Castalia is a proposed mission concept for a robotic spacecraft to explore the main-belt comet7968 Elst–Pizarro and make the first in situ measurements of water in the asteroid belt, and thus, help solve the mystery of the origin of Earth's water. The lead is Colin Snodgrass, from The Open University in UK.
Castalia was proposed in 2015 and 2016 to the European Space Agency within the Cosmic Vision programme missions M4 and M5, but it was not selected. Because of the construction time required and orbital dynamics, a launch date of October 2028 is proposed.
Main-belt comets (MBCs) are a recently discovered population of apparently icy bodies within the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, which may represent the remnants of the population which supplied the early Earth with water.[1] The Rosetta mission to comet 67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko in 2014, indicates that Jupiter family comets cannot be the main source of Earth's water as previously thought.[1]Castalia would rendezvous and orbit comet 7968 Elst–Pizarro and measure isotope ratios, plasma and dust properties, while also mapping its interior structure with a radar. Basically, Castalia would test whether MBCs are a viable source for Earth's water, and to use MBCs as tracers of the formation and evolution of the Solar System.[1][2]
The primary propulsion would be solar electric with supporting chemical propulsion.[3] The spacecraft would orbit comet Pizarro from a distance of 20 km, and it would also perform a few close approaches and 'hover' for a total of 100 hours as close as 5 km from the surface to make additional observations and collect the necessary sampling of dust and gas.[1]
The mission architecture and spacecraft design were initially developed in 2013 by the German Aerospace Center (DLR) in Bremen and OHB SE.[1]Castalia was proposed, in slightly different versions, to the European Space Agency M4 (2015), and M5 (2016) missions within the Cosmic Vision programme. Although it was not selected, the team continues to mature the mission concept and science goals.
The mission concept is named after Castalia, a nymph in Greek mythology that was turned into a fountain by a god, and she could inspire the genius of poetry to those who drank her waters or listened to their quiet sound.
^ abcdefghijThe Castalia mission to Main Belt Comet 133P/Elst-Pizarro. C. Snodgrass, G. H. Jones, H. Boehnhardt, A. Gibbings, etal. Advances in Space Research, Volume 62, Issue 8, 15 October 2018, Pages 1947-1976. doi:10.1016/j.asr.2017.09.011.
^Castalia: A Mission to a Main Belt Comet. Castalia home page. Accessed: October 2018.
^Castalia - The Spacecraft. Castalia home page. Accessed: October 2018.
May 08, 2024
castalia, spacecraft, castalia, proposed, mission, concept, robotic, spacecraft, explore, main, belt, comet, 7968, elst, pizarro, make, first, situ, measurements, water, asteroid, belt, thus, help, solve, mystery, origin, earth, water, lead, colin, snodgrass, . Castalia is a proposed mission concept for a robotic spacecraft to explore the main belt comet 7968 Elst Pizarro and make the first in situ measurements of water in the asteroid belt and thus help solve the mystery of the origin of Earth s water The lead is Colin Snodgrass from The Open University in UK CastaliaMission typeReconnaissanceOperatorEuropean Space AgencyWebsitesites wbr google wbr com wbr site wbr castaliathemission wbr Mission duration1 yearSpacecraft propertiesLaunch mass1 611 kg 3 552 lb 1 Dry mass1 387 kgStart of missionLaunch dateProposed October 2028 1 RocketProposed Ariane 6 2 1 Comet 7968 Elst Pizarro orbiterOrbital insertion2035 1 Cosmic Vision M class Castalia was proposed in 2015 and 2016 to the European Space Agency within the Cosmic Vision programme missions M4 and M5 but it was not selected Because of the construction time required and orbital dynamics a launch date of October 2028 is proposed Contents 1 Overview 1 1 Science goals 2 Science payload 3 See also 4 ReferencesOverview editMain belt comets MBCs are a recently discovered population of apparently icy bodies within the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter which may represent the remnants of the population which supplied the early Earth with water 1 The Rosetta mission to comet 67P Churyumov Gerasimenko in 2014 indicates that Jupiter family comets cannot be the main source of Earth s water as previously thought 1 Castalia would rendezvous and orbit comet 7968 Elst Pizarro and measure isotope ratios plasma and dust properties while also mapping its interior structure with a radar Basically Castalia would test whether MBCs are a viable source for Earth s water and to use MBCs as tracers of the formation and evolution of the Solar System 1 2 The primary propulsion would be solar electric with supporting chemical propulsion 3 The spacecraft would orbit comet Pizarro from a distance of 20 km and it would also perform a few close approaches and hover for a total of 100 hours as close as 5 km from the surface to make additional observations and collect the necessary sampling of dust and gas 1 The mission architecture and spacecraft design were initially developed in 2013 by the German Aerospace Center DLR in Bremen and OHB SE 1 Castalia was proposed in slightly different versions to the European Space Agency M4 2015 and M5 2016 missions within the Cosmic Vision programme Although it was not selected the team continues to mature the mission concept and science goals The mission concept is named after Castalia a nymph in Greek mythology that was turned into a fountain by a god and she could inspire the genius of poetry to those who drank her waters or listened to their quiet sound Science goals edit The main science goals of the mission are 1 Characterise a main belt comet MBC by in situ investigation Understand the physics of MBC activity Directly detect water in the asteroid belt Test whether MBCs are a viable source for Earth s water Use MBCs as tracers of planetary system formation and evolution Science payload editThe conceptual science payload includes the following instruments MBCCAM vis near IR imager TMC thermal IR imager SOURCE deep radar SSR shallow radar CAMS mass spectrometer DIDIMA combined dust detector and composition MAG magnetometer ChAPS plasma package The mission would also include a radio science experiment using the spacecraft s communication system See also editList of missions to comets 4769 Castalia 1st NEO to be radar imaged Deep Impact spacecraft incl comet impactor Rosetta spacecraft incl comet lander Deep Impact spacecraft incl comet impactor ZhengHe spacecraft a Chinese mission that also plans to visit Elst PizarroReferences edit a b c d e f g h i j The Castalia mission to Main Belt Comet 133P Elst Pizarro C Snodgrass G H Jones H Boehnhardt A Gibbings etal Advances in Space Research Volume 62 Issue 8 15 October 2018 Pages 1947 1976 doi 10 1016 j asr 2017 09 011 Castalia A Mission to a Main Belt Comet Castalia home page Accessed October 2018 Castalia The Spacecraft Castalia home page Accessed October 2018 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Castalia spacecraft amp oldid 966989527, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
