science.nasa.gov/mission/spherex/

https://science.nasa.gov/mission/punch/

Alise Fisher – SPHEREx
Headquarters, Washington
202-617-4977
alise.m.fisher@nasa.gov

Sarah Frazier – PUNCH
Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md.
202-853-7191
sarah.frazier@nasa.gov

Laura Aguiar
Kennedy Space Center, Florida
321-593-6245
laura.aquiar@nasa.gov