Into the harshest area in the universe

Armed with high-tech armor, NASA's twin satellite pairs are ready for the journey to Van Allen Belt.

RBSP double satellites will take on one of the most difficult spatial missions

Sketch of Van Allen Belt

NASA is preparing to deploy two radiation storms (RBSP) for the mission to explore the harsh environments of charged particles around our planet. To withstand the damage from the dense and continuous attacks, the satellites were equipped with a thin but high-quality shield, hoping to survive while on duty. According to NASA, the $ 670 million RBSP duo is expected to be launched into orbit by Atlas V rocket at Cape Canaveral air base on August 23. They will move in two different orbits, but through the Van Allen radiation belts, the area filled with protons and electrons emanating from the sun and summarized by the magnetic field, according to Barry Mauk, expert. about RBSP project at Maryland Applied Physics Laboratory (APL).

RBSP project manager Rick Fitzgerald admits that this is one of the most difficult missions he has ever undertaken. In addition to protecting the specially armored 8.5mm cruisers, experts must pay attention to designing ships so that they can achieve a complex equilibrium, allowing them to reduce their bombardment. radiation but still control the measuring equipment. Both satellites carry 5 types of equipment inside an 8-sided frame, with a width of about 1.8m, a length of 90cm and a total weight of 670kg / ship. Experts decided to launch 2 instead of 1 ship, with the aim of experimenting at 2 different places at the same time to determine whether a change in the amount of radiation would lead to changes over time or space. , according to Space.com.

Van Allen's belt was discovered by American space expert James Van Allen in 1958, but so far this area is full of mysteries. Experts cannot predict what happens in this area of ​​activity. RBSP will map the density of charged particles along the belts, which are divided into two parts: the outer belt and the inner belt. The inner belt usually extends from 1,600 to 13,000 km above the earth. After the silence, the outer belt appeared from a distance of 19,000 to 40,000km. During the time of the solar storm, the belts could expand to their fullest extent, according to Mona Kessel, also of the RBSP program at NASA headquarters in Washington. As they expand, satellites orbiting the earth may be damaged, even astronauts on the International Space Station are in danger. And the task of RBSP is to analyze the complex mechanism of the Van Allen Belt.