Science goals

High Priority Goals

The primary goals of the Stellar Imager Vision Mission are to understand:

  • the dynamos that create the complex and variable magnetic fields in the sun and other stars.
  • the internal structure and dynamics of magnetically active stars, using spatially-resolved asteroseismology.
  • solar and stellar magnetic activity and their impact on space weather, planetary climates, and life.

General Goals

Stellar imager is a cross-theme mission addressing science goals relevant both to the NASA Heliophysics and Astrophysics Divisions at Goddard. It is a Flagship/Landmark Discovery Mission in the 2005 Heliophysics Roadmap. SI's goal is to revolutionize our understanding of:

  • solar and stellar magnetic activity and their impact on the climates and habitability of planets and life.
  • magnetic and accretion processes and their roles in the origin and evolution of structure and in the transport of matter throughout the universe.
  • the close-in structure of active galactic nucleii (AGN) and their winds.
  • extrasolar planet transits and disks.
Simulations of the Spectral Imaging Capabilities of SI

Simulations showing the Science Potential of SI (click to enlarge)