Voyager 2 Hourly Averaged Plasma Data in RTN Coordinates

NASA's Voyager 2 spacecraft collected plasma data using Faraday-cup detectors pointed along and perpendicular to the Earth-spacecraft line. Hourly averages were produced from samples taken every 12 to 192 seconds, with velocity components provided in the RTN coordinate system. The plasma parameters are derived by fitting a convected isotropic Maxwellian distribution to the measurements.

Use Cases

• Modeling solar wind dynamics based on plasma velocity, density, and pressure measurements.
• Analyzing plasma flow regimes from subsonic to highly supersonic based on the described energy scan coverage.
• Studying plasma anisotropy and distribution based on the convected isotropic Maxwellian fitting method.
• Investigating spacecraft mission timeline effects on data sampling frequency, as sampling was more frequent early in the mission.

Strengths

• Plasma parameters are derived with high precision, with one sigma errors typically less than 0.5% in speed and VR.
• Data coverage spans from subsonic to highly supersonic flow regimes using three sequential energy scans.
• Velocity components are provided in a standardized RTN coordinate system for consistent analysis.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• Last updated 2026-03-13 04:10:40.479500; freshness should be verified.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Collection Method

Data collected by Voyager 2 spacecraft's plasma investigation using Faraday-cup detectors.