NASA has become actively involved with IPAC Software in recent years. NASA is funding a program known as IRSA. IRSA is the NASA IPAC Software project.
Under IRSA, NASA is focusing on providing IPAC Software and Internet services to certain individuals and organizations around the United States. The goal of the NASA IPAC Software project is to provide the IPAC Software and related Internet services in order to facilitate astronomical discoveries.
In addition to attempting to facilitate new astronomical discoveries by distributing IPAC Software, NASA additionally hopes to support the production of new astronomical data products. Finally, through the IPAC Software distribution project, NASA hopes to better plan for future observations utilizing the data derived from infrared astrophysics missions supported by IPAC Software.
These missions bear names not well known to the public at large. But, IPAC Software is being used as part of the following infrared missions: 2MASS, SIRTF, ISO, WIRE, MSX AND IRAS. (IRAS, again, is the base NASA IPAC Software Project itself.)
NASA believes that the wide use of IPAC Software will ensure definite advances in research on a whole host of fronts. Infrared technology, enhanced and supported by IPAC Software, has applications that extend well beyond the space program. Industrial and commercial applications abound.
And, these industrial and commercial interests will be advanced through a greater availability of IPAC Software. In the long run, everyday consumers will end up benefiting because of the IPAC Software technology and its wider distribution to researchers around the country.
The information contained in this article was used with the permission of the NASA/IPAC Infrared Science Archive. While the article is original text, the data contained in the article is provided by NASA. This research has made use of the NASA/ IPAC Infrared Science Archive, which is operated by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, under contract with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.