CAPE CANAVERAL, FL, June 30 -- NASA has successfully launched its newest space telescope, the Far Ultraviolet Spectroscopic Explorer (FUSE). Over the next couple weeks the Johns Hopkins University FUSE team will check out the spacecraft, perform calibration activities and conduct a detailed checkout of the scientific instrument, said Dennis McCarthy, FUSE project manager at Johns Hopkins University, which developed the spacecraft for NASA.
FUSE was designed for highly specialized and unique tasks that are complementary to other NASA missions. The spacecraft will examine light in the far ultraviolet portion of the electromagnetic spectrum with far greater sensitivity and resolution than previous instruments. FUSE is the only telescope currently able to observe this important spectral region.