| Author (Corporate) | BBC |
|---|---|
| Series Title | BBC News |
| Series Details | 13.5.09 |
| Publication Date | 13/05/2009 |
| Content Type | News |
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See also: Huge telescopes aim to solve mysteries The most valuable cargo that Europe has sent into orbit, a pair of huge telescopes costing €1.9bn, ($2.6bn, £1.7bn) were launched on an Ariane 5 rocket from Kourou, French Guiana, on Thursday. They will give astronomers a new insight into the darkest, coldest and oldest parts of the universe. The successful launch of the two European observatories, called Herschel and Planck, coincided with the first spacewalk by astronauts from the US shuttle Atlantis on their 11-day mission to service and upgrade the 19-year-old Hubble space telescope. With the future of three telescopes at stake, this is the most important week in the history of space astronomy. While Hubble observes visible light, Herschel and Planck will scan the heavens at much longer wavelengths that are not detectable by human eyes. They shared a ride on Ariane 5 and will operate in close proximity at a point in space called L2, 1.5km from earth, but they are independent observatories. Herschel will observe in a region of the spectrum, the “far infrared and submillimeter”, that has until now been neglected by astronomers. It has a special ability to see through dust and gas, which obscure observations at other wavelengths, and observe stars and galaxies in their early stages of development. Herschel’s primary mirror – 3.5m in diameter and 50 per cent wider than Hubble’s main reflector – is the largest yet flown in space. The European Space Agency has kept its weight down to 350kg by making the mirror from ultra-light silicon carbide. Planck is designed to examine in greater detail than any previous instrument the “cosmic microwave background” radiation, left over from the Big Bang 13.7bn years ago. Astronomers hope it will show them how “cosmic inflation”, the universe’s initial period of unbelievably rapid expansion, laid down the patterns of stars and galaxies we see today – and help to explain mysteries such as dark matter and dark energy. The shuttle Atlantis left Cape Canaveral on Monday with seven astronauts, on the fifth and last mission to service the Hubble space telescope. Hubble has sent back to earth a stunning series of images of distant stars and galaxies, which have enabled astronomers to calculate the age of our universe (13.7bn years), estimate the speed at which it is flying apart and examine planets around other stars – among many other things. This final servicing mission, costing almost $1bn, will replace some instruments on Hubble, mend others and replace batteries and gyros – extending its working life for at least five years. Hubble visits are the most difficult mission undertaken by the shuttle, because they go higher into orbit than routine flights to the International Space Station (560km rather than 350km high) and involve more intricate space walks. During the first walk on Thursday, John Grunsfeld and Andrew Feustel removed the wide field planetary camera originally installed on Hubble in 1993 and replaced it with an updated model. They also added a new computer to store data and images and transmit them to earth. Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2009 |
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| Source Link | http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/8046463.stm |
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| Subject Categories | Culture, Education and Research |
| Countries / Regions | Europe |
