In 2008, a spacecraft was launched by NASA to study how our heliosphere, the magnetic bubble surrounding our Sun and planets, interacts with interstellar space. The spacecraft is the Interstellar Boundary Explorer, known as IBEX. Its mission is to study the boundary of the solar system and understand what happens where the solar wind meets the interstellar medium. IBEX is an orbiter that observes the outer region of the solar system from orbit around Earth. NASA launched the spacecraft on Oct. 19, 2008. Its mission uses instruments that detect particles coming from the edge of the solar system rather than relying on visible light.
