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Systematic Uncertainties in Plasma Parameters Reported by the Fast Plasma Investigation on NASA's Magnetospheric Multiscale Mission.

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Title: Systematic Uncertainties in Plasma Parameters Reported by the Fast Plasma Investigation on NASA's Magnetospheric Multiscale Mission.
Authors: Gershman, Daniel J.1 daniel.j.gershman@nasa.gov, Dorelli, John C.1, Avanov, Levon A.1,2, Gliese, Ulrik1,3, Barrie, Alexander1,4, Schiff, Conrad1, Da Silva, Daniel E.1,5, Paterson, William R.1, Giles, Barbara L.1, Pollock, Craig J.6
Source: Journal of Geophysical Research. Space Physics. Dec2019, Vol. 124 Issue 12, p10345-10359. 15p.
Subject Terms: Magnetosphere, Charged particle accelerators, Phase space, High-density plasmas
Company/Entity: United States. National Aeronautics & Space Administration
Abstract: Systematic uncertainties in the conversion of measured counts to phase space density by charged particle instrumentation result in errors in reported plasma moments (e.g., density, velocity, and temperature). Unlike previous particle instrumentation that relied on a spacecraft spin to sample all look‐directions, the Fast Plasma Investigation (FPI) suite on NASA's Magnetospheric Multiscale mission nearly simultaneously images the full sky. This configuration results in unprecedented time resolution but also introduces the possibility of spin tones in plasma moments, in particular electron bulk velocity. Here we characterize the effect of systematic linear errors of corrected FPI phase space densities on its reported plasma moments. We find that the flat‐fielding correction factors (i.e., scale factor errors) of FPI are typically accurate to within a few percent but can nonetheless result in significant spin tones in magnetospheric plasmas. Key Points: The flat‐field correction factors for the Fast Plasma Investigation suite on MMS are typically accurate to within a few percentBackground errors can be corrected for at the moment level if appropriate models are availableImperfect flat‐field correction factors result in systematic biases in plasma moments [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
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Abstract:Systematic uncertainties in the conversion of measured counts to phase space density by charged particle instrumentation result in errors in reported plasma moments (e.g., density, velocity, and temperature). Unlike previous particle instrumentation that relied on a spacecraft spin to sample all look‐directions, the Fast Plasma Investigation (FPI) suite on NASA's Magnetospheric Multiscale mission nearly simultaneously images the full sky. This configuration results in unprecedented time resolution but also introduces the possibility of spin tones in plasma moments, in particular electron bulk velocity. Here we characterize the effect of systematic linear errors of corrected FPI phase space densities on its reported plasma moments. We find that the flat‐fielding correction factors (i.e., scale factor errors) of FPI are typically accurate to within a few percent but can nonetheless result in significant spin tones in magnetospheric plasmas. Key Points: The flat‐field correction factors for the Fast Plasma Investigation suite on MMS are typically accurate to within a few percentBackground errors can be corrected for at the moment level if appropriate models are availableImperfect flat‐field correction factors result in systematic biases in plasma moments [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
ISSN:21699380
DOI:10.1029/2019JA026980