Microscopic messengers from the depths of space

(Phys.org)—In 1990, an important space probe was launched, tasked with the ambitious mission of orbiting the sun and scanning our star at all latitudes. However, the much-publicized mission was not solar research but the detection of tiny particles from interstellar space. This joint NASA/ESA mission, lasting 19 years, has revealed the properties of the particles originating from interstellar space and has provided new insights on these tiny cosmic visitors.