NASA WMAP卫星项目(上) After nine years of scanning the sky, the Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe (WMAP) space mission has concluded its observations of the cosmic microwave background, the oldest light in the universe. The spacecraft has not only given scientists their best look at this remnant glow, but also established the scientific model that describes the history and structure of the universe. 经过9年对天际的扫描,威尔金森各向异性微波探头(WMAP)航天任务得出了对宇宙微波背景辐射(及宇宙早期“光线”)的观测结论。航天器不仅给出科学家最想看到的背景辐射,而且建立了描述宇宙历史与结构的科学模型。 "WMAP has opened a window into the earliest universe that we could scarcely imagine a generation ago," said Gary Hinshaw, an astrophysicist at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Md., who manages the mission. "The team is still busy analyzing the complete nine-year set of data, which the scientific community eagerly awaits." 管理这项任务的NASA戈达德太空飞行中心的天体物理学家'加里
金森说:“WMAP已经打开了通往早期宇宙的一扇窗,对于上一代人,这是几乎不可想象的。研究团队正忙于分析科学界急切期待的9年的整套数据。” WMAP was designed to provide a more detailed look at subtle temperature differences in the cosmic microwave background that were first detected in 1992 by NASA's Cosmic Background Explorer (COBE). The WMAP team has answered many longstanding questions about the universe's age and composition. WMAP acquired its final science data on Aug. 20. On Sept. 8, the satellite fired its thrusters, left its working orbit, and entered into a permanent parking orbit around the sun. WMAP被设计用来对宇宙微波背景辐射的微小温度差进行详细观测,该差别首次在1992年被NASA的宇宙背景探测器观测到(COBE)。WMAP团队解决了长期存在的宇宙年龄与结构的问题,在8.20日得出最后的科学数据。9.8日,卫星推进器点火,离开了工作轨道,进入环日固定轨道。 "We launched this mission in 2001, accomplished far more than our initial science objectives, and now the time has come for a responsible conclusion to the satellite's operations," said Charles Bennett, WMAP's principal investigator at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore. WMAP的重要审查人,巴尔的摩霍普金森大学的Charles Bennett说:“我们2001年的发射任务比预想的科研目标要完成的多,现在是让卫星有个’善终’的时候了。” http://www.nasa.gov/topics/universe/features/wmap-complete.html
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