Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Emerging Tech
  3. News

NASA’s satellite projects will study the sun using solar sailing

Georgina Torbet
By
NASA has selected two proposals to demonstrate technologies to improve science observations in deep space. The proposals could help NASA develop better models to predict space weather events that can affect astronauts and spacecraft, such as coronal mass ejections (CMEs). In this image, taken by the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory on Feb. 27, 2000, a CME is seen erupting from the Sun, which is hidden by the disk in the middle, so the fainter material around it can be seen. ESA/NASA/SOHO

Small satellites can be used for anything from collecting images and videos of Earth to exploring the Solar System, and as the technology improves, more and more uses will become possible. NASA has been searching for ideas to push ahead the capabilities of the hardware, and the agency has just announced two new projects to demonstrate the potential of small satellites.

The projects could help to predict space weather events, NASA says, as part of the agency’s heliophysics program, which “seeks to better understand the nature of space throughout the solar system and how it changes in response to the constant outpouring of energy and particles from the Sun and how it interacts with planetary atmospheres.”

Recommended Videos

The first project is the Science-Enabling Technologies for Heliophysics (SETH) proposal, which will demonstrate two new ideas. The first is improving data communications between satellite constellations using optical communications technology. The second is detecting particles and waves which are given off by the Sun, particularly energetic neutral atoms that do not have a charge. This could be useful for detecting and predicting space radiation which can be harmful to astronauts and equipment.

Related

The second project is the Solar Cruiser, using an 18,000 square foot solar sail to travel close to the Sun and measure its magnetic field. Energetic explosions called coronal mass ejections send solar material flying away from the Sun’s surface and into space, and can even affect technology here on Earth. The project aims to improve predictions of these ejections to protect infrastructure on Earth.

The fact the satellites are small makes the projects more affordable, NASA explains. “By focusing on SmallSats and capitalizing on the cost savings of sharing a launch, we can test and advance cutting-edge technologies at a reasonable price,” Thomas Zurbuchen, associate administrator for NASA’s Science Mission Directorate, said in a statement. “We are leading the charge in using this innovative solution to test new mission paradigms and technologies and, in turn, to reap great rewards researching our neighborhood in space.”

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
Georgina Torbet
Georgina Torbet
Space Writer
Georgina is the Digital Trends space writer, covering human space exploration, planetary science, and cosmology. She…
NASA launches Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer to study the X-ray universe
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launches with NASA’s Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer (IXPE) spacecraft onboard from Launch Complex 39A, Thursday, Dec. 9, 2021, at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The IXPE spacecraft is the first satellite dedicated to measuring the polarization of X-rays from a variety of cosmic sources, such as black holes and neutron stars. Launch occurred at 1 a.m. EST.

NASA launched its latest mission this week: A space-based observatory that will use X-ray instruments to study phenomena such as black holes, neutron stars, and pulsars. The Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer (IXPE) mission, a collaboration with the Italian Space Agency (ASI), was launched on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket Thursday, December 9 from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launches with NASA’s Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer (IXPE) spacecraft onboard from Launch Complex 39A, Thursday, Dec. 9, 2021, at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The IXPE spacecraft is the first satellite dedicated to measuring the polarization of X-rays from a variety of cosmic sources, such as black holes and neutron stars. The launch occurred at 1 a.m. EST. NASA/Joel Kowsky

Read more
Solar Orbiter to perform its riskiest flyby before heading to the sun
Artist's impression of ESA's Solar Orbiter

The European Space Agency's Solar Orbiter is on a mission to study the sun, but to get there it has to perform a series of flybys of other planets including Earth. This week, the Orbiter will perform its riskiest flyby, dipping through the smattering of space debris that surrounds Earth before whipping away toward the sun.

Solar Orbiter will reach its closest point to Earth on Saturday, November 27 at 6:30 a.m. ET (3:30 a.m. PT), when it will be within 286 miles of the planet's surface over North Africa and the Canary Islands. That's only a little above the orbit of the International Space Station, demonstrating just how close the spacecraft will come to us, and it will have to pass through two rings of space debris in both geostationary orbit and low-Earth orbit.

Read more
Check out NASA’s upgraded ‘Eyes on the Earth’ satellite tool
NASA's Eyes on the Earth satellite tracker.

Earth-orbiting satellites play a major role in our daily lives, providing important environmental and weather data, supporting communications services, and even enabling astronauts to carry out science experiments that can ultimately benefit humanity.

NASA lets you track its environment-focused Earth satellites via its brilliant “Eyes on the Earth” tool, an interactive website offering a 3D visualization of their current position.

Read more