Written by Lava Naz Bagdu
The vastness of the universe has always pushed the limits of the eye and intrigued scientists. Nevertheless, our understanding of it has remained highly two-dimensional until recently. This is where the Euclid telescope—a groundbreaking project led by the European Space Agency (ESA)—steps in. The telescope took the initial monumental step in mapping the cosmos in 3D by capturing the first image.
The Journey of the Euclid Mission
Euclid is a collaborative project led by the European Space Agency (ESA) with significant contributions from NASA, officially beginning on June 25th, 2012. Named after the Greek mathematician Euclid of Alexandria, the mission aims to photograph and create a 3D map of the universe’s complex structure with the Euclid space telescope. The telescope will observe billions of galaxies up to 10 billion light years, across more than ⅓ of the sky. This will eventually reveal the hidden aspects of dark matter and energy—two of the greatest mysteries of our age—and unveil the evolution of the “dark universe.” It was launched aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket on July 1st, 2023, highlighting the growing importance of private space companies on ESA’s new missions. Euclid is also equipped with two advanced instruments: the Visible Imaging Spectrometer (VIS) for capturing high-resolution images, and the Near Infrared Spectrometer and Photometer (NISP) for observing the universe in infrared light. NASA’s involvement includes essential expertise and support in data analysis and instrumentation, ensuring the mission’s success in collecting unparalleled observational data. (The European Space Agency, n.d.; The European Space Agency, n.d.; NASA, n.d.; Howell, 2023; Euclid Consortium, n.d.; Euclid Consortium, n.d.)
How Will Euclid Create a 3D Map?
The main goal is to create an unparalleled 3D map of the universe observing billions of galaxies. The telescope detects galaxies by measuring the redshift of their light using the Visible Imaging Spectrometer (VIS) and the Near Infrared Spectrometer and Photometer (NISP). (TRT World, 2024)
A Deep Dive Into VIS and NISP
The Visible Imaging Spectrometer is a large format imager and one of the two instruments in the Euclid Mission. It helps create high-resolution images and spectral data of the universe with its 609 million-megapixel camera. It covers a field view of 0.57 square degrees, almost 3 times the size of the full Moon. With a sampling resolution of 0.1 arcseconds, the VIS can capture fine details and its images are the largest ever transmitted by an astronomical satellite. Even though the imager captures slightly under-ideal-resolution pictures, this is corrected by taking multiple exposures, resulting in an effective angular resolution of 0.18 arcseconds and allowing for highly accurate observations. (Euclid Consortium, n.d.)
The Near Infrared Spectrometer and Photometer (NISP) is the second instrument on the Euclid Mission. It observes the universe in near-infrared light using 16 detectors to capture images with 64 million pixels. It covers the same field of view as VIS at 0.3 arcseconds per pixel. NISP does not focus on high-resolution images like VIS. Instead, it’s designed to collect spectral data. The instrument operates in two modes: the photometric channel, which uses broad-band filters to estimate the distances of over a billion galaxies by calculating “photometric redshifts,” and the spectroscopic channel, which gathers spectral data to provide precise distant measurements for about 50 million galaxies. (Euclid Consortium, n.d.)
Figure 1: The first image captured by the Euclid telescope representing 1% of the final map (newscientist.com)
The 3D map created by Euclid will be far more than just a map of galaxy positions; it will reveal the complex relationships between galaxies, dark matter, and dark energy. By viewing how galaxies are distributed in a 3D area, scientists will clearly understand how the universe has evolved. While measuring the positions of the galaxies, Euclid will also measure how dark matter affects the distribution of visible matter. Additionally, dark energy, which drives the accelerated expansion of the universe, will also be mapped, giving people a new view of the universe. Through its collaboration with SpaceX for the launch and NASA for mission support, the Euclid Mission exemplifies a successful integration of international partnerships. As the mission continues, it holds the potential to provide groundbreaking information on creation and existence.
References:
Euclid overview, The European Space Agency, (2024.11.09)
https://www.esa.int/Science_Exploration/Space_Science/Euclid_overview
Euclid Exploring the Dark Universe, The European Space Agency, (2024.11.09)
https://www.esa.int/Science_Exploration/Space_Science/Euclid
Euclid, NASA, (2024.11.09)
Howell, E., (2023), SpaceX rocket launches Euclid space telescope to map the 'dark universe' like never before, Space.com
https://www.space.com/space-rocket-launches-euclid-dark-universe-telescope
The VIS Instrument, Euclid Consortium, (2024.11.10)
The NISP Instrument, Euclid Consortium, (2024.11.10)
Dinneen, J., (2024), First breathtaking images from Euclid telescope's map of the universe, NewScientist
How the Euclid telescope is building the largest 3D map of the universe, (2024), TRT World
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