Two satellites went into space: “On Thursday, December 5, it launched from the Satish Dhawan Space Center in India mission of the European Space Agency – Proba-3. Her goal is demonstration of precision flight technology in the formation of two satellites,” said the Polish Space Agency. The project is to be a great step forward for space technology, and its implementation would not be successful without the involvement of Poles.
Groundbreaking mission with Poland's participation: Participated in the organization of the project many national institutions and companies – including, among others: Space Research Center of the Polish Academy of Sciences, Sener Polska, GMV, N7 Space and Creotech Instruments. – The Proba-3 mission is proof of how the Polish space sector can make a key contribution in ESA's most advanced technological projects. Thanks to the commitment of our scientists and engineers Poland makes its presence known at the forefront of European space innovations – said Grzegorz Wrochna, president of the Polish Space Agency.
What is the whole project about? The Proba-3 mission consisted of two independent satellites – Coronagraph Spacecraft and Occulter Spacecraftwhich, moving in formation, will create a 144-meter-long telescope. Their operation will be fully automatic – they will enable them to precisely maintain the mutual distance blocking sunlight and observing the solar corona thanks to special instruments. Proba-3 is also intended to be a “laboratory in space.”
More on the topic mission into space we wrote in the article: “'Unusual smell' on the space station. It came from a Russian capsule“.
Source: POLSA announcement