Two tiny satellites billed as the world's smallest space telescopes
will launch into orbit Monday (Feb. 25) on a mission to study the
brightest stars in the night sky.
The Bright Target Explorer (BRITE) nanosatellites look
like little cubes and will blast off atop an Indian Polar Satellite
Launch Vehicle (PSLV) at 7:20 a.m. EST (1220 GMT) on Monday from the
Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota, India.
While tiny nanosatellites have launched into space before, they have
been mainly used to study Earth or test new spaceflight technologies,
but the BRITE satellites will be the first to peer into the cosmos,
their builders say. The diminutive spacecraft are less than 8 inches (20
centimeters) wide and weigh less than 15.5 pounds (7 kilograms). Once
in orbit, they are expeted to observe the brightest stars (from Earth's
perspective), including those that make up well-known constellations
like Orion, the Hunter.
Source : Space.Com ( 23rd Feb 2013 )
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