Hell Yes: NASA Aims to Revive Kepler Mission with Clever Plan

The Kepler scope was relieved of planet - hunt tariff back in August , when researchers determined thatfailed alignment ironware , necessary for the spacecraft ’s proper function , was beyond saving . At the clock time , NASA pronounce it wasopen to ideason how the otherwise functional space vehicle might be put to Modern role . Now , the Agency has settle on a proposal of marriage that could see the ambit resume its major planet - hunting mission .

https://gizmodo.com/nasa-will-attempt-to-rescue-the-planet-hunting-kepler-t-841750685

https://gizmodo.com/nasa-says-kepler-is-beyond-repair-but-the-telescopes-1154522161

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arstechnica ’s John Timmer explainshow NASA aims to revivify the scientifically fertile instrument :

The failed computer hardware is called a chemical reaction steering wheel , and its occupation is to exert a small military unit that can turn the telescope over meter . At least three of these roulette wheel are required to keep the scope staring at a specific spot long enough to cumulate utile information . The Modern proposal would effectively turn the probe ’s solar panel into a third reaction wheel — though an extremely limited one .

As photons are absorb and emitted , they generate a small force out on the target doing the absorbing ( it ’s the same force that causessome asteroids to spin ) . Kepler is power by solar panels that are stage symmetrically across the probe ’s long axis vertebra . If the investigation can be oriented so that the sunlight strikes these panel equally , the photons will wield a constant and symmetrical force against the investigation . Kepler ’s two stay on reaction wheels can then tug against that force and keep the telescope gaze steadily at one point in the sky , just as it was designed to do .

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