Bonnell J W, Ludlam M, Slagle A, Goodrich K, LaBelle J W
Space Sciences Laboratory, University of California, 7 Gauss Way, Berkeley, 94720-7450 CA USA.
Department of Physics and Astronomy, West Virginia University, White Hall, PO Box 6315, Morgantown, 26506-6315 WV USA.
Space Sci Rev. 2025;221(6):80. doi: 10.1007/s11214-025-01202-5. Epub 2025 Sep 9.
The Electric Field Instrument (EFI) for the NASA Tandem Reconnection and Cusp Electrodynamics Reconnaissance Satellites (TRACERS) mission provides measurements of the electric field from DC to nearly 10 MHz on two closely-spaced spacecraft in low Earth orbit passing through the terrestrial cusp region. As measured by EFI, the plasma convection fields, ULF and ELF fluctuations, and natural HF emissions provide key measurements of plasma flow, plasma waves, and plasma density that support all three science objectives of the TRACERS mission. Here, we describe the mechanical and electrical design of the EFI, the data products it produces, and the concept of its on-orbit operations.
用于美国国家航空航天局（NASA）串联重联与磁尖电动力学探测卫星（TRACERS）任务的电场仪器（EFI），可在两颗近地轨道上紧密间隔的航天器上测量从直流到近10兆赫兹的电场，这些航天器会穿过地球磁尖区域。通过EFI测量得到的等离子体对流场、超低频（ULF）和极低频（ELF）波动以及自然高频（HF）辐射，提供了等离子体流、等离子体波和等离子体密度的关键测量数据，这些数据支持了TRACERS任务的所有三个科学目标。在此，我们描述了EFI的机械和电气设计、它所产生的数据产品以及其在轨运行的概念。
