ESA is close to launch the Euclid Space Observatory that will build a 3D map of the world
(ESA-Manuel Pedoussaut https://bit.ly/41oI8Tx)
The European Space Agency (ESA) has successfully completed electromagnetic testing of the Euclid space observatory.
The launch should take place in July 2023, and the scientific program is designed for six years.
The development of Euclid took more than 10 years and was carried out by the ESA with the participation of NASA.
The observatory is equipped with
- a three-mirror 1.2-meter Korsch telescope
- two scientific instruments: VIS (VISible imager) and NISP (Near Infrared Spectrometer and Photometer)
Both instruments are for observations in the optical and infrared ranges.
The observatory will explore distant galaxies and clusters of galaxies, measuring their distance and determining their parameters.
This will make it possible to build a three-dimensional map of the distribution of galaxies in the Universe up to the redshift value z=2.
This will estimate the distribution of dark and baryonic matter and the expansion rate of the Universe.
ONE STEP READY
The assembly of Euclid was completed in the summer of 2022, after which it was sent for testing at the Thales Alenia Space workshops in Turin, Italy.
At first, the observatory passed thermal vacuum tests, and on February 20, 2023, the completion of electromagnetic tests was announced.
During the test, the operation of the radio antenna was analyzed and a search was made for possible electromagnetic interference created by the apparatus's systems.
In the coming months, all tests will be completed, after which the observatory will be sent to the US.
The launch of Euclid into space using the SpaceX Falcon 9 launch vehicle is scheduled for July 2023.
After that, the observatory will fly for a month to a working orbit around the L2 Lagrange point in the Sun-Earth system.
Sources:
- ESA: https://www.esa.int/ESA_Multimedia/Images/2023/02/Euclid_electromagnetic_compatibility_tests_successful
- Phys: https://phys.org/news/2023-02-euclid-electromagnetic-compatibility-successful.html
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