Galactic Discoveries and Technological Advances: A Look into Europe’s Space Exploration and Technology Scene

The European Space Agency’s Euclid telescope has captured the largest images of the universe ever taken from space. Dr. Jesper Skottfelt, a research fellow at the Open University’s Centre for Electronic Imaging, discusses the significance of these images and the future of the mission. The Open University team is actively monitoring the detectors to ensure Euclid can return the best possible images and data throughout its lifespan. Astronomers are amazed by the sharpness of the images taken by Euclid, which are four times clearer than those captured by ground-based telescopes.

In other news, Airbus is building a satellite named ‘Vigil’ that will serve as an early warning system for potentially dangerous space weather. This spacecraft, selected by the European Space Agency, will provide crucial alerts about solar storms and coronal mass ejections that could disrupt satellites and electronic systems on Earth. Vigil’s data could also offer advance notice of solar winds approaching our planet.

On the technology front, BT has been fined nearly £3 million for failures that affected EE and PlusNet customers. Additionally, Microsoft’s AI feature is under investigation by a UK watchdog. Meanwhile, scientists have made surprising discoveries about the Sun’s magnetic field.

Finally, some experts have raised concerns over whether internet connectivity is gradually disappearing due to various factors such as cyberattacks and natural disasters. Listen to our latest podcast episode on Apple Podcasts or Spotify to hear more about this issue.

With so much happening in both space exploration and technology, it’s clear that there are plenty of exciting developments worth keeping an eye on!