Kacey Roberts
NASA has chosen Ball Aerospace to initiate the first phase of a mission aimed at expanding the scientific community’s knowledge about the sun’s middle coronal structure.
Under the contract, the company said Monday it will conduct a conceptual study for the space agency’s proposed Extreme ultraviolet Coronal Mass Ejection and Coronal Connectivity Observatory mission.
ECCCO will involve employing advanced imaging and spectroscopy techniques to reveal insights into the physical transitions occurring within the sun’s middle corona, such as solar winds and eruptions.
If the concept study progresses, Ball Aerospace will build a spacecraft for the mission. It will also oversee integration and conduct environmental testing.
Additionally, the company will collaborate with the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory, which will design and produce the ECCCO imaging device.
