NASA has confirmed its Ultraviolet Explorer space telescope mission after a major technical and programmatic review, committing to a launch by January 2031.

The mission, known as UVEX, has a total lifecycle cost of $590 million. Passing the review, called Key Decision Point C, allows the project to advance into its next stage of development.

A new ultraviolet map of the sky

UVEX will survey ultraviolet light across the entire sky to help scientists study how galaxies and stars evolve. Ultraviolet observations can reveal activity that is difficult to see in visible-light images.

The telescope will also be able to turn quickly toward changing events, including the explosions that follow collisions between neutron stars. Those collisions can produce both gravitational waves and light, allowing researchers to study the same event in different ways.

Development continues

NASA selected UVEX for development in 2024 as a Medium-Class Explorer mission. The project is led by Caltech and involves UC Berkeley, NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Northrop Grumman and Space Dynamics Laboratory.

The latest announcement is a development milestone, not a launch. The accompanying NASA illustration is an artist’s concept of the planned observatory, rather than a photograph of a telescope already operating in space.

NASA confirmed the milestone on October 27. Caltech and the University of Maryland also described the mission’s next stage and scientific goals.