INSTRUMENT OVERVIEW
The magnetic field experiment carried onboard the Voyager 1 and 2 missions
consists of dual low field (LFM) and high field magnetometer (HFM) systems.
The dual systems provide greater reliability and, in the case of the LFMs,
permit the separation of spacecraft magnetic fields from the ambient fields.
Additional reliability is achieved through electronic redundancy. The wide
dynamic ranges of +/- 0.5 G for the LFMs and +/- 20 G for the HFMs, low
quantization uncertainty of +/- 0.002 nT in the most sensitive +/- 8 nT
LFM range, low sensor RMS noise level of 0.006 nT, and use of data compaction
schemes to optimize the experiment information rate all combine to permit
the study of a broad spectrum of phenomena during the mission. Objectives
include the study of planetary fields at Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus and Neptune;
satellites of these planets; solar wind and satellite interactions with
planetary fields; and the large-scale structure and microscale characteristics
of the interplanetary magnetic field. The interstellar field may also be
measured.
Space Science Reviews, 21 (1977) 235-257, Magnetic Field Experiment for
Voyagers 1 and 2, K. W. Behannon, M. H. Acuna, L. F. Burlaga, R. P. Lepping,
N. F. Ness, and F. M. Neubauer.
