A Miniature Solar Wind Sensor for future low-cost, constellation, and deep-space missions (MSWIS)

Providing solar wind parameters is critical to understanding the physical processes related to space weather and their impacts at Earth and other planets. CubeSats are now capable and flexible platforms that can be configured for a wide range of science mission profiles, either as a standalone platform, as a daughter spacecraft, or in swarms and constellations. We propose to develop and validate an extremely compact, low-power, and high-performance solar wind analyzer, the Miniature Solar WInd Sensor (MSWIS), to measure ion velocity distribution functions (VDFs) and determine bulk solar wind moments with accuracies comparable to state-of-the-art solar-wind sensors with minimal resources (<1 U, 0.8 kg, 1.7 W). Southwest Research Institute has already invested in the development of a proof-of-concept model of MSWIS, and the sensor concept has been demonstrated. The MSWIS design gives an energy per charge range of 100 eV/q to 8 keV/q with 7% resolution. The sensor total field of view covers 44° x 44° with 132, 4° x 4° sensor segments. Each segment points to different arrival directions, and MSWIS can instantaneously image the 2D (elevation x azimuth) distributions. Energy scan by sweeping a single internal electrode completes the 3D VDFs. MSWIS targets three science questions. SQ1: What are the solar wind parameters within multiple layers of interplanetary structures? SQ2: How are the non-thermal properties embedded in the solar wind structures? SQ3: How do upstream solar wind conditions control magnetosphere/ ionosphere activities? Solar wind observations are critical to a wide range of Heliophysics subfields and are relevant to many of the science challenges identified in the Solar and Space Physics Decadal Survey (2013): In solar and heliosphere physics (SHP), solar wind observations are critical to identify the heliosphere multi-layered structures and events (SHP-1) and current solar wind affects the responses of the inner/outer heliosheath (SHP-4). Suprathermal ion populations obtained by VDFs contribute towards understanding the embedded physical processes and turbulences (SHP-3), and interstellar neutral and solar wind interaction can be evaluated by the pickup ions (SHP-4). Further, all solar wind-magnetosphere interactions (SWMI) challenges (SWMI 1-4) require upstream monitors for measuring the energy/mass loading and discontinuous inputs. MSWIS is currently at TRL 4. Through this project, the technology level of MSWIS will be raised from TRL 4 to TRL 6. In the first two objectives, two subsystems of the prototype MSWIS sensor will be completed and built: the ESA subsystem (Objective 1) and the electronics subsystem (Objective 2). Further, in Objective 3, we build, calibrate, evaluate, and validate the performance of the full MSWIS laboratory prototype in a relevant environment. Year 1 efforts include Objective 1 to revise the sensor design, and Objective 2 to design the electronics boards. In Year 2, Objective 1 and 2 will be completed and ground systems will be developed. The board design should be completed before starting the full package sensor. After sensor fabrication and ground system design are completed, all efforts in Year 3 will be calibration, UV background evaluation, and thermal and structural testing. A compact and versatile solar wind sensor like MSWIS is very attractive for many future Heliophysics or Planetary missions, particularly for nanosatellite/multi-satellite platforms. Such instruments are also attractive for space weather, for inputs to modeling the space environment variability all around the Solar System and understanding the interactions of the solar wind and/or the magnetospheric environments in which they are embedded.

Support NASA's Heliophysics strategic science objectives to understand the Sun and its interactions with Earth and the solar system, including space weather. This will be achieved by developing/demonstrating instrumentation technology necessary to address the following science goals: Explore the physical processes in the space environment from the Sun to the Earth and throughout the solar system; Advance our understanding of the connections that link the Sun, the Earth, planetary space environments, and the outer reaches of our solar system; Develop the knowledge and capability to detect and predict extreme conditions in space to protect life and society and to safeguard human and robotic explorers beyond Earth.

This is a mature technology (TRL 7+) — the realistic path in is usually NASA's Technology Transfer Program: licensing an existing NASA patent, or a Space Act Agreement to use NASA facilities/expertise directly. NASA also runs a startup licensing program with no upfront fee for companies formed to commercialize a specific NASA technology.

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