Interstellar Mapping and Acceleration Probe
Planned NASA heliophysics mission / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Dear Wikiwand AI, let's keep it short by simply answering these key questions:
Can you list the top facts and stats about Interstellar Mapping and Acceleration Probe?
Summarize this article for a 10 year old
The Interstellar Mapping and Acceleration Probe (IMAP) is a heliophysics mission that will simultaneously investigate two important and coupled science topics in the heliosphere: the acceleration of energetic particles and interaction of the solar wind with the local interstellar medium. These science topics are coupled because particles accelerated in the inner heliosphere play crucial roles in the outer heliospheric interaction. In 2018, NASA selected a team led by David J. McComas of Princeton University to implement the mission, which is currently planned to launch in late April to late May 2025.[4][5] IMAP will be a Sun-tracking spin-stabilized satellite in orbit about the Sun–Earth L1 Lagrange point with a science payload of ten instruments. IMAP will also continuously broadcast real-time in-situ data that can be used for space weather prediction.
Names | IMAP |
---|---|
Mission type | Heliosphere research |
Operator | Applied Physics Laboratory |
Website | https://imap.princeton.edu/ |
Mission duration | 3 years (planned)[1] |
Spacecraft properties | |
Manufacturer | Applied Physics Laboratory |
Start of mission | |
Launch date | 1 May 2025 (planned) [2] |
Rocket | Falcon 9 Block 5[3] |
Launch site | CCSFS, LC-40 |
Contractor | SpaceX |
Orbital parameters | |
Reference system | Heliocentric orbit |
Regime | Halo orbit (L1) |
Instruments | |
10 instruments | |
It is the fifth mission selected in the Solar Terrestrial Probes program, after TIMED, Hinode, STEREO and MMS.[5]