BARREL 2T: Tri-axial Magnetometer Data for Radiation Belt Studies

Over 50 stratospheric balloon flights collected three-axis magnetic field measurements at 0.25-second resolution to study electron precipitation from Earth's radiation belts. The BARREL mission, a NASA Living with a Star project, launched balloons from Antarctica and Sweden between 2013 and 2016. Data are provided with nominal conversions applied but are not gain-corrected or despun.

Use Cases

• Analyzing ULF-timescale magnetic field variations based on tri-axial fluxgate magnetometer data
• Characterizing the spatial scale of relativistic electron precipitation based on multi-balloon array measurements
• Correlating balloon-based magnetic field data with in-situ satellite measurements from the Van Allen Probes mission
• Studying magnetospheric dynamics coordinated with ground-based radar systems like EISCAT

Strengths

• Data from over 50 balloon flights across four campaigns (2013-2016)
• High-resolution 0.25-second time-series magnetic field measurements
• Coordinated measurements with the Van Allen Probes mission and other ground/space instruments

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download
• Data are not gain-corrected or despun, requiring additional processing for some analyses
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Collection Method

Measurements from tri-axial DC magnetometers carried on approximately 20 kg stratospheric balloons.

Time Range

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

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-13 12:50:17.228062; freshness should be verified

Geography

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