NASA's PUNCH mission, consisting of four small satellites, has captured its first-light images. These images mark a significant step in understanding the sun's mysteries.
The mission aims to decode how the sun's outer atmosphere transitions into the solar wind. The images currently show stars and the zodiacal light, a diffuse glow from sunlight reflecting off dust particles.
PUNCH's ultimate goal is to isolate features within the solar wind by removing background interference. The mission uses three wide-field imagers and a near-field imager to achieve this.
The team is calibrating the data to remove most of the light, revealing materials streaming from the sun's atmosphere. The first-light images confirm the instruments are functioning as intended.
During commissioning, PUNCH demonstrated new water-powered rocket engines for trajectory corrections. These engines use electric current to create hydrogen and oxygen fuel from water.
Launched on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket, PUNCH will begin data analysis in June. The mission promises insights into the solar wind and its connection to the heliosphere.