Southwest Research Institute 2007 Annual Report, Space Science & Engineering

Over the last decade, Southwest Research Institute’s space science program has expanded significantly, encompassing the development of five spacecraft missions whose scope ranges from the Earth’s magnetosphere to the outer boundaries of the solar system.

The Interstellar Boundary Explorer spacecraft, set for launch in July 2008, will make the first images of the complex and highly dynamic region that separates our solar system from interstellar space (ibex.swri.edu). The payload has been developed, assembled, tested and integrated with the spacecraft and is undergoing testing before delivery to the launch site in early 2008.

SwRI is leading the development of Juno, the first solar-powered spacecraft to visit Jupiter and the first Jupiter spacecraft in polar orbit (juno.wisc.edu). As part of its instrument suite, Juno carries our Jovian Auroral Distributions Experiment and Juno Ultraviolet Spectrograph. Launch is scheduled for 2011.

SwRI received approval from NASA to proceed with the implementation of the science investigation for the Magnetospheric Multiscale mission, which will use Earth’s magnetosphere as a laboratory in which to examine definitively the fundamental process called magnetic reconnection, which occurs around Earth as well as in remote astrophysical systems not accessible to direct measurement (mms.space.swri.edu). MMS is slated for launch in 2013.

Following its flyby of Jupiter, the New Horizons spacecraft traveled more than 100 million miles — farther than any other spacecraft — down the planet’s giant magnetotail, where our Solar Wind Around Pluto instrument revealed the diverse, highly structured plasmas that populate this enormous volume of space (pluto.jhuapl.edu). Since then, New Horizons has entered its first hibernation, which will be repeated annually for most of the remaining journey to Pluto.

Three years after arriving at Saturn, the Cassini spacecraft continues to generate exciting new data about the planet, its rings and its moons (saturn.jpl.nasa.gov). Using the SwRI-developed Cassini Plasma Spectrometer, researchers found that its moons, Tethys and Dione, are flinging streams of particles into space, establishing the moons as important sources of plasma in Saturn’s magnetosphere. In addition, combined CAPS and Ion and Neutral Mass Spectrometer data sets revealed that organic aerosols, or tholins, form in Titan’s atmosphere at altitudes greater than 1,000 kilometers — higher than previously believed.

Under contract to Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp., we built avionics for NextSat, one of two satellites for the successful Orbital Express mission developed for the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency. SwRI avionics systems are also flying on the recently launched WorldView-1 remote-sensing satellite and Kepler, a NASA Discovery probe aimed at finding Earth-size and smaller planets.

An SwRI researcher developed a method of forecasting the arrival time and intensity of hazardous energetic ions released in solar storms. This method, which uses the detection of electrons of solar origin traveling near the speed of light, will give astronauts on future exploration missions sufficient time to find shelter during space radiation storms.

An SwRI-led team proposed a new model of the interaction of the solar wind’s magnetic field with Jupiter’s magnetosphere. According to the model, which unifies a number of independent observations, the role played by magnetic reconnection in the dynamics of Jupiter’s magnetosphere is fundamentally different from the one it plays at Earth.

Using computer models and laboratory experiments, SwRI researchers showed that the sulfur-rich bedrock discovered by the Mars Rover “Opportunity” was likely produced by ancient episodes of sulfuric acid rain. This would have inhibited the formation of limestone, which may explain why no such rocks have been observed on Mars.

SwRI-led teams also observed Pluto’s passage in front of two stars. The atmospheric pressure and temperature profiles obtained have helped to demonstrate that Pluto is currently undergoing significant seasonal changes.

Copyright© 2007 by Southwest Research Institute. All rights reserved under U.S. Copyright Law and International Conventions. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, without permission in writing from the publisher. All inquiries should be addressed to the Communications Department, Southwest Research Institute, P.O. Drawer 28510, San Antonio, Texas 78228-0510, phone (210) 522-3305, fax (210) 522-3547.