2000 SPACE SCIENCE VIDEOTAPES |
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Tape Title | Record ID | Date Produced | TRT: |
Synopsis |
| IMAGE SPACECRAFT TAKES FIRST PICTURES OF ELECTRIFIED GAS SURROUNDING EARTH | G00-053 | 05/31/00 | 00:07:48 | The Imager for Magnetosphere-to-Aurora Global Exploration (IMAGE) satellite releases the first pictures. IMAGE studies the global response of the Earth's magnetosphere - the invisible magnetic field surrounding our planet that is strongly influenced by the solar wind. IMAGE uses neutral atom, ultraviolet, and radio imaging techniques.
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TAPE CONTENTS: |
| ITEM (1): FIRST LIGHT: HENA - The High Energy Neutral Atom Imager (HENA) instrument records the development of a storm cloud of energetic particles. Red colors indicate the highest intensity of incoming particles, blue represents the lowest. Looking from the Sun towards the Earth, IMAGE is viewing the Earth on the night side.
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| ITEM (2): FIRST LIGHT: FUV - The Far Ultraviolet Imager instrument records the aurora during a small space storm. Brighter yellow corresponds to brighter auroral light. The view is towards the Earth's night side, and the detailed and highly turbulent region reveals storm activity in the magnetic field surrounding Earth.
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| ITEM (3): FIRST LIGHT: EUV - The Extreme Ultraviolet Imager instrument records sunlight scattered from the Earth's extended atmosphere of helium. The helium atmosphere extends to about 2 - 3 times the size of the Earth. Irregularities at the fringe of the image, such as the upper left, indicate magnetic storm activity. Earth has been superimposed in the first sequence for orientation and scale.
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| ITEM (4): FIRST LIGHT: EUV / AURORA - The Extreme Ultraviolet Imager instrument records the aurora at the peak of a small space storm. Brighter yellow corresponds to brighter auroral light. The view is towards the Earth's night side, and the detailed, highly turbulent region near midnight reveals storm activity in the magnetic field surrounding Earth. Earth has been superimposed in the first sequence for orientation and scale.
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| ITEM (5): IMAGE SPACECRAFT ANIMATION - IMAGE obtains continuous global images of charged particles in the magnetosphere and tracks geomagnetic storms. One storm can launch huge amounts of plasma away from the sun at more than one million miles per hour. When this plasma buffets the Earth's magnetosphere it generates effects strong enough to zap electronics in satellites, drag satellites out of low orbits, and causes power outages here on Earth.
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| ITEM (6): IMAGE AND THE ISTP CONSTELLATION - There already exists a fleet of spacecraft from many nations that have been monitoring space weather for about 8 years as part of the International Solar Terrestrial Physics Program or ISTP. IMAGE joined this fleet bringing the latest in imaging space weather techniques, which provide a global weather map of space weather around the Earth.
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| ITEM (7): SUN / MAGNETOSPHERE / EARTH ANIMATION - The upper atmosphere of the Sun is constantly flowing into space. This flow or solar wind moves a million miles per hour or more. The magnetosphere normally provides the Earth with a safe harbor from the solar wind.
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| ITEM (8): CORONAL MASS EJECTION - Animation of coronal mass ejection and impact on Earth's magnetic field.
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| ITEM (9): RPI COMPARISON ANIMATION - The Radio Plasma Imager instrument is the largest structure in space with extentions that reach longer than the Empire State Building.
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| ITEM (10): SPINNING IMAGE IN THE CLEANROOM "B"-ROLL - The spin test of IMAGE in the cleanroom prior to launch.
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| ITEM (11): IMAGE LAUNCH - - The Imager for Magnetopause-to-Aurora Global Exploration (IMAGE) mission spacecraft is in orbit. The flawless, on-schedule launch took place at 12:34 p.m. Pacific Time on March 25 from Vandenberg Air Force Base, CA, aboard a Delta II rocket. Approximately 55 minutes after launch, the spacecraft entered its elliptical polar orbit.
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