Vigil

In the late 2020s, the Vigil mission of ESA shall position a satellite at the fifth Sun-Earth Lagrange point, which trails the Earth in its orbit by 60 degrees. The mission aims to perform continuous 'side' view observations of the Sun and so particular, the space between the Earth and the Sun thereby providing measurement data for operational space weather services.

Space weather refers to the environmental conditions in space as influenced by the Sun and the solar wind. These conditions can have various effects on technological systems in space and on Earth. Space weather is typically characterized by phenomena such as solar flares, coronal mass ejections (CMEs), geomagnetic storms, and solar wind variations. These events can impact satellite operations, GPS navigation, power grids, and radio communications, among other things. Understanding and monitoring space weather is important for safeguarding both space-based and ground-based technology and infrastructure.

The Vigil based monitoring system is foreseen to substantially increase the accuracy of space weather forecasting and improve the reliability of event-based warnings when solar events take place.

The payload contains instruments which remotely observe the Sun and the direct path between the Sun and the Earth as well as sensors which monitor the magnetic field and the plasma configuration at the position of the spacecraft.

IWF partners Imperial College London in providing the fluxgate magnetometer measuring the magnetic field from very low frequencies up to about 60 Hz for Solar wind monitoring as well as the detection and characterisation of high-speed solar wind streams. IWF’s main responsibility lies in the manufacturing and test of the Power Control Unit as well as the on-ground calibration.