Chibis-M (RS 39)

Chibis-M [IKI]

Chibis-M is a 40 kg microsatellite built by the Space Research Institute (IKI). The satellite conducted ionospheric research. It was launched piggy-back on the Progress-M 13M cargo craft and was deployed from the craft after the Progress left the ISS.

Chibis-M carried a plasma-wave experiment, which was aimed at the solution of a fundamental problem – a study of the interrelation of the plasma-wave processes connected with the manifestation in the ionosphere of solar–magnetosphere–ionosphere–atmosphere connections and the parameters of space weather. The specific fundamental problem is the search for universal laws governing transformation and dissipation of plasma-wave energy in the magnetosphere-ionosphere system.

The solution of this problem was achieved employing the coordinated procedure:

1. Study in situ of the fluctuations of electrical and magnetic field, the parameters of thermal and epithermal plasma in the ionosphere near layer F during different helio- and geomagnetic conditions.
2. Study of the geomagnetic and geophysical parameters on the ground-based observatories with the time scales from 10^–1 to 10^–3 s.
3. Study of the interrelation of electromagnetic phenomena (spectra of ULF/VLF- waves) in different regions of near-earth space by means of via the comparative analysis of the wave measurements of those carry out simultaneously on different spacecrafts and ground geophysical stations.

After 2 years and months on orbit, Chibis-M reentered still operational on 16 October 2014.