Latest news with #orbit
Forbes
2 days ago
- Science
- Forbes
In Photos: First Ever ‘Fake' Total Solar Eclipse Created In Space
The Sun's inner corona appears greenish in this image taken on 23 May 2025 by the ASPIICS ... More coronagraph aboard Proba-3, ESA's formation-flying mission capable of creating artificial total solar eclipses in orbit. This image, captured in the visible light spectrum, shows the solar corona similarly to how a human eye would see it during an eclipse through a green filter. The hair-like structures were revealed using a specialised image processing algorithm. The European Space Agency has published the first spectacular images of an artificial solar eclipse created in orbit. The pioneering images are from its Proba-3 mission, which features two satellites that fly in formation with millimeter precision, allowing scientists to study the sun's corona without waiting for rare natural eclipses. It's also the world's first precision formation flying mission. Launched on December 5, 2024, from India, Proba-3 is a two-year mission during which a total solar eclipse will be created for six hours in every 19.6-hour orbit. 'Our 'artificial eclipse' images are comparable with those taken during a natural eclipse," said Andrei Zhukov, Principal Investigator for ASPIICS at the Royal Observatory of Belgium. The Sun's inner corona, coloured artificially to appear violet, in an image taken on 23 May 2025 by ... More the ASPIICS coronagraph aboard Proba-3, ESA's formation-flying mission capable of creating artificial total solar eclipses in orbit. This image shows the corona in polarised white light, captured using a special technique which allows scientists to separate the hot corona's polarized light from the light scattered by interplanetary dust. 'The difference is that we can create our eclipse once every 19.6-hour orbit, while total solar eclipses only occur naturally around once, very rarely twice a year. On top of that, natural total eclipses only last a few minutes, while Proba-3 can hold its artificial eclipse for up to 6 hours.' One satellite, the Occulter, acts as an artificial moon, blocking the sun's light using a 1.4-meter-diameter disc. It flies exactly 150 meters in front of the Coronagraph satellite, covering the bright disc of the sun and casting an 8 cm shadow across onto its imager — mimicking how a total solar eclipse works on Earth. The Sun's inner corona, coloured artificially to appear dark green, in an image taken on 23 May 2025 ... More by the ASPIICS coronagraph aboard Proba-3, ESA's formation-flying mission capable of creating artificial total solar eclipses in orbit. The ASPIICS instrument captures the solar corona in two different 'spectral lines', each line corresponding to a different element contained in the coronal gases. This image shows observations in the coronal green line – a spectral line emitted by iron atoms that lost half of their electrons due to extremely high temperatures. This allows us to see the hottest contents of the corona, at up to 2 million degrees. On the upper left side, a hot loop can be seen extending from the Sun's surface into the corona, a structure which generally appears following a solar flare. Such a feat of engineering is essential to capture images of the sun's corona — the outer atmosphere of the sun. Only during a total solar eclipse can the corona be glimpsed from Earth's surface, and even then, only for a few minutes from any one location. The solar corona is a mysterious place. It reaches temperatures of over two million degrees Fahrenheit, significantly hotter than the sun's surface. Understanding this mysterious layer is essential for solar physicists because it's the origin of solar wind and space weather that can impact Earth's communications and power systems. The two spacecraft of Proba-3 fly in precise formation about 150 m apart to form an external ... More coronagraph in space, one spacecraft eclipsing the Sun to allow the second to study the otherwise invisible solar corona. The mission is based on some remarkable engineering. The Proba-3 satellites follow a highly elliptical 19.6-hour orbit ranging from 373 miles (600 km) at perigee to 37,000 miles (60,000 km) at apogee, flying in precision formation only near apogee. At apogee, they're as far away from Earth's gravitational force and atmospheric drag, enabling them to fly in formation autonomously, achieving eclipse-like conditions for six hours. The images you see here are created from three exposures and were processed by the ASPIICS Science Operations Centre at Belgium's Royal Observatory. 'Each full image – covering the area from the occulted sun all the way to the edge of the field of view – is actually constructed from three images," said Zhukov. 'The difference between those is only the exposure time, which determines how long the coronagraph's aperture is exposed to light. Combining the three images gives us the full view of the corona.' The paired Proba-3 satellites will have a highly elliptical orbit with an apogee (or top of orbit) ... More of around 60 000 km and perigee of 600 km. Coronagraph observation based on forming an artificial eclipse between the two satellites as well as active formation flying experiments taking place towards apogee, with passive formation flying taking place as the satellites circle closer to Earth. ESA has an open data policy, with all uncalibrated data and images available online to scientists and eclipse enthusiasts alike. Proba-3's mission will last two years, during which approximately 1,000 hours of solar corona images will be gathered. Once it runs out of propellant, it will de-orbit and burn up in Earth's atmosphere. Wishing you clear skies and wide eyes.
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Science
- Yahoo
Coating satellites in ‘darkness' could help reduce light pollution
If you purchase an independently reviewed product or service through a link on our website, BGR may receive an affiliate commission. Earth's satellite problem is only getting worse as time goes on and more satellites are sent into orbit. One of the chief issues with the number of satellites in orbit is how much they can affect our studies of the stars due to light pollution. However, astronomers may have come up with an ingenuous plan to paint satellites in literal darkness to help hide them from telescopes. The 'darkness' in question is an ultra-black paint called Vantablack 310. It's one of the darkest paints ever created, and it could help keep satellites from reflecting light back down toward Earth. Right now, when a satellite streaks across a telescope's view, it leaves behind a train that completely mar images. Today's Top Deals Best deals: Tech, laptops, TVs, and more sales Best Ring Video Doorbell deals Memorial Day security camera deals: Reolink's unbeatable sale has prices from $29.98 Additionally, Starlink satellites sit so low in orbit that they are often much brighter than the stars astronomers are trying to study. However, Vantablack 310 could help cut down on that brightness by limiting how much light the satellites reflect to just 2%. That's a huge improvement that would virtually remove satellite streaks from telescope images. Considering we'll see the launch of the Vera C. Rubin Observatory later this year, finding a way to cut down on light pollution from satellites remains a key goal for astronomers. The problem with just coating satellites in typical Vantablack paint, though, is that it absorbs 99% of the light that hits it. This would quickly overheat the satellites painted with it, leading to other issues. That's not the case with Vantablack 310, though, which is being designed in conjunction with astronomers. The team says that it needed something that could be handled by engineers, and that's the goal with this new variation of the ultra-black paint. The company behind the new paint says that it should make satellites invisible to the naked eye. Whether or not we actually see the paint picked up by satellite makers is another issue altogether. SpaceX has experimented with similar options in the past, but they always suffered from the aforementioned overheating issues. Hopefully the idea of painting satellites in what equates to literal darkness will be enticing to satellite manufacturers, especially if we hope to keep exploring space and learning more about our universe's mysteries. More Top Deals Amazon gift card deals, offers & coupons 2025: Get $2,000+ free See the
Gizmodo
04-06-2025
- Politics
- Gizmodo
New Russian Satellite Appears to Be Stalking U.S. Satellite in Orbit
A recently launched Russian satellite is getting uncomfortably cozy with a U.S. reconnaissance satellite, leading Space Command to worry that it's part of an anti-satellite weapon being deployed to orbit. Cosmos 2588 launched on May 23 to a near-circular orbit, placing it eerily close to a U.S. reconnaissance satellite, USA 338. The move prompted suspicion that it's an attempt by Russia to deliberately stalk the U.S. government satellite. This isn't the first time Russia has deployed a sneaky satellite to trail behind and allegedly observe another satellite in orbit, but this time it may be connected to Russia's controversial anti-satellite program. 'U.S. Space Command can confirm Russia's recent launch put a Russian satellite into an orbit near a U.S. government satellite,' a Space Command spokesperson is quoted as saying to Breaking Defense. 'Russia continues to research, develop, test, and deploy a suite of counter space systems that threaten the safety and the stability of the domain, so consistent with all on-orbit objects, USSPACECOM will continue to monitor for concerning behavior or activity related to this launch.' Slingshot Aerospace reports that the alleged spy satellite, Cosmos 2588, is a NIVELIR military inspection satellite likely carrying a kinetic weapon onboard. Its alignment with USA 338 'strongly suggests COSMOS 2588 may be actively monitoring or 'chasing' it,' the satellite tracking company wrote in a statement. Slingshot Aerospace has been tracking the two satellites, revealing that Cosmos 2588 is orbiting at a slightly higher altitude and that the two objects will have a close flyby of one another roughly every four days. The two satellites come as close as 62 miles (100 kilometers) from one another, Marco Langbroek, an astronomer and expert on space situational awareness at the Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands, wrote on X. Not much else is known about USA 338 as it doesn't have publicly available orbital data, but it is believed to be a part of the National Reconnaissance Office's KH-series electro-optical surveillance network, known as the Crystal constellation, according to Interesting Engineering. This isn't the first time Russia has allegedly deployed a satellite for such a purpose. In April 2023, a Russian satellite appeared to be closely trailing a classified U.S. military satellite, and Russia's Kosmos 2558, launched in August 2022, was deployed into the same orbital plane as a U.S. military satellite, dubbed USA 326. In 2020, another Russian satellite, Kosmos 2542, stalked USA 245, an electro-optical spy satellite in low Earth orbit. The U.S. isn't completely innocent either. In June 2017, classified U.S. military satellite USA 276 snuck up on the International Space Station at a close distance of about 4 miles (6.4 kilometers). Earlier in 1998, hobbyists discovered a U.S. satellite that was believed to have been used for space spying purposes as well. Russia's satellites, however, are believed to be part of the country's efforts to develop an anti-satellite weapon designed to destroy other objects in space. In November 2021, Russia destroyed a defunct Soviet-era satellite in low Earth orbit, producing thousands of pieces of orbital debris. The test prompted the United Nations to draft a resolution against tests of anti-satellite (ASAT) missile systems, which was led by the Biden administration after the U.S. adopted a self-imposed ban on ASAT tests. A total of 155 countries voted in favor of the resolution, while nine voted against it, including Russia, China, Cuba, Syria, and Iran. 'This is the fourth time in five years that they launch a satellite into a coplanar orbit with a US optical reconnaissance satellite,' Langbroek wrote on X. 'So no, not mere coincidence but deliberate.'
Daily Mail
29-05-2025
- General
- Daily Mail
Is THIS how the world will end? Scientists warn Earth could be flung out of orbit by a passing star - leaving humans to freeze to death
From Armageddon to the Day After Tomorrow, there have been plenty of Hollywood movies about how our world might end. But if there is to be a global apocalypse, what might be to blame for wiping out all life on Earth? Scientists believe they may finally have the answer - and it suggests we could face a grisly demise. In a new study, researchers from the Planetary Science Institute and the University of Bordeaux predict that Earth could be flung out of orbit by a passing star. And without our Sun there to keep us warm, this would leave any inhabitants - including humans - to freeze to death. Thankfully, the chances of this happening are very low. Over the next five billion years, the chance of Earth being flung out of orbit by a passing star is around one in 500, according to the team. 'We find a 0.3% chance that Mars will be lost through collision or ejection and a 0.2% probability that Earth will be involved in a planetary collision or ejected,' the team wrote in their study. For decades, scientists have pondered how the Earth could end. A wandering black hole, giant asteroid impact and nuclear war could all trigger catastrophic disasters, as could the rise of killer robots or the reversal of our planet's magnetic field. In their new study, published in arXiv, Nathan Kaib and Sean Reynold set out to understand whether passing stars could be to blame. 'The long-term dynamical future of the Sun's planets has been simulated and statistically analyzed in great detail,' the pair explained. 'But most prior work considers the solar system as completely isolated, neglecting the potential influence of field star passages.' To answer this question, the pair ran thousands of simuations of our solar system in the presence of passing stars over the next five billion years. Worryingly, their simulations revealed that our solar system's eight planets - as well as dwarf planet, Pluto - are 'significantly less stable than previouly thought'. Pluto faces the greatest risk of being lost through a collision or ejection, with the simulations revealing a five per cent chance. Mars fares slightly better with a 0.3 per cent chance, while Earth has a 0.2 per cent chance of being flung out of the solar system. As for the passing stars to be on the lookout for, the researchers predict that the most dangerous ones are those that come within 100 times as far from the sun as Earth is. According to the simulations, there's about a five per cent chance of such a close encounter over the next five billion years. 'In summary, passing stars can alter the stability of the planets and Pluto as well as the secular architecture of the giant planets over the next 5 Gyrs [5 billion years,' the authors concluded. 'Their significance on the solar system's dynamical future largely depends on the strength of the most powerful stellar passage over this time span, which is uncertain by orders of magnitude. 'This uncertainty in the Sun's future powerful stellar encounters means that the spectrum of future secular evolution and planetary instabilities is broader than that implied by isolated models of solar system evolution.'
Bloomberg
28-05-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Satellite Operators Unload Ground Stations to Battle Starlink
Hello, it's Kiel Porter writing from Chicago. For all the excitement about launching sophisticated satellites into orbit, operators often depend on a humbler business, ground stations back on Earth, to connect customers to their constellations. More on this in a moment, but first ... Three things you need to know today:
