BARREL 1R Rate Counter: NaI Scintillator Diagnostics, 4 s Data

NASA's BARREL mission launched over 50 stratospheric balloons to study electron losses from Earth's Radiation Belts. The Level 2 data product consists of 4-second accumulations of uncalibrated rate counts from NaI scintillator diagnostics, collected during campaigns from 2013 to 2016 in Antarctica and Sweden. These measurements were designed to augment the Van Allen Probes mission by characterizing the spatial scale of relativistic electron precipitation.

Use Cases

• Analyze temporal variations in electron precipitation based on 4-second rate count accumulations
• Correlate balloon-based X-ray measurements with in-situ plasma wave data from the Van Allen Probes mission
• Study the spatial scale of relativistic electron precipitation across a balloon array spanning six hours of magnetic local time

Strengths

• Data is part of a NASA Living with a Star Mission of Opportunity, providing coordinated measurements with the Van Allen Probes mission
• Over 50 stratospheric balloons were launched across four campaigns, offering multiple observational points
• Campaigns were conducted in coordination with other ground and space-based instruments like the EISCAT radar system

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download
• Rate count data have uncalibrated energy ranges and may wrap near or above 16384 counts/s
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Collection Method

Measurements from rate counters on BARREL balloon payloads carrying X-ray spectrometers and DC magnetometers.

Time Range

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

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-13 04:11:08.992624; freshness should be verified

Geography

Balloon launches from Halley Bay, Antarctica; SANAE IV base, Antarctica; and Esrange Space Center, Kiruna, Sweden.