This was reported by Ukrinform with reference to the Space web resource.

Euclid is scheduled to launch at 11:11 ET (6:11 p.m. Kiev time) aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral Cosmodrome in Florida.

The space probe should help find the hypothetical effect of dark matter on the growth of the universe at the beginning of its existence, its acceleration of expansion, and the formation of galaxies.

“Dark energy and dark matter arise because of the pretty subtle changes they make in the appearance of objects in the visible universe, otherwise we wouldn’t know about them,” said René Laureis, a Euclidean project scientist.

He pointed to a phenomenon called gravitational lensing, which makes it possible to see distant objects due to the gravity of a large mass (such as a galaxy) distorting radiation. Euclid will be able to see these effects more clearly than any observatory, given that he will be operating far away in space.

It was noted that the device will fly to the so-called Lagrangian point L2, a gravitationally stable point about 1.5 km from Earth.

The instruments will record infrared and visible wavelengths to obtain images of large areas of the sky. By analyzing the effect of dark matter on visible objects, it will be possible to conclude where it “hides”.

Euclid’s deployment period will last about eight months, including a month spent moving it into L2 orbit, where the James Webb Space Telescope is located.

Full operation of the device will begin around April 2024.

What exactly Euclid would observe has not been disclosed.

It is scheduled to operate for at least six years and could make many unexpected discoveries, according to scientists.

Illustration: ESA, CC BY-SA