BARREL 2Y: Tri-axial Magnetometer Data from Stratospheric Balloons

Antarctic and Arctic stratospheric balloon campaigns collected three-axis DC magnetometer data at about 30 km altitude. The BARREL Mission, a NASA Living with a Star Mission of Opportunity, launched over 50 balloons from Halley Bay, SANAE IV, and Kiruna between 2013 and 2016 to study electron precipitation from Earth's Radiation Belts. Data are provided at 0.25-second intervals, with nominal conversions applied but without gain correction or despinning.

Use Cases

• Analyzing ULF-timescale magnetic field variations based on three-axis DC magnetometer measurements
• Studying spatial and temporal scales of relativistic electron precipitation based on balloon array data across magnetic local time
• Correlating balloon-based magnetic field data with in-situ plasma wave and particle measurements from satellite missions
• Characterizing magnetic field perturbations during electron precipitation events based on stratospheric observations

Strengths

• Data collected from over 50 stratospheric balloon flights across four campaigns
• Provides measurements at 0.25-second temporal resolution
• Coordinated with multiple satellite missions and ground-based instruments like EISCAT

Limitations

• Data are neither gain corrected nor despun, requiring additional processing for certain 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

Data collected from DC magnetometers carried on BARREL stratospheric balloons.

Time Range

Campaigns conducted in January-February 2013 and 2014 (Antarctica), and August 2015 and 2016 (Sweden).

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-13 03:38:21.459363; freshness should be verified

Geography

Launch sites in Antarctica (Halley Bay, SANAE IV) and Kiruna, Sweden; observations near Antarctic and Arctic circles.