EPD in a nutshell

The Energetic Particle Detector (EPD) is an instrument suite part of the scientific payload aboard the Solar Orbiter Mission, dedicated to the study of Solar Energetic Particles (SEPs).
EPD will measure electrons, protons and heavy ions with high temporal resolution over a wide energy range, from suprathermal energies up to several hundreds of MeV/nucleon. EPD is composed of four units:

• STEP: Suprathermal Electrons Protons
• SIS: Suprathermal Ion Spectrograph
• EPT: Electron Proton Telescope
• HET: High Energy Telescope

Plus the Instrument Control Unit (ICU) that serves as power and data interface with the spacecraft.
The low energy population of electrons and ions will be covered by STEP and EPT, while the high energy range will be measured by HET. Elemental and isotopic ion composition measurements will be performed by SIS and HET, allowing full particle identification from a few keV up to several hundreds of MeV/nucleon. Angular information will be provided by the separate look directions from dierent sensor heads, on the ecliptic plane along the Parker spiral magnetic field both forward and backwards, and out of the ecliptic plane observing both north and south hemispheres.
EPD's unparalleled observations will provide key insights into long-open and crucial questions about the processes that govern energetic particles in the inner Heliosphere.