Lisa Pathfinder, the historical adventure began. Vega, successful launch
It ‘party at the dawn of December 3 from Kourou, in French Guiana, the journey of the European satellite Lisa Pathfinder , the hope of astrophysics who depends on the hunt for gravitational waves. The goal the mission is indeed to be able to find something in space that at the moment is fleeting and elusive, that is, those ripples in space-time whose profile was drawn for the first time in Albert Einstein Theory of Relativity , published on December 2 of hundred years ago. CLICK HERE ‘ to the replay of the launch of VEGA and LISA PATHFINDER
Gravitational waves are so thin as to be imperceptible resulted so far: in fact, those generated by a pair of holes blacks would be smaller than an atom.
Lisa Pathfinder has the delicate task of testing the technologies required for extraordinary watching the waves from space. It ‘the first important and indispensable step in a more complex project, which commits the European Space Agency to build the first space observatory of gravitational waves. And ‘This is the third major mission of the Cosmic Vision program, whose full implementation is expected in 2034 with the project e-Lisa.
To bring into orbit Lisa Pathfinder was the jewel Italian Vega launcher safe experience that has experienced six launches from 2012 to today and that is born in the Avio in Colleferro, near Rome. Now there are several stages to be addressed to Lisa. The satellite will in fact be parked in an orbit passing. Come on, then, its thrusters to move about 1.5 million kilometers from Earth to orbit the so-called L1, the first Lagrange point that marks the moment of gravitational balance between the Sun and Earth.
An important contribution to the Italian mission, both scientifically and technologically. The inertial sensors, high precision instruments of fundamental importance to the probe, were made by the Italian Space with the industrial prime contractor CGS (General Company for Space) on scientific project of researchers at the University of Trento headed by the Principal Investigator Stephen Vitale INFN. The mission is also involved in the Finmeccanica group, one of the contributions of Selex ES is the system of micro-cold gas propulsion.
The mission ESA-NASA Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (Soho), dedicated to the observation range of the Sun, was to last only two years, is instead arrived to extinguish the candle twentieth. Soho left for our star 2 December 1995 and has since offered an overview of the Sun uninterrupted by only 1.5 million kilometers away. Its role has been crucial for predicting solar storms potentially harmful to the Earth, for example those that disturb telecommunications or ‘tarnish’ the work of the satellites. But not only. Soho also has provided unique information on the composition of the Sun, obtained through the study of its outer atmosphere, the solar wind and energetic particles. In addition to these activities closely linked to the Sun, Soho is also dedicated to discovering comets unknown: managed to trace the path of 3,000 of them, up to their meeting with the star.
The 3D printer made in Italy flies to the International Space Station
The last supply which comes to the crew forces in the International Space Station consists of more than three tons of supplies, scientific experiments and materials useful for spacewalks. To bring the precious cargo is in orbit the spacecraft Cargo Cygnus, game from the Kennedy Space Center of NASA. Cygnus space is also a bit ‘of Italy: one of the experiments delivered, in fact, is Made in Italy. It is Portable On-Board Printer, a 3D printer can operate in the absence of gravity. The objective of the experiment is to be able to pordurre in orbit replacement parts and tools useful to life on board, without therefore having to ship by Earth. Portable On-Board Pinter was born in Italy and in Italy was made. The ‘mind’ is to Altran Italy, who two years ago won the competition of the Italian Space Agency (ASI) “Human Spaceflight for Research and Technological Demonstration on the International Space Station.” Also attending Thales Alenia Space and IIT.
The astronauts on the ISS await the flowering of zinnias …
The experiment ‘green’ started on November 16 On that day, the US astronaut Kjell Lindgren has planted in the greenhouse of the International Space Station seeds zinnias, flowers. We will be studied not only the pace of growth and the role of lighting in the expectation that the zinnias sboccino- approximately between 60 days- but the idea is to also understand how flowers affect the mood of the astronauts. A touch of color on the orbiting laboratory largest ever built in space could in fact have very beneficial effects. It is not the first time that the greenhouse is used: August 10th astronauts raccolsero- mangiarono- lettuce and red Roman cultivated on board. Grow on a continuous plant Space would think of an autonomous power supply of the astronauts during their missions, without having to resort to food shipped from Earth.
The constellation of Galileo adds two new satellites
They left in March and in recent days have become fully operational, after all the checks which ensures it works. Two other satellites of the Galileo constellation, can provide signals for navigation and to send and receive messages anywhere in the world. Galileo 7:08, so they are called, have been entered correctly in orbit. Not the same happened to their predecessors, who in 2014, for an error of the Soyuz, ended orbit wrong and had to undergo a number of changes and adjustments before they could become operational, but not yet officially part of Galileo (the European Commission He is deciding on their fate). The couple left in September is expected to come into operation instead by early next year, while the one to be launched in December will complete the constellation, so as to make it ready in the spring of 2016.
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