Since our trip to JSC, we’ve been fine-tuning the procedure for the extraction of interstellar candidates. Today I’m testing some new “axial” code that Andrew wrote in order to compensate for slight deviations in the vertical needle’s alignment. In this new procedure, we measure the angle that the needle makes with the surface of the aerogel with the micromanipulator. The new code then tells the needle to poke the aerogel at precisely that angle, enabling us to achieve even greater cutting precision.
Dave