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Solar and Space Physics: A Science for a Technological Society
106
SOLAR AND SPACE PHYSICS: A SCIENCE FOR A TECHNOLOGICAL SOCIETY
Fourth Research Recommendation [R4.0] for NASA—Implement a Large Living With a Star Mission
A very important distinction is made by the survey committee between the restructured STP program
and the Living with a Star (LWS) mission. Certain scientific problems can be addressed only by missions that
are relatively complex and costly. Solar Probe Plus, which will travel closer to the Sun than any previous
spacecraft, is an example of this type of mission; future constellation missions that would utilize multiple
spacecraft to provide simultaneous measurements from broad regions of space (so as to be able to separate
spatial from temporal effects and reveal the couplings between adjacent regions of space) are another. As
research evolves naturally from the discovery-based mode to one focused increasingly on quantification and
prediction, missions benefit strongly from an integrative approach, whereby the knowledge obtained from
prior research can be combined with new, innovative measurements for the development of understanding
of the global machinery of the system. This effort may naturally require a larger mission, and it also accords
with the societal-relevance theme of the LWS program. In the survey committee’s plan, major missions
are thus appropriately undertaken via NASA’s LWS program and would continue to be executed by NASA
centers, whereas the STP program should be considered a community program, like the Explorer program.
Besides the flight program, there are other integral thematic elements essential to the LWS science and
technology program, such as the TR&T program that conducts relevant focused research, and strategic
capabilities that establish essential underlying technical capabilities. Also included in LWS are heliophysics summer schools. The survey committee concluded that the unique LWS research, technology, and
education programs remain of great value.
The survey committee’s recommended science target for the next major LWS mission, as demonstrated
by the reference mission Geospace Dynamics Constellation, would provide crucial scientific measurements
of the extremely variable conditions in near-Earth space.
Recommended LWS Science Target
The survey committee recommends that, following the launch of RBSP and SPP, the next LWS science
target focus on how Earth’s atmosphere absorbs solar wind energy. The recommended reference mission
is Geospace Dynamics Constellation (GDC).
Geospace Dynamics Constellation
GDC Overview
During geomagnetic storms, solar wind energy is deposited in Earth’s atmosphere, but only after being
transformed and directed by a number of processes in geospace. The primary focus of the Geospace
Dynamics Constellation reference mission is to reveal how the atmosphere, ionosphere, and magnetosphere
are coupled together as a system and to understand how this system regulates the response of all geospace
to external energy input. Using current and foreseeable technologies, GDC implements a systematic and
robust observational approach to measure all the critical parameters of the system in optimally spaced
orbital planes, thus providing unprecedented coverage in both local time and latitude. Moreover, spacecraft
in the GDC constellation will orbit at relatively low altitudes where both neutral and ionized gases are
strongly coupled through dynamical and chemical processes. The GDC reference mission brings a new
focus to critical scientific questions:
1. How does solar wind/magnetospheric energy energize the ionosphere and thermosphere?
2. How does the IT system respond and ultimately modify how the magnetosphere transmits solar
wind energy to Earth?
Solar and Space Physics: A Science for a Technological Society
106
SOLAR AND SPACE PHYSICS: A SCIENCE FOR A TECHNOLOGICAL SOCIETY
Fourth Research Recommendation [R4.0] for NASA—Implement a Large Living With a Star Mission
A very important distinction is made by the survey committee between the restructured STP program
and the Living with a Star (LWS) mission. Certain scientific problems can be addressed only by missions that
are relatively complex and costly. Solar Probe Plus, which will travel closer to the Sun than any previous
spacecraft, is an example of this type of mission; future constellation missions that would utilize multiple
spacecraft to provide simultaneous measurements from broad regions of space (so as to be able to separate
spatial from temporal effects and reveal the couplings between adjacent regions of space) are another. As
research evolves naturally from the discovery-based mode to one focused increasingly on quantification and
prediction, missions benefit strongly from an integrative approach, whereby the knowledge obtained from
prior research can be combined with new, innovative measurements for the development of understanding
of the global machinery of the system. This effort may naturally require a larger mission, and it also accords
with the societal-relevance theme of the LWS program. In the survey committee’s plan, major missions
are thus appropriately undertaken via NASA’s LWS program and would continue to be executed by NASA
centers, whereas the STP program should be considered a community program, like the Explorer program.
Besides the flight program, there are other integral thematic elements essential to the LWS science and
technology program, such as the TR&T program that conducts relevant focused research, and strategic
capabilities that establish essential underlying technical capabilities. Also included in LWS are heliophysics summer schools. The survey committee concluded that the unique LWS research, technology, and
education programs remain of great value.
The survey committee’s recommended science target for the next major LWS mission, as demonstrated
by the reference mission Geospace Dynamics Constellation, would provide crucial scientific measurements
of the extremely variable conditions in near-Earth space.
Recommended LWS Science Target
The survey committee recommends that, following the launch of RBSP and SPP, the next LWS science
target focus on how Earth’s atmosphere absorbs solar wind energy. The recommended reference mission
is Geospace Dynamics Constellation (GDC).
Geospace Dynamics Constellation
GDC Overview
During geomagnetic storms, solar wind energy is deposited in Earth’s atmosphere, but only after being
transformed and directed by a number of processes in geospace. The primary focus of the Geospace
Dynamics Constellation reference mission is to reveal how the atmosphere, ionosphere, and magnetosphere
are coupled together as a system and to understand how this system regulates the response of all geospace
to external energy input. Using current and foreseeable technologies, GDC implements a systematic and
robust observational approach to measure all the critical parameters of the system in optimally spaced
orbital planes, thus providing unprecedented coverage in both local time and latitude. Moreover, spacecraft
in the GDC constellation will orbit at relatively low altitudes where both neutral and ionized gases are
strongly coupled through dynamical and chemical processes. The GDC reference mission brings a new
focus to critical scientific questions:
1. How does solar wind/magnetospheric energy energize the ionosphere and thermosphere?
2. How does the IT system respond and ultimately modify how the magnetosphere transmits solar
wind energy to Earth?