NASA's comeback kid, the NEOWISE spacecraft, was shut down this week for the final time as its transmitters were turned off ahead of a re-entry into Earth's atmosphere later this year.
Farewell to NEOWISE: NASA's Asteroid-Hunting Telescope
The Near-Earth Object Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (NEOWISE) is at the end of its second mission, having completed its first mission as the WISE (Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer) telescope in February 2011.
The spacecraft was launched in December 2009 on a six-month mission to scan the entire infrared sky. It completed this in July 2010, and NASA extended the program to 2011.
But all good things must come to an end, and with the depletion of the cryogenic coolant required to compensate for the heat generated by the spacecraft, WISE was put into hibernation. During its first mission, the telescope had mapped the night sky twice, demonstrating its prowess in detecting near-Earth objects.
