Explorers program
![An explorer mission observes the Milky Way's black hole flaring](/Images/godic/202501/20/Pointing_X-ray_Eyes_at_our_Resident_Supermassive_Black_Hole1046.jpg")
![Explorer 1's Jupiter rocket ignites](/Images/godic/202501/20/Ignition_of_Jupiter-C_with_Explorer_11046.jpg")
![Sputnik caused an uproar in the West](/Images/godic/202501/20/Sputnik_11046.jpg")
![This artificially colored view of M101 maps ultraviolet light as blue while visible light is red since UV light does not have a](/Images/godic/202501/20/M101_combined_low1046.jpg")
The Explorers program is a United States space exploration program that provides flight opportunities for physics, geophysics, heliophysics, and astrophysics investigations from space. Over 90 space missions have been launched since 1958, and it is still active. Starting with Explorer 6, it has been operated by NASA, with regular collaboration with a variety of other institutions, including many international partners.