Radiation Belt Storm

Design Begins on Twin Probes that Will Study the Radiation Belts

In 2011, NASA will launch two spacecraft that will orbit the Earth and sample the harsh radiation belt environment. The Radiation Belt Storm Probes Mission will provide scientists with the information they need to make predications about changes in this critical region of space.
Credit: NASA

NASA will launch two identical probes into the radiation belts to provide unprecedented insight into the physical dynamics of near-Earth space, where violent space weather can affect astronauts, satellites and even ground-based technologies. Data collected by the probes will aid in the development of future space missions beyond Earth orbit.

Researchers and engineers at The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) in Laurel, Md., and a number of other institutions have begun detailed design of NASA’s Radiation Belt Storm Probes Mission (RBSP). APL will build and operate the twin probes, which are scheduled for a 2011 launch and a primary mission of two years.

We’re excited to move into the detailed planning, or Phase B of the mission,”said Rick Fitzgerald, RBSP project manager at APL. “The Laboratory has a long-standing history in radiation science, so it’s a natural fit for us to be building these two spacecraft to investigate how the radiation belts are created and change over time.

Credit: NASA

The radiation belts are two donut-shaped regions encircling Earth, where high-energy particles are trapped by the planet’s magnetic field. Most Earth-orbiting spacecraft pass through the belts, and when the energy and density of the particles increases, it becomes more likely that an astronaut or spacecraft will be affected.



Credit: NASA

"The radiation belts were a scientific curiosity when they were discovered 50 years ago by James Van Allen, who was one of the founding members of APL,” said Barry Mauk, project scientist for RBSP. “But the belts are becoming very important because we have people and machines operating in them. That region of space is now part of our technology infrastructure. If we can understand the radiation belt environment and its variability, we can apply this knowledge to improve our spacecraft operation and system design, mission planning and astronaut safety."

The probes will measure the particles, waves, and magnetic and electric fields that fill near-Earth space to improve our understanding of how the Sun’s changing energy flow affects them. These observations will help researchers understand how charged particles are energized at Earth, but also the processes that create particle radiation throughout the universe in stars, interplanetary space and distant nebulae.

When traveling beyond the safety of Low Earth Orbit, astronauts can be exposed to harmful doses of radiation originating from sources like the Sun and galactic cosmic rays.


"We’re now moving from figuring out what we’re going to build to how we’re going to build it,” said APL’s Doug Eng, RBSP’s system engineer. “Our biggest technical challenge is to develop observatories that can survive the severe radiation belt environment for a two-year mission. RBSP operates in a place most spacecraft missions want to avoid."





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