NOTE: If you can read this, then you have not entered our site from the proper entry point! In order for all links to function properly, you must start by clicking here.

The official ACE logo Click on image for full size (64K GIF) Image courtesy of NASA

So you see, if we can better understand what makes up the universe, our galaxy, and our Sun, we can understand what makes up our solar system, the Earth, and even our own bodies! Now there is a spacecraft designed with instruments to do just this! The ACE (Advanced Compostion Explorer) was launched in August 1997. The main goal of ACE is find out about what makes up Sun, our solar system and our galaxy.

What do you think of when someone says, "how's the weather?" Do you say it's rainy or hot or windy? Well, there's another kind of weather you probably didn't think of - spaceweather! The ACE satellite acts as a spaceweather station while in orbit. It helps scientists make forecasts (just like here on Earth!) and predict stormsthat are caused by explosions on the Sun - coronal mass ejections.

The ACE mission has had an extremely successful mission so far. It recently (June 1998) made some exciting discoveries about coronal mass ejections. Here's an animation which describes more...

The official ACE logo Click on image for full size (64K GIF) Image courtesy of NASA

So you see, if we can better understand the composition of the universe, our galaxy, and our Sun, we can understand how the solar system formed (including the Earth), and perhaps, even our own bodies! Now there is a spacecraft designed to do just this! The ACE (Advanced Compostion Explorer) was launched in August 1997. The main goal of ACE is to study the particles that come near the Earth from the Sun, from the space between the planets, and from the Milky Way galaxy beyond the solar system.

ACE has nine instruments onboard that helps it track particles. The ACE spacecraft will track the solar wind coming from the Sun. ACE also traces galactic cosmic rays which come from interstellar space located beyond the heliosphere (that which is beyond the influence of the IMF), but generally from within our galaxy. The ACE satellite serves as a spaceweather station while in orbit. ACE can provide a one-hour advance warning of any geomagnetic storms that are caused by coronal mass ejections. The effects of coronal mass ejections on the Sun can cause radio, t.v., and telephone communication loss here on Earth.

The ACE mission is an important addition to current missions including Ulysses and SOHO.

The ACE mission has had an extremely successful mission so far. It recently (June 1998) made some exciting discoveries about coronal mass ejections. Here's an animation which describes more...

The official ACE logo Click on image for full size (64K GIF) Image courtesy of NASA

Have you ever wondered what you are made of? Where did the elements come from that make up your body? The elements that make up your body are the same elements found on the Earth we live on. Where did those earthen elements come from? Most would say that the building blocks of the Earth (and the other planets) came from the Sun...and that solar material came from the galaxy, and the galactic material came from the universe...

So you see, if we can better understand the composition of the universe, the Milky Way galaxy, and our Sun, we can better understand how the solar system formed, the elemental composition of the Earth, and perhaps, even our own bodies! This is exactly what the ACE spacecraft is designed to do! The primary mission of the ACE spacecraft is to study the energetic particles that come near the Earth from the Sun, from the space between the planets, and from the Milky Way galaxy beyond the solar system.

ACE's nine instruments help provide comprehensive analysis of particles arriving at the spacecraft. The instruments on ACE are 10 to 1000 times more powerful than previous instruments that have been flown in space.

The ACE spacecraft will track the solar wind coming from the Sun with special interest lying in times of increased solar activity. The mission also traces galactic cosmic rays which come from interstellar space located beyond the heliosphere (that which is beyond the influence of the IMF), but generally from within our galaxy. The ACE satellite also serves as a spaceweather station while in orbit. The location of ACE enables it to provide about one-hour advance warning of any major geomagnetic activity (caused by coronal mass ejections)that can cause electrical surges or radio, t.v., and telephone communication loss here on Earth.

The ACE mission is an important addition to past and current studies including Ulysses, SOHO and WIND.

The ACE mission has had an extremely successful mission so far. It recently (June 1998) made some exciting discoveries about coronal mass ejections. Here's an animation which describes more...