The Plasma and Suprathermal Ion Composition (PLASTIC) Investigation on the STEREO Observatories

• Published in: Space science reviews Vol. 136; no. 1-4; pp. 437 - 486
• Main Authors: Galvin, A. B., Kistler, L. M., Popecki, M. A., Farrugia, C. J., Simunac, K. D. C., Ellis, L., Möbius, E., Lee, M. A., Boehm, M., Carroll, J., Crawshaw, A., Conti, M., Demaine, P., Ellis, S., Gaidos, J. A., Googins, J., Granoff, M., Gustafson, A., Heirtzler, D., King, B., Knauss, U., Levasseur, J., Longworth, S., Singer, K., Turco, S., Vachon, P., Vosbury, M., Widholm, M., Blush, L. M., Karrer, R., Bochsler, P., Daoudi, H., Etter, A., Fischer, J., Jost, J., Opitz, A., Sigrist, M., Wurz, P., Klecker, B., Ertl, M., Seidenschwang, E., Wimmer-Schweingruber, R. F., Koeten, M., Thompson, B., Steinfeld, D.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Dordrecht Springer Netherlands 01.04.2008; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Aerospace Technology and Astronautics; Astrophysics and Astroparticles; Chemical composition; Corona; Ions; Physics; Physics and Astronomy; Planetology; Plasma; Plastics; Solar energy; Solar physics; Space exploration; Space Exploration and Astronautics; Space Sciences (including Extraterrestrial Physics; Spacecraft; Suprathermal; Plasma; Composition; Time-of-flight spectrometer; Coronal mass ejections; STEREO; Solar wind; Multipoint spacecraft observations
• ISSN: 0038-6308; 1572-9672
• DOI: 10.1007/s11214-007-9296-x

The Plasma and Suprathermal Ion Composition (PLASTIC) investigation provides the in situ solar wind and low energy heliospheric ion measurements for the NASA Solar Terrestrial Relations Observatory Mission, which consists of two spacecraft (STEREO-A, STEREO-B). PLASTIC-A and PLASTIC-B are identical. Each PLASTIC is a time-of-flight/energy mass spectrometer designed to determine the elemental composition, ionic charge states, and bulk flow parameters of major solar wind ions in the mass range from hydrogen to iron. PLASTIC has nearly complete angular coverage in the ecliptic plane and an energy range from ∼0.3 to 80 keV/e, from which the distribution functions of suprathermal ions, including those ions created in pick-up and local shock acceleration processes, are also provided.