SMARTAbout NASA’s Magnetospheric Multiscale Mission (MMS)
MAGNETIC RECONNECTION is a little-understood physical process at the heart of space weather. It can spark solar flares, cause coronal mass ejections and other phenomena that can imperil Earth-orbiting spacecraft and disrupt power grids on Earth.
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Much of what we know about the physics of Magnetic Reconnection comes from theoretical studies and computer models.
MMS will study this process in situ, measuring magnetic fields crossing, reconnecting, and releasing magnetic energy in the form of heat and charged-particle kinetic energy.
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The MMS-FIELDS instruments will measure the electric and magnetic fields with unprecedented high (millisecond) time resolution and accuracy.
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Development of the MMS-FIELDS instrument suite is centered in Durham at the
University of New Hampshire’s Space Science Center
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Illustration: One of four MMS spacecraft with the FIELDS instruments identified
SMART SDP
Spin-Plane Double Probe
Electric Field Measurements
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One of four SDP deployers that will be on each of the four MMS spacecraft
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The Spin-plane Double Probe (SDP) consists of four 60-meter wire booms with spherical sensors at the end.
Specially coated Titanium hemispheres form each SDPs E-Field probe.
These are provided to UNH by our colleagues in Sweden (KTH and IRFU) and Finland (University of Oulu)
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SMARTSDP Preamplifier
The SDP doors and preamplifiers are
provided to UNH by our colleagues at the
University of Colorado (LASP)
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The electronics to operate the SDP and process its E-field measurement are provided to UNH by
our colleagues in Sweden (KTH)
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The mechanical design, fabrication, assembly and test of the SDP deployers is the responsibility of engineers at UNH
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SMART ADPAxial Double
Probe
Electric Field Measurement
The ADP consists of two 12-meter antennas deployed axially near the spacecraft spin axis.
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The Axial Double Probe (ADP) consists of two 12-meter antennas deployed axially near the spacecraft spin axis.
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The design, fabrication, assembly and test of the ADP is the responsibility of our colleagues at the
University of Colorado (LASP)
The photo shows one of two 12-meter
extensible booms on
each spacecraft
deployed from its stowed
configuration in a small canister
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ADP deployment test
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ADP Launch Latches
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ADP Preamplifiers
SMARTADP Receiving Elements
These 2-meter antennas launch
in this folded configuration.
Each will deploy on-orbit atop a 12-meter extensible
boom.
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Thermal Vacuum test preparation for
ADP Receiving Elements
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Vibration test preparation for a pair of ADP Receiving Elements
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SMARTADP Receiving Element Hinges
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The electronics to process the ADP E-field measurement are provided by our colleagues in
Sweden (KTH) and calibrated with the booms by our colleagues at the University of Colorado (LASP)
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ADP Receiving Element testing in the clean room at the University of Colorado
SMART EDIElectron Drift
Instrument
Electric and Magnetic Field Measurements
SMARTEDI Measurement Principle
The EDI determines the electric and magnetic fields by measuring the drift of ~1
keV electrons emitted from a pair of Gun Detector Units (GDU). Each GDU sends
and receives a coded beam to and from the other EDI-
GDU. The University of New Hampshire, in collaboration with the Space Research Institute of the Austrian
Academy of Sciences (IWF) and the University of Iowa, provides the The EDI GDU
and electronics.
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Setup for testing of the EDI Gun
Detector Unit (GDU) in the UNH vacuum
chamber
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Electron Gun Electronics (IWF, Austria)
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Calibration of the EDI Gun and electronics in the vacuum chamber at IWF (Austria)
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EDI GDU Assembly in the Clean Room at UNH
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EDI Sensor Stack (UNH)
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SCMSearch Coil
Magnetometer
AC Magnetic Field Measurement
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measure the 3-axis AC magnetic field and will be used with the ADP and SDP to determine the contribution of plasma waves to the turbulent dissipation occurring in the diffusion region.
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SCM Development is at LPP, the Laboratory for Plasma Physics (France)
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This magnetically-quiet facility was built by LPP at Chambon la Forêt (France) for calibration of the Search Coil Magnetometers. The only metal in this building are the copper coils on these rings for controlling the magnetic field environment of the sensor in calibration at the center.
SMART AFG& DFGAnalog & Digital
Fluxgate Magnetometers
DC Magnetic Field Measurement
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UCLA and the Space Research Institute of the Austrian Academy of Sciences (IWF) provide the AFG and DFG
sensors and electronics with calibration support from the Technical University of Braunschweig (TU-BS, Germany).
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Two magnetometers provide redundant measurements of the DC magnetic field and
structure in the diffusion region.
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Magnetometer sensors (AFG, DFG, SCM) for one MMS spacecraft in a test setup at UNH
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The 3-layer magnetic shield can is needed to isolate the magnetometers from the Earth’s magnetic field for testing in the laboratory
SMART CEBCentral
Electronics Box
The CEB provides power, control and data processing for the suite of FIELDS sensors. The Royal Institute of Technology (KTH, Sweden) provides the power supply. The University of New Hampshire provides the CEB and the software with contributions from the sensor team institutions: KTH, LASP, UCLA and IWF.
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CEB Thermal Vacuum test at UNH
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Low Voltage Power Supply. 1of 8 custom-made electronics boards in each CEB
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The first flight model CEB on the vibration table
SMARTTitleFIELDS suite testing at UNH
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UNH MMS-FIELDS Team
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Flight instrumentation integration and test is underway NOW at UNH
The first of four FIELDS instrument suites will be delivered from UNH to NASA in May 2012.
MMS-FIELDS is the largest research contract ever awarded to UNH.
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