CubeSat: Climatology of Anthropogenic and Natural VLF wave Activity in Space (CANVAS)

CubeSat：太空中人为和自然 VLF 波活动的气候学 (CANVAS)

• 批准号: 1841011
• 负责人: Robert Marshall
• 金额: $ 119.67万
• 依托单位: University of Colorado at Boulder
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2019
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2019-02-01 至 2024-07-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1841011&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: CubeSat; Climatology; Anthropogenic; Natural; VLF

The goal of this 4-year project is to develop the Climatology of Anthropogenic and Natural Very Low Frequency (VLF) wave Activity in Space (CANVAS) Cubesat which will measure VLF wave energy that originates from lightning and ground-based transmitters and propagates to the outer reaches of Earth's magnetic field (the magnetosphere). Previous research has shown that VLF waves from these sources play a significant role in the dynamics of Earths radiation environment. This project will focus on quantifying how much VLF energy from sources on the Earth's surface and in the atmosphere propagates through the charged layers of Earth's upper atmosphere and into the magnetosphere. This is important for understanding the extent to which ground based electromagnetic sources can impact the near-Earth space environment. The project is led by two early career scientists, engages graduate students through class participation, and provides funding for undergraduate and postdoctoral research experience. CANVAS consists of a three-axis magnetic search coil deployed on the end of a 1-meter carbon fiber boom; together with a two-axis dipole antenna. Together, these five wave components will be used to determine the wave power spectral density at 1 second time resolution using real-time Fast Fourier Transforms calculated in onboard Field Programmable Gate Arrays. Data will be sent to the ground to determine the full set of wave parameters, including polarization, planarity, and k-vector direction. The CANVAS CubeSat will employ the Blue Canyon Attitude Determination and Control System to provide sub-degree pointing accuracy, together with heritage spacecraft subsystems from the previous successful missions at CU Boulder. An S-band transceiver and dual antennas will communicate with a new ground station in Boulder to downlink all of the science data. The cubesat will take continuous measurements in low Earth orbit to address the following science questions: i) What is the average electromagnetic energy input into the space environment by lightning? ii) What is the spectrum of VLF wave energy above the ionosphere in the 0.3-50 kHz frequency range? iii) What is the transmission transfer function of the ionosphere for VLF energy, and how does it vary in space and time?This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

这个为期四年项目的目的是发展空间（画布）立方体中人为和自然频率（VLF）波活性的气候，该频率将测量源自闪电和基于地面的发射器的VLF波能，并传播到地球磁场的外部（磁层）。先前的研究表明，这些来源的VLF波在地球辐射环境的动力学中起着重要作用。该项目将着重于量化地球表面和大气中的VLF能量的数量通过地球上层大气的带电层传播到磁层中。这对于理解基于地面的电磁源会影响近地太空环境的程度很重要。该项目由两位早期职业科学家领导，通过课堂参与与研究生互动，并为本科生和博士后研究经验提供资金。帆布由在1米碳纤维繁荣的末端部署的三轴磁搜索线圈组成；与两轴偶极天线一起。总之，这五个波组件将使用在板载场上可编程门阵列中计算出的实时快速傅立叶变换以1次分辨率确定波频谱密度。数据将被发送到地面，以确定整个波浪参数，包括极化，平面度和K矢量方向。 Canvas Cubesat将采用蓝色峡谷态度的确定和控制系统，以提供次级指向准确性，以及来自Cu Boulder先前成功任务的遗产航天器子系统。 S频段收发器和双天线将与博尔德的新地面站进行通信，以将所有科学数据下降。立方体将在低地球轨道上进行连续测量，以解决以下科学问题：i）通过闪电向太空环境输入的平均电磁能输入是什么？ ii）在0.3-50 kHz频率范围内，电离层上方的VLF波能的频谱是什么？ iii）电离层在VLF能源方面的传输传输功能是什么？它在时空有何不同？该奖项反映了NSF的法定任务，并且使用基金会的知识分子优点和更广泛的影响审查标准，被认为值得通过评估来获得支持。