The Chinese and European space agencies are launching SMILE, their first joint mission, to investigate Earth’s defenses against the Sun.
About SMILE Mission:
SMILE (Solar wind Magnetosphere Ionosphere Link Explorer) is a joint ESA (European Space Agency)and Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) mission.
It will study the interaction of the solar wind with the Earth’s magnetosphere and ionosphere.
Aim: It aims to capture the first X-ray images of Earth’s protective magnetic shield in action as it battles and deflects harmful charged particles and energies coming from the Sun.
It will be positioned at about 1.21 lakh km above Earth’s north pole and be able to observe the edge of the magnetosphere in its entirety.
Mission Life: SMILE weighs about 2,600 kg and has a mission life of about three years.
Instruments: The mission is carrying four scientific instruments,
ESA has developed the Soft X-ray Imager (SXI), whereas the Chinese team has developed the other three payloads — Magnetometer, Light Ion Analyser (LIA) and Ultraviolet aurora Imager (UVI).
The four instruments will operate both on X-ray and ultraviolet wavelengths of the electromagnetic spectrum.
All these payloads will use remote sensing and make in situ(on site) observations along the near-Earth regions.
Significance:
It is designed to get answers interaction of a stream of solarwind with Earth’s magnetic shield and the magnetic glitches occurring on the dark side of Earth.
It will help solar physicists better understand space weather.
It will also help forecasting any impending solar storm or likely perturbations to space weather.
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