NASA Reveals Mysteries of 'Interstellar' Space
This
enormous mosaic of the Milky Way galaxy from NASA's Wide-field
Infrared Survey Explorer, or WISE, shows dozens of dense clouds, called
nebulae. Many nebulae seen here are places where new stars are forming,
creating bubble like structures that can be dozens to hundreds of
light-years in size.
The new Paramount film "Interstellar" imagines a future where
astronauts must find a new planet suitable for human life after climate
change destroys the Earth's ability to sustain us. Multiple NASA
missions are helping avoid this dystopian future by
providing critical data necessary to protect Earth.
Yet the cosmos beckons us to explore farther from home, expanding human
presence deeper into the solar system and beyond. For thousands of
years we've wondered if we could find another home among the stars.
We're right on the cusp of answering that question.
If you step outside on a very dark night you may be lucky enough to
see many of the 2,000 stars visible to the human eye. They're but a
fraction of the billions of stars in our galaxy and the innumerable
galaxies surrounding us. Multiple NASA missions are helping us extend
humanity's senses and capture starlight to help us better understand our
place in the universe.
Wednesday,
Nov. 5: Astronaut Mike Fincke and Kepler Mission Scientist Natalie
Batalha will be joining the "Interstellar" Cast for a Google+ Hangout
from Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum, 5:30 p.m. EST
Largely visible light telescopes like Hubble show us the ancient
light permeating the cosmos, leading to groundbreaking discoveries like
the
accelerating expansion of the universe. Through infrared missions like
Spitzer,
SOFIA and
WISE, we've peered deeply through cosmic dust, into stellar nurseries where gases form new stars. With missions like
Chandra,
Fermi and
NuSTAR,
we've detected the death throes of massive stars, which can release
enormous energy through supernovas and form the exotic phenomenon of
black holes.
Yet it was only in the last few years that we could fully grasp how
many other planets there might be beyond our solar system. Some 64
million miles (104 kilometers) from Earth, the
Kepler Space Telescope
stared at a small window of the sky for four years. As planets passed
in front of a star in Kepler's line of view, the spacecraft measured the
change in brightness. Kepler was designed to determine the likelihood
that other planets orbit stars. Because of the mission, we now know it's
possible every star has at least one planet. Solar systems surround us
in our galaxy and are strewn throughout the myriad galaxies we see.
Though we have not yet found a planet exactly like Earth, the
implications of the Kepler findings are staggering—there may very well
be many worlds much like our own for future generations to explore.
NASA also is developing its next exoplanet mission, the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (
TESS), which will search 200,000 nearby stars for the presence of Earth-size planets.
As of now, the distance between stars is too great for spacecraft to
traverse using existing propulsion. Only one spacecraft is poised to
leave the solar system in the near future.
Voyager 1,
launched in 1977, made the historic entry into interstellar space in
August of 2012, reaching the region between stars, filled with material
ejected by the death of nearby stars millions of years ago. It won't
encounter another star for at least 40,000 years.
The near-term future of exploration should be cause for much
excitement, though, as humans and robotic spacecraft pioneer the path
Voyager traveled, deeper into our solar system, where extra-terrestrial
life may exist, and where humans could one day thrive.
Life as we know it requires water and heat. On our watery planet, we
find life teeming at even the most extreme temperatures. Scientists are
eager to know if evidence of microbial life exists on other planets and
moons within our reach. On Jupiter's moon Europa, for example, there is a
temperate ocean caught between a volcanic core and icy surface. Just as
life exists in the dark, hot reaches of Earth's ocean, so too could it
exist on Europa, waiting to be discovered. NASA is studying a
future mission to the watery moon next decade.
Called
the eXtreme Deep Field, or XDF, image from NASA's Hubble Space
Telescope contains about 5,500 galaxies. Some span back 13.2 billion
years in time -- nearly to the Big Bang, and are the most distant
galaxies ever seen.
Many scientists question if Earth formed with the water it has now.
Comets and asteroid impacts early in the planet's history may have
brought the water and help transform our atmosphere. Upcoming missions
to capture samples of asteroids, like
OSIRIS-REx, could reveal the building blocks of life embedded in the rock, which could lead to new insights about the origins of life.
Perhaps the most enticing target to search for evidence of life,
however, is Mars. A fleet of spacecraft on the surface and orbiting Mars
have revealed the Red Planet
once had conditions suitable for life. While the planet's
flowing water and
atmosphere
have significantly diminished, evidence of past life could still be
discovered by future exploration. It could even be a home for future
human pioneers.
Martian natural resources like water ice embedded in rock could be
extracted to create breathable air, drinkable water, and even components
for spacecraft propellant. An
ability to live off the land will greatly enable multiple human missions to Mars and forever change the history of humankind.
Astronauts traveling to Mars also need protection from
bursts of radiation caused by the sun, such as solar flares and coronal
mass ejections. NASA’s
18 missions studying the sun
characterize the conditions in the space environment and improve our
understanding of the causes and effects of solar eruptions, resulting in
better forecasting of their onset. This will allow humans at Mars to
take cover and spacecraft to enter protective modes.
This
Journey to Mars begins aboard the
International Space Station
where astronauts 250 miles above Earth are learning how to live in
space for long durations—key knowledge needed for round trips to Mars,
which could take 500 days or more. A new generation of U.S. commercial
spacecraft and rockets are supplying the space station and will soon
launch astronauts once again from U.S. soil. As these 21st century
spaceflight innovations open low-Earth Orbit in new ways, NASA is
building the capabilities to send humans farther from Earth than even
before. In December, we'll conduct the first flight test of the
Orion Spacecraft, which will carry astronauts next decade on missions beyond the moon to an asteroid and Mars, launched on the giant
Space Launch System rocket.
Many other missions in the near future will expand the frontier of exploration in our solar system. In 2015,
New Horizons will fly by Pluto and see the icy world up close for the first time. In 2016, NASA will launch the
InSight mission to Mars and asteroid sample return mission
OSIRIS-REx. In 2018, Hubble's successor, the
James Webb Space Telescope,
will see light from the universe's first stars. In about 2019, we'll
launch a robotic spacecraft to capture and redirect an asteroid. In
2020, we'll send a new rover to Mars, to follow in the footsteps of
Curiosity,
search for ancient Martian life, and pave the way for future human
explorers. In 2021, SLS and Orion will launch humans on the first crewed
mission of the combined system. In the mid-2020s,
astronauts
will explore an asteroid redirected to an orbit around the moon, and
return home with samples that could hold clues to the origins of the
solar system and life on Earth. In doing so, those astronauts will travel farther into the solar system than anyone has ever been.
It's an exciting time as NASA reaches new heights to reveal the
unknown and benefit humankind. Be a part of the journey and connect with
us at
www.nasa.gov/connect.
From : http://www.nasa.gov/content/nasa-reveals-mysteries-of-interstellar-space/#.VFxViMlc-M8