Solar Mass Ejection Imager (SMEI)

Stephen L. Keil; Richard C. Altrock; Stephen Kahler; Bernard V. Jackson; Andrew Buffington; Pierre Paul Hick; George Michael Simnett; Christopher James Eyles; David F. Webb; Peter Anderson

doi:10.1117/12.259702

25 November 1996 Solar Mass Ejection Imager (SMEI)

Stephen L. Keil, Richard C. Altrock, Stephen Kahler, Bernard V. Jackson, Andrew Buffington, Pierre Paul Hick, George Michael Simnett, Christopher James Eyles, David F. Webb, Peter Anderson

Author Affiliations +

Proceedings Volume 2804, Missions to the Sun; (1996) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.259702
Event: SPIE's 1996 International Symposium on Optical Science, Engineering, and Instrumentation, 1996, Denver, CO, United States

Abstract

The Solar Mass Ejection Imager (SMEI) experiment is designed to detect and measure transient plasma features in the heliosphere, including coronal mass ejections, shock waves, and structures such as streamers which corotate with the Sun. SMEI will provide measurements of the propagation of solar plasma clouds and high-speed streams which can be used to forecast their arrival at Earth from one to three days in advance. The white light photometers on the HELIOS spacecraft demonstrated that visible sunlight scattered from the free electrons of solar ejecta can be sensed in interplanetary space with an electronic camera baffled to remove stray background light. SMEI promises a hundred-fold improvement over the HELIOS data, making possible quantitative studies of mass ejections. SMEI measurements will help predict the rate of energy transfer into the Earth's magnetospheric system. By combining SMEI data with solar, interplanetary and terrestrial data from other space and ground-based instruments, it will be possible to establish quantitative relationships between solar drivers and terrestrial effects. SMEI consists of three cameras, each imaging a 60 degree(s) X 3 degree(s) field of view for a total image size of 180 degree(s) X 3 degree(s). As the satellite orbits the earth, repeated images are used to build up a view of the entire heliosphere.

Citation Download Citation

Stephen L. Keil, Richard C. Altrock, Stephen Kahler, Bernard V. Jackson, Andrew Buffington, Pierre Paul Hick, George Michael Simnett, Christopher James Eyles, David F. Webb, and Peter Anderson "Solar Mass Ejection Imager (SMEI)", Proc. SPIE 2804, Missions to the Sun, (25 November 1996); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.259702

ACCESS THE FULL ARTICLE

INSTITUTIONAL
Select your institution to access the SPIE Digital Library.

SELECT YOUR INSTITUTION

PERSONAL
Sign in with your SPIE account to access your personal subscriptions or to use specific features such as save to my library, sign up for alerts, save searches, etc.

PERSONAL SIGN IN

No SPIE Account? Create one

PURCHASE THIS CONTENT

SUBSCRIBE TO DIGITAL LIBRARY

50 downloads per 1-year subscription

Members: $195

Non-members: $335 ADD TO CART

25 downloads per 1 - year subscription

Members: $145

Non-members: $250 ADD TO CART

PURCHASE SINGLE ARTICLE

Includes PDF, HTML & Video, when available