• DMCA
  • Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Privacy Policy
  • Terms and Conditions
  • Contact us
Inter Space Sky Way
  • Home
  • Alien
  • UFO
  • Space
  • NASA
  • Space Flight
  • Astronomy
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Alien
  • UFO
  • Space
  • NASA
  • Space Flight
  • Astronomy
No Result
View All Result
Inter Space Sky Way
No Result
View All Result
Home Space

Cluster mission set to finish with reentry over South Pacific

August 22, 2024
in Space
60 2
0
Cluster mission set to finish with reentry over South Pacific
74
SHARES
1.2k
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter


You might also like

Quick Radio Bursts are Serving to to Find the Universe’s Lacking Matter

‘2nd Jupiter’ exoplanet seen 60 light-years away photograph of the day for June 23, 2025

The way forward for ESA Transportation

Science & Exploration

22/08/2024
1011 views
22 likes

On 8 September 2024, the primary of 4 satellites that make up ESA’s Cluster mission will reenter Earth’s ambiance over the South Pacific Ocean Uninhabited Space.

This marks the top of the historic mission, over 24 years after it was despatched into area to measure Earth’s magnetic surroundings. Although the remaining three satellites may even cease making scientific observations, discoveries utilizing current mission information are anticipated for years to return.

This ‘focused reentry’ is the primary of its variety. ESA’s efforts to make sure a clear finish to the Cluster mission transcend worldwide requirements, making the company a world-leader in sustainable area exploration.

House security pioneer

A lifetime monitoring area climate

Launched in 2000, Cluster has spent 24 years learning maybe the one factor that makes Earth a singular liveable world the place life can thrive: its highly effective magnetic protect, the magnetosphere.

Like an unlimited umbrella, the magnetosphere protects us from many of the driving rain of particles that the Solar relentlessly sends in our course.

However gusts of this solar wind can still push through, sending bursts of energetic particles cascading towards Earth’s surface. The most common result is the northern and southern lights (auroras), but more rarely, these particles can cut our power supplies, disrupt radio communications, or damage satellites.

Space weather effects

We call the influence of the solar wind on Earth’s magnetic environment ‘space weather’.  And until Cluster came along, space weather remained something of a mystery.

“For over two decades, Cluster has shown us time and time again how important the magnetosphere is in shielding us from the solar wind,” says Cluster Mission Manager Philippe Escoubet. “It has watched the effects of solar storms to help us better understand and forecast space weather.”

A zero-debris finale

Cluster was never designed to last this long, nor was it designed for such a safe finale. It was initially launched on a two-year mission to study the Sun–Earth interaction. Because it was carrying out such impressive and world-changing science, ESA’s spacecraft operators kept it going.

But all good things must come to an end, and Cluster’s time has finally come. With this targeted reentry, ESA is turning Cluster from a pioneer in space weather monitoring to a pioneer in mitigating space debris – two key elements in the agency’s space safety goals.

Without intervention, the four Cluster satellites would have reentered naturally in a less predictable manner, potentially over a more densely populated region. By targeting the satellites reentries, ESA is taking the opportunity to ensure that Cluster’s demise doesn’t contribute to the rocketing amount of space junk in orbit around Earth.

Salsa’s last dance

Of the four Cluster satellites – nicknamed Rumba (Cluster 1), Salsa (Cluster 2), Samba (Cluster 3) and Tango (Cluster 4) – Salsa will be the first to take the plunge back into Earth’s atmosphere. It is targeting a specific region of the South Pacific Ocean that is as far as possible from populated regions.

“Back in January we tweaked Salsa’s orbit to make sure that on 8 September it experiences its final steep drop from an altitude of roughly 110 km to 80 km,” explains Cluster Operations Manager Bruno Sousa. “This gives us the greatest possible control over where the spacecraft will be captured by the atmosphere and begin to burn up.”

Cluster’s path over Earth just before the reentry

Bruno’s team is now watching the satellite from a distance. A targeted reentry allows for so much predictability in the reentry time and location that there is no need for further manoeuvres.

Despite being confident that no surviving fragments will fall anywhere near land, we still have very little data about how spacecraft behave as they pass through the lower layers of the atmosphere. We would like to know more to predict even better the time and location of satellite reentries and ensure the safety of humans on Earth.

ESA is considering observing Salsa’s reentry from an aircraft; this will be confirmed later in August. The four Cluster satellites are identical and so by watching them reenter the atmosphere with slightly different trajectories and in different weather conditions, we would have the unique opportunity to conduct a valuable reentry experiment to study the break-up of satellites.

A brighter future

Using reentries to clean up

Cluster’s reentry follows those of ESA’s Aeolus and ERS-2 Earth observation missions. ESA is setting a precedent for a responsible approach to reducing the every-increasing problem of space debris and uncontrolled reentries.

With this targeted reentry, ESA is again pioneering a new strategy to reduce its environmental impact by disposing of its missions more safely and sustainably than envisaged at the time of their design.

“By studying how Salsa burns up, which parts might survive, for how long and in what state, we will learn much about how to build ‘zero-debris’ satellites,” explains Tim Flohrer, Head of ESA’s Space Debris Office.

“The lessons learned from this activity will help turn targeted reentries into a safe and well-understood option for the disposal of other space missions in similar orbits, such as Smile and Proba-3.”

What’s next?

Following Salsa’s reentry, the three remaining Cluster satellites will enter ‘caretaker’ mode; whilst they will not be making scientific measurements, operators will be monitoring them to minimise the risk of collision with other satellites or Earth itself.

Bruno’s team will adjust the orbit of Rumba (Cluster 1) in August 2024 in preparation for a similar targeted reentry in November 2025. They will then manoeuvre Samba (Cluster 3) and Tango (Cluster 4) in November 2024 ready for Cluster’s final goodbye in August 2026.

4-satellite Cluster mission

At the end of 2025, ESA plans to launch its next mission to tackle Earth’s magnetic environment: the Solar wind Magnetosphere Ionosphere Link Explorer, or Smile for short. A joint venture with the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Smile will build upon Cluster to reveal even more about the complex and intriguing magnetic environment surrounding planet Earth.

Leading up to and during Salsa’s reentry we will be providing updates via the Rocket Science weblog, and the @ESA_Cluster, @esaoperations and @esascience Twitter accounts.

 

For extra data, please contact ESA Media Relations:

media@esa.int

Thanks for liking

You’ve already preferred this web page, you may solely prefer it as soon as!





Source link

Tags: clustermissionPacificreentrysetsouth
Share30Tweet19

Recommended For You

Quick Radio Bursts are Serving to to Find the Universe’s Lacking Matter

by Chato80
June 24, 2025
0
Quick Radio Bursts are Serving to to Find the Universe’s Lacking Matter

Within the Sixties, scientists turned conscious about an issue with the Universe's "mass funds." Based mostly on the noticed rotational curves of galaxies, they decided that about 85%...

Read more

‘2nd Jupiter’ exoplanet seen 60 light-years away photograph of the day for June 23, 2025

by Chato80
June 23, 2025
0
‘2nd Jupiter’ exoplanet seen 60 light-years away photograph of the day for June 23, 2025

Exoplanets, planets that exist past the reaches of our social system, are a key focus for astronomers as they will help uncover a wide range of mysteries in...

Read more

The way forward for ESA Transportation

by Chato80
June 23, 2025
0
The way forward for ESA Transportation

Area is large and important to humankind, fuelling information, supporting our economies and driving world prosperity. None of this could be doable with out dependable entry to house. Since...

Read more

These Particular Galaxies Lit Up the Cosmic Midday

by Chato80
June 22, 2025
0
These Particular Galaxies Lit Up the Cosmic Midday

Star formation peaked throughout the Cosmic Midday, which spanned from 10 to 12 billion years in the past. Throughout Cosmic Midday, star formation was 10 to 100 instances...

Read more

World’s 1st multimedia efficiency in microgravity will deliver collectively Cirque du Soleil, Nationwide Geographic and NASA

by Chato80
June 22, 2025
0
World’s 1st multimedia efficiency in microgravity will deliver collectively Cirque du Soleil, Nationwide Geographic and NASA

Unique leisure will enter an entire new frontier of zero-gravity atmosphere venues later this 12 months when acclaimed multimedia artist and worldwide showmaker Natasha Tsakos takes her acrobatic...

Read more
Next Post
Ramses: A brand new mission racing to land on…

Ramses: A brand new mission racing to land on…

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Browse by Category

  • Alien
  • Astronomy
  • NASA
  • Space
  • Space Flight
  • UFO

Recent News

SpaceX units new date for personal Axiom-4 astronaut launch to the Worldwide House Station

SpaceX units new date for personal Axiom-4 astronaut launch to the Worldwide House Station

June 24, 2025
Quick Radio Bursts are Serving to to Find the Universe’s Lacking Matter

Quick Radio Bursts are Serving to to Find the Universe’s Lacking Matter

June 24, 2025
‘Star Trek’ actor William Shatner and astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson’s house bromance takes off in new ‘The Universe Is Absurd’ present

‘Star Trek’ actor William Shatner and astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson’s house bromance takes off in new ‘The Universe Is Absurd’ present

June 23, 2025
When Authorities Insiders Expose Secret UFO Applications!

When Authorities Insiders Expose Secret UFO Applications!

June 24, 2025
The Seek for Superior Civilizations is Going Actual-Time

The Seek for Superior Civilizations is Going Actual-Time

June 23, 2025
‘2nd Jupiter’ exoplanet seen 60 light-years away photograph of the day for June 23, 2025

‘2nd Jupiter’ exoplanet seen 60 light-years away photograph of the day for June 23, 2025

June 23, 2025
  • DMCA
  • Disclaimer
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Privacy Policy
  • Terms and Conditions
  • Contact us
INTER SPACE SKY WAY

Copyright © 2023 Inter Space Sky Way.
Inter Space Sky Way is not responsible for the content of external sites.

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Alien
  • UFO
  • Space
  • NASA
  • Space Flight
  • Astronomy

Copyright © 2023 Inter Space Sky Way.
Inter Space Sky Way is not responsible for the content of external sites.

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In