First telescope to search for earth-like planets (6 march 2009)
Kepler is a space observatory launched by NASA to discover Earth-like planets orbiting other stars. The spacecraft, named for the Renaissance astronomer Johannes Kepler, was launched on March 7, 2009.
The Kepler observatory is "specifically designed to survey a portion of our region of the Milky Way galaxy to discover dozens of Earth-size planets in or near the habitable zone and determine how many of the billions of stars in our galaxy have such planets". A photometer continually monitors the brightness of over 145,000 main sequence stars in a fixed field of view. This data is transmitted to Earth, then analyzed to detect periodic dimming caused by extrasolar planets that cross in front of their host star.
As of February 2013, Kepler found a total of 2,740 candidate exoplanets and 114 confirmed exoplanets in 69 stellar systems have been confirmed. In January 2013, astronomers at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics (CfA) usedKepler's data to estimate that "at least 17 billion" Earth-sized exoplanets reside in the Milky Way Galaxy.
The Kepler observatory is "specifically designed to survey a portion of our region of the Milky Way galaxy to discover dozens of Earth-size planets in or near the habitable zone and determine how many of the billions of stars in our galaxy have such planets". A photometer continually monitors the brightness of over 145,000 main sequence stars in a fixed field of view. This data is transmitted to Earth, then analyzed to detect periodic dimming caused by extrasolar planets that cross in front of their host star.
As of February 2013, Kepler found a total of 2,740 candidate exoplanets and 114 confirmed exoplanets in 69 stellar systems have been confirmed. In January 2013, astronomers at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics (CfA) usedKepler's data to estimate that "at least 17 billion" Earth-sized exoplanets reside in the Milky Way Galaxy.
first orbit of mercury (18 march 2011)
MESSENGER (an acronym of MErcury Surface, Space ENvironment, GEochemistry, and Ranging) (also the name of the Roman god it is named after) is a robotic NASA spacecraft orbiting the planet Mercury, the first spacecraft ever to do so. The 485-kilogram (1,070 lb) spacecraft was launched aboard a Delta II rocket in August 2004 to study Mercury's chemical composition, geology, and magnetic field. It became the second mission after 1975's Mariner 10 (launched by NASA on November 3, 1973) to reach Mercury successfully when it made a flyby in January 2008, followed by a second flyby in October 2008, and a third flyby in September 2009.
The instruments carried by MESSENGER were tested on a complex series of flybys – the spacecraft flew by Earth once,Venus twice, and Mercury itself three times, allowing it to decelerate relative to Mercury using minimal fuel. MESSENGER successfully entered Mercury's orbit on March 18, 2011, and reactivated its science instruments on March 24, returning the first photo from Mercury orbit on March 29. MESSENGER's formal data collection mission began on April 4, 2011. On March 17, 2012, having collected close to 100,000 images, MESSENGER ended its one-year primary mission and entered an extended mission scheduled to last until March 2013.
During its stay in Mercury orbit, MESSENGER's instruments have yielded significant data, including a characterization of Mercury's magnetic field and the discovery of water ice at the planet's north pole.
The instruments carried by MESSENGER were tested on a complex series of flybys – the spacecraft flew by Earth once,Venus twice, and Mercury itself three times, allowing it to decelerate relative to Mercury using minimal fuel. MESSENGER successfully entered Mercury's orbit on March 18, 2011, and reactivated its science instruments on March 24, returning the first photo from Mercury orbit on March 29. MESSENGER's formal data collection mission began on April 4, 2011. On March 17, 2012, having collected close to 100,000 images, MESSENGER ended its one-year primary mission and entered an extended mission scheduled to last until March 2013.
During its stay in Mercury orbit, MESSENGER's instruments have yielded significant data, including a characterization of Mercury's magnetic field and the discovery of water ice at the planet's north pole.
Largest space observatory ever launched (18 juy 2011)
Spektr-R (or RadioAstron) is an orbital radio telescope, and was the largest space telescope in orbit after its launch on 18 July 2011.
The Spektr-R project is funded by the Astro Space Center of Russia, and was launched into Earth orbit on 18 July 2011, with a perigee of 10,000 kilometers (6,200 mi) and an apogee of 390,000 kilometers (240,000 mi), about 700 times the orbital height of the Hubble Space Telescope. The main scientific goal of the mission is the study of astronomical objects with an angular resolution up to a few millionths of an arc second. This is accomplished by using the satellite in conjunction with ground-based observatories and interferometry techniques.
The Spektr-R project is funded by the Astro Space Center of Russia, and was launched into Earth orbit on 18 July 2011, with a perigee of 10,000 kilometers (6,200 mi) and an apogee of 390,000 kilometers (240,000 mi), about 700 times the orbital height of the Hubble Space Telescope. The main scientific goal of the mission is the study of astronomical objects with an angular resolution up to a few millionths of an arc second. This is accomplished by using the satellite in conjunction with ground-based observatories and interferometry techniques.
Rover lands on mars to seek out life clues (8 august 2012)
Curiosity is a car-sized robotic rover exploring Gale Crater on Mars as part of NASA's Mars Science Laboratory mission (MSL).
Curiosity was launched from Cape Canaveral on November 26, 2011, aboard the MSL spacecraft and successfully landed on Aeolis Palus in Gale Crater on Mars on August 6, 2012. The Bradbury Landing site was less than 2.4 km (1.5 mi) from the center of the rover's touchdown target after a 563,000,000 km (350,000,000 mi) journey.
The rover's goals include: investigation of the Martian climate and geology; assessment of whether the selected field site inside Gale Crater has ever offered environmental conditions favourable for microbial life, including investigation of the role of water; and planetary habitability studies in preparation for future human exploration.
Curiosity's design will serve as the basis for a planned unnamed 2020 Mars rover mission. In December 2012, Curiosity's two-year mission was extended indefinitely.
In April and early May 2013, Curiosity went into an autonomous operation mode for approximately 25 days during Earth-Mars solar conjunction. During this time, the rover continued to monitor atmospheric and radiation data, but did not move on the Martian surface.
Curiosity was launched from Cape Canaveral on November 26, 2011, aboard the MSL spacecraft and successfully landed on Aeolis Palus in Gale Crater on Mars on August 6, 2012. The Bradbury Landing site was less than 2.4 km (1.5 mi) from the center of the rover's touchdown target after a 563,000,000 km (350,000,000 mi) journey.
The rover's goals include: investigation of the Martian climate and geology; assessment of whether the selected field site inside Gale Crater has ever offered environmental conditions favourable for microbial life, including investigation of the role of water; and planetary habitability studies in preparation for future human exploration.
Curiosity's design will serve as the basis for a planned unnamed 2020 Mars rover mission. In December 2012, Curiosity's two-year mission was extended indefinitely.
In April and early May 2013, Curiosity went into an autonomous operation mode for approximately 25 days during Earth-Mars solar conjunction. During this time, the rover continued to monitor atmospheric and radiation data, but did not move on the Martian surface.