2023-06-30 09:49:12
ESA will launch its next space mission, Euclid, on July 1. This unprecedented satellite, produced under the project management of Thales Alenia Space, aims to better understand the dark Universe, that is to say dark matter and dark energy, regarding which we know very little regarding their real nature. Euclid will take off aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 launch vehicle at Cape Canaveral, Florida. Yes, currently Europe no longer has the capacity to launch its own satellites!
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This weekend, a Falcon 9 from SpaceXSpaceX is set to launch the European Space Agency’s (ESAESA) science satellite Euclid for an exciting mission. This unique satellite aims to better understand the Dark Universe, that is to say dark matterdark matter and dark energy, of which very little is known regarding their real nature.
For this, Euclid will carry out its observations from its orbitorbit around the Lagrange point L2Lagrange point L2 of the Sun-Earth system, 1.5 million kilometers from the Earth opposite the Sun, where the James observatory is currently located -Webb. The satellite will need a month to reach its final position. Euclid’s commissioning period will last eight months, including 30 days to return to its final orbit. The start of scientific observations might start as early as October 2023, with a first series of images which will serve above all to stimulate public engagement and above all to test the capabilities of the satellite and its instruments. Euclid’s full go-live is scheduled for April 2024.
The end of the mission is scheduled for autumnautumn 2029 following six years of observation, with the possibility of carrying out an additional year.
Map a whole section of the Universe
« Dark energy dark energy and dark matter are revealed by the rather subtle changes they bring to the appearance of objects in the visible Universe; otherwise we would not know of their existence said René Laureijs, project scientist. Euclid will be able to see these effects more clearly than any other observatory before it, whether on land or in space. To do this, he will use two optical instruments, a visible-light imager and a near-infrared spectro-photometer, which together will deduce where dark matter may be hiding by mapping its effects on visible objects.
Euclid, a powerful space telescope that “might challenge the theory of relativity”!
Euclid will map the last 10 billion years of cosmic history across more than a third of the sky, from cosmic noon, when most stars formed, until today. This flashback will show us the variations of cosmic acceleration with pinpoint accuracy, revealing the nature of dark energy and thus unveiling the nature of dark matter.
Did you know ?
An unknown “dark energy” seems to be driving the current accelerated expansion of our Universe, but scientists don’t understand how or why.
The five main mysteries that Euclid will help solve:
what is the structure of the cosmic web; what is the history of the cosmic web; what is the nature of dark matter; how the expansion of the Universe has evolved over time; our understanding of gravity is- she total.
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