The Double Star magnetic field investigation: Overview of instrument performance and initial results Original Research Article

Double Star is a Chinese National Space Administration mission which augments the European Space Agency’s Cluster mission by launching an additional two spacecraft; one into an equatorial orbit and one into a polar orbit. These orbits are carefully chosen to complement Cluster by maximising the opportunities for useful conjunctions when Double Star is at the dayside magnetopause or the near-Earth tail. Accurate determination of the magnetic field vector in the range DC to 10 Hz is a primary objective of the mission. We summarise the Double Star mission aims and report on the performance of the fluxgate magnetometer experiments which are flown on both spacecraft. We also present initial results from the commissioning of the instruments.