MMS 2: Magnetospheric Satellite Position and Magnetic Field Data at 30-Second Resolution

Magnetospheric Multiscale 2 (MMS 2) spacecraft Level-2 science data provides position, velocity, attitude, and magnetic ephemeris at a 30-second time resolution. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration produced this dataset, which uses the Tsyganenko 1989 magnetic field model for disturbed conditions to calculate variables like magnetic footpoints, loss cone angles, and L-shell. It includes ancillary data such as the Dst and Kp activity indices, dipole tilt angle, and eclipse flags.

Use Cases

• Modeling magnetospheric field line geometry based on the Tsyganenko 1989 model and footpoint tracing.
• Analyzing spacecraft position relative to magnetic coordinates like L-shell and magnetic local time.
• Correlating satellite observations with geomagnetic activity using included Dst and Kp indices.
• Performing coordinate transformations between GEI and systems like GSE or SM using provided quaternions.

Strengths

• Data is calculated using a specific, cited magnetic field model (Tsyganenko 1989) for disturbed conditions.
• Includes a wide range of calculated geophysical variables, from footpoint magnetic strength to loss cone angles.
• Provides rotational quaternions for coordinate transformation into six different systems.
• Ancillary variables include recognized geomagnetic activity indices (Dst, Kp) and eclipse flags.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment for large-scale analysis.
• Data is stored in a BIN format, which may require specialized tools for access and parsing.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Collection Method

Calculated from MMS 2 spacecraft measurements using the Tsyganenko 1989 magnetic field model.

Time Range

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Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-13 06:25:08.331868; freshness should be verified.

Geography

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