Voyager 2 Jupiter Plasma Wave Spectrometer Densities, 1-Second Data

From July 4 to July 11, 1979, this dataset provides 1-second resolution measurements of electron plasma densities and related plasma wave frequencies from the Voyager 2 spacecraft's Jupiter flyby. The data was produced by NASA using the Plasma Wave Science instrument and calculations from cold plasma theory. It includes spacecraft position, magnetic field strength, and derived plasma frequencies in ASCII files organized by day.

Use Cases

• Modeling Jupiter's magnetospheric plasma environment based on in-situ electron density measurements.
• Analyzing the correlation between magnetic field strength and plasma wave frequencies over time.
• Studying the temporal evolution of plasma parameters during a spacecraft flyby at 1-second resolution.
• Validating cold plasma theory calculations against direct spacecraft observations.

Strengths

• High temporal resolution with data points recorded every second.
• Covers a specific 7-day event (1979-07-04 to 1979-07-11) during a key planetary encounter.
• Includes multiple derived plasma parameters (e.g., fpe, fUH) alongside raw measurements.

Limitations

• 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

Derived from Voyager 2 Plasma Wave Science instrument measurements and magnetic field data, processed via automated algorithms.

Time Range

1979-07-04T23:44:47.500Z to 1979-07-11T23:58:22.500Z

Freshness

Last updated 2026-04-10 04:34:24.349288; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Trajectory of the Voyager 2 spacecraft during its Jupiter flyby.