Last Sunday, May 3rd, the SNAPPY, Solar Neutrino Astro-Particle PhYsics, CubeSat was launched on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket. The NASA university collaboration was launched to study particles called neutrinos, small particles that can pass through matter. The project consists of a prototype solar neutrino detector built of a NanoAvionics-built satellite, which will identify solar neutrinos using a double-pulsed detector. After seeing the Parker Solar Probe fly through the Sun’s corona, Wichita State University wanted to experiment with spacecraft going through an area where the rate of particles in an area is around 1,000 times stronger than what reaches Earth. The goal of the mission is to see how a neutrino detector acts in space so that future missions can try to detect particles closer to the sun. Currently, neutron detectors are deep underground, which limits signaling. This means that having a detector in space would gather more data and provide more information on how solar neutrinos act. Neutrinos are thought to be the second most common particle in the universe, so by understanding them, scientists can better understand our universe.
I think the SNAPPY mission is super interesting because it combines physics research with space exploration to get as much information as possible on neutrinos. Neutrino detection is difficult on Earth, so moving the process to space provides a new possibility for data collection and experiments. Reading this article, I was surprised that such a big project is a collaboration between NASA and college students. It’s fantastic that this research is being driven by young people because it shows how college and university students can contribute to scientific research, especially with large projects like this one through NASA. High energy physics is an interesting topic for me, but the focus on neutrino detecting near the sun combines my interest in physics nd space. Since neutrinos are such common particles, learning about them could tell us so much more about our universe.
In Orbit 