The European probe “Euclid” was launched into space on Saturday. She travels with a high-resolution telescope and is supposed to investigate dark matter and dark energy. A total of 3,500 people are involved in the project, including the employees of two Viennese space companies.
The research teams of Tim Schrabback and Francine Marleau from the University of Innsbruck are also involved. The European probe “Euclid” lifted off Saturday from the US spaceport Cape Canaveral aboard a Falcon 9 rocket. Less than an hour later, she sent a first signal from space. “The atmosphere here is very, very good,” says ESA Director General Josef Aschbacher, who is from Austria.
“Euclid” will fly about 1.5 million kilometers into space. The journey there takes about a month. The probe travels with a high-resolution telescope, which it is supposed to use to peer into the universe’s past. The goal is to collect data on billions of galaxies. In addition, a 3D map must be made in which time is the third dimension. “I expect that ‘Euclid’ will flood the scientific community with an unprecedented amount of data,” says Giuseppe Racca of ESA.
Mission costs 1.4 billion euros
Researchers around the world want to use this data to learn more about the elusive dark matter and dark energy. The mission is not cheap, it costs about 1.4 billion euros. It involves approximately 3,500 people from 21 countries in Europe, the US, Canada and Japan.
The mission should actually begin in October and the probe will initially be in operation for six years. “Euclid” is the second major ESA space mission this year. In April, the “JUpiter ICy moons Explorer” (JUICE) was launched.
Source: Krone
I am an experienced and passionate journalist with a strong track record in news website reporting. I specialize in technology coverage, breaking stories on the latest developments and trends from around the world. Working for Today Times Live has given me the opportunity to write thought-provoking pieces that have caught the attention of many readers.
