This article needs to be updated. The reason given is: Some of the projects have received approval status and others have been conjured since the last update to this article. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information. (July 2025) |
The Pioneers or Astrophysics Pioneers Program is a NASA program started in 2020 intended to use small-size hardware. The missions are expected to include SmallSats, Balloon payloads, and payloads attached to the ISS, with a $20M cost cap.[1]
Four were the concepts chosen to study in January 2021, which will undergo a review before approval for flight:[2]
- Aspera, a SmallSat to study galaxy evolution
- Pandora, a SmallSat to study at least 20 stars and their respective exoplanets in order to determine their atmospherical composition
- StarBurst, a SmallSat to detect high-energy gamma rays from the merger of neutron stars
- PUEO, a balloon mission intended to be launched from Antarctica in order to detect signals from neutrinos[3]
George Mason University is currently collaborating with NASA for the Landolt space mission, which intends to put an artificial "star" in the Earth's orbit.[4]
References
[edit]- ^ "Astrophysics Pioneers | Science Mission Directorate". science.nasa.gov. Retrieved 2021-11-13.
- ^ "Potentially mind-blowing secrets of the universe could be exposed with new NASA missions". SYFY Official Site. 2021-01-15. Retrieved 2021-11-13.
- ^ "Antarctic balloon mission chosen for NASA Pioneers program | Penn State University". www.psu.edu. Retrieved 2021-11-13.
- ^ "Landolt Space Mission". landolt.gmu.edu. Retrieved 2025-07-22.
