SWE: Solar Wind Proton Parameters from the WIND Spacecraft

SWE instrument data provides solar wind proton parameters, including anisotropic temperatures, derived by non-linear fitting and moment techniques. The dataset is produced by NASA and includes one sigma uncertainties for each parameter. Data reported within this product do not exceed specified limits, and non-solar wind data has been excluded.

Use Cases

• Modeling solar wind plasma dynamics based on proton parameters
• Analyzing proton temperature anisotropy based on parallel and perpendicular temperatures
• Propagating uncertainty for derived parameters like bulk speeds and flow angles
• Studying solar wind conditions using scalar thermal speed calculations

Strengths

• Includes one sigma uncertainty for each parameter produced by non-linear curve fitting
• Derived parameters include anisotropic proton temperatures and scalar thermal speeds
• Non-solar wind data has been excluded from the files

Limitations

• Description metadata is limited; actual data quality requires manual inspection after download
• 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

Data derived from the SWE plasma instrument on the WIND spacecraft via non-linear fitting and moment techniques.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-13 13:23:06.273350; freshness should be verified