Two European satellites were recently launched on a mission that will include a simulated total solar eclipse.
ESA says its Proba-3 mission aims to demonstrate precision formation flying abilities as the two satellites travel together in a fixed position.
Creating simulated solar eclipse In one of the mission’s major experiments, the two spacecraft will carry out a series of artificial total solar eclipses.
Scientists have repeatedly tried to study this part of the sun from observations on Earth during real total solar eclipses.
Bryan Lynn wrote this story for VOA Learning English, based on reports from The Associated Press, Reuters and the European Space Agency.
Recently, two satellites from Europe were launched on a mission that will include a total solar eclipse simulation.
The satellites were launched by the European Space Agency (ESA) on a rocket built in India from southern India on December 5.
The two satellites travel together in a fixed position as part of ESA’s Proba-3 mission, which aims to demonstrate precision formation flying capabilities.
When the two satellites arrive at their target location high above Earth, they will split off and fly 150 meters apart in roughly a month.
making a solar eclipse simulation.
The two spacecraft will perform a series of man-made total solar eclipses as part of one of the mission’s main experiments. While the sun itself is obscured, a shadow cast by one satellite will allow the other to monitor sun activity.
This operation aims to provide scientists with the opportunity to investigate the corona, the sun’s outermost atmosphere. Because the sun is so bright, it is challenging to see the corona.
This region of the sun has been the subject of numerous attempts by scientists to observe it from Earth during actual total solar eclipses. These eclipses, however, are rare and typically last only five minutes. At least two total eclipses per week, lasting up to six hours each, are planned by the Proba-3 team.
Repeated coronal studies, according to scientists, can help reveal new details about how solar activity affects Earth. Scientists may gain a better understanding of the sun’s energy output fluctuations over time and the reasons behind the corona’s significantly higher temperature than the sun itself.
Geomagnetic storms, which can occasionally be caused by strong solar activity, can interfere with Earth’s power and communication systems.
According to a pre-launch statement from ESA, “it will be able to see the sun’s faint atmosphere, the corona, in the hard-to-observe region between the sun’s edge and 1 point 4 million kilometers from its surface, for six hours at a time.”.
According to mission leaders, the spacecraft must be positioned precisely within one millimeter for the eclipse experiments to be successful. The satellites will rely on radio links, laser systems, and GPS to maintain their position.
“During active formation flying, our satellites will be flying only 1.5 football fields apart, so Proba-3 is very different,” ESA said in a statement. “.”.
A systems engineer on the Proba-3 mission is Esther Bastida Pertegaz. In a video, she stated, “The sun .’s corona.”. has received very little investigation. We are particularly interested in understanding dot. How does this region produce solar wind or coronal mass ejections? “,”.
More than 40 European businesses are contributing to the $210 million project, according to the Reuters news agency. Among them are Redwire Space, Airbus Defence and Space, and SENER Aerospace.
During its two-year operation, Proba-3 will strive for at least 1,000 hours of “on demand” totality, according to ESA. Both satellites will continuously descend until they burn up in the atmosphere after the mission is over. That would probably occur in five years, according to officials.
In addition to the eclipse experiments, ESA has stated that additional Proba-3 orbits will be conducted to show off a variety of accurate formation flying techniques that will aid in future missions.
My name is Bryan Lynn.
Based on stories from the European Space Agency, Reuters, and The Associated Press, Bryan Lynn wrote this piece for VOA Learning English.
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