NASA’s Interstellar Mapping and Acceleration Probe, or IMAP, will help us better understand the nature of The area of space found surrounding and between planets of a star system., which is dominated by a constant flow of particles from the Sun called the A stream of charged particles, mostly protons and electrons, that escapes into the Sun's outer atmosphere at high speeds and streams out into the solar system in all directions.. On Sept. 22, 2021, the UK Space Agency signed an agreement with NASA to support the construction and flight of a A device used to measure the intensity and direction of the local magnetic field. for IMAP.
Image Credit: NASA
NASA and the UK Space Agency have agreed to cooperate on NASA’s The study of the Sun and its connection to the solar system, including the physical processes that occur in the space environment. mission, the Interstellar Mapping and Acceleration Probe (IMAP). The agreement, signed Sept. 22, 2021, will allow Imperial College London to design and build one of IMAP’s 10 instruments – a A device used to measure the intensity and direction of the local magnetic field. called The Magnetometer (MAG) instrument measures the strength and direction of the magnetic field in interplanetary space as the field is carried past the IMAP spacecraft by the solar wind. It consists of two fluxgate magnetometers installed on a boom arm that will deploy post-launch, extending the instruments away from the spacecraft to minimize magnetic interference of spacecraft and instrument electrical systems. – as well as provide ground support and personnel necessary to support the instrument and the IMAP science team.
Scheduled to launch in 2025, IMAP will observe and map the Sun’s The bubble-like region surrounding the solar system inflated by the solar wind, shielding the solar system from interstellar radiation. – the volume of space filled with particles streaming out from the Sun, known as the A stream of charged particles, mostly protons and electrons, that escapes into the Sun's outer atmosphere at high speeds and streams out into the solar system in all directions. – and study how it interacts with the local The area of galaxy surrounding a solar system which contains nearby stars and the local interstellar medium (ISM). beyond. The boundary zone at the edge of the heliosphere offers protection from the harsher Usually refers to electromagnetic waves, such as light, radio, infrared, X-rays, ultraviolet; also sometimes used to refer to atomic particles of high energy, such as electrons (beta-radiation), helium nuclei (alpha-radiation), and so on. of interstellar space; it may have played a role in creating a habitable solar system and is critical in NASA’s plans for safe human exploration of the Moon and Mars.
MAG will contribute to our understanding of the acceleration and transportation of charged particles in the heliosphere. It will do this by measuring the interplanetary Magnetism is one of the basic forces of the universe. A magnetic field is a region of magnetism, which is caused by either moving electric charges or magnetic materials. around the spacecraft. From these measurements, MAG will identify interplanetary shocks and measure the waves and turbulences that scatter particles.
MAG will also provide measurements for the IMAP Active Link for Real-Time (I-ALiRT) The conditions and activity observed in interplanetary space caused by the Sun’s activity, such as solar flares, solar storms, and coronal mass ejections (CMEs). Severe space weather conditions directed towards Earth can impact infrastructure and technology on Earth, as well as satellites, spacecraft, and astronauts in its trajectory. monitoring service. With The IMAP Active Link for Reat-Time (I-ALiRT) system provides a high-cadence stream of near-real time space weather data from the HIT, CoDICE, SWAPI, SWE, and MAG instruments to scientists on Earth via a network of antenna partners located around the globe, including the DSN. This enhanced data stream will assist in improving overall reliability and timing of Earthbound space weather predictions, providing data to forecasters in time for users to take protective action., IMAP will enable new ways of forecasting space weather by streaming real-A measure of the flow of events. observations of conditions headed towards Earth to operators on the ground.
MAG is a dual sensor A fluxgate magnetometer is an instrument used to measure the strength and direction of magnetic fields by detecting the voltage induced in a coil of wire when it experiences changes in magnetic flux. and includes electronics, a power supply system, and an on-board computer. The two sensors are located on a boom to reduce the effects of Any spacecraft generates a magnetic field, and that magnetic field changes with time. This field combines with (interferes with) the interplanetary magnetic field that a magnetometer is trying to observe. Luckily the spacecraft magnetic field gets smaller as you get farther from the main spacecraft. Putting a magnetometer out on a boom reduces the interference and so the magnetometer can get a more accurate measurement of the interplanetary magnetic field. from the spacecraft.
“The UK and the United States are working together on some of the most exciting space missions of our time, from the Mars Perseverance rover to the James Webb Space Telescope,” said Dr Paul Bate, Chief Executive of the UK Space Agency. “There is still so much we don’t know about the Sun and the behavior of phenomena like the solar wind. This new partnership will help NASA answer some of these questions, using the expertise of scientists at Imperial College London. It is an excellent example of the importance of international collaboration in the study and exploration of our solar system.”
“IMAP will be doing some really exciting science that neatly fits with expertise we have at Imperial, both for understanding how particles get accelerated to the highest energies, and how our Sun interacts with our neighbourhood in the A huge collection of millions to trillions of stars and their planetary systems held together by gravity, and the gas, plasma, and dust that are also gravitationally held to the galaxy. The galaxy our solar system is found in is called the Milky Way.,” said Science Lead for MAG, Professor Tim Horbury from the Department of Physics at Imperial College London.
“The rest of the IMAP team and I are so pleased to have this partnership with the UK Space Agency and Imperial College London” said Professor David McComas, the IMAP principal investigator. “International collaboration such as this makes our mission even stronger.”
Learn more on the NASA IMAP Blog.
David McComas of Princeton University leads the IMAP mission and an international team of 24 partner institutions. The Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory in Laurel, Maryland, will build the IMAP spacecraft and operate the mission for NASA. IMAP is the fifth mission in NASA’s Solar Terrestrial Probes (STP) Program portfolio and newest addition to NASA’s fleet of heliophysics spacecraft. The Heliophysics Program Office at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, manages the STP Program for the Heliophysics Division of NASA’s Science Mission Directorate.