Mission Overview
STEREO L-1 Science Briefing
10.19.06
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Image #1 (left):The Solar and Heliopsheric Observatory (SOHO) watched CMEs streaming out into space during the notorious Halloween storms in October/November 2003. Click on the above image to play small movie (mpg) or view 640x480 version. Credit: NASA/ESA. Image #2 (right): Solar flares and coronal mass ejections (CMEs), associated giant clouds of plasma in space, are the largest explosions in the solar system. They are caused by the buildup and sudden release of magnetic stress in the solar atmosphere above the giant magnetic poles we see as sunspots. CMEs can cause magnetic storms affecting communication systems, power grids and astronauts in space. Click on image to view movie. Credit: NASA.
Image #3 (left): Model of the STEREO observatory shows each of the instruments. Click image to enlarge. + Click for 8.7 MB tif Credit: NASA/APL.
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Image #1 (above): SECCHI Instrument - The Sun Earth Connection Coronal and Heliospheric Investigation (SECCHI) will hve four instruments: an extreme ultraviolet imager, two white-light coronagraphs and a heliospheric imager.
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Image #2 (above): SECCHI deploys. This is an animation of the SECCHI instrument deploying.
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Image #3 (above): These instruments will study the 3D evolution of CME's from birth at the Sun's surface through the corona and interplanetary medium to its eventual impact on Earth. This new perspective will help us better predict where and when CME"s will arrive.
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Image #1 (above): Graphic of IMPACT instruments.
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Animation #2 (above): Boom deployment animation.
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Animation #3 (above): Particle animation.
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Image #1 (top): NASA's Heliophysics department objectives. Image #2 (left): The artist's illustration highlights the fleet of Sun-Earth observing spacecraft operated by NASA and its partners. STEREO data will often be used to complement other missions and vice versa. It also provides a unique service with its different perspective to space weather. Click image to enlarge. + High resolution image Credit: NASA
Goddard Space Flight Center