NASA's Pandora Satellite, CubeSats to Explore Exoplanets and Beyond
A new NASA spacecraft called Pandora is set for launch on January 11 alongside two smaller satellites, BlackCAT and SPARCS, which will study exoplanet atmospheres and the activity of low-mass stars. The mission aims to disentangle the atmospheric signals of planets and stars using visible and near-infrared light.
Pandora's principal investigator Elisa Quintana said, "The Pandora mission is a bold new chapter in exoplanet exploration." It will observe planets as they pass in front of their stars, known as transits, which allows scientists to study the atmospheric signals of planets. The satellite will collect visible and near-infrared light using a 17-inch-wide telescope developed collaboratively with Corning Incorporated.
BlackCAT, another mission on board, will use a wide-field telescope and X-ray detector to study powerful cosmic explosions like gamma-ray bursts. SPARCS, the third CubeSat, will monitor flares and activity from low-mass stars using ultraviolet light.
Each long observation period of Pandora will capture a star's light both before and during a transit, helping determine how stellar surface features impact measurements. The mission's data will be publicly available for scientists to analyze.
The Pandora satellite is the first in NASA's Astrophysics Pioneers program, which seeks to do compelling astrophysics at a lower cost while training the next generation of leaders in space science.
A new NASA spacecraft called Pandora is set for launch on January 11 alongside two smaller satellites, BlackCAT and SPARCS, which will study exoplanet atmospheres and the activity of low-mass stars. The mission aims to disentangle the atmospheric signals of planets and stars using visible and near-infrared light.
Pandora's principal investigator Elisa Quintana said, "The Pandora mission is a bold new chapter in exoplanet exploration." It will observe planets as they pass in front of their stars, known as transits, which allows scientists to study the atmospheric signals of planets. The satellite will collect visible and near-infrared light using a 17-inch-wide telescope developed collaboratively with Corning Incorporated.
BlackCAT, another mission on board, will use a wide-field telescope and X-ray detector to study powerful cosmic explosions like gamma-ray bursts. SPARCS, the third CubeSat, will monitor flares and activity from low-mass stars using ultraviolet light.
Each long observation period of Pandora will capture a star's light both before and during a transit, helping determine how stellar surface features impact measurements. The mission's data will be publicly available for scientists to analyze.
The Pandora satellite is the first in NASA's Astrophysics Pioneers program, which seeks to do compelling astrophysics at a lower cost while training the next generation of leaders in space science.
I think this new mission is gonna be awesome! 
They're like, trying to figure out if we really are alone in the universe and that's kinda mind-blowing, right? 
The fact that they're using CubeSats, which are basically tiny satellites, to study exoplanets and cosmic explosions is just so cool. I mean, it's not like they're gonna revolutionize space travel or anything (lol), but it's a start, you know? And the best part is, all their data will be publicly available, so scientists can dig in and see what they've got. Maybe one day we'll find out if there's life beyond Earth 
it makes me think of my fave sci-fi show that I binge-watched last year... anyway back to Pandora - I love how they're using visible & near-infrared light to study the atmospheres of planets, like who needs a fancy telescope when you've got science, right? 
and can we talk about BlackCAT for sec? studying gamma-ray bursts is literally like, soooo cool!!! did u know that these powerful cosmic explosions can be seen from millions of lightyears away?! mind blown 
. but seriously, its cool that they're tryna figure out how stars work and stuff 
. maybe one day we'll find some planet that's just like home 
...
i mean nasa is doing some cool stuff but have you seen the new star wars movie? i swear that's gonna be my next marathon viewing session 
anyway back to space, yeah those gamma-ray bursts are wild can't wait to see what kind of info blackcat gets from it 
& I'm super excited to see what kinda discoveries we'll make with this mission