Multipoint Thermal Ion Measurements for the KiNET-X Mission
Abstract
Observations of the thermal properties of ionospheric ions can provide a more complete understanding of the underlying physics. Petite-Ion Probes (PIPs) are small retarding potential analyzers (RPAs) whose data consist of a series of measured anode current vs applied screen voltage (IV) curves over time. Scalar thermal ion properties of the measured plasma can be determined by forward modeling IV curves for a PIP on a (sub-)payload charged to a potential (Vs) in a drifting Maxwellian plasma, with ion temperature (Ti) and density (ni), to these measured PIP IV curves. The Kinetic-scale energy & momentum transport experiment (KiNET-X) investigated kinetic-scale ionospheric plasma transport for a known input energy & momentum by measuring ionospheric perturbations near sounding rocket Barium releases. In addition to requiring temperature measurements of ambient and injected ions, KiNET-X's science goals required that the gradient scale length and structure of disturbance/ion structures be quantified. The diagnostic payload, launched May 2021 from Wallops, carried four pairs of main-payload-mounted Petite-Ion Probes (PIPs) onboard and two small, deployable sub-payload instrument packages (PIP-Bobs), which each had one PIP looking in the ram direction and one PIP looking out to the side. The two PIP-Bobs were each ejected forward of the main diagnostic payload at different times during the ascent, forming a line of measurements perpendicular to the separation line to the Barium release events. The three instruments encompassed a km-scale separation line during the times of the Barium release disturbance events. Thus, thermal ion plasma measurements were collected at three different points in the two plasma plumes.
- Publication:
-
AGU Fall Meeting Abstracts
- Pub Date:
- December 2022
- Bibcode:
- 2022AGUFMSA25B1922M