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Cochrane CJ, Murphy N, Raymond CA, Biersteker JB, Dang K, Jia X, Korth H, Narvaez P, Ream JB, Weiss BP. Magnetic Field Modeling and Visualization of the Europa Clipper Spacecraft. SPACE SCIENCE REVIEWS 2023; 219:34. [PMID: 37251605 PMCID: PMC10220138 DOI: 10.1007/s11214-023-00974-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/12/2022] [Accepted: 04/19/2023] [Indexed: 05/31/2023]
Abstract
The goal of NASA's Europa Clipper Mission is to investigate the habitability of the subsurface ocean within the Jovian moon Europa using a suite of ten investigations. The Europa Clipper Magnetometer (ECM) and Plasma Instrument for Magnetic Sounding (PIMS) investigations will be used in unison to characterize the thickness and electrical conductivity of Europa's subsurface ocean and the thickness of the ice shell by sensing the induced magnetic field, driven by the strong time-varying magnetic field of the Jovian environment. However, these measurements will be obscured by the magnetic field originating from the Europa Clipper spacecraft. In this work, a magnetic field model of the Europa Clipper spacecraft is presented, characterized with over 260 individual magnetic sources comprising various ferromagnetic and soft-magnetic materials, compensation magnets, solenoids, and dynamic electrical currents flowing within the spacecraft. This model is used to evaluate the magnetic field at arbitrary points around the spacecraft, notably at the locations of the three fluxgate magnetometer sensors and four Faraday cups which make up ECM and PIMS, respectively. The model is also used to evaluate the magnetic field uncertainty at these locations via a Monte Carlo approach. Furthermore, both linear and non-linear gradiometry fitting methods are presented to demonstrate the ability to reliably disentangle the spacecraft field from the ambient using an array of three fluxgate magnetometer sensors mounted along an 8.5-meter (m) long boom. The method is also shown to be useful for optimizing the locations of the magnetometer sensors along the boom. Finally, we illustrate how the model can be used to visualize the magnetic field lines of the spacecraft, thus providing very insightful information for each investigation. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s11214-023-00974-y.
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Affiliation(s)
- Corey J. Cochrane
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA USA
| | - Neil Murphy
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA USA
| | - Carol A. Raymond
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA USA
| | - John B. Biersteker
- Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA USA
| | - Katherine Dang
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA USA
| | - Xianzhe Jia
- Department of Climate and Space Sciences and Engineering, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI USA
| | - Haje Korth
- Applied Physics Laboratory, Johns Hopkins University, Laurel, MD USA
| | - Pablo Narvaez
- Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA USA
| | - Jodie B. Ream
- Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA USA
| | - Benjamin P. Weiss
- Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 77 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA USA
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