Anúncio
Detector de exoplanetas SPHERE enviado para o Chile
18 de Fevereiro de 2014
O instrumento SPHERE - Spectro-Polarimetric High-contrast Exoplanet - é uma nova e potente câmara dedicada à procura e estudo de exoplanetas, que foi recentemente testada de forma bem sucedida em França, foi aceite preliminarmente pelo ESO e acaba de ser enviada para o Chile. Será instalada no Very Large Telescope do ESO (VLT), prevendo-se a primeira luz para início de maio de 2014.
A SPHERE foi construída por um consórcio de astrónomos e engenheiros de muitos países membros do ESO em conjunto com a indústria [1]. O consórcio é liderado pelo Institut de Planétologie et d´Astrophysique de Grenoble, França.
O objetivo principal da SPHERE consiste em encontrar e caracterizar exoplanetas gigantes em órbita de estrelas próximas por meio de imagens diretas [2]. É um trabalho extremamente difícil já que tais planetas, para além de se encontrarem muito próximo das suas estrelas progenitoras, são ao mesmo tempo muito mais ténues que estas. Numa imagem normal, mesmo nas melhores condições, a radiação emitida pela estrela envolve totalmente o fraco brilho do planeta. Por isso, toda o conceito do intrumento SPHERE focou-se em conseguir o maior contraste possível numa região pequeníssima do céu em torno da estrela central.
O instrumento SPHERE usa vários métodos para atingir este objetivo e conseguir detectar os exoplanetas no meio do intenso brilho da estrela. O primeiro consiste em utilizar óptica adaptativa para corrigir o efeito da atmosfera da Terra, obtendo-se imagens mais nítidas e um maior contraste do exoplaneta. Seguidamente utiliza-se um coronógrafo para bloquear a luz que vem da estrela central e aumentar o contraste ainda mais. Finalmente, espera-se que a radiação do planeta esteja polarizada ou apresente certas características no seu espectro devido a moléculas, ao contrário da estrela. Esta diferença subtil pode também ser aproveitada para fazer com que o invisível se torne visível (ann13069, eso0503).
Quando chegar ao Chile, a SPHERE será instalada no Telescópio Principal número 3 do VLT. Seguir-se-á uma fase de testes e manutenção. Espera-se a primeira luz do instrumento para início de maio de 2014, sendo oferecido à comunidade astronómica no final de 2014 para operação científica normal.
Notas
[1] O consórcio inclui diversos institutos europeus, nomeadamente: Institut de Planétologie et d'Astrophysique de Grenoble, França, Max-Planck-Institut für Astronomie em Heidelberg, Laboratoire d’Astrophysique de Marseille, Laboratoire d’Etudes Spatiales et d’Instrumentation en Astrophysique de l’Observatoire de Paris, Laboratoire Lagrange em Nice, ONERA, Observatoire de Genève, Osservatorio Astronomico di Padova, Instituto de Astronomia da Faculdade de Tecnologia de Zurique, Instituto Astronómico da Universidade de Amesterdão, ASTRON e ESO.
[2] Os astrónomos confirmaram já a existência de mais de um milhar de planetas em órbita de outras estrelas. Quase todos estes planetas foram descobertos usando métodos indiretos que os detectam devido aos efeitos que causam nas suas estrelas progenitoras - diminuição do brilho da estrela devido à passagem do planeta em frente ao disco estelar (método dos trânsitos) ou pequeno desvio na órbita da estrela causado pela atração gravitacional dos planetas que a orbitam (método das velocidades radiais). Existem atualmente apenas alguns métodos de deteção direta de planetas.
Links
Contactos
Jean-Luc Beuzit
Directeur de Recherche CNRS
Institut de Planétologie et d'Astrophysique de Grenoble, França
Tel: +33 4 76 63 55 20
Email: Jean-Luc.Beuzit@obs.ujf-grenoble.fr
Markus Kasper
ESO
Garching bei München, Alemanha
Tel: +49 89 3200 6359
Email: mkasper@eso.org
Richard Hook
ESO Public Information Officer
Garching bei München, Alemanha
Tel: +49 89 3200 6655
Telm: +49 151 1537 3591
Email: rhook@eso.org
Sobre o anúncio
| Id: | ann14013 |
Imagens
Our use of Cookies
We use cookies that are essential for accessing our websites and using our services. We also use cookies to analyse, measure and improve our websites’ performance, to enable content sharing via social media and to display media content hosted on third-party platforms.
ESO Cookies Policy
The European Organisation for Astronomical Research in the Southern Hemisphere (ESO) is the pre-eminent intergovernmental science and technology organisation in astronomy. It carries out an ambitious programme focused on the design, construction and operation of powerful ground-based observing facilities for astronomy.
This Cookies Policy is intended to provide clarity by outlining the cookies used on the ESO public websites, their functions, the options you have for controlling them, and the ways you can contact us for additional details.
What are cookies?
Cookies are small pieces of data stored on your device by websites you visit. They serve various purposes, such as remembering login credentials and preferences and enhance your browsing experience.
Categories of cookies we use
Essential cookies (always active): These cookies are strictly necessary for the proper functioning of our website. Without these cookies, the website cannot operate correctly, and certain services, such as logging in or accessing secure areas, may not be available; because they are essential for the website’s operation, they cannot be disabled.
Functional Cookies: These cookies enhance your browsing experience by enabling additional features and personalization, such as remembering your preferences and settings. While not strictly necessary for the website to function, they improve usability and convenience; these cookies are only placed if you provide your consent.
Analytics cookies: These cookies collect information about how visitors interact with our website, such as which pages are visited most often and how users navigate the site. This data helps us improve website performance, optimize content, and enhance the user experience; these cookies are only placed if you provide your consent. We use the following analytics cookies.
Matomo Cookies:
This website uses Matomo (formerly Piwik), an open source software which enables the statistical analysis of website visits. Matomo uses cookies (text files) which are saved on your computer and which allow us to analyze how you use our website. The website user information generated by the cookies will only be saved on the servers of our IT Department. We use this information to analyze www.eso.org visits and to prepare reports on website activities. These data will not be disclosed to third parties.
On behalf of ESO, Matomo will use this information for the purpose of evaluating your use of the website, compiling reports on website activity and providing other services relating to website activity and internet usage.
Matomo cookies settings:
Additional Third-party cookies on ESO websites: some of our pages display content from external providers, e.g. YouTube.
Such third-party services are outside of ESO control and may, at any time, change their terms of service, use of cookies, etc.
YouTube: Some videos on the ESO website are embedded from ESO’s official YouTube channel. We have enabled YouTube’s privacy-enhanced mode, meaning that no cookies are set unless the user actively clicks on the video to play it. Additionally, in this mode, YouTube does not store any personally identifiable cookie data for embedded video playbacks. For more details, please refer to YouTube’s embedding videos information page.
Cookies can also be classified based on the following elements.
Regarding the domain, there are:
- First-party cookies, set by the website you are currently visiting. They are stored by the same domain that you are browsing and are used to enhance your experience on that site;
- Third-party cookies, set by a domain other than the one you are currently visiting.
As for their duration, cookies can be:
- Browser-session cookies, which are deleted when the user closes the browser;
- Stored cookies, which stay on the user's device for a predetermined period of time.
How to manage cookies
Cookie settings: You can modify your cookie choices for the ESO webpages at any time by clicking on the link Cookie settings at the bottom of any page.
In your browser: If you wish to delete cookies or instruct your browser to delete or block cookies by default, please visit the help pages of your browser:
Please be aware that if you delete or decline cookies, certain functionalities of our website may be not be available and your browsing experience may be affected.
You can set most browsers to prevent any cookies being placed on your device, but you may then have to manually adjust some preferences every time you visit a site/page. And some services and functionalities may not work properly at all (e.g. profile logging-in, shop check out).
Updates to the ESO Cookies Policy
The ESO Cookies Policy may be subject to future updates, which will be made available on this page.
Additional information
For any queries related to cookies, please contact: pdprATesoDOTorg.
As ESO public webpages are managed by our Department of Communication, your questions will be dealt with the support of the said Department.