RAPID: Science Mission Planning, On-orbit Commissioning and Science Activation of the Ionosphere Thermosphere Scanning Photometer for Ion-Neutral Studies (IT-SPINS) Cubesat Mission

The Ionosphere Thermosphere Scanning Photometer for Ion-Neutral Studies (IT-SPINS) cubesat will provide novel observations of the composition of Earth’s ionosphere, whose variations influence space weather. This RAPID award will support significant mission planning tasks to prepare the recently launched satellite, developed under previous NSF awards, to achieve its scientific goals.

Project tasks include identifying optimal science operation modes, commissioning and checking out the satellite upon deployment to its desired orbit, and verifying science operations in order to get the longest possible science mission duration. These are highly time sensitive tasks, necessitating a RAPID grant award. Undergraduate and graduate students at Montana State University will continue to be integral participants in the project.

Additionally, students and a faculty member from the Salish Kootenai College (a tribal land-grant community college) will participate in mission planning and satellite operations, advancing diversity in STEM research and education.

The primary science goal for the IT-SPINS cubesat investigation is to understand the behavior of the topside transition region of the ionosphere, the boundary wherein oxygen ions in the ionosphere interact with low mass constituents of the Earth’s upper atmosphere through charge exchange collisions. IT-SPINS will profile the oxygen ion distribution in the topside ionosphere from low Earth orbit through remote sensing of 135.6nm emissions from the nighttime ionosphere.

Completed under challenging circumstances during the pandemic, the cubesat was launched in February 2021 and is in an interim parking orbit on the International Space Station, from where it will be deployed in May 2021 to its unique orbit for science investigations. This RAPID project capitalizes on previous NSF investments by commissioning the IT-SPINS cubesat and performing science operations testing and evaluation.

Owing to the very limited time on orbit prior to reentry of the satellite, it is prudent to perform these tasks before deployment into the desired orbit (for planning and simulations) and as quickly as practical after deployment (for operations evaluations) in order to get the longest possible science mission duration. The scientific broader impact of the mission will be to improve space weather prediction related to dynamic processes in Earth’s ionosphere by increasing understanding of the drivers for spatial and temporal variations in the mass species distribution in the near-Earth plasma environment.

By integrating students, including tribal college students, into all aspects of the mission planning, satellite testing, and science operations, this project will broaden participation in space physics and space weather.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.