PDS_VERSION_ID = PDS3
LABEL_REVISION_NOTE = "
2006-07-08 SOC:Carcich Initial version;
2008-08-25 SOC:Carcich Changed MISSION_DESC spacing and
indentation per PDS Standards Reference
recommendations.
Edited this revision note.
2014-10-24 SOC:Carcich Minor typo fixes
2014-10-24 SOC:Carcich Added Plutonian TARGT_NAMEs
2016-04-09 SOC:Finley Updated for Pluto Encounter
2016-10-31 SOC:All Updated Mission Stop Date; added info about
KBO Extended Mission (KEM); added Summary, many general fixes from
2016-05 review; many LEISA fixes, include better OBJECT descriptions
under data;
2017-02-15 SOC:All PDS P2 lien resolution
2017-04-30 SOC:All Updates to mission phases.
"
RECORD_TYPE = STREAM
OBJECT = MISSION
MISSION_NAME = "NEW HORIZONS"
OBJECT = MISSION_INFORMATION
MISSION_START_DATE = 2006-01-19
MISSION_STOP_DATE = 2021-09-30
MISSION_ALIAS_NAME = "NH"
MISSION_DESC = "
This material has been adapted from the New Horizons web site. The mission
stop date is the current stop date of the KBO Extended Mission (KEM).
Summary
=======
Launch: January 19, 2006
Launch Vehicle: Atlas V 551 first stage; Centaur second stage;
STAR 48B solid rocket third stage
Location: Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida
Trajectory: To Pluto and the Kuiper Belt via Jupiter Gravity
Assist
Mission Overview
================
The primary science goals of the NEW HORIZONS mission are to
characterize the global geology and morphology of Pluto and Charon, to
map the surface composition of Pluto and Charon, and to characterize
the neutral atmosphere of Pluto and its escape rate (NASA AO, 2001
[NASAAO2001]; Stern & Spencer, 2004 [STERN&SPENCER2004A]).
Mission Design
==============
The New Horizons spacecraft trajectory was designed to have as early
an arrival time at Pluto as practicable.
There are two reasons why the New Horizons science team wanted to
reach Pluto and Charon quickly. The first has to do with the Pluto
atmosphere: Since 1989, Pluto has been moving farther from the Sun,
getting less heat every year [LUNINEETAL1995]. As Pluto gets colder
scientists expect its atmosphere will freeze out, so the team wanted
to arrive while there is a chance to see a thicker atmosphere.
The second reason is to map as much of Pluto and Charon as possible.
As New Horizons approaches and flies by the Pluto system, parts of
Pluto or Charon will be in constant darkness, and, the later the
flyby, the more of Pluto and Charon that will be unlit.
In addition, the trajectory was designed to enable all of the science
goals, including Solar and Earth occultations by Pluto and Charon.
Prime Opportunity: Jupiter
---------------------------
By launching in January 2006, New Horizons took advantage of a
gravity assist from Jupiter. In February 2007, New Horizons passed
through the Jupiter system at about 80,000 kmph, ending up on a path
that gets it to Pluto on July 14, 2015.
Science Opportunities at Jupiter included meteorology, aurora
studies, magnetospheric sampling, and dust sampling and ultraviolet
mapping of the torus around Io. Surface mapping, compositional
mapping and atmospheric studies of the Jovian moons were possible,
as was a close encounter with a small Jovian satellite.
Cruise from Jupiter to Pluto
----------------------------
During the PLUTOCRUISE mission phase from Jupiter to Pluto, the
mission team monitored the health of the spacecraft while planning
and practicing for the encounter with Pluto and Charon. At the same
time, observers used telescopes on Earth and in Earth orbit to
search for Kuiper Belt Objects (KBOs) the spacecraft can fly by
after Pluto and Charon (as part of an extended mission). The KBOs
are ancient, icy bodies that orbit beyond Neptune.
Closing In: Pluto
------------------
The cameras on New Horizons started taking data on Pluto and Charon
months before the spacecraft arrived. Pluto and Charon first
appeared as unresolved bright dots, but the view of the planet and
its largest moon grew as the encounter date approached. About three
months from the closest approach - when Pluto and Charon were about
105 million kilometers away - the cameras on the spacecraft made the
first maps. For those three months, the mission team took images and
spectral measurements.
Pluto and Charon each rotate once every 6.4 Earth days. For the last
three Pluto days before encounter (21 Earth days), the team compiled
maps and gathered spectral measurements of Pluto and Charon every
half-day. The team then compared these maps to look for changes over
a Pluto day, at a scale of about 48 kilometers.
The Encounter
-------------
The busiest part of the Pluto-Charon flyby lasted a full Earth day,
from a half-day before closest approach to a half-day after. On the
way in, the spacecraft looked for ultraviolet emission from the
Pluto atmosphere and made the best global maps of Pluto and Charon
in green, blue, red and a special wavelength detector that is
sensitive to methane frost on the surface. It also made spectral
maps in the near-infrared, telling the science team about the Pluto
and Charon surface compositions and locations and temperatures of
these materials.
The spacecraft closest approaches were 13,674 kilometers* from the
center of Pluto at 14-JUL-2015 11:48:28.771 UTC (+/-0.6s or +/-8km
time-of-flight; +/-5km cross-track) and 29,428 kilometers* from the
center of Charon at 14-JUL-2015 12:02:22.072 UTC. During the
half-hour when the spacecraft was closest to Pluto or its largest
moon, it took close-up images in both visible and near-infrared
wavelengths. The best images of Pluto depict surface features as
small as about 60 meters across.
Even after the spacecraft passed Pluto and its moons, its work was
far from done. Looking back at the mostly dark side of Pluto or
Charon was the best way to spot haze in the atmosphere, to look for
rings, and to determine whether their surfaces are smooth or rough.
Also, the spacecraft flew through the shadows cast by Pluto and
Charon. As it looked back at the Sun and Earth, it measured the
light from the Sun and the radio waves from transmitters on Earth.
A unique time to measure the atmosphere occurred when the spacecraft
measured those signals as the Sun and Earth set behind Pluto and
Charon and then rose again on the other side.
* Flyby distances are based on the New Horizons SPICE data set circa
October, 2016; N.B. the values in this description may not be
updated in future deliveries.
Calibration Campaign
--------------------
The year following Encounter, in July 2016, a Calibration Campaign
was conducted with calibration activities for each instrument,
providing performance data for the analysis of data from the
Encounter.
Extended mission
----------------
In June, 2016, based on the 2016 Planetary Mission Senior Review
Panel report, NASA directed the New Horizons extended mission to
plan for continued operations through fiscal year 2021. The New
Horizons extended mission is to fly to a KBO known as 2014 MU69.
The spacecraft's planned rendezvous and flyby is Jan 1, 2019.
Mission Phases
==============
Summary of mission phases
-------------------------
Mission phases provide convenient handles and approximate time
boundaries to
1) partition the data into very broad categories of mission activity
2) provide approximate time boundaries for PDS archive data sets
The mission is continuous, so the boundaries are very soft i.e. in
an operational sense they do not exist in a noticeable way.
That being the case, the user should not expect the actual range of
times covered by data in this data set to exactly agree with the
boundaries of the corresponding mission phase described below; the
data set time range may be far less or it may overlap the
boundaries. This is intentional and will not be changed.
For example, during the New Horizons mission it was decided to
deliver data sets for the first three years of the 7.5-year Pluto
Cruise mission phase before that mission phase was complete. As
such, the time range of those data sets was from 2007 until mid- to
late-2010, while the mission phase described below extends through
the end of 2014. The intention was to deliver the balance of the
Pluto Cruise at a later date. Once all Pluto Cruise data are
delivered this paragraph will become obsolete; nonetheless this
paragraph may be left in place as an example of the intentional
flexibility of the boundaries between the mission phases defined in
the dates below.
Full MISSION_PHASE_NAME,
Short name Start(1,3) Stop(2,3) plus optional Description
---------- ---------- --------- -------------------------
LAUNCH 2006-01-19 2006-12-31 POST-LAUNCH CHECKOUT
JUPITER 2007-01-01 2007-06-26 JUPITER ENCOUNTER
PLUTOCRUISE 2007-06-27 2015-01-15 PLUTO CRUISE,
Jupiter-Pluto/Charon
Interplanetary Cruise
PLUTO 2015-01-15 2016-10-26 PLUTO ENCOUNTER,
Pluto mission phase,
Pluto/Charon approach,
flyby, post-encounter
KEMCRUISE1 2016-10-26 TBD KEM CRUISE1,
KBO1 CRUISE,
Pluto-KBO1 Cruise,
Kuiper belt Extended
Mission (KEM) first
cruise (4)
KEM1 TBD TBD KEM1 ENCOUNTER,
KBO1 ENCOUNTER,
KBO1 approach, flyby,
post-encounter (4)
Notes:
1 Start at 00:00:00 UTC on the spacecraft that day
2 End before 00:00:00 UTC on the spacecraft next day
3 Start and end dates are not exact and identical for all
instruments; some instruments take single observations over several
days which span these mission phase boundaries.
4 These mission phase dates and/or designations are still under
consideration and will most likely change in future versions of this
mission catalog.
The Voyage
----------
Post-Launch Checkout
--------------------
Short phase name (in DATA_SET_ID; DSID): LAUNCH
Formal mission phase name: POST-LAUNCH CHECKOUT
Mission Phase Start Time - 2006-01-19
Mission Phase Stop Time - 2006-12-31
This phase includes spacecraft and instrument checkouts,
instrument calibrations, trajectory correction maneuvers, and
rehearsals for the Jupiter encounter.
Jupiter Encounter
-----------------
Short phase name (in DSID): JUPITER
Formal mission phase name: JUPITER ENCOUNTER
Mission Phase Start Time - 2007-01-01
Mission Phase Stop Time - 2007-06-26
Closest approach occurred on Feb. 28, 2007. Moving about 21
kilometers per second, New Horizons flew 3 to 4 times closer to
Jupiter than the Cassini spacecraft, coming within 32 Jupiter
radii of Jupiter.
Pluto Cruise
------------
Short phase name (in DSID): PLUTOCRUISE
Formal mission phase name: PLUTO CRUISE
Mission Phase Start Time - 2007-06-27
Mission Phase Stop Time - 2015-01-15
Activities during the approximately 8-year PLUTOCRUISE mission
phase to Pluto include annual spacecraft and instrument checkouts
(Annual CheckOuts; ACOs), trajectory corrections, instrument
calibrations and Pluto encounter rehearsals.
Pluto-Charon Encounter
----------------------
Short phase name (in DSID): PLUTO
Formal mission phase name: PLUTO ENCOUNTER
Mission Phase Start Time - 2015-01-15
Mission Phase Stop Time - 2016-10-26
The Pluto-Charon Encounter phase is broken down into several
general sub-phases and/or designation conventions that may be
found in various documents throughout the data sets. The overlaps
between these designations is intentional and indicate the loose
nature of these assignments.
Approach:
Mission Sub-phase Start Time - 2015-01-15
Mission Sub-phase Stop Time - 2015-07-14
Ten weeks before encounter, image resolution exceeded that of
the best Hubble Space Telescope images. Four weeks before
encounter, daily studies began. New Horizon acquired maps and
spectra throughout this period.
Three additional APproach (AP) conventions, AP1, AP2 and AP3,
were also in common use, starting on 2015-01-15, 2015-04-05 and
2015-06-23, respectively.
CORE:
Mission Sub-phase Start Time - 2015-07-07
Mission Sub-phase Stop Time - 2015-07-16
This phase comprises all activities in the CORE command sequence
load 15188, from seven days before through two days past the
Near Encounter with Pluto (NEP; see below). The CORE subphase
completely overlaps the NEP designation.
Near Encounter with Pluto (NEP, or Flyby; also Near Encounter
Phase):
Mission Sub-phase Start Time - 2015-07-14
Mission Sub-phase Stop Time - 2015-07-14
NEP is not a formal phase, but is used as a designation commonly
enough that it is included here.
Activities included taking the highest resolution visible and
spectral imaging at closest approach to Pluto and Charon. The
time near occultations (Pluto/Sun, Pluto/Earth, Charon/Sun and
Charon/Earth) were used for atmospheric studies.
The Time of Closest Approach to Pluto was 14-JUL-2015
11:48:28.771 UTC. The flyby speed was 13.8km/s; the miss
distance was 13,674km from the modeled center of Pluto; the
1-sigma uncertainties in that flyby were +/- 0.6s in Time Of
Flight (8km along-track), and +/-3.5km cross-track. Refer to
the NH SPICE data set NH-J/P/SS-SPICE-6-V1.0 for more detail.
Departure (Post-Encounter):
Mission Sub-phase Start Time - 2015-07-14
Mission Sub-phase Stop Time - 2016-01-09
Four weeks of post-encounter studies and five months of
downloading data.
Three additional DeParture (DP) conventions, DP1, DP2 and DP3,
were also in common use, starting on 2015-07-16, 2015-08-04 and
2015-10-22, respectively.
Transition:
Mission Sub-phase Start Time - 2016-01-09
Mission Sub-phase Stop Time - 2016-10-26
The transition sub-phase consisted of continued downlink of data
from the Pluto Encounter, as well as the Calibration Campaign,
and a few distant KBO observations in September of 2016.
KEM Cruise1
-----------
Short phase name (in DSID): KEMCRUISE1
Formal mission phase name: KEM CRUISE1
Mission Phase Start Time - 2016-10-26
Mission Phase Stop Time - TBD
Activities during the KEMCRUISE1 mission phase to the first KBO
encounter will be similar to those for Pluto Cruise phase. They
also include post-Pluto encounter calibrations in mid-2016, along
with continuing download of the Pluto encounter.
The name and times chose for this mission phase is still in flux
and may change in the future.
KEM 1 Encounter
---------------
Short phase name (in DSID): KEM1
Formal mission phase name: KEM1 ENCOUNTER
Mission Phase Start Time - TBD
Mission Phase Stop Time - TBD
Activities during this encounter are TBD, but will be similar to
the Pluto Encounter phases.
The name and times chosen for this mission phase is still in flux
and may change in the future.
Mission phases and sub-phases in data products
==============================================
Those general phase descriptions above were implemented slightly
differently in mission data products; a table of data product mission
phase and sub-phase designations follow.
+-------------+-------------+------------+----------+-----------+
| Phase | Sub-phase | UTC | DOY | MET |
+-------------+-------------+------------+----------+-----------+
| CHECKOUT | | 2006-01-16 | 2006-016 | -324483 |
| | LAUNCH | 2006-01-16 | 2006-016 | -324483 |
| JUPITER | | 2007-01-01 | 2007-001 | 29915517 |
| | JUPITER | 2007-01-01 | 2007-001 | 29915517 |
| PLUTOCRUISE | | 2007-06-29 | 2007-180 | 45381117 |
| | PLUTOCRUISE | 2007-06-29 | 2007-180 | 45381117 |
| | ACO1 | 2007-09-24 | 2007-267 | 52897917 |
| | ACO2 | 2008-01-01 | 2008-001 | 61451517 |
| | ACO3 | 2009-01-01 | 2009-001 | 93073917 |
| | ACO4 | 2010-01-01 | 2010-001 | 124609917 |
| | ACO5 | 2011-01-01 | 2011-001 | 156145917 |
| | ACO6 | 2012-01-01 | 2012-001 | 187681917 |
| | ACO7 | 2013-01-01 | 2013-001 | 219304317 |
| | ACO8 | 2014-01-01 | 2014-001 | 250840317 |
| PLUTO | | 2015-01-15 | 2015-015 | 283585917 |
| | AP1 | 2015-01-15 | 2015-015 | 283585917 |
| | AP2 | 2015-04-05 | 2015-095 | 290497917 |
| | AP3 | 2015-06-23 | 2015-174 | 297323517 |
| | CORE | 2015-07-07 | 2015-188 | 298533117 |
| | DP1 | 2015-07-16 | 2015-197 | 299310717 |
| | DP2 | 2015-08-04 | 2015-216 | 300952317 |
| | DP3 | 2015-10-22 | 2015-295 | 307777917 |
| KBOCRUISE | | 2016-01-09 | 2016-009 | 314603517 |
| | KBOCRUISE | 2016-01-09 | 2016-009 | 314603517 |
+-------------+-------------+------------+----------+-----------+
"
MISSION_OBJECTIVES_SUMMARY = "
Group 1 Objectives: Mandatory Science Floor
Characterize the global geology and morphology of Pluto and Charon
Map surface composition of Pluto and Charon
Characterize the neutral atmosphere of Pluto and its escape rate
Group 2 Objectives: Highly Desired
Characterize the time variability of the Pluto surface and atmosphere
Image Pluto and Charon in stereo
Map the terminators of Pluto and Charon with high resolution
Map the surface composition of selected areas of Pluto and Charon
at high resolution
Characterize the Pluto ionosphere and solar wind interaction
Search for neutral species including H, H2, HCN, and CxHy, and other
hydrocarbons and nitriles in the Pluto upper atmosphere
Search for an atmosphere around Charon
Determine bolometric Bond albedos for Pluto and Charon
Map the surface temperatures of Pluto and Charon
Group 3: Desirable
Characterize the energetic particle environment of Pluto and Charon
Refine bulk parameters (radii, masses, densities) and orbits of Pluto
and Charon
Search for additional satellites and rings
"
END_OBJECT = MISSION_INFORMATION
OBJECT = MISSION_HOST
INSTRUMENT_HOST_ID = "NH"
OBJECT = MISSION_TARGET
TARGET_NAME = "CALIBRATION"
END_OBJECT = MISSION_TARGET
OBJECT = MISSION_TARGET
TARGET_NAME = "CALLISTO"
END_OBJECT = MISSION_TARGET
OBJECT = MISSION_TARGET
TARGET_NAME = "CHARON"
END_OBJECT = MISSION_TARGET
OBJECT = MISSION_TARGET
TARGET_NAME = "DUST"
END_OBJECT = MISSION_TARGET
OBJECT = MISSION_TARGET
TARGET_NAME = "EARTH"
END_OBJECT = MISSION_TARGET
OBJECT = MISSION_TARGET
TARGET_NAME = "GANYMEDE"
END_OBJECT = MISSION_TARGET
OBJECT = MISSION_TARGET
TARGET_NAME = "HYDRA"
END_OBJECT = MISSION_TARGET
OBJECT = MISSION_TARGET
TARGET_NAME = "J RINGS"
END_OBJECT = MISSION_TARGET
OBJECT = MISSION_TARGET
TARGET_NAME = "J1 IO"
END_OBJECT = MISSION_TARGET
OBJECT = MISSION_TARGET
TARGET_NAME = "J17 CALLIRRHOE"
END_OBJECT = MISSION_TARGET
OBJECT = MISSION_TARGET
TARGET_NAME = "J2 EUROPA"
END_OBJECT = MISSION_TARGET
OBJECT = MISSION_TARGET
TARGET_NAME = "J6 HIMALIA"
END_OBJECT = MISSION_TARGET
OBJECT = MISSION_TARGET
TARGET_NAME = "J7 ELARA"
END_OBJECT = MISSION_TARGET
OBJECT = MISSION_TARGET
TARGET_NAME = "JUPITER"
END_OBJECT = MISSION_TARGET
OBJECT = MISSION_TARGET
TARGET_NAME = "KERBEROS"
END_OBJECT = MISSION_TARGET
OBJECT = MISSION_TARGET
TARGET_NAME = "NIX"
END_OBJECT = MISSION_TARGET
OBJECT = MISSION_TARGET
TARGET_NAME = "PLUTO"
END_OBJECT = MISSION_TARGET
OBJECT = MISSION_TARGET
TARGET_NAME = "SOLAR WIND"
END_OBJECT = MISSION_TARGET
OBJECT = MISSION_TARGET
TARGET_NAME = "STYX"
END_OBJECT = MISSION_TARGET
END_OBJECT = MISSION_HOST
OBJECT = MISSION_REFERENCE_INFORMATION
REFERENCE_KEY_ID = "STERN&SPENCER2004A"
END_OBJECT = MISSION_REFERENCE_INFORMATION
OBJECT = MISSION_REFERENCE_INFORMATION
REFERENCE_KEY_ID = "NASAAO2001"
END_OBJECT = MISSION_REFERENCE_INFORMATION
OBJECT = MISSION_REFERENCE_INFORMATION
REFERENCE_KEY_ID = "LUNINEETAL1995"
END_OBJECT = MISSION_REFERENCE_INFORMATION
END_OBJECT = MISSION
END
|