Magnetic-mapping mission resurrected.Four years ago, space physicists eagerly awaited the launch of Cluster, a quartet of spacecraft designed to fly in tandem Adv. 1. in tandem - one behind the other; "ride tandem on a bicycle built for two"; "riding horses down the path in tandem" tandem to explore the magnetic region that surrounds Earth. On June 4, 1996, minutes after takeoff from the European Space Agency's launch site in Kourou, French Guiana French Guiana (gēăn`ə, –än`–), Fr. La Guyane française, officially Department of Guiana, French overseas department (2005 est. pop. , the rocket carrying the four craft veered sharply off course and blew up (SN: 7/27/96, p. 59). Without a hitch this summer, the space agency launched Cluster II, the successor to the failed mission. Launched in pairs from the Baikonur cosmodrome Baikonur or Baykonur Cosmodrome (both: bī'kən  r`), formerly secret aerospace launch complex, Qyzylorda prov. in Kazakhstan on July 16 and Aug. 9, the four craft of Cluster II are now undergoing calibration tests. By early December, the agency says, all 44 instruments on Cluster II will be ready to begin observations. This will be the first time four identical satellites have ever been operated simultaneously. The quartet will generate the first detailed three-dimensional map of Earth's magnetosphere magnetosphere: see Van Allen radiation belts. magnetosphere Region around a planet (such as Earth) or a natural satellite that possesses a magnetic field (see , the magnetic region that plays a key role in the aurora borealis aurora borealis (bôr'ēăl`ĭs) and aurora australis (ôstrā`lĭs), luminous display of various forms and colors seen in the night sky. and in shielding Earth from solar storms. |
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