BARREL 1H Magnetometer: Tri-axial Magnetic Field Data from Balloon Campaigns

Antarctic and Arctic stratospheric balloon campaigns collected tri-axial magnetic field data from 2013 to 2016. The BARREL mission, a NASA Living with a Star project, launched over 50 small balloons to study electron precipitation from Earth's radiation belts. Data are provided at 0.25-second resolution, are not gain-corrected or despun, and were collected in coordination with the Van Allen Probes mission.

Use Cases

• Analyzing ultra-low frequency (ULF) magnetic field variations based on tri-axial magnetometer measurements.
• Studying spatial and temporal scales of relativistic electron precipitation based on coordinated balloon and satellite observations.
• Correlating magnetic field perturbations with in-situ plasma wave and particle data from the Van Allen Probes.
• Characterizing the spatial scale of precipitation at relativistic energies based on the balloon array data.

Strengths

• Data collected from over 50 stratospheric balloon flights across four campaigns from 2013 to 2016.
• Provides high-resolution (0.25-second) tri-axial magnetic field measurements.
• Campaigns were coordinated with the Van Allen Probes mission and other ground/space-based instruments.

Limitations

• Data are neither gain-corrected nor despun, requiring additional processing for some analyses.
• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count and total data volume are unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Collection Method

Measurements from tri-axial DC magnetometers carried on stratospheric balloons.

Time Range

2013 to 2016

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-13 04:24:11.368002; 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).