Abstract
Differential measurements of ion flow direction and energy during the third Space Shuttle mission (STSâ3) have revealed the existence of ion streams in the near vicinity of the Orbiter at angles of attack as great as 50° with respect to the ram direction and typically with 10% of the ram current intensity. Neither the source nor the mechanism by which these secondary ion streams were created are known at present; however, it is reasonably certain that they are not of geophysical origin, but result from the interaction of the Orbiter with its environmental ionospheric plasma. The energy of the secondary streams was observed to be very close to the ion ram energy and they were, therefore, not detected by a standard planar Retarding Potential Analyzer (RPA) instrument. This leaves open the question as to their existence in the vicinity of orbiting spacecraft in general. Possible connections between secondary ion streams and phenomena previously observed in the vicinity of ionospheric spacecraft are mentioned.
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