| 1. |
- Blomberg, Lars G., et al.
(författare)
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MEFISTO - An electric field instrument for BepiColombo/MMO
- 2006
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Ingår i: Advances in Space Research. - : Elsevier BV. - 0273-1177 .- 1879-1948. ; 38:4, s. 672-679
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- MEFISTO, together with the companion instrument WPT, are planning the first-ever in situ measurements of the electric field in the magnetosphere of planet Mercury. The instruments have been selected by JAXA for inclusion in the BepiColombo/MMO payload, as part of the Plasma Wave Investigation coordinated by Kyoto University. The magnetosphere of Mercury was discovered by Mariner 10 in 1974 and will be studied further by Messenger starting in 2011. However, neither spacecraft did or will measure the electric field. Electric fields are crucial in the dynamics of a magnetosphere and for the energy and plasma transport between different regions within the magnetosphere as well as between the magnetosphere and the surrounding regions. The MEFISTO instrument will be capable of measuring electric fields from DC to 3 MHz, and will thus also allow diagnostics of waves at all frequencies of relevance to the Hermean magnetosphere. MEFISTO is a double-probe electric field instrument. The double-probe technique has strong heritage and is well proven on missions such as Viking, Polar, and Cluster. For BepiColombo, a newly developed deployment mechanism is planned which reduces the mass by a factor of about 5 compared to conventional mechanisms for 15 in long booms. We describe the basic characteristics of the instrument and briefly discuss the new developments made to tailor the instrument to flight in Mercury orbit.
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| 2. |
- Matsumoto, H., et al.
(författare)
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Plasma/radio wave observations at mercury by the bepicolombo mmo spacecraft
- 2006
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Ingår i: Advances in Geosciences. - : World Scientific Publishing Co.. - 9789812707192 - 9789812569837 ; , s. 83-84
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Bokkapitel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The BepiColombo Mercury Magnetospheric Orbiter (MMO) spacecraft comprises the plasma and radio wave observation system called PlasmaWave Investigation (PWI). The PWI is designed and developed in collaboration between Japanese and European scientists. Since plasma/radio wave receivers were not installed in the former spacecraft, Mariner 10, which observed the planet Mercury, the PWI onboard the MMO spacecraft will provide the first plasma/radio wave data from Mercury orbit. It will give important information for studies of energy exchange processes in the unique magnetosphere of Mercury characterized by the interaction between the relatively large planet without ionosphere and the solar wind with high dynamic pressure. The PWI consists of three sets of receivers (EWO, SORBET, and AM2P), connected to two sets of electric field sensors (MEFISTO and WPT) and two kinds of magnetic field sensors (LF-SC and DB-SC). The PWI will observe both waveforms and frequency spectra in the frequency range from DC to 10MHz for the electric field.
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