BARREL 1C: Balloon Ephemeris and Magnetic Coordinates for Radiation Belt Studies

BARREL 1C Ephemeris data provides geographic and magnetic coordinates for over 50 stratospheric balloons launched during four campaigns from 2013 to 2016. The data, collected by NASA's BARREL mission, includes balloon epoch time, latitude, longitude, and altitude recorded every 4 seconds. Geographic coordinates were obtained from onboard GPS, while magnetic coordinates were derived using the IRBEM library to study electron precipitation from Earth's radiation belts.

Use Cases

• Analyzing spatial and temporal variations of electron precipitation based on balloon-borne X-ray spectrometer and magnetometer data.
• Mapping the geographic and magnetic footprint of radiation belt events using the 4-second ephemeris records.
• Characterizing the spatial scale of relativistic electron precipitation by correlating balloon data with in-situ Van Allen Probes measurements.
• Studying ultra-low frequency (ULF) magnetic field variations using the DC magnetometer data mentioned in the description.

Strengths

• Data collected from over 50 balloon flights across four campaigns spanning 2013 to 2016.
• Coordinates are recorded at a high temporal resolution of once every 4 seconds.
• Data is derived from multiple sources: onboard GPS for geographic coordinates and the IRBEM library for magnetic coordinates.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment for large-scale analysis.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Collection Method

Data returned from balloon payloads carrying GPS and magnetometer instruments.

Time Range

Campaigns conducted in 2013, 2014, 2015, and 2016.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03 13 14:20:56.697740; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Balloon launches from Halley Bay and SANAE IV base in Antarctica (2013-2014) and Esrange Space Center in Kiruna, Sweden (2015-2016).