The University of Arizona-led NASA Pioneers mission launched on 11 January aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 and is now in commissioning, with science operations expected soon.
Pandora will observe targets for hundreds of hours in visible and infrared light to separate stellar flares, rotation and surface activity from planetary atmospheric signals.
Researchers say solving this noise problem could improve habitability studies, support future Earth-like planet missions, and provide publicly available data through a University of Arizona control centre.
How will Pandora's data correct the James Webb telescope's potentially flawed view of distant alien atmospheres?
Can a $20 million satellite solve a critical problem that limits even the mighty James Webb Space Telescope?
NASA’s Pandora: Dual-Wavelength Observations to Disentangle Stellar Noise from Exoplanet Signals
Overview
Launched on January 11, 2026, NASA's Pandora mission tackles the challenge of stellar contamination that obscures exoplanet atmospheric signals. Using a cost-effective rideshare launch enabled by NASA's VADR contract, Pandora combines a unique dual-wavelength instrument—visible photometry and near-infrared spectroscopy—with advanced JWST-derived detectors. This design allows simultaneous monitoring of star activity and planetary atmospheres, enabling scientists to separate stellar noise from true planetary signals. Observing over 20 exoplanet systems with long-duration monitoring, Pandora provides crucial context for interpreting JWST data and informs future missions. As the first NASA Astrophysics Pioneers mission, it also pioneers a rapid, low-cost model while training the next generation of space scientists.