The LappiSat Space Program - Expanding Observatory Quality Geophysical Measurements to Orbits

• Main Authors: Envall, Jouni, Binios, Alexandros, Tanskanen, Eija, Biström, Juha
• Format: Text
• Language: unknown
• Published: DigitalCommons@USU 2021
• Subjects: Arctic; Sodankylä; Svalbard; Antarc*; Antarctica; Lapland; Lappi
• Online Access: https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/smallsat/2021/all2021/226; https://digitalcommons.usu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=5100&context=smallsat

For more than 100 years, the Sodankylä Geophysical Observatory (SGO) has produced a continuous stream of measured data and conducted top-tier research on various topics on space and geophysics. The main research areas include magnetic disturbances, geomagnetic activity, ionospheric composition and disturbances, radio science, seismic activity, and cosmic rays. The observatory’s location in Finnish Lapland (Lappi in Finnish), 120 kilometers north of the Arctic Circle, has made it an ideal site for auroral studies and related geophysical research. It has been a time-honored tradition at SGO to design, develop and construct the observatory's most critical measurement instruments in-house. SGO’s instrument network includes over 70 instruments in 27 locations–reaching from Svalbard to Antarctica. The next step in further enhancing SGO's measurement capabilities is to expand its instrument network to low Earth orbits. The LappiSat space program aims at establishing a space technology center in Sodankylä, Finland. As the center's first assignment, the first satellite LappiSat-1 shall be built together with the required ground infrastructure. The LappiSat-1 will carry multiple in-house built geophysical instruments, including auroral imagers, an auroral photometer, and a CubeSat compatible scientific grade magnetometer. The optical and system design of the imagers (i.e. auroral cameras) are optimized for auroral imaging, providing enough spatial resolution and sensitivity for low intensities to enable meaningful scientific observations of the shape and location of the auroral oval. Further information of the polarlights is obtained with the on-board photometer, designed to take narrow-band measurements at the most significant emission wavelengths of the aurorae. Simultaneous fluctuations in the geomagnetic field are recorded with the on-board magnetometer CubeMag. In addition to the instruments required to complete its scientific mission, the LappiSat-1 is expected to contain various features that are tested for future missions. These may include propulsion (also used for hastened re-entry of LappiSat-1), partial radiation shielding and use of radiation-hardened components, and telecommunication links for fast communication. The missions following LappiSat-1 are intended to reach orbits past LEO –with the subsequent goal being the Moon and beyond.