Voyager 2 Plasma Wave Spectrometer: 48-Second Averages Near Uranus

Voyager 2 spacecraft data provides calibrated electric field intensities from the Uranian magnetosphere. The dataset contains geometric averages across 16 logarithmically spaced frequency channels from 10 Hz to 56.2 kHz, recorded at 48-second intervals in units of volts per meter. NASA produced this data, which is documented in scientific publications from 1977 and 1986.

Use Cases

• Analyzing plasma wave frequency spectra based on the 16 logarithmically spaced channels.
• Studying temporal variations in the Uranian magnetosphere based on 48-second averaged intervals.
• Calibrating or validating models of planetary radio emissions based on electric field intensity measurements.
• Investigating data gaps and signal noise levels based on the described recording methodology.

Strengths

• Data is calibrated and averaged, with a specified noise level of 0.000005.
• Covers 16 frequency channels per measurement, providing spectral information.
• Sampling parameter resolution and interval are precisely defined as 48.000000 seconds.
• Produced by NASA and referenced in peer-reviewed publications (Gurnett et al., 1986; Scarf and Gurnett, 1977).

Limitations

• Data gaps are not zero-filled or tagged, which may complicate continuous time-series analysis.
• 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

Collected by the Voyager 2 Plasma Wave Receiver Spectrum Analyzer instrument.

Time Range

Data recording began at least as early as 1977-08 20:15:53 (based on minimum sampling parameter).

Freshness

Last updated 2026-04-10 04:37:28.620640; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Vicinity of the Uranian magnetosphere (outer space).