Fast heavy ions in the heliosphere

The study of heavy ions in space can provide a greater understanding of contemporary nucleosynthesis in our galaxy, as well as the acceleration and propagation of energetic particles in the interplanetary medium and the magnetosphere. We describe here a satellite experiment that uses plastic track detectors to study the age of cosmic-ray source material and the distribution of pathlengths over which the heaviest cosmic rays travel to earth. The experiment will also search for the singly charged particles, thought to make up the anomalous component, and for low-energy heavy ions deep in the magnetosphere.