Whistle Down The Wind

Cosmic Vision–Space Science of European 2015-2025

Download Here:cosmic-vision.pdf

人类因梦想而伟大，而人类能有的最大梦想无过于将人类渺小而短暂的生命置身于宇宙之中，用人类的智慧去寻求宇宙的解答，在今年5月份的合肥暑期学校上，就听MPE的Hasinger介绍了ESA的宇宙企划，就是这本薄薄的小册子：Cosmic Visio，这里面综合了ESA的科学家们精心设计的宇宙探索计划，据说这些计划也是为了和NASA的Origin计划争个高下，尽管里面的很多内容现在看来更像是幻想，但是我还是愿意相信到了2025年，后过头来看这份计划，我们会发现当年的幻想是那样的幼稚，的确，现在还有谁敢站出来估计所谓的科学发展的速度呢？

在计划中，ESA的科学家们提出了四个基本的科学问题和一系列对应的科学计划，和Origin的几项计划很类似，他们分别是：

1.行星形成以及生命出现时条件

1.1从气体和尘埃到恒星和行星–从厚重的尘埃遮挡中观测恒星和行星的形成。

1.2从地外行星到生命标记–搜寻地外行星，从其大气中探测生命标记

1.3太阳系中的生命及适居性–探索太阳系中一切可能有生命存在以及可能适合生命存在的星球的环境

对应计划： 近红外干涉仪，火星着陆探测以及标本带回，远红外天文台，类地行星探测器，Europa登陆探测。

2. 太阳系的运行状态

2.1 从太阳到太阳系的边缘–研究地球，木星以及太阳极区附近，乃至日风止附近环境中的磁场和等离子体

2.2 巨行星及其环境–木星大气，内部结构及其卫星的全景研究

2.3 小行星和其他小天体–从近地天体上直接获取样本进行实验室分析对映计划：地球磁层探测，木星探测(包括木星探测以及欧罗巴卫星的探测)，近地小天地的样本取回，星际日风止探测。

3. 宇宙的基本定律是什么？

3.1 探索当代物理学的极限– 利用空间中的无重和稳定环境探索基本相互作用对标准模型的背离

3.2 引力波的宇宙–为向探测由大爆炸产生的引力波迈出重要的一步

3.3 极端状态下的物质–在黑洞等致密天体附近研究强引力场下的引力理论，在中子星中研究极端环境下的物质状态对映计划：基础物理研究项目，空间极高能宇宙线探测，深空重力探测

4. 宇宙如何形成，由什么组成？

4.1 早期宇宙的探测–研究早期宇宙引发暴涨的物理过程；研究导致宇宙加速膨胀的暗物质的性质和起源

4.2 形成结构中的宇宙–寻找所有星系，星系团的祖先，宇宙中第一个形成的重力束缚结构，并追踪其到现在的演化过程

4.3 剧烈演化中的宇宙–研究星系中心超大质量黑洞的形成和演化，以及其与星系和恒星的关系；研究宇宙历史中的物质循环对映计划：大口径Ｘ射线天文台，大视场光学－红外成像仪，全天宇宙背景辐射极化探测，引力波的探测，Gamma暴的成像观测

下面把书的前言摘抄在这里，先不翻译了，这样的文字我自觉无法在翻译的时候做到“信，达，雅”，不马上献丑了吧

‘Science is shaped by ignorance’ says David Gross, 2004 Nobel Prize in Physics. Space science is no exception: by going after our knowledge gaps (or ignorance chasms) in the Universe around us,we focus on questions that then both direct and motivate us. Identifying these questions has been the starting point of the current soulsearching exercise, which occupied a full year in the life of Europe’s space scientists. Watching them go into action and feeling their response has been both an intense experience and a unique privilege.Today’s science rests on the contribution of every citizen. In our case, this means asking each European to invest about €1 per year in two equally noble purposes: to be a little less ignorant about our Universe and to give a much-needed boost to Europe’s space industry. (Of this yearly Euro, our European taxpayers should know that 80 cents will go to industry, in the form of technology-intensive contracts).

Throughout our Cosmic Vision 2015-2025 exercise, it was apparent that scientists were conscious of the responsibilities they carry towards Europe’s taxpayers as much as towards their own future community.They were, and are, also conscious of the burden they carry: the opinions of a community that has more then doubled in the last two decades deserves the respect of Europe’s decision-makers.We know they have to deal with the numerous factors that have intolerably squeezed our meagre yearly €1 for space science.

With Cosmic Vision 2015-2025,we show that we do not complain – we get organised.

After the questions, came not the answers, of course. Rather, as you will see, prioritybased
science strategies were identified, as well as roadmaps for the development of the technological tools necessary for such strategies.

Just as cognac, schnapps or grappa distil the spirit out of a variety of fruits, from grapes to plums (and the occasional potato…), the pages that follow capture the spirit of Europe’s space scientists. Our distillation process adhered to a timehonoured tradition that has been followed by ESA over the 30 years since its creation. It has been the responsibility of ESA’s Directorate of Science advisory structure, i.e. the Astronomy Working Group, the Fundamental Physics Advisory Group and the Solar System Working Group, to evaluate and discuss the ‘dictionnaire des idées reçues’ from the community. Ultimately, it was the Space Science Advisory Committee (SSAC) that took responsibility for the conception and writing of Cosmic Vision 2015-2025, with the fundamental support of the Science Directorate Executive.

The SSAC, the Working Groups and indeed the whole community are keenly aware of the foreseeable costs of space missions as well as of ESA’s Directorate of Science current (and foreseeable) budget.We know that not all of the ideas given here will be realised.We are not having intoxicated dreams: with maturity,we are putting forward a realistic set of scientific strategies out of which the implementation of missions must logically follow.

A feeling of ‘schicksalsgemeinshaft’, that special sharing of a common destiny, permeated the SSAC and rendered our working together both effective and pleasant, albeit at times strenuous.To ESA, to Europe’s decision-makers and, above all, to the next generation of space scientists, we present our work. Our confidence in doing so stems from the vast intellectual contribution received as an input:we are profoundly grateful for it.