Innovative Interstellar Explorer
Encyclopedia
Innovative Interstellar Explorer was a NASA
"Vision Mission" study funded by NASA following a proposal under NRA-03-OSS-01 on 11 September 2003. This study has focused on the elusive quest to reach and measure the interstellar medium, the "undiscovered country" outside of the influence of the nearest star, the Sun
. It proposes to use a radioisotope thermal generator with ion thruster
s. The project is a study of a proposed interstellar precursor mission that would probe the nearby interstellar medium
and measure the properties of magnetic fields and cosmic ray
s and their effects on a craft leaving the Solar System
.
Several routes are proposed, but one recommendation consists of a launch in late 2014, Jupiter flyby in early 2016, and reaching 200 AU in 2044. It would try reach a speed of about 7.9 AU/yr by the time its xenon propellant was depleted, allowing it to reach 1000 AU after about one hundred years from launch.
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
"Vision Mission" study funded by NASA following a proposal under NRA-03-OSS-01 on 11 September 2003. This study has focused on the elusive quest to reach and measure the interstellar medium, the "undiscovered country" outside of the influence of the nearest star, the Sun
Sun
The Sun is the star at the center of the Solar System. It is almost perfectly spherical and consists of hot plasma interwoven with magnetic fields...
. It proposes to use a radioisotope thermal generator with ion thruster
Ion thruster
An ion thruster is a form of electric propulsion used for spacecraft propulsion that creates thrust by accelerating ions. Ion thrusters are categorized by how they accelerate the ions, using either electrostatic or electromagnetic force. Electrostatic ion thrusters use the Coulomb force and...
s. The project is a study of a proposed interstellar precursor mission that would probe the nearby interstellar medium
Interstellar medium
In astronomy, the interstellar medium is the matter that exists in the space between the star systems in a galaxy. This matter includes gas in ionic, atomic, and molecular form, dust, and cosmic rays. It fills interstellar space and blends smoothly into the surrounding intergalactic space...
and measure the properties of magnetic fields and cosmic ray
Cosmic ray
Cosmic rays are energetic charged subatomic particles, originating from outer space. They may produce secondary particles that penetrate the Earth's atmosphere and surface. The term ray is historical as cosmic rays were thought to be electromagnetic radiation...
s and their effects on a craft leaving the Solar System
Solar System
The Solar System consists of the Sun and the astronomical objects gravitationally bound in orbit around it, all of which formed from the collapse of a giant molecular cloud approximately 4.6 billion years ago. The vast majority of the system's mass is in the Sun...
.
Several routes are proposed, but one recommendation consists of a launch in late 2014, Jupiter flyby in early 2016, and reaching 200 AU in 2044. It would try reach a speed of about 7.9 AU/yr by the time its xenon propellant was depleted, allowing it to reach 1000 AU after about one hundred years from launch.