• DOI:10.1007/S11214-007-9262-7
• Corpus ID: 120008625

The MESSENGER Gamma-Ray and Neutron Spectrometer

@article{Goldsten2007TheMG,
  title={The MESSENGER Gamma-Ray and Neutron Spectrometer},
  author={John O. Goldsten and Edgar A. Rhodes and William V. Boynton and William Charles Feldman and David J. Lawrence and Jacob I. Trombka and David M. Smith and Larry G. Evans and J. White and Norman W. Madden and Peter Berg and Graham A. Murphy and Reid S. Gurnee and Kim Strohbehn and Bruce D. Williams and Edward D. Schaefer and Christopher A. Monaco and Christopher P. Cork and J. Del Eckels and W. Miller and Morgan T. Burks and Lisle B. Hagler and Steven J. Deteresa and Monika C. Witte},
  journal={Space Science Reviews},
  year={2007},
  volume={131},
  pages={339-391}
}

• J. Goldsten, E. Rhodes, +21 authors M. Witte
• Published 8 November 2007
• Physics
• Space Science Reviews

Abstract
A Gamma-Ray and Neutron Spectrometer (GRNS) instrument has been developed as part of the science payload for NASA’s Discovery Program mission to the planet Mercury. Mercury Surface, Space ENvironment, GEochemistry, and Ranging (MESSENGER) launched successfully in 2004 and will journey more than six years before entering Mercury orbit to begin a one-year investigation. The GRNS instrument forms part of the geochemistry investigation and will yield maps of the elemental composition of the planet surface. Major elements include H, O, Na, Mg, Si, Ca, Ti, Fe, K, and Th. The Gamma-Ray Spectrometer (GRS) portion detects gamma-ray emissions in the 0.1- to 10-MeV energy range and achieves an energy resolution of 3.5 keV full-width at half-maximum for 60Co (1332 keV). It is the first interplanetary use of a mechanically cooled Ge detector. Special construction techniques provide the necessary thermal isolation to maintain the sensor’s encapsulated detector at cryogenic temperatures (90 K) despite the intense thermal environment. Given the mission constraints, the GRS sensor is necessarily body-mounted to the spacecraft, but the outer housing is equipped with an anticoincidence shield to reduce the background from charged particles. The Neutron Spectrometer (NS) sensor consists of a sandwich of three scintillation detectors working in concert to measure the flux of ejected neutrons in three energy ranges from thermal to ∼7 MeV. The NS is particularly sensitive to H content and will help resolve the composition of Mercury’s polar deposits. This paper provides an overview of the Gamma-Ray and Neutron Spectrometer and describes its science and measurement objectives, the design and operation of the instrument, the ground calibration effort, and a look at some early in-flight data.