Dayside pickup oxygen ion precipitation at Venus and Mars: Spatial distributions, energy deposition and consequences

Luhmann, J G; Kozyra, J U

doi:10.1029/90JA01753

Title: Dayside pickup oxygen ion precipitation at Venus and Mars: Spatial distributions, energy deposition and consequences

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Abstract

The fluxes and energy spectra of picked-up planetary O{sup +} ions incident on the dayside atmospheres of Venus and Mars are calculated using the neutral exposure models of Nagy and Cravens (1988) and the Spreiter and Stahara (1980) gasdynamic model of the magnetosheath electric and magnetic field. Cold ({approximately}10 eV) O{sup +} ions are launched from hemispherical grids of starting points covering the daysides of the planets and their trajectories are followed until they either impact the dayside obstacle or cross the terminator plane. The impacting, or precipitating, ion fluxes are weighted according to the altitude of the hemispherical starting point grid in a manner consistent with the exosphere density models and the local photoion production rate. Maps of precipitating ion number flux and energy flux show the asymmetrical distribution of dayside energy deposition expected from this source which is unique to the weakly magnetized planets. Although the associated heating of the atmosphere and ionsphere is found to be negligible compared to that from the usual sources, backscattered or sputtered neutral oxygen atoms are produced at energies exceeding that needed for escape from the gravitational fields of both planets. These neutral winds, driven by pickup ion precipitation, represent a possiblymore »« less

Authors:

Luhmann, J G ^[1]; Kozyra, J U ^[2]

Univ. of California, Los Angeles (USA)
Univ. of Michigan, Ann Arbor (USA)

Publication Date:: Mon Apr 01 00:00:00 EST 1991

OSTI Identifier:: 5225078

Resource Type:: Journal Article

Journal Name:: Journal of Geophysical Research; (United States)

Additional Journal Information:: Journal Volume: 96:A4; Journal ID: ISSN 0148-0227

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

Subject:: 71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSICS; MARS PLANET; SOLAR WIND; INTERACTIONS; VENUS PLANET; CHARGED-PARTICLE PRECIPITATION; COMPARATIVE EVALUATIONS; ELECTRIC FIELDS; ENERGY SPECTRA; ENERGY TRANSFER; IONS; LOSSES; MAGNETIC FIELDS; MASS TRANSFER; MATHEMATICAL MODELS; OXYGEN IONS; PLANETARY ATMOSPHERES; SPATIAL DISTRIBUTION; ATMOSPHERES; CHARGED PARTICLES; DISTRIBUTION; EVALUATION; PLANETS; SOLAR ACTIVITY; SPECTRA; 640107* - Astrophysics & Cosmology- Planetary Phenomena

Citation Formats


                    Luhmann, J G, and Kozyra, J U. Dayside pickup oxygen ion precipitation at Venus and Mars: Spatial distributions, energy deposition and consequences.  United States: N. p., 1991. 
        Web.  doi:10.1029/90JA01753.

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                    Luhmann, J G, & Kozyra, J U. Dayside pickup oxygen ion precipitation at Venus and Mars: Spatial distributions, energy deposition and consequences.  United States.  https://doi.org/10.1029/90JA01753

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                    Luhmann, J G, and Kozyra, J U. 1991.  
        "Dayside pickup oxygen ion precipitation at Venus and Mars: Spatial distributions, energy deposition and consequences".  United States.  https://doi.org/10.1029/90JA01753.

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@article{osti_5225078,

  title        = {Dayside pickup oxygen ion precipitation at Venus and Mars: Spatial distributions, energy deposition and consequences},

  author       = {Luhmann, J G and Kozyra, J U},

  abstractNote = {The fluxes and energy spectra of picked-up planetary O{sup +} ions incident on the dayside atmospheres of Venus and Mars are calculated using the neutral exposure models of Nagy and Cravens (1988) and the Spreiter and Stahara (1980) gasdynamic model of the magnetosheath electric and magnetic field. Cold ({approximately}10 eV) O{sup +} ions are launched from hemispherical grids of starting points covering the daysides of the planets and their trajectories are followed until they either impact the dayside obstacle or cross the terminator plane. The impacting, or precipitating, ion fluxes are weighted according to the altitude of the hemispherical starting point grid in a manner consistent with the exosphere density models and the local photoion production rate. Maps of precipitating ion number flux and energy flux show the asymmetrical distribution of dayside energy deposition expected from this source which is unique to the weakly magnetized planets. Although the associated heating of the atmosphere and ionsphere is found to be negligible compared to that from the usual sources, backscattered or sputtered neutral oxygen atoms are produced at energies exceeding that needed for escape from the gravitational fields of both planets. These neutral winds, driven by pickup ion precipitation, represent a possibly significant loss of atmospheric constituents over the age of the solar system.},

  doi          = {10.1029/90JA01753},

  url          = {https://www.osti.gov/biblio/5225078},
  journal      = {Journal of Geophysical Research; (United States)},

  issn         = {0148-0227},

  number       = ,

  volume       = 96:A4,

  place        = {United States},

  year         = {Mon Apr 01 00:00:00 EST 1991},

  month        = {Mon Apr 01 00:00:00 EST 1991}

}

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