地球空间辐射带及效应探测小卫星科学目标.ppt

The modern space era with artificial satellites sent for direct measurements of the near-Earth space began in the early 1960’s. The years 1957-8 were designated as the International Geophysical Year (IGY), and both the USA and the Soviet Union (Russia) prepared to launch at that time artificial satellites, the first ever. Russia successfully orbited its first Sputnik (satellite) on October 4, 1957, but the official US entry, Vanguard, failed at launch. The US then quickly assembled an alternative rocket carrying a different satellite, the small Explorer 1 built by James Van Allen and his team at the University of Iowa. It was launched on 31 January, 1958. Explorer 1 carried only one instrument, a small detector of energetic particles, a Geiger counter designed to observe cosmic rays (ions of very high energy and unknown origin, arriving at Earth from distant space--see later section). The experiment worked quite well at low altitudes, but at the top of the orbit no particles at all were counted. Explorer 3, which followed two months later, collected on tape a continuous record of data, which revealed that the zero counts actually represented a very high level of radiation. So many energetic particles hit the counter at the higher altitudes, that its mode of operation was overwhelmed and it fell silent. Not only was a radiation belt present at all times, it was remarkably intense. The modern space era with artificial satellites sent for direct measurements of the near-Earth space began in the early 1960’s. The years 1957-8 were designated as the International Geophysical Year (IGY), and both the USA and the Soviet Union (Russia) prepared to launch at that time artificial satellites, the first ever. Russia successfully orbited its first Sputnik (satellite) on October 4, 1957, but the official US entry, Vanguard, failed at launch. The US then quickly assembled an alternative rocket carrying a different satellite, the small Explorer 1 built by James Van Allen and his