Abstract:  Designed and built at University of Southern California’s (USC) Space Sciences Center (SSC), the Solar EUV Monitor (SEM) on NASA/ESA SOHO (1996), and its successor Extreme Ultraviolet Spectrophotometer (EVE/ESP) on NASA SDO (2010), provided long-term in orbit EUV solar irradiance measurements for studying solar spectral variability, flare dynamics and model impacts on space weather. However, significant degradation over time of Aluminum EUV bandpass filters was observed on both SOHO/SEM and SDO/ESP in space, causing drastic reduction of their (EUV) transmission, which necessitates periodic calibrations with sounding rocket under-flights. I will present here our collective experiences (at SSC) of satellite instrument  operations/calibrations,  contamination studies, and development of improved EUV bandpass flight filters. Exposure to ionizing radiation from galactic cosmic rays and solar energetic particles at aircraft flight altitudes and above can have an adverse effect on human health. In the second half, I will talk about Automated Radiation Measurements for Aerospace Safety (ARMAS). ARMAS dosimeters provided simultaneous measurements on several scientific and commercial airliners, especially transcontinental flights at higher latitudes. The decade long
study further included measurements from the top and bottom of the atmosphere using multiple platforms at varying altitudes, comparing ARMAS measurements with current operational models (NAIRAS) for radiation exposure between ISS and commercial aviation altitudes.

About the Speaker: Dr. Vaibhav Gupta graduated with a Doctorate from University of Southern California’s Space Sciences Center, with a background in extreme ultraviolet instrumentation development for solar spectroscopy and space environment research. He was involved with EUV spectrophotometers on NASA SOHO/SDO satellites and experiments onboard several space platforms including sounding rocket under-flights and stratospheric balloons/ISS. He co-founded Livernut Mechanical, where since 2019, they have been providing scientific instrumentation research and development, software services and products for their clients in the government, national labs and private space industry.

Look forward to your active participation.