Another star will soon appear in the night sky, and it will be artificial. NASA, as part of the Landolt mission, is launching an unusual mini-satellite of the CubeSat type, only the size of a breadbox. It would seem that there are already enough stars in the sky, why else would scientists need another one, and such a small one at that? In fact, its importance for science is difficult to overestimate, as it will help understand some of the greatest mysteries of the cosmos, including those related to dark energy. The mission is scheduled to launch in 2029. The satellite will be located at a distance of more than 35 thousand kilometers, and it will be the first instrument of its kind in history.
NASA will launch an artificial satellite that will send laser beams to Earth. Image source sciencealert.com
Why does NASA need an «artificial star»
The mission was named «Landolt» in honor of the late American astronomer Arlo Landolt. It is being developed by staff at George Mason University. Its budget is estimated at only 19.5 million US dollars.
Unfortunately, the CubeSat cannot be seen with the naked eye even at night due to its small size and large distance from the Earth, but it can be easily tracked with a telescope. And this task will be simplified by the fact that the Landolt satellite will appear motionless in the sky, since its planned speed corresponds to the speed of rotation of the Earth.
The mission's principal investigator Peter Plavchan, associate professor of physics and astronomy. Photo source: science.gmu.edu
«Artificial star» will allow astronomers to compare the results of measuring the brightness of an object with actual data. Unlike natural stars, scientists will know exactly how much light this object emits. If it turns out that telescopes do not determine this indicator entirely correctly, then all previous studies by astronomers contained errors.
As Business Insider reports, to calibrate the equipment, the satellite will send lasers with a certain number of light particles to Earth, or photons. All observatories capable of detecting an unusual object in the sky will be able to use the tool.
All modern astronomy is based on the analysis of light from distant stars. Photo source: ria.ru
How a satellite will help to unravel the mysteries of space
All modern astronomy is, in fact, based on the light captured by telescopes. Based on the beam of light, scientists draw conclusions about the temperature of the star, its mass, the types of exoplanets that revolve around it, and also find out whether life could potentially exist on them.
For example, by determining the temperature of a star from a beam of light, researchers can calculate how far away a planet must be from it for liquid water and possibly life to exist. Water is known to be one of the key ingredients for the origin of life as we know it. Accordingly, if there cannot be liquid water on a planet because the temperature is too high or low, then there is no point in looking for life on it.
However, the problem with such studies is that scientists cannot know exactly how much light certain stars emit. They are too far away, so it is impossible to send a probe to them and accurately measure the brightness. In addition, part of the light is absorbed by the Earth's atmosphere, which also reduces the accuracy of research.
Thanks to the «artificial star», observatories will be able to calibrate their telescopes. Photo source: wikipedia.org
Scientists will determine the rate of expansion of the universe
According to George Mason University staff, the new satellite will increase the accuracy of research tenfold. This will help not only in the search for Earth-like planets, but also in measuring light from distant supernovae, which helps researchers calculate the rate of expansion of the Universe.
Researchers studying the expansion of the Universe are currently faced with a serious problem & #8212; cannot come to a single speed value, since different methods give different results. Therefore, equipment calibration may be the key to solving the truly important mysteries of space. Perhaps new, precise research will even lead to an understanding of the invisible force that drives the expansion of the Universe. This force is usually called dark energy.
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To summarize all of the above, the knowledge of astronomers from small planets to the entire Universe is based on the understanding of the Stars. If an error has crept into this understanding, then the ideas about the Universe may also be erroneous. However, a small satellite will correct this. It is surprising that such a mission, which does not require large expenditures and the solution of complex problems, is being launched only now.