Scientists at the University of Iowa have been awarded funding to create a magnetic field instrument small enough to be outfitted on mini satellites that would be launched into space.

David Miles, assistant professor in the Department of Physics and Astronomy, and Ananya Sen Gupta, assistant professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering in the College of Engineering, will design and build the Constellation Ready Magnetometer, a miniature magnetic field instrument that can be deployed on satellites that weigh as little as 2 pounds.

The Constellation Ready Magnetometer will feature two nanosatellite scale sensors on a common boom that can successfully measure magnetic fields in space while eliminating background magnetic interference from the satellite.

The prototype will be tested in a specially built magnetic test facility at Iowa.

The award from the Department of Defense is for $600,000, and covers three years of research.