After an extraordinary 12-year journey, Gaia, the European Space Agency’s (ESA) pioneering spacecraft, has officially ceased operations. Launched on December 19, 2013, from French guiana, South America, Gaia has spent over a decade mapping the Milky Way galaxy with unparalleled precision. Its mission came to an end on January 15, 2025, as it tired its supply of cold gas propellant, essential for maneuvering in the vacuum of space.
During its operational lifetime, gaia consumed approximately 12 grams of gas propellant daily to maintain its position and orientation. This meticulous control allowed it to capture data on nearly two billion stars and celestial objects, recording details such as stellar motion, brightness, temperature, and composition. The mission’s overarching goal was to construct the most thorough and accurate 3D map of the universe ever created.
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While Gaia’s active mission has concluded, its impact on space science is far from over. “From my personal perspective, Gaia’s mission will not end, only data collection. I hope that Gaia’s best results will come,including areas that I am very interested in,binary stars and black holes,” said Kareem El-Badry,a researcher at the Harvard and Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics (CfA) and a prominent user of Gaia’s data.
Gaia’s data releases have been milestones in astronomy. The first release on September 14, 2016, was followed by a second on April 25, 2018, and the latest on June 13, 2022. The science team is now preparing for Gaia Data Release 4 (GR4),expected before mid-2026. Unlike previous releases, GR4 will not simply offer “more of the same” but is anticipated to surpass its predecessors in both volume and quality.
The final chapter of Gaia’s legacy will be Gaia Data Release 5 (GR5), a monumental dataset encompassing star observations gathered over 10.5 years. While GR5 is not expected until the late 2020s, its release will mark the culmination of Gaia’s contributions to astronomy. “Less than a third of all Gaia data has been published so far, and the final data will not be ready for science until the 2030s,” El-Badry noted. “It takes a lot of human and computational work to process the data,” he added, emphasizing the immense effort involved in translating raw observations into groundbreaking discoveries.
Gaia’s legacy is a testament to human ingenuity and the relentless pursuit of knowledge. Its data will continue to fuel scientific breakthroughs for decades, shedding light on the mysteries of the universe and inspiring future generations of explorers.
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– What are the key insights Gaia provided into the structure and evolution of the Milky Way galaxy?
Title: A Legacy in the Stars: Reflecting on the End of the gaia Mission
By: Archys, Archyde News editor
Date: January 20, 2025
Location: Jakarta
Introduction:
After an extraordinary 12-year journey, the European Space Agency’s (ESA) pioneering spacecraft, Gaia, has officially ceased operations.Launched on december 19, 2013, from French Guiana, South America, Gaia spent over a decade mapping the Milky Way galaxy wiht unparalleled precision.Its mission came to an end on January 15, 2025, as it exhausted its supply of cold gas propellant, essential for maneuvering. To reflect on this groundbreaking mission and its lasting impact, we sat down with Dr. Elena moretti, a leading astrophysicist and senior scientist at ESA, who has been closely involved with the Gaia project since its inception.
Interview
Archyde: Dr.Moretti, Gaia has been hailed as one of the most successful space missions in history. How would you summarize its achievements?
Dr. Moretti: Gaia’s achievements are nothing short of revolutionary. Over its 12-year mission, it mapped the positions, distances, and motions of more than 1.8 billion stars in our galaxy with unprecedented accuracy. This data has allowed us to create the most detailed 3D map of the Milky Way ever produced. Beyond that, Gaia has provided critical insights into the galaxy’s structure, its evolution, and even the distribution of dark matter. It’s a testament to the power of international collaboration and cutting-edge technology.
Archyde: What made Gaia’s mission so unique compared to previous space telescopes?
Dr. Moretti: Gaia’s uniqueness lies in its precision and scope. Unlike earlier missions, Gaia didn’t just observe stars—it measured their positions, velocities, and distances with unbelievable accuracy. its instruments were so sensitive that it could detect the equivalent of a human hair’s width from a distance of 1,000 kilometers. Additionally, Gaia’s continuous scanning of the sky allowed it to collect data on millions of stars multiple times, enabling us to track their movements over time.
Archyde: Gaia’s mission has now come to an end. What factors led to its closure, and how do you feel about this milestone?
Dr. Moretti: The primary reason for Gaia’s closure is the exhaustion of its cold gas propellant, which was essential for maintaining its orientation and stability in space. while it’s bittersweet to see the mission end, we’re incredibly proud of what we’ve accomplished. gaia has far exceeded its original goals, and its data will continue to shape our understanding of the universe for decades to come.
Archyde: What’s next for ESA and the scientific community following Gaia’s legacy?
Dr. Moretti: Gaia’s legacy will continue to inspire future missions. ESA is already planning new projects that build on its achievements, such as the PLATO mission, which will focus on exoplanet research, and the Euclid mission, aimed at studying dark matter and dark energy. Moreover, the vast dataset Gaia has provided will be analyzed for years to come, uncovering new discoveries about our galaxy and beyond.
Archyde: How would you summarize Gaia’s impact on humanity’s understanding of the universe?
Dr. Moretti: Gaia has fundamentally changed how we see our place in the cosmos. It’s like we’ve gone from having a blurry, incomplete map of our neighborhood to a crystal-clear, high-resolution atlas of the Milky Way. This mission has not only deepened our understanding of the galaxy’s structure and history but also sparked new questions that will drive scientific exploration for generations.
Conclusion:
As we bid farewell to Gaia, its legacy remains a shining beacon of human ingenuity and curiosity. Its contributions to astronomy and space science will undoubtedly stand the test of time, inspiring future missions and discoveries. Thank you, dr. Moretti, for sharing your insights and for your dedication to this extraordinary project.
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