Comparison of noise levels of two magnetometer types and their suitability for different space environments

Timmermann, Gerlinde; Fischer, David; Auster, Hans-Ulrich; Richter, Ingo; Grison, Benjamin; Plaschke, Ferdinand

doi:10.5194/gi-14-447-2025

Articles | Volume 14, issue 2

https://doi.org/10.5194/gi-14-447-2025

© Author(s) 2025. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

https://doi.org/10.5194/gi-14-447-2025

© Author(s) 2025. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

Articles | Volume 14, issue 2

Research article

|

08 Dec 2025

Research article |

| 08 Dec 2025

Comparison of noise levels of two magnetometer types and their suitability for different space environments

Gerlinde Timmermann, David Fischer, Hans-Ulrich Auster, Ingo Richter, Benjamin Grison, and Ferdinand Plaschke

Data sets

FGM Data set Hans-Ulrich Auster and Gerlinde Timmermann https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.15774337

AMR Data set Aris Valavanoglou and Gerlinde Timmermann https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.15755038

GEO Data set Gerlinde Timmermann https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.15755309

Magnetosheath Data set Gerlinde Timmermann https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.15755176

Solar Wind Data set Gerlinde Timmermann https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.15796214

EMIC Data set Benjamin Grison and Gerlinde Timmermann https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.15755257

Cluster FGM data ESA https://doi.org/10.5270/esa-hxcrsz5

Short summary

We've compared the amplitude spectral densities of a fluxgate magnetometer (FGM) and an anisotropic magnetoresistive (AMR) magnetometer during ground testing with the amplitude spectral densities obtained in different regions of near-Earth space. The FGM can measure the fields in the different space regions and their fluctuations within a frequency range of 1 mHz to 2.5 Hz. The AMR magnetometer is only suitable for more turbulent regions such as the magnetosheath due to its higher noise levels.