Misplaced Pages

#188811

24-612: SSI's research program encompasses the following areas: space physics , earth science , planetary science , and astrophysics . The flight operations branch manages the Cassini-Huygens spacecraft's visible camera instrument and provides spectacular images of Saturn and its moons and rings to the public. SSI participates in mission operations and is home to the Cassini Imaging Central Laboratory for OPerations (CICLOPS). The primary goal of SSI

48-511: A pure science and an applied science , with applications in radio transmission , spacecraft operations (particularly communications and weather satellites ), and in meteorology . Important physical processes in space physics include magnetic reconnection , synchrotron radiation , ring currents , Alfvén waves and plasma instabilities . It is studied using direct in situ measurements by sounding rockets and spacecraft, indirect remote sensing of electromagnetic radiation produced by

72-564: A problem in the future. In the United States, basic research is funded mainly by the federal government and done mainly at universities and institutes. As government funding has diminished in the 2010s, however, private funding is increasingly important. Applied science focuses on the development of technology and techniques. In contrast, basic science develops scientific knowledge and predictions, principally in natural sciences but also in other empirical sciences, which are used as

96-452: A source of fast protons. They are guided to the poles by the Earth's magnetic field. In the early twentieth century, these ideas led Kristian Birkeland to build a terrella , or laboratory device which simulates the Earth's magnetic field in a vacuum chamber, and which uses a cathode ray tube to simulate the energetic particles which compose the solar wind. A theory began to be formulated about

120-612: Is currently producing Giant Worlds. SSI provides management support for research scientists and principal investigators , which help them to submit proposals to major public funding agencies such as National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), National Science Foundation (NSF), Space Telescope Science Institute (STSci), Department of Energy (DOE), and Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) Principal investigators are supported by SSI though proposal budget preparation, proposal submission, and project reporting tools, and have competitive negotiated overhead rates. The institute

144-591: Is loosely affiliated with the University of Colorado Boulder . SSI has obtained several grants in astrophysical sciences since 1992 from NSF and NASA funding agencies. SSI has five research centers: SSI's National Center for Interactive Learning (NCIL) is dedicated to expanding the understanding of educators, and citizens in science through educational and outreach programs by SSI researchers in four interconnected groups: Exhibition Development, Digital Learning, Professional Development, and Public Engagement. SSI

168-478: Is managed by a board of 12 directors for Aerospace, Academic Research, Small Business Consultant, Astronomy, Science and Technology, Engineering, Civil Space, Martin, Planetarium, Innovation, Legal and Policy, and 4 acting directors for Research, National Center for Interactive Learning (NCIL), Information Systems and Technology (IST), and Business Operations. SSI has participated in NASA 's Cassini mission and hosted

192-408: Is to bring together researchers and educators to improve science education. Toward this end, the institute acts as an umbrella for researchers who wish to be independent of universities. In addition, it works with educators directly to improve teaching methods for astronomy. SSI has also produced several traveling exhibits for science museums, including Electric Space, Mars Quest, and Alien Earths. It

216-578: The Cassini Imaging Central Laboratory for OPerations (CICLOPS). 40°01′10″N 105°14′24″W  /  40.01951117506793°N 105.24001395580994°W  / 40.01951117506793; -105.24001395580994 Space physics Space physics , also known as space plasma physics , is the study of naturally occurring plasmas within Earth's upper atmosphere and the rest of the Solar System . It includes

240-602: The Van Allen belts . The boundary between the Earth's magnetic field and interplanetary space was studied by Explorer 10 . Future space craft would travel outside Earth orbit and study the composition and structure of the solar wind in much greater detail. These include WIND (spacecraft) , (1994), Advanced Composition Explorer (ACE), Ulysses , the Interstellar Boundary Explorer (IBEX) in 2008, and Parker Solar Probe . Other spacecraft would study

264-568: The compass , but did not understand how it worked. During the 16th century, in De Magnete , William Gilbert gave the first description of the Earth's magnetic field , showing that the Earth itself is a great magnet, which explained why a compass needle points north. Deviations of the compass needle magnetic declination were recorded on navigation charts, and a detailed study of the declination near London by watchmaker George Graham resulted in

SECTION 10

#1732780948189

288-403: The technological innovations of applied science . The two aims are often practiced simultaneously in coordinated research and development . In addition to innovations, basic research serves to provide insights and public support of nature, possibly improving conservation efforts. Technological innovations may influence engineering concepts, such as the beak of a kingfisher influencing

312-527: The National Science Foundation. A worker in basic scientific research is motivated by a driving curiosity about the unknown. When his explorations yield new knowledge, he experiences the satisfaction of those who first attain the summit of a mountain or the upper reaches of a river flowing through unmapped territory. Discovery of truth and understanding of nature are his objectives. His professional standing among his fellows depends upon

336-461: The basis of progress and development in different fields. Today's computers, for example, could not exist without research in pure mathematics conducted over a century ago, for which there was no known practical application at the time. Basic research rarely helps practitioners directly with their everyday concerns; nevertheless, it stimulates new ways of thinking that have the potential to revolutionize and dramatically improve how practitioners deal with

360-527: The design of a high-speed bullet train. Basic research advances fundamental knowledge about the world. It focuses on creating and refuting or supporting theories that explain observed phenomena. Pure research is the source of most new scientific ideas and ways of thinking about the world. It can be exploratory , descriptive , or explanatory; however, explanatory research is the most common. Basic research generates new ideas, principles, and theories, which may not be immediately utilized but nonetheless form

384-550: The discovery of irregular magnetic fluctuations that we now call magnetic storms, so named by Alexander Von Humboldt . Gauss and William Weber made very careful measurements of Earth's magnetic field which showed systematic variations and random fluctuations. This suggested that the Earth was not an isolated body, but was influenced by external forces – especially from the Sun and the appearance of sunspots . A relationship between individual aurora and accompanying geomagnetic disturbances

408-409: The interaction between the Earth's magnetic field and the solar wind. Space physics began in earnest with the first in situ measurements in the early 1950s, when a team led by Van Allen launched the first rockets to a height around 110 km. Geiger counters on board the second Soviet satellite, Sputnik 2 , and the first US satellite, Explorer 1 , detected the Earth's radiation belts, later named

432-468: The originality and soundness of his work. Creativeness in science is of a cloth with that of the poet or painter. It conducted a study in which it traced the relationship between basic scientific research efforts and the development of major innovations, such as oral contraceptives and videotape recorders. This study found that basic research played a key role in the development in all of the innovations. The number of basic science research that assisted in

456-517: The plasmas, and theoretical magnetohydrodynamics . Closely related fields include plasma physics , which studies more fundamental physics and artificial plasmas; atmospheric physics , which investigates lower levels of Earth's atmosphere; and astrophysical plasmas , which are natural plasmas beyond the Solar System. Space physics can be traced to the Chinese who discovered the principle of

480-766: The production of a given innovation peaked between 20 and 30 years before the innovation itself. While most innovation takes the form of applied science and most innovation occurs in the private sector, basic research is a necessary precursor to almost all applied science and associated instances of innovation. Roughly 76% of basic research is conducted by universities. A distinction can be made between basic science and disciplines such as medicine and technology. They can be grouped as STM (science, technology, and medicine; not to be confused with STEM [science, technology, engineering, and mathematics]) or STS (science, technology, and society). These groups are interrelated and influence each other, although they may differ in

504-457: The scientific foundation for applied science. Basic science develops and establishes information to predict phenomena and perhaps to understand nature, whereas applied science uses portions of basic science to develop interventions via technology or technique to alter events or outcomes. Applied and basic sciences can interface closely in research and development . The interface between basic research and applied research has been studied by

SECTION 20

#1732780948189

528-604: The sun, such as STEREO and Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO). Pure science Basic research , also called pure research , fundamental research , basic science , or pure science , is a type of scientific research with the aim of improving scientific theories for better understanding and prediction of natural or other phenomena. In contrast, applied research uses scientific theories to develop technology or techniques, which can be used to intervene and alter natural or other phenomena. Though often driven simply by curiosity , basic research often fuels

552-402: The topics of aeronomy , aurorae , planetary ionospheres and magnetospheres , radiation belts , and space weather (collectively known as solar-terrestrial physics ). It also encompasses the discipline of heliophysics , which studies the solar physics of the Sun , its solar wind , the coronal heating problem , solar energetic particles , and the heliosphere . Space physics is both

576-462: Was noticed by Anders Celsius and Olof Peter Hiorter in 1747. In 1860, Elias Loomis (1811–1889) showed that the highest incidence of aurora is seen inside an oval of 20 - 25 degrees around the magnetic pole. In 1881, Hermann Fritz published a map of the "isochasms" or lines of constant magnetic field. In the late 1870s, Henri Becquerel offered the first physical explanation for the statistical correlations that had been recorded: sunspots must be

#188811