at NASA prepares an ambitious project Total solar eclipse on April 8, 2024.
Using a jet plane HB-57strategically located more than 15,240 meters above the Earth's surface, funded by three scientific teams NASA will point their instruments skyward to study more than just the outer atmosphere Sol:which is known as the corona, but also measures the ionosphere, the electrically charged upper layer of the atmosphere Tierra.
NASA Deputy Administrator Pam Melroy assured CNBC: that this event will be an invaluable research window. “There are things going on with the corona that we don't fully understand, and the eclipse gives us a unique opportunity to collect data.” A close look at the corona during an eclipse, when the sun's brightness temporarily obscures the moon, could shed light on long-standing mysteries, such as why the corona is millions of degrees hotter than the solar surface.
Shadia Habal, a researcher at the University of Hawaii and leader of one of the WB-57 experiments, explained that her team will focus on flying spectrometers and cameras to measure the temperature and chemical composition of the corona, as well as mass ejections. coronal, phenomena that are significant eruptions of solar material.
On the other hand, Amir Caspi that Southwest Research Institute in Boulder, Coloradowho has previous experience chasing eclipses with airplanes during the 2017 total solar eclipse will lead another team. “There's not a lot of data from the Sun at some of the wavelengths we'll be looking at. “We don't know what we're going to find, so it's extremely exciting to make these measurements.”. This time, they hope to improve the camera configuration to allow measurements at more wavelengths, from infrared to visible light.
The third experiment focuses its attention on the ionosphere. Using an instrument called an ionosonde, this team will study how the moon's shadow affects the ionosphere. According to Bharat Kundur, head of the ionospheric program and research assistant professor at Virginia Tech, “the eclipse basically serves as a controlled experiment.”
This study will not only reveal more about how changes in solar radiation can affect the ionosphere, but also how these effects can affect important technologies such as radar and GPS:which are an integral part of our daily life.
Airplanes reagent WB-57, flying at higher altitudes than commercial airplanes, offer significant advantages for viewing the eclipse. These planes have the ability to fly above the clouds, eliminating the possibility of visual obstruction due to bad weather.
Additionally, by sitting above most of Earth's atmosphere, the fleet's cameras can capture sharper images and access wavelengths like infrared light that don't reach Earth's surface.
The aircraft's speed of about 740 kilometers per hour allows the viewing time of the eclipse to be extended to approximately 6 minutes and 22 seconds, 25% longer than what can be seen during the eclipse. Tierra.
Preparations for this extraordinary flight will begin approximately two hours before the eclipse. The planes will take off from Ellington Field near the Space Center Johnson from NASA in Houston, Texas. They will go south Mexicostrategically positioned to enter the ecliptic shadow and continue its course at 740 kilometers per hour, significantly slower than the ecliptic shadow's speed of 2,500 kilometers per hour.
Tony Casey, the sensor equipment operator and a second crew member on one of these aircraft will be responsible for operating the instruments on the aircraft to study the eclipse. The system, which includes a camera and telescope mounted on the nose of the plane, will allow images to be obtained Sol: in visible and infrared light to study its atmosphere, its corona, and even look for rings of dust and asteroids that may be visible nearby. Sol:.
“It's super exciting,” Casey shared in an interview with The BBC:. “I am excited. I am very excited to fly this mission. I look forward to the experience of being there in the moment and seeing the shadow catch up with you.”
From their lofty position, scientists and pilots expect exceptional visibility of the phenomenon, free from the scattering effect that gives the sky its blue color due to the thinner atmosphere at high altitude. This unprecedented simplicity will not only improve the quality of visual observations, but also optimize scientific data collection. “It should be a lot clearer since you're above the mist.”she insisted Casey.
In addition to his exciting role in this eclipse mission, Casey is noted for photographing important aerospace events, including mission launches Artemis I from NASA to: Luna November 2022 and the first rocket launch Starship from SpaceX in April 2023.