Did you know that the Hubble Space Telescope did a wonderful job recently? It was a unique space probe conducted during a total lunar eclipse. Scientists are thrilled with the results of that science experiment. Because thanks to that experiment by the Hubble Space Telescope, we can see if there is life on extraterrestrial planets. If you are interested in astronomy you must know it. With the help of the total lunar eclipse that occurred on January 19, 2019, NASA astronomers were able to accurately identify the Earth’s ozone layer using the Hubble Space Telescope. Here the Hubble Space Telescope did not look directly at the Earth. Instead, astronomers use the moon as a mirror.
Because when there is a total lunar eclipse, the sunlight that travels through the earth’s atmosphere is reflected off the moon and returns to the earth. Then the Hubble Space Telescope can see it when it comes to the center of the Earth and the Moon. The incoming light is like a mirror that reflects the atmospheric composition of the earth. Although this method has been tried from Earth before, this is the first time that a space telescope has observed ultraviolet light coming to Earth through the atmosphere. The measurements obtained from that test clearly showed the specter fingerprint of the ozone layer on our planet.
What is this specter fingerprint? If it is not explained, it will be a huge shortcoming. By studying how ultraviolet light interacts with chemical molecules, it is possible to determine what chemicals are on the surface of a particular planet. For example, ozone molecules absorb and reflect ultraviolet light. Therefore, the atmospheric composition of a particular planet can be easily determined using ultraviolet spectroscopic technology. The Hubble Space Telescope was able to identify the special features of the ozone layer in the Earth’s atmosphere using that technology.
Oxygen and ozone are present in the Earth’s atmosphere due to the photosynthetic processes that have taken place on our planet for billions of years. Logicians believe that if there were ozone and oxygen on another planet, there could be life on it. But detecting ozone on planets orbiting other stars outside your solar system is not easy. Such ultraviolet experiments cannot be observed on Earth. This is because the earth’s atmosphere blocks ultraviolet light from reaching the surface. Therefore, you can only do this kind of observation from a space telescope.
We are well aware that NASA’s primary goal is to identify a habitable or living planet. But how do we know if there is ozone in the ozone layer of planets that are millions of light-years away? An idea of the composition of the atmosphere of such an asteroid can only be obtained when the asteroid is moving in front of its parent star. In astronomy, it is called the transition. In such a case, the light from the parent planet comes to the planet through its atmosphere. As mentioned earlier, due to the different absorption and reflection of light by different chemicals in the atmosphere, we can learn about its atmospheric composition through a test of grace. This is because each gas has its own specter fingerprint.
Astronomers have observed the atmosphere of several such asteroids using the Hubble Space Telescope. But rocks like ours are much smaller than gaseous planets. Also, their atmosphere is as thin as four onions. Therefore, spectral testing makes it more difficult to observe their global composition. Therefore, scientists are preparing to launch the James Webb space telescope with great technology soon. So far, a space telescope has observed a living rocky planet, and we are the only Earth. That is why it was decided to use the Earth to test for ozone before searching for it in alien atmospheres.
In a total lunar eclipse, the Sun, Moon, and Earth are in order. Therefore, this is very similar to the transition phase of an alien planet. The Hubble Space Telescope in particular found it very difficult to detect ozone in the Earth’s atmosphere. This is because the moon is not a reflector with 100% maximum efficiency. It is full of bright and dark zones. And because the moon moves so close to the earth, it looks like a fast-moving object. Therefore, it was very difficult for the Hubble Space Telescope to stay in one of the names of the moon.
But in the end, all these challenges were overcome and the test was successfully completed. In the future, too, it will be possible to find out if life exists on an alien planet. Join us in commenting on this method.