SPACE WEATHER

The Importance of My Job

Congratulations, you have been chosen as the Space Weather (SW) officer for this important mission. Your job is to study the radiation impacting Europa from Jupiter. Make sure to notify the Mission Commander if you notice anything that could jeopardize the mission or put the Mission Commander in danger. 

You will need to follow every step on this page, without skipping a single step. If you find at any point that the readings from the spacecraft are not safe, you must inform the crew! 

You will be communicating with other teams using the CHAT and your MICROPHONE.

When using CHAT you will see your messages and directions in Purple. Make sure you use the drop down menu to select the correct team you want to send the message to.  Once you have typed it in the CHAT, make sure to hit Enter so that the team receives it.

When using the MICROPHONE your directions and reading will be in Green .  Unmute your MICROPHONE, read your message and make sure you mute after.

RESEARCH

Follow these directions for researching and analyzing RADIATION on Europa

 

  1. Read the notes from the previous Space Weather officer by clicking on the box labeled NOTES.
    NOTES

    The magnetosphere of Jupiter is caused by the interaction of Jupiter’s magnetic field and solar wind. Extending up to seven million kilometers in the Sun’s direction and almost to the orbit of Saturn in the opposite direction, Jupiter’s magnetosphere is the largest and most powerful of any planetary magnetosphere in the Solar System.

    The action of the magnetosphere traps and accelerates particles, producing intense belts of radiation. The interaction of energetic particles with the surfaces of Jupiter’s largest moons, including Europa, markedly affects their chemical and physical properties. Radiation belts present a significant hazard for spacecraft and potentially to human space travellers. The intense blasts of radiation have the capability of causing complete communication loss.

    2. Answer the RADIATION RESEARCH QUESTIONS below. You may need this information later in the mission. Make sure to write it down on the Notepad provided or your own notes. Click “Submit” when you finish answering the questions.

        RADIATION RESEARCH QUESTIONS

        OPEN RESEARCH QUESTIONS

        Notepad

        RADIATION

        Follow these directions for analyzing potential RADIATION:

        1. Locate the CHAT in your call software and send the following message to “COM” from the drop-down menu.

        The Space Weather team has a message for the Mission Commander. Please send the download code for the radiation map of Europa as soon as possible.

        2. Type the code in the notepad. 

        3. Read the information on the impacts of Jupiter’s radiation on Europa by clicking o the box labeled RADIATION.

          RADIATION

          By studying the material of Europa’s interior, scientists developing future missions hope to learn more about the possible habitability of Europa’s ocean. However, Europa’s surface is bombarded by a constant and intense blast of radiation from Jupiter. This radiation can destroy or alter material transported up to the surface, making it more difficult for scientists to know if it actually represents conditions in Europa’s ocean. Harsh radiation conditions exist across over half of Europa’s surface.

          3. Once the Mission Commander has sent you the download code for Europa’s radiation map, scroll down to the RADIATION DATA LOG and type in the code. Click “Next”.

          7. Analyze the image.You may need this information later in the mission. Make sure to write it down on the Notepad provided or your own notes. Complete the questions below the image then click “Submit”.

           

          RADIATION DATA LOG

          OPEN DATA LOG

          Notepad

          PROBE IMPACT SITE

          Follow these directions for sending the recommending probe impact site and communicating with REM about the determined probe impact site:

          1. Send the following message to “REM” in the CHAT:

          This is Space Weather. Based on research, the recommended probe impact site is ____________________.

          2. After you send the recommended probe impact site, you will need to complete the SPACE WEATHER REPORT for the probe impact site.

          3. Send the following message to “REM” in the CHAT:

           Please send the location you’ve selected as the probe impact site as soon as possible.

          4. Once you’ve received the location of the probe impact site, click on the PROBE IMPACT SITE LOG and answer the questions.You may need this information later in the mission. Make sure to write it down on the Notepad provided or your own notes. Click “Submit”

          PROBE IMPACT SITE DATA LOG

          OPEN DATA LOG

          Notepad

          SPACE WEATHER REPORT

          1. After you have recorded the confirmed probe impact site, complete the SPACE WEATHER REPORT LOG below to inform the Mission Commander of any potential setbacks in the mission.You may need this information later in the mission. Make sure to write it down on the Notepad provided or your own notes. Click “Submit”.

           

          SPACE WEATHER REPORT DATA LOG

          OPEN DATA LOG

          Notepad

          2. Once this is completed, send the following message in the CHAT to the “Flight Director”

          This is Space Weather. I have completed the Space Weather Report.

          3. Unmute your MICROPHONE and read the following message:

          “This is Space Weather. I have completed all my tasks.”

          4. Mute your Microphone and continue on to the next training.

          RADIATION – HOW THE SUN MAKES ENERGY

          The sun’s energy comes from a series of fusion reactions.  Create the proper fusion reactions to produce energy through radiation.  Train at Helios: How the Sun Makes Energy

          EMERGENCY 

          In the event that communication with the Spacecraft starts to fail due to intense radiation exposure, you will need to walk the Mission Commander through fixing the emergency. You will be speaking directly to the Mission Commander, so you must have your microphone enabled. Follow these instructions to begin:

          1. Locate the MICROPHONE button on your call software. 

          2. The MICROPHONE button will have two states: on and off. To test that it works, say the entirety of the following message to Mission Commander:

           EMERGENCY! This is Space Weather to Spacecraft. Do you read me, over?

          3. The Mission Commander may respond if they receive your message. More likely, they will not respond due to the nature of the emergency. You need to proceed with sending the Mission Commander directions to resolve the emergency regardless of receiving a response or not.

          4. Say the following to the Mission Commander:

          EMERGENCY! This is Space Weather. Due to intense radiation exposure, you need to activate the advanced shielding protocol. I repeat: Due to intense radiation exposure, you need to activate the advanced shielding protocol.

          5. Wait a moment to see if the Mission Commander is able to send a message to Mission Control. If you do not hear the Mission Commander, send the following message:

          This is Space Weather to Spacecraft. Do you read me, over?

          6. If the Mission Commander responds, the advance shielding protocol has been activated in order to protect the Spacecraft from additional radiation blasts and the emergency has been resolved. You may resume your regular task cards. If the Mission Commander does not respond, partner with your Flight Director to resolve the communication loss with the Spacecraft.