The observatory has concluded its first scientific assignment

Nov 26, 2013 08:41 GMT  ·  By

Scientists at NASA are currently getting ready to begin a new mission with the agency' Kepler Space Telescope. The observatory, originally launched to look for Earth-sized planets in a tiny portion of the night sky, can no longer maintain its orientation, so its main mission is completed. 

The telescope occupied a position in the night sky that enabled it to constantly keep tabs on 150,000 stars in our galaxy. It relied on four gyroscope-like reaction wheels to constantly point at the same region of sky. Two of these wheels failed over time, the second in May 2013.

As this happened, the spacecraft became unable to preserve its orientation, so mission controllers at NASA thought that Kepler's time had passed. Now, researchers are proposing the K2 mission, which would use the telescope for other applications, enabling it to produce more scientific return.

In addition to searching for new exoplanets, the K2 mission will also feature other components, such as searching for both young and old stars in the Milky Way, looking for new star clusters, and observing supernovae or active galaxies beyond our own.

In order to control the telescope, engineers at NASA and Ball Aerospace developed a technique where photons from the Sun fulfill the role of the third reaction wheel. The pressure exerted by these light particles is used to keep the spacecraft leveled, and pointing in the right direction.

Recently, a proof-of-concept study was conducted using this method, where Kepler was able to observe an exoplanet passing in front of its parent star. The objects were not included in the observatory's original field of view, which demonstrates the mission's adaptability.

“This 'second light' image provides a successful first step in a process that may yet result in new observations and continued discoveries from the Kepler space telescope,” explains NASA Ames Research Center expert Charlie Sobeck, who is the deputy manager for the Kepler project.

Now that the K2 concept has been demonstrated, mission controllers are expected to formulate an official request for funding by the end of the year, and to forward it to the NASA Senior Review panel in early 2014.

This is where the fate of K2 will be established. The Senior Review is held twice every year, and analyzes funding requests and opportunities for all NASA missions.