The European Space Agency (ESA) launched mission Proba-3 on December 5 at India’s Satish Dhawan Space Centre. Unlike anything done before, This mission aims to use satellites to create an artificial solar eclipse and improve research on the sun’s corona (atmosphere).
During a total solar eclipse, the moon perfectly aligns with the Earth to block out the sun’s bright center and reveal its corona. This corona is difficult to study without a solar eclipse but a full solar eclipse only occurs once every 375 years and lasts for only a few minutes, which is not ideal for research purposes. The Proba-3 however, released satellites that can create an artificial solar eclipse which can be viewed through cameras for up to 6 hours at a time.
These satellites were released using the PSLV-C59 rocket which upon reaching 60,000km (37,280 miles) away from Earth the two satellites were released. These satellites must work in unison to perfectly align, mimicking the earth and moon to cover the sun’s center. Upon release, they drift 150 meters (492 feet) apart. One satellite will act as the moon, blocking the sun while the other will act as the earth, taking photos and recording data on the sun’s corona. These are the world’s first precise formation flying (PFF) satellites.
Achieving this perfect formation is extremely difficult with the unpredictability of space. Countless issues can occur and interact with the satellite’s formation. When flying two satellites in perfect alignment it is more likely to cause collisions with matter in space.
Why do scientists want to study the corona? The sun’s atmosphere is fascinating. While the center of the sun reaches up to 5,500 degrees Celsius (9,932 degrees Fahrenheit), the corona (outer atmosphere) can reach temperatures of 1-3 million degrees Celsius (1.8-5.4 million degrees Fahrenheit). With its atmosphere reaching higher temperatures than its core “it has several characteristics which should not make sense in physics.” Described by Ester Bastida, a Proba-3 systems engineer In a recent ESA documentary. She also explains, “Right now [the corona] is a region of the sun that has been poorly investigated, and scientists nowadays don’t understand some of the phenomenon that’s happening.” The sun’s corona is important to study because of the effect it has on Earth. The sun’s atmosphere creates flares called space weather that are powerful enough to reach Earth’s atmosphere which can affect satellites and technology on earth. By studying the corona we can better predict its effects.
Fieldston students have mixed views on the launch Yanling Li (Form IV) commented, “I think conducting research on space weather is beneficial because the more we study the sun, the better we can predict it, limiting the damage it does to technology on earth.” Whereas Rama Bah (Form IV) questions the resources and environmental impact of the launch, “Although conducting research on space weather does have its benefits, it’s also important to think about the consequences. For one, it’ll cost a lot of money and time in order to gather the technology necessary to fund the research. Additionally, these experiments could raise environmental concerns as it’ll release pollutants into the air. It’s really exciting overall however society needs to enter into this mission prepared.” With mixed insights from the Fieldston community, it’s important to think about how space missions and advancing technology affect life on Earth’s weather in a positive or negative way.
Although it sounds crazy, the artificial solar eclipse is a huge step in the research of the sun and how it affects our universe and earth. The more knowledge gained about the corona, the better we understand our solar system and the science behind its phenomenon.
