The European Space Agency (ESA) has successfully launched two satellites, Proba-3 and Euclid, on a mission to study the Sun’s corona and the universe’s expansion. The twin satellites were launched on a Vega rocket from the Guiana Space Centre in French Guiana and will work together to create an artificial solar eclipse, allowing scientists to study the Sun’s outer atmosphere in unprecedented detail.
Proba-3, the smaller of the two satellites, is a technological demonstration mission that will test a new type of coronagraph, an instrument designed to block the light from the Sun’s disk, revealing the much fainter corona. The satellite will use a 150-meter-long (492-foot-long) boom to position a coronagraph in front of the Sun, creating an artificial eclipse that will last for several minutes.
Euclid, on the other hand, is a major astronomy mission that will study the universe’s expansion and the distribution of galaxies. The satellite will use a combination of cameras and spectrographs to map the distribution of galaxies and galaxy clusters, allowing scientists to study the universe’s large-scale structure and the properties of dark matter and dark energy.
The two satellites will work together to create a unique opportunity for scientists to study the Sun’s corona and the universe’s expansion simultaneously. By creating an artificial solar eclipse, Proba-3 will allow scientists to study the Sun’s outer atmosphere in unprecedented detail, while Euclid will provide a vast amount of data on the universe’s large-scale structure.
The launch of the two satellites marks a major milestone for the ESA, which has been working on the Proba-3 and Euclid missions for several years. The agency has invested heavily in the development of new technologies and instruments, including the coronagraph on Proba-3 and the cameras and spectrographs on Euclid.
The Proba-3 and Euclid missions are expected to provide a wealth of new data and insights into the Sun’s corona and the universe’s expansion. The missions will help scientists to better understand the Sun’s outer atmosphere and its impact on the solar system, as well as the universe’s large-scale structure and the properties of dark matter and dark energy.
The launch of the two satellites is also a major achievement for the Vega rocket, which has been used to launch several ESA missions in recent years. The rocket has proven to be a reliable and efficient launch vehicle, and its success has helped to establish the ESA as a major player in the global space industry.
The Proba-3 and Euclid missions are expected to operate for several years, providing scientists with a wealth of new data and insights into the Sun’s corona and the universe’s expansion. The missions will help to advance our understanding of the universe and its many mysteries, and will pave the way for future missions and discoveries.
The ESA has a long history of launching successful space missions, and the Proba-3 and Euclid missions are just the latest examples of the agency’s commitment to advancing our understanding of the universe. The agency has a number of other missions planned for the coming years, including the BepiColombo mission to Mercury and the JUICE mission to Jupiter’s moons.
The Proba-3 and Euclid missions are a major achievement for the ESA and the global space industry, and demonstrate the agency’s commitment to advancing our understanding of the universe. The missions will provide a wealth of new data and insights into the Sun’s corona and the universe’s expansion, and will help to pave the way for future missions and discoveries.
