NASA’s Pandora Mission Is Very Close to Start Probing Alien Atmospheres
NASA’s Pandora mission is one step closer to launch, the Agency confirms. The spacecraft’s bus, which handles essential systems like structure, power, and communication, has been completed. This is an important milestone in the mission’s journey toward its expected fall launch.
Pandora will study the atmospheres of at least 20 known exoplanets orbiting distant stars. Its goal is to determine the composition of these atmospheres, focusing on key elements like water, clouds, and hazes.
This data will help scientists understand exoplanet atmospheres and aid future missions, like NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope, in identifying potentially habitable worlds.
The spacecraft’s bus was recently tested in a thermal-vacuum chamber at Blue Canyon Technologies in Lafayette, Colorado. This bus is the “brain” of the spacecraft, handling navigation, data collection, and communication with Earth.
Pandora’s mission is focused on detecting water in exoplanet atmospheres. This is crucial because water is essential for life. However, confirming its presence is difficult since the light from the host star can interfere with the signal of water. Pandora’s design is specifically made to separate these sources of light and provide clear atmospheric data.
Pandora’s near-infrared detector is a spare from the James Webb Space Telescope, the current most advanced tool for studying exoplanet atmospheres.
The goal is to improve Webb’s ability to distinguish between the signals from the star and those from the planet, making its measurements more precise.
Over its year-long mission, Pandora will observe each of its target exoplanets 10 times. Each observation will last 24 hours and include a transit, which is when the planet passes in front of its star. This continuous observation is something larger missions, like Webb, can’t do as regularly.
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