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MMS

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description MMS Overview

The Magnetospheric Multiscale (MMS) mission is a NASA space mission launched in 2015 to study the Earth's magnetosphere. It consists of four identical spacecraft flying in a precise tetrahedral formation to gather three-dimensional measurements. The mission's primary scientific goal is to measure and understand magnetic reconnection, a fundamental physical process that occurs in plasmas. By observing this phenomenon, scientists aim to better understand space weather phenomena.

help MMS FAQ

When did NASA launch the MMS mission, and how many spacecraft does it use?

NASA launched the Magnetospheric Multiscale mission on March 12, 2015. It uses four identical spacecraft, as described by [NASA Goddard](https://science.gsfc.nasa.gov/earth/projects/173/).

Why do the four MMS spacecraft fly in a tetrahedron?

The tetrahedral formation lets the mission measure the three-dimensional structure and timing of magnetic reconnection rather than sampling only one point. NASA has described the formation as four spacecraft flying together through Earth's magnetosphere.

What is magnetic reconnection in the MMS mission?

It is a process in which magnetic field lines connect and disconnect, changing the structure of Earth's magnetic environment and transferring energy. MMS was designed to study that process at the magnetopause and in the magnetotail.

Where does MMS study magnetic reconnection?

The spacecraft use highly elliptical Earth orbits that carry them through regions such as the dayside magnetopause and the magnetotail. Those locations are where solar-wind and Earth-magnetic-field interactions can be measured.

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