Pandora, NASA’s groundbreaking newest exoplanet mission, is making significant strides towards its anticipated launch, heralded by the recent completion of its spacecraft bus. This vital component of the mission acts as the backbone of Pandora, equipped with the necessary structure, power, and systems. The spacecraft bus will enable Pandora to effectively execute its ambitious objectives. The oversight of the exoplanet science working group is spearheaded by the esteemed University of Arizona, marking a milestone in exoplanet research as Pandora will also have its operations center situated at the U of A Space Institute, providing a central hub for scientific inquiry.
The momentous occasion of the spacecraft bus’s completion was publicly disclosed during a press briefing held at the 245th Meeting of the American Astronomical Society in National Harbor, Maryland, which took place on January 16. With palpable excitement, Elisa Quintana, the principal investigator for Pandora from NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, remarked, "This is a huge milestone for us and keeps us on track for a launch in the fall." Her enthusiasm underscores the bus’s role, which incorporates navigation, data acquisition, and communication channels with Earth, essentially functioning as the "brains" of the spacecraft.
The Pandora mission is uniquely poised to delve into the atmospheres of at least 20 known exoplanets revolving around distant stars, aiming particularly to ascertain the composition of these atmospheres. A focal point of interest will be the detection of crucial elements such as hazes, clouds, and water, contributing to the broader understanding of habitability on distant worlds. The garnered data will play an instrumental role in interpreting observations made by NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope and future missions that strive to discover habitable exoplanets, aligning with humanity’s quest to explore extraterrestrial life.
Despite being smaller and less sensitive than its larger counterpart, the James Webb Space Telescope, Pandora possesses a remarkable edge – the ability to maintain extended observation durations. Daniel Apai, a co-investigator on the Pandora mission and esteemed professor of astronomy and planetary sciences at the University of Arizona, notes, "Although smaller and less sensitive than Webb, Pandora will be able to stare longer at the host stars of extrasolar planets, allowing for deeper study." This extended observational capability is crucial, allowing for improved discrimination between the stellar and planetary signals, thereby enhancing the quality of the data collected.
The process through which astronomers gather insights into an exoplanet’s atmosphere during a transit—a phenomenon where an exoplanet passes directly in front of its host star as viewed from Earth—is of particular significance. During such a transit, a portion of the light emitted by the star passes through the exoplanet’s atmosphere, allowing interactions with atmospheric components. This interaction results in the absorption of specific wavelengths of light, producing distinct dips in the star’s brightness that serve as chemical fingerprints characteristic of the exoplanet’s atmosphere.
The inception of the Pandora project originated from the necessity to improve observations of starlight that passes through exoplanetary atmospheres. Apai recounts a pivotal moment from 2018 when a doctoral student in his group, Benjamin Rackham, proposed an astrophysical effect wherein light from the star interferes with the signals emanating from the exoplanet’s atmosphere. This revelation highlighted a potential limitation for the James Webb Space Telescope concerning its ability to study atmospheres of potentially habitable planets effectively.
The challenge lies within the nature of stellar light—telescopes collect light from the entire star rather than isolating the minute fraction that interacts with a planet’s atmosphere. Stars are dynamic entities, exhibiting non-uniform surfaces characterized by both intensely bright areas known as faculae and cooler, darker spots reminiscent of those observed on our sun. The variability in light output from stellar surfaces complicates efforts to distinguish between the light modified by a planet’s atmosphere and the variability produced by the star itself, making the detection of vital atmospheric signals such as the presence of water—a significant indicator of habitability—a daunting task.
To address these challenges, Pandora is harnessing innovative technology, including a novel all-aluminum, 45-centimeter-wide telescope developed through collaborative efforts by Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and Corning Specialty Materials located in Keene, New Hampshire. The mission’s specialized detectors are designed to capture both the visible brightness and the near-infrared spectrum of each targeted star concurrently while simultaneously procuring the transiting planet’s near-infrared spectrum. This cutting-edge data acquisition strategy promises to significantly refine the characterization of stellar surfaces and facilitate a clearer separation of signals from stars and their orbiting planets.
Moreover, the operational strategy of Pandora capitalizes on its capacity for continuous long-term observations. Unlike flagship observatories like the James Webb Space Telescope, which face scheduling constraints due to high demand, Pandora is distinctly equipped to engage in extended monitoring of its identified targets. Throughout its yearlong mission, Pandora is set to observe a minimum of 20 exoplanets on ten separate occasions, with each observation involving a 24-hour stare—a critical duration for resolving the complexities inherent in exoplanetary atmospheric studies.
In terms of mission management, Karl Harshman leads the Mission Operations Team at the University of Arizona Space Institute, which will operate the spacecraft upon its launch later this year. He expressed the palpable enthusiasm within his team, stating, "We have a very excited team that has been working hard to have our Mission Operations Center running at full speed at the time of launch and look forward to receiving science data." Recently, they conducted a communications test using their antenna system, which is vital for transmitting commands to Pandora and receiving telemetry data from the spacecraft.
The Pandora mission, governed by NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, stands as a collaborative endeavor involving numerous distinguished institutions. Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory plays a pivotal role in project management and engineering aspects. The telescope itself was manufactured by Corning, which, alongside Livermore, developed the imaging detector assemblies, control electronics, and all supporting thermal and mechanical subsystems necessary for the mission’s success. NASA Goddard contributed the infrared sensor, while Blue Canyon Technologies provided the spacecraft bus and managed the assembly, integration, and environmental testing processes. Furthermore, NASA’s Ames Research Center located in California’s Silicon Valley is tasked with handling data processing for the mission, collating efforts from a variety of academic institutions to bolster the scientific output.
Through its multifaceted approach and innovative technology, the Pandora mission holds the promise of revolutionizing our understanding of exoplanets. As scientists prepare for the launch, the anticipation surrounding this mission is palpable, with the potential to unveils new insights on planetary atmospheres and the elusive search for life beyond Earth.
Subject of Research: Exoplanet atmospheres and habitability
Article Title: NASA’s Pandora Mission Paves the Way for Exoplanet Exploration
News Publication Date: January 2023
Web References: NASA Goddard, University of Arizona
References: Various scientific articles and studies on exoplanet research
Image Credits: NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center/Conceptual Image Lab
Keywords
Exoplanets, Pandora Mission, NASA, Astronomical Observations, Planetary Science, Atmospheric Composition, Habitability, Space Telescope, James Webb Space Telescope, Remote Sensing, Astronomy, Space Exploration
