Artificial solar eclipse is going to happen 60,000 km above the earth, ISRO and European Space Agency together will create history on this day.
Science News Desk – The next solar eclipse is still months away, but scientists on Earth are preparing to create history by creating an artificial solar eclipse soon. Final preparations have begun for the European Space Agency’s space mission, in which a satellite will be sent and used to create an artificial solar eclipse high above the Earth. Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) is playing an important role in this.
Will be launched from ISRO’s PSLV
The Proba-3 mission is the European Space Agency’s first attempt to fly into orbit with precision. In this, two spacecraft will revolve around the planet in an arrangement that does not deviate by more than a millimeter. If everything goes well, this spacecraft will take off from the Satish Dhawan Space Center in Sriharikota, India on Wednesday, December 4 at 4.08 pm Indian time. It will be launched from ISRO’s Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV). The mission aims to study the Sun’s corona using a pair of two satellites. If an artificial solar eclipse is created, it will be a good opportunity for scientists to study the corona of the Sun with the help of satellites. The Proba-3 mission consists of two satellites – Occulter Satellite (OSC) and Coronagraph Satellite (CSC).
How will this work?
The OSC has a 1.4 meter occulting disk, designed to block sunlight, creating a shadow about 8 centimeters wide at a distance of 150 metres. Within this shadow is located the CSC, which houses a telescope with a 5 cm aperture. These satellites will maintain a precise formation with millimeter accuracy using formation flying technology.
Solar eclipse will be 60,000 km above
This position of the satellites in space will be in the outermost part of the elliptical orbit, which is about 60,000 kilometers from the Earth. Here gravity is minimal, which will reduce the propellant required for station keeping. The corona is extremely difficult to observe because the Sun’s luminosity is a million times greater than the corona’s brightest point, blinding telescopes. This is why scientists are going to create conditions for an artificial solar eclipse.
