SPEAR III
Space Power Experiments Aboard Rockets
SPEAR III was the third and latest in a series of SPEAR experiments funded by MDA. The mission investigated different methods of grounding spacecraft to LEO plasma and obtained quantitative data on different charging effects observed on spacecraft in LEO. Instrumentation aboard SPEAR III included the following:
- Grounding Systems: high voltage biasing system, field effect device, hollow cathode plasma contactor, neutral gas release system, thermo-ionic emitter
- Spacecraft Grounding Experiments: differential charging device, solar cell system
- Diagnostics: energetic particle detectors, low light level video, neutral pressure gauge, optical spectrometer, skin current probes, transient pulse monitor, plasma probes
SPEAR III successfully launched on 15 March 1993 from NASA's Wallops Flight Facility.
