The NASA-funded Origins Program a comprehensive effort to study the origins of galaxies, stars, planets, and even life itself. Such engrossing questions can best be answered through studies conducted at infrared wavelength and at high spatial resolution. As NASA's center of excellence for infrared and sub-millimeter astrophysics, and as the institutional home for the Spitzer Science Center and the Michelson Science Center, IPAC eagerly anticipates an exciting future.

The Spitzer Science Center (SSC) at IPAC provides development and operations support for NASA's last Great Observatory, which was launched in August 2003. The SSC is responsible for soliciting and reviewing Spitzer research proposals, and in selecting and scheduling observations aboard the observatory. It also provides scientific and technical support for scientists planning observations, and will process Spitzer data for archiving and dissemination to the broader scientific community.

The European successor to the Infrared Space Observatory will be the Herschel Space Observatory (nee FIRST), scheduled for launch in 2008. IPAC will again serve as the lead US-based science support center for the European Space Agency's fourth Cornerstone Mission. A second payload will be launched with Herschel. The Planck mission will study the cosmic microwave background radiation and conduct an all-sky sub-millimeter survey. IPAC will serve as the lead US science support center and will process the sub-millimeter data.

When the Galaxy Evolution Explorer (GALEX) was launched in 2003, IPAC began processing the ultraviolet data from this NASA Small Explorer program.

As NASA astronomers continue to become increasingly adept at designing and utilizing ground-based telescope arrays, they will also begin planning and developing space-borne facilities. The Michelson Science Center (MSC) at IPAC, in association with the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, will provide the needed scientific and technical support for the SIM PlanetQuest (SIM) and the Terrestrial Planet Finder (TPF) missions.

In addition to these missions and programs, IPAC will continue its development and maintenance of rich databases of long-wavelength astronomical data, along with the associated development of useful analysis tools. IPAC-based databases, including the NASA/IPAC Infrared Science Archive (IRSA) and the NASA/IPAC Extragalactic Database (NED), will continue to expand their contents, sophistication, and general utility for both the professional astronomer and the general public alike.

For the foreseeable future, IPAC will continue to provide NASA and the nation with unparalleled capabilities and expertise in support of long-wavelength astrophysics and of astronomical studies conducted with interferometers.