If the 20th century was the sunup of spaceflight , then the twenty - first is its full , bright dawn . We have probe and golem search every corner of our solar system ; we have orbiting telescopes mapping the entire wandflower as well as near - Earth objects ; and we have a permanent frontier settlement in place , the International Space Station . Plus , the successful rendezvous between SpaceX ’s Falcon 9 rocket and the ISS add us officially into the years of commercial-grade space flight .
Here are ten unbelievable technologies that are defining what twenty - first 100 distance geographic expedition is all about .
All images good manners of NASA .
1.Cassini - Huygens Probe
TheCassini - Huygens missionis a joint effort between NASA and ESA . NASA ’s Cassini probe go far at Saturn in 2004 , and dropped ESA ’s Huygens probe into the atmosphere of Saturn ’s mysterious moon , Titan , which has a thick-skulled ambiance and atmospheric condition that is surprisingly similar to Earth ’s . Scientists are still poring over data from the Titan mission , and Cassini ’s many on - board instruments continue to leave us with data on Saturn , as well as its magnetosphere and its polar , watery moon Enceladus . Have you seen a gorgeous photograph of Saturn recently ? That ’s thanks to Cassini .
2.Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter
Launched in 2005 by NASA , the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter ( MRO ) is currently orbiting Mars , studying the chronicle of water on the planet . It ’s analyse geographical features like canyon that might have been created by pee , as well as using a spectrometer to analyze the chemical composition of the Martian surface . Its HiRISE photographic camera can espy objects as “ diminished as a dinner board , ” according to NASA , and it has even captured image of the three Martian wanderer that are presently flap ( or parked ) on the Martian regolith . Many of the find about Martian water history and weather condition are due to the MRO , as are any number of breathtaking shaft of the satellite ’s surface . Above , a picture that the MRO snap of a seldom - seen Martian avalanche .
3.Hubble Space Telescope
Launched into orbit in 1990 , the Hubble genuinely is one of the outstanding space legal instrument in the account of humanity . And it has been updated importantly in the twenty - first C . power by sun , equipped with multiple cat’s-paw and cameras for conquer images of deep space , the Hubble has show us images of the population that would have been impossible for Earth - based telescope . Using Hubble , we ’ve notice colored vim , figured out the indistinguishability of quasi-stellar radio source , get a more exact date for the origin of the population , and spot countless galaxies at every stage of their life round . NASA gauge that over 10,000 scientific paper have been written based on data point meet by Hubble .
4.Kepler Spacecraft
This low - cost orbital scope was launched in 2009 with the sole intent of locating exoplanets in the Milky Way galaxy . Since that time , it has light upon , according to NASA , “ 2,740 potential planets orb 2,036 lead . ” Knowing that we have discovered so many planets — a little fraction of what likely exists — has transform our apprehension of our shoes in the extragalactic nebula , and the universe .
5.WISEandNeoWISEProbe
The Wide - field Infrared Survey Explorer take two missions in its life as a investigation . First , it conducted one of the most extensive surveys of the wandflower in human history , hear everything from chocolate-brown dwarf stars ( which are often candidate for planets ) to stellar greenhouse . Astronomers are still analyzing the data it took in its monolithic sky survey . In a follow - up mission call NeoWISE , the telescope also surveyed the solar system and the volume of space near Earth for asteroid and comets . Many of these are “ near - Earth objects ” ( NEOs ) that desperately need to be mapped so that we could realize what dangers dwell in advance for Earth . Knowing where the NEOs are avail us translate whether we are at risk of infection of an encroachment that could potentially be annihilating . The delegacy launched in 2009 and the probe survived so well that the mission was extended several times to gather more data .
6.Curiosity
The image you see above is a ego - portrait take by the most powerful robot ever to set wheel upon the Martian regolith . It bring together its older siblings , Spirit and Opportunity , but with a more sinewy set of instrument and broader reach of tools . The Curiosity bird of passage landed on Mars in 2012 , help in its descent by a find landing technology dubbed a sky crane . Curiosity , also called the Mars Science Laboratory ( MSL ) , has one mission : to study the habitability of Mars . Its legal document are designed to explore whether there were once conditions on Mars that could support life as we know it , and to determine if those condition still exist today .
7.Spirit and Opportunity Rovers
The rover Opportunity withdraw this shot of the track it leave behind . Like the MSL , Spirit and Opportunity are robotlike rovers that traversed the Martian surface , survive many years longer than the commission was ask to . They down in 2004 , and Opportunity is still combat-ready , wind around Martian craters and find more about Martian geography and sway formation . The twin golem were called geologists because their main mission was to study stone and dirt up close , sending thousands of images back home to give the skilful scene yet from the surface of a major planet we ’d only seen up tight a few fourth dimension before .
8.SELENE Lunar Orbiter
The Japanese blank space program , JAXA , launched this lunar satellite in 2007 . It was nicknamed Kaguya , for the Japanese synodic month princess , and its commission was to analyze the geology and magnetic field of the Moon . It also offer us the most elaborate , precise maps of the lunar surface in history — resulting in staggering videos like this one . When future explorers begin to work up on the Moon , they will no doubt be relying on maps first created by Kaguya .
9 . SpaceX’sFalcon 9 Rocket
Though the Falcon 9 rocket from SpaceX may not have represented a great whole tone forward technologically , it was revolutionary in term of what it meant for the viability of a commercial space flight industry . The first in private - owned space watercraft to help a craft ( the Dragon ) rendezvous with the International Space Station , this ware of Elon Musk ’s entrepreneurial dreams has stepped into the place that NASA ’s Space Shuttles once fill . And it presages a one C where commercial spacefaring might become a realness — turning the solar system into a version of what the sea were in the sixteenth century .
10.International Space Station
The first mission on the ISS began in late 2000 , ring in the young hundred and the new millennium with manhood ’s first orbital space home ground design for long - term visits . Now in its thirteenth year , the ISS has expanded hugely , play host to XII of missions , and allow scientist to direct hundreds of experiment in Earth orbit . Most importantly , the ISS is a proof - of - concept that shows humans can live for many calendar month in blank . It is avail us memorize what the effects are of space life-time , both physically and psychologically . And finally , it is a symbolisation to all of Homo sapiens that the route to human civilization beyond Earth is now undefendable — and we ’re take our first steps on it .
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