Smile mission goes aloft to map Earth’s magnetosphere in X-rays
TL;DR
A European-Chinese satellite named Smile launched on a Vega-C rocket to image Earth’s magnetosphere in X‑rays for the first time, offering an outside view of how the solar wind interacts with the magnetic shield. The mission, a rare ESA–Chinese Academy of Sciences partnership, aims to test global magnetosphere models and improve space-weather forecasts, with first images due about three months after launch and a planned three‑year mission.
- A joint European-Chinese satellite just went up on Vega-C, and the images it returns could change how scientists understand Earth’s magnetic shield Space Daily
- Smile lifts off on quest to reveal Earth’s invisible shield against the solar wind European Space Agency
- WATCH: A Spacecraft Is Launching to Study How Earth Survives Solar Storms ScienceAlert
- Vega C rocket launches European-Chinese space weather satellite to orbit Space
- We’ve Never Actually Seen Earth’s Protective Bubble. This New Mission Aims to Change That Gizmodo
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