The IMAP mission defines the boundaries of the heliosphere and provides space weather measurements
NASA’s new Interstellar Mapping and Acceleration Mission (IMAP) was launched on September 23, 2025. Its goal is to study the heliosphere—the giant shield created by the Sun. The mission will determine the boundaries of the heliosphere to help us better understand the protection it provides for life on Earth and how it changes with solar activity.
The Heliosphere – a new object for study
Scientists call the region of space that the Sun influences the heliosphere, but without an interstellar probe, they know little about its shape. The heliosphere, the region of space that the Sun influences, is more than a hundred times the distance from the Sun to Earth.