Solar Wind Composition Experiment

Description

The solar wind composition (SWC) experiment was designed to determine the elemental and isotopic composition of the noble gases and other selected elements in the solar wind by measurement of particle entrapment on an exposed aluminum foil sheet. The measurements obtained were intended to help resolve competitive theories in the field of elemental synthesis, and regarding the origin of the solar system, the history of planetary atmospheres, and solar wind dynamics. The SWC experiment detector consisted of an expanse of foil unrolled from a reel to face the sun vector and mounted on a support structure that was placed on the lunar surface. The experiment was deployed by an Apollo 14 crewman during the first EVA, and the foil and reel were retrieved during the last EVA.