Apollo 15 Solar Wind Measurements at the Lunar Surface

Apollo 15 Solar Wind Measurements at the Lunar Surface 28-s Data contains the highest time resolution plasma data available from the Apollo 15 solar wind experiment. Each 28-second spectrum record includes proton density, alpha-to-proton ratio, bulk speed, angle of flow, most probable thermal speed, and housekeeping parameters. The data was collected by NASA and includes gaps during the lunar night.

Use Cases

• Analyze solar wind plasma dynamics based on proton density and bulk speed measurements
• Study alpha particle abundance in the solar wind based on alpha-to-proton ratio data
• Model thermal properties of solar wind plasma based on most probable thermal speed
• Correlate solar wind flow direction with lunar surface phenomena based on angle of flow data
• Assess data reliability for specific time periods based on housekeeping and fit parameters

Strengths

• Provides the highest time resolution plasma data available from the Apollo 15 mission at 28 seconds per spectrum
• Contains specific plasma parameters including proton density, alpha-to-proton ratio, bulk speed, and thermal speed
• Includes housekeeping and fit parameters to assess the reliability of calculated plasma values

Limitations

• Description metadata is limited; actual data quality requires manual inspection after download
• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download
• Contains data gaps of about 15 days each lunation during the lunar night

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Collection Method

Data collected by the solar wind experiment onboard Apollo 15.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-13 04:33:55.351705; freshness should be verified

Geography

Lunar surface