Solar Wind Electron (SWE)

SWE


SWE Instrument

 

The The Solar Wind Electron (SWE) instrument collects and counts electrons from the solar wind in a range of energies from 0.2-2000 electron volts (eVs). instrument collects and counts electrons from 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.. SWE collects electrons that have energies of 1-5000 A negatively charged elementary particle that normally resides outside (but is bound to) the nucleus of an atom. volts. The lower energy “thermal” solar electrons, which have energies below 100 electron volts, travel along with the solar wind, taking around 4 days to go from the Sun to the Earth. The higher energy “suprathermal” electrons can travel that distance in only hours. For comparison, other particles collected with other IMAP instruments move much faster than this, and light from the Sun reaches Earth in only 8.3 minutes. SWE collects these electrons in a series of energy steps within this range as it spins along with IMAP roughly every 15 seconds.

How It Works

The Solar Wind Electron (SWE) instrument collects and counts electrons from the solar wind in a range of energies from 0.2-2000 electron volts (eVs). has a fan-shaped field-of-view from which 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. electrons enter SWE as the opening spins parallel with the outside of IMAP. The electrons need to be angled just right to move through the 10mm opening, or aperture, into the instrument. The entering electrons are guided around a spherical space created by electrically charged plates towards one of seven channel A negatively charged elementary particle that normally resides outside (but is bound to) the nucleus of an atom. multipliers (CEM). Only electrons of certain energies can make it through the whole path to the CEMs at any given A measure of the flow of events.. Because electrons are so tiny, it is very difficult to count them individually. Channel electron multipliers allow the solar wind electrons to bounce along inside their funnel tubes turning one initial electron into as many as 100,000,000 lower energy electrons. This creates a pulse which is much easier to detect. SWE changes the charge on the curved charged plates multiple times a spin so that over the course of four spins, it counts and collects electrons in 24 energy steps (all within 1-5000 electron volts) and knows which spot in the sky they came from. SWE collects thousands of electrons per second, the majority of which are in the lower energy range with fewer at the top of the energy range. Some of this information is sent  through the IMAP Active Link for Real Time (iALiRT) 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, while the full set of SWE data are stored on board IMAP and transmitted back to Earth 2-3 times a week.

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Explore the SWE Model

How We Use SWE Data

By graphing the data collected using The Solar Wind Electron (SWE) instrument collects and counts electrons from the solar wind in a range of energies from 0.2-2000 electron volts (eVs)., scientists like Dr. Ruth Skoug, SWE Instrument Lead, can determine the full 3D The number of specified items or components found in a defined space. of 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. electrons which contributes to our understanding of how they are generated by the Sun, and how they move out from the Sun. Some of these particles might travel all the way through our solar system to the The outermost boundary of the heliopause formed where the Sun's solar wind and the interstellar medium, and their associated magnetic fields, meet. boundary. These particles also may influence other particles, such as ENA’s, that enter the solar system or travel back from the boundary. Understanding the electrons’ behavior helps to understand the measurement of those particles better and more fully.

 

Meet the Team

The SWE team, led by Ruth Skoug at Los Alamos National Laboratory, includes team members from Los Alamos and from Southwest Research Institute (SwRI). A team of >20 engineers at SwRI are responsible for the design, fabrication, and test of the electronics box, while a team of 5 scientists and >20 engineers at LANL designed the sensor head and are responsible for integration and test of the full SWE instrument. The expertise and skills of different team members complement each other with everyone’s inputs coming together for a successful instrument.

I love working on SWE because everyone on the team is not only an expert in their area, but they are also excited to share ideas and learn new things. I always feel comfortable asking for clarification when I don't understand something or have a concern because I know my questions will be taken seriously, and I've learned so much about space hardware design and test during this project. It's great to work with a team that stays positive and focused even when technical challenges pop up, sometimes without an obvious path forward, and long hours in the lab go by faster because it's obvious that everyone cares about the success of the instrument. 

- Hannah Mohr, LANL Electrical Engineer/SWE Electrical lead, SWE

 

The SWE team posing in front of the Southwest Research Institute.

The The Solar Wind A negatively charged elementary particle that normally resides outside (but is bound to) the nucleus of an atom. (SWE) instrument collects and counts electrons from the solar wind in a range of energies from 0.2-2000 electron volts (eVs). team gathered at the Southwest Research Institute in 2024. 

Image Credit: NASA/SwRI