Multiple missions to explore Mars and other space news in 2021

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While 2020 may have derailed and delayed some scientific plans due to the pandemic, 2021 still promises to be a year of science “of what we have rarely seen,” according to Thomas Zurbuchen, associate director of the Scientific Mission Directorate of NASA.

Multiple missions will explore Mars, new telescopes will begin making observations, and plans are underway to return humans to the moon by 2024.

While the pandemic is likely to delay the launch and progress of some missions, others are still on track, especially those already in space. This is what we can most expect in 2021.

Explore Mars in new ways

It is true that 2020 was the year of multiple missions launched to Mars (Chinese Tianwen-1, UAE Hope Probe and NASA’s Perseverance rover) and that 2021 will probably be the year of new discoveries on Mars.
The three missions took advantage of an alignment between Mars and Earth that occurs every 26 months, allowing for faster and more efficient travel when the two planets are on the same side of the sun.

All three are expected to arrive on Mars in February.

The Hope Probe will orbit Mars, marking the first time the UAE is orbiting the red planet. The spacecraft will remain in orbit for a Martian year – equivalent to 687 days on Earth – to collect data on the atmosphere of Mars.

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Tianwen-1, whose name means “Search for Heavenly Truth,” is China’s first mission to Mars. The spacecraft will orbit the planet before a rover lands on the surface, hoping it can gather important information about Martian soil, geological structure, the environment, the atmosphere and water signs.

Tianwen-1 includes an orbiter, a drop-down camera, a lander and a rover. Once the lander touches Mars, it will extend a ramp that allows the rover to roll to the surface. The orbiter can be used to relay rover signals to Earth and the rover can send messages to Earth on its own.

Perseverance will land on Mars on February 18th. The rover is equipped with several cameras, including videos, as well as microphones, that will listen to and record the live landing. NASA hopes to recover sound, images and video on Earth within weeks of landing.
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Hidden under the rover is Ingenuity, the first helicopter to fly (if successful) to another planet.

Once the rover has landed, the two-year Perseverance mission will begin.

The rover will also find a flat, nice surface for dropping the Ingenuity helicopter, so it has a place to use it as a heliport for its five possible test flights over a 30-day period. This will occur during the first 50 to 90 suns, or Martian days, of the mission.

Once the ingenuity is established on the surface, Perseverance will drive to a safe place remotely and use its cameras to watch and record the flight of Ingenuity.

This official artwork from the Perseverance mission depicts the rover sitting on Mars.

After these flights, Perseverance will begin searching for evidence of ancient life, studying the climate and geology of Mars, and collecting samples that will eventually be returned to Earth through future planned missions.

Exploration of exoplanets

The highly anticipated James Webb space telescope, launched in October, will be NASA’s next major space observatory.
However, the launch of the telescope has been delayed and pushed several times over the years, and could suffer further delays due to the pandemic.

The new target launch date is October 31, 2021. The telescope will be launched from French Guiana. Before launching in March 2021, it lagged behind in the face of technical and pandemic challenges, according to the agency.

The telescope will answer questions about our solar system, study exoplanets in new ways, and delve deeper into the universe than we have ever been able to before.

This telescope is our next great detective in the universe

It comes equipped with a mirror that can extend 21 feet and 4 inches, a massive length that will allow the mirror to collect more light from objects it observes once the telescope is in space. The more light the mirror can pick up, the more details the telescope can observe.

It is the largest mirror NASA has ever built, the agency said, but its size created a unique problem. The mirror was so big it didn’t fit inside a rocket. So they designed the telescope as a series of moving parts that can be folded in the origami style and fit inside a 16-foot space for launch.

“Webb is designed to build on the incredible legacies of the Hubble and Spitzer space telescopes, by observing the infrared universe and exploring all phases of cosmic history,” said Eric Smith, a scientist on Webb’s program NASA at the agency’s headquarters, in a statement.

“The observatory will detect light from the first generation of galaxies that formed in the early universe after the big bang and study the atmospheres of nearby exoplanets for possible signs of habitability.”

The “first light” of Vera Rubin

When the Vera C. Rubin Observatory begins making observations in 2023 from its base in Chile, its SUV-sized camera will be able to capture full panoramas of the southern sky every few nights. This requires a new type of camera never seen before.

It is the largest digital camera in the world, capable of observing a golf ball 15 miles away while capturing stunning 3,200 megapixel images.

The observatory’s “first light” is expected in 2021. The first light is the first astronomical image captured by a telescope after it is completed.
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The observatory’s capabilities will allow it to detect weak objects 100 million times weaker than what we can see with the naked eye. It is designed to map the Milky Way, explore dark energy and dark matter, and analyze the solar system.

During the ten-year survey, the camera is expected to represent 20 billion galaxies.

Rubin, who died in 2016, was once a mentor to aspiring fellow astronomers and championed women in science. Considered one of the most influential astronomers in the world, Rubin provided some of the first evidence that dark matter, which comprises much of the universe but cannot be seen, existed.

The camera is currently being assembled and the team estimated that the camera will be ready for testing in mid-2021 before sending it to Chile to install.

Artemis: a new space generation

NASA’s Artemis program, which seeks to land the first woman and next man on the moon in 2024, made great strides last year despite the pandemic. And 2021 is likely to see more progress and milestones for the program.

The milestones achieved so far by the Artemis program include the introduction of the Artemis agreements and the signing by other nations; the completion of the central stage of the SLS rocket and the capsule of the Orion crew that will take the Artemis astronauts into space; and progress to the Lunar Gateway site that will help astronauts land on the moon.
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Also announced was the first team of 18 Artemis astronauts, which is a diverse group that includes some newcomers to NASA and space flight veterans.
The astronauts will explore the South Pole of the Moon, with a focus on conducting experimental science and learning the origin of water on the Moon, among other scientific goals.

Although the first Artemis mission in November 2021 will be an unmanned flight test, Artemis II will be a manned overflight of the moon in August 2023.

These missions will pave the way for Artemis III, when the astronauts return to the surface of the moon.

The polar explorer vehicle Volatiles Investigation Polar Exploration Rover, or VIPER, will create the first maps of the moon’s water resources for future exploration of human space once it lands on the lunar surface in 2022.

By the end of the decade an Artemis base camp could be established at the lunar south pole.

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