Results from the ISSI Langmuir Probe Workshop: A 100-Year Workhorse, Easy to Fly but Difficult to Interpret

One of the first instruments used to monitor laboratory plasmas was the Langmuir probe (LP). This instrument is still one of the key sensors in laboratory plasma investigations. With the access to space, the first sounding rockets with Langmuir Probes were flown in 1946-1947; followed with Langmuir probes on satellites from the early 1960s and on Pioneer Venus Orbiter and subsequent interplanetary probes starting in the 1970s. This paper summarizes some of the experiences of using Langmuir probes over the last 75-years in space, what issues have been encountered, and how to overcome different known effects unique to space flight measurements. This work was done through a number of workshops attended by a number of instrument team members and supported by the ISSI organisation.