MSSL PRD Case for Support: Solar Wind Plasma Analyser/Electron Analyser System for Solar Orbiter
Lead Research Organisation:
UNIVERSITY COLLEGE LONDON
Department Name: Mullard Space Science Laboratory
Abstract
One of the key measurement goals for the ESA Solar Orbiter mission is to characterise the particle populations found in the solar wind, particularly in the unexplored 'inner heliosphere' region close to the Sun. In doing so, we will be able to obtain clues to both the physical processes that occur between plasmas and magnetic fields in the solar wind, to examine the effect of solar wind structures, such as coronal mass ejections, as they propagate away from the Sun, and also to make the important link between the solar wind and the activity in the Solar atmosphere in order to understand how the solar wind and the structures within it are formed. UCl/MSSL is part of an international consortium which will propose to build the instruments that will measure the charged particle populations in the solar wind. In particular, MSSL will provide the 2 sensors that are required to make a complete measurement of the electron populations within the solar wind. Since the Solar Orbiter mission will go closer to the Sun than any previous mission, there are a number of technical challenges that must be overcome in order to achieve the required measurements and gain the required science return. We have built a prototype sensor which is under test within the MSSL thermal vacuum chambers. Further testing and design work is required to tune the sensors to maximise their effectiveness in the inner heliospheric environment. In addition MSSL is required to collaborate with ESA in order to ensure that the interfaces between our sensors and the spacecraft are well defined and appropriate. The purpose of the tasks proposed here are to carry out these design and trade-off studies in order to maximise the chances of scientific success once the instrument is built and the mission launched.
Organisations
- UNIVERSITY COLLEGE LONDON (Lead Research Organisation)
- National Research Council (Collaboration)
- National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) (Collaboration)
- University of New Hampshire (Collaboration)
- Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) (Collaboration)
- Charles University (Collaboration)
- Research Institute in Astrophysics and Planetology (Collaboration)
- University of Michigan (Collaboration)
- Laboratory of Plasma Physics (LPP) (Collaboration)
Publications
Adhikari L
(2022)
2D and Slab Turbulent Cascade Rates in the Inner Heliosphere
in The Astrophysical Journal
Palmerio E
(2025)
A coronal mass ejection encountered by four spacecraft within 1 au from the Sun: ensemble modelling of propagation and magnetic structure
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Lario D
(2024)
A Rapid Sequence of Solar Energetic Particle Events Associated with a Series of Extreme-ultraviolet Jets: Solar Orbiter, STEREO-A, and Near-Earth Spacecraft Observations
in The Astrophysical Journal
Zhuang B
(2024)
Acceleration and Release of Solar Energetic Particles Associated with a Coronal Shock on 2021 September 28 Observed by Four Spacecraft
in The Astrophysical Journal
Macneil A
(2019)
Active Region Modulation of Coronal Hole Solar Wind
in The Astrophysical Journal
Agudelo Rueda J
(2022)
Agyrotropy patterns in 3D small-scall turbulent reconnection
Wang J
(2025)
Alpha-Proton Relative Drift: Implications for the Origins and Dynamics of the Solar Wind
in The Astrophysical Journal Letters
Walsh A
(2013)
An indication of the existence of a solar wind strahl at 10 AU
in Geophysical Research Letters
Dimmock A
(2022)
Analysis of multiscale structures at the quasi-perpendicular Venus bow shock Results from Solar Orbiter's first Venus flyby
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Hooper PM
(2024)
Arctic cyanobacterial mat community diversity decreases with latitude across the Canadian Arctic.
in FEMS microbiology ecology
Nicolaou G
(2024)
Artificial Polytropic Behavior of Plasmas Determined from the Application of Chi-squared Minimization Analysis to Data with Significant Statistical Uncertainty
in The Astrophysical Journal
Knizhnik K
(2024)
Assessing the Performance of the ADAPT and AFT Flux Transport Models Using In Situ Measurements from Multiple Satellites
in The Astrophysical Journal
Koya S
(2024)
Assessment of the near-Sun magnetic field of the 10 March 2022 coronal mass ejection observed by Solar Orbiter
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Farooki H
(2024)
Axial Flux Evolution of Small-scale Magnetic Flux Ropes from 0.06 to 10 au
in The Astrophysical Journal Letters
Zhuang B
(2024)
Combining STEREO heliospheric imagers and Solar Orbiter to investigate the evolution of the 2022 March 10 CME
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Bruno R
(2024)
Comparative Study of the Kinetic Properties of Proton and Alpha Beams in the Alfvénic Wind Observed by SWA-PAS On Board Solar Orbiter
in The Astrophysical Journal
Ervin T
(2024)
Compositional Metrics of Fast and Slow Alfvénic Solar Wind Emerging from Coronal Holes and Their Boundaries
in The Astrophysical Journal
Hou C
(2024)
Connecting Solar Wind Velocity Spikes Measured by Solar Orbiter and Coronal Brightenings Observed by SDO
in The Astrophysical Journal Letters
Walsh A
(2020)
Coordination of the in situ payload of Solar Orbiter
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Auchère F
(2020)
Coordination within the remote sensing payload on the Solar Orbiter mission
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Chitta L
(2025)
Coronal hole picoflare jets are progenitors of both fast and Alfvénic slow solar wind
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Reddy S
(2022)
CubeSat measurements of thermospheric plasma: spacecraft charging effects on a plasma analyzer
in CEAS Space Journal
Criton B
(2020)
Design and Optimization of a High-Time-Resolution Magnetic Plasma Analyzer (MPA)
in Applied Sciences
Nicolaou G
(2020)
Determining the Bulk Parameters of Plasma Electrons from Pitch-Angle Distribution Measurements.
in Entropy (Basel, Switzerland)
Nicolaou G
(2018)
Determining the Kappa Distributions of Space Plasmas from Observations in a Limited Energy Range
in The Astrophysical Journal
Rivera Y
(2025)
Differentiating the Acceleration Mechanisms in the Slow and Alfvénic Slow Solar Wind
in The Astrophysical Journal
Madar A
(2024)
Directional discontinuities in the inner heliosphere from Parker Solar Probe and Solar Orbiter observations
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Regnault F
(2024)
Discrepancies in the Properties of a Coronal Mass Ejection on Scales of 0.03 au as Revealed by Simultaneous Measurements at Solar Orbiter and Wind: The 2021 November 3-5 Event
in The Astrophysical Journal
Yang L
(2024)
Dynamic acceleration of energetic protons by an interplanetary collisionless shock
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Ĺ tverák Ĺ
(2025)
Effects of cold electron emissions on thermal plasma measurements on board Solar Orbiter spacecraft
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Rojo M
(2024)
Electron moments derived from the Mercury Electron Analyzer during the cruise phase of BepiColombo
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Verscharen D
(2022)
Electron-Driven Instabilities in the Solar Wind
in Frontiers in Astronomy and Space Sciences
Nyberg S
(2024)
Energetic seed particles in self-consistent particle acceleration modeling at interplanetary shock waves
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Nicolaou G
(2020)
Evaluating the Performance of a Plasma Analyzer for a Space Weather Monitor Mission Concept
in Space Weather
Borovsky J
(2021)
Exploring the Properties of the Electron Strahl at 1 AU as an Indicator of the Quality of the Magnetic Connection Between the Earth and the Sun
in Frontiers in Astronomy and Space Sciences
Harra L
(2023)
Firefly: the science case for a full view of the solar sphere
in Bulletin of the AAS
GĂłmez-Herrero R
(2021)
First near-relativistic solar electron events observed by EPD onboard Solar Orbiter
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Fludra A
(2021)
First observations from the SPICE EUV spectrometer on Solar Orbiter
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
RĂ©ville V
(2022)
Flux rope and dynamics of the heliospheric current sheet Study of the Parker Solar Probe and Solar Orbiter conjunction of June 2020
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Davies E
(2024)
Flux Rope Modeling of the 2022 September 5 Coronal Mass Ejection Observed by Parker Solar Probe and Solar Orbiter from 0.07 to 0.69 au
in The Astrophysical Journal
Bisi M
(2010)
From the Sun to the Earth: The 13 May 2005 Coronal Mass Ejection
in Solar Physics
Gruchola S
(2021)
Future Venus missions and flybys: A collection of possible measurements with mass spectrometers and plasma instruments
in Advances in Space Research
Borovsky J
(2022)
Heliospheric Structure Analyzer (HSA): A Simple 1-AU Mission Concept Focusing on Large-Geometric-Factor Measurements
in Frontiers in Astronomy and Space Sciences
Pan L
(2024)
Highly collisional regions determined by interplanetary magnetic field structures
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society: Letters
Krasnoselskikh V
(2023)
ICARUS: in-situ studies of the solar corona beyond Parker Solar Probe and Solar Orbiter
in Experimental Astronomy
Berriot E
(2024)
Identification of a single plasma parcel during a radial alignment of the Parker Solar Probe and Solar Orbiter
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Agudelo Rueda J
(2020)
Identifying and Quantifying the Role of Magnetic Reconnection in Space Plasma Turbulence
| Description | This grant funded the assessment of the design for the UCL/MSSL prototype for the electron sensor for the Solar Orbiter SWA suite of sensors. This work led to the confirmation of the mission and the instruments by ESA. |
| Exploitation Route | This work has fed into the development work for the instrument which will be included in the scientific payload for Solar Orbiter and launched in 2017. Development of certain subsystems (e.g. miniature high-voltage generators) can be used for further space and ground based applications. |
| Sectors | Aerospace Defence and Marine Electronics |
| Description | Findings have been fed into the design and ongoing construction of the SWA electron sensor for Solar Orbiter, following confirmation of the mission in 2011. |
| First Year Of Impact | 2011 |
| Sector | Aerospace, Defence and Marine |
| Description | SWA Consortium |
| Organisation | Charles University |
| Department | Faculty of Mathematics and Physics |
| Country | Czech Republic |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | We (UCL/MSSL) are the Principle Investigator Institution for the Solar Orbiter SWA (Solar Wind Analyser) suite of instruments, with responsibility for leading and managing the whole of the international consortium. As well as scientific and technical leadership of the entire suite, UCL/MSSL is responsible for the specific design and build of the the Electron Analyser System (EAS). |
| Collaborator Contribution | We are directly collaborating with LPP on the provision of an electron analyser system (EAS) for Solar Orbiter. We will contribute an FPGA to the Proton-Alpha Sensor (PAS), the design and build of which is the responsibility of the French IRAP team. the czech group will also contribute to PAS. IRAP will collaborate with the US groups on the design and build of the Heavy ion sensor (HIS). |
| Impact | We are now in the build phase of the project. This collection of grants has supported the study, assessment and definition phases of the project as well as providing support for developing the original proposal and securing the leadership of the consortium. The consortium successfully passed its European Space Agency Preliminary Design Review in Summer 2012. The Critical Design Review will be held in Oct/Nov 2013. The structural and thermal models of the instruments are also nearing completion for delivery in summer 2013. Many hundreds of consortium documents have been generated over this time. |
| Start Year | 2006 |
| Description | SWA Consortium |
| Organisation | Laboratory of Plasma Physics (LPP) |
| Country | Belgium |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | We (UCL/MSSL) are the Principle Investigator Institution for the Solar Orbiter SWA (Solar Wind Analyser) suite of instruments, with responsibility for leading and managing the whole of the international consortium. As well as scientific and technical leadership of the entire suite, UCL/MSSL is responsible for the specific design and build of the the Electron Analyser System (EAS). |
| Collaborator Contribution | We are directly collaborating with LPP on the provision of an electron analyser system (EAS) for Solar Orbiter. We will contribute an FPGA to the Proton-Alpha Sensor (PAS), the design and build of which is the responsibility of the French IRAP team. the czech group will also contribute to PAS. IRAP will collaborate with the US groups on the design and build of the Heavy ion sensor (HIS). |
| Impact | We are now in the build phase of the project. This collection of grants has supported the study, assessment and definition phases of the project as well as providing support for developing the original proposal and securing the leadership of the consortium. The consortium successfully passed its European Space Agency Preliminary Design Review in Summer 2012. The Critical Design Review will be held in Oct/Nov 2013. The structural and thermal models of the instruments are also nearing completion for delivery in summer 2013. Many hundreds of consortium documents have been generated over this time. |
| Start Year | 2006 |
| Description | SWA Consortium |
| Organisation | National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) |
| Department | Goddard Space Flight Center |
| Country | United States |
| Sector | Public |
| PI Contribution | We (UCL/MSSL) are the Principle Investigator Institution for the Solar Orbiter SWA (Solar Wind Analyser) suite of instruments, with responsibility for leading and managing the whole of the international consortium. As well as scientific and technical leadership of the entire suite, UCL/MSSL is responsible for the specific design and build of the the Electron Analyser System (EAS). |
| Collaborator Contribution | We are directly collaborating with LPP on the provision of an electron analyser system (EAS) for Solar Orbiter. We will contribute an FPGA to the Proton-Alpha Sensor (PAS), the design and build of which is the responsibility of the French IRAP team. the czech group will also contribute to PAS. IRAP will collaborate with the US groups on the design and build of the Heavy ion sensor (HIS). |
| Impact | We are now in the build phase of the project. This collection of grants has supported the study, assessment and definition phases of the project as well as providing support for developing the original proposal and securing the leadership of the consortium. The consortium successfully passed its European Space Agency Preliminary Design Review in Summer 2012. The Critical Design Review will be held in Oct/Nov 2013. The structural and thermal models of the instruments are also nearing completion for delivery in summer 2013. Many hundreds of consortium documents have been generated over this time. |
| Start Year | 2006 |
| Description | SWA Consortium |
| Organisation | National Research Council |
| Department | Institute of Interplanetary Space Physics |
| Country | Italy |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | We (UCL/MSSL) are the Principle Investigator Institution for the Solar Orbiter SWA (Solar Wind Analyser) suite of instruments, with responsibility for leading and managing the whole of the international consortium. As well as scientific and technical leadership of the entire suite, UCL/MSSL is responsible for the specific design and build of the the Electron Analyser System (EAS). |
| Collaborator Contribution | We are directly collaborating with LPP on the provision of an electron analyser system (EAS) for Solar Orbiter. We will contribute an FPGA to the Proton-Alpha Sensor (PAS), the design and build of which is the responsibility of the French IRAP team. the czech group will also contribute to PAS. IRAP will collaborate with the US groups on the design and build of the Heavy ion sensor (HIS). |
| Impact | We are now in the build phase of the project. This collection of grants has supported the study, assessment and definition phases of the project as well as providing support for developing the original proposal and securing the leadership of the consortium. The consortium successfully passed its European Space Agency Preliminary Design Review in Summer 2012. The Critical Design Review will be held in Oct/Nov 2013. The structural and thermal models of the instruments are also nearing completion for delivery in summer 2013. Many hundreds of consortium documents have been generated over this time. |
| Start Year | 2006 |
| Description | SWA Consortium |
| Organisation | Research Institute in Astrophysics and Planetology |
| Country | France |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | We (UCL/MSSL) are the Principle Investigator Institution for the Solar Orbiter SWA (Solar Wind Analyser) suite of instruments, with responsibility for leading and managing the whole of the international consortium. As well as scientific and technical leadership of the entire suite, UCL/MSSL is responsible for the specific design and build of the the Electron Analyser System (EAS). |
| Collaborator Contribution | We are directly collaborating with LPP on the provision of an electron analyser system (EAS) for Solar Orbiter. We will contribute an FPGA to the Proton-Alpha Sensor (PAS), the design and build of which is the responsibility of the French IRAP team. the czech group will also contribute to PAS. IRAP will collaborate with the US groups on the design and build of the Heavy ion sensor (HIS). |
| Impact | We are now in the build phase of the project. This collection of grants has supported the study, assessment and definition phases of the project as well as providing support for developing the original proposal and securing the leadership of the consortium. The consortium successfully passed its European Space Agency Preliminary Design Review in Summer 2012. The Critical Design Review will be held in Oct/Nov 2013. The structural and thermal models of the instruments are also nearing completion for delivery in summer 2013. Many hundreds of consortium documents have been generated over this time. |
| Start Year | 2006 |
| Description | SWA Consortium |
| Organisation | Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) |
| Department | Space Research |
| Country | United States |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | We (UCL/MSSL) are the Principle Investigator Institution for the Solar Orbiter SWA (Solar Wind Analyser) suite of instruments, with responsibility for leading and managing the whole of the international consortium. As well as scientific and technical leadership of the entire suite, UCL/MSSL is responsible for the specific design and build of the the Electron Analyser System (EAS). |
| Collaborator Contribution | We are directly collaborating with LPP on the provision of an electron analyser system (EAS) for Solar Orbiter. We will contribute an FPGA to the Proton-Alpha Sensor (PAS), the design and build of which is the responsibility of the French IRAP team. the czech group will also contribute to PAS. IRAP will collaborate with the US groups on the design and build of the Heavy ion sensor (HIS). |
| Impact | We are now in the build phase of the project. This collection of grants has supported the study, assessment and definition phases of the project as well as providing support for developing the original proposal and securing the leadership of the consortium. The consortium successfully passed its European Space Agency Preliminary Design Review in Summer 2012. The Critical Design Review will be held in Oct/Nov 2013. The structural and thermal models of the instruments are also nearing completion for delivery in summer 2013. Many hundreds of consortium documents have been generated over this time. |
| Start Year | 2006 |
| Description | SWA Consortium |
| Organisation | University of Michigan |
| Department | Space Research Building (SRB) |
| Country | United States |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | We (UCL/MSSL) are the Principle Investigator Institution for the Solar Orbiter SWA (Solar Wind Analyser) suite of instruments, with responsibility for leading and managing the whole of the international consortium. As well as scientific and technical leadership of the entire suite, UCL/MSSL is responsible for the specific design and build of the the Electron Analyser System (EAS). |
| Collaborator Contribution | We are directly collaborating with LPP on the provision of an electron analyser system (EAS) for Solar Orbiter. We will contribute an FPGA to the Proton-Alpha Sensor (PAS), the design and build of which is the responsibility of the French IRAP team. the czech group will also contribute to PAS. IRAP will collaborate with the US groups on the design and build of the Heavy ion sensor (HIS). |
| Impact | We are now in the build phase of the project. This collection of grants has supported the study, assessment and definition phases of the project as well as providing support for developing the original proposal and securing the leadership of the consortium. The consortium successfully passed its European Space Agency Preliminary Design Review in Summer 2012. The Critical Design Review will be held in Oct/Nov 2013. The structural and thermal models of the instruments are also nearing completion for delivery in summer 2013. Many hundreds of consortium documents have been generated over this time. |
| Start Year | 2006 |
| Description | SWA Consortium |
| Organisation | University of New Hampshire |
| Country | United States |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | We (UCL/MSSL) are the Principle Investigator Institution for the Solar Orbiter SWA (Solar Wind Analyser) suite of instruments, with responsibility for leading and managing the whole of the international consortium. As well as scientific and technical leadership of the entire suite, UCL/MSSL is responsible for the specific design and build of the the Electron Analyser System (EAS). |
| Collaborator Contribution | We are directly collaborating with LPP on the provision of an electron analyser system (EAS) for Solar Orbiter. We will contribute an FPGA to the Proton-Alpha Sensor (PAS), the design and build of which is the responsibility of the French IRAP team. the czech group will also contribute to PAS. IRAP will collaborate with the US groups on the design and build of the Heavy ion sensor (HIS). |
| Impact | We are now in the build phase of the project. This collection of grants has supported the study, assessment and definition phases of the project as well as providing support for developing the original proposal and securing the leadership of the consortium. The consortium successfully passed its European Space Agency Preliminary Design Review in Summer 2012. The Critical Design Review will be held in Oct/Nov 2013. The structural and thermal models of the instruments are also nearing completion for delivery in summer 2013. Many hundreds of consortium documents have been generated over this time. |
| Start Year | 2006 |
| Title | SWA/EAS Prototype |
| Description | Development culminated in 2012 after many years work supported by a number of Solar Orbiter-related grants. The new analyser for Solar Orbiter incorporates novel features: i) Aperture deflection system ii) Variable Geometric Factor iii) Miniaturised HV and other electronic systems Charged particle detectors |
| Type Of Technology | Detection Devices |
| Year Produced | 2012 |
| Impact | Prototype meets challenging mass and power restrictions for the mission while maintaining, indeed improving, scientific performance. Potential applications for Space Weather related activities. Subsystems (e.g. mini-HV supplies) of potential in a wide ra |