NASA to launch six satellites that will study and map particles from the Sun

During events like solar flares or coronal mass ejections, energetic particles are accelerated to high speeds. This results in solar radio bursts. The energetic particles can stream into the solar system, traveling at a slower speed compared to the radio bursts.

But the particles can pose harm to astronauts and satellites, which are out of the protective reach of the Earth’s magnetic field. Studying these bursts and how they form is crucial to understanding the impact of the radiation events.

That is what NASA aims to achieve with SunRISE (Sun Radio Interferometer Space Experiment). SunRISE is a heliophysics mission comprising six small satellites. These satellites will fly in Earth’s orbit about 6 miles (10 kilometers) away from each other.

They will work together as a large radio telescope by combining their signals via interferometry. The SunRISE mission will localize where the radio bursts are coming from and infer the direction in which the energetic particles are streaming. This will help improve the forecast of the direction and impact of radiation events.

SunRISE will launch as a rideshare aboard a United Launch Alliance Vulcan Centaur rocket. It will work alongside other heliophysics missions, including NASA’s STEREO (Solar TErrestrial RElations Observatory), Parker Solar Probe, and the Solar Orbiter.