The solar wind interaction with Mars: Consideration of Phobos 2 mission observation of an ion composition boundary on the dayside

Journal Article · Mon Jul 01 00:00:00 EDT 1991 · Journal of Geophysical Research; (United States)

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1029/91JA01131· OSTI ID:5259974

Breus, T K; Dubinin, E M; Pissarenko, N F ^[1]; Krymskii, A M ^[2]; Lundin, R ^[3]; Luhmann, J G ^[4]; Yeroshenko, Ye G

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1. Space Research Inst., Moscow (USSR)
2. Rostov State Univ. (USSR)
3. Swedish Inst. of Space Physics, Kiruna (Sweden)
4. Univ. of California, Los Angeles (USA)

This paper describes the features of the boundary in the plasma ion composition near Mars which separates the region dominated by the solar wind protons from the plasma of planetary origin. This boundary was detected by the ASPERA experiment on Phobos 2. It is argued that the features of this boundary seem to be similar to those of other composition boundaries detected elsewhere: the cometopause near comet Halley, and a boundary in the ion composition which appears near Venus during periods of high solar wind dynamic pressure. Numerical modeling of the solar wind interaction with Mars supports the idea that during solar maximum the interaction of the Martian neutral atmosphere with the solar wind can result in a composition transition from solar wind to planetary ions in the low-altitude magnetosheath. This transition occurs because of charge exchange of solar wind protons with the neutral atmosphere and photoionization.

• OSTI ID: 5259974
• Journal Information: Journal of Geophysical Research; (United States), Vol. 96:A7; ISSN 0148-0227
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS
GENERAL PHYSICS
MARS PLANET
SOLAR WIND
INTERACTIONS
CHARGE EXCHANGE
COMPARATIVE EVALUATIONS
HALLEY COMET
IONIC COMPOSITION
MAGNETOSHEATH
MATHEMATICAL MODELS
NUMERICAL ANALYSIS
ORIGIN
PHOTOIONIZATION
PLASMA
SOLAR PROTONS
VENUS PLANET
BARYONS
COMETS
ELEMENTARY PARTICLES
EVALUATION
FERMIONS
HADRONS
IONIZATION
MATHEMATICS
NUCLEONS
PLANETS
PROTONS
RADIATIONS
SOLAR ACTIVITY
SOLAR PARTICLES
SOLAR RADIATION
STELLAR RADIATION
640107* - Astrophysics & Cosmology- Planetary Phenomena