Science Goals and Overview of the Radiation Belt Storm Probes (RBSP) Energetic Particle, Composition, and Thermal Plasma (ECT) Suite on NASA’s Van Allen Probes Mission

• DOI: 10.1007/s11214-013-0007-5
• Publication Date: 2013-10-17T13:28:39Z
• Authors: H. E. Spence; G. D. Reeves; D. N. Baker; J. B. Blake; M. Bolton; S. Bourdarie; A. A. Chan; S. G. Claudepierre; J. H. Clemmons; J. P. Cravens; S. R. Elkington; J. F. Fennell; R. H. W. Friedel; H. O. Funsten; J. Goldstein; J. C. Green; A. Guthrie; M. G. Henderson; R. B. Horne; M. K. Hudson; J.-M. Jahn; V. K. Jordanova; S. G. Kanekal; B. W. Klatt; B. A. Larsen; X. Li; E. A. MacDonald; I. R. Mann; J. Niehof; T. P. O’Brien; T. G. Onsager; D. Salvaggio; R. M. Skoug; S. S. Smith; L. L. Suther; M. F. Thomsen; R. M. Thorne
• Keywords: Van Allen Probes; Space Weather

The Radiation Belt Storm Probes (RBSP)-Energetic Particle, Composition, and Thermal Plasma (ECT) suite contains an innovative complement of particle instruments to ensure the highest quality measurements ever made in inner magnetosphere radiation belts. coordinated RBSP-ECT measurements, analyzed combination with fields waves observations state-of-the-art theory modeling, are necessary for understanding acceleration, global distribution, variability belt electrons ions, key science objectives NASA’s Living With a Star program Van Allen mission. consists three highly-coordinated instruments: Magnetic Electron Ion Spectrometer (MagEIS), Helium Oxygen Proton (HOPE) sensor, Relativistic Telescope (REPT). Collectively they cover, continuously, full electron ion spectra from one eV 10’s MeV sufficient energy resolution, pitch angle coverage composition critical range up 50 keV also few MeV/nucleon. All based on measurement techniques proven use those along new designs, optimized operation most extreme conditions order provide unambiguous separation ions clean responses even presence penetrating background environments. design, fabrication ECT spaceflight instrumentation harsh environment that have fidelity needed closure answering mission questions. instrument details provided companion papers this same issue. In paper, we describe Probe spacecraft within context overall objectives, indicate how characteristics satisfy requirements achieve these information about data collection dissemination, conclude description some early results.