It’s not Halo, but damn it’s cool! Real Life Sentinel

Halo 3 Sentinel Screenshot by shadowspetsnaz, deviantart-ist

Halo 3 Sentinel Screenshot by shadowspetsnaz, deviantart-ist

 

A team created by the B612 Foundation including NASA Astronauts and directors, planetary scientists and astronomers, and a Program Manager for Kepler Space Telescope among other titles, is building a real life Sentinel to protect Earth from asteroids.

The Sentinel Mission will use a privately funded spacecraft with instruments both proven and cutting edge in design, and is expected to discover more asteroids in its first month than all other telescopes combined have found in the last 30 years. Facing outward while orbiting the sun near Venus, this telescope will use infrared to scan for asteroids as small as 30 meters in diameter.

“We are at the beginning of a new era in exploration where private organizations can now conduct grand and audacious space missions, previously only possible by governments – and at lower cost. Mapping the great unknown of the inner solar system is the first step to opening up this next frontier, as well as protecting Earth.”

-The B612 Foundation, Sentinel Mission

The Sentinel Telescope is being built and operated by a technical leadership team that includes scientists and engineers who built Kepler Space Telescope, SpitzerSpace Telescope, Deep Impact Mission and Hubble Space Telescope instrumentation. It will be the first privately funded, launched and operated interplanetary mission and will also help to map our inner Solar System for future manned and robotic missions.

Concept art of The Sentinel Telescope

Concept art of The Sentinel Telescope

 

Following are some details on the Sentinel from the Official website:

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Features

– Most capable NEO detection system in operation
– 200 deg anti-sun Field of Regard, with a 2×5.5 deg Field of View at any point in time: scans 165 square degrees per hour looking for moving objects
– Precise pointing accuracy to sub-pixel resolution for imaging revisit, using the detector fine steering capability
– Designed for highly autonomous, reliable operation requiring only weekly ground contact
– Designed for 6.5 years of surveying operations. Actively cooled to 40k using a Ball Aerospace two-stage, closed-cycle Stirling-cycle cryocooler
– Ability to follow-up on objects of interest

Sentinel Benefits

– Provides highly specialized design specifically optimized for NEO detection and discovery
– NEO detection efficiency increased using IR-detector (5 to 10.4 microns). Venus-like orbit
– Provides an astrometric accuracy of 0.2-arcseconds for any detected NEOs (typical); NEO orbits determined in as few as two detections, with multiple visits to each region of the sky.
– On board detection processing reduces data downlink volume, minimizes contact requirements
– Provides a targeted follow-up observation capability, enabling time-critical revisit of high-priority targets
– Heritage draws lineage from great observatories and pioneering scientific missions: Kepler, Spitzer, Deep Impact

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The B612 Foundation believes we can protect the future of our planet and extend our reach into the solar system, their view: “…we are not passengers on Space Ship Earth, we are the Crew”.

“We want to literally save the world”

-Ed Lu

To help fund The Sentinal Mission, Apollo 9 spacewalker Rusty Schweickart and International Space Station flight engineer Ed Lu are auctioning some of their personal memorabilia that has accompanied them into space. The Ebay auction runs to July 7th, so hurry over if you’re interested in making a bid to help save the world, but no worries if you can’t donate by purchasing items in the auction, you can always donate at the site with benefits, see link below.

We are entering into an era where space exploration and the security of our planet is once again at the forefront of our minds. A time when the average man, woman and child can take part in a world-wide effort to go where no man has gone before. The future is now!

Take me to the space memorabilia auction naow!! >>

Never mind that, I just want to donate to this awesomeness!! >>

Sources: B612 Foundation/Sentinel Mission, NBC News

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