Nasa telescope "Iris" in space to illuminate sun - Northwest newspaper

the NASA space telescope “Iris” has started to unravel at least a few secrets of the sun.

The 180-kilogram satellite lifted late on Thursday (local time) from a airborne carrier rocket from Vandenberg base in California. “Iris” is now studying for two years yet largely unexplored atmosphere of the sun.

puzzling, for example, still wondering why prevail in some areas of the sun at temperatures of around 6000 degrees Celsius, but in others a million. The researchers also want to know how the corona, the halo around the sun, goes into the solar wind.

“” Iris “will help scientists to understand the enigmatic energy exchange between the surface and the corona of the sun,” said John Grunsfeld from Nasa. The mission is to collect, especially more information about the processes in the lower atmosphere of the Sun – “an area about which we know little”

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good two meters long, “Iris” can detect objects that are 240 km in size. What once sounds a lot, can only be described as detailed in the solar diameter of nearly 1.4 million kilometers. For comparison, the diameter of the Earth is not even a hundredth

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“Iris” stands for Interface Region Imaging Spectrograph. Such spectrographs are basically even telescopes, but they split the light into its spectrum. The analysis of the separated according to wavelength light promises more knowledge about the Sun. However, the probe does not fly to our central star, but remains in orbit around the Earth.

The mission is to take two years, but the researchers hope that “Iris” by holding a little longer. The team are also two scientists from the Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research in Katlenburg-Lindau.

Although

“Iris” launched from Vandenberg base, but not the same as usual with a rocket. Instead, the “Pegasus” rocket under the “Stargazer” (“Stargazer”) was strapped. NASA’s aircraft is a converted “Tristar” – the same pattern that earlier passengers carried on scheduled flights. In just under 12 000 meters above the Pacific then the missile was dropped and ignited. Later separated “Iris” by the “Pegasus” rocket.

was already half an hour after dropping the rocket “Iris” ready. The probe to observe the sun’s energy, bring their own right because of -. Use solar panels from the sun

information Nasa for Iris

Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research on solar activity