First observations and performance of the RPW instrument on board the Solar Orbiter mission

¹ LESIA, Observatoire de Paris, Université PSL, CNRS, Sorbonne Université, Université de Paris, 5 Place Jules Janssen, 92195 Meudon, France
e-mail: milan.maksimovic@obspm.fr
² Institute of Atmospheric Physics, Czech Academy of Sciences, Prague 14131, Czech Republic
³ LPP, CNRS, Ecole Polytechnique, Sorbonne Université, Observatoire de Paris, Université Paris-Saclay, Palaiseau, Paris, France
⁴ Swedish Institute of Space Physics (IRF), Uppsala, Sweden
⁵ LPC2E, CNRS, 3A Avenue de la Recherche Scientifique, Orléans, France
⁶ Université d’Orléans, Orléans, France
⁷ Space Sciences Laboratory, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA
⁸ Physics Department, University of California, Berkeley, CA, USA
⁹ Stellar Scientific (now HELIOSPACE), 932 Parker St Suite 2, Berkeley, CA 94710, USA
¹⁰ Department of Space and Plasma Physics, School of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Royal Institute of Technology, Stockholm, Sweden
¹¹ Goddard Planetary Heliophysics Institute, University of Maryland, Baltimore County, Baltimore, MD, USA
¹² Heliophysics Science Division, NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD, USA
¹³ CNES, 18 Avenue Edouard Belin, 31400 Toulouse, France
¹⁴ Department of Physics, Imperial College London, South Kensington Campus, London SW7 2AZ, UK
¹⁵ Technische Universität Dresden, Würzburger Str. 35, 01187 Dresden, Germany
¹⁶ Space Research Institute, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Graz, Austria
¹⁷ Faculty of Mathematics and Physics, Charles University, Prague, Czech Republic
¹⁸ Astronomical Institute, Czech Academy of Sciences, 14100 Prague, Czech Republic
¹⁹ LAM, Pythéas, Site de Château Gombert, Marseille, France
²⁰ Nexeya Conseil et Formation, 5 Rue Boudeville ZI de Thibaud, 31100 Toulouse, France
²¹ Altran Sud Ouest 4, Avenue Didier Daurat, 31700 Blagnac, France
²² Université de Rennes, 1 – Avenue du Général Leclerc, 35042 Rennes, France
²³ Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
²⁴ School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA
²⁵ School of Astronomy and Astrophysics, Glasgow University, Glasgow, UK
²⁶ Radboud Radio Lab., Department of Astrophysics/IMAPP – Radboud University, PO Box 9010 6500 GL Nijmegen, The Netherlands
²⁷ IRAP, CNRS, Université de Toulouse, UPS, Toulouse, France
²⁸ Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85719, USA
²⁹ Department of Astronomy, Faculty of Mathematics, University of Belgrade, Studentski Trg 16, 11000 Belgrade, Serbia
³⁰ ESA, ESTEC, Noordwijk, The Netherlands
³¹ Mullard Space Science Laboratory, University College London, Holmbury St. Mary, Dorking RH5 6NT, UK
³² Space Research Group, Universidad de Alcala, Alcala de Henares, Spain
³³ ESA, ESAC, Madrid, Spain
³⁴ Institute of Experimental and Applied Physics, Christian-Albrechts-University, Kiel, Germany
³⁵ Commission for Astronomy, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Graz, Austria

Received: 7 May 2021
Accepted: 20 September 2021

Abstract

The Radio and Plasma Waves (RPW) instrument on the ESA Solar Orbiter mission is designed to measure in situ magnetic and electric fields and waves from the continuum up to several hundred kHz. The RPW also observes solar and heliospheric radio emissions up to 16 MHz. It was switched on and its antennae were successfully deployed two days after the launch of Solar Orbiter on February 10, 2020. Since then, the instrument has acquired enough data to make it possible to assess its performance and the electromagnetic disturbances it experiences. In this article, we assess its scientific performance and present the first RPW observations. In particular, we focus on a statistical analysis of the first observations of interplanetary dust by the instrument’s Thermal Noise Receiver. We also review the electro-magnetic disturbances that RPW suffers, especially those which potential users of the instrument data should be aware of before starting their research work.