STEREO-A PLASTIC Small Transients List: Solar Wind Events

A list of small transient events in the solar wind, identified by the STEREO-A spacecraft's PLASTIC instrument using criteria including event duration (0.5 to 12 hours), magnetic field strength (>1.3 times yearly average), low proton beta (<0.7 times yearly average), and low Alfvén Mach number (<0.7 yearly average). The dataset is provided by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and was last updated in March 2026.

Use Cases

• Identify and classify small-scale solar wind transients based on the described duration and magnetic field criteria.
• Analyze correlations between magnetic field rotations and plasma parameters using the described minimum variance analysis method.
• Filter out Alfvénic fluctuations from event lists using the described correlation thresholds (Rx, Ry, Rz).

Strengths

• Events are defined by specific, quantitative thresholds (e.g., durations between 0.5 and 12 hours).
• Data originates from the STEREO-A spacecraft, a NASA mission, suggesting authoritative source instrumentation.
• Last updated in March 2026, indicating recent maintenance.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• Description metadata is limited; actual data quality requires manual inspection after download.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Collection Method

Likely contains data gathered by the STEREO-A spacecraft's PLASTIC instrument.

Time Range

null

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-13 04:43:53.088727; freshness should be verified.

Geography

null