The world top experts on coronagraphy met at the Royal Observatory of Belgium (ROB) for the 11th Science Working Team meeting of the ESA Proba-3 mission. Our colleague Andrei Zhukov, the principal investigator of the main instrument ASPIICS and his group, were the hosts. This meeting was much anticipated as it was the first after the ASPIICS images of an artificial total solar eclipse went public: ESA and ROB press release.
Meet the three instruments onboard Proba-3: ASPIICS, 3DEES and DARA
Besides the solar eclipse maker ASPIICS that relies on the formation flying capabilities of the occulting and the coronagraph spacecraft, Proba-3 also carries the instruments 3DEES and DARA. 3DEES measures highly energetic particles present in two radiation belts around Earth. These typically fast moving particles impact satellites that fly through these zones. The DARA instrument measures the energy of the solar light that arrives at Earth.
Numerous disciplines are needed to guarantee the success of the Proba-3 adventure
All the instrument teams were eager to present their first results. There was a lot to discuss on the details of the in-orbit operations of the two satellites. How Proba-3 cruises through space has an impact on the functioning of the instruments. Each orbit and each spacecraft manoeuvre gives better insight into what can happen and needs to be taken into account in the next observation campaigns. This is only part of the job. The main goal is gathering observations of the solar corona and measurements of the solar light and energetic particles. Each team has to prepare the data such that they go from raw measurements to something usable by researchers. The teams have to set up accessible databases where solar physicists and space weather researchers can easily find what they need. During this 3 days meeting, some preliminary research on Coronal Mass Ejections was already being presented. On top of all this, the gathering also set the path towards future collaborations with other space missions.
The 3 days were only the start of an exciting scientific space journey.
