Nissan has transformed a pick-up truck* into a world-class mobile space observatory. The Navara Dark Sky Concept allows astronomers to gaze at the universe from remote locations away from the nighttime glow of urban areas. It tows a bespoke* trailer which houses a world-leading telescope giving detailed views beyond the rings of Saturn, to distant galaxies, nebulae* and supernovas*. The one-off Nissan was developed in Britain in collaboration with the European Space Agency (ESA). The trailer module has a special refrigerated atmosphere, which allows the telescope to remain stable and calibrated* at the optimum* temperature in transit to any location. Once at the desired destination, the trailer module’s mechanized roof opens to focus the telescope on the night sky. ESA is mapping the stars with unprecedented precision using its Gaia satellite, which has already observed more than one billion stars. To negotiate tricky terrain, the Nissan has four-wheel drive, 50-cm wheels with off-road tires and high-intensity headlights. The overall ride height has been raised for improved ground clearance. Under the bonnet* is a 2.3-liter twin-turbocharged diesel* with enough pulling power to handle the trailer’s additional weight. The Navara and trailer both feature portable electric-vehicle battery packs, which make use of Nissan’s existing electric-vehicle battery technology. When docked in place, the battery packs are constantly in charging mode and ready for use. Additional high-tech features include Wi-Fi, a laptop station and Ultra High Frequency* radio transmission to relay data instantaneously* to anywhere in the world. There are eight radar units, on each corner of the vehicle and trailer, which update the driver on the vehicle’s surroundings through the touch screen on the dashboard*. At the heart of the trailer is the ultrahigh-power PlaneWave telescope which uses a 40-cm primary mirror to focus on the night’s sky. Since red light affects human night vision least, both the vehicle and trailer exclusively use red lighting to avoid visual disruption during observations. (SD-Agencies) |