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A High Speed, Radiation Hard X-Ray Imaging Spectroscometer for Planetary InvestigationsX-ray observations provide a unique window into fundamental processes in planetary physics, and one that is complementary to observations obtained at other wavelengths. We propose to develop an X-ray imaging spectrometer (0.1-10 keV band) that, on orbital planetary missions, would measure the elemental composition, density, and temperature of the hot plasma in gas giant magnetospheres, the interaction of the Solar wind with the upper atmospheres of terrestrial planets, and map the elemental composition of the surfaces of the Galilean moons and rocky or icy airless systems on spatial scales as small as a few meters. The X-ray emission from gas giants, terrestrial planets and moons with atmospheres, displays diverse characteristics that depend on the Solar wind's interaction with their upper atmospheres and/or magnetospheres. Our imaging spectrometer, as part of a dedicated mission to a gas giant, will be a paradigm changing technology. On a mission to the Jovian system, our baseline instrument would map the elemental composition of the rocky and icy surfaces of the Galilean moons via particle-induced X-ray fluorescence. This instrument would also measure the temperature, density and elemental abundance of the thermal plasma in the magnetosphere and in the Io plasma torus (IPT), explore the interaction of the Solar wind with the magnetosphere, and characterize the spectrum, flux, and temporal variability of X-ray emission from the polar auroras. We will constrain both the mode of energy transport and the effective transport coefficients in the IPT and throughout the Jovian magnetosphere by comparing temporal and spatial variations of the X-ray emitting plasma with those seen from the cooler but energetically dominant 5 eV plasma.
Document ID
20150002563
Acquisition Source
Marshall Space Flight Center
Document Type
Conference Paper
Authors
Kraft, R. P. (Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory Cambridge, MA, United States)
Kenter, A. T. (Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory Cambridge, MA, United States)
Murray, S. S. (Johns Hopkins Univ. Baltimore, MD, United States)
Martindale, A. (Leicester Univ. United Kingdom)
Pearson, J. (Leicester Univ. United Kingdom)
Gladstone, R. (Southwest Research Inst. San Antonio, TX, United States)
Branduardi-Raymont, G. (Mullard Space Science Lab. Dorking, United Kingdom)
Elsner, R. (NASA Marshall Space Flight Center Huntsville, AL, United States)
Kimura, T. (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency Tokyo, Japan)
Ezoe, Y. (Tokyo Metropolitan Univ. Hachiouji, Japan)
Grant, C. (Massachusetts Inst. of Tech. Cambridge, MA, United States)
Roediger, E. (Hamburger Sternwarte G.m.b.H. Germany)
Howell, R. (Wyoming Univ. Laramie, WY, United States)
Elvis, M. (Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory Cambridge, MA, United States)
Smith, R. (Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory Cambridge, MA, United States)
Campbell, B. (Smithsonian Institution Washington, DC, United States)
Morgenthaler, J. (Planetary Science Inst. Tucson, AZ, United States)
Kravens, T. (Kansas Univ. Lawrence, KS, United States)
Steffl, A. J. (Southwest Research Inst. Boulder, CO, United States)
Hong, J. (Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory Cambridge, MA, United States)
Date Acquired
March 6, 2015
Publication Date
November 4, 2014
Subject Category
Astronomy
Optics
Lunar And Planetary Science And Exploration
Report/Patent Number
M14-4066
Meeting Information
Meeting: International Workshop on Instrumentation for Planetary Missions (IPM-2014)
Location: Greenbelt, MD
Country: United States
Start Date: November 4, 2014
End Date: November 7, 2014
Sponsors: Universities Space Research Association, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Public Use Permitted.

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