Martian Crustal Field Influence on O+ and O2+ Escape as Measured by MAVEN

Weber, Tristan; Brain, David; Xu, Shaosui; Mitchell, David; Espley, J. R.; Mazelle, C.; McFadden, J. P.; Jakosky, B. M.

doi:10.1029/2021ja029234

Cited by 17 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 76 publications

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“…The distribution of the unit flow vectors on the northern and southern hemispheres of Mars shown by Lundin et al (2011) showed such asymmetry. This effect may result in the observed local increase in the heavy-ion number density above the strong crustal field areas (Dubinin et al 2019;Weber et al 2021;Fowler et al 2022). However, the variations in V r and V j above the strong crustal sources at the southern hemisphere are not obvious.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 98%

“…Although the effects of crustal fields on the plasma escape along the Martian magnetotail have been extensively studied using MHD simulations (e.g., Ma et al 2014;Fang et al 2015Fang et al , 2017, little attention has been paid to day-to-night plasma transport. However, in the presence of crustal fields, many heavy ions remain in the strong crustal field regions, instead of being transported away (Lundin et al 2011;Matta et al 2015;Dubinin et al 2019;Weber et al 2021). This effect results in the decrease of the heavy-ion number density transported from dayside to magnetotail and reduction in the heavy-ion loss.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Influence of Crustal Magnetic Fields on Horizontal Plasma Transport and Ion Escape on Mars

Li,

Lu,

et al. 2023

ApJ

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Owing to its unevenly distributed crustal fields, Mars acts as a unique obstacle to the solar wind. In the presence of the crustal fields, the transport of the planetary ions on the dayside ionosphere exhibits north–south asymmetry. Additionally, the heavy-ion loss in the magnetotail is affected by the crustal fields. In this paper, a three-dimensional multispecies magnetohydrodynamic model is employed to simulate Mars–solar wind interactions. Numerical results indicate that the meridional transport is dominant in most areas on the dayside ionosphere. In the presence of the crustal fields, the meridional transport on the southern hemisphere (southward transport) is reduced by more than 70% above the strong crustal sources, and the zonal velocity shows local changes inside strong and weak crustal field regions. These effects result in an increase or decrease in the number density of the heavy ions reaching the terminator, thereby influencing the thickness of the ionosphere. Decreased southward velocity leads to a reduction in the heavy-ion loss on the southern magnetotail. The radial outward flux is reduced by more than 30% for O2 + and CO2 + and by 10% for O+. This study shows that in addition to the zonal transport, the meridional transport is important for the day-to-night transport on the dayside of Mars. Collectively, the horizontal plasma transport, controlled by crustal fields, is associated with the altered ionosphere structure and reduced heavy-ion loss in the magnetotail.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 98%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Influence of Crustal Magnetic Fields on Horizontal Plasma Transport and Ion Escape on Mars

Li,

Lu,

et al. 2023

ApJ

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“…For terrestrial planets in Solar System (dominated by non-thermal escape processes), it was shown that a weak magnetic field can intensify the escape, while the strong field is, in general, expected to be protective (Gunell et al 2018;Sakai et al 2018;Egan et al 2019;Ramstad & Barabash 2021). Further on, for the crustal magnetic field at Mars, the overall effect on the atmospheric mass loss depends on the configuration and inclination angle of the magnetic field (Weber et al 2021;Li et al 2022;Curry et al 2022).…”

Section: Magnetic Field and The Escape Of Planetary Atmospheresmentioning

confidence: 99%

The origin of planetary winds

Kubyshkina

2021

Proc. IAU

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Atmospheric escape is a fundamental phenomenon shaping the structure and evolution of planetary atmospheres. Physics of planetary winds range from global processes such as tidal interactions with the host star, through large-scale hydrodynamic outflow, to essentially microphysical kinetic effects, including Jeans-like escape and the interaction of planetary atmospheres with stellar winds and the own magnetic fields of planets. Each of these processes is expected to be most relevant for planets of different properties and at different stages in planetary and stellar evolution. Thus, it is expected that the hydrodynamic outflow guides the evolution of hydrogen-dominated atmospheres of planets having low masses (below that of Neptune) and/or close-in orbits, while the kinetic effects are most important for the long-term evolution of planets with secondary atmospheres, similar to the inner planets in the Solar System. Finally, each of these processes is affected by the interaction with stellar winds.

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“…Evidence from Mars missions have shown variations in magnetic field topology presumed to be a result of reconnection with crustal fields (Xu et al., 2020). Similarly, ionospheric composition and ion loss have been shown to vary depending on crustal field strength and location (Dubinin et al., 2020; Fang et al., 2017; Flynn et al., 2017; Fränz et al., 2006; Weber et al., 2021; Withers et al., 2019; Zhang et al., 2021). Crustal fields are thought to lead to departures from the nominal magnetic field draping that would occur for an un‐magnetized planet.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Magnetic Field Draping in Induced Magnetospheres: Evidence From the MAVEN Mission to Mars

Azari,

Abrahams,

Sapienza

et al. 2023

JGR Space Physics

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The Mars Atmosphere and Volatile EvolutioN (MAVEN) mission has been orbiting Mars since 2014 and now has over 10,000 orbits which we use to characterize Mars' dynamic space environment. Through global field line tracing with MAVEN magnetic field data we find an altitude dependent draping morphology that differs from expectations of induced magnetospheres in the vertical ( Mars Sun‐state, MSO) direction. We quantify this difference from the classical picture of induced magnetospheres with a Bayesian multiple linear regression model to predict the draped field as a function of the upstream interplanetary magnetic field (IMF), remanent crustal fields, and a previously underestimated induced effect. From our model we conclude that unexpected twists in high altitude dayside draping (>800 km) are a result of the IMF component in the MSO direction. We propose that this is a natural outcome of current theories of induced magnetospheres but has been underestimated due to approximations of the IMF as solely directed. We additionally estimate that distortions in low altitude (<800 km) dayside draping along are directly related to remanent crustal fields. We show dayside draping traces down tail and previously reported inner magnetotail twists are likely caused by the crustal field of Mars, while the outer tail morphology is governed by an induced response to the IMF direction. We conclude with an updated understanding of induced magnetospheres which details dayside draping for multiple directions of the incoming IMF and discuss the repercussions of this draping for magnetotail morphology.

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Martian Crustal Field Influence on O⁺ and O₂⁺ Escape as Measured by MAVEN

Cited by 17 publications

References 76 publications

Influence of Crustal Magnetic Fields on Horizontal Plasma Transport and Ion Escape on Mars

Influence of Crustal Magnetic Fields on Horizontal Plasma Transport and Ion Escape on Mars

The origin of planetary winds

Magnetic Field Draping in Induced Magnetospheres: Evidence From the MAVEN Mission to Mars

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