Multineedle Langmuir Probe Operation and Acute Probe Current Susceptibility to Spacecraft Potential

NorSat-1 was launched on July 14, 2017 as a satellite carrying, among other instruments, the multineedle Langmuir probe (m-NLP), an instrument which, on NorSat-1, is capable of measuring the ionospheric plasma electron density with the high sampling frequency of 1000 Hz. The m-NLP instrument operates by analyzing the current–voltage diagram resulting from the measurements from each individual probe. In principle, the m-NLP operation methodology should be insensitive to spacecraft charging. However, this is not always the case. In this paper, we present an overview of the instrument response to passes into and out of eclipse. When the satellite exits eclipse, we observe a collapse in the collected probe currents. This acute drop is unaccounted for by the theoretical operation of the instrument. We present a statistical analysis of the phenomenon based on several months of NorSat-1 data, and we suggest a plausible reason for the observed drop in the current, namely, spacecraft charging, by solar cell arrays upon eclipse exit. We briefly discuss how satellite orientation and plasma wake affect the current drop. With this paper, we address Langmuir probe current susceptibility to spacecraft potential.