Completion of Key Phase for NASA’s IMAP Project Paves Way for Assembly and Testing

A visual rendition of NASA’s Interstellar Mapping and Acceleration Probe (IMAP) indicates that the mission aims to enrich our understanding of solar wind—streams of particles emanating from the Sun—and how these particles engage with the cosmic environment within and beyond our solar system. Credit goes to NASA, Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL), Princeton University, and Steve Gribben.

NASA’s IMAP initiative, focused on investigating the outer limits of the heliosphere, has successfully concluded a crucial stage of development and is now prepared for the subsequent phases of assembly and evaluation.

Earlier this week, the Interstellar Mapping and Acceleration Probe (IMAP) signaled the successful finalization of a pivotal stage that leads towards the assembly, testing, and launching of the spacecraft. This event took place at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) located in Maryland.

To assess the strategy for incorporating all systems into the spacecraft—including scientific apparatus, electrical and communication infrastructures, and navigation systems—the IMAP team convened with an evaluation committee. The fruitful conclusion of this System Integration Review (SIR) implies that the project is now authorized to proceed to the stages of assembling and evaluating the spacecraft in readiness for its launch. This procedure resembles a meticulously planned orchestration in which the various instruments and supporting systems are sent to separate facilities for testing, assessed collectively in specialized environments in Los Alamos, New Mexico; San Antonio, Texas; and Princeton, New Jersey; and subsequently returned for comprehensive integration and further assessment.

IMAP’s research scope will include the examination of the heliosphere, a magnetic protective layer encircling our solar system, and the particle acceleration phenomena that transpire within it. Credit is accorded to NASA, Princeton University, Johns Hopkins APL, and Josh Diaz.

On September 15, 2023, the head of the Standing Review Board declared that the IMAP initiative had met all SIR criteria, thereby granting permission for the project to advance to the integration and testing phases.

David McComas, who serves as both the principal investigator of the IMAP mission and a professor at Princeton University, expressed considerable pride in the team’s dedication and collective effort in reaching this vital milestone. He announced that the next course of action involves the integration and testing of the spacecraft, where all separate subsystems and instruments will come together to form the complete IMAP observatory.

Scheduled for launch in 2025, the IMAP mission will scrutinize our local cosmic environment, interpreting the signals found in particles originating from the Sun as well as those that penetrate our protective cosmic barrier. The mission aims to delineate the edges of the heliosphere, a magnetic bubble propelled by solar winds that envelopes the Sun and its orbiting planets.

Spearheaded by David McComas and comprising an international consortium of over 20 affiliated institutions, APL is supervising the developmental phase, constructing the spacecraft, and will subsequently administer the mission’s operations. IMAP represents the fifth undertaking in NASA’s Solar Terrestrial Probes (STP) Program collection. The Explorers and Heliophysics Projects Division at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, is in charge of overseeing the STP Program on behalf of NASA’s Heliophysics Division of the Science Mission Directorate.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) about NASA’s IMAP project

More about NASA’s IMAP project

• NASA’s Official IMAP Mission Page
• Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory IMAP Overview
• Princeton University’s Involvement in IMAP
• Solar Terrestrial Probes Program at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center
• NASA’s Heliophysics Division
• System Integration Review (SIR) Guidelines
• IMAP Mission Timeline