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Vega 1
The Vega mission combined a rendezvous with comet Halley and an exploration of the atmosphere of Venus. To increase the reliability and the overall return of the science data, the mission consisted of two spacecraft, Vega 1 and Vega 2. They were launched on 15 and 21 December 1984, respectively. On 11 and 15 June 1985, they successfully delivered balloons into the Venus atmosphere. The two spacecraft then successfully encountered Halley on 6 and 9 March 1986. Their closest approaches were 8.89 km and 8.03 km, respectively. They were intended to measure the physical parameters of the nucleus, such as dimensions, shape, temperature and surface properties, as well as to study the structure and dynamics of the coma, the gas composition close to the nucleus, the dust particles' composition and mass distribution as functions of distance to the nucleus and the cometary-solar wind interaction. Spacecraft operations were discontinued a few weeks after the Halley encounters.
The SBN also has data sets from the Vega 2 mission in its archives.
The SBN led the effort to restore and archive data from the Vega missions into the PDS.
Instruments
- Instrument Details (Data from these instruments are archived at SBN.)
- Television System (TVS)
- Infrared Spectrometer (IKS)
- Dust-Particle Counter and Mass Analyzer (DUCMA)
- Dust-Particle Impact Plasma Detector 1 (SP-1)
- Dust-Particle Impact Detector 2 (SP-2)
- Dust Mass Spectrometer (PUMA)
- Plasma Energy Analyzer (PM1)
- Energetic Particle Analyzer (TN-M)
- Magnetometer (MISCHA)
- Other Instruments (Spacecraft has other instruments, data from which are archived at another PDS node.)
- Three-Channel Spectrometer (TKS) - Composition of coma and tail, polarization and spectrum of light component diffused by dust, primary molecules, spectral signature of nucleus
- Shield Penetration Detector (PHOTON) - Flux density of high-mass dust particles
- Neutral-Gas Mass Spectrometer (ING) - Distribution of main and secondary constituents of cometary atmosphere
- Plasma-Wave and Ion-Trap Experiment (APV-N) - Interaction between solar wind and cometary atmosphere
- Electric-Field and Langmuir-Probes Experiment (APV-V) - Solar wind-comet interaction, mass loading, plasma-density and temperature profiles and signatures of collision-free shocks
Data Sets
1P/Halley Encounter
- Vega 1 Television System, Raw Images
- Vega 1 Television System, Processed Images
- Vega 1 Infrared Spectrometer, Raw Data
- Vega 1 Infrared Spectrometer, Processed Data
- Vega 1 Dust Particle Counter and Mass Analyzer Results
- Vega 1 Dust Impact Plasma Detector, Electrode Collector Data
- Vega 1 Dust Impact Plasma Detector, Acoustic Sensor Data
- Vega 1 Dust Impact Mass Analyzer, Raw Data
- Vega 1 Dust Impact Mass Analyser, Processed Data
- Vega 1 Plasma Energy Analyzer Observations
- Tunde-M Energetic Particle Analyser Data
- Vega 1 Fluxgate Magnetometer Original Data for Comet Halley and Solar Wind
- Vega 1 Fluxgate Magnetometer Comet Observations
- Vega 1 Fluxgate Magnetometer Observations of Solar Wind
- Stooke Small Body Shape Models including Halley
Other Target Observations
Related Datasets
Use the Small Bodies Data Ferret to find other datasets for this mission/target.
SBN Mgr:
Last updated: Thursday November 20, 2014