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One of the many proposed mission plans of a prospective Uranus mission that involves a Jupiter Gravity Assist and a subsequent cruise to Uranus. This specific mission timeline corresponds to the shortest proposed cruise time. Figure adjusted by Fabio Crameri from Bucko, Soyuer, & Zwick (2023); https://arxiv.org/pdf/2303.16830

Published: 19 December 2024

Unlocking the Universe

From the Teams

Gravitational waves

Dark Matter

Exoplanets

Space exploration

Expanding Non-Planetary Science with Uranus and Neptune Missions

ISSI International Team 551 convened twice in Bern to explore an innovative frontier in space exploration: the non-planetary science potential of future missions to Uranus and Neptune. These ice giants, the least explored planets in the Solar System, offer an unparalleled opportunity to push the boundaries of planetary science—and, as the team demonstrates, the broader field of astrophysics.

Project Vision

The international team led by Daniel D’Orazio from the Space Telescope Science Institute in the USA and Prasenjit Saha from the Uni Zurich in Switzerland aimed to harness the unique capabilities of deep-space missions to investigate phenomena beyond planetary science. Specifically, they sought to exploit radio Doppler tracking technology during the spacecraft’s multi-year journey to the outer Solar System. By analysing variations in the spacecraft’s trajectory and light travel time, the team envisioned probing a diverse range of astrophysical phenomena, including:

Detecting gravitational waves from supermassive black hole binaries.
Constraining the dark matter density in the Solar System.
Discovering long-period exoplanets around compact binary systems.

Their work represents a strategic effort to ensure these upcoming missions maximize scientific return across multiple disciplines.

Key Outcomes

The team held two productive meetings, culminating in the development of new scientific benchmarks and the research paper: “Bridging the Micro-Hz Gravitational Wave Gap via Doppler Tracking with the Uranus Orbiter and Probe Mission” (Zwick et al., 2024), now under revision. The team presents groundbreaking findings, including:

Sensitivity Mapping:
– The team calculated the Uranus Orbiter and Probe’s expected sensitivity to gravitational waves, dark matter, and early-universe signals under various mission scenarios.
– They identified areas for technological and methodological improvement to enhance detection capabilities.
Astrophysical Event Rates:
– The researchers estimated event rates for phenomena such as micro-hertz gravitational wave transients and interactions with ultra-light dark matter.
Topical Relevance:
– This research aligned perfectly with recent discoveries, such as the detection of a nanohertz gravitational wave background, highlighting the timeliness of investigating micro-hertz transients.
Emergent Ideas:
– During discussions, the team uncovered potential for deep-space missions to support experiments in quantum entanglement, opening exciting new avenues for exploration.

Notably, the team also predicts the possibility to detect massive black hole binaries in a regime bridging the parameter space covered by LISA and pulsar timing arrays (PTAs).

Contours of signal-to-noise for in-spiraling massive black hole binaries as detectable by LISA (left), the Uranus probe (middle), and the Pulsar Timing Arrays (PTA, right). Tracking the Uranus orbiter probe could allow detection of massive black hole binaries in the gap between the two existing GW detector designs (LISA and PTAs).

Future Directions

This collaborative effort has set the stage for leveraging Uranus and Neptune missions not only to advance planetary science but also to explore the universe’s most profound mysteries, from the early universe’s structure to the nature of dark matter and quantum phenomena. With these findings, the team has provided a foundation to guide spacecraft design and mission planning, ensuring that the next generation of explorers is equipped to unlock the full potential of these far-reaching endeavours.

For more information and a publication list of this ISSI Team go to: https://teams.issibern.ch/prospectsnon-planetaryscience/

Credits ESA/Webb, NASA & CSA, A. Martel