TRACE

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This article is about the space telescope. For the HTTP request method, see HyperText Transfer Protocol.

Transition Region and Coronal Explorer (TRACE)
Artist's illustration of TRACE in orbit
General information
Organization	NASA
Launch date	2 April 1998
Telescope style	Cassegrain reflector
Wavelength	white light (170 to 1000 nm) UV (~121.6/155/~160/~170 nm) EUV (17.1/19.5/28.4 nm)
Diameter	30 cm
Focal length	8.66 m

Website http://trace.lmsal.com/

TRACE (Transition Region and Coronal Explorer) is a NASA space telescope designed to investigate the connections between fine-scale magnetic fields and the associated plasma structures on the Sun by providing high resolution images and observation of the solar photosphere and transition region to the corona. A main focus of the TRACE instrument is the fine structure of coronal loops low in the solar atmosphere.

TRACE image of some typical million Kelvin loops

The satellite was built by NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center. Its telecope was constructed by a consortium lead by Lockheed Martin's Advanced Technology Center. TRACE was launched in April 1998 on a Pegasus rocket, has a 30 cm aperture and 1024 x 1024 CCD detector giving an 8.5 arc minute field of view. The telescope is designed to take correlated images in a range of wavelengths from visible light, through the Lyman alpha line to far ultraviolet. The different wavelength passbands correspond to plasma emission temperatures from 4,000 to 4,000,000 K.

Image of a sunspot taken by TRACE

TRACE mosaic of the full-disk Sun

TRACE is a SMEX or Small Explorer mission.

[edit] External links

v • d • e

Spaceflight missions studying the Sun

Orbiters

Pioneer 5 · Pioneer 6, 7, 8 and 9 · Helios probes · Ulysses · Yohkoh · GGS WIND · SOHO · ACE · TRACE · RHESSI · Hinode · STEREO