The European Space Agency’s Gaia spacecraft, designed to map the stars of the Milky Way, recently endured a micrometeoroid impact and a solar storm, causing significant disruptions. Despite the damage, the spacecraft is now back to its routine operations.
Orbiting at the L2 Lagrange Point, Gaia was struck in April by a tiny meteoroid, creating a crack in its protective shield and allowing sunlight to interfere with its sensors. In May, a solar storm likely caused another electronic failure, leading to thousands of false star detections.
To overcome these challenges, ESA engineers patched the spacecraft’s software, adjusting the criteria for star detection. Launched in 2013 for a six-year mission, Gaia has now been operational for over a decade, continuing its mission to create a 3D map of our galaxy.