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Airbus Solar Orbiter Ready for Close-Up With The Sun

Currently traveling at some 105 million kilometres from Earth, the Airbus-built Solar Orbiter (SolO) is en route for an encounter to uncover the secrets of our closest star.

While humankind has been studying the Sun for hundreds of years, the research is limited because data was always collected from distances more or less equal to the star’s separation from Earth, according to Ian Walters, Airbus’ SolO Project Manager.

“Solar wind takes about two to four days to get from the Sun to Earth, and in that time, it transforms completely,” he explained. “We can better correlate what is seen with what is felt from the Sun if we can get up close. That’s the point of the Solar Orbiter mission…and it’s never been achieved before.”

Solar Orbiter was launched in February in a joint mission of the European Space Agency and the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration. Travelling closer to the Sun than its nearest planet – Mercury – SolO will make comprehensive measurements of the nascent solar wind.

Beating the heat

For the spacecraft and its 10 instruments to survive extreme temperatures of up to 600 deg. Centigrade, Airbus designed a protective heat shield with openings for SolO’s five telescopes to peek through during the trek.

According to Walters, the most critical heat protection technology is the Stand-off Radiator Assembly (SORA) – a set of radiators sitting on the spacecraft’s side that is always in shadow, enabling them to quickly transfer heat from the instruments into space. SORA’s thermal straps are made from pyrolytic graphite, which is five times more conductive than copper wire but flexible like paper.

To avoid any molecular contamination that could compromise imagery from the telescopes, Airbus also built Solar Orbiter to levels of cleanliness far exceeding any other spacecraft built in the UK to date. Every item on SolO has been heated to over 120 degrees to make sure no gases are emitted in the vacuum of space.

Predicting solar events

Data from Solar Orbiter can help make significant improvements to everyday life, particularly when it comes to predicting solar flares and coronal mass ejections (CME) – the expulsions of plasma and its accompanying magnetic field from the sun, which can have a major impact on Earth.

“In 1859, one such episode took down the world’s telegraph network,” Walters said. “A similar event today would severely disrupt our power grids, mobile phone towers, navigation systems and many other critical technologies.”

He added: “If we could predict the CME was coming our way, we’d have about two days’ notice for emergency government committees to be activated and react, instead of the few minutes’ notice we receive today.”

Alaska Airlines & Partners Serve Season’s First Copper River Salmon to First Responders

  • Trident Seafoods, Ocean Beauty Seafoods, Copper River Marketing Association and Tom Douglas partner to salute local medical professionals
Alaska Airlines Captain Brent Carricaburu presenting the first Copper River salmon, which weighed in at 33 pounds.

More than 200 health care workers at Swedish Medical Center – Ballard will be among the first to enjoy the season’s first catch of prized Copper River salmon. Alaska Air Cargo this morning delivered the first catch of fresh, sustainable Copper River salmon to Seattle, which will be delivered to grocery stores across the country.

Helping fishing communities, fisheries and processors like Trident Seafoods, Ocean Beauty Seafoods and Cooper River Seafoods get the coveted salmon to market, often in less than 24 hours from being pulled from the water, is Alaska Air Cargo’s specialty. The airline plays a critical role in the economic vitality of Cordova, Alaska, where more than 50 percent of residents work in the fishing industry.

“Alaska Air Cargo has long been a partner of the Alaska seafood industry,” said Torque Zubeck, managing director of cargo for Alaska Airlines. “Now more than ever, we provide a critical service that directly impacts the economic vitality of the region. In Cordova alone, more than half of residents are directly involved in the fishing industry or related business.”

As a thank you for their efforts on the frontlines of the battle against coronavirus, Alaska Airlines, Trident Seafoods, Ocean Beauty Seafoods, Copper River Seafoods, Copper River Marketing Association and famed Seattle chef Tom Douglas are partnering to provide a delicious meal to health care heroes, and feed the community, while raising money for Food Lifeline.

“I love everything about Copper River salmon,” said chef Tom Douglas. “I love the richness of its delicate flesh and flavor. It’s very short season makes it a true delicacy. I am glad we get to share it with our health care workers and the Greater Seattlecommunity.”

Alaska Air Cargo employees begin to unload 9,000 pounds of Copper River salmon, part of the first shipment to arrive in Seattle.

Douglas will feature salmon donated by the seafood processors and the Copper River Marketing Association to prepare over 200 meals for Swedish Hospital medical professionals working on the frontlines of the coronavirus pandemic. Pilots, flight attendants and management employees from Alaska will be on hand Saturday to deliver the meals and thank workers for their efforts.

“We’re thankful for Alaska Airlines, Copper River Marketing Association, Trident, Ocean Beauty, Copper River Seafoods and especially Tom Douglas for providing our heroic health care workers at Swedish Ballard with the meal today,” said Swedish Ballard Chief Operating Officer Kasia Konieczny. “While this pandemic has been difficult for us all, it is great to see the community coming together, like these partners, to provide for one another.”

On Sunday, May 17, fish lovers are invited to partake in the festivities, while social distancing, of course. For a limited time and while supplies last, Trident and Douglas will be “Grilling for Good.” He and his Serious TakeOut team will prepare grilled Copper River sockeye salmon entrees available for purchase through the Tom Douglas website, with all proceeds donated to Food Lifeline.

Alaska Air Cargo transports more than 30+ million pounds of cargo annually—including seafood, mail and freight —and operates the most extensive air cargo operation on the U.S. West Coast of any passenger airline.

Alaska Airlines and its regional partners serve more than 115 destinations across the United States and North America, providing essential air service for our guests along with moving crucial cargo shipments, such as food, medicine, mail and e-commerce deliveries. With hubs in Seattle; San Francisco; Los Angeles; Portland, Oregon; and Anchorage, Alaska, the airline is known for low fares, award-winning customer service and sustainability efforts. With Alaska and its Global Partners, guests can earn and redeem miles on flights to more than 800 destinations worldwide. Alaska Airlines and Horizon Air are subsidiaries of Alaska Air Group (NYSE: ALK).

Vic Scheibert (l), President of Alaska Operations, Trident Seafoods, and Joe Bundrant, CEO, Trident holding up the first Copper River salmon.

Season’s First Wild Copper River Salmon Arrives in Seattle

SEATTLE, May 17, 2019 /PRNewswire/ — About 18,000 pounds of fresh Copper River salmon arrived on a fish-filled Alaska Airlines plane touching down at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport shortly after 6:30 a.m. Today officially marks the start of the salmon season that is anticipated by seafood lovers throughout the Pacific Northwest and beyond. By noon, Alaska Air Cargo is expected to deliver a total of 50,000 pounds of Copper River salmon to the Lower 48 with more scheduled on later flights.

Alaska Airlines pilots hold up the first Copper River Salmon upon arrival in Seattle

Click the link for the full story! https://finance.yahoo.com/news/alaska-air-cargo-brings-seasons-170900746.html