These twin spaceships are set to investigate how our planet’s magnetic shield protects us from the weather in space, potentially revolutionizing our knowledge of the interaction of the sun with Earth.
The SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket was launched from the Vandenburg Space Force base in California at 11:13am on Wednesday.
Within hours, ground control confirmed communication with both satellites, marking the beginning of a groundbreaking scientific journey.
Sean Duffy, NASA’s deputy administrator, emphasized the importance of the mission.
“Tracer’s satellites move forward by deciphering the weather in space and deepening our understanding of the connection between the Earth and the Sun.
“This mission will bring about a breakthrough that will encourage the pursuit of the moon. After that, Mars.”
What the tracer does
Tracers is designed to explore magnetic reconnections. This is the fundamental process in which magnetic field lines from the sun and Earth collide, break, and explosively reorganize.
This phenomenon releases enormous amounts of energy, throws charged particles at the atmosphere, creating a disturbance known as the universe’s weather.
When you enter orbit on the polar tips, a funnel-like region near the Earth’s magnetic poles, the twin satellites fly just 10 seconds away.
Major missions over 12 months will collect unprecedented 3,000 measurements and provide a time-lapse-like sequence of how magnetic reconnection events evolve and affect the planet.
This area is ideal for studying magnetic interactions, as solar wind particles can enter directly into the Earth’s atmosphere.
By capturing data as these particles descend, Tracers gives scientists a clearer understanding of how solar storms destroy satellite operations, GPS signals, and even the Earth’s power grid.
Ongoing Commissioning Period
Before diving into a complete scientific operation, Tracers will carry out a four-week commissioning phase.
During this period, the mission controller will thoroughly check and adjust the onboard system to ensure that the satellite can meet the mission requirements for a year.
When fully operational, Tracers will join NASA’s Heliophysics Missions fleet, providing critical data to protect Earth-based and Space-based infrastructure from the effects of solar activity.
Hitchhiking Science: Athena Epic, Pext, and Real
Alongside Tracers, Falcon 9 also rolled out three secondary payloads: Athena Epic, Pext and Real.
Athena Epic is a technology demonstration designed to streamline future satellite missions. Introducing the modular commercial small sat platform that reduces costs and accelerates deployment schedules.
After a two-week commissioning phase, Athena Epic spends a year measuring long-wave radiation from the Earth, a key data source for climate monitoring.
PEXT (Polygamy Experimental Terminal) will become a pioneer in new ways of communication in space. By utilizing software-defined wireless systems, PEXT demonstrates the ability to switch between commercial and government networks, similar to that of mobile phones when roaming between service providers. This could open the way for more flexible and resilient space communications.
Relativistic electron atmosphere losses study the way high-energy electrons in the Van Allen radiation belt are scattered around the Earth’s atmosphere.
These belts are shaped by the Earth’s magnetic field and contain particles that pose risk to both spacecraft and astronauts. Real insights improve your understanding of the radiation risks of space.
Advances in space and weather science
With tracers currently in orbit, NASA is about to make great strides in understanding how Earth’s magnetic fields interact with the Sun.
By capturing the rapidly moving, explosive dynamics of magnetic reconnection in real time, the mission promises to better inform spatial weather forecasts, essential to protecting technology, astronauts and life on Earth.
As Tracers Mission begins its scientific operations, researchers and engineers alike hope to uncover new details about the invisible forces that form the relationship between the universe and the universe.
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