{"id":348773,"date":"2026-01-14T07:39:44","date_gmt":"2026-01-13T21:39:44","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.vibewire.com.au\/?guid=6e5e5c7a6a8d714cbb5cdbb7b7869d9b"},"modified":"2026-01-14T07:39:44","modified_gmt":"2026-01-13T21:39:44","slug":"nasas-pandora-small-satellite-launched","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.vibewire.com.au\/?p=348773","title":{"rendered":"NASA\u2019s Pandora Small Satellite Launched"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\"NASA\u2019s<\/a><\/figure>
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SpaceX<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

In this photo from early January 2026, teams prepare to encapsulate NASA\u2019s Pandora<\/a> small satellite, NASA-sponsored Star-Planet Activity Research CubeSat (SPARCS), and the Black Hole Coded Aperture Telescope (BlackCAT) CubeSat, inside a SpaceX Falcon 9 payload fairing.<\/p>\n

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying NASA\u2019s Pandora small satellite lifted off<\/a> at 5:44 a.m. PST Sunday, Jan. 11, from Space Launch Complex 4 East at Vandenberg Space Force Base located on California\u2019s central coast.<\/p>\n

During its initial year, Pandora will provide an in-depth study of at least 20 known planets orbiting distant stars<\/a> to determine the composition of their atmospheres \u2014 especially the presence of hazes, clouds, and water.<\/p>\n

Image credit: SpaceX<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In this photo from early January 2026, teams prepare to encapsulate NASA\u2019s Pandora small satellite, NASA-sponsored Star-Planet Activity Research CubeSat (SPARCS), and the Black Hole Coded Aperture Telescope (BlackCAT) CubeSat, inside a SpaceX Falcon 9 payload fairing. A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket carrying NASA\u2019s Pandora small satellite lifted off at 5:44 a.m. PST Sunday, Jan. [\u2026]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":13,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-348773","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t