Indian-Origin Astronomer to Lead NASA’s PUFFINS Space Telescope Mission

PUFFINS Space Mission and Study of Interstellar Dust

NASA’s PUFFINS Mission

• Dr. Ramya Anche, an astronomer born in Bengaluru, has been selected as the Principal Investigator of NASA’s PUFFINS mission.
• PUFFINS stands for Polarimetry in the Ultraviolet to Find Features in INterStellar dust.
• It is a SmallSat mission selected under NASA’s Astrophysics Pioneers programme, which supports early-career scientists leading NASA missions for the first time.
• The mission has received around $20 million in funding and is targeted for launch in 2030.

What Will PUFFINS Study?

• PUFFINS will carry a small 10-inch telescope to observe ultraviolet light from around 70 distant stars.
• Its main objective is to study very small grains of interstellar dust.
• These particles exist in the space between stars and can be extremely small, with sizes below 50 nanometres.
• Such tiny particles are difficult to study using conventional optical or infrared observations.

Why Is Interstellar Dust Important?

• Interstellar dust influences how starlight travels through the Milky Way.
• Studying its properties can improve scientific understanding of the formation of stars and planets.
• The mission will also examine how these dust particles behave in relation to the magnetic field of the Milky Way.
• Scientists hope that the observations will address gaps in existing knowledge about interstellar dust and contribute to a better understanding of the structure and evolution of the universe.

UV Spectropolarimetry

• PUFFINS will use UV spectropolarimetry, a technique that combines observations of ultraviolet light with information about its polarisation.
• According to the provided material, this technique has not been attempted from space for about 30 years.
• The observations are expected to provide information about the properties and behaviour of interstellar dust particles.

International Collaboration

• The mission involves around 40 scientists, engineers, graduate students and postdoctoral researchers.
• It is a joint effort involving the University of Arizona, McDonald Observatory and researchers from different universities.
• Indian institutions participating in the mission include Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics (IUCAA), Pune and Indian Institute of Astrophysics (IIA), Bengaluru.

Significance

• The mission highlights the growing role of SmallSat-based scientific missions in space research.
• It will provide new observations of interstellar dust using ultraviolet polarisation.
• Its findings could help scientists better understand the processes involved in star and planet formation.

Practice Question

Question: With reference to NASA’s PUFFINS mission, consider the following statements:

1. PUFFINS is a SmallSat mission selected under NASA’s Astrophysics Pioneers Programme. 
2. The mission will observe ultraviolet light from around 70 distant stars. 
3. The primary objective of PUFFINS is to directly study the surfaces of exoplanets in the outer Milky Way. 
4. Among Indian institutions, only the Indian Institute of Astrophysics (IIA), Bengaluru, is participating in the mission.

Which of the statements given above are correct?

A. 1 and 2 only

B. 1 and 3 only

C. 2 and 4 only

D. 3 and 4 only

Answer: A. 1 and 2 only

Explanation:

• PUFFINS is a SmallSat mission selected under NASA’s Astrophysics Pioneers Programme. Hence, Statement 1 is correct.
• PUFFINS will observe ultraviolet light from around 70 distant stars. Hence, Statement 2 is correct.
• PUFFINS is designed to study tiny grains of interstellar dust, not the surfaces of exoplanets. Hence, Statement 3 is incorrect.
• India’s participation includes both IIA, Bengaluru and IUCAA, Pune. Hence, Statement 4 is incorrect