Solar Wind Composition

Description

The purpose of the solar wind composition experiment was 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. These data helped to resolve competitive theories in the fields of element synthesis, origin of the solar system, history of planetary atmospheres, and solar wind dynamics. The 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 the astronauts, and the foil was brought back with them to earth for analysis.