| 1. |
- Deca, Jan, et al.
(författare)
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Reiner Gamma albedo features reproduced by modeling solar wind standoff
- 2018
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Ingår i: Communications Physics. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 2399-3650. ; 1
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- All lunar swirls are known to be co-located with crustal magnetic anomalies (LMAs). Not all LMAs can be associated with albedo markings, making swirls, and their possible connection with the former, an intriguing puzzle yet to be solved. By coupling fully kinetic simulations with a Surface Vector Mapping model, we show that solar wind standoff, an ion–electron kinetic interaction mechanism that locally prevents weathering by solar wind ions, reproduces the shape of the Reiner Gamma albedo pattern. Our method reveals why not every magnetic anomaly forms a distinct albedo marking. A qualitative match between optical remote observations and in situ particle measurements of the back-scattered ions is simultaneously achieved, demonstrating the importance of a kinetic approach to describe the solar wind interaction with LMAs. The anti-correlation between the predicted amount of surface weathering and the surface reflectance is strongest when evaluating the proton energy flux.
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| 2. |
- Fatemi, Shahab, et al.
(författare)
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Effects of protons deflected by lunar crustal magnetic fields on the global lunar plasma environment
- 2014
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Ingår i: Journal of Geophysical Research - Space Physics. - : John Wiley & Sons. - 2169-9380 .- 2169-9402. ; 119:8, s. 6095-6105
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Solar wind plasma interaction with lunar crustal magnetic fields is different than that of magnetized bodies like the Earth. Lunar crustal fields are, for typical solar wind conditions, not strong enough to form a (bow)shock upstream but rather deflect and perturb plasma and fields. Here we study the global effects of protons reflected from lunar crustal magnetic fields on the lunar plasma environment when the Moon is in the unperturbed solar wind. We employ a three-dimensional hybrid model of plasma and an observed map of reflected protons from lunar magnetic anomalies over the lunar farside. We observe that magnetic fields and plasma upstream over the lunar crustal fields compress to nearly 120% and 160% of the solar wind, respectively. We find that these disturbances convect downstream in the vicinity of the lunar wake, while their relative magnitudes decrease. In addition, solar wind protons are disturbed and heated at compression regions and their velocity distribution changes from Maxwellian to a non-Maxwellian. Finally, we show that these features persists, independent of the details of the ion reflection by the magnetic fields.
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| 3. |
- Fatemi, Shahab, et al.
(författare)
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Solar wind plasma interaction with Gerasimovich lunar magnetic anomaly
- 2015
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Ingår i: Journal of Geophysical Research - Space Physics. - 2169-9380 .- 2169-9402. ; 120:6, s. 4719-4735
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We present the results of the first local hybrid simulations (particle ions and fluid electrons) for the solar wind plasma interaction with realistic lunar crustal fields. We use a three-dimensional hybrid model of plasma and an empirical model of the Gerasimovich magnetic anomaly based on Lunar Prospector observations. We examine the effects of low and high solar wind dynamic pressures on this interaction when the Gerasimovich magnetic anomaly is located at nearly 20 degrees solar zenith angle. We find that for low solar wind dynamic pressure, the crustal fields mostly deflect the solar wind plasma, form a plasma void at very close distances to the Moon (below 20km above the surface), and reflect nearly 5% of the solar wind in charged form. In contrast, during high solar wind dynamic pressure, the crustal fields are more compressed, the solar wind is less deflected, and the lunar surface is less shielded from impinging solar wind flux, but the solar wind ion reflection is more locally intensified (up to 25%) compared to low dynamic pressures. The difference is associated with an electrostatic potential that forms over the Gerasimovich magnetic anomaly as well as the effects of solar wind plasma on the crustal fields during low and high dynamic pressures. Finally, we show that an antimoonward Hall electric field is the dominant electric field for similar to 3km altitude and higher, and an ambipolar electric field has a noticeable contribution to the electric field at close distances (<3km) to the Moon.
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| 4. |
- Fatemi, Shahab, et al.
(författare)
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The lunar wake current systems
- 2013
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Ingår i: Geophysical Research Letters. - : American Geophysical Union (AGU). - 0094-8276 .- 1944-8007. ; 40:1, s. 17-21
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We present the lunar wake current systems when the Moon is assumed to be a non-conductive body, absorbing the solar wind plasma. We show that in the transition regions between the plasma void, the expanding rarefaction region, and the interplanetary plasma, there are three main currents flowing around these regions in the lunar wake. The generated currents induce magnetic fields within these regions and perturb the field lines there. We use a three-dimensional, self-consistent hybrid model of plasma (particle ions and fluid electrons) to show the flow of these three currents. First, we identify the different plasma regions, separated by the currents, and then we show how the currents depend on the interplanetary magnetic field direction. Finally, we discuss the current closures in the lunar wake.
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| 5. |
- Lue, Charles, et al.
(författare)
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Chandrayaan-1 observations of backscattered solar wind protons from the lunar regolith : Dependence on the solar wind speed
- 2014
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Ingår i: Journal of Geophysical Research - Planets. - 2169-9097 .- 2169-9100. ; 119:5, s. 968-975
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We study the backscattering of solar wind protons from the lunar regolith using the Solar Wind Monitor of the Sub-keV Atom Reflecting Analyzer on Chandrayaan-1. Our study focuses on the component of the backscattered particles that leaves the regolith with a positive charge. We find that the fraction of the incident solar wind protons that backscatter as protons, i.e., the proton-backscattering efficiency, has an exponential dependence on the solar wind speed that varies from similar to 0.01% to similar to 1% for solar wind speeds of 250km/s to 550km/s. We also study the speed distribution of the backscattered protons in the fast (similar to 550km/s) solar wind case and find both a peak speed at similar to 80% of the solar wind speed and a spread of similar to 85km/s. The observed flux variations and speed distribution of the backscattered protons can be explained by a speed-dependent charge state of the backscattered particles.
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| 6. |
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| 7. |
- Lue, Charles, et al.
(författare)
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Scattering characteristics and imaging of energetic neutral atoms from the Moon in the terrestrial magnetosheath
- 2016
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Ingår i: Journal of Geophysical Research - Space Physics. - 2169-9380 .- 2169-9402. ; 121:1, s. 432-445
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We study hydrogen energetic neutral atom (ENA) emissions from the lunar surface, when the Moon is inside the terrestrial magnetosheath. The ENAs are generated by neutralization and backscattering of incident protons of solar wind origin. First, we model the effect of the increased ion temperature in the magnetosheath (>10 times larger than that in the undisturbed solar wind) on the ENA scattering characteristics. Then, we apply these models to ENA measurements by Chandrayaan-1 and simultaneous ion measurements by Kaguya at the Moon, in the magnetosheath. We produce maps of the ENA scattering fraction, covering a region at the lunar near-side that includes mare and highland surfaces and several lunar magnetic anomalies. We see clear signatures of plasma shielding by the magnetic anomalies. The maps are made at different lunar local times, and the results indicate an extended influence and altered morphology of the magnetic anomalies at shallower incidence angles of the magnetosheath protons. The scattering fraction from the unmagnetized regions remains consistent with that in the undisturbed solar wind (10%-20%). Moreover, the observed ENA energy spectra are well reproduced by our temperature-dependent model. We conclude that the ENA scattering process is unchanged in the magnetosheath. Similarly to the undisturbed solar wind case, it is only magnetic anomalies that provide contrast in the ENA maps, not any selenomorphological features such as mare and highland regions.
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| 8. |
- Lue, Charles, 1986-
(författare)
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Solar Wind Proton Interactions with Lunar Magnetic Anomalies and Regolith
- 2015
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- The lunar space environment is shaped by the interaction between the Moon and the solar wind. In the present thesis, we investigate two aspects of this interaction, namely the interaction between solar wind protons and lunar crustal magnetic anomalies, and the interaction between solar wind protons and lunar regolith. We use particle sensors that were carried onboard the Chandrayaan-1 lunar orbiter to analyze solar wind protons that reflect from the Moon, including protons that capture an electron from the lunar regolith and reflect as energetic neutral atoms of hydrogen. We also employ computer simulations and use a hybrid plasma solver to expand on the results from the satellite measurements.The observations from Chandrayaan-1 reveal that the reflection of solar wind protons from magnetic anomalies is a common phenomenon on the Moon, occurring even at relatively small anomalies that have a lateral extent of less than 100 km. At the largest magnetic anomaly cluster (with a diameter of 1000 km), an average of ~10% of the incoming solar wind protons are reflected to space. Our computer simulations show that these reflected proton streams significantly modify the global lunar plasma environment. The reflected protons can enter the lunar wake and impact the lunar nightside surface. They can also reach far upstream of the Moon and disturb the solar wind flow. In the local environment at a 200 km-scale magnetic anomaly, our simulations show a heated and deflected plasma flow and the formation of regions with reduced or increased proton precipitation.We also observe solar wind protons reflected from the lunar regolith. These proton fluxes are generally lower than those from the magnetic anomalies. We find that the proton reflection efficiency from the regolith varies between ~0.01% and ~1%, in correlation with changes in the solar wind speed. We link this to a velocity dependent charge-exchange process occurring when the particles leave the lunar regolith. Further, we investigate how the properties of the reflected neutral hydrogen atoms depend on the solar wind temperature. We develop a model to describe this dependence, and use this model to study the plasma precipitation on the Moon when it is in the terrestrial magnetosheath. We then use the results from these and other studies, to model solar wind reflection from the surface of the planet Mercury.
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| 9. |
- Lue, Charles, et al.
(författare)
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Solar wind scattering from the surface of Mercury : Lessons from the Moon
- 2017
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Ingår i: Icarus. - : Elsevier BV. - 0019-1035. ; 296, s. 39-48
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We discuss the surface-scattering of solar wind protons at Mercury based on observed scattering characteristics from lunar regolith. The properties of the impinging plasma are expected to be different between different regions on Mercury, and between Mercury and the Moon. Here, we review the expected Hermean plasma conditions and lunar empirical scattering models. We present observed and modeled energy spectra for scattered protons and hydrogen energetic neutral atoms (ENAs) for three cases of very different plasma conditions at the Moon. Then, we simulate scattering from the Hermean surface by applying the empirical models to four different scenarios of plasma precipitation on Mercury. The results suggest that surface-scattering is a strong source of ENAs at Mercury (up to similar to 10(8) cm(-2) s(-1)), which can be very useful for remote-sensing of the plasma conditions at the surface. Protons scattered from the surface back into space are also expected with high fluxes up to similar to 10(7) cm(-2) s(-1), and may be important for wave generation and the filling in of the loss cone of mirroring and quasi-trapped populations. Scattered protons at the cusp region (of similar to 10(6) cm(-2) s(-1)) can potentially be detected by orbiters as outflowing protons within the loss cone.
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| 10. |
- Lue, Charles, et al.
(författare)
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Strong influence of lunar crustal fields on the solar wind flow
- 2011
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Ingår i: Geophysical Research Letters. - 0094-8276 .- 1944-8007. ; 38:3
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We discuss the influence of lunar magnetic anomalies on the solar wind and on the lunar surface, based on maps of solar wind proton fluxes deflected by the magnetic anomalies. The maps are produced using data from the Solar WInd Monitor (SWIM) onboard the Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft. We find a high deflection efficiency (average ∼10%, locally ∼50%) over the large-scale (>1000 km) regions of magnetic anomalies. Deflections are also detected over weak (<3 nT at 30 km altitude) and small-scale (<100 km) magnetic anomalies, which might be explained by charge separation and the resulting electric potential. Strong deflection from a wide area implies that the magnetic anomalies act as a magnetosphere-like obstacle, affecting the upstream solar wind. It also reduces the implantation rate of the solar wind protons to the lunar surface, which may affect space weathering near the magnetic anomalies.
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