The Next Generation Space Telescope (NGST) will be an 8 m deployable telescope, radiatively cooled to 30 K and diffraction-limited at 2 μm, operating at the Sun-Earth Lagrangian point L2. It will be built by a partnership of NASA, ESA, and CSA (Canadian Space Agency). The camera sensitivity should be limited by the zodiacal light for wavelengths < 10 μm. The main scientific objectives are the study of the origin and evolution of galaxies, stars, and planets, beginning with the first luminous objects to form from the Big Bang. Other objectives include studies of dark matter, supernovae, the intergalactic medium, gamma ray bursts, star ages, and exobiology. The telescope will be operated like the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) by the Space Telescope Science Institute, with all observing programs openly solicited and selected by peer review.

The NGST scientific requirements originated with the report of the Dressler Committee HST & Beyond. The instruments recommended by the Ad Hoc Science Working Group (ASWG) include 1) a wide field near infrared (NIR) camera with an 8K2 detector array covering 0.6 - 5 μm, 2) a multi-object NIR spectrograph capable of simultaneously observing > 100 objects with a resolution of R (λ/δλ) = 1000, and 3) a combined mid-infrared (MIR) camera and spectrograph from 5-27 μm, with a resolution of R > 1500.

The Microwave Anisotropy Probe (MAP) is scheduled for launch in 2001. This mission will measure the anisotropy of the cosmic microwave background in five frequency bands from 22 to 90 GHz. The angular resolution varies with frequency from 0.93° to < 0.23°. The sensitivity should reach a standard deviation of 20 μK in each 0.3° pixel on the sky. MAP will observe from the Earth-Sun L2 point using a four-fold modulation scheme to minimize systematic errors. The 2-year planned duration will allow for 4 complete coverages of the sky. By observing the CMB angular power spectrum, MAP will tell us the initial conditions for the galaxy formation that produced the extragalactic infrared background.

The ‘Far InfraRed and Submillimetre Telescope’ (FIRST) is the fourth cornerstone mission in the European Space Agency (ESA) science programme. It will perform imaging photometry and spectroscopy in the far infrared and submillimetre part of the spectrum, covering approximately the 60–670 μm range.

The key science objectives emphasize current questions connected to the formation of galaxies and stars, however, having unique capabilities in several ways.

FIRST, a facility available to the entire astronomical community, will carry a 3.5 metre diameter passively cooled telescope. The science pay-load complement – two cameras/medium resolution spectrometers (PACS and SPIRE), and a very high resolution heterodyne spectrometer (HIFI) – will be housed in a superfluid helium cryostat.

In early 2007, FIRST will be placed in a transfer trajectory towards its operational orbit around the Earth-Sun L2 point by an Ariane 5 (shared with the ESA cosmic background mapping mission, Planck). Once operational, FIRST will offer a minimum of 3 years of routine observations; roughly 2/3 of the available observing time is open to the general astronomical community through a standard competitive proposal procedure.

We present an overview of the European Space Agency's Planck mission, its scientific objectives, and the key elements of its technical design. The current programmatic status of Planck within ESA's Scientific Programme, implementation plans, and near-term milestones, are also addressed.

Many of the key issues facing astrophysicists and cosmologists can be uniquely addressed by observations in near and far infrared, millimetre and submillimetre wavebands. Some highlights of IAU Symposium No. 204 are reviewed and likely future directions of observation, interpretation and theory are discussed.