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This figure shows the exquisite structure of the active regions around the Sun. This SOHO (solar and Heliospheric Observatory) coronagraph image reveals the small-scale magnetic structures that can persist for long periods. The figure also indicates several of the planets that spacecraft bearing LASP sensors have visited or soon will visit. Photo courtesy of NASA/JPL/Caltech |
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Introduction
Humans have always been fascinated by the Sun and its relationship to Earth. Every civilization has speculated about the place of our planet in the realm of the stars and about our relationship to our own star. Stonehenge and sundials and the folklore of eclipses are testimonials to that fascination. Ancient Chinese and Greek observers saw sunspots centuries before telescopes proved they were there. However, it has only been within the past few hundred years - since Copernicus and Galileo - that we have closely examined the changing face and place of the Sun and the planets in our skies. Our Sun-Earth system is the physical prototype for stellar systems throughout the cosmos. It is also the only one we can study up close.
In 1946-47, a handful of American universities joined with the military and with
industry to initiate the era of space exploration. The University of Colorado was one of those
pioneering universities. The first experiments to be performed in space were lofted by sub-orbital
rockets. The challenge: these first rocket flights required a stabilized platform for cameras
and other experiments. With support from the Naval Research Center and the Air Force Cambridge
Research Laboratory (now the Phillips Laboratory), the University of Colorado formed a research group
called the Upper Air Laboratory (UAL) to solve this problem. Their solution - called the biaxial
pointing platform - cleared the way for some of the first major scientific discoveries made in space.
Researchers and engineers from the UAL flew experiments into space on over 50 rocket flights before
Sputnik. By 1965, the UAL had grown substantially. Along with this growth came a new building on
campus and a new name: the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics.
It has really only been in the 20th century - and primarily the last 40 years - that scientists have arrived at a relatively clear picture of solar activity and its effect on Earth. We are now exploring mysteries close to home. in our own Earth's atmosphere. Human beings are measuring phenomenon in the sky and sending spacecraft, both manned and unmanned, into space, seeking the answers to our questions.
This is LASP's goal: to make discoveries through the research and technology efforts of our
atmospheric,
space physics,
solar/terrestrial physics,
planetary,
engineering, and
mission operations divisions.
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