JPL
Careers
Education
Science & Technology
JPL Logo
JPL Logo

IRAS

Infrared Astronomical Satellite

The Infrared Astronomical Satellite, or IRAS, was the first mission to put a telescope in space to survey the sky in infrared.

Visit Mission Website

Mission Statistics

Launch Date

Jan. 25, 1983

Type

Orbiter

Target

Stars and Galaxies

Status

Past

About the mission

The Infrared Astronomical Satellite, or IRAS, was the first space telescope to study the sky in infrared light. Many infrared wavelengths are blocked by Earth’s atmosphere and therefore cannot be observed from the ground; the IRAS mission showed that the universe is rich in sources emitting those infrared wavelengths. IRAS detected about 350,000 infrared sources, increasing the total number of cataloged astronomical sources by about 70%. The mission made a number of unexpected discoveries, including: six new comets, evidence of dust grains around the stars Vega and Fomalhaut, which strongly suggested the existence of planetary systems around other stars. Because infrared light can penetrate dust and gas, even when visible light (the kind human eyes can detect) cannot, IRAS probed deeper into the core of our galaxy, the Milky Way, than any previous observatory.

IRAS was a technical and scientific precursor to future infrared space missions including the Spitzer Space Telescope, James Webb Space Telescope, the Infrared Space Observatory, and the Herschel observatory. 

The telescope was a joint project of NASA, the Netherlands Agency for Aerospace Programmes and the United Kingdom's Science and Engineering Research Council.

Instruments

  • Survey array
  • Low Resolution Spectrometer (LRS)
  • Chopped Photometric Channel (CPC)

Mission Highlights

Nov. 21, 1983

Following a 10-month-long mission, the space telescope exhausts its cryogen and ceases operations.
Stars and Galaxies target image

More about Solar System and Stars and Galaxies

News .

NASA’s Magellan Data Reveals Volcanic Activity on Venus

News .

Engineers Keep an Eye on Fuel Supply of NASA’s Oldest Mars Orbiter

News .

NASA’s Webb Telescope Captures Rarely Seen Prelude to Supernova

News .

Study Finds Ocean Currents May Affect Rotation of Europa’s Icy Crust

Video .

What's Up - March 2023

News .

Study Finds Venus’ ‘Squishy’ Outer Shell May Be Resurfacing the Planet

Image .

Radar Observations of Elongated Near-Earth Asteroid 2011 AG5

News .

NASA’s Webb Reveals Intricate Networks of Gas, Dust in Nearby Galaxies

News .

NASA’s NuSTAR Telescope Reveals Hidden Light Shows on the Sun

Image .

Three-Telescope View of the Sun

› Mission Website
› IRAS Technology Overview

Explore Other Missions

Dawn

Galaxy Evolution Explorer

ASTHROS

Cassini-Huygens

Europa Clipper

Disturbance Reduction System

Europa Lander

Euclid

Cold Atom Laboratory

Galileo

About JPL
Who We Are
Executive Council
Directors
Careers
Internships
The JPL Story
JPL Achievements
Documentary Series
Annual Reports
Missions
Current
Past
Future
All
News
All
Earth
Solar System
Stars and Galaxies
Subscribe to JPL News
Galleries
Images
Videos
Audio
Podcasts
Apps
Visions of the Future
Slice of History
Robotics at JPL
Events
Lecture Series
Team Competitions
Speakers Bureau
Calendar
Visit
Public Tours
Virtual Tour
Directions and Maps
Topics
JPL Life
Solar System
Mars
Earth
Climate Change
Exoplanets
Stars and Galaxies
Robotics
More
Asteroid Watch
NASA's Eyes Visualizations
Universe - Internal Newsletter
Social Media
Get the Latest from JPL
Follow Us

JPL is a federally funded research and development center managed for NASA by Caltech.

More from JPL
Careers Education Science & Technology Acquisitions JPL Store
Careers
Education
Science & Technology
Acquisitions
JPL Store
Related NASA Sites
Basics of Spaceflight
Climate Kids
Earth / Global Climate Change
Exoplanet Exploration
Mars Exploration
Solar System Exploration
Space Place
NASA's Eyes Visualization Project
Voyager Interstellar Mission
NASA
Caltech
Privacy
Image Policy
FAQ
Feedback
Site Managers: Veronica McGregor, Randal Jackson
Site Editors: Tony Greicius, Naomi Hartono
CL#: 21-0018