Measurements of light are needed in order to learn things about stars' temperature, distance, radius, age, and other significant information. That kind of increased accuracy has the potential to "change our understanding of the universe in a fundamental way,” Peretz says. "I've never observed an accurately calibrated star in the sky. This will be the first time."
The spacecraft will essentially be a satellite outfitted with lasers that communicate with instruments on Earth. Right now, the team is still at the project's beginning phase, fine-tuning their proposal so NASA can approve it by next year.
The $19.5 million project will be the first mission run from the university's interdisciplinary Mason Space Center, which the university is currently building. New facilities will include an operations center, mission control, and uncontaminated "clean rooms" in which the spacecraft will be constructed.
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