EZIE

EZIE
Satellite name EZIE
Spacecraft type CubeSat
Units or mass 6U
Entity name Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (JHU/APL)
Institution University
Entity Academic / Education
Country US
Manufacturer AIVT by Blue Canyon
Operator Blue Canyon
Oneliner

Study the electric currents that play a crucial role in the interactions between Earth and the surrounding
magnetosphere

Description

Study the spatial structure and temporal evolution of the electrojets. The primary objective of the EZIE measurement goal is to reveal the mesoscale spatial structure and temporal evolution of the aurora electrojets during geomagnetic substorms to discern the physical mechanism of its generation.

EZIE consists of three 6U CubeSats flying in a pearls-on-a-string orbit configuration, each carrying a Microwave Electrojet Magnetogram (MEM) instrument. Four beams on each satellite measure polarimetric radiances that contain the magnetic signatures of the intense currents in ionospheric plasmas (electrojets) based on the Zeeman splitting of molecular oxygen thermal emissions. This novel measurement technique allows for the remote sensing of the electrojets at altitudes notoriously difficult to measure in situ.

The EZIE constellation will provide, for the first time, measurements with the spatial and temporal resolution required to distinguish between proposed hypotheses for the physical mechanisms behind the auroral and equatorial electrojets. A series of observing system simulation experiments demonstrate how EZIE will explore the impacts of space weather near Earth.

Each MEM instrument consists of four compact 118-GHz heterodyne spectropolarimeters, leveraging technologies demonstrated by TEMPEST-D and CubeRRT; the 6U CubeSat bus heritage includes RAVAN, CAT, TEMPEST-D, and CubeRRT. Differential drag maneuvers, akin to those pioneered by CYGNSS and CAT, will be used to manage satellite along-track temporal separation to within 2–10 minutes, eliminating the need for on-board propulsion.

Has passed on to the construction phase after a rigorous review for design cleared the project for further development.

Sources [1] [2] [3] [4]
Photo sources [1]
COTS subsystems
  • PLATFORM - Blue Canyon

Related Spacecraft

Satellite Status Rocket Date Orbit
EZIE A (Electrojet Zeeman Imaging Explorer) not launched not launched 2024-12-31 not launched
EZIE B (Electrojet Zeeman Imaging Explorer) not launched not launched 2024-12-31 not launched
EZIE C (Electrojet Zeeman Imaging Explorer) not launched not launched 2024-12-31 not launched

Last modified: 2023-08-02

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Created by Erik Kulu

Email: erik.kulu@nanosats.eu
LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/erikkulu

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