At the end of a competition which took place from May to September 2021, the European Space Agency received 5,422 proposals to name its satellite dedicated to monitoring the Sun. Formerly known as “Lagrange”, this satellite will be called Vigil. A much more important mission than it seems for the security of human and satellite activities around the Earth. Ask Elon Musk what he thinks, he whose company has just lost several Starlinks due to a solar storm…
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Announced and presented in 2019, the first space mission intended to permanently monitor the activity of the Sun was called Vigil. This name was chosen after a competition which collected 5,422 proposals. Formerly known as “Lagrange”, this European Space Agency satellite will be launched by 2025.
Vigil, comes from Latin vigil exceptuswhich means “sentinel”, explains Canadian François Gosselin, winner of the #NameTheMission campaign with his proposal, Vigil.
Lookout. This is exactly the role of this satellite which will be located at Lagrange point number 5, and which allows us to permanently observe the side of our star not visible from Earth. From this location, Vigil will be able to study all extreme and unpredictable solar events even before they are noticeable from Earth, such as solar flares and “ejections of mass coronal”, and before they reach it.
These events are not trivial. They are likely to disrupt the proper functioning of satellites and infrastructure orbitals and to have effects on earth. They can also represent a danger to astronauts aboard the International Space Station and also threaten the future explorers (or inhabitants) of the Moon and March.
The Vigil satellite will be located on Lagrange point number 5 in order to monitor and prevent potentially dangerous activity of the Sun for the space environment and the Earth. This space weather warning system will have to operate during intense space phenomena and withstand very high levels of radiation and particle flux. © ESA
At least 40 Starlink satellites destroyed by solar storm
This announcement of the name comes only a few days after the loss of 40 satellites of star link ! In question, a thunderstorm magnetic linked to a solar storm which caused the dilation of the’atmosphere just hours after the February 3 launch of 49 satellites star link. The resulting atmospheric expansion caused the satellites to brake sharply, causing them to lose almost 50% of their speed.
However, with a perigee of only 210 km of altitude, it was not possible to go up them higher. Results, SpaceX has been forced to deorbit several of them while the others are expected to re-enter the atmosphere in the coming weeks. The fate of the other nine satellites is uncertain.
With Vigil, satellite operators would have been warned of the formation of a storm sun heading towards Earth. The launch of the Starlink satellites would have been postponed for a few days, until the situation in orbit return to normal.
ESA to install solar storm watch 1.5 million km from Earth
Article of Remy Decourt published on 03/15/2019
The European Space Agency wishes to set up an early warning system for the meteorology spatial. The idea is to install on Lagrange point number 5 a satellite which will be able to monitor the Sun permanently, in order to detect dangerous solar activity before it is triggered in the direction of the Earth. Provisionally baptized L5, this satellite could be launched in 2025. Its construction and that of the instruments it will carry are already shaping up to be a technological challenge.
Having become indispensable in our daily lives, space systems are sensitive to meteorological phenomena generated by solar activity.
In the same way as the heat of the Sun determines the meteorology on Earth, solar activity is responsible for disturbances in our space environment. In addition to emitting a continuous stream of charged particles, known as solar windthe Sun sometimes produces flares called coronal mass ejections (CME), expelling billions of tons of materials related to magnetic fieldsoften in volumes larger than the Earth. These particle ejections can damage the electronics and electrical components of satellites, the cells of solar panels and deteriorate the quality of the information they transmit (TV signals, telecommunications, navigation). These solar eruptions and geomagnetic storms also cause the upper atmosphere to heat up, which can extend to altitudes taken by satellites. The pressure exerted on the satellites forces them to change trajectory.
Space weather also has effects on Earth. Geomagnetic storms can disrupt power distribution networks, communications radiocivil or military and the operation of telephones mobiles can be disturbed by emissions solar radios and the activity of the ionosphere. Commercial aviation is also exposed to radiation which causes radiation. On average, passengers on long-haul flights receive the X-ray equivalent of a radio from the lung and are also susceptible to radiation doses five to ten times higher than those on the ground.
Finally, solar radiation represents a danger to astronauts aboard the International Space Station and will also threaten future explorers (or inhabitants) of the Moon and Mars.
Towards predictive solar meteorology
Forecasting solar activity and the conditions of the space environment is therefore a necessity today. The latest study from theESA estimated that the potential socio-economic impact of a single space weather event in Europe could amount to €15 billion. However, much of this disruption could be avoided with accurate forecasts. For this, ESA is preparing an early warning mission for potentially damaging space weather phenomena. This mission will consist of positioning, for the very first time, a satellite at Lagrange point number 5, which allows permanent observation of the side of our star that is not visible from Earth. From this observatory, this space weather satellite, provisionally baptized L5, will be able to study extreme solar events even before they are visible from Earth. L5 will provide data for apps operational, such as conventional forecasts and very near-range forecasts of solar activity and will issue warnings and alerts to scientific, commercial and civil customers when solar activity is likely to pose a risk.
At this point equidistant from the Earth and the Sun, L5 will be able to identify stormy segments of the Sun’s surface before they rotate to face the Earth, and then track the clouds from CME when they head our way. But that’s not all, L5 will also be able to observe both the Sun and the Earth, as well as the space in between. As a result, he himself will be in the crosshairs of space weather so that he will be highly exposed to radiation and particles from the solar wind.
Yet these instruments will have to continue to function during the height of the storm. When other satellites go into standby mode, L5 will have to remain active and continue to provide its services. As ESA space environment specialist Piers Jiggens explains, on Earth, it would not be acceptable to have an infrastructure of weather forecast which stops working when a hurricane happens, because coverage would be lost when the extreme weather event will most affect our lives. In space it will be the same “.
This satellite and its instruments will be hardened to resist this radiation. L5 will also feature a artificial intelligence allowing it to have an intelligent strategy for detecting failures, isolating and recovering data and correcting anomalies on board.
This space weather mission has not yet been officially approved by the governing bodies of the European Space Agency. Ministers responsible for space affairs from the 22 ESA Member States, Slovenia and Canada, who will meet at the end of the year at the ESA Council session at ministerial level, will have to decide whether to finance this mission. If so, L5 will be launched by 2025.
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