A Double Disturbed Lunar Plasma Wake

Rasca, Anthony P.; Fatemi, Shahab; Farrell, W. M.; Poppe, A. R.; Zheng, Yihua

doi:10.1029/2020ja028789

Cited by 8 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 60 publications

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“…Faraday's law, 𝐴𝐴 𝜕𝜕𝑩𝑩 𝜕𝜕𝜕𝜕 = −∇ × 𝑬𝑬 , is used to advance the magnetic field B in time. The model has been applied successfully to studies of interactions between the solar wind plasma and the Moon (Fatemi et al, 2017;Fuqua Haviland et al, 2019;Rasca et al, 2021), Mercury (Aizawa et al, 2021;Fatemi et al, 2020), and the asteroid 16 Psyche (Fatemi & Poppe, 2018). In our simulations, Mercury is assumed to be a spherical object of radius R M = 2,440 km with no exosphere and a surface that is a perfect plasma absorber.…”

Section: Simulationmentioning

confidence: 99%

An Eastward Current Encircling Mercury

Fatemi

Rong

Slavin

et al. 2022

Geophysical Research Letters

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Early exploration of Mercury, based on data collected by Mariner 10 during its three flybys, revealed that it was the only terrestrial planet in our solar system, other than Earth, to possess a global dipolar magnetic field (Ness et al., 1974). A subsequent mission known as MErcury Surface, Space Environment, GEochemistry, and Ranging (MESSENGER), sent the first spacecraft to orbit around Mercury (Solomon et al., 2007). It confirmed the dipolar field and found it was similar to Earth's in that the magnetic field lines of Mercury are divergent near the south pole and convergent toward the north pole; Mercury's dipole moment, however, is only about 195 ± 10 nT R M 3 (R M = 2,440 km is the radius of Mercury)-much weaker than Earth's (4/10000 of Earth's dipole moment)-and Mercury's dipole center is shifted northward by about 484 ± 11 km (0.2 R M ) (Anderson, Johnson et al., 2011). Further, Mercury has no atmosphere but possesses a tenuous surface-bounded exosphere. As the closest planet to the Sun, Mercury encounters a much stronger impingement of solar wind, whose density and dynamic pressure are an order of magnitude higher than those at Earth. In comparison to Earth, the result is a much smaller, weaker and more dynamic magnetosphere (

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Section: Simulationmentioning

confidence: 99%

An Eastward Current Encircling Mercury

Fatemi

Rong

Slavin

et al. 2022

Geophysical Research Letters

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“…This includes small objects such as charged dust (Darian et al, 2019;Miloch et al, 2017). This also includes large objects such as the Moon, see Rasca et al (2021) and references therein. As another example, investigations of solar wind interactions, including wake formation, with a metal-rich asteroid such as 16 Psyche can be used to understand the present electromagnetic environment and compare scenarios for formation and solidification (Fatemi & Poppe, 2018).…”

Section: Wakes Behind Natural Objectsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Spacecraft Wake: Interference With Electric Field Observations and a Possibility to Detect Cold Ions

et al. 2021

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Wakes behind spacecraft caused by supersonic drifting positive ions are common in plasmas and disturb in situ measurements. We review the impact of wakes on observations by the Electric Field and Wave double‐probe instruments on the Cluster satellites. In the solar wind, the equivalent spacecraft charging is small compared to the ion drift energy and the wake effects are caused by the spacecraft body and can be compensated for. We present statistics of the direction, width, and electrostatic potential of wakes, and we compare with an analytical model. In the low‐density magnetospheric lobes, the equivalent positive spacecraft charging is large compared to the ion drift energy and an enhanced wake forms. In this case observations of the geophysical electric field with the double‐probe technique becomes extremely challenging. Rather, the wake can be used to estimate the flux of cold (eV) positive ions. For an intermediate range of parameters, when the equivalent charging of the spacecraft is similar to the drift energy of the ions, also the charged wire booms of a double‐probe instrument must be taken into account. We discuss an example of these effects from the MMS spacecraft near the magnetopause. We find that many observed wake characteristics provide information that can be used for scientific studies. An important example is the enhanced wakes used to estimate the outflow of ionospheric origin in the magnetospheric lobes to about normal10 26 cold (eV) ions/s, constituting a large fraction of the mass outflow from planet Earth.

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“…To self-consistently model the solar wind interaction with Ceres, we used the Amitis hybrid plasma model (Fatemi et al 2017). Amitis is a three-dimensional, GPU-based, quasi-neutral hybrid plasma model that has been extensively used to simulate space plasma interactions with planetary bodies (e.g., Fatemi & Poppe 2018;Fatemi et al , 2020Fatemi et al , 2022Garrick-Bethell et al 2019;Haviland et al 2019;Poppe 2019;Rasca et al 2021;Shi et al 2022). The model uses a standard, bodycentered Cartesian coordinate system, where the +x axis points from the center of the body to the Sun, the +z axis points toward ecliptic north, and the +y axis completes the righthanded set.…”

Section: Baseline Modelmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Solar Wind Interaction with (1) Ceres: The Role of Interior Conductivity

Poppe¹,

Fatemi²

2023

Planet. Sci. J.

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As a potential “ocean world,” (1) Ceres’ interior may possess relatively high electrical conductivities on the order of 10−4–100 S m−1, suggesting that the solar wind interaction with Ceres may differ from other highly resistive objects such as the Moon. Here, we use a hybrid plasma model to quantify the solar wind interaction with Ceres over a range of scenarios for Ceres’ internal conductivity structure and the upstream solar wind and interplanetary magnetic field (IMF) conditions. Internal models for Ceres include one-, two-, and three-layer conductivity structures that variously include a crust, mantle, and/or subsurface ocean, while modeled solar wind conditions include a nominal case, a high IMF case, and an “extreme” space weather case. To first order, Ceres’ interaction with the solar wind is governed by the draping and enhancement of the IMF over its interior, whether from a moderate-conductivity mantle or a high-conductivity ocean. In turn, IMF draping induces compressional wings in the solar wind density and deceleration in the solar wind speed outside of Ceres. Together, all three effects are readily observable by a hypothetical orbital or landed mission with standard plasma and magnetic field instrumentation. Finally, we also consider the possible effects of unipolar induction within Ceres, which has been previously suggested as a mechanism for conducting bodies in the solar wind. Our model results show that the efficacy of unipolar induction is highly suppressed by the slow magnetic field-line diffusion through Ceres’ interior and, thus, is not a significant contributor to Ceres’ overall interaction with the solar wind.

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A Double Disturbed Lunar Plasma Wake

Cited by 8 publications

References 60 publications

An Eastward Current Encircling Mercury

An Eastward Current Encircling Mercury

The Spacecraft Wake: Interference With Electric Field Observations and a Possibility to Detect Cold Ions

The Solar Wind Interaction with (1) Ceres: The Role of Interior Conductivity

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