The British Antarctic Survey Low Power Magnetometer The Low Power Magnetometer (L.P.M.) systems are currently being deployed as a network along the Antarctic Peninsula and over the Antarctic Plateau. They are fully automated, operate over the whole year, and run on solar power. Earth's Magnetic Field Magnetometers measure the Earth's magnetic field, which varies from about 34,000 nT to 66,000 nT in total intensity.
Close to the magnetic poles this field points mostly perpendicularly into or out of the earths surface, whereas near the equator the field is mostly horizontal or parallel to the Earth's surface. Significant variations in the Earth's magnetic field can occur during solar activity e.g. during an aurora - if you were using a magnetic compass during such activity it could be as much as 20 deg out! The magnetometer network operated by B.A.S. in Antarctica is designed to provide information about which chemical elements are present in the upper atmosphere on the magnetic field line that threads through each system. Occasionally we will be able to check our answers against the measurements made by a NASA satellite as it passes overhead.
Together we will be able to find out how the upper atmosphere above each system responds to the changing conditions on the surface of the Sun. The L.P.M.s can not store enough power to operate all the time. In order to save power the system shuts down for 4 out of every 5 seconds. The batteries are only recharged during the day - and possibly they will go to sleep for a few weeks around midwinter. Accurate timing is very important for this project. All the systems must make a measurement at the same time. For this we use GPS timing. Data is stored to Flash memory cards which have been tested to -70 deg C. These cards will be full of data after 1 year and a site visit will be made to collect the data.
L.P.M. M80 (Edmund) looking toward the Shackleton mountain range