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Science

Problem Detected on the James Webb Space Telescope – MIRI Anomaly

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James Webb Space Telescope MIRI Spectroscopy Animation: The beam of light coming from the telescope is then shown in deep blue entering the instrument through the pick-off mirror located at the top of the instrument and acting like a periscope.
Then, a series of mirrors redirect the light toward the bottom of the instruments where a set of 4 spectroscopic modules are located. Once there, the beam of light is divided by optical elements called dichroics in 4 beams corresponding to different parts of the mid-infrared region. Each beam enters its own integral field unit; these components split and reformat the light from the whole field of view, ready to be dispersed into spectra. This requires the light to be folded, bounced, and split many times, making this probably one of Webb’s most complex light paths.
To finish this amazing voyage, the light of each beam is dispersed by gratings, creating spectra that then projects on 2 MIRI detectors (2 beams per detector). An amazing feat of engineering! Credit: ESA/ATG medialab

Mid-Infrared Instrument Operations Update

The

The Webb team has paused in scheduling observations using this particular observing mode while they continue to analyze its behavior. They are also currently developing strategies to resume MRS observations as soon as possible. The observatory is in good health, and MIRI’s other three observing modes – imaging, low-resolution spectroscopy, and coronagraphy – are operating normally and remain available for science observations.

The Mid-InfraRed Instrument (MIRI) of the James Webb Space Telescope (Webb) sees light in the mid-infrared region of the electromagnetic spectrum, at wavelengths that are longer than our eyes can see.

MIRI allows scientists to use multiple observing techniques: imaging, spectroscopy, and coronagraphy to support the whole range of Webb’s science goals, from observing our own Solar System and other planetary systems, to studying the early Universe.

To pack all these modes in a single instrument, engineers have designed an intricate optical system in which light coming from Webb’s telescope follows a complex 3D path before finally reaching MIRI’s detectors.

This artist’s rendering shows this path for MIRI’s imaging mode, which provides imaging and coronagraphy capabilities. It also contains a simple spectrograph. We first take a look at its mechanical structure with its three protruding pairs of carbon fiber struts that will attach it to Webb’s instrument compartment at the back of the telescope.

The pick-off mirror, acting like a periscope, receives the light from the telescope, shown in deep blue, and directs it into MIRI’s imaging module. Inside the instrument, a system of mirrors reformats the light beam and redirects it till it reaches a filter wheel where the desired range of mid-infrared wavelengths is selected from a set of 18 different filters each with its own specific function (the beam takes a light blue color in the animation).

Lastly, another set of mirrors takes the light beam coming out of the filter wheel and recreates the image of the sky on MIRI’s detectors.

Credit: ESA/ATG medialab



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Science

Deep Underground Experiment Results Confirm Anomaly: Possible New Fundamental Physics

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New results from the Baksan Experiment on Sterile Transitions (BEST) experiment confirm anomaly suggesting new physics possibility.

Sterile neutrino, physics fundamentals among interpretations of anomalous results.

New scientific results confirm an anomaly seen in previous experiments, which may point to an as-yet-unconfirmed new elementary particle, the sterile neutrino, or indicate the need for a new interpretation of an aspect of standard model physics, such as the neutrino cross section, first measured 60 years ago. Los Alamos National Laboratory is the lead American institution collaborating on the Baksan Experiment on Sterile Transitions (BEST) experiment, results of which were recently published in the journals Physical Review Letters and Physical Review C.

“The results are very exciting,” said Steve Elliott, lead analyst of one of the teams evaluating the data and a member of Los Alamos’ Physics division. “This definitely reaffirms the anomaly we’ve seen in previous experiments. But what this means is not obvious. There are now conflicting results about sterile neutrinos. If the results indicate fundamental nuclear or atomic physics are misunderstood, that would be very interesting, too.” Other members of the Los Alamos team include Ralph Massarczyk and Inwook Kim.

Located deep underground at the Baksan Neutrino Observatory in the Caucasus mountains in Russia, the completed two-zone gallium target, at left, contains an inner and outer tank of gallium, which is irradiated by an electron neutrino source. Credit: A.A. Shikhin

More than a mile underground in the Baksan Neutrino Observatory in Russia’s Caucasus Mountains, BEST used 26 irradiated disks of chromium 51, a synthetic radioisotope of chromium and the 3.4 megacurie source of electron neutrinos, to irradiate an inner and outer tank of gallium, a soft, silvery metal also used in previous experiments, though previously in a one-tank set-up. The reaction between the electron neutrinos from the chromium 51 and the gallium produces the isotope germanium 71.

The measured rate of germanium 71 production was 20-24% lower than expected based on theoretical modeling. That discrepancy is in line with the anomaly seen in previous experiments.

BEST builds on a solar neutrino experiment, the Soviet-American Gallium Experiment (SAGE), in which Los Alamos National Laboratory was a major contributor, starting in the late 1980s. That experiment also used gallium and high-intensity neutrino sources. The results of that experiment and others indicated a deficit of electron neutrinos — a discrepancy between the predicted and the actual results that came to be known as the “gallium anomaly.” An interpretation of the deficit could be evidence for oscillations between electron neutrino and sterile neutrino states.

A set of 26 irradiated disks of chromium 51 are the source of electron neutrinos that react with gallium and produce germanium 71 at rates that can be measured against predicted rates. Credit: A.A. Shikhin

The same anomaly recurred in the BEST experiment. The possible explanations again include oscillation into a sterile neutrino. The hypothetical particle may constitute an important part of dark matter, a prospective form of matter thought to make up the vast majority of the physical universe. That interpretation may need further testing, though, because the measurement for each tank was roughly the same, though lower than expected.

Other explanations for the anomaly include the possibility of a misunderstanding in the theoretical inputs to the experiment — that the physics itself requires reworking. Elliott points out that the cross-section of the electron neutrino has never been measured at these energies. For example, a theoretical input to measuring the cross section, which is difficult to confirm, is the electron density at the atomic nucleus.

The experiment’s methodology was thoroughly reviewed to ensure no errors were made in aspects of the research, such as radiation source placement or counting system operations. Future iterations of the experiment, if carried out, may include a different radiation source with higher energy, longer half-life, and sensitivity to shorter oscillation wavelengths.

References:

“Results from the Baksan Experiment on Sterile Transitions (BEST)” by V. V. Barinov et al., 9 June 2022, Physical Review Letters.
DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.128.232501

“Search for electron-neutrino transitions to sterile states in the BEST experiment” by V. V. Barinov et al., 9 June 2022, Physical Review C.
DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevC.105.065502

Funding: Department of Energy, Office of Science, Office of Nuclear Physics.



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Science

A ‘Very Exciting’ Anomaly Detected in Major Experiment Could Be Huge News For Physics

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A strange gap between theoretical predictions and experimental results in a major neutrino research project could be a sign of the elusive ‘sterile’ neutrino – a particle so quiet, it can only be detected by the silence it leaves in its wake.

 

It’s not the first time the anomaly has been seen, adding to previous experimental data hinting at something odd in the world of neutrino research. This time around, it’s been detected at the Baksan Experiment on Sterile Transitions (BEST).

Unambiguous evidence of the hypothetical sterile neutrino could provide physicists with a solid candidate for the Universe’s mysterious supply of dark matter. On the other hand, it could simply all come down to a problem in the models used to describe the quirky behaviors of old school neutrinos.

Which would also make for a significant moment in the history of physics.

“The results are very exciting,” says Los Alamos National Laboratory physicist Steve Elliott.

“This definitely reaffirms the anomaly we’ve seen in previous experiments. But what this means is not obvious. There are now conflicting results about sterile neutrinos. If the results indicate fundamental nuclear or atomic physics are misunderstood, that would be very interesting, too.”

In spite of ranking among the most abundant particles in the Universe, neutrinos are notoriously difficult to catch. When you’ve got barely any mass, no electric charge, and only make your presence known through the weak nuclear force, it’s easy to slip through even the densest of materials unimpeded.

 

The neutrino’s ghost-like movement isn’t its only interesting quality. Each particle’s quantum wave morphs as it zips along, oscillating between characteristic ‘flavors’ that echo their negatively charged particle cousins – the electron, muon, and tau.

Studies on the oscillations of neutrinos at the US Los Alamos National Laboratory in the 1990s noticed gaps in the timing of this flip-flopping that left room for a fourth flavor, one that wouldn’t make so much as a ripple in the weak nuclear field.

Cloaked in silence, the sterile flavor of neutrino would only be conspicuous by a brief pause in its interactions.

BEST is shielded from cosmic neutrino sources beneath a mile of rock in Russia’s Caucasus Mountains. It features a double-chambered tank of liquid gallium which patiently collects neutrinos erupting from a core of irradiated chromium.

After measuring the amount of gallium that had transformed into a germanium isotope in each tank, the researchers could work backwards to determine the number of direct collisions with neutrinos while they were oscillating through their electron flavor.

Similar to the Los Alamos experiment’s own ‘gallium anomaly’, researchers calculated a fifth to a quarter less germanium than expected, hinting at a deficit in the expected number of electron neutrinos.

 

This isn’t to say with certainty that the neutrinos had briefly adopted a sterile flavor. Many other searches for the pale little particle come up empty-handed, leaving open the possibility that the models used to predict the transformations are on some level misleading.

That isn’t itself a bad thing. Corrections in the basic framework of nuclear physics could have significant ramifications, potentially revealing gaps in the Standard Model which could lead to explanations for some of science’s big remaining mysteries.

If this is indeed the mark of the sterile neutrino, we might at last have evidence of a material that exists in tremendous quantities, yet makes only a gravitational dimple in the fabric of space.

Whether that is the sum of dark matter or a mere piece of its puzzle would depend on further experimentation on the most ghostliest of ghost particles.

This research was published in Physics Review Letters and Physical Review C.

 

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Science

Spacecraft anomaly stalls Astroscale space debris cleanup test

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A pioneering space junk cleanup test is on hold for now.

Astroscale has suspended its ELSA-d demonstration mission in Earth orbit after detecting “anomalous spacecraft conditions,” the Japanese startup announced on Twitter Wednesday (Jan. 26). 

ELSA-d (“End-of-Life Services by Astroscale demonstration”) launched to Earth orbit in March 2021 to test tech for capturing space debris, which poses a growing threat to humanity’s exploration and exploitation of the final frontier. 

The mission consists of two spacecraft — a 386-pound (175 kilograms) “servicer” and a 37-pound (17 kg) cubesat “client” outfitted with a magnetic docking plate. In August, the servicer released and re-snagged the client multiple times, becoming the first private company to ace an orbital capture experiment.

Related: The Kessler Syndrome and the space debris problem

Astroscale controlled that operation from its facility in Hartwell, England. This week, the company initiated a new phase of the mission — an autonomous capture demonstration. The servicer released the client as planned on Tuesday (Jan. 25) and began autonomous navigation operations but was not able to see them through.

“Following an excellent start to mission operations, our team detected anomalous spacecraft conditions,” Astroscale representatives wrote in Wednesday’s tweet. “For the safety of the mission, we have decided not to proceed with the capture attempt until the anomalies are resolved.”

The servicer and client are both operational and are at a safe distance from each other, the company added, stressing that it plans to continue the mission after solving the problems. Astroscale promised to provide more details about the situation as they become available, a pledge also made by a company spokesperson to whom Space.com reached out for more information.

Mike Wall is the author of “Out There” (Grand Central Publishing, 2018; illustrated by Karl Tate), a book about the search for alien life. Follow him on Twitter @michaeldwall. Follow us on Twitter @Spacedotcom or on Facebook. 



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Science

Magnetic Anomaly in New Mexico Reveals an Invisible Signature of Meteorite Impacts

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Meteor impact sites might seem like easy things to recognize, with giant craters in Earth’s surface showing where these far-flung objects finally came to a violent stop. But it’s not always that way. 

 

Sometimes those impact scars are healed over, disguised by layers of dirt and vegetation, or worn smooth again by the elements over vast stretches of time. Now scientists have found a way to detect these hidden impact sites.

Think about a big chunk of space rock getting close to its final destination on Earth. Meteoroids can enter Earth’s atmosphere as fast as 72 kilometers per second (160,000 mph), but they do start to slow down as they move through our relatively dense atmosphere.

The beautiful light in the sky when a meteor flies overhead is due to ‘ablation’ – as layers and layers of the meteoroid are vaporized via high-speed collisions with air molecules.

Then, if the space rock makes it all the way to the ground, it collides with Earth, creating shatter cones, impact craters, and other tell-tale signs that a meteorite hit right here.

This is an intense geological process, with high temperatures, high pressures, and fast particle velocities all coinciding. One of the things that happens during this intense process is that the impact forms plasma – a type of gas in which atoms are broken into electrons and positive ions.

 

“When you have an impact, it’s at a tremendous velocity,” says geologist Gunther Kletetschka from the University of Alaska Fairbanks.

“And as soon as there is a contact with that velocity, there is a change of the kinetic energy into heat and vapor and plasma. A lot of people understand that there is heat, maybe some melting and evaporation, but people don’t think about plasma.”

What the team found here was that all that plasma did something weird to the normal magnetism of the rocks, leaving an impact area where the magnetism was around 10 times less than what natural levels of magnetization would ordinarily be.

Natural remanent magnetization is the amount of natural magnetism found in rocks or other sediment.

As Earth’s sediment gradually settled after being laid down, the tiny grains of magnetic metals within it aligned themselves along the lines of the planet’s magnetic field. These grains then remain trapped in their orientations within the solidified rock.

This is a very low amount of magnetization – about 1-2 percent of the rock’s ‘saturation level’, and you can’t tell by using a regular magnet, but it’s definitely there, and can be measured pretty easily by geological equipment.

 

However, when a shockwave happens – like in a meteorite impact – there’s a loss of magnetism, as the magnetic grains get a good blast of energy.

“The shock wave provides energy that exceeds the energy (> 1 GPa for magnetite > 50 GPa for hematite) required to block the magnetic remanence within individual magnetic grains,” the researchers write in a new study.

Normally the shockwave would pass and the rocks would go back to their original level of magnetism almost immediately. But as the team found in the 1.2-billion-year-old Santa Fe impact structure in New Mexico, the magnetism never went back to its normal state.

Instead – they suggest – the plasma created a ‘magnetic shield’ that kept the grains in their jostled state, and the grains just kind of randomly orientated themselves. This caused the magnetic intensity to drop to 0.1 percent of the rock’s saturation level – a 10-fold reduction from the natural level.

“We present a support for a newly proposed mechanism where the shock wave appearance can generate magnetic shielding that allow keeping the magnetic grains in a superparamagnetic-like state shortly after the shock’s exposure, and leaves the individual magnetized grains in random orientations, significantly lowering the overall magnetic intensity,” the team writes.

“Our data not only clarify how an impact process allows for a reduction of magnetic paleointensity but also inspire a new direction of effort to study impact sites, using paleointensity reduction as a new impact proxy.”

Hopefully this new discovery will mean that scientists have another tool in their belt when it comes to finding impact sites, even ones that don’t have the normal signs of impact, such as shatter cones or craters.

The research has been published in Scientific Reports.

 

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Entertainment

Star Trek Discovery Season 4 Trailer: Burnham, Anomaly NYCC 2021

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Captain Burnham’s ready to face the future head on.
Screenshot: Paramount+

The U.S.S. Discovery has been at the forefront of so many fights for the fate of the Federation—whether it’s in the Trek saga’s classical past, or now, in its farthest future. But with a re-emboldened Federation at its back and a new Captain on Deck, now its fight against a new threat will ask its crew to protect all worlds, Federation membership or otherwise.

Sonequa Martin-Green, Anthony Rapp, Mary Wiseman, Wilson Cruz, David Ajala, Blu del Barrio, and showrunner and executive producer Michelle Paradise were all in attendance at Discovery’s New York Comic Con 2021 panel. CBS kicked things off by dropping our first look in a very long time at Star Trek: Discovery’s fourth season—our last was on First Contact Day earlier this year. But things are still as clear as they were then: Michael Burnham is in for a hell of another ride. Wait, sorry: Captain Michael Burnham.

Yes, following on from the events of season three’s finale—in which Doug Jones’ acting Captain Saru decided to take a temporary leave of absence from Starfleet to spend time on his homeworld of Kaminar, leaving the job of Captaining the Discovery as the Federation’s latest flagship to Burnham—it’s now all hands on some fancy Command Red for Michael. But there’s more than just swanky new uniforms to gawk at here: Michael’s being thrown in the deep end as ever, and the Discovery’s next mission is more than just re-exploring the disconnected fringes of the Federation in the 31st Century. Just as it’s trying to recover from the dilithium shortage that isolated allies all last season, the arrival of a sinister new threat—a seemingly unstoppable, planet-destroying anomaly—that intends to devastate the galaxy whether they’re part of the Federation or not is going to put our newest Star Trek Captain up to her greatest challenge yet: fighting for a future for all, and not just her friends and family under the Federation flag.

Star Trek: Discovery returns to Paramount+ November 18.

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Science

Stinky ‘mushball’ hailstones on Uranus may explain an atmospheric anomaly there

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A recent discovery of giant ammonia-rich hailstones, dubbed mushballs, on Jupiter might explain why Uranus and Neptune seem to have no ammonia in their atmospheres. 

Scientists have puzzled for years over the apparent absence of ammonia in the atmospheres of Uranus and Neptune.

Known for its unpleasant smell, ammonia is rather common in the universe. Since the atmospheres of Uranus and Neptune are rich in other chemical compounds known to be present in the primordial cloud from which planets formed, scientists had no good explanation for ammonia’s absence in the ice giants’ air. 

Related: Could a spaceship fly through a gas giant like Jupiter?

However, a recent discovery of giant ammonia-rich hailstones on Jupiter might shed some light on this mystery. Spoiler alert! The ammonia might not be missing at all; it may just be hidden in deeper layers of the planets’ atmospheres, where current scientific instruments cannot reach. 

A possible key to solving this mystery was provided by NASA’s Juno mission, which is currently orbiting Jupiter. 

“The Juno spacecraft has shown that in Jupiter, ammonia is present in abundance, but generally much deeper [in the atmosphere] than expected,” Tristan Guillot, a researcher at the French National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS) in Nice, said in a statement.

A study published last year in the journal Nature found that mushballs containing ammonia form high in the atmosphere of Jupiter during thunderstorms thanks to ammonia’s ability to melt ice into liquid water even in extremely cold temperatures of around minus 162 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 90 degrees Celsius). 

As these mushballs fall through the atmosphere, they absorb more and more ammonia, eventually accumulating up to 2.2 pounds (1 kilogram) of mass. The ammonia gets transported deep into the atmosphere, where it remains locked below the cloud base. 

“What we have learned at Jupiter can be applied to provide a plausible solution to this mystery at Uranus and Neptune,” said Guillot, who presented his theory at Europlanet Science Congress (EPSC) 2021, which was held virtually this year from Sept. 13 to Sept. 24. 

“Thermodynamic chemistry implies that this process is even more efficient in Uranus and Neptune, and the mushball seed region is extended and occurs at greater depths,” Guillot added. 

That means that, just like on Jupiter, on Uranus and Neptune ammonia may be simply hidden deep in the atmosphere. Scientists currently measure the atmospheric composition of these distant planets of the solar system by analyzing the infrared and radio signatures of the atmospheres by Earth-based telescopes. 

Both of these planets have so far been visited very briefly by only one spacecraft: NASA’s Voyager 2 in the late 1980s. 

The intrigues of the distant planets’ atmospheres, Guillot suggests, provide an incentive for a dedicated mission that could enable scientists to fully uncover what’s going on.

“To fully understand the processes, we need a dedicated mission to map the deep atmospheric structure and understand mixing in hydrogen atmospheres,” said Guillot. “Neptune and Uranus are a critical link between giant planets, like Jupiter and Saturn, and ice giant exoplanets that we are discovering in the galaxy. We really need to go there!”

Follow Tereza Pultarova on Twitter @TerezaPultarova. Follow us on Twitter @Spacedotcom and on Facebook. 



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Science

Ingenuity Helicopter Had an ‘Anomaly’ on Mars, Just Before the Solar Conjunction

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The Ingenuity helicopter will need to wait a couple of weeks for its next flight, as Mars is fully on the far side of the Sun from Earth, disrupting communications with spacecraft stationed there. But all solar conjunctions aside, the helicopter has another issue: It needs to adapt to a changing atmosphere.

The problem comes down to the fact that Ingenuity has been way too good at what NASA designed it for. The plan was for the helicopter to demonstrate the utility of controlled, powered flight on Mars, for the sake of future exploration of the planet and, perhaps someday, more regular travel on it.

Ingenuity was to demonstrate that in five flights; when the helicopter passed those tests, it was promoted to a Martian scout, flitting around the hazy tan skies to assist the Perseverance rover in its science mission. It has done that well, too.

But having endured all these challenges, the Ingenuity helicopter finds itself in the weird position of needing to learn how to fly differently to accommodate for Mars’ changing seasons; when the planet gets colder, the atmospheric pressure drops. But a flight test scheduled for September 18, to acclimate to the atmospheric changes, was cancelled automatically by Ingenuity after the helicopter detected some irregularities in its motors.

The anomaly is yet to be fully understood, but, according to a blog post by deputy operations lead Jaakko Karras, it occurred in two of the six motors that run the mechanism that manages the helicopter’s pitch. Those motors, called servos, go through regular, automated testing on Mars.

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“The servo motors are much smaller than the motors that spin the rotors, but they do a tremendous amount of work and are critical to stable, controlled flight,” Karras wrote. “Because of their criticality, Ingenuity performs an automated check on the servos before every flight.”

So far, what NASA understands of the servo anomaly is that the motors were wobbling a bit; additional tests were run on September 21 and September 23 and nothing untoward happened, so perhaps it was a fluke.

“One theory for what’s happening is that moving parts in the servo gearboxes and swashplate linkages are beginning to show some wear now that Ingenuity has flown well over twice as many flights as originally planned (13 completed versus five planned),” Karras wrote. “Another theory is that the high-speed spin test left the upper rotor at a position that loads servos 1 and 2 in a unique, oscillation-inducing way that we haven’t encountered before.”

The issue doesn’t seem catastrophic, and with the additional tests showing things to be nominal, Ingenuity likely will be up in the air again soon. The solar conjunction lasts from October 2 to October 14. If the helicopter continues to impress as it has thus far, it will find flying in the winter Martian atmosphere no issue at all.

More: Listen to the Incredible Sound of NASA’s Ingenuity Helicopter Flying on Mars

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Science

NASA Ingenuity Helicopter Encounters Anomaly Ahead of Its Flight 14 on Mars

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On September 18th, NASA’s Ingenuity helicopter was supposed to take to the Martian sky for the 14th time and perform a brief hover flight that would have demonstrated its capability of flying with a higher rotor speed. However, during its pre-flight checkout, things didn’t go well for the chopper.

To adjust for the decreasing atmospheric density caused by seasonal changes on Mars, Ingenuity has been getting ready to fly with a higher rotor speed. Step one was to do a high-speed spin test at 2,800 rpm on the ground. If all went accordingly, step two was to perform a short flight at an altitude of 16 feet (5 meters) with a 2,700 rpm rotor speed.

On September 15th, Ingenuity’s motors spun the rotors up to 2,800 rpm, successfully completing its high-speed spin test. This gave the rotorcraft the green light to execute Flight 14. After that, however, NASA canceled the little helicopter’s short journey. So what exactly happened?

Well, according to the space agency, during Ingenuity’s automatic pre-flight checkout, the chopper detected an anomaly in two of the small flight-control servo motors. While servo motors are considerably smaller than those that spin the rotors, they are crucial to stable, controlled flight.

This self-test that Ingenuity performed ahead of its flight verified the six servos through a sequence of steps that checks if they reach their designated positions after each step. The data collected by NASA shows that two of the upper rotor swashplate servos started to oscillate with an amplitude of roughly 1 degree about their assigned positions.

Currently, NASA is investigating the anomaly’s cause and has proposed two theories that might explain what happened. One is that the moving parts in the servo motors are beginning to show signs of wear. And that wouldn’t be a surprise, considering that Ingenuity has performed 13 challenging flights in the thin atmosphere of Mars by now.

Another possibility might be that the high-speed spin test left the top rotor in a position that loads the servo motors in an oscillation-inducing manner. Whatever might be the case, NASA is confident that the rotorcraft will be back on the Martian sky.

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World

EOS-03 mission couldn’t be accomplished due to performance anomaly: ISRO

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The Indian Space Research Organisation’s second mission of the year — to place an earth observation satellite by a GSLV rocket — faced a setback as it could not be accomplished fully due to performance anomaly in the cryogenic stage of the rocket, the space agency said on Thursday.

The GSLV-F10/EOS-03 rocket successfully lifted off from the second launch pad at the spaceport as planned at 05.43 am soon after the 26-hour countdown concluded.

Ahead of the lift-off, the Launch Authorisation Board had cleared the decks for a regular lift-off. The performance of the rocket in the first and second stages was normal, scientists at the mission control centre said.

However, minutes later, they announced that the “mission could not be accomplished fully due to performance anomaly”.

“Performance anomaly observed in the cryogenic stage. The mission could not be accomplished fully,” the range operations director announced at the Mission Control Centre.

Later, ISRO Chairman K Sivan said, “(The mission) could not be fully accomplished mainly because there is a technical anomaly observed in the cryogenic stage. This I wanted to tell to all my friends.”

After the countdown commenced, scientists were engaged in the filling of propellants for the four-stage rocket at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota, about 100 kilometres from Chennai.

The objective of Thursday’s mission was to provide real-time imaging of large area regions at frequent intervals, for quick monitoring of natural disasters, episodic events and obtain spectral signatures for agriculture, forestry, water bodies as well as for disaster warning, cyclone monitoring, cloud burst and thunderstorm monitoring.

The launch was a fairly routine event. ISRO has several earth observation satellites in orbit, even though this is only the second one with the new nomenclature that ISRO started to use last November.

The rocket for Thursday’s flight, the GSLV-F10, is equipped with a newly-designed payload carrier at the top. The shape of the carrier has been designed to significantly reduce aerodynamic drag, and allows the rocket to carry much bigger payloads.

EOS-03 was launched ahead of EOS-02, which has been delayed. EOS-02 is now scheduled for a launch in September-October. That launch will try out a new rocket — SSLV, or small satellite launch vehicle. Though India has developed four rockets till now — SLV, ASLV, and different versions of PSLV and GSLV — only two are currently operational. The SSLV is designed to cater to the increasing demand for launch of small satellites, mainly from businesses and universities; it costs much less and consumes less energy.



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