Wind SMS/STICS: Solar Wind Ion Density and Energy Moments

NASA's Wind spacecraft provides 3-minute measurements of ion density and mean energy for selected species in the solar wind. The Suprathermal Ion Composition Spectrometer (STICS) uses triple and double coincidence techniques to identify ions like H+, He+, and Fe10+ across an energy range of 6 - 200 keV/e. Data collection involves stepping through 32 energy per charge values and utilizes three telescopes combined with spacecraft spin to achieve nearly full 3D velocity coverage.

Use Cases

• Analyzing solar wind ion composition dynamics based on 3-minute density and energy moment data
• Studying suprathermal particle populations based on triple-coincidence measurements for species like C5+ and Fe10+
• Modeling 3D velocity distributions based on data from three telescopes and spacecraft spin
• Comparing signal-to-noise ratios based on triple-coincidence versus double-coincidence measurement techniques

Strengths

• Data includes statistical errors for density and mean energy moments
• Triple-coincidence technique improves signal-to-noise ratio
• Instrument provides nearly 4π steradian viewing coverage via three telescopes and spacecraft spin

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

Measured by the Wind spacecraft's Suprathermal Ion Composition Spectrometer (STICS)

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-13 13:15:32.636184; freshness should be verified

Geography

Solar wind