Comparison between the 30‐ to 80‐keV electron channels on ATS 6 and 1976‐059A during conjunction and application to spacecraft charging prediction

Garrett, Henry; Schwank, D. C.; Higbie, P. R.; Baker, D. N.

doi:10.1029/ja085ia03p01155

Cited by 22 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 9 publications

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“…Early efforts to correlate spacecraft potentials with parameters describing the incident electron population used either constants or fits to lowenergy (0-1000 eV) data to calculate the backscatter and secondary yield coefficients of the spacecraft surface materials. [Garrett and Rubin, 1978;Garrett and DeForest, 1979;Garrett et al, 1980]. These efforts could not consistently predict charging levels.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 94%

The importance of accurate secondary electron yields in modeling spacecraft charging

Katz¹,

Mandell²,

Jongeward³

et al. 1986

J. Geophys. Res.

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Spacecraft charging has commonly been attributed to electrons with several kilovolts of energy impinging upon spacecraft surfaces. Recent experimental evidence from the SCATHA satellite has shown that charging correlates well with electrons of energies greater than 30 keV. In this paper it is shown that the SCATHA observations are consistent with the model of charging in which a satellite is immersed in a Maxwellian plasma, particle collection is orbit limited, and dominant surface effects are the emission of secondary and backscattered electrons. The energy dependence of the secondary yield for multikilovolt incident electrons determines the charging threshold. In the past, inadequate representations of the secondary yield have led experimenters to question the validity of the charging model. The accuracy of the secondary electron yield formulation based on electron stopping power, such as the one in NASA Charging Analyzer Program (NASCAP), gives good agreement with the SCATHA results. A Maxwellian representation of the magnetospheric plasma is justified by choosing effective temperatures and densities that minimize the error in calculating charging current densities.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 94%

The importance of accurate secondary electron yields in modeling spacecraft charging

Katz¹,

Mandell²,

Jongeward³

et al. 1986

J. Geophys. Res.

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“…This energy range encompasses the cold plasma of the extended plasmasphere and the hot plasma of the plasma sheet. It thus covers the populations that are responsible for satellite surface charging [e.g., Garrett et al , 1980; Gussenhoven et al , 1985; Katz et al , 1986] and surface damage to solar panels and optical surfaces [e.g., Johnson , 1990; Nastasi et al , 1996; Russell et al , 2000]. This is also the energy range that provides the source for the higher‐energy ring current and radiation belts.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Statistics of plasma fluxes at geosynchronous orbit over more than a full solar cycle

et al. 2007

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[1] The extensive database of plasma measurements from Los Alamos geosynchronous satellites is used to derive a statistical characterization of the geosynchronous fluxes of ions and electrons between the energies of $40 eV and $45 keV. The database covers more than an entire solar cycle and all levels of geomagnetic activity. The derived flux averages and various percentile levels thus describe the environment to which geosynchronous satellites are exposed over their lifetimes and should provide a useful tool to guide satellite design and testing. The mission-averaged fluxes agree very well with other recent analyses in the energy ranges of overlap.

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“…Paper number 5A8739. 0148-0227/86/005A-8739505.00 1979; Garrett et al, 1980;Olsen and Purvis, 1983]. Complex modeling codes Katz et al, 1983] which have as a major objective a more accurate account of satellite surface properties are expensive to run and to date have been run only for limited satellite configurations and limited environments.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

SCATHA survey of high‐level spacecraft charging in sunlight

Mullen¹,

Gussenhoven²,

Hardy³

et al. 1986

J. Geophys. Res.

134

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High‐time‐resolution (0.5 s) measurements of the vehicle frame to ambient plasma potential were made with a 50‐m antenna experiment on the SCATHA satellite. Accurate measurements were limited to sunlight conditions or to low‐level eclipse charging periods. Significant variations in the spacecraft potential in sunlight occurred which depended on the orientation of the satellite with respect to the sun. Using the SCATHA data, statistical occurrence of charging at near‐geosynchronous orbit in daylight is studied. Charging greater than −10 V (in the negative sense) occurs only between 1900 LT and 0900 LT but at all altitudes and latitudes of the SCATHA orbit. High‐level (> −100 V) charging occurs only for magnetic activity, as measured by Kp, of 2+ or greater. Three “worst case” daylight charging event periods (−340 V to −740 V) show that the electron population that directly drives the vehicle potential on the SCATHA satellite has an energy typically greater than 30 keV. The vehicle potential (in the negative sense) is directly proportional to the electron flux carried by the population above 30 keV, although the linear regression coefficients change from case to case. The vehicle potential is insensitive to changes in the electron flux below 30 keV, even though the fluxes in this range are considerably more intense. To explain the data, we suggest that the low‐energy electron fluxes are essentially self‐balanced by the combination of their own secondary and backscattered emissions and that a substantial portion of the photoelectron emissions are returned to the satellite by the action of the surrounding magnetic field.

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Comparison between the 30‐ to 80‐keV electron channels on ATS 6 and 1976‐059A during conjunction and application to spacecraft charging prediction

Cited by 22 publications

References 9 publications

The importance of accurate secondary electron yields in modeling spacecraft charging

The importance of accurate secondary electron yields in modeling spacecraft charging

Statistics of plasma fluxes at geosynchronous orbit over more than a full solar cycle

SCATHA survey of high‐level spacecraft charging in sunlight

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