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Atlas 5 Rocket Carrying Radiation Belt Storm Probes
Credit: United Launch Alliance/Pat Corkery
An unmanned United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket is readied to launch NASA's twin Radiation Belt Storm Probes mission on Aug. 24, 2012, from Space Launch Complex 41 at the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.
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Radiation Belt Storm Probes: Artist's View
Credit: JHU/APL, NASA
The identical Radiation Belt Storm Probes will follow similar orbits that will take them through both the inner and outer radiation belts. The highly elliptical orbits range from a minimum altitude of approximately 373 miles (600 kilometers) to a maximum altitude of approximately 23,000 miles (37,000 kilometers).
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Simulated Radiation Belts
Credit: NASA
In this 1966 photo, a plasma thruster at NASA's Lewis Research Center simulates Van Allen Belts, rings of radiation around the Earth. The Cleveland, Ohio, center is now John H. Glenn Research Center.
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United Launch Alliance Atlas 5
Credit: Pat Corkery, United Launch Alliance
A United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket stands ready for launch at Space Launch Complex-41 with NASA’s Radiation Belt Storm Probes (RBSP) satellite. Launch is set for Friday, Aug. 24 at 4:07 a.m. EDT.
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How the Radiation Belt Storm Probes Work (Infographic)
Credit: Karl Tate/SPACE.com
NASA's Radiation Storm Belt Probes mission will study Earth's radiation belts, the Van Allen Belts, like never before. See how they will work in this SPACE.com infographic.
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United Launch Alliance Atlas 5
Credit: Pat Corkery, United Launch Alliance
A United Launch Alliance Atlas 5 rocket stands ready for launch at Space Launch Complex-41 with NASA’s Radiation Belt Storm Probes (RBSP) satellite. Launch is set for Friday, Aug. 24 at 4:07 a.m. EDT.
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Atlas 5 Payload
Credit: NASA/Dimitri Gerondidakis
The Atlas 5 payload fairing containing the RBSP spacecraft is lifted at Space Launch Complex-41, where the booster awaits.
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Van Allen Belts
Credit: NASA/T. Benesch, J. Carns
Two giant donuts of charged particles called the Van Allen Belts surround Earth. These radiation belts will be explored by NASA's twin Radiation Belt Storm Probes mission.
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Radiation Belt Storm Astrotech
Credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett
Technicians at the Astrotech payload processing facility prepare the RBSP spacecraft for encapsulation in the payload fairing.
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Spacecraft A
Credit: NASA/Charisse Nahser
Spacecraft A, one of two Radiation Belt Storm Probes, is checked for proper balance during a spin test.
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RBSP Team Group Portrait
Credit: RB Storm Probes (via Twitter as @RBStormProbes)
The stacked RBSP spacecraft were encapsulated on August 6, 2012. The RBSP team posed for a final group photo.
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Artist's Rendition of Radiation Belt Storm Probes
Credit: NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center
An artist's rendition of what the two Radiation Belt Storm Probe spacecraft will look like in space.
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Bolden, Cabana View Radiation Belt Storm Probes
Credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett
Inside the Astrotech payload processing facility near NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida, NASA Administrator Charlie Bolden, third from left, and Kennedy Space Center Director Bob Cabana, behind Bolden, tour the facility and view the Radiation Belt Storm Probes, or RBSP, spacecraft. Photo released August 2, 2012.
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Radiation Belt Diagram
Credit: JHU/APL, NASA
Artist's rendering showing two spacecraft representing the Radiation Belt Storm Probes that will study the sun and its effects on Earth.
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Geospace Storms
Credit: NASA
The source of space weather, our dynamic sun, shown with a coronal mass ejection that will interact with the terrestrial magnetosphere producing geospace storms.
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RBSP Spacecraft Stacked
Credit: RB Storm Probes (via Twitter as @RBStormProbes)
NASA's twin RBSP spacecraft were stacked on July 27, 2012, inside the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, FL.
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Migration of the Radiation Belt
Credit: NASA/Shing Fung, Rob Kilgore
The migration of the radiation-belt safe zone occurs because the optimum wave-particle interaction region responsible for particle losses moves from its solar-minimum location (A) to a corresponding location (B) during solar maximum. The blue (dashed) and red (dotted) circles around Earth indicate schematically the altitudes of the same ionospheric density during a solar minimum and a solar maximum, respectively.
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RBSP Spacecraft A on RBSP B
Credit: NASA/Jim Grossmann
Inside the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, Fla. near NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, the Radiation Belt Storm Probes, or RBSP, spacecraft A has been placed atop RBSP B. Image released July 27, 2012.
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Crane Positioning Radiation Belt Storm Probes
Credit: NASA/Jim Grossmann
Inside the Astrotech payload processing facility in Titusville, Fla. near NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, technicians use a crane to position the Radiation Belt Storm Probes, or RBSP, spacecraft A atop RBSP B. Image released July 27, 2012.
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RBSP Propellant Loading
Credit: RB Storm Probes (via Twitter as @RBStormProbes)
APL and Boeing teams loaded propellant into both of NASA's RBSP spacecraft at Astrotech on July 25, 2012.
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Orbit of IMAGE Satellite
Credit: NASA/Tom Bridgman
This is a still image from a data-based visualization showing the Van Allen Belts pulsing from solar particles over ten days. Purple and white areas represent the radiation belts. The gap that appears between the inner and outer belts shows a cleared-out safe zone for satellites. The red ring represents the orbit of the IMAGE (Imager for Magnetopause to Aurora Global Exploration) satellite, which dips into the safe zone every few days.
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Centaur Stage Mating with Atlas 5 Rocket
Credit: NASA/Jim Grossmann
At Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla., United Launch Alliance technicians support the lifting operation as the Centaur stage is prepared for mating with the Atlas V rocket, which will launch the Radiation Belt Storm Probes, or RBSP, spacecraft. Image released July 16, 2012.
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Centaur Stage for RBSP Lifted
Credit: NASA/Jim Grossmann
At Space Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Fla., the Centaur stage is being lifted for mating with the Atlas V rocket, which will launch the Radiation Belt Storm Probes, or RBSP, spacecraft. Image released July 16, 2012.
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RBSP Spacecraft B's Spin
Credit: RB Storm Probes (via Twitter as @RBStormProbes)
The RBSP team observes spacecraft B's 55 revolution per minute (RPM) spin balance testing. Image tweeted July 10, 2012.
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Twin RBSP Spacecraft Arrive at KSC
Credit: JHU/APL
NASA's twin Radiation Belt Storm Probe spacecraft are shown here in their protective shipping containers as they are unloaded from a United States Air Force C-17 at Kennedy Space Center, Fla. on the morning of May 1, 2012. RBSP is scheduled to begin its mission of exploration of Earth's Van Allen Radiation Belts and the extremes of space weather after launch, scheduled for August 23, 2012.
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Twin RBSP Spacecraft Unloading
Credit: JHU/APL
NASA's twin Radiation Belt Storm Probe spacecraft are shown here in their protective shipping containers as they are unloaded from a United States Air Force C-17 at Kennedy Space Center, Fla. on the morning of May 1, 2012. RBSP is scheduled to begin its mission of exploration of Earth's Van Allen Radiation Belts and the extremes of space weather after launch, scheduled for August 23, 2012.
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Twin RBSP Spacecraft Arrive at KSC — Tail View
Credit: JHU/APL
NASA's twin Radiation Belt Storm Probe spacecraft are shown here in their protective shipping containers as they are unloaded from a United States Air Force C-17 at Kennedy Space Center, Fla. on the morning of May 1, 2012. RBSP is scheduled to begin its mission of exploration of Earth's Van Allen Radiation Belts and the extremes of space weather after launch, scheduled for August 23, 2012.
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RBSP Separation
Credit: JHU/APL, NASA
This artist rendering shows the twin Radiation Belt Storm Probes as they will appear shortly after they have separated from their launch vehicle, before they have moved apart from each other and deployed their solar panels and booms.
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Human Protection
Credit: NASA
In Earth orbit and in interplanetary space, humans are directly exposed to space weather and its potentially dangerous impact.
