Aug 15 2009
In Search of Antimatter Galaxies
Next year, a powerful cosmic ray detector will be installed on the International Space Station. Its mission: to search for antimatter galaxies and other exotic phenomena in the Universe.
Click for large image: An artist's concept of the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer installed on the International Space Station.
August 14, 2009: NASA’s space shuttle program is winding down. With only about half a dozen more flights, shuttle crews will put the finishing touches on the International Space Station (ISS), bringing to an end twelve years of unprecedented orbital construction. The icon and workhorse of the American space program will have finished its Great Task.
An act of Congress in 2008 added another flight to the schedule near the end of the program. Currently scheduled for 2010, this extra flight of the shuttle is going to launch a hunt for antimatter galaxies.
The device that does the actual hunting is called the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer–or AMS for short. It’s a $1.5 billion cosmic ray detector that the shuttle will deliver to the ISS. [...]
Source: Nasa Science – click here for full article
