First lunar science results from the ARTEMIS mission

Details First lunar science results from the ARTEMIS mission First lunar science results from the ARTEMIS mission

Dec 2011

adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2011agufm.p43f..03a&link_type=abstract

American Geophysical Union, Fall Meeting 2011, abstract #P43F-03

Physics

[6250] Planetary Sciences: Solar System Objects / Moon, [6025] Planetary Sciences: Comets And Small Bodies / Interactions With Solar Wind Plasma And Fields, [6030] Planetary Sciences: Comets And Small Bodies / Magnetic Fields And Magnetism

Scientific paper

After a 2-year long circuitous path from Earth to lunar orbit, the ARTEMIS spacecraft P1 and P2 are now providing the first comprehensive, two-spacecraft measurements of the lunar plasma environment. Observations from an early maneuver through the wake at ~4RL suggest that asymmetries in magnetic field and electron heat flux control the potential along the field lines and the wake, resulting in asymmetric streaming of the solar wind halo electrons through the wake, and electron beams susceptible to beam instabilities on one side. Since July 2011, wake crossings from 100s to 1000s of km extend previous observations of lunar - solar wind interactions to altitudes beyond Kaguya's. Low altitude periselenes also capture reflected ions and electrons, and instabilities that result from loss cone features and electrostatically accelerated electron beams from the surface potential. Both waves and particles are excellent remote tracers of the low altitude magnetic and electric fields. Extreme low altitude crossings in the next few months (~20km) are expected to enable direct magnetic field measurements of the crustal anomalies and their interaction with the solar wind; as well as the induced signal of electromagnetic field changes as the moon passes through the magnetotail.

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