MISSIONS

MISSIONS

(This table is not intended to be all inclusive. However, if you have a mission that you feel belongs here or if some of the information here about one of your missions is incomplete or inaccurate, please email Dr. Ronald P. Lepping to have the entry updated. Thank you.)

* Spin or Attitude Stabilized (Generally, space physics spacecraft fall into two categories: spinning and three-axis stabilized. A spinning spacecraft is like a spinning top, it rotates along a single axis. A three-axis stabilized spacecraft is almost stationary when one moves along with the spacecraft. The type of spacecraft offers a clue to the main science objectives: three-axis stabilized spacecraft such as SOHO and Voyager tend to emphasize imaging, while spinning spacecraft such as WIND tend to emphasize field and particle observations.)

** PI, Co-PI, Proj. Sci., or Hardware Development

N/A = Not applicable NYA = Not yet available

NAME of MISSION	LAUNCH DATE	ORBIT PARAMETERS	S/A*	ORBIT PERIOD	BRANCH CODE**	MISSION GOALS
IMP 8 (or Explorer 50)	Oct. 26, 1973	Elliptical orbit of R=35± 5 R_Emoderately inclined to the ecliptic plane	S	12.2 days	692/696	Study of the solar wind, and boundaries and magnetotail of the Earth's magnetosphere
Helios 1	Dec. 10, 1974	Interplanetary probe			692/696	Observe the Sun and its solar wind; returned useful data about the Sun's magnetic field, the solar wind, the relative strength of cosmic rays, and measurements of meteoroid loss from the solar system.
Helios 2	Jan. 15, 1976	Interplanetary probe			692/696	Observe the Sun and its solar wind; returned useful data about the Sun's magnetic field, the solar wind, the relative strength of cosmic rays, and measurements of meteoroid loss from the solar system.
Voyager I & II	Vgr 2 Aug. 20, 1977 Vgr 1 Sep. 5, 1977	N/A	A	N/A	692/695/696	Extend the NASA exploration of the solar system beyond the neighborhood of the outer planets to the outer limits of the Sun's sphere of influence, and possibly beyond.
AMPTE/ CCE	Aug. 16, 1984	Perigee/Apogee 1121/49671 km Inclination 4.8°	S	939.5 min	695	Study the sources, transport, and acceleration of energetic magnetospheric ions, the interaction between clouds of cool, dense, artificially-injected plasma, and the hot, magnetized, rapidly-flowing natural plasmas of the magnetosphere and solar wind.
ULYSSES	Oct. 1990	Solar polar, 80° inclined to the ecliptic	S	6.2 years	695	Study the heliospheric magnetic field, heliospheric radio and plasma waves, the solar wind plasma including its minor heavy ion constituents, solar and interplanetary energetic particles, galactic cosmic rays and the anomalous cosmic ray component. Other investigations are directed towards studies of cosmic dust and interstellar neutral gas, as well as solar x-rays and cosmic gamma-ray bursts.
SAMPEX
Geotail	Jul. 24, 1992	8 R_E to 210 R_E	S		695/696	Study the structure and dynamics of the tail region of the magnetosphere.
WIND	Nov. 1, 1994	Sunward, multiple double-lunar swingby orbit with a maximum apogee of 250 R_E during the first two years of operation, followed by a variety of other orbits, including a high latitude orbit from an out-of-the-ecliptic Lunar swingby.	S	Petal orbit	692/695/696	Provide complete plasma, energetic particle, and magnetic field input for magnetospheric and ionospheric studies. Determine the magnetospheric output to interplanetary space in the up-stream region. Investigate basic plasma processes occurring in the near-Earth solar wind. Provide baseline ecliptic plane observations to be used in heliospheric latitudes from ULYSSES.
NEAR	Feb. 17, 1996		A	2 yr Delta VEGA	691/695	Explore asteroid Eros starting Jan. 10, 1999.
POLAR	Feb. 24, 1996	2 X 9 R_E polar orbit	S	18 hours	692/695/696	Measure complete plasma, energetic particle and fields in the high-latitude polar regions, and energy input through the dayside cusp. Determine characteristics of the auroral plasma acceleration outflow. Provide global, multispectral, auroral images of the footprint of magnetospheric energy disposition into the ionosphere and upper atmosphere. Help determine the role of the ionosphere in substorm phenomena.
FAST	Aug. 21, 1996	Polar, 400 by 4000 km	S		696	To study the detailed plasma physics of the Earth's auroral regions.
MGS	Nov. 1996	Low-alt., near- polar, Sun-synchronous	A	1 year	695/696	Study of Mars' surface, atmosphere, and gravitational and magnetic fields.
ACE	Aug. 25, 1997	Halo orbit	S		692/695	To determine and compare the isotopic and elemental composition of several distinct samples of matter, including the solar corona, the interplanetary medium, the local interstellar medium, and Galactic matter.
Cassini	Oct. 15, 1997	Elliptical			692/695	Determine the three-dimensional structure and dynamical behavior of the rings of Saturn; determine the composition of the satellite surfaces and the geological history of each object; determine the nature and origin of the dark material on Iapetus' leading hemisphere; measure the three-dimensional structure and dynamical behavior of the magnetosphere; study the dynamical behavior of Saturn's atmosphere at cloud level; study the time variability of Titan's clouds and hazes; and, characterize Titan's surface on a regional scale.
EQUATOR-S	Nov. 25, 1997		S		696	Study the dayside magnetopause, study the nightside particle acceleration and energization regions, study particle sources and loss mechanisms, and investigate the Earth's radiation belt.
Planet-B (Nozomi)	Jul. 4, 1998					The two year mission objective is to study the structure and dynamics of the atmosphere and ionosphere of Mars, including any interactions with the solar wind.
SWAS	Dec. 5, 1998	600 km circular orbit with a 70° inclination.			693	Investigate the composition of dense interstellar clouds.
NMP/EO-1	Dec. 1999	705 km circular, sun-synchronous orbit at a 98.7 degree inclination.			693	Validate revolutionary technologies contributing to the reduction in cost and increased capabilities for future land imaging missions. Improved imagery and hyperspectral sensing
IMAGE	Mar. 25, 2000	1000 km X 7 R_E altitude polar orbit		2 years	692/696	Study the global response of the Earth's magnetosphere to changes in the solar wind.
RHESSI	Feb. 5, 2002	Circular; Altitude: 600 km (373 miles); Inclination to the equator: 38 degrees	S	2 years	682	Explore the basic physics of particle acceleration and explosive energy release in solar flares. Solar: Determine the frequency, location, and evolution of impulsive energy release in the corona, study the acceleration of electrons, protons, and heavier ions in flares, the heating of plasma to tens of millions of degrees and determine its relationship to particle acceleration, the propagation and evolution of energetic particles in flares and determine the relative abundances of accelerated and ambient ions in flares. Non-Solar: Obtain images and spectra of the Crab Nebula with 2 arcsecond spatial resolution and ~1 keV spectral resolution, detect and obtain high resolution spectra of gamma-ray bursts and cosmic and terrestrial transient sources over a large fraction of the sky, search for cyclotron line features in gamma-ray bursts and cosmic transient sources, obtain high resolution spectra and search for line features in steady X-ray and gamma-ray sources
CLUSTER II	mid-2000	Solar-aspect angle of approximately 90 degrees	S		692/695/696	Study the interaction between the solar wind and the Earth's magnetosphere in unprecedented detail, allowing for the first time truly three-dimensional measurements of both large- and small-scale phenomena in the near-Earth environment.
TRIANA	Dec. 2000	3 axis stabilized			692/695/696	Make rapid measurements of fields and plasmas in the solar wind, correlate solar wind measurements with occurrences near Earth in the magnetosphere, and correlate solar wind measurements with results of optical observations of Earth made from Triana.
Mars Surveyor 2001	Mar. 7, 2001	circular mapping orbit			691	The Orbiter will carry 2 main science instruments, the Thermal Emission Imaging System (THEMIS) and the Gamma Ray Spectrometer (GRS). THEMIS will map the mineralogy and morphology of the Martian surface using a high resolution camera and a thermal infrared imaging spectrometer. The GRS will achieve global mapping of the elemental composition of the surface and the abundance of hydrogen in the shallow subsurface.
VESPER	Jun. 2002	6 month Type I trajectory injected to a highly elliptical orbit. Final 500 X 4000 km polar orbit	3-axis	4 year mission	693	Explore similarities between the Venus and Earth middle atmospheres and test new chemical models arising from this investigation, investigate coupled chemistry and dynamics and characterize the global circulation of the middle atmosphere of Venus.
Messenger	Aug-Sep, 2002	NA			690	Perform a focused scientific investigation of the planet Mercury.
Sounding Rockets	Various	Sub-orbital trajectories with typical apogees ranging between 100 and 1500 km.	N/A	N/A	692/695/696	Supporting peer-reviewed science investigations in the fields of astrophysics, space physics, solar physics, planetary atmospheres, and comets, Mission to Planet Earth, and microgravity research.
Global Electrodynamics	Multiple	Cluster of satellites	S	NA	690	Resolve the mechanisms responsible for electrical interactions within the ionosphere/atmosphere system and its interconnection with the magnetosphere; determine the important spatial and temporal scales for electromagnetic energy transfer and energy dissipation processes in the ionosphere/atmosphere system.
Magnetospheric Constellation	Multiple	Multiple autonomous satellites	S	NA	690	Resolve spatio-temporal ambiguities, visualize the invisible dynamic magnetosphere, investigate substorm onset and recovery, understand filamentation of auroral currents, map magnetospheric flows, trace current systems and mapping, magnetopause energy and flux transfer
Magnetospheric Multiscale	Multiple	1 km to several R_E 4 orbit phases, orbit adjust	S	2 1/2- to 3-year duration	690	Determine the small-scale basic plasma processes which transport, accelerate and energize plasmas in thin boundary and current layers -- and which control the structure and dynamics of the Earth's magnetosphere. Measure the 3D structure and dynamics of the key magnetospheric boundary regions, from the subsolar magnetopause to the distant tail. Pave the way for future Constellation-type missions.
CLARK		3 axis stabilized 475 km, circular, polar, sun synchronous i=97.3 deg			691	High Energy Photon Research
IMEX	June 2001				692/695	The Inner Magnetosphere Explorer (IMEX) is designed to investigate the physical processes which rapidly accelerate charged particles in the inner magnetosphere to very high energies during major geomagnetic storms.
WIRE		540 km, 97° inclination	A		693	Detect primarily galaxies with unusually high rates of star formation or "starburst" galaxies which emit most of their energy in the far-infrared.
Champollion	NYA	NYA	NA	NYA	691/693	Mission to a comet.
Solar-B	NYA	NYA	NA	NYA	690	Determine the solar origins of space weather and global change, a comprehensive study of stellar magnetic fields, new view into the magnetic dynamics of the plasma universe, international collaboration building on the highly successful Yohkoh experience, and highly leveraged participation, all US contributions for high-tech science instruments.
STEREO	NYA	Heliocentric orbit 20-30 degrees from Sun-Earth line	NA	NYA	690	Provide revolutionary views of the Sun-Earth system, trace the flow of energy and matter from the Sun to the Earth, reveal the true 3D structure of coronal mass ejections and determine why they happen, provide unique alerts for Earth-directed solar ejections.
TIMED	May 15, 2000	625 km circular (+/- 25 km)	A	2 years	690	First exploration of the basic structure and energy budget of the Mesosphere, Lower Thermosphere, and Ionosphere. Understanding the influences of the Sun and outer space on the Earth's upper atmosphere and use of this knowledge to develop an ability to predict space weather. Baseline for future studies of natural and human induced changes to the Earth's atmosphere. Development within schedule and cost targets. Strong Outreach Program.
SuperDarn					696	Super Dual Auroral Radar Network

Missions outside of Code 600

Interball Tail	Aug. 3, 1995				Russian	Study plasma processes in magnetosphere.
Interball Aurora	Aug.29, 1996				Russian	Study plasma processes in magnetosphere.
SOHO	Dec. 2, 1995	Halo orbit around the L1 Lagrangian point	A		680	Study the internal structure of the Sun, its extensive outer atmosphere and the origin of the solar wind.
CRRES	Jul. 25, 1990	350 x 33,584 km with an inclination of 18.1 deg				To study the effects of the natural radiation environment on microelectronic components and on high-efficiency gallium arsenide solar cells and to map this environment, to conduct low-altitude satellite studies of ionospheric irregularities (LASSII), and to conduct a series of chemical release experiments in the ionosphere and Magnetosphere.
TRACE	Apr. 2, 1998	600 x 650 km Sun synchronous	A		680	Follow the evolution of magnetic field structures from the solar interior to the corona, investigate the mechanisms of the heating of the outer solar atmosphere and investigate the triggers and onset of solar flares and mass ejection
Genesis	August, 2001	L1 Lagrangian point (0.01 AU from Earth)	S		JPL (P.I. is Prof. Donald Burnett of Caltech)	Obtain precise solar isotopic abundances. Obtain greatly improved solar elemental abundances by factor of 3-10 in accuracy. Provide a reservoir of solar matter for 21st century science. Return solar matter for compositional analysis in terrestrial laboratories.

Last updated January 7,2003