Electrostatic charging of lunar dust
- Department of Physics, University of Northern Colorado, Greeley, Colorado 80639 (United States)
- LASP, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado 80309-0392 (United States)
- Department of Physics, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado 80309-0391 (United States)
Transient dust clouds suspended above the lunar surface were indicated by the horizon glow observed by the Surveyor spacecrafts and the Lunar Ejecta and Meteorite Experiment (Apollo 17), for example. The theoretical models cannot fully explain these observations, but they all suggest that electrostatic charging of the lunar surface due to exposure to the solar wind plasma and UV radiation could result in levitation, transport and ejection of small grains. We report on our experimental studies of the electrostatic charging properties of an Apollo-17 soil sample and two lunar simulants MLS-1 and JSC-1. We have measured their charge after exposing individual grains to a beam of fast electrons with energies in the range of 20{<=}E{<=}90 eV. Our measurements indicate that the secondary electron emission yield of the Apollo-17 sample is intermediate between MLS-1 and JSC-1, closer to that of MLS-1. We will also discuss our plans to develop a laboratory lunar surface model, where time dependent illumination and plasma bombardment will closely emulate the conditions on the surface of the Moon.
- OSTI ID:
- 21202192
- Journal Information:
- AIP Conference Proceedings, Vol. 446, Issue 1; Conference: 7. workshop on the physics of dusty plasmas, Boulder, CO (United States), 6-9 Apr 1998; Other Information: DOI: 10.1063/1.56692; (c) 1998 American Institute of Physics; Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 0094-243X
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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