NASA’s asteroid-hunting spacecraft, NEOWISE, has officially concluded its journey, meeting its end as it re-entered Earth’s atmosphere and burned up on 1 November. Over its 15-year lifespan, NEOWISE catalogued nearly 3,000 near-Earth objects, including numerous asteroids, providing critical data for researchers studying potential planetary threats. The space agency confirmed NEOWISE’s re-entry on social media the following day, marking the end of a mission that significantly advanced NASA’s understanding of near-Earth space.

A Two-Phase Mission Evolution

NASA has confirmed that NEOWISE has entered the Earth’s atmosphere after spending 15 yeaers in space. The spacecraft was initially launched as WISE (Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer) to observe the universe in infrared light. During the first phase, WISE captured some of the universe’s most luminous galaxies, hidden black holes and the coolest stars. However, in 2011, the spacecraft’s coolant reserves depleted, putting it into hibernation. In 2013, NASA reactivated WISE, repurposing it as NEOWISE to focus on tracking near-Earth objects—a critical step toward planetary defence.

Amy Mainzer, who led the NEOWISE project at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), noted that its ability to detect asteroids was initially unexpected, saying in 2019 that it turned out to be exceptionally effective at identifying near-Earth objects. NEOWISE eventually collected vast amounts of data, which Joseph Hunt, its last project manager at JPL, stated would continue to benefit the scientific community for years.

Atmospheric Drag and the End of NEOWISE

The spacecraft’s demise was largely due to the solar maximum, the peak of the Sun’s 11-year cycle, which led to increased solar flares and coronal mass ejections. These solar events warmed and expanded Earth’s atmosphere, creating drag that gradually drew NEOWISE closer to Earth. Without propulsion capabilities, the spacecraft was unable to boost its orbit, ultimately leading to its atmospheric re-entry.

Next Steps in Near-Earth Object Detection

Although NEOWISE is now out of operation, NASA’s efforts to detect asteroids remain active. The NEO Surveyor, a successor mission specifically designed to identify near-Earth objects in infrared light, is slated for a late 2027 launch. Expected to bolster planetary defence strategies, the NEO Surveyor will be NASA’s first telescope dedicated to this critical task, carrying forward NEOWISE’s legacy in protecting Earth from potential space threats

Indian scientists have achieved an important milestone in solar research, reporting the first major findings from the Visible Emission Line Coronagraph (VELC) aboard India’s Aditya-L1 mission. The solar mission, launched by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) in September 2023, is India’s first dedicated solar observation project positioned at the Lagrange Point 1 (L1). This breakthrough is a key step toward understanding the Sun’s magnetic activities and their impact on space weather.

Details of the First Observed Solar Event

Scientists from the Indian Institute of Astrophysics (IIA) in Bengaluru have reported that they were able to pinpoint the exact onset of a Coronal Mass Ejection (CME) on July 16 by using the VELC instrument. This marks a significant accomplishment for the mission. Prof. R Ramesh, a senior professor at IIA and the principal investigator for the VELC payload, emphasised that this is the first science result for ISRO’s solar mission. As per multiple reports, the team closely observed the CME as it formed near the solar surface and gained insights into the Sun’s corona, which may aid in modelling solar eruptions.

A New Approach to Solar Observations

The VELC, uniquely designed and developed by IIA in collaboration with ISRO, is currently the only active coronagraph in space capable of observing the corona so close to the Sun’s surface. Unlike most instruments that capture CMEs after they move farther away from the Sun, VELC allows scientists to observe these eruptions right from their initial stages. Dr V Muthupriyal, an astrophysicist with IIA, stated that spectroscopic observations provided by VELC offer new opportunities to analyse CME dynamics in unprecedented detail.

Impact of Solar Cycle and Future Research Prospects

With the Sun approaching a solar maximum in its 11-year activity cycle, the frequency of CMEs is expected to increase significantly. Continuous monitoring of such solar events is crucial to understand space weather, which can affect satellite communications and other space-dependent technologies. According to Prof. Ramesh, the data collected will be vital for developing future predictive models, as the current phase of Solar Cycle 25 intensifies. Aditya-L1 is poised to gather invaluable data that will support scientists in predicting solar activities and mitigating their impact on space weather.

A team of astronomers, using data from NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) and the Chandra X-ray Observatory, has identified a black hole consuming matter at a record-breaking rate in a young galaxy. Named LID-568, this black hole is found in a galaxy thought to have formed only 1.5 billion years after the Big Bang. Observing such rapid growth in the early universe, scientists are beginning to understand how supermassive black holes might have formed more quickly than previously thought.

A New Observation Technique

The research was led by Dr. Hyewon Suh from the International Gemini Observatory at NSF NOIRLab. The research team found LID-568 within a group of galaxies that shine brightly in X-ray wavelengths, despite being faint in the visible spectrum. Their findings relied on a unique approach. The research points that rather than using traditional slit spectroscopy, the team used JWST’s integral field spectrograph in the Near Infrared Spectrograph (NIRSpec) to capture data from each pixel within the target area. This method enabled precise positioning of the black hole, revealing large outflows of gas around it.

Dr. Emanuele Farina, co-author and NOIRLab astronomer, commented on the strategy, saying that this technique was “essential to capture the faint signals from LID-568.” These outflows suggest that LID-568 could be growing through intense, short-lived episodes of rapid feeding.

Implications for Black Hole Growth

Dr. Julia Scharwächter, also from NOIRLab and a co-author of the study, noted that the black hole’s growth rate exceeds the Eddington limit, which defines how quickly a black hole can accumulate mass. Observing LID-568’s intense consumption of matter has opened a window into how black holes could grow beyond expected limits.

The team’s findings may help to explain how black holes grew so large in the universe’s early stages. By continuing studies with JWST, the researchers hope to gain more insights into the forces behind this rapid growth and understand the factors enabling black holes to surpass established theoretical limits.