BARREL 2W Tri-axial Fluxgate Magnetometer Magnetic Field Data

BARREL 2W Tri-axial Fluxgate Magnetometer (MAGN) Magnetic Field Data provides three-axis DC magnetometer measurements from stratospheric balloons. The BARREL mission, a NASA Living with a Star Mission of Opportunity, launched over 50 balloons from Antarctica and Sweden between 2013 and 2016 to study electron precipitation from Earth's radiation belts. Data are neither gain corrected nor despun and are provided at a 0.25-second cadence.

Use Cases

• Study electron precipitation from radiation belts based on balloon-borne X-ray spectrometer and magnetometer measurements.
• Analyze ULF-timescale magnetic field variations based on DC magnetometer data.
• Characterize spatial scales of relativistic electron precipitation based on balloon constellation data.
• Correlate balloon measurements with satellite data from the Van Allen Probes mission.

Strengths

• Data collected from over 50 stratospheric balloon flights across four campaigns.
• Campaigns coordinated with multiple satellite missions and ground-based instruments.
• Provides measurements at stratospheric altitudes (~30 km) near polar circles.

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 is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Collection Method

Measured by DC magnetometers carried on BARREL stratospheric balloons.

Time Range

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

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-13 03:40:29.603455; freshness should be verified.

Geography

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