BackForwardInstrument:  ASPOC 

Instrument details
Acronym ASPOC
Full name Active Spacecraft Potential Control
Purpose To control the spacecraft charge potential to insure effective, complete measurement of the ambient plasma distribution functions
Short description Device emitting Indium ions towards space to neutralise the electrical charge acquired by the platform
Background Part of a package of instruments for the study of the Magnetosphere
Scanning Technique Formation flight of 4 satellites in coordinated high-elliptical orbits cross the Magnetosphere for 3-D field reconstruction
Resolution N/A
Coverage / Cycle Full magnetospheric volume
Mass 1.9 kg Power 2.7 W Data Rate

 

Providing Agency ESA
Instrument Maturity Flown on an R&D satellite
Utilization Period: 2000 to 2008
Last update: 2016-03-20
Detailed characteristics
Satellites this instrument is flying on

Note: a red tag indicates satellites no longer operational, a green tag indicates operational satellites, a blue tag indicates future satellites

Instrument classification
  • Solar and space environment monitors
  • Field or radiowave sensor
WIGOS Subcomponents No WIGOS subcomponents have been defined.
Mission objectives
Evaluation of Measurements

The following list indicates which measurements can typically be retrieved from this category of instrument. To see a full Gap Analysis by Variable, click on the respective variable.

Note: table can be sorted by clicking on the column headers
Note: * Primary mission objective.
VariableRelevance for measuring this variableOperational limitationsExplanation
Electrostatic charge3 - highNo specific limitation.Platform. Electrostatic charge