To Fly to the Sun: Solar Probe Mission & Technology Challenges

2007 ◽  
Vol 22 (7) ◽  
pp. 21-28
Author(s):  
James Randolph ◽  
Alexander Eremenko ◽  
Robert Miyake ◽  
Raymond Dirl
Keyword(s):  
The Sun ◽  
Probe Mission

scholarly journals The Nasa Solar Probe Mission: In Situ Determination of Interplanetary Out-of-The Ecliptic and Near-Solar Dust Environments

1991 ◽  
Vol 126 ◽  
pp. 29-32
Author(s):  
Bruce T. Tsurutani ◽  
James E. Randolph
Keyword(s):  
Solar Cycle ◽  
Solar System ◽  
Solar Eclipse ◽  
Orbital Period ◽  
High Velocity ◽  
Scientific Community ◽  
The Sun ◽  
Probe Mission

AbstractThe NASA Solar Probe mission will be one of the most exciting dust missions ever flown and will lead to a revolutionary advance in our understanding of dust within our solar system. Solar Probe will map the dust environment from the orbit of Jupiter (5 AU), to within 4 solar radii of the sun’s center. The region between 0.3 AU and 4 Rshas never been visited before, so the 10 days that the spacecraft spends during each (of the two) orbit is purely exploratory in nature. Solar Probe will also reach heliographic latitudes as high as ~ 15 to 28 above (below) the ecliptic on its trajectory inbound (outbound) to (from) the sun. This, in addition to the ESA/NASA Ulysses mission, will help determine the out-of-the-ecliptic dust environment. A post-perihelion burn will reduce the satellite orbital period to 2.5 years about the sun. A possible extended mission would allow data reception for 2 more revolutions, mapping out a complete solar cycle. Because the near-solar dust environment is not well understood (or is controversial at best), and it is very important to have better knowledge of the dust environment to protect Solar Probe from high velocity dust hits, we urgently request the scientific community to obtain further measurements of the near-solar dust properties. One prime opportunity is the July 1991 solar eclipse.

Large-scale electron solar wind parameters of the inner heliosphere with Parker Solar Probe/FIELDS

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karine Issautier ◽  
Mingzhe Liu ◽  
Michel Moncuquet ◽  
Nicole Meyer-Vernet ◽  
Milan Maksimovic ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Solar Wind ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Statistical Study ◽  
Solar Wind Speed ◽  
The Sun ◽  
Solar Wind Parameters ◽  
Power Law Index ◽  
Probe Mission ◽  
Inner Heliosphere

<p>We present in situ properties of electron density and temperature in the inner heliosphere obtained during the three first solar encounters at 35 solar radii of the Parker Solar Probe mission. These preliminary results, recently shown by Moncuquet et al., ApJS, 2020, are obtained from the analysis of the plasma quasi-thermal noise (QTN) spectrum measured by the radio RFS/FIELDS instrument along the trajectories extending between 0.5 and 0.17 UA from the Sun, revealing different states of the emerging solar wind, five months apart. The temperature of the weakly collisional core population varies radially with a power law index of about -0.8, much slower than adiabatic, whereas the temperature of the supra-thermal population exhibits a much flatter radial variation, as expected from its nearly collisionless state. These measured temperatures are close to extrapolations towards the Sun of Helios measurements.</p><p>We also present a statistical study from these in situ electron solar wind parameters, deduced by QTN spectroscopy, and compare the data to other onboard measurements. In addition, we focus on the large-scale solar wind properties. In particular, from the invariance of the energy flux, a direct relation between the solar wind speed and its density can be deduced, as we have already obtained based on Wind continuous in situ measurements (Le Chat et al., Solar Phys., 2012). We study this anti-correlation during the three first solar encounters of PSP.</p>

Solar observations with the Nancay Radioheliograph in support of the Solar Orbiter and Parker Solar Probe missions

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karl-Ludwig Klein ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Active Regions ◽  
Data Acquisition System ◽  
Total Solar Eclipse ◽  
The Sun ◽  
Eclipse Observations ◽  
Solar Observations ◽  
Mass Ejection ◽  
Orbiter Mission ◽  
Probe Mission ◽  
Perihelion Passage

<p>The Nancay Radioheliograph is dedicated to imaging the solar corona at decimetre-to-metre wavelengths. The imaged structures are the quiet corona, through thermal bremsstrahlung, and bright collective emissions due to electrons accelerated in quiescent, flaring and eruptive active regions. The instrument produced nearly daily maps of the Sun between 1996 and 2015, at several frequencies in the 150-450 MHz range with sub-second cadence. The observations were stopped in 2015 for a major technical upgrade through the replacement of the correlator and the data acquisition system. They were resumed in November 2020, and at the time of writing the commissioning of the instrument is well underway. This contribution will give a brief overview of the technical changes and present observations at eight frequencies of solar activity since November 2020, including the coronal mass ejection (CME) of December 14 seen in some images of the total solar eclipse, observations conducted during the present perihelion passage of the Parker Solar Probe mission, as well as during periods of interest to the Solar Orbiter mission. The data are freely available, and special products of common visualisation with the space missions will be illustrated.</p>

Unique heliophysics science opportunities along the Interstellar Probe journey up to 1000 AU from the Sun

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elena Provornikova ◽  
Pontus C. Brandt ◽  
Ralph L. McNutt, Jr. ◽  
Robert DeMajistre ◽  
Edmond C. Roelof ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Space Mission ◽  
In Situ Measurements ◽  
Unique Determination ◽  
The Sun ◽  
Global Shape ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
First Time ◽  
Interstellar Probe ◽  
Probe Mission

<p>The Interstellar Probe is a space mission to discover physical interactions shaping globally the boundary of our Sun`s heliosphere and its dynamics and for the first time directly sample the properties of the local interstellar medium (LISM). Interstellar Probe will go through the boundary of the heliosphere to the LISM enabling for the first time to explore the boundary with a dedicated instrumentation, to take the image of the global heliosphere by looking back and explore in-situ the unknown LISM. The pragmatic concept study of such mission with a lifetime 50 years that can be implemented by 2030 was funded by NASA and has been led by the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (APL). The study brought together a diverse community of more than 400 scientists and engineers spanning a wide range of science disciplines across the world.</p><p>Compelling science questions for the Interstellar Probe mission have been with us for many decades. Recent discoveries from a number of space missions exploring the heliosphere raised new questions strengthening the science case. The very shape of the heliosphere, a manifestation of complex global interactions between the solar wind and the LISM, remains the biggest mystery. Interpretations of imaging the heliosphere in energetic neutral atoms (ENAs) in different energy ranges on IBEX and Cassini/INCA from inside show contradictory pictures. Global physics-based models also do not agree on the global shape. Interstellar Probe on outbound trajectory will image the heliosphere from outside for the first time and will provide a unique determination of the global shape.</p><p>The LISM is a completely new area for exploration and discovery. We have a crude understanding of the LISM inferred from in-situ measurements inside the heliosphere of interstellar helium, pick-up-ions, ENAs, remote observations of solar backscattered Lyman-alpha emission and absorption line spectroscopy in the lines of sight of stars. We have no in-situ measurements of most LISM properties, e.g. ionization, plasma and neutral gas, magnetic field, composition, dust, and scales of possible inhomogeneities. Voyagers with limited capabilities have explored 30 AU beyond the heliosphere which appeared to be a region of significant heliospheric influence. The LISM properties are among the key unknowns to understand the Sun`s galactic neighborhood and how it shapes our heliosphere. Interstellar Probe will be the first NASA mission to discover the very nature of the LISM and shed light on whether the Sun enters a new region in the LISM in the near future.</p><p>In this presentation we give an overview of heliophysics science for the Interstellar Probe mission focusing on the critical science questions of the three objectives for the mission. We will discuss in more details a need for direct measurements in the LISM uniquely enabled by the Interstellar Probe.</p>

Errata [to "To fly to the Sun: Solar probe mission & technology challenges", Jul 07]

2007 ◽  
Vol 22 (11) ◽  
pp. 12-12
Author(s):  
James Randolph ◽  
Alexander Eremenko ◽  
Robert Miyake ◽  
Raymond Dirling
Keyword(s):  
The Sun ◽  
Probe Mission

NASA launches Parker Solar Probe mission to 'touch' the Sun

Physics World ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 31 (9) ◽  
pp. 7-7
Author(s):  
Michael Banks
Keyword(s):  
The Sun ◽  
Probe Mission

Modelling the in situ solar and thermal radiation environment for future entry probe missions to Venus

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Patrick Irwin ◽  
Colin Wilson ◽  
Juan Alday ◽  
Maarten Roos-Serote ◽  
Jo Barstow ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Radiative Transfer ◽  
Thermal Radiation ◽  
Recent Work ◽  
Water Vapour ◽  
Radiation Field ◽  
Radiation Environment ◽  
The Sun ◽  
Probe Mission ◽  
Atmosphere Of Venus

<p>In this presentation we will describe recent work to model upward and downward fluxes of solar and thermal radiation in the atmosphere of Venus using the NEMESIS radiative transfer and retrieval tool (Irwin et al., JQSRT, 109, 1136, 2008). Using a plane-parallel matrix operator multiple-scattering model we simulate the internal 3D radiation field within Venus’ atmosphere and compare our simulations with the observations of the Pioneer Venus and Venera 13 and 14 entry probes. Such simulations allow us to assess the availability of sunlight and the visibility of the sun azimuth direction in the cloud layer for potential balloon missions, and also enables us to predict at what altitude the surface will become visible for probes descending on dayside. A reanalysis of the Venera 13 and 14 radiance spectra observations will be used to reassess earlier estimates of cloud structure and water vapour abundance. Such modelling also allows us to simulate the visible appearance of Venus’ atmosphere during the descent of a probe mission as will be shown.</p>

Chromospheric activity as a function of age in main-sequence stars

1966 ◽  
Vol 24 ◽  
pp. 40-43
Author(s):  
O. C. Wilson ◽  
A. Skumanich
Keyword(s):  
Main Sequence ◽  
The Sun ◽  
Main Sequence Stars ◽  
Tentative Conclusion ◽  
Chromospheric Activity ◽  
General Field ◽  
Large Clusters

Evidence previously presented by one of the authors (1) suggests strongly that chromospheric activity decreases with age in main sequence stars. This tentative conclusion rests principally upon a comparison of the members of large clusters (Hyades, Praesepe, Pleiades) with non-cluster objects in the general field, including the Sun. It is at least conceivable, however, that cluster and non-cluster stars might differ in some fundamental fashion which could influence the degree of chromospheric activity, and that the observed differences in chromospheric activity would then be attributable to the circumstances of stellar origin rather than to age.

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