NASA SPHEREx telescope identifies complex brown dwarf atmospheres

NASA's SPHEREx space telescope has observed 37 brown dwarfs and found that their atmospheres contain a range of molecules, including water, carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, and methane. These results come from new spectral data capturing a wide temperature range among the brown dwarfs. Unlike planets orbiting stars, brown dwarfs drift alone in space. The research draws from images captured by SPHEREx, which launched in March 2025.

• SPHEREx observed 37 brown dwarfs across temperature range
• Detected water, CO2, CO, and methane in their atmospheres
• SPHEREx launched in March 2025 as an infrared telescope
• Ground-based telescopes cannot see the same wavelengths
• Thousands more brown dwarfs are slated for analysis