Aeronomy from the International Space Station

Computer Science – Performance

Scientific paper

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[0310] Atmospheric Composition And Structure / Airglow And Aurora, [0355] Atmospheric Composition And Structure / Thermosphere: Composition And Chemistry, [0358] Atmospheric Composition And Structure / Thermosphere: Energy Deposition

Scientific paper

The lessons learned with The Remote Atmospheric and Ionospheric Detection System (RAIDS) a new NASA experiment studying the Earth's thermosphere and ionosphere from a vantage point on the International Space Station (ISS) will be reviewed. The RAIDS mission focuses on the coupling and transition from the coldest part of the atmosphere, the mesopause near 85 km, up to the hottest regions of the thermosphere above 300 km. Built jointly by the Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) and The Aerospace Corporation, RAIDS also is serving as a pathfinder experiment for atmospheric remote sensing aboard the ISS. The 51.6 deg. orbital inclination and roughly 340 km orbital altitude of the ISS required tailoring atmospheric science objectives appropriate for low- and mid-latitude observations. Orbital precession enables observations over a range of local time and solar illumination conditions, but also causes the orbital plane to intersect the Sun roughly monthly, requiring a temporary shutdown of the RAIDS sensors. Extensive station structures near the field-of-regard pose a risk of scattered light contamination which must be mitigated through good baffling of optical sensors. Activities aboard the manned station, including attitude perturbations from spacecraft dockings and construction activities, occasionally disrupt observations. A significant challenge for limb-viewing RAIDS was ISS pitch oscillations up to ±0.75 deg. per orbit associated with solar array rotation, but NASA adjusted the station’s flight characteristics to provide ±0.2 deg. pitch stability for RAIDS. Jitter and vibration at the extremity of the ISS have not been a concern for RAIDS. Finally, manned environments are notoriously dirty with respect to contamination-sensitive optical instruments, but after twelve months of continuous operation RAIDS does not exhibit any unusual degradation in sensor performance.

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