Follow Astronomy's Breakthroughs on Twitter - Part 3

Astronomers are discovering new things every day it seems. Twitter is one of the easiest ways to keep up with the new information. Part 1 of this series focused on orbiters and rovers, and Part 2 was all about telescopes. Now here in Part 3, we're looking to the future of astronomy, and it's very exciting.

The future of Mars exploration lies in another six-wheeled robotic scientist called the Mars Science Lab Curiosity Rover. As its Twitter bio reads, it's currently in the clean room at JPL (the Jet Propulsion Lab), being assembled and prepared for launch in fall 2011. It's going to try to determine Mars' habitability, and characterize its geology and climate. The not-so-little guy will be powered by a radioisotope power system that should last for at least one Martian year (687 Earth days). It will be more mobile and have a greater payload capacity so it can explore further and higher than ever before possible. Follow @MarsScienceLab.

NASA and the German Space Agency (DLR) are working together on an airborne infrared observatory called SOFIA. The Stratospheric Observatory For Infrared Astronomy is a Boeing 747SP that has been modified to carry a 2.5 meter reflecting telescope. SOFIA is not the first airborne observatory but it will be the largest and most powerful ever built. It's anticipated that SOFIA will fly into the stratosphere three or four nights per week for at least twenty years. SOFIA will be used to study star birth and death, formation of new solar systems, observe planets, comets and asteroids in our solar system, and black holes in the center of galaxies. SOFIA should be fully operational by 2014. Follow @SOFIAtelescope.

Another step along NASA's path back to the Moon is the Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer (LADEE). Scheduled for launch in 2011 or 2012, LADEE will orbit the Moon and as you can infer from its name, it will study the atmosphere and the lunar dust environment. Atmospheric studies will "determine the global density, composition, and time variability of the fragile lunar atmosphere." The dust will be studied to ascertain its "size, charge and spatial distribution." The ultimate goal is to figure out how exploration will affect the Moon and how the Moon will affect explorers. Follow @LADEE_NASA.

It's no secret that the fleet of Space Shuttles is showing its age, and poorly at that. NASA's Constellation Program is developing the next generation of space vehicles for trips into Earth orbit, to the Moon, to Mars and beyond. The Ares Launch Vehicles (aka "rockets"), Orion Crew Vehicle and the Altair Lunar Lander are the future of space travel. Follow @NASA_Explore.

The new rockets have been named Ares I and Ares V. The Ares I Crew Launch Vehicle will replace the solid rocket boosters and external tank configuration NASA currently uses to launch the Space Shuttles. It is an in-line, two-stage rocket capable of propelling the Orion crew vehicle and/or a 25-ton payload into space. The Ares I will start transporting crews to the International Space Station no later than 2014. The Ares V Cargo Launch Vehicle is the Ares I's big brother. It will launch heavy cargo into space, such as the Altair Lunar Lander, building materials for a lunar base, and food, water and supplies needed for space exploration. Ares V is a vertically stacked, two-stage rocket capable of launching more than 188 metric tons into low-Earth orbit. Its test flight is planned for sometime around 2018. Follow both at @NASA_Ares.

The Orion Crew Exploration Vehicle is going to take the crew of explorers to the Moon. It's shape is suspiciously reminiscent of the Apollo design. Intended to fly six crew members to the ISS or four crew members to the Moon, the Orion will be launched atop an Ares I rocket. Orion will be commissioned for flights some time in the early part of the next decade. Follow @Orioncrewmodule.

The fourth piece of the puzzle is the Altair Lunar Lander. Testing is scheduled to begin in 2018 and it should be fully operational by 2020. It's a two stage vehicle: the first stage is the descent module which consists of a large propulsion stage, a main engine, landing gear and supporting structures; the second stage is the ascent module that contains the pressurized crew cabin and associated equipment, plus the engine and propellant needed to launch from the Moon. Follow @NASA_Altair

The grand plan is to have the Orion launched atop the Ares I while the Altair is launched on the Ares V. The two rendezvous in low-Earth orbit and Orion docks to the Altair on the Ares V. Once the two are joined, the Ares V's Earth departure stage J-2X engine fires in order to get the craft up to escape velocity to break free of the Earth's gravity. Once the lunar vessel is on its way to the moon, the Earth departure stage is jettisoned. Orion/Altair enter Lunar orbit, and Altair descends with the entire crew while Orion remains in orbit, At the end of the mission, Altair ascends and will rendezvous with Orion and then they return to Earth.

The next generation infrared telescope is the James Webb Space Telescope, or JWST for short. A joint effort between NASA, the ESA and the Canadian Space Agency (CSA), it's scheduled for launch in 2014. In order to have the enormous 25 square-meter mirror its designers intend, engineers have come up with a way to have an 18-segment folding mirror that will unfold once the telescope is in orbit. The telescope will function primarily in the near-infrared range but it will also have some visible spectrum capabilities. Scientists will use the JWST to study the history of the universe, from the first light after the Big Bang, to the formation of galaxies, stars, and protoplanetary and planetary systems. Follow @NASAWebbTelescp.

The final future astronomical follow on Twitter is the ESA's Gaia mission. This ambitious project will map one thousand million stars and form a three-dimensional map of the Milky Way galaxy and the Local Group, a cluster of galaxies of which the Milky Way is a part. While one thousand million seems like an almost-immeasurable number, it really is only about a measly 1 percent of the Milky Way's and Local Group's stellar population. Slated for launch in 2011, this optical telescope is also expected to find tens of thousands of exoplanetary systems, hundreds of thousands of asteroids in our solar system, 500,000 quasars and put Einstein's theory of General Relativity to the test as never before possible. Follow @GaiaESAC.

The future of astronomy is bright and the prospect of what these forth-coming projects will accomplish is thrilling. If you follow them on Twitter, you'll be following the realization of the potential we could only dream about before. A stellar census, seeing the first light after the Big Bang, and putting humans on the Moon and maybe even Mars are just a few of the things we'll achieve soon.

Believe it or not, there are still many more fascinating follows to come, so don't forget to check back.

Sources:
NASA's Mars Science Lab
NASA's LADEE
NASA's SOFIA
USRA's SOFIA Universities Space Research Association
NASA's Constellation Program
NASA's Ares Launch Vehicles
NASA's Orion Crew Exploration Vehicle
NASA's Altair Lunar Lander
NASA's James Webb Space Telescope
ESA's Gaia Mission