“We’re on the way to the sun. Go Solar Orbiter!” said Cesar Garcia Marirrodriga, project manager for the European Space Agency. “It’s a fantastic moment ... it’s like, well, we’re unstoppable.”
The $1.5 billion spacecraft will join NASA’s Parker Solar Probe, launched 1 1/2 years ago, incoming perilously close to the sun to unveil its secrets.
While Solar Orbiter won’t venture close enough to penetrate the sun’s corona, or crown-like outer atmosphere, like Parker, it will maneuver into a unique out-of-plane orbit that will take it over both poles, never photographed before. Together with powerful ground observatories, the sun-staring space duo will be like an orchestra, according to Gunther Hasinger, the European Space Agency’s science director.
“Every instrument plays a different tune, but together they play the symphony of the sun,” Hasinger said.
Solar Orbiter was made in Europe, along with nine science instruments. NASA provided the 10th instrument and arranged the late-night launch from Cape Canaveral.
Nearly 1,000 scientists and engineers from across Europe gathered with their U.S. colleagues under a full moon as United Launch Alliance’s Atlas V rocket blasted off, illuminating the sky for miles around. Crowds also jammed nearby roads and beaches.
The rocket was visible for four full minutes after liftoff, a brilliant star piercing the night sky. Europe’s project scientist Daniel Mueller was thrilled, calling it “picture perfect.” His NASA counterpart, scientist Holly Gilbert, exclaimed, “One word: Wow.”
Diese Geschichte stammt aus der February 15, 2020-Ausgabe von Techlife News.
Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.
Bereits Abonnent ? Anmelden
Diese Geschichte stammt aus der February 15, 2020-Ausgabe von Techlife News.
Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.
Bereits Abonnent? Anmelden
US GROWTH SLOWED SHARPLY LAST QUARTER TO 1.6% PACE.REFLECTING AN ECONOMY PRESSURED BY HIGH RATES
The nation’s economy slowed sharply last quarter to a 1.6% annual pace in the face of high-interest rates, but consumers — the main driver of economic growth — kept spending at a solid pace.
ORACLE'S LARRY ELLISON SAYS PLANNED NASHVILLE CAMPUS WILL BE COMPANY'S 'WORLD HEADQUARTERS'
Oracle Corp.’s planned campus in Nashville, Tennessee, will serve as the business software giant’s world headquarters, placing it in a city that’s a center for the U.S. healthcare industry, company Chairman Larry Ellison said.
FTC SENDS $5.6 MILLION IN REFUNDS TO RING CUSTOMERS AS PART OF VIDEO PRIVACY SETTLEMENT
The Federal Trade Commission is sending more than $5.6 million in refunds to consumers as part of a settlement with Amazon-owned Ring, which was charged with failing to protect private video footage from outside access.
AS BIDEN CELEBRATES COMPUTER CHIP FACTORIES VOTERS WAIT FOR THE PROMISED PRODUCTION TO START
President Joe Biden has a great economic story to tell voters a decade from now, less so in 2024.
US ADVANCES REVIEW OF NEVADA LITHIUM MINE AMID CONCERNS OVER ENDANGERED WILDFLOWER
The Biden administration has taken a significant step in its expedited environmental review of what could become the third lithium mine in the U.S., amid anticipated legal challenges from conservationists over the threat they say it poses to an endangered Nevada wildflower.
TENSIONS BETWEEN BEIJING AND WASHINGTON ARE THE BIGGEST WORRY FOR US COMPANIES IN CHINA.REPORT SAYS
Simmering tensions between Beijing and Washington remain the top worry for American companies operating in China, according to a report by the American Chamber of Commerce in China released this week.
MICROSOFT & AMAZON FACE SCRUTINY FROM UK COMPETITION WATCHDOG OVER RECENT AI DEALS
British competition regulators said this week they’ll scrutinize recent artificial intelligence deals by Microsoft and Amazon over concerns that the moves could thwart competition in the AI industry.
OLYMPIC ORGANIZERS UNVEIL STRATEGY FOR USING ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE IN SPORTS
Olympic organizers unveiled their strategy to use artificial intelligence in sports, joining the global rush to capitalize on the rapidly advancing technology.
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT WRAPPING YOUR CAR
Gaze around the next time you’re stuck in traffic and see if you’re not surprised, maybe even a little saddened, by the monochromatic sea around you.
TIKTOK MAY BE BANNED IN THE US. HERE'S WHAT HAPPENED WHEN INDIA DID IT
The hugely popular Chinese app TikTok may be forced out of the U.S., where a measure to outlaw the video-sharing app has won congressional approval and is on its way to President Biden for his signature.