Jeffrey Nosanov
NASA JPL
NIAC 2012 Phase I Nosanov SSEARS Final Report
Description
We will design an architecture enabling on- and off-ecliptic, multiple-point study of the Heliopause by sending multiple spacecraft in different directions. Many probes will be needed to reach the unique regions of the Heliopause, known as the nose, sides, tail, north and south. Probes will be launched several years apart. This architecture will allow flyby science at the Outer Planets and Kuiper Belt on their way out of the Solar System, enable a study of the Heliopause, and eventually reach a distance suitable for use of the solar gravity lens effect to image, among other targets, the center of the galaxy. We will realize cost savings via economies of scale and design for mass production.