This is a short-term (less than one-year) effort to conduct initial operations and data analysis for the original FIREBIRD mission and to construct a second set of FIREBIRD cubesats to be launched in August 2014.
The Focused Investigations of Relativistic Electron Burst Intensity, Range, and Dynamics (FIREBIRD) is a space weather NSF CubeSat project that was selected for funding through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act in 2009. It is CubeSat mission consisting of two identical 1.5U satellites that will measure relativistic electron precipitation with unprecedented temporal resolution in a high inclination low-Earth orbit to resolve the spatial scale size and energy dependence of electron microbursts from the Van Allen radiation belts. FIREBIRD is a collaborative effort between the University of New Hampshire (UNH) and Montana State University (MSU) and is scheduled for launch in October 2013 as a secondary payload under NASA's Educational Launch of Nanosatellites program. Support for initial mission operations and science analysis to secure the immediate and full success for FIREBIRD as well as the opportunity to develop an identical pair of spacecraft (FIREBIRD II) at a fraction of the cost of the original FIREBIRD award while the present workforce and expertise is in place are the subject of this RAPID proposal.
The so-called "killer" electrons in the radiation belt can produce deep dielectric discharging in spacecraft components, a significant concern for satellite health and operations. Microbursts are thought to be a significant loss mechanism for relativistic electrons but remain poorly understood, thus rendering space weather predictive models of Earth's radiation belts incomplete. The FIREBIRD project is design to address important questions about the physical process that generates relativistic microbursts. FIREBIRD II providing an additional pair of satellites that collect microburst observations at the same time greatly enhances the capability to assess the global impact of microbursts.
In addition to addressing fundamental space physics research and space weather applications, the FIREBIRD and FIREBIRD II projects also contribute to the training and education of a diverse population of university students. Students at MSU and UNH will have major responsibility for the design and implementation of the instruments and the spacecraft while at the same time being mentored by professionals in each expert area. The impact is that the fruits of this investigation will continue strongly for years, if not decades, as the twenty or more students who "cut their teeth" on this science mission become practicing scientists and engineers.
