The Core Technology of the International Joint Cosmic Background Radiation Observation Rocket is 'Korean-made'

Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute Develops Core Component for Infrared Camera

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bong-su] It has been confirmed that Korea developed the core technology of the space background radiation observation rocket recently launched through international collaboration.

The Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute (KASI) announced on the 9th that it jointly developed the infrared camera system mounted on the Black Brant IX rocket launched by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) on the 7th to carry out the ‘Cosmic Infrared Background ExpeRiment-2’ (CIBER-2).

The rocket was successfully launched from the White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico, USA. KASI developed the CIBER-2 infrared camera system in collaboration with NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), California Institute of Technology, Rochester Institute of Technology, and Kansai University in Japan.

The rocket flew up to an altitude of 325 km immediately after launch and observed a space area of about 12 square degrees (deg2) for approximately 350 seconds using the onboard CIBER-2 infrared camera. After completing the observation, the rocket fell back to Earth, was recovered, and reused. For reference, the full moon covers about 0.5 square degrees, and within the solid angle of the full moon size, roughly several dozen galaxy clusters can be observed.

This CIBER-2 project is a follow-up to CIBER-1, which was successfully launched four times from 2009 to 2013. The mission of CIBER-2 is to study the early stars and galaxies of the universe by observing cosmic background radiation in the near-infrared range (1?2 μm) through a telescope mounted on a scientific rocket. KASI was responsible for developing key components of the CIBER-2 payload, including the infrared detector, electronic systems for data processing and transmission, and ground electronic equipment.

Cosmic background radiation refers to electromagnetic waves that form the background of space and come with the same intensity from all directions, rather than from specific celestial bodies. Cosmic background radiation occurs across a wide range of frequencies, from very short microwave wavelengths to visible and infrared regions. Infrared cosmic background radiation is extremely faint because it originates from the formation of matter and stars in the early universe. Observations from the ground are difficult due to losses caused by the Earth’s atmosphere, making observations using satellites or rockets essential.

Infrared observations are also effective for investigating relatively low-temperature regions in space (absolute temperatures of tens to thousands of kelvin). Therefore, through the infrared cosmic background radiation observations by CIBER-2, it is expected to provide important data for research on cosmic evolution models by studying the distribution and amount of rogue dwarf stars believed to exist between galaxies.

KASI is promoting additional joint research with NASA, including the planned second launch of the CIBER-2 rocket, and will participate in the analysis of the observation results and follow-up studies.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.