THEMIS-B: On-Board Plasma Moments for Ions and Electrons
Updated 3mo ago
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Description
THEMIS-B satellite on-board data outputs include number density, particle flux, energy flux, and a six-component symmetric momentum flux tensor. The dataset, provided by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, includes calculated moments such as total pressure, velocity, plasma temperature, and a pressure tensor for both ions and electrons from a combination of ESA and SST instruments. Data are taken at spin resolution in all ESA survey modes except burst, with corrections applied for spacecraft charging and instrument efficiency.
Use Cases
Modeling magnetospheric plasma dynamics based on ion and electron density, velocity, and pressure tensors.
Analyzing solar wind interactions with Earth's magnetic field based on data provided in multiple coordinate systems (DSL, GSE, GSM, MFA).
Studying spacecraft charging effects and their correction in particle measurements based on the described use of EFI spacecraft potential.
Calibrating or validating plasma instrument responses based on the described weighting factors for energy and angle efficiency variations.
Strengths
Data includes calculated physical moments for both ions and electrons, providing a multi-species plasma description.
Measurements are provided in four coordinate systems (DSL, GSE, GSM, MFA), facilitating analysis in different physical frames.
Corrections are applied for spacecraft charging and instrument-specific efficiency variations, which likely improves data accuracy.
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 statistical analysis.
Provenance
Source
National Aeronautics and Space Administration
Collection Method
Data collected by the THEMIS-B satellite's ESA and SST instruments, with on-board and ground-based moment calculations.
Time Range
null
Freshness
Last updated 2026-03-13 04:34:27.609174; freshness should be verified.
Geography
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License is listed as 'other-license-specified'; specific terms must be reviewed before use.