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In Brief Blustery IB 11/8/00 4:13 PM Page 2 r bulletin 104 — november 2000 Next ESA Science Ulysses Encounters Programme Director Blustery Weather at the Appointed Sun’s South Pole At its 147th meeting, at ESA Just as solar storms are brewing, the Headquarters in Paris on 19 and 20 European-built space probe Ulysses is October, the Council unanimously elected venturing over the Sun’s south pole for the Prof. David Southwood (UK) as the second time in its 10-year life. The intrepid Agency’s new Director of Science from spacecraft passed 70°S on 8 September, 1 May 2001 for the subsequent four shortly before the Sun’s 11-year activity years. Prof. Southwood will take over from cycle is due to peak. Solar storms are Prof. Roger Bonnet (F), who has been already numerous and the high-latitude ESA’s Director of Scientific Programmes solar wind (the stream of charged particles since 1984. blowing away from the Sun) is chaotic and In Brief blustery. Prof. Southwood (aged 55) holds a BA in Mathematics and a PhD in Physics from Conditions are now very different from Imperial College, London. He has spent those that Ulysses encountered during its most of his professional career at Imperial first south polar pass in 1994 when solar College, apart from two periods at UCLA activity, which is related to the magnetic (University of California, Los Angeles), first behaviour of the Sun, was very low. Then, as a post-doctoral Fellow and later as a the solar wind at high latitudes was fast, Visiting Professor. He joined ESA for the but steady. This latest polar pass gives first time in 1997 as Earth Observation scientists the opportunity to learn just how Future Programme different the polar regions of the Sun are Strategy Manager, after at solar maximum compared with solar which, since April 2000, minimum. he has been Regent’s Professor at the University After spending four months above 70°S, of California. Ulysses will swing towards the equator early next year to turn its attention to Prof. Southwood has the northern hemisphere, beginning its received numerous passage over the north pole on awards and honours and 3 September 2001. Although it will be has held many travelling the same path that it followed six Chairmanships during his years ago, conditions will be quite different career, including those of and new discoveries are eagerly awaited. the ESA Science Programme Committee Since its launch in October 1990, Ulysses (SPC) and the ESA Space has already proved to be one of the most Science Advisory successful interplanetary missions ever. A Prof. David Southwood Committee (SSAC). He joint ESA/NASA undertaking, it is the first has also been active both in Europe and spacecraft ever to be launched into an in the United States over the years in orbit outside the ecliptic, the plane in Public Outreach on Space Science. He which the planets orbit the Sun. From this has some 200 publications and 100 unique vantage point, it has changed our invited papers to his name. view of the heliosphere, the region of space filled by the solar wind and over “David Southwood is certainly one of the which our Sun exerts its influence. most prominent space-science experts Europe has the privilege to have”, said At solar minimum, instruments on board ESA’s Director General Antonio Rodotà in Ulysses found that the fast solar wind, welcoming Prof. Southwood to his Board emanating from the Sun’s poles, blows at of Directors, ……”and I am sure that, like a steady 750 km/s and fills a large fraction his predecessor Prof. Bonnet, he will do a of the heliosphere. The state-of-the-art really good job for the excellent scientific instruments were also able to show that community that we have in all our Member the boundary between the fast wind and States”. r the slower, more variable wind from the equatorial regions, is surprisingly sharp. Another surprise was that the effects of collisions occurring at low latitudes 132 IB 11/8/00 4:13 PM Page 3 in brief between fast and slow wind streams continue to be felt all the way up to the poles. Ulysses’ discoveries, however, have not been confined to the Sun and heliosphere. Instruments on board the spacecraft have also made the first ever measurements of dust particles and neutral helium atoms originating outside the Solar System. These findings have contributed to a major increase in our knowledge about the gas and dust clouds surrounding the heliosphere. Other measurements have led to a better understanding of processes occurring even further away, in distant supernova explosions. During the relative simplicity of solar- minimum conditions, Ulysses made many surprising discoveries – during the relative A Brochure (ESA BR-168) issued to Orbital schematic of Ulysses’ south polar pass chaos and unpredictability of solar celebrate Ulysses’ first ten years in orbit, maximum, many more are expected. and which contains further details on the Exciting times therefore lie ahead in our mission’s exciting discoveries to date, is quest to understand the Sun and its available from ESA Publications Division. heliosphere. r Artemis, Europe’s Latest Communications Satellite, on Display at ESTEC ESA’s advanced communications satellite, Artemis, is currently undergoing a final series of functional checkout tests at ESTEC in Noordwijk (NL). Artemis is not the conventional type of communications satellite. In particular, it differs in one very important aspect: none Artist’s impression of Artemis of its payloads connects a fixed point on the Earth with other fixed points on the Earth. Instead: observation satellites such as the accuracy and 24-hour availability. – Artemis will connect users on the French Spot-4. Data communication Artemis will add corrections and health ground with satellites in orbit via its between satellites using an optical link checks to the existing GPS signals, radio-frequency data-relay payload. This (laser pulses) is a novelty in space and thus supporting the first phase of dramatically increases communication offers great advantages over Galileo, Europe’s new navigation time with spacecraft in low Earth orbit conventional radio-frequency systems. programme. (LEO). For instance, a scientist anywhere – With Artemis, a mobile user will be able in Europe will be able, via Artemis, to to link up from anywhere in Europe, In addition to these many novel monitor the status of an experiment on North Africa or the Middle East to any communication services, Artemis will the International Space Station in real fixed user in the same area at very provide European industry with time and actively intervene. This payload competitive prices. Large ocean areas opportunities to gain in-orbit experience will also enable ESA’s next Earth- are included in Artemis’ coverage zone, with advanced technologies. The most observation satellite Envisat, slated for allowing voice or data connections to prominent of these is the ion propulsion launch in June 2001, to transmit its data land from the Mediterranean, the North system, the very high power-to-mass ratio to the ground in real time. Sea or the eastern part of the Atlantic of which helps to reduce launch costs and – Via its optical data-relay payload, SILEX, Ocean. increase satellite lifetime. r Artemis can receive and re-transmit in – The navigation payload will enable users real time images taken by Earth- to determine their position with higher 133 IB 11/8/00 4:13 PM Page 4 r bulletin 104 — november 2000 Caring for Planet Earth: measurements were presented at an for Earth-observation activities and future Europe’s Latest Space international gathering organised by ESA mission plans. and Chalmers University – ‘The Capabilities Presented in ERS/Envisat Symposium -Looking Down The data gathered by the ERS missions Gothenburg to Earth in the New Millennium’ – in continue to make important contributions Gothenburg, Sweden, from 16 to 20 to environmental monitoring and our The ozone layer, protecting our planet October. It included more than 400 understanding of the physical and from potentially harmful ultraviolet sunlight, presentations (talks and posters) by World chemical processes underlying Earth’s is threatened by human activities, in experts – scientists, remote-sensing systems, on both the global and the local particular the steady release of experts and industry representatives – scale. By integrating ERS data with local chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) into the in more than 40 sessions covering the information from other sources, national Earth’s atmosphere. In 1987 the leading scientific results and applications of ESA’s authorities and operators have a powerful industrial countries signed the Montreal ERS missions. tool for environmental monitoring, and Protocol in which they agreed to phase valuable information for planning and out the products responsible for ozone It also presented the Agency’s Envisat preventive actions. The transition from depletion. In April 1995, with the start of mission, to be launched in June 2001, ERS to Envisat is being managed in such operation of the GOME instrument, an which is designed to build on the ERS a way as to ensure continuity in the provision optical sensor on board its ERS-2 satellite, groundwork and to make a major of this key environmental information; ESA opened a new chapter in ozone contribution to global environmental once it is completed, a stream of new monitoring. GOME’s higher spectral monitoring. ESA has already received data will become available for resolution and broader wavelength some 700 project proposals from the oceanographic and atmospheric studies, coverage enable it to measure the levels World’s scientists designed to exploit this with particular emphasis on marine biology of ozone, and several other trace gases unique and valuable data source.
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