MV Astronomy Club

riding with a robot part 2,by carol higgins

Last month we covered some of the adventurers who bravely explored our world and the revolutionary change that began when our country and the Soviet Union launched satellites. Safely sending humans into space is difficult and expensive, and the farthest humans have traveled is the Moon. To explore other planets and moons, the next best option is to launch “intelligent” space craft equipped with sophisticated science instruments and cameras. This month, we’ll take a look at some robotic missions current ly underway, starting at the heart of our solar system.

It has long been the dream of many re searchers to unlock the mysteries of the thousands of stars dotting the night sky. Our closest star is the Sun, and designing a spacecraft to withstand the immense heat and radiation is no small feat. But engineers took on the challenge, and the Parker Solar Probe was built to investigate the Sun’s corona and so lar wind. Parker launched August 12, 2018, making its first close pass (15 million miles) in January 2019. Its highly elliptical and vari able orbit takes it to Venus and back to the Sun for a brief close flyby.

During its five-year mission, the space craft will capture valuable data and make a total of 24 passes. Its heat shield withstands temperatures of 2,500 degrees Fahrenheit while keeping the shaded onboard instru ments a balmy 85 degrees. At the end of the mission, Parker will be only 3.8 mil lion miles above the surface and traveling

Hanny’s Voorwerp. Image Credit: NASA, ESA, W. Keel, Galaxy Zoo Team 430,000 mph.

The European Space Agency (ESA) and Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) launched BepiColumbo on Oc tober 19, 2018, to planet Mercury. It won’t arrive until December 2025 because it is taking a complicated path to overcome the Sun’s strong gravitational pull and to literal ly “catch up” to the fast-moving planet that only takes 88 days to make a trip around the Sun. The spacecraft carries two orbiters to examine the planet’s magnetic field, atmo sphere, surface, and interior.

Next is Venus, an inhospitable place where lead will melt on its surface. JAXA launched Akatsuki in May 2010, but it suf fered an engine problem and failed to enter orbit. The mission team eventually found a way to gain control and reinvent the space craft’s mission. It began a new orbital path in December 2015 and is returning images and data to help us learn about the planet’s weather.

Mars has numerous visitors. ESA’s Ex oMars Trace Gas Orbiter arrived in October 2016 to study the atmosphere. Their Mars Express also monitors the atmosphere and has been looking for subsurface water since 2003. The Indian Space Research Organi sation launched the Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM) in 2013 to image and study the sur face. The rest are NASA missions. MAVEN arrived in 2014 to investigate why Mars changed from a place with surface water to today’s desolate landscape. Since 2006, the Join MVAS Sat., February 29, 7-10pm for an evening of stargazing at Barton-Brown Observatory 206 White St., Waterville The event is free. Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter continues to capture stunning high-resolution images and search for water and other resources for fu ture missions to the red planet. Mars Odyssey arrived in 2001, and its thermal infrared data helped scientists discover underground reservoirs of water near the poles.

And finally, there is Jupiter, where NA SA’s Juno spacecraft is on a unique orbit over the poles. It arrived on July 4, 2016, to investigate Jupiter’s massive and powerful magnetic field, radiation belts, interior, and complex cloud layers. Images taken by its camera are available to the public to down load and process.

Current status information about the mis sions is available online through each space agency if you would like to learn more. Next month we’ll take a look at some landers and rovers, and spacecraft visiting asteroids to take samples that will be returned to Earth. Wishing you clear skies! • Artist’s concept of NASA’s Parker Solar Probe observing the Sun. Credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins APL/Steve Gribbenan

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