HR: 10:20h
AN: SH41C-01 INVITED     [PDF]
TI: The Solar Mass Ejection Imager (SMEI) and Related Remote-Sensing Heliospheric Observations
AU: * Radick, R
EM: radick@nso.edu
AF: AFRL/VSBXS, National Solar Observatory, Sunspot, NM 88349 United States
AU: Johnston, J
EM: Janet.Johnston@hanscom.af.mil
AF: AFRL/VSBXS, 29 Randolph Road, Hanscom AFB, MA 01731-3160 United States
AU: Mozer, J
EM: mozer@nso.edu
AF: AFRL/VSBXS, National Solar Observatory, Sunspot, NM 88349 United States
AB: The Solar Mass Ejection Imager (SMEI) is a proof-of-concept instrument intended to demonstrate the feasibility of space-based heliospheric imaging for detecting and tracking coronal mass ejections (CMEs) and other dense structures in the solar wind. SMEI is a joint effort of the Air Force Research Laboratory, the University of Birmingham (UK), the University of California at San Diego, Rutherford Appleton Laboratory (UK), and Boston College, funded by the AF, NASA and the University of Birmingham. SMEI was launched aboard the DoD Coriolis spacecraft on January 6, 2003, and began returning images in early February. Since launch, the SMEI team has invested considerable effort toward producing photometric all-sky maps of heliospheric brightness from the SMEI data. For the purpose of providing input for space weather forecasting, the SMEI team intends to start making these maps available to the scientific community and the public in near real time. Early quick-look, subtraction sky maps from SMEI's cameras demonstrate that SMEI can detect CMEs and image their structure as they move outward from the Sun, in some cases beyond 1 AU. This special session will include both presentations of initial SMEI results, and related papers on present and future remote sensing heliospheric observations.
DE: 2100 INTERPLANETARY PHYSICS
DE: 2700 MAGNETOSPHERIC PHYSICS
DE: 7500 SOLAR PHYSICS, ASTROPHYSICS, AND ASTRONOMY
DE: 7513 Coronal mass ejections
SC: SPA - Solar and Heliospheric Physics [SH]
MN: 2003 Fall Meeting