SWAS Spacecraft
The Submillimeter Wave Astronomy Satellite
(SWAS)
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    SWAS Science


    The principle objective of the SWAS mission is to better understand the process of star formation through observations of water, molecular oxygen, isotopic carbon monoxide, and atomic carbon.


    • Star Formation and Molecular Cooling
      SWAS will observe molecules predicted to be principal coolants of star forming gas clouds.


    • The Chemical Evolution of Molecular Clouds
      Chemistry is an important factor in molecular cloud evolution and star formation. SWAS will observe molecules that are central to interstellar gas cloud chemistry.


    • Primary SWAS Targets
      The principal SWAS targets are dense parcels of gas and dust known as giant and dark cloud cores. Other SWAS targets include external galaxies, circumstellar envelopes, planetary nebulae, and solar system objects.